LOVE IS IN THE AIR

After another disappointing attempt at an abstract painting I decided to paint something distinguishable. See if you can figure out what these are:

TOOK MY NAP, NOW CAN WE PLAY? by PAULA PRASS

TELL ME I'M PRETTY by PAULA PRASS 

Much happier, in fact, I think I'm in love.  Just look at those eyes.  Me thinks these are keepers.

On another note I had an amazing short visit with my daughter.  We packed in shopping, hosted a Stella & Dot Trunk Show, and lots of food.  She came from the Midwest vortex thingy so the weather here was yet another treat.  I was secretly hoping she might get stranded here; oh well.

Happy and safe weekend!

WINDOW IN BURANO

I have absolutely fallen in love with Burano, Italy.  The houses, shutters and doors are all brightly painted.  I already have a longtime love of windows and doors.  Flowers on the sill or a flower boxes make hearts float out of my eyes.  Yup, it's true.  I get on Google Maps sometimes just to "walk the streets" and tour cities around the world. Burano is one of my all time favorite stops.  

I decided to paint a window for my home and place it in my hanging easel.  I bought two easels years ago at market to use in a Decorator Show House.  I wish I had purchased dozens of these easels because the room I designed ended up on the front cover of Better Homes and Gardens Window and Walls and a book (here's a Before and After post about that cottage dining room here). I had way too many calls and emails wanting those easels.  Problem is they were no longer for sale and I sold the other one to a client.  

Speaking of chandeliers (huh?) I sure wish I had the chandelier I used in that Cottage Dining Room.  It was a bazillion dollars back then and sure it would be two bazillion now.

Before the holidays we invited four couples to dinner and our small dining room got swallowed up when we put the extensions in the table. We would have to walk outside and around the house to come in another door to get to the other side of the table. We tried moving the table into the much larger, unused living room.  As soon as we did, it was such a Eureka moment.  We thought, "Why not keep it this way, we're the boss of us?"  So we did.  We lit lots of candles for that dinner, but we are planning another event this week and decided we need a chandelier.  Went about researching something large enough to light a large room and cheap enough to take back down if we ever sell the house and have to turn it into a living room again.  I was not happy with the prices or the timeframe to order one.  So two weekends ago we set out to find something local, cheap and in stock.  I prayed beforehand for a great find, as God knows I can be a tad bit, how should I say, PICKY.  After hitting all the big box stores we decided to check out Urban Barn, a huge flea market shop/antique, um...barn in Escondido.  That can take about two+ hours so I went in hopeful.  Tim and I split up to divide and conquer.  We met up a couple times and Tim mentioned he saw a chandelier way in the back area but too much stuff barricaded him from getting a good look.  He tried to take me to this back area but were told it was off bounds.  Not finding much, we purchased a birdcage and wine holder and as we were checking out the owner asked if we found what we came for.  Ha, next thing we knew we were the proud owners of this big baby.  Cost?  $35.  Yes way!!!

It's not the one from the show house, but looks and feels very Restoration Hardwareish and works just fine for $35, don't ya think?  Oh, and here's our newly converted "sitting room".  It's my favorite place to sit in the morning and plan my day.  Okay, that scary striped thing is a coverlet and I'm usually under it. 

SOLD MY FIRST PAINTING

Due to lack of sleep I sold my first painting! It's very normal for me to lay awake and stare up at the ceiling all night long.  One night I finally gave up and decided to clean out my inbox.  I know, I know.  In doing so I saw an email about an upcoming art gallery exhibition.  The receiving for the artwork submissions was the very next day.  I have never submitted artwork before, but the longer I thought about it I decided it was about time to get off my art stool. The next day I delivered my pieces and later got word they were accepted. Tim and I attended the reception, then moved on to all the holiday travels and festivities.  Then I got this call from the gallery saying one of my pieces, NEW YORK, NEW YORK sold.  AND the gallery's Chairman for the Board is the one who purchased it.  That's pretty cool for a rookie, right?   

While I have sold numerous pieces, they were always made for giclee's or reproductions and I own the originals.  This is a new experience for me and I must admit I have conflicting emotions.  I really liked that painting.  Makes me wonder; do artists hold a personal attachment to each piece?   I guess I better get over it, because I currently have seven paintings in various stages of completion.  I have poured hours over each one and they kinda grow on me.  Guess it's better to give them a new home than to enjoy all of them and be a starving artist, right?

