New Paintings

I have finished two new paintings and listed them on ETSY. Both with my new technique using the card to apply the oil paint. I like the texture and the ability to apply a lot of paint at once. They are completely abstract and are painted on the sides so that they are ready to hang. Abstract is my favorite subject because I can just let my my wander and it is amazing the stuff that appears on the canvas.

Thanksgiving

I am thankful for many things today. For my family and friends. For the beautiful weather we have had so that everyone could travel this week. For the fact that I did not burn anything on my first Thanksgiving at my house. For the dogs and their unending love. For the fun 4-wheeler rides we had yesterday. For the fun 40th anniv party we will have this weekend. For this wonderful place that we live. For the studio that I have to paint in that Dad helped me fix. For my creativity. For all my new friends and for all the one's that I have known forever. I hope everyone has a wonderful and peaceful Thanksgiving.

Free shipping on my paintings

I am having a sale on my paintings. Free shipping on all my paintings in the US through the end of November. Check out my site www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com and everything is marked that has the free shipping.

I sold a painting!!

I still get excited after all these years when I sell a painting. And I sold one today!!! Thanks Erin! My creative gift will always amaze me. And I am always thankful for it. I believe that we are all just channels and God works through us to create art, and our lives, and everything we do. "Art is a divine collaboration. A sacred covenant between the artist and the Great Creator" Breathnak

A beautiful Day and a 4-wheeler ride.

It was another beautiful day yesterday. We went on a 4-wheeler ride to check out the horses. We started out on two 4-wheelers and then mine ran out of gas or something. So we ended up on one, and the moral of the story is just take one 4-wheeler! That's lots more fun anyway. The horses were beautiful and I took lots of pictures. The sun was starting to set and it got really cold really fast. But that is the best time of day to take photos. The light is just amazing.

And I got some really great pictures. We made it back just before it got dark. It was a great day!

New painting technique

I have been creating really bright colored, abstract paintings lately. I had been using a really big brush to paint, then I started using my palette knife. It gave a great texture and covered the canvas much faster, but I wanted something that held more paint. So I had this Idea to use and old credit card to spread the paint. It gave great texture and I was able to put two to three colors on at once. "The abstraction is often the most tangible form for the things that I can only clarify in paint" Georgia O'keeffe.

Christmas Cloak

I just made the most beautiful cloak for Christmas. It is reversible garnet red and fir green velvet. It is so soft and warm and makes me want to go caroling or to a Christmas party. It's so great because it is easily turned around. One day you can wear red on the outside and the other day green.

I listed it on my Etsy site today. www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

wall around your heart

I have many sketchbooks full of quotes and poems. I was going through an old one today and found this by Mary Chapman Carpenter. It's a song called Wall Around Your Heart. It's about faith and taking a chance.

It starts at the place that two people face each other merely by chance
abandoned by words and the purpose they serve
it stops them right in their tracks
how long has it been since this feeling within
has made you forget who you are

and lets you believe once more in the moon
and lets you have faith again in the stars
and lets you go free 'cause someone broke through
the wall 'round your heart

Now the world is unkind most of the time
and most of the time we survive
hard luck and losses and love's double crosses
that all broken hearts seem to find
after giving too much now they're afraid of the touch
'cause the last time it just left a scar

but if you believe once more in the moon
and if you have faith again in the stars
and you can go free 'cause someone broke through
the wall around your heart

There's wall made of steel
there's walls made of stone
but none are so strong as the walls made of fear alone

Sooner or later it's old human nature
propelling you forward again
it's the step a turn and a glance
asking where in the world have you been
but you don't have to answer 'cause now you're a dancer
and the music is ready to start

and you can believe once more in the moon
and you can have faith again in the stars
and you can go free 'cause someone broke through
the wall around your heart

Advertising my etsy site

I have been looking for ways to advertise my Etsy site and I have found some great ideas. First is business cards. I put several in every package I send, and give them out to everyone. I also made flyers on my computer that say buy handmade and list my site with pictures. These go out in every package I mail also. Plus I ordered a return address label and stamp every letter and package several times. Stickers are good too. They can go on every piece of outgoing mail. Even bills I mail get stamped or stickered or business cards. I figure that lots of people handle the mail so why not do some advertising. I bought a bumper sticker for my car. If someone behind me then they will see it. I want to make t-shirts with beautiful pictures on them and my etsy site. The latest thing I learned about was the showcase on Etsy. Basically it's advertising in the different categories on Etsy. Some of them are hard to get, and you have to check back often. I did get one on the Storque page and I am going to list more blank books and get a spot on the books and zines. I'm sure there are lots more ideas, but this is what I've found so far.

