The Day After...

...the Royal Wedding. Well I'm not a Royal Watcher but like I said the other day my friend is. So as you will recall she invited me to watch the Royal Wedding at her house. So at 3:45 am, I trudged to Baltimore in my finest complete with a hat. When I arrived, the speculation of hat or fascinator was answered. Charmaine wore a fascinator.  She had invited another friend but I guess Sandi slept in.

Charmaine went all out and  had a beautiful tea set up for us. There were tea sandwiches & scones & biscuits....you name it. The table was set up with lace fine china and complete with flowers.

So we spent 4 hours, sipping tea, eating crumpets, having fun hat watching and getting ideas for future hat purchases.

It was an early day and a little early for all those sweets, but it was fun to spend the morning with a good friend.

Paint Party Friday

Another fabulous Paint Party Friday. Today's PPF post is an ACEO. It is watercolor.

It's making me a little crazy because I see something wrong that needs to be corrected. If I get time today I may try to change it. But for right now, it will have to stay this way. It's already in my Etsy shop. Oh my. Well can you see it? Take a guess. Saturday I'll post a comment to tell you what's making me nuts and we can compare notes.

Anyway on to another subject. I was watching the news this morning at the devastation in the south. It breaks my heart to see the damage and the loss of life. Keep those affected by the storms in your prayers. They are most certainly on my mind and in my prayers. I hope none of you are affected by them.


Check out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com
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The link to the Lily in my Etsy shop:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/72642103/watercolor-aceo-original-water-lily

Royal Ado Hat or Fascinator?

It seems that the Royal Wedding has caused a Royal Ado. You cannot go to any channel without seeing something speculating on what Kate will be wearing or who will be attending. Then there's the interviews with the fashion designers ad nauseam. Today the morning shows were outside the Palace. The world seems to have the Royal Fever.

Even one of my friends has it. She called the other day. The conversation went like this.

Charmaine (Char)

Char: What are you doing Friday? Me: I think I'm free. What do you have in mind? Char: I know you are an early bird. Can you be at my house at 5:30 am.?  Me: For what?????  Char: for the Royal Wedding and don't forget to wear a hat. Me: What???? Char: Well I've invited another friend and will be making breakfast. Me: 5:30 am? That means I have to get up at 4:30 to get dressed and drive to Baltimore. Char: But I know you are an early bird. Me: Well see.

So  what are you doing at 5:30 am EST on Friday? I'm probably going to go to my friend's house. She's a pastry chef so I know breakfast will be awesome and she's been out of town for a couple months. So I will go to see her not Kate.  But NOW I have to decide a fascinator like Char's or a hat. I've got lots of them in all colors!

cRaZy Dreams

What's with me? Lately I have had the craziest dreams. I used to have crazy dreams but then they went away or I couldn't remember them. Well the other night I had a crazy one and last night, here we go again.

I somehow got a new pet. A chicken. Now it wasn't a cute little chick like the one in my ACEO. NO it was a full grown chicken! Big and YELLOW. And it was running around my house. Then I noticed a few spots on the carpet. So I put the chicken in a diaper. She was having a grand ole time.

A good little pet. She even talked. She told me she couldn't call me Momma because she already had a chicken Momma. My nickname is Momma Jo so I'm guessing I must have had that on my mind. Not sure why the chicken although my brother did made grilled chicken last night on the grill at my parents and I went over there for dinner. Maybe I was having pangs of guilt. The dream ended when I didn't have another diaper and I was trying to get my husband to go to the store to buy a box of diapers......how crazy is that? Tell me your crazy dreams!

Sunday Sketches

Another one of my pages from the Sketchbook Project 2011.....colored pencil.

I took this photo of the two pelicans in Key West. It was one of those things...take it because I want to paint it one day. One day doesn't usually come but it did in this case.

 Hope you all have a Blessed Easter....off to my parent's house today!

Enjoy the Sunday Sketch and for more awesome art visit http://bluechairdiary.blogspot.com/

Paint Party Friday

This week's PPF ACEO is a watercolor....inspired by my wish for summer! LOL I call it Welcome Summer!

This week we had the taste of summer. One day of 80 degree weather...alas it didn't stay. The next day it was like 50.........burrr....but I'm thankful we don't have snow like some of my facebook friends!

Check out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com
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The link to my butterfly ACEO in my Etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/listing/72640673/watercolor-aceo-original-butterfly

Tomorrow is Good Friday and....

I wanted to share this beautiful prayer with you.

O Jesus, Who by reason of Thy burning love for us
hast willed to be crucified
and to shed Thy Most Precious Blood
for the redemption and salvation of our souls,
look down upon us here gathered together
in remembrance of Thy most sorrowful Passion and Death,
fully trusting in Thy mercy;
cleanse us from sin by Thy grace,
sanctify our toil,
give unto us and unto all those who are dear to us our
daily bread,
sweeten our sufferings,
bless our families,
and to the nations so sorely afflicted,
grant Thy peace,
which is the only true peace,
so that by obeying Thy commandments
we may come at last to the glory of heaven.

Amen. (http://catholic.org)

Sunday Sketches

As promised here's another one of my pages from the Sketchbook Project. My theme was Make Mine a Double.

I tried to do things that were less obvious than two of something, although many in the sketchbook are doubles. Okay do you get what is the double in this????  It's the double edged hatchet. It's done in colored pencils. Look for more Sketchbook Project 2011 pages to come.