Over the holidays we hand-delivered those pieces (here and here) for our grandson.  Here's what the whole group looks like hanging over his bed. 

TIM'S DAD AND HIS PLANE  WWII

He was genuinely excited, but Tim practically had him sign a Right of First Refusal in case Wyatt ever wanted to move on to another theme.  

So I started RUNNING this week using the Couch to 5k app!!!!!  Please, hold the applause.  Save it for when I actually finish.  What helps is there's a Brit that talks to you and I'm a tad bit embarrassed that she's talking when I'm within earshot of others.  I try to time it to get past people before or have even turned around to run in the other direction when I couldn't avoid passing people in time.  Now I can truly say, "gotta run".  xo

PAULA'S NEW KICKS

NEW IS THE NEW WORD

While 2013 certainly wasn't one of my best or worst years, I was still kinda mumbling "Good Riddins" under my breath as we were all welcoming in 2014.  However, as much as I dislike the underlying feeling that in January I'm supposed to make promises resolutions (so I can break them in February, then beat myself up for the rest of the year), I'm surprisingly much more upbeat about starting off the year with a clean slate.  The thing is, not setting any goals definitely didn't work for me!  So this year I'm in a good place and actually WANTING to achieve some goals.  There.  I said it.  Don't judge me. 

So the first thing I did was get a daily planner that was so stinkin "me" that I would actually want to use it.  I chose Whitney English's Day Designer.  I love it!  And, btw, if anyone ever doubted my long time affair with black and white stripes, here's the proof.

Speaking of love, my other long time love is all things Kate Spade.  Jennifer just got me this Things We Love book for Christmas and I hate to say I may have drooled on it a little.  These two books and my bible are what's getting me pumped to take on this New Year with a bit of vim and vigor!  My desire is to be able to add the word NEW to my vocabulary and use it frequently; as in NEW ARTWORK, NEW WEBSITE, NEW FRIENDS, NEW NUMBERS (as in dress size, cholesterol levels, income, you got it…)  This year I want to accept all those Happy New Year's wishes as blessings so that by the end of the year I can finally say, this was a happy year.  With that said, may you all have an amazingly HAPPY NEW YEAR.  I mean it!!

REFLECTION

REFLECTION by PAULA PRASS  6x6 oil on board

I've been on a bit of a painting roll this week, haven't I?  I think I'm done until after the holidays.  I rather like how this one turned out more than most though.  What do you think?  

Speaking of REFLECTION, I sure have been doing that quite a bit lately.  This has been another roller coaster year, wrought with many ups and downs, losses and tremendous blessings.  The holidays provide a break from the daily grind and time to ponder this crazy 2013 and anticipate what we can do to improve, conquer, and how to add more color and laughter to 2014.   Do I have an amen???

MAJESTIC

MAJESTIC 12x12 OIL ON CANVAS

Awhile back I was kicking around (or procrastinating; whatever) on the web and found a couple cool sites that offer painting lessons, some for free.  One guy that I loved listening to is Will Kemp from the UK.  He kinda reminds me of Hugh Grant.  Anyway, I found a photo and free video tutorial that screamed paint me!  I couldn't resist and whilst (thats what Will says) I did my own thing and painted in oils instead of acrylics, I did enjoy listening to his British accent and how he calls paper towels kitchen rolls.  Anyway, go check Will out here and maybe try your hand at painting one of these!  

Have a great weekend!

LASTING LIGHT

LASTING LIGHT  6X6 OIL ON BOARD

This photo is a tad bit blurry.  Don't feel like setting up and retaking the photo, sorry about that.  Pretend you are on a brisk walk on the beach and then it will look fine.  I sure haven't been painting as much as I'd like, but have a few "almost" done.  I often let things ruminate on the easel and most likely add or subtract a tad before giving the nod.

On the other hand, we have completed the collages for our grandson and here are the rest of the pieces:

I can't wait to see our grandson's reaction and have them all finally hanging above his new bed (as opposed to on our family room floor).

