"Spiritual Insight..."

“He who experiences the unity of life

sees his own Self

in all beings,

and all beings in his own Self,

and

looks on everything with an impartial eye.”
~Buddha

"Beautiful Bling From Tiffany's..."

...didn't always fit into that signature

turquoise blue box. :)

Some of the best treasures to me are the legendary

Tiffany windows

so meticulously designed

in gemlike colors of stained glass.

So...in light of that fact...

I present here

a Louis Comfort Tiffany inspired piece

made as a precursor for a multiple card ATC

"Tiffany Window Panels" swap

at Illustrated ATCs.

What an artistic family!

Louis Comfort Tiffany was the son of

Charles Lewis Tiffany (1812–1902),

known as the "King of Diamonds" and

founder of Tiffany & Company,

the fancy goods store

that became the renowned jewelry and silver firm

with the most spectacular diamonds

and

the famous blue boxes.

♥

Happy Blooming Tuesday! :)

"Target: Cacti..."

Cacti, Oh! cacti! wherever I go...

I wish all the names of these plants I would know.

I found them at Target

on Lake Pleasant Road...

Now, they're a blog post...Cactus Monday to show!

♥

Have a wonder filled day...so glad Spring's in the air-

(Unless you're "down under"...it's autumn o'er there.)

So, get out your sketch stuff

and find some nice plants...

Maybe draw them or paint them...just let your Muse dance.

♥

Let's meet next week Monday...in blogville alright?

At Teri's Painted Daisies...we can share with delight...

all our succulents, cacti

and exotic plants too!

"Cactus Monday" is such fun...let's all shout WooHOO!!

♥

Click on any image to enlarge...:)

"Resurrection..."

Wishing

you and your loved ones

blessings, joy, peace, and light

during

this glorious season of renewal and promise.

"It is the hour to rend thy chains,

The blossom time of souls."

~Katherine Lee Bates

"Six Word Saturday..."

Hula skirted palms are performance ready!

Click on image to enlarge...:)

See other Six Word Saturdays here. :)

"Two Buds Left..."

...nakedly leafless...trimmed down to the very nubs

and

currently propped up in a squatty bit of a

hand made vase.

Happily rescued from the inevitable

and

terminal fate of the rest of their

droopy headed sisters...

they now enjoy a fresh new life within

the bulging pages of my red

Hand.Book. journal.

Illustration Friday: "RESCUE"

"Rescue me...

Oh take me in your arms.

Rescue me...

I want your tender charms.

'Coz I'm lonely and I'm blue...

I need you...

and

your love too...

Come on and rescue me!"

~Sung by Aretha Franklin

"More Amazing Trades...No Foolin' :) "

...from Joanne in Kentucky...
...from Teresita in Malaysia...
...from Laura In Georgia...
From in Lela in Utah...
...from Elaine in New Jersey...

...from Nadine in Germany...

...from Cheryl in Utah...

...from Janet in Texas...

...from Heidi in Canada...

and last...from Julie in Texas.

It has been a wonderfully busy trading season.

The work is intense...

but the rewards are immense...:)

Thank you

each and every one!

Pop in on these artists if you have a minute to spare...

Fabulous "eye candy" is everywhere!

Click on any image to enlarge...:)

"Sacred Waters..."

...from my Silk Sari ATC collection

makes an highly dramatic

flip

while using Microsoft Editor.

I just had to share!

I really, really love artsy surprises like these.

:)

“The moments of happiness we enjoy

take us by surprise.

It is not that we seize them,

but

that they seize us.”
~Ashley Montagu

"A Spring Desert Palette..."

...from bougainvillea to brittlebush...

so bountifully blooming and wildly beauteous!

Click on any image to enlarge...:)

Enjoy!

"Be Aware of the GIANTS...!"

...the Argentine Giants,

(a.k.a. Echinopsis candicans) that is!

Height:

Height to about 3 feet. Spreading to about 7 feet.

Flowers:

White with yellow centers, very fragrant,

up to 8 inches in diameter.

