earth laughing in flowers...

It's Easter tomorrow. Spring has arrived here in LA. It was so hot today...I miss bundling up and breathing in the crisp air. But spring has it's advantages...like this beautiful vision I saw yesterday on a walk through Descanso Gardens. Upon entering the Japanese Gardens the cherry blossoms were in bloom and they looked like butterflies shifting in the breeze. It took my breathe away it was so beautiful. They were the whitest white...and the palest pink. It was magical...
When we wandered through the gardens the daffidils and tulips were in all their glory...

Earth Laughs In Flowers!
Ralph Waldo Emerson

And she truly does...

I found this picture of Veronica and me in our bonnets one Easter morning...It's been a long time since bonnets were worn. But we will celebrate spring tomorrow just the same...without hats.

Nothing is more the child of art than a garden.
Sir Walter Scott

oh yeah...that's right

Issue 3 of Pasticcio Quartz is available! Sarah and I are mad about this issue and we had a blast creating it... it's colorful, entertaining, inspiring and informative and there is a plethora of divine art by some divine artists. This issue explores 'fonts' and the color 'blue'...but we don't think you will be after you've perused its pages...click here to purchase: http://stores.lulu.com/cartwrightandfishburn

howaya this fine day...

Beannachtai na Feile Padraig!!

May those who love us,
Love us.
And those who do not love us,
May God turn their hearts.
And if He doesn't turn their hearts,
May He turn their ankles,
So we'll know them by their limping.

Go bhfana í ngrá linn,
Iad siúd atá í ngrá linn.
Iad siúd nach bhfuil,
Go gcasa Dia a gcroíthe.
Agus muna gcasann Sé a gcroíthe
Go gcasa Sé caol na coise acu
Go n-aithneoimid iad as a mbacadaíl.

This is one of my very favorite photographs...it was shoot with the self timer on my camera that I balanced on my camera bag on the rocky beach in Doolin, Ireland. I wanted a family picture of us to use as a holiday card...I think this picture rocks...It's the cover of our next CD...just kidding!
Happy St. Patricks Day...

The cliffs of Dooneen

You may travel far far from your own native home,
Far away o’er the mountains, far away o’er the foam,
But of all the fine places that I’ve ever been
Sure there’s none can compare with the cliffs off Dooneen.
Take a view o’er the mountains, fine sights you’ll see there,
You’ll see the high rocky mountains o’er the west coast of Clare;
Oh the towns of Kilkee and Kilrush can be seen
From the high rocky slopes round the cliffs of Dooneen.
traditional irish song

***********

Go raibh tú daibhir i mí-áidh
Agus saibhir i mbeannachtaí
Go mall ag déanamh namhaid, go luath a déanamh carad,
Ach saibhir nó daibhir, go mall nó go luath,
Nach raibh ach áthas agat
Ón lá seo amach.

May you be poor in misfortune,
Rich in blessings,
Slow to make enemies,
quick to make friends,
But rich or poor, quick or slow,
May you know nothing but happiness
From this day forward.

ode to green...

Tis almost St. Patrick's Day...now I know I am not Irish...but I can't help but celebrate a people that love to celebrate. And I did have some fabulous times in Ireland. My friend Judy (from the West side)...sent me the most hilarious book called "The feckin' book of everything Irish"...and I got a good many laughs from it. If you are not Irish, it is at least a good thing to have an Irish friend.

I broke my beloved teapot lid...I love this teapot...I bought it in England over 10 years ago and it makes a really fine cuppa char (as my mum used to say)...but...with a broken lid there was only one thing left to do with it...make it a planter for miniature daffodils...

So when my friend Judy (from the East side) was in town we went and did some walking...and I bought myself a new teapot...by the same English company, Emma Bridgewater. I just love it...It says Tea In The Garden on the lid and is adorned with cherries.

Here it is sitting next to Jiminy Cricket on my window sill...all ready for some water on the boil to make it's its very first brew. I do love my tea.
So this March 17th don't forget to wear green...just because...it's a cool color...

Beanneacht!

May the most you wish for
be the least you get.
May the best times you've ever had
be the worst you will ever see.
celtic blessing

rules of engagement...

Stop!...in the name of love...
Julia, the daughter of our dear old family friends Jim and Judy, is getting married to Jordan later this year...and we just went to their Engagement Party.
It was wonderful...but it was also sentimental...
Here's a portrait I took of the bride to be what... some 23 years ago...

Julia age 2

My rules of engagement...
remember the past....

Julia, Jesse, Jake, Becca upstate New York

but embrace the future....

Becca and Jesse

It's the only way to keep your sanity...

making room...

Are the last days of winter getting you down? Do you need a laugh or two? Well I have just the thing to bring you out of the doldrums....S'more Entertainment has released the 6th season of "Make Room For Daddy" on DVD. Now it's pretty exciting...because these early classic shows have appeared here and there on TV ...but never has there been the entire 6th season on a DVD. The folks at S'more Entertainment have done a fabulous job of restoring 12 hours and 50 minutes of sitcom comedy to pristine condition.

I gotta say I had a few belly laughs watching Linda's Giant and Linda's Locket. They are funny.... I was on this show for 7 seasons...and all these memories are tied up in these shows and it is a treat to watch them again. Five discs and 32 episodes with Guest Stars like Lucillle Ball, Jack Benny and Dinah Shore to name a few. It also has extras which include never before seen interviews Marjorie Lord, Sid Melton and moi.
The set is a steal at Amazon.com or you can buy it at the S'mores site.

when time stood still....

Click to pause my music in the sidebar to the right,
then click the button in the center of the screen.


