7/2/16...

Did June disappear in a minute, or what?  Luckily I was able to devote time to painting and creative stuff, otherwise I'd be mad at myself for letting time slip through my fingers.  Well...it's not like I haven't had stuff to do.  You know.  The move and settling and all.  I finally have stuff in place and can somewhat have people over.  Only one at a time though.  Fred doesn't know what to do with himself, and really people....it's a small apartment.  Barely enough room for Fred and me.  I can't begin to imagine my neighbor's place with five crammed into the tiny space.  Yes, you read that right.  FIVE!  No words.  Simply no words.  

I finished a commission this week and proudly handed it off to it's new owner.  How did he describe it?  A hole in one on my first try.  I have to admit, it was really nice painting for someone besides myself.  Nope, no pictures of the final piece as he requested it be kept secret.  I'm really okay with that too.  Kudos to me for handling business without losing any of the creativity that I need to paint.  Plus it helps to have a client who gets that this is my income.  I am so grateful for all who have purchased from me, big or small.  Every little bit helps.  

I worked on something completely different for me this week.  I needed a reminder that art is supposed to be fun.  I'm supposed to be having fun while creating.  I've been admiring these artist trading cards on Instagram for weeks now.  People are just so damn creative and talented....I'M IN AWE!  And while I was going through boxes that have been packed and moved multiple times (like some have been packed for over 10 years) I found a treasure trove of goodies.  I was collecting all the paraphernalia to ship out to someone who could use it, but then I got to thinking "why not me".  Well....why not.   So I looked up how to information on Pinterest and started in.  Let me tell you, it's been four days of absolutely wonderful planning and collaging and creating. I have five that I'm putting in the mail today for some people who I want to thank for being so supportive.  And when I showed photos of them on Instagram, not only were they well-received, but I was told by an artist who I admire greatly to paint some.  He was sure they would turn out wonderfully.  That will be my next batch, or at the very least, maybe ink drawings with some hand coloring.  Again, the point was to have fun, and I think I accomplished that grandly.   

I managed to sneak in finishing a large watercolor for myself too.  Look for "Little Rabbit" in the Gallery.  It's 22 x 22 and I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out.  It's the painting I previewed last week on the blog.  

​That's it for me.  I was really focused on my art this week.  I'm hoping this upcoming week I'll be able to take a little field trip and do some plein air sketching.  Have a great week everyone!