MAKING LASTING MEMORIES

Oh, you know how I've been telling you about all the old photos and ephemera of Tim's family?  Well, our grandson has been into vintage airplanes.  He saw my blog post and photo of Tim's dad with his fighter plane called Queen Jack and thought it was so cool.  So we are surprising him this Christmas with a grouping/collage of images from his great grandpa's flying days.  Here's what we've completed so far.  Lots of staining, sanding, printing, glueing and sealing.     Some grandma's knit sweaters, what can I say?  Just hope he likes it and I remember to get a good photo of the whole shebang once it's hung.  

SHOW OFF

SHOW OFF by PAULA PRASS 

Between the normal busy of life and the unexpected things that fall in my lap I am always a few steps behind, usually by a month or so.  All to say, I went to a week long plein air workshop with Robert Burridge back in October on Maui.  It was crazy awesome and tough at the same time, as Tim's mom passed away.  

The workshop focused on painting abstract, fast and free.  Just between you and me I was stretched until it hurt my brain, but that's what I wanted.  I came back home with several pieces I planned to paint over, some I'm still pondering  and out of about a dozen or so, this one above was my favorite.  Not exactly "abstract" as it was nearly impossible for me to stand in front of the incredible views and not paint that what I see and love so much.  I aptly named it Show Off.   

STILL WATERS by PAULA PRASS

Here's another piece I was pretty happy with.  I thought at the time I'd race back to crank out more like these.  Has yet to happen. 

One hallelujah is that after several months and $4500 later all the "lost" files from the studio flood have been retrieved.  Yeah, OUCH is right.  What a relief to be reunited with the bazillion folders of images, artwork and photos.  I was starting to doubt I'd ever see them again.  

THE EPHEMERA OF OUR LIVES

CHARLOTTE JACKSON PRASS 1925-2013

Tim's mom has lost her long battle with Alzheimer's.  We were so thankful to be able to visit her one last time in Michigan recently.  I chose this photo of her back when she was Charlotte Jackson, the Snow Queen in college.

PAUL N PRASS, JR WWII

And here is a photo of her then "future" husband, Paul Prass, who named his P-38 QUEEN JACK.  Not that I want a fighter plane named after me, but that is so cool, don't you think?

I have been swept away as I sort through, organize and scan the boxes of family photos, albums and letters that Tim has inherited.  The wealth of his family history compared to the half filled manila folder that contains my entire past leaves me breathless. 

So I got this idea to turn some of these photos into collage artwork.  I started with Char, but was not pleased with my initial experiments.  So I changed gears and played with a photo from Paul's childhood that really makes me smile, especially knowing him as an adult. That rifle has to be twice as tall as Paul.  I'm guessing he's only about three years old here, living on a farm in Texas.  No siblings, his friends are the animals.  He had two cows Pete and Repeat.  So I made copies and applied the notes from the backs of photos, maps, paper rifle targets, pages from his children's books and any ephemera relating to his life on the farm in the 1920's to a 12"x30" canvas as the foundation.

Then I began painting over top of the foundation, letting some of the background peek through.  I'm still painting and adding layers to this piece that portrays my father-in-laws early years but something really hit me about the process.  I began thinking about the ephemera of our lives; those things that were meant to have no lasting significance, but in fact, became the foundation of who we have become.  It's those words scribbled on the back of a childhood photo that instantly transport us to that time or place.  Or how about the invisible cruel words that still impact us years later; they all become part of our underlayment, our foundation.  We can't choose the background, but we have the ability to design what our self-portrait will look like.  So it's true when someone says, "You are a piece of work".

ephemera:

things that are important or useful for only a short time  : items that were not meant to have lasting value

1  : something of no lasting significance

2  : ephmera plural : paper items (such as posters, broadsides, and tickets) that were originally meant to be discarded after use but have since become collectibles.

On a side note: I took this into my abstract class to work on (it's as close as I have been able to get to abstract) and one lady told me she found it disturbing on several levels.  Tried to explain this was Texas in the early 1920's, no other kids around, etc.  Then she said, "You're not going to try and sell this, are you?"  This is the same class that encourages creating what pleases you and not others.  I'll just add that comment to my self-portrait background.  Sigh.