Blooming Time:

March - April.

Segments:

Green stems are stems 3 or 4 inches thick.

Fruit:

Purple, with a red pulp.

Elevation:

0 - 2,800 Feet.

Habitat:

Sandy flats. Full sun. A xeriscape landscape plant.

Native to Argentina.

(PSST...Reports have it that they are being spotted

EVERYWHERE!!!

My neighborhood is full of them.

Be on the alert...You just might see some, too!)

Have a Happy Cactus Monday...

and

keep your eyes peeled for giant surprises!

:)

“Surrounding yourself with dwarfs

does not make you

a giant.”
~Yiddish Proverb

"How Could I Resist..."

THIS!!!

"Lemon-Lime Sour Cream Meringue Pie

with Fresh Raspberries & Sliced Kiwi,

Baked in an Almond Pie Crust"

as quoted directly

from the desert menu at the Tonto Bar & Grill

in Cave Creek Arizona...

where Scott and I

met mom and dad for lunch yesterday.

Check out their website...

for a real taste of "Arizona flavor".

See awesome photos of the property

and feast your eyes on delights beyond imagination.

Seriously.

It was a glorious spring day...lovely family time...

with

an amazing dessert...to top it all off.

So now, I ask you again...

Really...how could I resist??? :)

Life is good!

"Floral Splatter..."

...in my little red Hand.Book sketchbook.

(And, no, I STILL haven't completed the book...)

I had a beautiful bunch of roses

gifted me by my sweetie for the first day of Spring

and have just now gotten around to painting

one of them.

The other two "flowers" were painted several weeks ago

with out any references...just my ole

imagination to rely on...

which didn't do the tulip any justice at all!

So...I have decided that

in the interest of becoming a better observer of floral life

I will make it a point to visit Trader Joe's

this week and treat myself to a

one of their exquisite floral bouquets...

and then paint like crazy until the "cows come home"!

There...I've said it...well, written it...

right here in public even.

Expect great things! :)

P.S. Does anyone out there have any good tips

about

how to create loose spatter

on a painting without it looking like

like a kindergarten paint war??

(...ie. see above...)

Yes??? Fingers and toes crossed...

Drop me a line...LOL:)

"People from a planet without flowers

would think

we must be mad with joy the whole time

to have such things about us."

~Iris Murdoch

"An Open Letter...From Danny Gregory..."

...as taken today from the Everyday Matters Group Blog:

"Dear Friends:

As you have heard, my wife Patti passed away last week. She was a lovely, creative person who gave me strength, inspiration, ideas and love. She was always extraordinarily positive -- despite what the pathetic initial media reports may have told tell you.

A couple of days ago, our friends put together a lovely tribute to her memory. Hundreds of people jammed the place, singing songs, sharing stories, crying, laughing, and celebrating her life and approach to it. She touched so many, and the spheres of her influences all came together on Wednesday night: artists,musicians, school friends, librarians, fashionistas, moms, dads, kids, chefs, florists, all celebrating the bright perspectives and willingness to take risk with which she infected them all. There was huge crowd out on the street that couldn't get in to share the festivities. I was never prouder of her.

Everyday Matters was the fruit of our family's mission to celebrate our daily gifts in the face of the random crap life throws at us. That mission grew from Patti's heart. The fact that she has gone does not diminish the importance of this mission to me and to all of us. Life is wonderful. Its riches don't lie in bank accounts or career success or power or fame. We just need to look around us, at the beauty of a wrinkled orange skin, the ray of sunshine across a wooden table, the shape of a napping pet, an abandoned shoe, a building against the sky. To reap those riches, I use a pen and a small book. I meditate on what I see, and transcribe that reflection in my book. The lines I make , sometimes sure and sharp, sometimes wobbly and vague, are the deposit I make in my account, the way I capture life's true rewards and value.

