Never too Old to Learn

During the middle of the pandemic, back in 2020, I was stuck at home like everyone else. Oddly enough, I didn’t mind too much. Being an introvert, home is my happy place and as long as I had a way to keep busy I was okay. I turned to the thing that has eased my anxiety and cluttered mind since I was a child: ART.

Wet on wet technique, great for making reflections in the water

Drawing had been a passion all my life but adulting, things like raising my children and paying the bills, had pushed this aside for many years. By 2020, my children were out of college and they, along with my husband and myself were hanging out, working from home, so I decided to jump start my creative side. This came in the form of a medium I had always wanted to try but found rather daunting: watercolor.

Portrait for a friend. Learned a lot about mixing watercolor paint with pencil and about shadows and reflections.

Learning to paint more loose.

Bless the internet and, particularly, YouTube because there were endless sources for finding the ins and outs of this beautiful art form. As a teenager and college student, I had learned about painting in acrylics and oils. Some of the ideas there did carry over but others (like the ability to “fix” a mistake by simply painting over it) did not. Needless to say, there were some frustrating moments and lots of disastrous paintings that became lots of scrap paper! Eventually, I began to get comfortable with my results. I was amazed at how much there was to learn just about this one medium. Things I needed to think about and all the exciting techniques that resulted in such different looks and styles. I still struggle with things both related to and not related to watercolor itself like finding a good composition, or the correct balance of lights and darks. I also need to learn when to stop, something very important in this medium because overworking a watercolor painting is just the worst! I’ve come to a point where I’m happy with a good percentage of the finished paintings but, even two years later, I am still finding many new adventures and new skills that I can practice.

The first painting I sold. It was fun to experiment with the pops of color.

After several months of creating and experimenting, the art work began to pile up and I was inspired to open a shop on Etsy in order to sell some of the finished pieces. So far it’s been a modest success. I will never get rich, but I’ve been able to share some pieces and create many commissioned one of a kind watercolors that have, hopefully, brought joy to the people who own them.

Playing with shadows experimenting with water

That said, I know, even as I approach my 60th year, a fact that still sends my head spinning some days, that, no matter how old I am, there is still SO much more I can learn. Possibly, that holds true for life in general, wherever or whenever you find your passion.

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When Vacations Were a Thing

I finished this painting last week. It’s kind of a quirky subject for a still life but I’m pretty happy with the results. The photo I based it on was taken by my daughter when she was just 13. It was a lot of fun to create for a couple of reasons.

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First off, the morning light coming in the window created such great shadows and highlights. Also, creating the reflections of the pillow and curtain on the glass was something I’d never tried before. I’m always much more motivated to do something if I can learn new skills and techniques. This provided some good challenges.

The second reason I enjoyed it so much were the memories associated with the subject matter. As I said, Miss Dee took the original photo a little over seven years ago when we were on a family cruise to Bermuda. This past June I was all booked to take a very similar cruise with my sisters and best friend but, I guess we know that didn’t work out. 😦 We are hoping to reschedule next year. In the meantime thinking about my last trip there was a nice distraction.

Miss Dee’s photo was taken the morning we docked in King’s Wharf on the island of Bermuda. This would have been day three of a five day cruise. We awoke to find a Tugboat tooting outside the window as it, and a few of it’s friends guided us into port. The rest of the day was just as surprising.

After enjoying breakfast aboard the ship we disembarked and began to explore. We started with a slightly scary bus ride (I don’t think there are any traffic laws in Bermuda) to Horseshoe Bay Beach on the other side of the island. We were told that it was quite beautiful and well worth the ride and it certainly was. The sand was pink and the water was warm, crystal clear and perfectly still. Being from New Jersey, I’m accustomed to dodging riptides and trying not to get knocked over by incoming waves. This was a nice change. Even more impressive though, were the rock formations that stood right off the beach. Some were like hidden little tunnels that you could swim through. After a few hours, enjoying the sun and the water, we showered in the available bathhouses which were very clean and well maintained and took a taxi into the town of Hamilton. The taxi ride was much less scary although the people who get around by scooter in Bermuda must have no fear at all! They seem to zig-zag in front of traffic without even looking.

Scrapbook Page. I can’t believe how young we all look!

Miss Dee looking super cute posing with the rocks at Horseshoe Bay.

Hamilton, the Capital city, is a quaint little colonial town with lots of historic Stone buildings, restaurants and shops to explore. We had a snack then took a walk through the Queen’s Gardens in the center of town. The tropical flowers were amazing! I’d never seen such bright beautiful colors. Miss Dee took some very nice photos there too. By late afternoon, we were all getting tired and decided to head back to the ship for dinner. No taxi or bus was needed though. Kings Wharf Royal Dock Yard was just across The Great Sound from Hamilton so we were able to take a water taxi back to the ship. That was a lovely way to end the day.

