I can’t believe how the month of April just flew by. Here’s another inspirational quote by Rumi from my mini 3.25″ x 4.5″ book:
“Shine like the universe is yours.” ~Rumi
Have a great weekend!
Thanks for stopping by!
Share the Happy!!!
Today would have been my father’s birthday but he passed away a few years ago. He was a talented man who could fix anything under the sun. He had a superb sense of humor and was a great artist and my inspiration for art.
Dad was very practical and logical in his thinking. He drew this pen and ink picture the day before his 21st birthday. I was lucky enough to find it mixed in with a bunch of other papers he kept. I was in awe with how beautiful it was. Funny enough, he never hung this masterpiece in the house so I hung it in mine.
When I was a kid, I couldn’t draw well. So dad took the picture I was trying to draw and drew a numbered grid on it. Then he drew another grid on blank paper and told me to copy each square, one at a time until I was finished. This made complete sense to me at the time and thus my adventure in art began. Eventually, I got better and didn’t need the grid as much. I really love this piece by dad because you can still see the numbered grid on it which reminds me of my first art lesson with him.
Dad was an oil painter but I never liked the turpentine smell, it was always very strong so I gravitated to watercolors. I started painting with my sister’s watercolor set by Mayflower with 24 colors. I was having a blast with that. Then for my birthday, mom and dad got me a big watercolor set made in England by Page of London with a whopping 80 colors!!! For a kid who was fascinated with colors, it was like I won the jackpot!!!!
Dad kept pretty much everything so lo and behold, he still had the original paint sets from when I was a kid. Sadly some of my pan colors in the larger set broke and got lost over the years but the sets are in good condition overall. I’m so glad he kept these because they bring back a lot of nice memories.
Thank you Dad for all your patience, creativity and ingenuity in teaching me art!
✨Happy Birthday Dad ✨
Hope you had a great week! Just a quickie post today with an inspirational quote by Rumi from my mini 3.25″ x 4.5″ book:
“Don’t you know yet? It is your light that lights the world.” ~Rumi
Love this quote by Rumi, it makes you think a little and realize how important and unique each of us is. So shine your light brightly for the world to see!
Have a great weekend!
Thanks for stopping by!
Share the Happy!!!
Earth Day started April 22, 1970, as a way to bring awareness to environmental issues and changing the public’s outlook. We are all interconnected on this planet. Every action causes an equal reaction whether it be good or bad.
Everyone chooses their battles to fight. Some battle to reduce air pollution while others battle for the forests. My battle is for the oceans because they are one of the biggest sources of life on this planet. It’s heartbreaking to see the islands of plastic that have formed as a result of dumping garbage into the oceans. Some of the plastic breaks down, pollutes the waters and eventually settles on the ocean floors. Marine animals mistake plastics for food causing them to get sick or even die.
As humans we consume tons of fish, crabs, lobsters and shrimp from the oceans every year. With the amount of plastics, garbage and toxins that have been dumped into the oceans the marine life has become toxic for humans to eat. Yet it still is a very large food source for us, so what does that say about the state of our health?
This is just one small part of a much larger problem in the oceans and I could go on and on about the issues at hand, but I think you get the gist of it. Everyday we wake up we need to be mindful of the role we play on this planet and be proactive in taking care of Mother Earth so we will have a beautiful tomorrow.
What are some of the things you do to help make a better tomorrow?
Thanks for stopping by!
“We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.” ~Unknown
All photos above in the slide presentation were taken by Maria Vidaurre, Bahamas.
I wanted to try something new so I decided to create a flower girl in my Strathmore 9″ x 12″ Colored Pencil Journal using only colored pencils and nothing else. This turned out to be quite a challenge.
I have a library of art books that I go to for reference or to simply get inspired. After a little reading I was surprised by the recommended color combinations. Truthfully, I never would have used these colors for the skin tone or hair but because of the all the layering, it turned out different than I expected. I was pleasantly surprised.
Thanks for stopping by!
Wishing you a wonderful week!
Share the Happy!!
I have to share with you the progress our baby Mockingbirds are making. There were 3 babies born around March 25th. Both parents have been feeding these ever so hungry little ones nonstop from sunrise to sunset. Last Friday we noticed the babies had left the nest but could hear them scattered in the bushes in the front of our house.
Yesterday I was lucky enough to witness one of the parents feeding this hungry little one. It was quite a show with the wings spread and the mouth wide open, waiting for food. The tail feathers in the front are from one of the parents coming in to feed. The babies long tail feathers haven’t grown in as of yet.
In between feedings, the parents are teaching the babies to fly. You can see them sputtering about in front of the house. They fly for short spurts and safely land back in the bushes where they’re completely camouflaged.
It amazes me how much they have grown in 2 weeks. The parents started by feeding them little worms and small insects. Now we see them coming in with large dragon flies for the babies to eat, it’s just incredible.
Have a great weekend!
Thanks for stopping by. Share the Happy!!
“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” ~Henry David Thoreau
I was going through some of my old sketch books and came upon this cute little guy. I created him in my 9″ x 12″ Strathmore Sketchbook quite a few years ago. He was made with Prismacolor Pencils and nothing else. I remember making him and thinking it would be so hard to draw fluffy down feathers. But I think I pulled it off, somewhat at least. Considering it was spring I figured it was the perfect time to share him with you.
Hope he brightens your day!
Thanks for stopping by!
Share the Happy!!
Easter Family Traditions
Growing up, Easter was a fairly big day of celebration. I remember how excited I was to color Easter eggs with mom the night before. Easter morning we started our day with breakfast and then off to church we went. For us kids, the highlight was getting back home to the Easter baskets filled with all kinds of goodies.
Mom would always get us something new to wear. Whether it was a new shirt or swimsuit, it was always exciting. Then it was time for the infamous Easter Egg Hunt in the garden which was a thrilling event! I held on to these wonderful family traditions with my kids and we all have a lot of fond memories and more in the making!
My kids are grown now but I still make them some type of basket. I’ve switched it up and gotten pretty creative over the years. This year I was going to try making these cute wafer decorations which can be found at SmartSchoolHouse.com. My Pinterest Easter Board is full of inspiring ideas on celebrating this Easter holiday.
What are your Easter Traditions?
I wish you and your family a Joyous Easter!
Thanks for stopping by. Share the Happy!!
“Easter is the only time of the year when it’s safe to put all your eggs in one basket..” ~Unknown
This is my newest angel, Isabelle and she’s painted on 9″ x 12″ 140lb Watercolor Paper with professional paints. She’s a little larger than some of my other ones which I think I like more. I painted her with bright, fun colors and lots of love 💖
Available for purchase in my Etsy Shop:FlowingWatersArtShop
Here’s a snippet of my creation process:
“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free.” ~ Michelangelo
Thanks for stopping by!
Share the Happy!!
Flowing Waters Art 