Tiny Trades for the Art Nest Retreat

Here is a sampling of the tiny trades that I made for the Art Nest Retreat. It was fun picking out these fun papers and sewing them into little pockets to hold the inspirational quote tags. Of course I had to add little birdies (it is the art nest.) Can't believe that it is almost here. I am so excited to be flying off to Utah next week to have 3 days of creative workshops. I am so grateful, I have never been to an art retreat before and this is such a big treat. I am hoping to learn a lot and have fun with all the other creative ladies that will be there!

To The Flock of Birds of a Feather: Happy Valentine's Day!

Greetings of love to all you creative birds who are joining this fun celebration today. Much gratitude goes to Kathryn, our creative diva extraordinaire, who arranged this blog party.

I Hope you enjoy my journal entry. I just love adding bird imagery into my artwork so this was so much fun for me to play with. XOXO, Caryn

A Heartwarming Month Ahead

I am so excited and looking forward to the month of February! So much is happening this month, the biggest and most exciting for me is my flight to the art nest retreat. I have been busy working late into the night and rising bright and early to make my sweet pockets of inspire me! cards for the tiny trades. Last night I was up until midnight cutting out little birdies to attach to the fronts.

Today I am off to the studio. I have been working on this bird piece (One flew away) and hope to get it finished today. I also have several others in progress and hope to get some new backgrounds painted too.

My last two weekends I have been away skiing in VT at Mad River Glen. So this weekend I am really looking forward to having time in the studio. I am meeting my new creative soul sister Kathryn who is part of my soul journal group .I am really looking forward to getting together with her and spending the afternoon being creative together.

My heart is filled with love and happiness. I am so lucky that I am living my creative dreams.

Soul hugs to all during this month of love!

XOXOX

Welcoming the Last Week of January with a Glorious Sunrise

Here is a early morning photo of the sunrise from our front porch. I braved the cold January temperatures in my bathrobe to get this blazing sunrise shot. It sure has been cold here, this weekend we got up to Mad River Glen to ski. I think it was the coldest day that I have ever skied. I could only stay out for three runs and then had to warm up in the lodge before heading out for more. We were lucky and didn't have to deal with waiting in lines so we actually got a lot of skiing in.
Today I am off to get some errand done first thing this morning, then to the studio to work on a few pieces that have been in progress for a little over a month. I'm hoping to post some of my new pieces in progress within the next couple of days. I am really looking forward to receiving my Art Nest Retreat package. I know some of the other ladies got theirs this past weekend so hoping for mine today. There are two spots left for anyone who wants to attend this cozy art retreat next month. I can't wait!
Thinking of warm thoughts on this chilly Monday morning and wishes for a dreamy week.

Capturing A Snowy Day With My New Camera

What a perfect snowy day to settle in at home and enjoy the freedom of not having to rush around town. Yesterday I picked up my new Nikon D40 camera. I am so happy to have made this purchase. I have been struggling with my old Canon which was on its last legs since this past November. Here are some of the photos that I took today with the D40.

It was so beautiful outside. Brian, Buddy and I went for a snowshoe on our land through the field, into the woods, and down to the river. Here is a shot of our front yard after we returned.
Then we got cozy inside. Buddy was sleepy from our outdoor exercise.


Abby was sitting by my side while I read the camera guide. Brian scooped her up in the football hold and she looked like she was about to burst with all her excess pounds. I love her and her rolly polliness.

















Miss Tessa spent most of the day in her kitty perch sleeping. She woke up for a few moments and I got this great shot.

I also squeezed in a little time to do some sketching. I'm trying to work on some female faces that maybe I'll use next month at the Art Nest Winter Retreat. I am getting so excited I can't wait to attend my first art retreat, learn some new techniques while getting to making art with other creative and talented ladies.

I am looking forward to Kate coming home tomorrow. I missed her tonight. We have been getting in the habit of having a nice Sunday dinner together. Tonight I made vegan stuffed shells and roasted veggies. So yummy! Well at least it is a long weekend and I'll have some time tomorrow with her. Maybe I will get her to come to the studio with me for a while. I have been meaning to do some rearranging and reorganizing in the studio. When I am done I'll have to take some new photos to add to my website. I love my new camera!

