a wedding

No, neither of my sons is close to getting married (as far as I can tell), but my niece got married last weekend in  Golden, CO (suburb of Denver) and we all went. It was such a beautiful wedding - outside in the morning on a summer Colorado day - it was gorgeous. By the time it  was time to eat, it was a bit toasty and even the addition of lots of umbrellas did little to dispel the heat.  Everyone was jockeying for the shady, breezy places. :)

Here are a couple pics of the lovely bride, Marcie, and her cousins (my boys!).

Whatever story she was telling got them all laughing!

She opted for a pretty tea length dress since it was a morning, outdoor wedding and she looked so fresh and stylish and beautiful.

We took a short walk through the redrock area but didn't stay long - the amphitheater was closed for a concert and it was HOT. So, just a couple pics.

A wedding, dinner and lots of hugs with family - all in all, a fun, happy weekend.  Hope yours was as good.

365/3 and ICAD continues

I was a florist years ago and miss using those skills. So I love holidays when I make arrangements for the house and I really like it when a friend has a party and asks for some flowers.  My 365 project gained a little variety this week as I made some arrangements for a friend's wedding shower.

#131-133
A centerpiece for the buffet table - 2 arrangements connected or 'married' (ha!)

A great big, overflowing vase of flowers that was used as an accessory in the 'photo booth' at the shower. We had all sorts of bridal accessories to choose from and everyone vamped for the camera (I played photographer)

Closeup of the gorgeous flowers - costco roses & mums, and lisianthus, one of my fave garden flowers.

I made 4 small arrangements like this in my $1 store plastic wine glass vases - they went on the tables and kitchen counter, etc. I used greens from my yard to fill in around the flowers.

Then, of course, ICAD continues (thru July) so my ICAD efforts #18-21 (365/3 #134-138)

Hope you have a very creative week!

ICAD and 365 and just general catch up

There's a lot of pics to share so should probably split this up, but won't.  Skim, peruse, linger, whatever your time allows, or just check in to see what I've been up to.

I've been keeping up with the ICAD daily challenge - you can see my efforts showing up on instagram (tpurk13), and on flickr when I remember to put it there, and, of course, here.  Here we go - lots of pics,.....

ICAD #8-13, 365/#121-126

ICAD #14-17; 365/#127-130

I picked up a book at the library:  You Can Draw in 30 Days by Mark Kistler.  I thought I'd try working through the lessons for a bit and see what I can learn.  I'm exploring each idea more in a sketchbook but doing a quickie on my index cards.....

pinterest love: architectural details

When I was browsing my Pinterest boards for inspiration this morning, it occurred to me that I haven't done a Pinterest share in a while.

I have an ongoing fascination with architecture, especially the up close details.  So, I created a board to collect some great images.  You can see the whole board here:  Architectural Details


Hotel in Paris


Painted door in Burano, Italy


Natural History museum, London


Tile roof


Gate detail, Vienna

Can't you just  see all sorts of artistic inspiration in these closeups?  Have a fabulous summer weekend and a creative week ahead!

ICAD merges with 365 project

This will do it - this will get me back in the saddle - this will get my creative juices flowing again! It's June, so it must be time for ICAD (index card a day).  Sponsored/hosted by Tammy at Daisy Yellow  This is my 4th year participating and I love it because it's so easy, so low stress, such a great way to keep a toe (or painty finger) in art but without a big time commitment since it is summer after all.

The idea is to make something, anything, on an index card.  I happen to prefer the 4x6 size but many use the standard 3x5. I like the bigger size and some of them eventually become mail art. I buy them by the stack at the dollar store and have found that I use them all year long to experiment and play on, not just at ICAD time.  As Tammy says, " Don't worry about catching up.  The important thing is to start."

Mine are doing double duty as my 365 project creative pieces AND ICAD pieces - here I go:

ICAD 1, 2

ICAD 3,4 - working on a little pear theme.... (inktense pencils)

ICAD 5 - still feeling the pear.....this one with oil pastels.

ICAD #6  - yep, pear collaged!  (it looks more like a pear in person :))

This covers 365 #115-120. Still a month behind, but I'm working on it.

Have a fabulous weekend!

wordless wednesday

365/3 work continues

As I wrote last week, I'm starting to find my mojo again and a big step in helping me was taking a class with Seth Apter (the Altered Page). He actually came to teach in north Seattle so, of course, I took a day off work so I could attend the workshop.  Remember I said I was ready to have painty hands again?  They are truly painty!

We spent the morning learning, working, playing and trying new techniques as we covered our papers with paint, stencils, stamps, and whatever we had on hand. 

My pages underway:  (#110, 111, 112)

After creating all this painty goodness, we stitched and folded, tucked and glued, and ended up with charming pocket books.  Mine drying (#113):

Above is a sample book showing how the pockets can fill up with treasures, making this book a wonderful showpiece as a place to display postcards, photos, memories/treasures of your choice.

Here's a few closeups of the delicious texture I was able to create:

Such a great class and it was such a pleasure to meet Seth in person after following his blog for so long. He's a warm, genuine, delightful man and I'm here to say - if you get an opportunity, take a class with him; you'll love it!