Take A Walk

I apologize that I haven’t posted in a few days… life has kind of gotten in the way!  I haven’t been feeling well and so I have gotten behind.

I thought you might enjoy taking a little walk with me at the lake after a busy week…

These pie cherries are looking pretty ripe!  The Robins haven’t eaten these…yet!

The sunset looks like a winner tonight – look at these whispy clouds!

Pinecones piled high for a beach fire – yet look at that yellow flower growing on the edge! 🙂

As I step onto the dock, I notice the clouds reflecting on the water and plants sprouting new growth between boards:

I like the combination of the moss growing on the dock boards and the mountains in the distance in this sunset view:

As I walk back to my little place at the lake, I notice these beautiful flowers:

I just love their color combination, don’t you? 💜

Wishing you a happy day taking a walk enjoying the beauty around you –  I hope you share a description with me!

Cheers! 🙂

Pair Of Dice?

These birds might hang from a rear-view mirror…

Or perhaps they are rolled in a game of Yahtzee?

But I believe they are Para-dice birds… Flying around in Paradise!

How many weird birds can you find hidden in this picture?

Happy Weird Bird Wednesday!

Cheers! 🙂

A Face Haiku

Is it possible to create a face with just 7 lines?  Yes, I say!! 😄

 1.  It starts with a line

2.  And connects to a feature…

3.  They are easy and fun –

4.  But may look like a creature!  Lol! 😉

And here is a step-by-step example:

I hope you give one a try!

Seven lines for a face…

Is all it takes!

Cheers! 🙂

A Pine Cone Study

A friend at the lake brought me this wonderful dish of pine cones recently:

She thought I might enjoy painting them… And I did!

It amazes me how such a simple subject can bring me so much JOY to paint!

I noticed how one of the greener pine cones reminded me of a pineapple.

May you find beauty in what you treasure today!

Cheers! 🙂

Dreaming in Color

Do you ever dream in color?

Charlie at Doodlewash.com loves to paint AND dream in color…

And what a wonderful dream it is!!  He is encouraging everyone not only to paint every day with watercolor for #WorldWatercolorMonth but also give financially to the Dreaming Zebra Foundation to help children have the opportunity to create art or explore music! 🙂

Here is more information about how the Dreaming Zebra Foundation got its name!

About Dreaming Zebra™

The Dreaming Zebra Foundation is a (501)(c)(3) charity providing support so that children and young adults are given an equal opportunity to explore and develop their creativity in the arts.

How did Dreaming Zebra™ get its name?

The answer is that every zebra is unique, just as every child is one of a kind! Zebras are black, with white stripes that are as individual as fingerprints. At Dreaming Zebra, our mission is to encourage children to embrace their individuality, to express themselves creatively, and to follow their artistic dreams. Hence the name, Dreaming Zebra!

The Dreaming Zebra Foundation was incorporated in Portland, Oregon in the interest of promoting greater access to the arts for children and young adults. Our founders recognized a pressing need in many communities for the promotion of charitable donations of art and music supplies to support individuals, schools, and other nonprofit organizations serving youth and the arts.

Core to our identity is the belief that all children, regardless of their financial circumstances, should have access to art education. As a public charity powered by volunteers, this belief drives all that we do.

The Dreaming Zebra Foundation’s supporters share a common passion for education, the environment, and community, and as such, we are able to connect the synergies between those who support the arts and those in need.

I am so thankful to have ART to express my creative JOY!

I hope you join me in sharing this gift of expression by giving to the Dreaming Zebra Foundation.

All it takes is one dream to make a difference!!

Cheers!  🙂

Inspiralized!

Last week, I showed you this pasta salad that contained NO pasta – instead it contained zucchini!  I am totally amazed how GOOD this salad tasted!  Here is another photo of it, if you missed my post, here.

I had so much fun spiralizing my zucchini for this salad!  I’m now INSPIRALIZED!

I love this cookbook by Ali Maffucci – she also has a blog, Inspiralized.com

The recipe I adapted from her cookbook:

For the salad – Prepare in a large bowl:

2-3 medium zucchini  Note:  slice the zucchini about 1/2 inch through on opposite sides before spiralizing – I used the largest blade but any size would work – this just gives your “pasta” a half-moon shape.

1 cup artichoke hearts – I used whole ones in a can as I find them to be the most tender and then I cut them up.

One handful of cherry tomatoes, halved – I don’t measure these but use what I like.

1 cup diced sweet peppers – I used mini orange, red and yellow ones that I had in a bag.

1/4 cup of pepperoncini diced – the recipe called for red onion but I didn’t have any.

1/2 cup cubed Monterey Jack cheese – the recipe called for Provolone

3/4 cup diced salami

1/3 cup whole black olives, sliced in half

For the Salad Dressing – Whisk in a separate bowl:

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning or a mixture of dried oregano, basil and parsley

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

Combine the dressing with the salad ingredients.  Toss to combine.  Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes – I did 2 hours for the zucchini to soften.

Serve chilled.

Enjoy!  🙂

The Spectacle Bird

I speculate…

The spectacular,

speckled

Spectacle bird:

Razzle-dazzled…

The crowd of spectators!

Happy Weird Bird Wednesday!

Cheers! 🙂

Red Heads

Do you know anyone with red hair?  I was drawing one-liner faces last night and a few red heads appeared on my page:

I hope they give you a RED smile today!

Cheers! 🙂

 

Name That Flavor…

I decided since the temperatures have been so HOT here – into the 90’s – that it was time we all had an ice cream cone!  😉

Well, since I’m lactose intolerant and can’t eat REAL ice cream, I decided to create some mixed media cones to share with you!

Can you name each “flavor” of art medium I used?  (Answers below)

1.  The scoop – a color copy of a doodle I did previously with color pencils in 2015.  Cone is watercolor painted paper from an online class I took with Cat Bennett.  I used a patterned piece of tissue paper and a white charcoal pencil over it.

2.  The scoop – paper printed with acrylics on a Gelli plate.  Cone is from old sheet music that lists names of songs – added bonus – “summer” is part of name for one song.  Color pencil to create cone pattern.

3.  The scoop – old map that I gelli-printed.  Cone shape is cut from a paint sample card.  (Note:  Bears on my mind after two people encountered them at the lake within the last week!  Buy bear spray!)

4.  The scoop – old book page that I painted with watercolor.  Cone is scrapbook paper that looks like cork board.

5.  The scoop – scrapbook paper that was cut using a circle stencil.  I cut part of the circle to create this shape.  Cone is gelli-printed paper I did on deli paper.

I hope you enjoyed guessing these “flavors” of fun!

Cheers! 🙂

Lake Memories

My parents had a cabin at the lake where I spent many wonderful summers as a child.  One of the best memories was my mom making Huckleberry pancakes from the fresh berries we picked – like these that I recently made for my hubby:

My hubby and I still spend our summers at the same lake – Priest Lake, in Northern Idaho but in our little trailer by the lake.  The views are similar:

Our friends we’ve made – extraordinary! ❤

We love nature:

And our little piece of heaven on earth:

Happy Summer!

Cheers! 🙂