Tag Archives: Joy

Thoughtful Thursday Louis Armstrong

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Music has a way of calming the mind and soothing the soul. Louis Armstrong was born in New Orleans, Louisiana on August 4, 1901. He became a world wide sensation influencing musicians with his bold trumpet style and unique vocals at the beginning of his career in the 1920’s.

Louis had a charismatic stage presence and was highly respected by musicians from all types of music and not just jazz. He recorded many popular songs throughout his 50 year career including “Hello Dolly, La Vie En Rose, Star Dust” and my personal favorite “What a Wonderful World.”

I created this watercolor mixed media artwork as a tribute to Louis Armstrong and his beautiful, moving song. You can see the lyrics to “What a Wonderful World” in the background of this piece which he recorded in 1967. This recording was different from his others because it did not feature trumpet. It became a #1 Hit around the world including in England and South Africa but wasn’t really promoted here in the US. However, it was used in Robin Williams film, “Good Morning, Vietnam” and as a result became one of Louis Armstrong’s most-beloved songs.

The lyrics are quite beautiful and moving:

Louis stopped performing in 1969 due to health issues and passed away in his sleep July 6, 1971, at his home in Queens, New York. He was a phenomenal bandleader, jazz trumpeter and singer. I love listening to his songs especially “What a Wonderful World” which can be found on YouTube, just click the live link and it will take you right to it. He saw beauty in the simplest things and that’s what I love most about this song; I find it so comforting. Do you have a favorite Louis Armstrong song?

Hope you enjoyed this post, thanks for stopping by!!

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Inchies

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  • 2.5″ Square Inchie
  • 2.5″ x 3.5″ Inchie
  • 2.5″ x 3.5″ Inchie
  • 2.5″ x 3.5″ Inchie

I needed to take a little break so I made a few inchies. Creating these mini pieces of art is the perfect way to destress and unwind. And for some unknown reason, I find drawing the tiny little circles very calming😊

I like to paint a handful of inchies in advance so they’re completely dry and ready to use when I feel the need. I store them on my desk in a handmade ceramic bowl. The designs were made using a Sakura Micron Pen and of course I couldn’t resist adding some glitter✨

How do you destress and unwind?

Hope this inspires you to create art this weekend, thanks for stopping by!!

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Gratitude Art Journaling

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I thought I’d share with you a fun art journal layout I made a while ago. I love the fall colors in this one and cupcakes are always fun!

It was a pretty simply layout that I started with collaged pieces of printed tissue paper by Tim Holtz for the background. I lightly painted over them with pink and orange acrylic paint making sure you could still the collaged papers peeking through.

I have a large cupcake stamp that I used to create the stacked cupcakes. I added a few designs to the background using white acrylic paint and then printed the quote from my computer and added it to the page:

“The more you thank life, the more life gives you to be thankful for!”

It’s fun to see where your art ends up because when I made this I started with my cupcake stamp and it grew into a stack. There wasn’t a lot of planning involved but rather going with the flow. So when you’re journaling and leery of the blank page, just start even if you only add a few scribbles. The important thing is to start and let your creative muse take over and have fun!!

Hope this inspires you to create today, thanks for stopping by!!

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Thoughtful Thursday Autumn Essential Oil Blends

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Photo by Alice AliNari on Pexels.com

There is something magical about Autumn when she begins to show herself. The long hot days of summer slowly begin to fade and are replaced with long cool nights. Breezes begin to sweep in and the leaves change their colors and fall like brightly colored pieces of confetti.

There are many ways to bring the ever delightful scents of the outdoors into your home to create a blissful and serene ambience. One of my favorite ways is to use a mixture of essential oils in a diffuser and allow the tantalizing autumn scents to drift throughout my home.

The enchanting scents can have a calming affect on your mind which makes them that much better, plus they’re natural too. These are a few fall diffuser blends I found online at HelloGlow.co created by Stephanie Gerber. I highly recommend visiting her site which contains a wealth of information including 25 essential blends for autumn, how to make your own diffuser and what you can expect with the different blends. If you’re new to this idea, start with 1 or 2 recipes and see how you like it.

Have a lovely day and thanks for stopping by!!

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Handmade Little Monsters Journal – Take 2

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  • Pearl and her entourage
  • Fluffy Muffins and her BFF, Jams
  • Agnus and her eclectic brood

Not sure if you saw my earlier post where I started creating a handmade little monsters journal inspired by  Margaret Peot’s book, “Inkblot”.