In the days following Patti's death, I lost my appetite, my ability to sleep, my concentration, my will. I hesitated to pick up a pen. Nothing seemed to matter, let alone the everyday. But then, after some time spent staring into space, I began again to draw. And I must and will continue. Drawing brings me meaning. To abandon it would betray Patti's memory and myself. I hope that if you are hesitating to draw, beating yourself up because you're not good enough, telling yourself you have no time to spare, feeling distracted and down, remember that, though life can be plucked from us at any moment, it is full of wonder and beauty. Keeping an illustrated journal is the perfect way to capture and treasure the gems that lie all around us. A few minutes a day make it all worth while.

Patti was never a member of the EDM group but she met many of its members, and loved the goals of the community. She made things all the time, knitting, sewing, singing, making collages, gifts, drawings, paintings, flower arrangements, photos, and more. Creativity was her passion and she loved people who loved to create. I hope you will help to keep her love and spirit alive.

Your pal,
Danny"

I felt this to be "must read" for all of us.

It was Danny Gregory who started me on this journey.

Through him I met Anita.

She took me under her wing

and introduced me to a whole new artistic world.

I began my days as an artist/blogger...

and

the rest is history.

Every single minute of every single day

really DOES matter.

I rededicate my art to that purpose.

"Time is Running Out..."

...actually it is about to expire

as far as the Illustration Friday deadline

for last week's drawing prompt:

"Expire."

It was proving to be a rather tricky topic for me...

until I took a good long look

at our beautiful and bountiful lemon tree.

Mmm...

it's fragrance this season has been heaven like.

But, what a curious thing I found!

The lemon tree was bursting with fruit,

and

covered with new white buds

and

decorated with graceful white blossoms

heavily draped in pollen,

and

deeply skirted below by petals and stamens and all kinds of

expired flower parts which have

fallen to the ground!

ALL at the same time!!!

Whew!!

The branch I drew above was attached

to a branch with ripe fruit!

And...

on this one branch I drew there were

multiple stages of life...

from a brand new bud...to a fully blooming flower...

to an expired bloom...to flower bits...

which disintegrated upon the slightest touch...

(Ah CHOO!)

to the start of a tiny new lemon

not much more than a quarter of an inch in size...

deep green in color...

waiting to grow and bloom

next season!

Wow!

This little tree just doesn't want to give up!

Maybe we can all learn an important lesson from that...:)

Illustration Friday: "EXPIRE"

“Wisdom is perishable.

Unlike information or knowledge,

it cannot be stored in a computer or recorded in a book.

It expires

with each passing generation.”

~Author Unknown

"Ten Terrific Trades For Today..."

...#1 from Lubna in the U.K.
...#2 from Janet in Texas...
...#3 from Verlene in Oregon...

...#4 from Bonnie In Pennsylvania...

...#5 from Karen in Ohio...

#6 from Kristy in Kansas...

...#7 from Lisa in Arkansas...

...#8 from Janet in the U.K....

...#9 from Beth in Arizona...

...and last, but not least...#10 from Harriet in Indiana!

What a great week of fun mail...

a real treat...my collection is so rich in talent!

Pop in on any of these fabulous artists

to see more of their work...

and, as always...click on any image to enlarge.

The detail in these cards is gorgeous! :)

Thanks all!

"Timeless Thoughts..."

“God,

grant me the serenity

to accept the things I cannot change,

the courage

to change the things I can,

and

the wisdom

to know the difference.”
~Reinhold Niebuhr

(American theologian, 1892-1971)

"Winter 'Choose A Theme' Swap..."

...at Illustrated ATCs...:)

The theme I chose was "Ancient Patterns"...

4 cards for the swap...one card as a hostess gift.

Since one player was unable to complete the task...
in my group
I received the three cards above
and
one of my own was returned...:)
The cards above are L-R from:
"Anaryawe" in Finland..."Portraits of Oscar Wilde",
Elina also from Finland..."Steam Engines",
and
Kati from California..."Nick Bantock style collages."

This was a really fun experience.
Hopefully, this spring there will be another similar swap!
(Click on images to enlarge to better see detail work.)