Orange Slices

5"x7" acrylic on gessoed board

My second small acrylic painting based on Barbara Newton's teaching study.

Fall Leaves

Every year I have to do at least one watercolor sketch of the fall leaves. Picked these up this morning while Jake and I were on our morning walk.

Fall stuff

I try to walk Jake our shetland sheep dog at least 2 miles everyday. Luckily we have paths that take us through lovely wooded areas. There are so many scenes and objects that keeps my eye to paint and occasionally I pick up bits and bobs. This was such a case.

You will notice the pencil lines under the journaling. I purchased a set of three guides design to use on envelopes to make addressing them easier and neater. I thought I would try them in my sketchbook for awhile to see if I like them. I left them on for the scan of this spread so you could see the guides but will erase them before shelving this book. This finishes off this sketchbook now on to choose a new one to start.

53th Annual Juried Exhibition

Saturday night was the Sumi-e Society of America's 53th Annual Awards Banquet. The Judge, Freda Lee-McCann selected two of my paintings for the show. Then I was pleasantly surprised to receive the Sarasota Chapter Award for my Deer Friends 2 painting.

Acorns

I picked up a couple of oak branches while out walking with my dog Jake. After all what says fall better than acorns, well, maybe pumpkins. Only one more spread in this sketchbook and it will be full. It is always fun to think about which sketchbook and tools to work with next.

Homecoming Bouquet

Finally I have gotten around to sketching the once lovely floral bouquet that welcomed me home at 2:00 am. Life is back to normal which means busy so I have neglected these flowers to the points that the lilies are completely gone, the roses are browning and drooping but they are the reminder that I was thought of and missed.

LavenderSage Retreat DAY EIGHT - HOME

I was up and on the road my 7:00 am. My bracelet was still secured to my wrist. The wish I had made was for an uneventful trip home. The drive to Albuquerque was smooth and fast. I made the drive in 2 hours and 15 minutes. While I was at the Hertz desk getting a free tank of gas for the battery problem, my bracelet fell off on the to counter. I picked it up and tucked it into my bag. Had a lovely breakfast of blue corn pancakes, wonderful coffee and crisp bacon. Yummy! The Albuquerque airport is the nicest airport I have ever been in, clean, good announcement system and stylish charging stations. When I got off the plane in Atlanta I can't believe how well I felt. Getting all that oxygen into my system was a fabulous nature high. We boarded our plane home and started to pull away from the gate. PROBLEM. The pilot came out of the cockpit and said something didn't feel just right. We drove over to a new gate. The mechanics found a brake breaking apart. We were only about 1.5 hours late. The trip wasn't uneventful but it could have been much more eventful and newsworthy.

Once home I started adding more things to my book. This is a Turkish fold map in the back of my book. I haven't made one of these since I did altered books. Fun.

The back cover and the end of a fun trip.

LavenderSage Retreat DAY SEVEN

The morning was scheduled for plein air sketching at the Farmer's Market and shopping. I decided I want to paint the church everyone else had done on Thursday afternoon. Plus I didn't have a single sketch of the mountains surrounding us and there were other things I wanted to sketch. So I set out on my own and SKETCHED.

In the afternoon we gathered in the log cabin to share our books and stamps. Jane gave us a going away present, a friendship bracelet. We were to make a wish and have the person next to us tie it onto our wrist.







Saturday night Jane took us to the Lanbert's Restaurant for our final dinner together.

LavenderSage Retreat DAY SIX

Friday morning we made fabric washi tape to bind our books with. Then we decorated our covers and began assembling our books.

That afternoon was free. Fran and I had reservation for the 3:30 pm tour of Georgia O'Keeffee Home and Studio, at Abiquiu (2 hour drive). It was only an hour tour but well worth the trip.

all photos on the 2 above pages are by Herb Lotz from a Georgia O'Keeffe Museum brochure

Another one of my Gelli plate prints using a real leaf as a mask. The Margaritas and chicken enchiladas were very good. My appetite seem to be returning some what. I actually lost weight on this trip.