Who are these people?
ImprovEverywhere

eye wonder...

It's the first day of March...and here are a few wondrous things I happened upon.

won . drous adj. Remarkable or extraordinary, wonderful

This is the Glass wing butterfly. Isn't it amazing? No I didn't find it in my backyard, but I wish I had.
Greta oto is a brush-footed butterfly, and is a member of the clearwing clade; its wings are transparent. Its most common English name is glasswing, and its Spanish name is espejitos, which means "little mirrors." Indeed, the tissue between the veins of its wings looks like glass. It is one of the more abundant clearwing species in its home range, which extends throughout Central America and into Mexico. The opaque borders of its wings are dark brown sometimes tinted with red or orange, and its body is dark in color. Its wingspan is between 5.5 and 6 cm. They also exhibit some pretty interesting behaviors like lekking among males.

What's this? It's a fabulous flower under water... While visiting a friend for a cup of tea the other day...I was offered a cup of Art Tea. It begins as a flower pod and when you pour boiling water over it...it blossoms into a flower right before your eyes.

It doesn't taste very good...but it sure is wondrous to watch...
And then passing by a window facing south the other day, the sun was was drawing on my walls with the most amazing palette of primary colors...I am still having my affair with shadows and cannot deny they speak to me in the most dramatic way...

So with Spring tentatively creeping into the calender...I return from my moments of wonder to get back to the reality of the computer and a pile on my desk. sigh...

A pretty cool site to check out so you can learn important things about yourself is this one: Things like my Native American Zodiac sign is a Bear and my age is the equivalent of a dog that is 7.93033268101761 years old. You know...things you really want to know about yourself.

I shall return...

skylines & skyscrapers...

Arriving in my mail yesterday was the March/April issue of Somerset Studios Magazine. In it I was happy to see my Skylines and Skyscrapers Swap article.

Making these business sized pieces of art are really fun to do. It's amazing how much detail can be put on a petite sized substrate. I hosted a swap that consisted of 52 artists making art a 21 for 20 swap. I have on my list of things to get done this year attaching all the wonderful structures together to make a border for my studio.
Unfortunately they were not able to print photos of everyones art who participated...and there were so many diverse and wonderful structures...so I have made a page on my website to show at least one art piece from all 52 artists.
Go to Skylines & Skyscrapers to see the whole Somerset article and more on this project...Who knows it might inspire you to cover up that collection of business cards you have sitting in that drawer with a skyline of your own.

a little perfection

After sitting at the computer all day writing...I had to get outside...and it was perfect weather...feeling a little like rain, cool, fresh...I went around my garden and did a little cutting and cleaning...how my flowers are loving the cool weather we so briefly had in LA...
Look at this perfection...The first bloom off my brand new camellia bush. I have wanted a white camellia bush for the longest time, and this Valentines Day...there it was...in all its perfection.

I am also in awe of my cymbidiums...look at them bursting forth...This plant was given to me over 15 years ago by my hubby's dad who grew them in his own greenhouse. Every year they grow more flowers. I know I am probably supposed to divide this plant up...but I am so afraid to. I have this plant by my back door and every day stare at it's beauty.



So I am outside getting my hands dirty and Peyton wants to play ball...so heres a few pics of my girl doing what she loves the most...

that lovin' feelin'

I attended CHA yesterday. It was fun. I signed some of my Artist papers and Unruly Girls stamps at the Stampington & Co. Booth, chatted with Bonnie at Ranger, where I have fallen in love with their crackle paint. In fact I love all of Tim Holtz products and use them all the time.
I visited with Diane from Creative Imaginations...(don't ask why we are standing with Hannah Montana cutout)...they have some very cool rub-ons they have just released which I love...what can I say...Love was in the air....!

I made an appearance on the new web show When Creativity Knocks where I talked a bit about "Mixed Emulsions"...and I ran into the crafty chica Kathy Cano Murillo where she gave me her newest book "The Crafty Chica Collection" which is so cool...and Traci Bautista who is soon to leave for a awesome art retreat in Bali.... I'll be teaching at Art & Soul Retreat By The Sea in Asilomar, California in April and Traci will be there too... I think there are still some openings in my Simpatico class where we'll explore painting photographs... It should be fun and Traci said it is absolutely beautiful at Asilomar which is outside Monterey California...I'm looking forward to that trip...

So...Happy Valentines Day to one and all....I like to think of this day as not just for lovers but for all those friends and family that bring love into our lives...a day to remember, love isn't love till you give it away....have a good one...

up and coming...

Just a reminder that Valentines Day is next Thursday...How did it get to be February already?
Here's my daughter Becca at Mardi Gras in New Orleans. She was there on the job with her crew filming an episode of "The Girls Next Door." The writers strike has not affected reality television...it's good she has been working as a story and field producer. She just returned...exhausted but full of colorful memories. New Orleans really knows how to party!

If you find yourself at the Crafts & Hobby Show (CHA) in Anaheim I will be at in the Quayside booth #4351 on February 13th from 10 - 11 to sign some books...Then I will be doing an interview for "When Creativity Knocks" a new online show on the internet...
I'll also be dropping by Stampington & Co. Booth #1787 to show my new Clearly Impressed Unruly Girls Club stamps and to sign my Paper Collections...Come say hi if you are there on Wednesday...I know it's the last day of the show...but it's the only day I could attend.
I hope you all got out there and voted...Can anyone name the two young guys in this picture that don't look too pleased about my nomination? And bonus question...what was the show where this picture was taken?

my art is a shadow of my self ...

I took a walk today...just me and my shadow...
then I discovered all the places I could go...

All part of the art I am working on right now...