Tarte Two

I had tons of things to do today, but couldn't resist going to Tarte.  For those of you who are unenlightened about Tarte, it's an old barn in Oregon City which is transformed to a French Flea Market once each month.    

Beautiful vignettes and vintage treasures are everywhere. 

Eye Candy abounds...

Pearls with keys, crowns, and religious symbols are very popular...

crepe paper cupcakes ...so cute! 

soldered pendants take the place of a lampshade

My friend Barb, wore her grandmother's red squirrel fur coat and was quite the celebrity! 

Great decorating ideas in the 'Shabby Chic' genre'

You meet the nicest people on these adventures.  We met Connie and her friends, and Connie modeled her crown of glitter planets.   She bought it for an angel in her front yard...she said that we had to drive by her house and see her angel, and her 'baby' angel.  The photos don't do them justice, since the main angel is draped in several strings of pearls, and is holding a sweet gold glitter bird.  Her front porch really got me in the mood for spring, with potted plants, nests, daffodils everywhere!  Thanks for sharing!  I look forward to our paths crossing again!

Watercolor Journey-Mixing color

Our watercolor group met earlier this month at Dinah's, and discussed color mixing.  Joanie shared some poppies that she had painted, and showed how she had added different colors to her backgrounds for a more dramatic effect.

Below, Carol shared a lovely landscape that she had painted near her beach house on the Oregon Coast.

Judy painted some lovely African Masks and shells.

Judy also shared her beautiful tulip and Henna paintings...

Carol shares her flower studies.  Her first love is colored pencil, and it shows in her technical style.

Below Carol and Judy show us their lovely flower studies.

Roberta shared her Pear Study.  Her use of a cool complementry background really sets off the warm tones in the fruit.

Roberta also shared a study in Neutral Values from our class this term.  We had to use only two colors- Burnt Umber and French Ultramarine.  It was pretty amazing the different shades you could get with only those two colors.

Carol shared info from a recent class, using birds to explain different techniques in mixing colors. It's so great to have such a wonderful group of new friends to keep us all on track with our painting.

I know several friends who can't take classes right now are enjoying the tips from the Blog, so I'll pass along the information if you want to paint on your own.  Use birds, circles...whatever shape you'd like using ten objects.  

1. Mix three rich colors -yellow, blue, red-however you want

2.  Using the same three colors from above, mix three pale shades.

3.  Mix rich colors using a dancing brush.

4.  Add water to dilute the three colors, and drop in color wherever you want in your space

5.  Using the three colors-yellow, red, blue, make a glaze-really water down the three colors

6.  Mix a dark and light of one color in the pace

7.  Same as above-this time use a darker color

8.  Mix using Analagous Colors-colors on either side of the color you use

9.  Mix three colors using Complementry Colors-colors that are opposite on the color wheel

10.  Free choice

   

Happy Painting!

Spring Jewelry

Last week, we had our usual burst of February sunshine.  I had some business to attend to on the Coast, so couldn't resist staying a few days to enjoy the great weather!  It was crazy to see people in shorts in Oregon in Febrary.  It was more like a May day!  Mom was with me, so we drove up to Astoria to have lunch at our favorite restaurant, The Urban Cafe!

This week, I'm making up for lost time, creating spring designs for my Etsy shops.  There are so many fun beads on the market.  It's been hard to choose and stay focused.  I thought I'd share some of my favorites before posting and taking them to shops. 

Vintage is still really popular, especially with Cabochon flowers and filigree lockets.

There's also a trend towards a more modern looks, with brushed gold and silver and simple faceted stones.

Of course, charm bracelets are always popular, especially if you're a gardener like me.

Watercolor Journey-Making Borders

Last fall I took a watercolor class from Jude Siegel. She wrote Pacific Northwest Nature Sketchbook.  It's available at Powell's.  I'd been wanting to take one of her classes since Art and Soul two years ago.  Most of the students were new to watercolor painting, and it was amazing to see how their work improved  from week to week.  Not only that, but people were starting to develop their own style and it was exciting to see their talent emerge.  When the class ended, we all decided to meet monthly to share what we were learning in other classes and to keep a paintbrush in our hands.

Above, L-R Joanie, Carol, Judy, Roberta, Dinah, and JoAnn share books and what they have been working on since we last met.

Joanie is an amazing and prolific painter.  Here she shares a bird journaling page inspired by the video.

 Carol is an amazing artist also, with her first love being colored pencil.

Below, Dinah is sharing some techniques using carved stamps and watercolor paint, that can be used as a border with our journaling.

These stamps are easily carved using Mastercarve, and simple carving tools.  It's advertised that it ' carves like butter' and it really does!  Kits can be purchased at any art supply store, or Michael's.

Five Favorite Things from Trader Joe's

Last fall we decided to start eating healthier around here. So many friends were being diagnosed with bad things like high blood pressure, type II Diabetes, etc. that I thought it might be a good idea to take a proactive approach.  It actually hasn't been so bad.  We're limiting the carbs-which means pasta, bread, desserts are enjoyed occasionally on weekends. Not starting the day with carbs really helps me with the cravings, and I've noticed that I have ton more energy throughout the day.

Daily meals are mostly veggies, fruit, egg, fish, chicken and nuts.  I think of Michel Pollan saying to eat things your "grandmother would recognize".  It helps to have Trader Joe's nearby for those little indulgences that make this new journey easier.  My current five favorite things from TJ's are:

Greek yogurt, fruit, nuts and cinnamon for breakfast:

Turkey Cutlets, fish and chicken taste better with any of these great sauces-Gyozo, Dipping Sauce, Spicy Peanut Vinaigrette, and Seasame Soy Ginger Vinaigrette-just use in moderation:

Mediterranean Hummus with Roasted Sunflower seeds and veggies:

Chocolate covered soy nuts-Edamame-to curb that chocolate craving:

Green Chi Tea with Ginger Snaps:

What are your favorite items from Trader Joe's?