16 Things about ME!

1. This is one of my all time favorite photos of Katie (taken 5 years ago when she was 7.) It brings tears to my eyes looking back at how she has grown and thinking of how being her mom has been the most amazing moments of life!

2. I start every day with a cup of tea.

3. I am a vegetarian and love to cook but hardly ever use a recipe.

4. I love the ever changing weather in New England and don't think I could pick a favorite season because they all have so much beauty to offer.

5. I need to exercise more.

6. I love to dance especially with Katie, who is developing into a fantastic modern dancer. I wish I could move my body in a way to make it look so fluid and graceful. I used to think I was a good dancer, but age is creeping up and I am not so flexible. Kate tries to teach me, but it just becomes humorous. We laugh so much, it is incredibly fun no matter what it looks like.

7. I love being around other people but I need to spend some time every day alone to recharge my batteries.

8.It has taken my 22 years of creating art to feel comfortable enough to call myself an artist.

9.I wish that i could really keep my things organized. I am organized to the point where I know where most things are and can put my hands on them. This is an area I really could use some help with. I don't even use a file cabinet. I have piles around my desk.

10. Brian and I have been together for over 7 years. Neither of us can remember the date of our first official date. We have been living together for quite a while now. Yup can't remember exactly what year that was just that it was summertime.We are not married and I am totally comfortable with where we are and think that our relationship is so much better than most married couples.

11.I have a great big love of a dog, Buddy, and two cats Abby and Tessa( she thinks she is a dog like Buddy and will even follow us on walks into our woods.)

12.I love my studio space and feel so creative there.

13.I have never had lofty dreams of making a living on my artistic talents until this past year. I have big dreams to teach, inspire others with my artwork, spread the joy of the process that comes when you create art, and have a wide circle of a creative community.

14. I like watching the TV show What Not To Wear, i love nice clothes and makeup, and think what a blast it would be to be handed $5,000 to shop in NYC.

15. Both my parents died at somewhat of an early age ( my dad was 60, mom was 65). It makes me worried about growing old, being healthy, and getting Kate to a point where she can take care of herself.

16. I like to take care of with how I treat people and the world around me. My sister's nick name for me is Care, she say it fits me perfectly.

Now you have been tagged. I would love you to share 16 things about you.

Learning To Think Like An Artist and Working With An Art Journal

I have been working on my practice of keeping an art journal. This is a photo of the start of my cover page. Since I took this photo I have added the word DREAM. This is my inspirational word for 2009. With out dreams where would we be and what better place to record our dreams than an art journal. I have to thank Karina for publishing so many of her inspiring pages from her art journal on her blog Herland Story . These beautiful pages have given me the desire to start my art journal.

As I began this practice of keeping art journal, I struggled a bit with letting go of thinking of the final product and letting it be truly about the process of writing the whispers and visions of my past, present, and dreams to come. I found some relief when I came across a write up that I did for my students in a class last year about learning to think like an artist. Here it is

Learning to think like an artist means:

· Look at things more closely than most people do.
· Finding beauty in everyday things and situations.
· Making new connections between different things and ideas.
· Going beyond ordinary ways of thinking and doing things.
· Looking at things in different ways in order to generate new perspectives.
· Taking risks and exposing yourself to possible failure.
· Arranging things in new and interesting ways.
· Working hard and at the edge of your potential.
· Persisting where others may give up.
· Concentrating your effort and attention for long periods of time.
· Dreaming and fantasizing about things.
· Using old ideas to create new ideas and ways of seeing things.Doing something simply because it’s interesting and personally challenging to do.

So taking in all my past words of wisdom, I came out with understanding that the greatest gift you can give yourself when you begin thinking like an artist is the freedom of an open mind and the endless possibilities to make the way you see the world a better place. Here is to a year of seeing the possibilities for a better world.