The idea is to create ink blots on your paper and then turn them into some type of image using your imagination. My inkblots are all weird but somewhat cute little monsters and these are my new pages. I don’t know what’s more fun, creating these little monsters or coming up with the fun names for them 😂🤣

  • Pearl and her entourage
  • Fluffy Muffins and her BFF, Jams
  • Agnus and her eclectic brood

Hope you’re enjoying these, thanks for stopping by!!

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“You have the greatest magical power within you, it’s called imagination.” ~Nitin Namdeo

Painting the Light Watercolor Challenge

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Day 5 – Golden Wood

Kolbie Blume’s new book “Mastering Light in Watercolor” was released last week. As a celebration for her new book she hosted a 5 day watercolor challenge that made a good companion to the book.

It was an interesting challenge that I enjoyed immensely. I learned a lot to say the least and it was lots of fun! I got a late start but finally finished my last painting so I’m sharing them with you:

  • Day 1 – Night Falls
  • Day 2 – Sunny Skies
  • Day 3 – Dusky Skyline
  • Day 4 – Beach Bonfire
  • Day 5 – Golden Wood
  • Day 1 – Night Falls
  • Day 2 – Sunny Skies
  • Day 3 – Dusky Skyline
  • Day 4 – Beach Bonfire
  • Day 5 – Golden Wood

Hope this inspires you to create today, thanks for stopping by!!

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“In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary.” ~Aaron Rose

Night Sky Watercolor

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Kolbie Blume at This Writing Desk, is a talented watercolor artist who has written several books and teaches online. I came across her YouTube Channel and found a tutorial she made for this painting called “Night Sky.”

I have to say she did an excellent job teaching how to create it using minimal supplies. It was easy to understand and follow along. I love how it turned out especially the light in the sky. What do you think?

Hope this inspires you to create today, thanks for stopping by!!

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“The stars are olden love stories in a sky spun of soul.” ~ Angie Wyland-Crosby

Handmade Little Monsters Journal

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I’m starting a new handmade journal inspired by Margaret Peot’s book, “Inkblot.” The book is suitable for all ages and it brings out the kid in all of us.

Remember when you were a kid and you used your imagination to create images in clouds that floated by in the sky? The premise behind this book is basically the same. You create ink blots on your paper and then turn them into some type of image using your imagination.

I haven’t designed covers for it or even sewn the pages together yet because I’m changing the orientation of the pages as I go. So the layout isn’t quite final. But one thing’s for sure, I can’t stop laughing at these little monsters as they come to life. When you view the pages below you’ll understand why. Hope this inspires the kid in you to be a little silly today and create some art. If you’re interested in Margaret Peot’s book, “Inkblot” it’s available on amazon. I highly recommend it!

Thanks for stopping by!!

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“The imagination is the pathway to everywhere.” ~Terence McKenna

PS – each one has a cute and fitting name 😂🤣😂

  1. Miss Bubbles
  2. Sarge
  3. Twinkle Toes
  4. Myrtle
  • Miss Bubbles
  • Sarge
  • Twinkle Toes
  • Myrtle

Simplest Things Journal

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Before getting back to business in the studio (and there’s lots to do), I had a bit more fun creating in my Simplest Things Journal. I’m finally getting that fall vibe going on and made this new page with splashes of fall colors. I don’t know why, but I really love the messiness of this design. It’s a bit chaotic but also calming.

I also used a few of the wildflower inchies from my stash to create several more pages. For the most part even though they don’t have a fall vibe going on, they’re dreaming they do😊 🍂🍁 My favorite flower inchie is the red one, it really pops!

Which is your favorite page?

Hope this inspires you to create art today, thanks for stopping by!!!

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“I can smell the autumn dancing in the breeze. The sweet chill of pumpkin and crisp sunburnt leaves.” ~Unknown

Simplest Things Journal

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I’ve been busy with so many things that I’ve been neglecting my Simplest Things Journal. So I thought it would be a good idea to create something new and give my mind a break. The original inspiration for creating these journal pages came from Amy Maricle’s Simplest Things Challenge at Mindful Art Studios.

What I love most in creating these designs is it’s a great way to unwind and destress. You create interesting art, in a short amount of time with simple elements like lines, circles, droplets or anything else you can think of. There are no rules, just create and have fun!

I’m a huge fan of color, the more, the merrier! So for me to leave a design mostly black and white or with minimal color takes great restraint on my part. Sometimes my inner muse, you know the one who’s color crazy, wins the fight 😂

These are a few new pages in my journal. They’re similar but different.

Hope they inspire you to create art today, thanks for stopping by!!!

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“Color is a super power that directly influences the soul.” ~Wassily Kandinsky