Hamilton

Beautiful Queen’s Gardens

The next day we took an excursion on a glass bottom boat. It was really incredible to see all the fish, Coral and even a few sunken ships below the blue water off Kings Wharf. The tour guide was so informative about the various fish and sea creatures we saw. I also learned that Bermuda isn’t actually one continuous landmass but instead a collection of 181 different islets and small islands. There were snacks and sodas served during the two hour tour and the D-man and I even received a complimentary cocktail with coconut rum as part of the excursion packet.

Such blue, blue water!

Even though we still had two days left on our cruise, we were a bit sad when the ship left dock at two that afternoon. It felt like there was so much more of Bermuda to explore. When Mr D graduated from college last year we chipped in with his grandparents and sent him and his girl on the same Cruise that we had taken. They saw some things there that were new since we had been there. I’m hoping, if I get to go next year, I’ll see even more. By then, maybe vacations will be a thing again. 🙂

Summer Art

My sister is a crafter and a beach lover. Each year she combines these loves by taking part in a huge craft fair on the Wildwood boardwalk. This New Jersey shore town is a big tourist destination and the crowds insure she has lots of sales. Months ago when we started quarantine she suggested I use my abundant spare time to paint more pictures of the beach, the Jersey shore in particular, that she could add to her already beach themed inventory. So I did. Well, needless to say, this year, the crowds at the Craft Fair will be much small if it takes place at all. As a result, I’ve got all this Summer Art with no place to go!

I’ve always been a beach baby and every vacation I ever had as a child took place in Wildwood or one of the other towns along the coast. It’s my happy place so spending my time thinking about it and creating art representing it really wasn’t much of a hardship. When I think about it, it was more likely a form of therapy. Painting in general, has become my form of stress reduction during this crazy time.

Circumstances have decided that I won’t be sharing my beach paintings with the good people of Wildwood this summer so I thought I’d share a few here. I hope you all have a place that makes you feel as peaceful and centered as sea makes me feel. This quote which has been on my kitchen memo board since the summer began, says it all…

“Smell the Sea and feel the sky. Let your soul and spirit fly!“

Sunrise in North Wildwood

This was inspired by a photograph of my brother-in-law and his granddaughter.

West Coast beach art-Sunset over the Santa Monica Pier. This was from a photo I took during my trip to Hollywood.

Morning walk along the beach in Ocean City, NJ

All images available at: https://www.etsy.com/shop/CuriousKatStudio?ref=search_shop_redirect

If We Were Having Coffee 4/19/20: Shelter In Place

Good morning!

If we were having coffee…this Sunday, it would be virtual no matter what since we are still in seclusion. Luckily, we’ve been sharing virtual coffee for years so we’re well aquatinted with the concept. Today we have nice strong French Roast or tea if you prefer. My wonderfully hubby, who bakes when he’s bored, made some chocolate and white chocolate Chip cookies last night that are to die for! Please take a few and tell me what you’ve been up to.

If we were having coffee... I would share that we’ve had an anxious week since we heard last Saturday that my father-in-law had unfortunately contracted the Coronavirus. The hospital checked him over, making sure his lungs and blood count looked good and since he was not coughing or having shortness of breath they sent him home to recuperate. He is over 70 and has diabetes but otherwise is active and in good health and seems to be on the road to recovery, thank goodness. Our worry now is that his wife and the other’s in his house will start to show signs of being sick too. So far so good. This is especially important since his step-daughter, her husband and their 3 year old son came to stay with them when all this craziness started thinking that his rural neighborhood would be safer than their city appartment. Irony at it’s worst.

If we were having coffee…I would tell you that those of us in this house, fortunately are doing well health wise. We are also fortunate because since my husband, my son and I are all school employees we are able work from home and still have an income. My only trips out have been to the grocery store every two weeks or so. It’s a very stressful outing. I don my mask and rush through the the aisles grabbing the things we must have. I’m usually exhausted the rest of the day just from the anxiety. I don’t think it’s that I’m so afraid of becoming infected, since our numbers in this area of NJ are thankfully very low, but more that I feel guilty being out, like I shouldn’t be leaving my house at all. I realize that’s not rational but it just goes to show the mental state I’m in!

If we were having coffee…I would share that one good thing that has come from all this time at home is that I am creating lots of artwork and learning many new techniques. I’m hoping to amass enough inventory to open an Etsy store. Here are some samples. What do you think?

