Painting
I finished two paintings in about a week of each other. This feels miraculous to me. One painting I’ve been working on since last spring when I first did a study for the idea. I...
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I Made Sugar Eggs
. . . for Easter. Turns out they’re really not very hard, and would be a fun craft with older kids. Maybe Olivia and her friends next year . . .
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Everett’s Teepee – Christmas Projects 2014
I didn’t do too many home-made Christmas projects this year . . . but I did do a few 😉 The grandest one of all was Everett’s teepee. He was quite pleased to have a...
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Israel Photo Book – Christmas Projects 2014
The next Christmas project I did was a photo book for my dad. It took quite a bit of time, but I think the end result was definitely worth it. Now I just have to...
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Wheeler Road Christmas Projects 2014
This was the last Christmas project I did. It’s a painting I did for my in-laws of the house they built in Oregon and raised their kids while they were very young (Wyatt moved when...
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Calvin’s Quilt – The Summer Chronicles
This summer I made Calvin a quilt for his birthday. I always idealized that when we had a cabin, my kids would have warm, cuddly quilts to snuggle under on the cool mornings. So when...
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How To: Paper Mache Bees
Oh, what fun paper mache is. It is one of my favorite mediums, because the possibilities are endless, the required supplies are always on hand (paper, flour, water), and the required attention span is minimal...
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Be Your Best Self – Back to School Dinner, 2013
One of our family traditions is having a back to school dinner for the little lovelies. This is a time to celebrate the kids, acknowledge their accomplishments, and look forward to all they have ahead...
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Step-By-Step: A Fairy Castle In The Making
A couple months ago I wrote about our upcoming yard projects. One was to make a fairy house. Well, not long after that, I pulled Olivia into the art room and told her about the...
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Sketchbook Saturday – Determined to Paint! And I Cleaned My Art Room
This week was a little slow. I cleaned the house and looked around . . . we had no where to go and nothing to do. So, I determined to paint. Remember how I was...
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Sketchbook Saturday – Lip Service
Every once in a while I wish I was much more realistic and technical in my drawing . . .
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Sketchbook Saturday – Joy
Every once in a while I flip past this page in my sketchbook and think: I really should finish that and fill it in more. But let’s be honest, the chances of that happening are...
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Sketch Book Saturday – Last Year’s Valentines Painting-almost.
Remember at the start of 2012 when I had the goal to do one painting a month? Well, I made it through January, and then I drew this out for February. Maybe someday it will...
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Sketch Book Saturday – Duck-Duck-Goose!
One of these days I want to learn how to paint digitally really well – these little doodles that are all over in my sketchbooks would be great as little digital paintings I think. (I...
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Sketch Book Saturday – Sleeping Beauty
The best thing about this picture is that in person, the floor is doodled in various shades of gold glitter pen, so as the page/angle changes, the floor sparkles as various stars shine!
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And in Other News . . .
Tuesday night was the big night – Wyatt lost his election. It was a sore disappointment. And in other news . . . Olivia came home today totally excited to share that she had learned...
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Sketch Book Saturday – Little Deer Love
I found this little illustration in my sketchbook today as I was thumbing through looking for a blank page to tear out for another project. As I have had this particular sketchbook for years (and...
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Oaklee’s Butterfly Mobile
Remember back in August I mentioned a mobile I had made – I said I’d share more later? Well, it’s later. This is a mobile I made for baby Oaklee – a little touch for...
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Art Projects Lately
I’ve been working on a lot of different art projects this past week. One of them was this invitation to a baby shower for Leslee. The date/time is all made up because we haven’t pinned...
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Arts in the Park
This year Becca Roper in the tenth ward, and I decided to put together an “Arts in the Park” program for the kids. We’ve invited 3 wards – mine, Becca’s and the 18th ward...
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Garden Green
Of course after a long and brown winter, I’m always excited to get out and put some color in my yard. Every year my attempts find varying degrees of failure! LOL. Oh well, it’s March,...
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Planting Guide
I made myself a planting guide – because I was kinda bored today. At the last minute I added a “brought to you by” at the bottom. I think I will try “pinning” it and...
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A New Niece
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And so I made a Skirt
This summer will be “The Summer of No Pants” – where my days will be spent in comfortable, soft, sweet skirts. I was so excited I made my first one! I made a pattern out...
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Will You Be My Valentine?
“You forgot the question mark” was the first thing he said when he saw it. “No I didn’t. It’s more of a statement than a question.” On Monday they spent the afternoon preparing our valentines...
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January Painting
I am so tempted to explain myself in this painting – to tell you all the things I was thinking when I painted it – But I’ve decided part of letting myself do art in...
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Calendar, 2012
I’ve never used a calendar until this year – something about my spontaneous carpe diem lifestyle never seemed to fit inside that box. And then I had kids – who went to school. My calendar...
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Use Your Imagination
A fun little illustration while Wyatt and I watched tv the other night. (He watched, I doodled).
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Ocean in the Red Rocks
When I lived on the Indian Reservation I made a lemon galleon out of paper mache. And then I made fish to swim along side. Paper mache fish with giant kissy lips and beauty marks...
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Forever Young
Aww . . . romance. See my early fascination with lanterns?
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Hope For the Flowers
Andi sent me a postcard once, with the following message — When she heard the word butterfly, her whole insides leapt. ‘But what is a butterfly?’ The cocooned caterpillar explained: ‘It’s what you are meant...
