Oh so HONORED...

These 2 magazines by Stampington and Company hit the newsstands by the end of the month! I am honored once again to be within the pages of both of these magazines....In Altered Couture I have a jacket that I painted, for my sister, and I have a 2 page HOW TO article on altering a pair of clogs by painting them. In Art Doll Quarterly I have a quick HOW TO on some canvas Santa's that I have been making as gifts for years...
I am always so honored to be among the talented artists that grace the pages of these publications....not to mention that fact that I love sharing my art and my HOW TO with all...
Artfully Yours,
Pattie

Coffee Thoughts...

So once again...I am here with the last cup of coffee from the pot this morning....Should I make another pot?!?! No...I think I will continue to ride on the caffine buzz that is already here!!
I did this small 5 by 7 altered painting and gave it to my friend Jill as a house warming present...She loves coffee too!!
Today, I have decided to clean my studio!! This is pretty funny actually, because even when I clean it...it does not appear to others to be clean...well...because I have to much stuff!! Stuff that I will probably never use (but can't part with) stuff that I don't even know I have (because it is shoved into every nook and cranny around here)...and stuff that I have started but never finished (perhaps I lost the moment) and stuff that I scribble on papers...notes...thoughts...(things that perhaps I might use..might not use...have no idea what I was talking about in the first place when I reread or look at the scribble!!) I certainly hope that there are other creatives' out there just like me...Collectors of thoughts...collectors of dreams...collectors of "stuff"....
Today, as I start to clean...first the desk...as I can not even see the top of it anymore I am singing! Now believe me when I tell you that no one is ever going to pay good money to hear me sing...but sing I do...I sing in the car...I sing in the tub...I sing when I am alone...and I sing when there are others around that ask me to "please stop singing"!! But it helps me...It helps me get moving..it helps me feel better...it is an easy and fun thing to do!! So today, as I do this cleaning I sing....I sing old Beatles songs that bring me back to my youth...I sing songs that have meaning to me...I sing....And I realize that people have been doing this since the beginning of time...and even though I may be a very bad singer...I will continue doing it today...because when you have a song in your heart you certainly can have a whip cream and cherry kind of day!! (even if you are cleaning!!)
Artfully Yours,
Pattie
PS: What song can you sing today or hum that will make you feel incredibly good???

Natures Beauty...

I was sent this beautiful bouquet of Star Lilies by someone I love and who loves me....Natures true beauties...There is something about them that I am drawn to...the color...the design of the petals...the intoxicating aroma they put forth. Nature's beauties...for me to enjoy the length they stay with me...filling my house with the aroma of love. Such a simple pleasure to see the beauty of nature...especially as it is fall and the beautiful leaves with their majestic colors fall to the ground and cover the earth with a blanket of green and orange...red and gold. The sky streaked with pink at night as it comes early....the morning frost appearing to announce the coming of winter...But inside my house...inside I smell spring...I see beauty... I believe in growth... I have hope..and I know and feel love.
Artfully Yours,
Pattie

Coffee Thoughts...

It is late...and I probably shouldn't be drinking coffee so late....but AHHHHH the comfort it brings me when I am stressed...It is the warmth...the wrapping my hands around the cup...the aroma...the familiarity of it....
I have been under a lot of stress lately....but I am trying to remember small lessons I have learned over the years to UNDRESS that stress....So tonight....I am thinking of Laughter...I am finding moments that make me smile and giggle....I am finding thoughts that make me laugh out loud...and I am laughing at my messy studio as I type this....Laughter is good for us. It brings oxygen to our bodies and creates a space where there are no worries....it releases the tension we hold in our muscles...When you are laughing you can't feel stress because you are actually using your brain to focus on the physical act of laughing...and we all know that brain of ours can't do two things at once!! Heck, there are days, I can't even walk and chew gum at the same time!!!!
Laughing can be easy....just look in the mirror and make a silly face...you know the kind I mean, stick your tongue out and place your thumbs in your ears and wiggle your fingers (when was the last time you did that?!?!?) probably to long ago....Laughter can heal you...(they have written books on the subject) And the best thing about laughter is that it is FREE...I have a friend, who teaches Laughter Yoga...If you have never had the opportunity to join in a class look it up on the net...if you don't live near Goddess, and find one in your area...TRY IT...you might like it...and I guarantee you will laugh....Find ways to laugh...ham it up...tell jokes...get a bottle of bubbles...and LAUGH...it simply makes you feel better!!! To that I say...VERY GOOD...VERY GOOD...VERY GOOD INDEED!!! (laughing as I type!!)
Artfully Yours,
Pattie

Coffee Thoughts...

