Art on the Garden

Well,I am heading back to Vancouver Island to visit family and friends and take part in a fantastic art show.

Leslie and Mike open their home and property for artists to show off their art.
At the same time they donate the entry fee to Nanoose Bay Food Bank. Their property is absolutely beautiful with Artist set up around the pond,live music and food.

Art in the Garden is July 21 & 22 at 2525 Northwest Bay Road. I will be there teaching a mixed media class where you will get to take home your own creation. So be sure to check it out at www.nanoosebayartinthegarden.com

Smiles,
Kim

Stopping to smell the flowers.....

Well, I have been putting off moving my website from iWeb and it finally happened my site came down. So it was wonderful while it lasted but I am looking forward to a new look which should happen soon!
As I was thinking about the direction I wanted to take with my site and it's purpose I couldn't help notice this very busy bee in one of my favorite flowers the Peony...Love Love Love them, great childhood memories of staying with my great aunt on her farm and all her gardens being lush with these flowers and of course she spoiled me rotten so it was a wonderful time always.
So as I work on my site,paint and prepare for a class I will be teaching on Vancouver Island in a few weeks I have to remind myself to step back every so often and take notice of all the goodness around me...........and it is truly amazing all that you get to enjoy when you take a moment or two.
Smiles ,
Kim

Doodle Art

Sunshine, coffee and a fresh canvas. After a short stint of rain, which only a newly transplanted West Coast girl can say.......my Calgary friends would disagree but three weeks of rain with blips of sunshine trumps months of rain and very little sunshine.

I am hearting my "Doodle Art", so much fun and even better as I doodle away on a warm sunny deck.So here is the try something new part I have been using my left hand to draw which is very interesting for a right handed gal. Next I will try painting with my left hand but for now I will stick to drawing. Just another step towards moving out of my comfort zone! I

So here is to summer which has finally arrived and to days spent barbecuing,
enjoying friends and family and of course to that special summer drink.....
Smiles,
Kim

Kindness Matters

I am a little behind with iPhone technology , so I thought I would join the thousands of bloggers and create this post from my iPhone. The real challenge is my typing but other then that easy.
I am into layers,texture and flowers lately.The colors are not as bright as a lot of my past art but still loving the feel of each new piece and the changes that are happening.
" Kindness Changes Everything", sometimes when life hands you a curve it is amazing how the kindness of others really does change everything and helps you navigate through.
Smiles,
Kim

Breathe

Wow, it has been awhile since I have posted anything. Life does that sometimes, makes us stop take a deep breath and reevaluate where we are, how far we have come and what it is we need to move forward. A small step back a break from all that we love makes us aware of what is important to us and what we need to fuel our souls. 

So my time without has allowed me to listen to the quite whispers and come back to my passions with a renewed interest and a fresh set of eyes. I have been painting, reading ,running and listening to music as these are the things that I need to create balance and happiness which in turn fuel my soul.
Thus my latest painting Breathe, was created by truly embracing and listening to those quite but subtle whispers .............

Smiles.

Kim

Change

When I posted my last blog way back in March and talked about “change”, little did I know that not only would this refer to the direction of my art but also my life. Over the summer my family and I have managed to sell our business, home and much more and move to a new province. There have been so many changes for us all that we are all learning to adjust and embrace all the new. It has been a great lesson in patience, grace and letting all that is meant to be happen. Has it been easy, well some days more than others but it has taught us that we can triumph outside of what we know. That all that we hold dear is tucked safely in our hearts and that sometimes it is our kids that teach us more than we actually have taught them!

Change Of Plans

Some times the best laid plans change. I purchased this panel board recently and had an idea sketched out and ready to go except after I primed the wood I spilt half a container of Modge Podge on it....what can you do but laugh and take a new direction.......So change of plans  I was now starting a mixed media piece which I have been contemplating for awhile now.As I work on this piece it is so much fun trying new techniques and using things I have had stashed away in the studio. So will post the finished piece when I am done!
Carpe Diem,
Kim

Breathe

This painting has been  hanging in my studio until I recently  moved it into our home office, after a much needed office clean out.  I have been trying to get  the year end completed for my husbands biz and I am finally done.....and because  I am so right brain at times doing the books for me is not much fun. So I thought that I would relocate my Breathe sign to the office where it would remind me to take a deep breath at times of frustration. Having my art below and pics of my fandango around the room also help to put all into perspective when I take a moment.This sign has literally moved around my home and has been placed where I think I need the reminder most. A few years back it was above my mud room door as my family seemed to be rushing off to something or other yet not spending enough quality time together. At that time I would glance at it once in awhile until one of life's little reminders made me and my family stop and simply take a moment to breathe. So although I have become fairly consistent at taking time , every once in awhile I too need a  simple reminder to stop and just breathe. As I have learned  this can change a second,a minute or perhaps your  life!
Carpe Diem,
Kim

Plant your Dreams Here

So this is one in a series of cupboard doors that has gone from being discarded to a little piece of art. The words are burned into the wood and the picture is several layers of paint and paper. This cupboard door was cherry at one time and now has that vintage look, thanks to a little elbow grease. On the back you will find an envelope where you may wish to keep your dream list tucked away.

 I never use to write down my dreams only goals; however I have learned that writing down your dreams is just as important. Sure some dreams will change and yes they may even become bigger than you thought you could imagine or they may even come and go. The one thing I do know is when a dream is realized it is amazing. I have been so lucky to have realized many of my own dreams over the years. The one thing that I feel is a true blessing of having ones dream happen is understanding how precious the journey was that one took to get to that dream. Thus I have always told my kids to dream big because there really is nothing one cannot do when you put your mind to it. I truly believe that a dream is a gift you give yourself and when you put that dream into action then it is a gift that will be shared with others.

Carpe Diem,

Kim

Balance

So, I have had about five paintings on the go and last night I set them all up in the studio and painted for hours. It happened  the other day when I was trying to get my art photo's organized I came across this picture I had painted a few years ago and the bright colors inspired me all the way into my studio.It is amazing what can motivate us and provide us with the energy we need to get going.  I think this coupled with  the fact that these days are a little less hectic then previous years; we have finished the house, I am working part-time from home for my hubby's buss,kids are healthy and happy and life is good! Balance and me are slowly finding our way and boy does it feel great.

Seize the day!

Well I am loving my Mondo Beyondo course…....  It is wonderful to hear that I am not alone in this journey of creativity.  It is amazing how an online class and connections with other creative souls can spur one on.  I can’t imagine not creating something every day; it is what fuels me, gives me energy and makes me smile! So as I let go of the perfect and move in the direction of a sink full of dishes, a dryer full of laundry and we won’t even mention the bathrooms I am defiantly headed in the direction of my studio. It is after all about seizing the day.

Carpe Diem,

Kim

Making It Happen!

Making it happen for me means letting go of the perfect! So that is exactly what this post is about. I have been working on setting this blog up forever and linking it to my website but have yet to post anything. This of course is do to the fact that it was not perfect yet, or that was what I was telling myself. So here we go welcome to my new and evolving blog space…

 

                                                              "Wheat Fields Forever"

It is amazing how creative you become and how much more you accomplish when you realize nothing is ever going to be perfect and to just let the idea of perfectionism go. That is exactly what happened with the above painting I had been working on it for a little while, in all honesty it had gone through a few seasons here on Vancouver Island. Then before Christmas I took it down to “Smashin’ Glass & Anything Art CO.”, and it sold. After months of me not thinking it wasn’t  perfect and not ready, someone else recognized that it was .So this year I am letting go of the perfect and I am looking forward to all that, that will bring!