Add a Little Magic!

When the weather is gray and cold, the days still feel excessively short and the beautiful sun is absolutely nowhere to be found for days at a time, I must continually remind myself that I am the one who decides if I'm going to have a dreary, sad day or an upbeat, postive one.  It's so easy sometimes to "slip" into that lonely place of isolation, especially when you depend on seeing the sun to keep you sane!  (I'm a Southern girl; the absence of sun is challenging for me to grasp sometimes).  When I begin to feel a little sad, I am reminded that I have the ability to add my own sunshine and magic to my day.  Whether it is sharing a few playful moments with my dog, having a meaningful and funny conversation with my husband, or creating or discovering something new and exciting, the rays of sunshine slowly come shining through.  It's totally up to me to recognize these precious events as magical moments to be treasured.  One of my absolute favorite quotes is by Dr. Wayne W. Dyer:  “If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” I choose to see sunshine and magic in each and every day, regardless of the weather.  I encourage you to do the same. 

Prescription for the Blues

These beautiful prints are by a husband-and-wife design team Angi Sullins and Silas Tobal of Duirwaigh Studios.  I just adore these gorgeous pictures.  Something about the lovely colors, the complicated layering and beautiful quotes speak to me and inspire me to learn more about this creative outlet.  I'm feeling a little blue tonight (I blame it on the lack of sunshine here in the Midwest and endless cold days), and when that mood strikes me, I find solace and peace in such beauty.  I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!  For more eye candy, another fantastic mixed-media artist is Anahata Katkin.  I find her work is comparable to Duirwaigh's; both are equally mesmerizing.  When you feel a little blue too, visit their blogs:  Angi has two - Message from the Muse and Angi in Wonderland and Anahata's blog is Anahata Katkin.  A certain prescription to bring some sunshine to your day!

New Horizons with Digital Art

I love learning about new things.  When I'm not working, I am researching fun and informative artful avenues.  My latest obsession and interest is exploring the amazing and mesmerizing world of digital art.  Digital art is much easier shown than explained, thus the beautiful pictures I've included in this post.  This artwork was designed by Izabella, a digital, mixed media collage artist who creates absolutely unique and stunning work.  Each time I visit her blog and browse through her photos, I'm inspired to learn more about this creative, digital world.  For those of you who are familiar with my jewelry from Artistic Adornments, you may recognize that many of my soldered pieces are made with digitally enhanced pictures.  I aspire to ultimately create my own, personal artwork to include in my jewelry.  Until then, I will continue to use artists, like Izabella, who have mastered the art of digital mixed media.  To continue on my path of exploration, I'm ordering "Digital Expressions:  Creating Digital Art with Adobe Photoshop Elements", a book by Susan Tuttle, which provides the reader and mixed-media artist through 25 stepped-out digital projects created with Adobe Photoshop Elements.  Stay tuned as I'm sure I'll let you know the exploration progression! In the meantime, have fun checking out the blogs of Izabella, Izabella's Blue (http://izabella.typepad.com/izabellas_blue/) and Susan Tuttle, Ilka's Attic (http://ilkasattic.blogspot.com/).

Don't Be Afraid to Play

I love color! Vibrant, brilliant or muted, colors can be the key to major transformations within your home, your wardrobe or your appearance. Color enables painters to manifest beautiful artwork, interior decorators to build beautiful spaces within our homes and fashion designers to create trendsetting statements each season. As a makeup artist, a huge aspect of my job is to continually look for colors that compliment my customers and make them feel spectacular. I'm always looking for new and interesting color combinations that are playful, expressive and most of all, that work! I look for colors that exist together in nature, I analyze artwork for new ways of visualizing color selections and I play with different color mediums. When experimenting with different colors, the most rewarding thing you can do for yourself is to have fun and play! Don't be afraid to get down and dirty with mixing and for added fun, research a little research on color theory. See things through the eyes of a child; they never question if green goes with purple - they just put them together and make them work. For fun, visit www.TAAZ.com. It's a website that allows you to be your own virtual hairstylist and makeup artist. Enjoy!

Finding Your Creative Muse

We are all creative beings, but let's face it; we all need a little inspiration every now and then. There are times when I become stagnant and put my creativity on autopilot, resorting to methods that are tried and true, but that do not challenge me or provide me with much needed variety. It is during these I seek a muse. A muse is a guiding spirit or goddess that is thought to inspire a poet or other artist. Muses originate from classical Greek mythology. Zeus, the sky and weather god and Mnemosyne, the Greek goddess of memory and considered one of the most powerful goddesses of her time, had nine daughters each of whom presided over song, poetry, arts and sciences. These daughters were known as muses. Now you don't have to channel the creative spirits of Calliope, Clio, Erato or Thalia, but you can find your muse in everyday surroundings. I find inspiration in the beauty of nature that surrounds me, the innocence and unbridled spirit of children and animals and the simple peace that greets me each day. The key is to become more aware of where your inspiration originates, and allow it to integrate with your creative endeavors. Sometimes, inspiration is found where and when you least expect it. Just stay aware and expect your muse to manifest. Now I'm off to do some manifestation of my own. Happy musing!

The Shift

“Remember to be gentle with yourself and others. We are all children of chance and none can say why some fields will blossom while others lay brown beneath the August sun. Care for those around you. Look past your differences. Their dreams are no less than yours, their choices no more easily made. And give, give in any way you can, of whatever you posses. To give is to love. To withhold is to wither. Care less for your harvest than for how it is shared and your life will have meaning and your heart will have peace.”
~Unknown

I just had the opportunity to watch a beautiful movie, "The Shift" by Dr. Wayne Dyer. I can't explain how refreshing and uplifting it was for me, especially during a time when most of us are feeling a bit drained, tired and maybe a little bit sad because the holidays are coming to an end. Although this lovely movie provides an abundance of knowledge and guidance, one main focus resides in the area of giving of oneself to make this world a better place. Not giving because it's expected or because you anticipate something in return, but giving selflessly and without expectations. A new year will soon be upon us, and provides us with an opportunity to reach out to help others in need. I am challenging myself to look for avenues to give more in 2010, and I encourage you all to do the same. May God Bless you all, and Happy New Year!

"The Sun Never Says" --Hafiz
Even after all this time
the sun never says to the earth, "You owe Me."
Look what happens with a love like that,
It lights up the Whole Sky.

Mountain Vacation

I simply cannot believe that it's been an entire month since I've last posted to my blog! Although it is an ongoing "work in progress", I still aspire to post more often than a month at a time. For those of you who do occasionally read my posts, I sincerely apologize. During this past month, I am happy to report that I actually went on vacation to Gatlinburg, Tennessee. For those of you who are not familiar, I encourage you to do a little research. It makes for the perfect mountain escape. The air was crisp, the weather was perfect - sunshine the entire time - and I was able to spend much needed valuable time with friends and family. This made it the perfect little getaway. My brother and his lovely fiance also finally tied the knot! A time of celebration and wonderful memories to last a lifetime. Speaking of memories, just a reminder that as we are all getting into the holiday festivities, which can sometimes feel overwhelming and draining, don't forget that each day we are making memories and we choose whether they are good and positive, or negative and bad. Remember to continually give thanks while fighting the crowds during shopping! Keeping your attitude on the right track will ensure that your holiday season gets off to a smooth start and stays that way! Cheers and happy shopping! Don't forget to check out Artistic Adornments for some great holiday gift ideas :-)