My mom passed away today.
This is her, August 10, 1942, Glenn, on Lake Michigan.
Peace.

lately I have....

set up this vignette on my windowsill to welcome prosperity...

made these adorable buntings after I saw Gennine's and had to have my own...

made cranberry relish with orange zest a while back for our Canadian Thanksgiving...

New Pretty Handmade Dishes...

I've been busy. These are new. I like them. I also have some with fishies on them, I'll post soon. A few of these are now up in my Etsy Shop.

Here's my (late!) contribution to this week's Mixed Media Monday topic Mothers and Daughters. The photo I used in this piece was taken 17 years ago, young mama me with my tiny baby girl. I was so joyful and so exhausted!

What's Making Me Happy Right Now

It's been a rough week. I'm looking for happy. Where is my happy?

• my husband's apple pie
• the autumn light and colour
• this spread from the Fired Earth Book of Fabric (yes, that's an elephant):
• 
• this face:
• 

• pouring over this blog
• this song: M.C. Yogi - Rock On Hanuman (featuring Krishna Das)
  
  

Where is your happy today?

Art Challenges

One of my goals for the season is to spend more time in creative play, and to share that play. Because I make art as my livelihood, I can get caught up in the work and neglect my spontaneous creativity (which doesn't always present itself as a way to immediately get the bills paid!) In the short term this is OK, but in the long term this neglect can lead to burnout and stagnation in my work. One of the ways I've chosen to keep myself accountable to my goal of more creative play is by participating in two on-line art challenges that I really enjoy: Mixed Media Monday, and Illustration Friday. Mixed Media Monday, as you might guess, focuses on mixed media; the fun, active, friendly, talented community of MMM artists are a nice international mix, mostly women, and mostly those who make art for the love of it and not necessarily for a living. Illustration Friday encompasses all media, and participants run the gamut from professional illustrators to new artists. Both sites announce a weekly theme around which you can create your piece. I invite you to join me as I jump into these challenges!

Above is my (slightly late) submission for this week's MMM challenge, "Maps". These tiny works are Artist Trading Cards made from maps of the Caribbean. I made these during a time when I was doing lots of reading about Afro-Caribbean spirituality, music, and culture; my mind and heart were occupied by both the unspeakable horror of the slave trade, and the brilliant beauty of West African spirituality in diaspora. Something of these thoughts went into these tiny pieces.

Artful Life Moon Circle - Full Moon Check In

About the Artful Life Moon Circle:

It's moon circle time again! Here on the Artful Life we meet at each New and Full Moon to share inspiration and intentions, and to align our energies with the lunar cycles. Anyone is welcome to join the Moon Circle! If this is your first Moon Circle, read this post to find out what it's all about. You can also click here for a printable (and pretty) guide to the moon phases, from me to you. If you'd like to read all the Artful Life Moon Circles, click here.

October Full Moon Check In:

The moonrise last night was stunning. We were driving home along the coastal road; over the mountains, the sky was a brilliant pearl blue scattered with tiny poufs of grey cloud, their undersides glowing first with pink and then with unearthly purple red. The moon rose huge and brilliant white over the ocean. This big breathtaking moon seemed just right for me; this last cycle has been so big! After a few months of feeling stuck, or at least slowed down in my journey, the last two weeks have felt like a real growth spurt - a reminder that the trajectory of personal growth is not a steady, predictable line, but more like a beautifully complex spiral pattern, full of repetitions and apparent setbacks, but also mysterious leaps and moments of giddy acceleration. The intention I set at New Moon was to allow myself to accept, receive, ask for and recognize support. I am awed and grateful for the many, many opportunities I've had in the last two weeks to feel and be supported by the universe!

On the New Moon, we expressed intentions to RECEIVE, RESTORE, BE AWARE, STRETCH OUR BOUNDARIES, and SEW SEEDS OF COMMUNITY. How has this cycle been for you? How did those intentions manifest, or fail to manifest? What does your journey of growth feel like right now? Are you gritting your teeth waiting for something, anything, to shift, or are you hanging on for dear life? Can you remember to look at the big pattern? What are you ready to release, what can dwindle in the next two weeks as the moon wanes? Where is the magic in your life right now? Tell us!

Here's a mixed media piece I made in 2008. I gave it to my sweet cousin, who is getting married this week!!!! I wish her (and all of us!!!) a home and partnership which always provide safety, sanctuary, joy, and a place to nest!

My cousin is getting married next week. This afternoon I made this card for the wedding; she loves pink peonies as much as I do. I personalized the postmark with the date and place of the wedding. I'm flying out this weekend to indulge in week long girl fun and wedding prep with my daughter, aunt, and cousins at my aunt's beautiful farm house, followed by the wedding weekend at a gorgeous resort on Lake Michigan. Yum! Chances are I'll be away from this space for a week or so, but then back with new inspiration and post-celebration glow on!