Irish walking cape

There have been several magazines sellingIrish walking capes recently. The are a beautiful wool ponch/cape and they retail for $250-$500. I have been trying to figure out how to make them with no luck. Until yesterday. The nicest woman has a handmade wool one that she let me look at. Her's is beautiful shades of purple with cranberry. Two pockets and a button on the side. A zipper up the front and a collar. Very simple but quite striking. I would change the aipper and add a button or two at the neck so that it would overlap. I am going to expand my cape line to include these. I think I will start out with fleece until I can find a good supplier of wool.

glass insulators

Just got this great idea from a lady for something creative to do with glass insulators. You can turn them over and put a votive in them. It looks really cute. Or you can put a battery operated light under them and it will illuminate them.

Sandhills of Nebraska - Home

I have traveled all over the world and still the most beautiful place is the Sandhills of Nebraska. Yesterday we had all this snow and I woke up to a winter wonderland. There was no wind so everything was just perfect and still. Of course once I let the dogs out it was a little chaotic. The sandhills is the largest sand dune in North America and covers almost 20,000 square miles. It sits on top of the Ogallala aquaifer. It might sound kinda boring but it has the largest and most intricate wetland ecosystem in the United States. Rolling hills with grass, yuccas, and all sorts of beautiful wildflowers. The sunsets are mindblowing. It's the greatest place in the world!! :)

Purple/black reversible velvet cloak

I just made the most beautiful purple/black reversible velvet cloak. It is soft and warm and would be perfect to wear on a day like today where it is cold and snowy. Check out my etsy site to see more pics. http:/www.mwestdesigns.etsy.com

Inspiration

Where does inspiration come from? I believe that God is the source for all inspiration. Whether that is to build a scryscraper or just pick a flower. We are all a channel and God's light flows through us. One of my favorite books is Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach. August is the month where she talks about creating. She says " We do not create in a vacuum. Art is a Divine Collaboration, a sacred covenant between the artist and the Great Creator." If we remember that we don't create alone than the flow of creativity can never be stopped. But what do you do on those days when it just doesn't seem possible to pick up the brush, or warp the loom or to carry on with your Creativity. You just show up. And work. And don't think too much about it. " She writes " How do you prepare yourself to enter an extraordinary state on an ordinary morning? By showing up. Day in, day out. By not judging how it's going. It it's going at all, that's enough. you can't afford to think about how the work will be received. Our job, then, is just to do it. It can't be published, produced, performed, or purchased if it doesn't exist."

So on this cold dreary morning, after weeks of beautiful weather, I'd rather just crawl back into bed. But I'm just going to show up. I am going to finish the two paintings I started yesterday. And then I'm going to work on a new rug. God is always with us, especially when we are creating. So I won't be alone on this cold morning.

Go out and Vote!!!

I was reading in the Etsy forums this morning about the British and their voting.
One person said that we Americans Rock because we are so passionate about this election. They said that in the UK they have heard more about our US elections they they ever do about their own. She made it seem like elections weren't really a big deal in the UK. Which is sad really, cause it's important to vote no matter what country you live in when you have elections. That is what it is all about. Using your voice to make a choice for the future. I am off to vote this morning and then I have a bunch of errands to run.

Cloth Paper Scissors Magazine

My most favorite art magazine is Cloth Paper Scissors. It is a magazine about collage, mixed media, and artistic discovery. The pictures are amazing in this magazine. It's the greatest if you need some inspiration. The articles give you step by step directions on how to make collaged and mixed media artwork. Kelly Rae Roberts has many great articles. She has this unique technique where you take collage papers and glue them onto a canvas and then put gel medium on top. After it is dry you roll paint on with a brayer and it gives the picture a beautiful back ground. She then paints these amazing women in the foreground. I am experimenting with this. The picture is one I did based on her instructions. So check out Cloth Paper Scissors for some great ideas.

New rugs and great weather and a great Halloween

I hope everyone had a great Halloween. I had a blast. Got dressed up twice to go trick-or-treating. Once in the afternoon and then again last night. So much fun. (I'm on the left) It is hard to believe though that it is the 1st of November now. It was 75 degrees out today and no wind. What a lovely day. I did spend some time outside but I was also finishing some rugs. I have several new colors. And some beautiful new rugs. I am going to start a new batch. I just need to warp my loom again.