Pinterest and YouTube have become my life lines! There are so many talented artists willing to share their ideas.

If we were having coffee…I would ask how you have been spending your days during this unusual time. I hope you have found a way to stay positive and connected. Please visit our host EcleticAli an catch up with some other bloggers sharing coffee, see what’s been happening in their world.

Thanks for stopping.  Take care, Be well.

A Garden of Sculpture

I was sorry to read in the papers a last week that Seward Johnson had passed away. His name may not be familiar to some, but here in New Jersey, where he was born, we remember him fondly. Mr Johnson was lucky enough to be heir to the Johnson Pharmaceutical fortune but more than that, he was an amazing artist who created hundreds of works of art. He was also founder of a lovely place, not 45 minutes from my home, called Grounds for Sculpture.

Grounds for Sculpture, opened in 1992, is a magical place in Hamilton, New Jersey, not too far from Trenton. Beyond the vine covered walls you will find 42 acres of gardens and rolling hills featuring hundreds of Seward Johnson’s works along with those of other local artist. The park is filled with meandering paths, beautiful landscaping and surprises around every corner. Some of the pieces there belong to Johnson’s Monumental Scale collection, towering statues 20 feet tall, as well as many of his Beyond the Frame vignettes where the visitor can step inside famous Impressionist paintings. These are among my favorites along with his Celebrating the Familiar series. Several inside exhibits and restaurants are also on site. Miss Dee and I visited there in late August, our last outing of the summer break. Here are just a few of the lovely things we saw.

“A Turn of the Century” from the Monumental Scale collection, inspired by Renoir. This piece is about 20 feet tall and stands in front of Rat’s, one of the gardens artistic eateries..

“God Bless America” also larger than life! Obviously inspired by American Gothic.

Miss Dee getting to know one of the ladies in the Celebrating the Familiar series. This one is called “Captured”

A piece called “Summer Thinking” There is actually writing in the journal!

Here I have stepped into one of the vignettes called “Family Secret” from the Beyond the Frame series

So many lovely and peaceful pathways

Another Beyond the Frame vignettes sits at the edge of one of the property’s lakes. This one is called “Sailing the Seine”

“Daydream” a massive sculpture that can actually be seen from the road as you drive by the gardens

A Japanese inspired garden near the snack bar

Another Impressionist inspired piece “If It Were Time”

A fantasy in light and metal called “Fan”

A Van Gogh inspired room.

We made friends with this lovely lady at one of the inside exhibits. She is part of the Icons Revisited series

Even the Cafe where we had lunch was a work of art.

We had such a wonderful time exploring Grounds for Sculpture. We’ve already made plans to go again because our feet gave out before we saw even half of the many pieces on display. I think the Fall would be a great time to go back. Every season in fact, will add something new. Seward Johnson, in his 89 years on Earth, certainly added a great deal of beauty to the world.

Butterflies

Fellow blogger Michael Lai recently posted a lovely butterfly photo, just one of many extraordinary images he creates! I am a big butterfly fan especially this time of the year and his photo reminded me of one that my daughter took several years ago. There are three butterflies but their placement and the timing of the photo give the illusion of one butterfly in motion.  It’s one of my favorites so I thought I would share it with you…

May your summer be filled with sunshine, colorful flowers and of course…butterflies.

Getting Creative in 2019

Happy New Year! It’s a little late, I know, but it still feels pretty new to me. Like many of us, I made some plans and resolutions for 2019 and one of them was to spend more time being creative (thanks Jill Kuhn for your inspiration!)

The biggest hurdle I’ve had with this was not finding the motivation, but finding a convenient space where I could spread out and not have to put everything away each time my family needed to have a meal! Some of my supplies were down in the basement, some in the kitchen hutch, a few in the pantry and even my bedroom closet! Well that’s all changed now!

My husband slaved through the last few weeks of the summer renovating what was formerly the kids play area downstairs (I mean, our youngest is 20, I think they are past needing it!) He moved his collections and “man cave” stuff down there as well as our guest area, freeing up our smallest bedroom for my art space. Yay!

Weeks were spent clearing out the room, stripping wallpaper and painting the walls a nice bright white. We are planning on replacing the carpet with a clean grey laminate but I’ll have to save a bit more for that. I’d purchased a smaller, black desk for our computer, which will still share the room so that was moved in. The final step was assembling the amazing new art desk my wonderful hubby had given me for my birthday back in December. It’s got so many compartments and it’s on wheels!