Enjoy the Sunday Sketch and for more awesome art visit http://bluechairdiary.blogspot.com/

Easter Memories

So I was looking for a recipe for something and I came across this recipe and photo....boy did it bring back memories of Easter's gone by. I can remember going to my Father's Mother's house in Little Italy, Baltimore at Easter and seeing a bread similar to this one on my grandmother's kitchen table.

There would also be a lamb shaped cake as well. I used to love going to her house. The smells were incredible in that kitchen where her and my Aunt Nat would make the most wonderful meals. I can almost smell that spaghetti gravy (as we called sauce) which would cook for almost the entire day to make it that wonderful thick consistency. There was no Ragu in those days.  Anyway, I hope you all have a wonderful Easter.  Here's the recipe just in case someone wants to make this bread. It's from AllRecipes website. Click Here

It's funny I should come across this today. Today is the clean up of an abandoned cemetery, St. Vincent's in Baltimore. There was a number of descrecrations to the point the tombstones were bulldozed to hide the dead and then the place was left to grow up into a jungle. I'm in a group trying to restore that cemetery were two children of my Grandmom, Beatrice Iori lie buried as babies, Angelo and Giovanni Iori, one died at 6 weeks and one died at birth. I guess Grandmom is letting me know she'll be there today with us. Pray for us and our work....here's a website about the cemetery that I put together for the group:
http://stvincentcemetery.tripod.com

Paint Party Friday

Boy the weather was nice Thursday after a bout of rainy days, it was a welcomed sight! All this rain will bring beautiful flowers which reminds me of this little ACEO I painted recently.

It's available in myArtfulPurpose etsy shop: Click Here

This is going to be a fun Friday for me. I'm taking my grandson to the Train Museum in Baltimore. I've never been but I have heard some awesome reviews of it. They even have train rides there. Hopefully we will be able to get on one.

Check out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com

Sunday Sketches

So I was thinking, I recently participated in the Sketch Book Project through Art House Coop...here's the link  http://www.arthousecoop.com/projects/sketchbookproject

It occurred to me that I should feature some of the sketches from my sketch book that were submitted for the project. My theme was Make Mine A Double. Most of them were colored pencil. So for the next few Sunday Sketches I'd like to highlight my sketches from the Sketch Book Project.  Here's the first one. All of the sketches refer to double in some way...some are obvious like this one but you can try to figure out the others.

Enjoy the Sunday Sketch and for more awesome art visit http://bluechairdiary.blogspot.com/

Paint Party Friday

Well Dad is out of the hospital. He seems to be better but his breathing is a little irregular. I guess it will take time to get back to normal.  He had his follow up doctor's appointment today and came out with flying colors. Now he goes to the heart specialist in 3 weeks for a follow up too.  Just thought I'd update everyone but enough about that....now to painting.

Here is a little Spring Lamb.....it's a watercolor ACEO. Easter's coming when the Lamb of God gave His life to save us. Hallelujah!!!!

The ACEO is available in my Etsy shop CLICK HERE

Check out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com

Cute Things from a Cute Kid

My grandson Mason is 4 years old. He's so sweet. He has such a love of God. He's always praying. It's so cute. I take him to preschool everyday. And everyday I read to him in the car. He loves me to read his little Bible.

Today we were reading Adam & Eve. We got to the part where the snake was tempting Eve to eat the apple after God said don't eat that fruit. Mason got very excited and said to the book. "I wouldn't eat that if I were you!"  Of course we all know what happened. He just sighed and then when Eve tempted Adam, he got really upset and kept saying "Don't eat it, Don't eat it...noooo." And when he found out Adam ate it he said "You shouldn't have done that Adam."  And at the part where Adam and Eve are tossed out of Eden. He said, "I told you not to eat that. You should have listened to God."

Out of the mouths of Babes!

Sunday Sketches

Well it's been one of those crazy weeks. Dad went into the hospital Thursday and I've spent 12-14 hours a day there with him.

So needless to say I haven't "arted" much.  In one of the quieter moments of the day as I waited for him the nurses to do his morning washing, I decided to "spring doodle" on the back of a piece of paper and here it is.....I am so ready for spring and Easter can you tell?

I got a little silly with the spinner beanie on the pooped chickie. Maybe I'll redo this on an ACEO later.....Happy Spring Ya'll.

Oh and good news Dad may be coming home from the hospital tomorrow!

Enjoy the Sunday Sketch and for more awesome art visit http://bluechairdiary.blogspot.com/

Paint Party Friday

Today I almost didn't get something in. My Dad was admitted to the hospital with congestive heart failure last night and I was going to just forget this, this week but I thought maybe I need to concentrate on something else. So here I am. I'm looking to checking out some of the other blogs before I go to the hospital this morning.

Well this week's PPF for me is a piece of porcelain. It's china painted on porcelain. Some paint on canvas, some on paper....I do that too but I also paint on porcelain.

China paints come as dry paint pigments that are mixed with oil. Each piece is painted multiple times and then fired in between each firing in the kiln. It takes several firings to reach the desired colors and look. This particular piece took me 4 firings to achieve the look I was going for.  Don't you just love this sweet little face?
If you like her, she's available in my Etsy shop. Here's the link:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/6533017/hand-painted-porcelain-victoriancottage

Check out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/