LavenderSage Retreat DAY FIVE

In the morning Jane showed making envelopes from our Gelli prints, watercolor cloud painting, drawing with a Tombow brush pen on her "rain page". We continued to work on the lessons from the previous days.

The afternoon we were scheduled to plein air sketch at the San Franciso de Assis Church in Rancho de Taos then on to dinner. Unfortunately for me, my rental car battery was dead. By the time I finished with the Hertz everyone was already at the restaurant. So I grabbed a burger and called it a night.

An award I wish I had not qualified for.

Another Gelli Plate print I had sewn into a signature of my book.

LavenderSage Retreat DAY FOUR

In the morning we had a fun messy time doing Gelli prints with our small 3x5 Gelli Plates.

Gelli print using a real leaf.

Foam stamp printed over a Gelli plate print.

In the afternoon, Jane demonstrated using freezer paper to cut stencils and mask to use on the Gelli
Plates.

I stayed in the Frank Waters room, #4 in Juniper house. On the wall was a quote by frank Waters.

Life is a Great White Stone

Entiende, Muchacha? I will say it again for you simple ears. 

Life is a great white stone. You, a child, stare at it and see only one side. you walk slowly around it. You see other sides, each different in shape and pattern, rough or smooth. You are confused you forge that it is the same great white stone. Gut finally you have walked all around it, stare at all of it at once from the hillside above. Verdad! Now you see it: how it has many different sides and shapes and patterns, some smooth, some rough, but still the one great white stone: how all these sides merge into one another in distinguishable: the past into the present, the present into the future, the future again into the past. Hold! They are all the same. With wisdom who knows one from the other? There is no time, which is but an illusion for imperfect eyes. There is only the complete, rounded moment,which contains all.

––Frank Waters

People of the Valley

1941

LavenderSage Retreat DAY THREE

Tuesday morning we had the option of starting off the day with Yoga Class before breakfast. I went and the instructor was very good. But sadly the altitude sickness was taking a toll on my energy so I didn't go back Thursday or Saturday.

In the morning we made stamps from soap erasers and fun foam. I had carved stamps before but never used Fun Foam before.

I carved a seed pod on one side of my eraser and two square to paint inside.

 landscape with colored pencils



















I printed my foam stamp the the adobe archway in front of the studio. I cut it out and hinged it at the bottom of the colored pencil landscape.




















Tuesday afternoon we took a 2:00 tour of the
Harwood Museum. Then spent a couple of hours
sketching in the museum. We all like this framed
quote on the wall by Mabel Dodge Luhan.

The museum provided some educational handout 

on the life of Mabel Dodge Luhan which

 we all incorporated into our books.

Below is one of my large Gelli Plate prints I sewed into one signature of my book.

LavenderSage Retreat DAY TWO

Monday morning we collected nature items to sketch which we drew then, cut them out and placed them in our books. We also painted a "rain page", a couple of wash pages and tore down our watercolor paper for the books we were to make. Jane taught a book assemble technique that I had never done before but I had also brought a case bound book, one of three I had made with a Southwestern theme. I did make the one we were taught in class but ended up taking the pieces from that book and putting them into my casebound book.

LavenderSage Retreat DAY ONE

Had a great time even though I had altitude sickness the entire time. On Sunday morning, I left home at 5:00 am, flew to Atlanta GA. then flew on later to Albuquerque NM. Rented my car, picked up Mary Ellen and drove 137 miles to Taos (a total of 13 hrs of travel). Shortly after arriving we had a welcome party. Nice snacks and a wonderful goody bags (Apron, cloth goody bag, name tag, lavender soap, lavender lip salve, Moleskine notebook, and charms for our books). Jane LaFazio briefed us on the plans for the upcoming week.

We stayed at the Mabel Dodge Luhan Historical Inn.  Each day we had a wonderful vegan breakfast and lunch. Monday night, as we did several of the evening, had a "happy hour" of snacks and wine. Some of the ladies spent extra time in the studio each night. Their wonderful books show the results.

above photo from the Mabel Dodge Luhan Historical Inn brochure