Read The Rest of the StoryBeneath a Sunny Sky
This is one of my favorite illustrations. It was done more as a doodle, probably took no more than a half hour, one day after school in high school. But I’ve always loved it because...
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The Secret Place
I’ve always loved red walls. I hope to have one someday.
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The Isle of Imagination
The Mountains of the Moon – ‘El Dorado,’ EA Poe;The Forest of No Return – Babes in Toyland;The Field of Hypo-Allergenic Flowers – My mom’s idea;The Enchanted Tree – a tree that lived down the...
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Self Portrait
This is a charcoal done in high school. People can never tell it’s me. Oh well.
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Old Man with A Lemon
This illustration . . . well, it makes me giggle. I remember I drew it on Andi’s floor, with her chalks, which I always admired, and was extremely jealous of (for some reason it never...
Read The Rest of the StoryBack to Being Busy
-Deck -Murray House -Business -Baby -3 Children -Summer
Read The Rest of the StoryThe Last Day of Summer
This is a picture that I did first as a tile mosaic for a table (in my basement). Later Andi left me her computer as she left for six months to Taiwan. As a recent...
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Colors of the Rainbow
I have vague memories of coloring this during my creative writing class as a junior in high school. My creativity in writing must have been lacking that day.
Read The Rest of the StoryCounting Crows
This is a little illustration I did in the fall of 1999. (I remember, because I was in Russia. I did a lot of art in Russia). There’s a nursery rhyme about counting magpies, which...
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Today I woke up feeling summery. That feeling of: energy, freedom, relaxation, don’t-particularly-care-that-the-bathroom-is-a-mess-ish. And the sky outside had clouds that make for lovely paintings. And I wanted to paint. And then I thought of making...
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With me feeling better more and more each day, my thoughts have turned to the impending living arrangements. I have ideas. But I’m not going to be OCD about this! (Remember, self, remember!). The best...
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The Home Made Holiday
I have a little confession. Wyatt- stop reading now, because you will be annoyed by this. I mean it. Stop. You’re still reading. I know you are. Stop it. Because now you will want to...
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Five Years
Dear Olivia, Hi sweet baby girl. You’re no longer a baby. Sigh. That thought makes my heart a little heavy. It’s been a great five years so far! And a wonderful year four with lots...
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On Friday Night
Wyatt and I hit Barnes and Noble (a staple for our date nights, I know, living on the edge!). And I came across a magazine that had the most beautiful photo collages. Sigh. It filled...
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Dreaming of a White Christmas
I saw these sweet little quilled snowflakes in a magazine, and I thought: “I could make that.” And so I did. I was my project for girls weekend/conference weekend. I am only a little disappointed...
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Summer Stars
She grew up among the children of the stars . . . This is my art project for the summer: glass stars. I cut them out of sheets of various glass that I’ve bought. Then...
Read The Rest of the StoryBaby Sunshine’s Summer Dresses
I made two pillowcase dresses for Olivia for the summer. One is pink eyelet, and the other is white. The pink one was my first, so naturally it took me a bit longer. I made...
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This is the little book I made for Wyatt for Valentines Day. Love the boy.
Read The Rest of the StoryHomemade Gifts 2009: Olivia’s Dollhouse
For Olivia: a doll house. Or a pony house as the case may be. For her to play with to her little girl hearts content.
Read The Rest of the StoryHomemade Gifts 2009: Everett’s Sock Monkey
This year I tackled quite a few home-made gifts. Every couple years I do a lot of home-made stuff, and then I remember not to do it again! While the projects are fun, it’s hard...
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Homemade Gifts 2009: Calvin’s Hobbes
For Calvin I made a Hobbes. You have to understand, I’ve wanted to make a Hobbes for Cal since before Calvin came to be. People sometimes ask: “Did you name Calvin after Calvin and Hobbes?”...
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I made these a few weeks ago (actually started them two nights before Everett was born). They are just little bibs and burp rags. I made the front out of fun blue and brown flannel...
Read The Rest of the StoryKerr Lanterns at Night
Read The Rest of the StoryKerr Lanterns Re-Thought
So, when I was in high school, I made what I called “Kerr Lanterns” (I pronounced it CARE lanterns) using my mom’s Kerr canning jars. This year I thought I would make some Kerr lanterns...
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I have an idea for an art project, and I need everyone’s help. If you have or know of anyone who has, baby jars – you know, the little glass jars baby food comes in,...
Read The Rest of the StoryChristmas Projects – Hair Clips
A neighbor girl gave Olivia some darling hair clips last summer. They were so cute, I wanted to get more for Christmas. At the mall they were $2.00 per clip! Online I found them for...
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You Belong Among the Wild Flowers Part One
For the past week and a half we have been in celebration of Andi’s wedding. The nuptials took place last weekend in Yellowstone, and we’ll get to that later. But she came to Utah (from...
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Christmas Projects – Book Plates
I made bookplates again this year for the books I gave my babies for Christmas. (I’m a book giver, it’s genetic.) They turned out really cute. There are more than these four, but these are...
Read The Rest of the StoryChristmas Projects – Olivia's Flying Fish
I made each of the kids a paper mache something for Christmas this year. For Calvin I knew right away that I would re-create the Lemon Galleon (check back later and I will pics of...
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Christmas Projects – Olivia’s Flying Fish
I made each of the kids a paper mache something for Christmas this year. For Calvin I knew right away that I would re-create the Lemon Galleon (check back later and I will pics of...
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