2011, hello.

I am so terribly sorry for ignoring this blog. I actually have been painting or sketching or journaling most days. Not all great, but I also have been trying to let go of those good and bad judgments and just create to free my mind. I have been in quite a state, personally, so art for art's sake is incredibly liberating. I actually led a workshop on the creative journal on January 22nd, and it was an incredibly powerful experience. The participants were grieving women, a grieving father, two grieving grandmothers (one of which was my mom) and my beautiful twin sister. (I'm not just saying she is beautiful because she is my twin.) I am really excited to find opportunities to lead more women in this process.

Anyway, I have been doing a lot of illustrations with watercolor. I finally uploaded some of those works, and so here are a smattering:

I just did this one today for my friend Janel of her sister, brother in law and niece and nephew dogs.

This one is for my sister's sister in law's daughter. Cheebus, that sounded complicated. I realized that I hadn't given her a gift for Christmas. I did an illustration for her room for her baby shower, and thought I would paint something for her now that she is 19 months, or so.  No, she doesn't have a cat, but I like drawing little girls with cats. Sue me.

This is one I painted the other day when I was feeling down of me and the children. I saw a painting on Etsy that I loved of a woman with a striped dress and a boy, and I wanted to paint myself with the children, so I kind of combined the two. Is that stealing? I don't know. I don't mean to steal, beautiful Etsy painter.

I miss Art Every Day Month and the whole ritual of painting a painting everyday. Did I mention that that month of painting, I did not open ONE tube of paint? I used all my dried paint and rearticulated it. I thought I should mention that. Anyway, I have been writing a children's book in my head. Well, actually, it is a story I tell my daughter some nights when she asks for it, and I have wanted to illustrate it. And I have another half-assed, uh, I mean, half-written. I am going to try to illustrate them this year. We'll see how that goes considering I have the attention span of a gnat on six espressos. I also miss all of you. I see knitting has welcomed in the new year, and I love love love it, though I can't knit. I just like seeing knitting. Bye.