I’ve been picking up items here and there, curtains and cool storage containers (Anyone who knows me can tell you I get weirdly jazzed about organization!) My sister had a nifty little bookcase up for grabs (we actually traded her the bed frame from that room that we no longer needed-win/win!) and I was able to find a desk chair that looks brand new for just $25 on one of those online yard sale sites.

Then….FINALLY….this past Sunday, I collected my many art supplies from their many hiding places and put them away in my very own art room!! I’ve been like a kid on Christmas morning, just giddy with excitement and creative motivation, painting and experimenting with new techniques. One of the best parts is thatI can just leave it all out, ready for the next time I find a few minutes to create. I do have to remember to close the door, though, so the cat won’t walk through the wet paint or eat the brushes. She’s like that!

I’m hoping that this new found creative jag lasts a long, long time making 2019 the year of creativity! It just goes to show that sometimes resolutions or plans can take some patience, a bit of elbow grease and a little faith but they can happen. May all your plans for the coming year be every bit as gratifying!

The Weekly Smile…Some Creative Fun

This week I had a blast getting creative!

A friend asked if I would make some decorative alphabet letters for her son, who will be turning three next week and loves Disney. She purchased the 9 inch wooden letters that spelled out his name and gave me a list of his seven favorite Disney characters. I knew most of them but, I admit, I had to look up one or two. Hey, my kids are in college! I’ve been out of the Disney loop for a while! 😊

Just for fun, let’s see if you all can guess the character each letter was based on.

[Updated 2/22/17…Each letter is now pictured next to the Disney character who inspired it.]

Jake from “The Neverland Pirates”

Mater from “Cars”

Dory from “Finding Nemo”

Buzz Lightyear from “Toy Story”

Sulley from “Monsters Inc.”

Mickey of course!

Tigger from “Winnie the Pooh”

And the finished product:

 

Ta-da! I found painting the letters to be very relaxing, kind of like coloring. I highly recommend it to anyone who just wants to do something fun and creative.

The Weekly Smile is brought to you by Trent’s World. Stop by and check out the rest of the smiles or, better yet, leave one of your own.😊

Jack in Watercolor

One of the items on my Summer Bucket List  is to create at least 6 new pieces of art. The thing is, I love to draw and paint. It brings me great joy and relaxes me but I find that I don’t always make the time for it so that’s why it’s on the list.

My newest passion has been watercolor. I’ve been painting with acrylics and oils since I was a teenager but watercolor is pretty new to me. I’m discovering a lot of fun ways to work with it and I’m so thrilled that I discovered watercolor pencils because they make the medium so much more versatile. I guess that’s because good old paper and pencils is my first real love.

Yesterday I decided I was going to try doing a portrait of our cat Jack. Naturally I worked from a photo because I can’t count on him to hold still that long (at least not when I need him to!) Here is the result:

I’m pretty happy with it although I’m not sure I captured his personality that well. 😊  I picked this photo because I loved the sense of light. I mean, what cat doesn’t enjoy a nap in the sun.

Next I plan on trying a cat portrait of his sister. Hopefully that will turn out well too, but either way, it’s great fun. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a relaxing leisure activity.

Coloring Yourself Happy

Last night I spent an hour playing with the new drawing pens I received for Christmas.  This is the result…

I admit I shamelessly (more or less), stole the picture from one of the Christmas cards that came in the mail. I drew the image in pen first and then added watercolor. It felt sort of like paint-by-number or coloring. It was very relaxing.

I’ve always loved to color, both as a kid and with my own kids. Experts are now saying that it is a great way to lessen stress. There was even an article in today’s paper about some neighborhood “Coloring Clubs” where people meet to color themselves happy! I think a lot of adults have always enjoyed coloring and now they are finally ready to admit it.  In fact, it’s  become very trendy.

The stores are filled with fancy adult coloring books. Maybe if you spend $15 for a book it feels more like a grown up hobby instead of a childhood pastime! A coworker gave me one for my birthday and Santa brought one for Miss Dee. Of course, her’s is “Sherlock” themed so she can immerse herself in Benedict Cumberbatch while she de-stresses!

I imagine you can use crayons in these books but it seems like they are mostly paired with colored pencils. This too, I think, is to stress the idea  that this is a grownup thing. Don’t get me wrong, I love colored pencils, but I still get more excited about a brand new 64 box of Crayola crayons with the built in sharpener, adult or not.😊

Don’t you just love when something so old fashioned (Crayola has been around since 1902 and crayons themselves date back to Egyptian times), suddenly comes back in vogue? I am especially tickled that it is something that does not have a screen or remote control and is not fueled by batteries or electricity, but by creativity and imagination! So how about if we all grab a box of crayons and some coloring books and get busy? I’m feeling more relaxed already.