I am on my second cup of coffee this morning...my rituals of the morning somewhat completed except for ONE....one very important one...I will turn down the ringer on the phone (I usually turn it off, but cannot do that this morning)...and I will sink down into a tub of hot water!! I will let out a sigh of relief as I slide down the back of the tub and allow myself to melt into the comfort of the heat that surrounds me. I am always so aware of the old commericals that said...
"CALGON TAKE ME AWAY" (showing my age here...but it was for a bath water softener where a woman is stressed out and slips into her bath tub...(claw foot bath tub) with a huge smile on her face!!) This bath routine (I am one who does it both in the morning and at night) allows everything to go away...Sometimes I add candles...oils...a glass of wine (only at night) a cup of coffee (morning routine) music. This is MY TIME....this is where I strip off the world...this is where I can dream, but not think...this is where I can be emotional and cry to the fullest...or just enjoy the treat of solitude. This is a place where I can totally be ME....A bath for me is a totally spiritual thing...a warm connection...As I get ready to begin the rest of my day....I will pour a cup of fresh coffee (cup 3...yes....I drink a pot in the morning all by myself!!) I will draw my bath...and sink down in the tub and dream....It's a beautiful thing!!!
Artfully Yours,
Pattie

PS: When was the last time you pampered yourself with a bath?

Coffee Thoughts...

This morning I am having thoughts about blogging and journaling. For years I kept journals... they started as a young girl... More of a "DEAR DIARY" ...at an age when who you liked and if he looked at you was the MOST important things of life...then went on into my teens of frustrations with parents...friends...boyfriends...early 20's gave way to a sense of truth, but still covering up my hearts answers...then they stopped as I raised my children (giving away to baby books, especially for the first child!!) Journaling has once again become popular...you can take classes and workshops and read books about journaling...and I actually got back into it about 10 or so years ago. I had read the book SIMPLE ABUNDANCE by Sarah Ban Breathnach which was when I found a different sort of journal writing...A writing that was for me...my questions...my answers...my feelings...A space and a place that was mine alone. Over the years my journaling has changed...I started adding art but the most important thing I found was I started listening to my soul...to my heart...to my gut...to ME. I found it a way of talking to myself...once I got past the whining part of life...I found it a way to bring peace to myself...to bring happiness to the front of my life...Once I figured out the blogging...it has become a different sort of journaling...I still keep my private journal...I have my affirmation journal...I even have what I call the "blue funk" journal where I can whine to my hearts content on some days...but what this journaling has done is bring me to this place I am now...where no matter what is happening in my life I have a private place (or public place!!) where I can allow me to just be with full permission. So today, if you don't journal...if you think you can't journal...you might want to try it....You don't have to have a fancy notebook..you don't have to do art...just write...write on anything...write about anything...write 1 line...write 20 lines...do it when you wake up..do it before you go to bed...do it at the kitchen table after everyone is asleep ..don't worry if you spell things wrong...don't think about your writing...this is for you...this is a way of getting whatever is stuck in your head and your heart...out...try it with a cup of coffee...you just might find you like it!!
Artfully Yours,
Pattie

Coffee Thoughts...

Today as I wait to go to some important appointments I am feeling a need to put my attitude on gratitude!! This is not really a difficult thing to do if you set your mind to it....It requires willingness on your part, but it doesn't have to be to hard. Just find something to be grateful for...Just one thing... doesn't have to be huge...I am finding it doesn't matter what it is..could be just that you got out of bed...could be that your feet hit the floor...or the sun is shining...a good cup of coffee (one of my favorites!!) and as simple as breathing....And then look of one more thing to be grateful for...and one more after that...soon your list will grow...If you write them down in a journal...on a piece of paper...heck, on the back of an envelope you will find a peace starts to come over you....simple...things that we over look everyday...a child's sweet laughter...a song on the radio that brings back great memories....ice cream....a rainy day (so that you can curl up on the sofa and watch a movie without guilt!) What I am aware of with this gratitude list is that no matter what I am going through...no matter what seems to be troubling me...this gratitude list far out numbers every thing else....Start a chain for yourself....start with one thing you can be grateful for...breathe....add another...breathe again...add another....breathe...Soon you will start to feel a sense of peace...a sense of calm...a sense of strength...It is an amazing thing, because you soon find out that you can face head on whatever you feel is causing your stress....
I for one am going to have my next cup of coffee....and breathe deeply as I start my process of gratitude.
Artfully Yours,
Pattie