That's why I don't have time to write...

Not only write but make photos also...
Shame on me! I gave away so many my crafts and always forgot to make photos… Good part – all my gourds, paints and needlework adapted by good people. I love to come at my friends homes and see my work. I feel so honored then!

I finished and framed this two few days ago.
Yesterday was looooong and little crazy day. Good one, in fact. Early morning I have time to clean our house (it is always little sloppy). Then Birthday girl asked me to drop her to the Panera. While she enjoyed chatting with friends, I drove to the goodvill. Gosh ! My lucky day! I bought few absolulely lovely bone china tea cups and sousers. Roses, roses and again roses!


New china match my rosy pitcher! Oh, I LOVE it!
Then came my sister-in-law and her hubby. He is THE Super Man! He installed security cameras in our house. Our property was vandalize few times lately and I getting too (is it right to use this world?) paranoid… Super handy-man Bobby install four cameras while I made lunch - so quick, I cant believe! It looks so simple when he did, but I newer will be able to do it - what a wonderful talent! I always admire people like a Bobby - crafty, hardworkind and very, very kind!
Sure I never have egough good time with my sis! Newer enough hugs… I wish one day we would live close to each other, and have more time to spend together. She has one of my samplers now, of course, with the bird and flowers! I started this sampler in her garden couple weeks ago, seating just in front of her beautiful garden house. What a good memories for both of us!
Finally, already after 10 pm watched old and good Russian movies with my birthday girl and I painted more gourds. I think she still remember few of this movies, it was fun to see her repeating some phrases. She has about 50 calls from her friends. Sure – she spent couple hours talking with her boy-friend.
She will back to Chicago tomorrow. I think my daughter in-love now... (ooops! My life in danger now!) I am so happy for her...
And there is one of my new gourds. With bunnies. I am in a "bunny mood" lately. I painted more yesterday, but I didn't make photo yet. Next time!

Lovely Lousy Day

esterday was lousy day. But a lovely one!

My cold almost gone, even so - I am still too lazy to start any new projects. I return home, collapsed on the couch in front of TV and pretended to be blooming couch potato!

Actually, I love it! Despite my usual attempt to keep busy, I always happy to have time for doing nothing…

Doing nothing really means to me to have time to write (and I did! I wrote two new articles for the Russian magazine!); it is also meant to exercise in painting – and I did it also!

It's turn to be not too good - but oh, well... I do it for pleasure, not for being famous. And I truly enjoy making mess on paper! I want to learn how to paint roses now.

I also continued to stitch my cherubs. They have more vines now and soon I will need to find more room for birds in between vines.

But the biggest pleasure of yesterday’s evening came from the animated film version of Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf. We spent lovely evening in front of TV, and I want to share it with you.

Amazing music together with the stop-frame film, directed by Breakthru Films and director Suzie Templeton, offers new and intriguing interpretation of the story… Poor duck didn’t survive, but you still can listen her quacking inside wolf’s stomach! Two hunters look like a maniacs, so Peter decide to safe life of wolf and let him go… Most of all I was surprised to see unbelievable beautiful puppets – in some way it is hard to imagine they are not alive! You can watch part of trailer on-line and read more about how the animation was made.
We are often spent time watching PBC or University of Michigan channels – what a source of good music, art, and entertainment! It is coming to blame on TV for low-cultural events and bad taste. I can’t – these two stations like a fresh air for us…

The portrait of Unknown

Sometimes I wonder who is he? I can’t even tell is it young lady or young man – I decide it is a man, but still… This painting came to our home from my father-in-law, beautiful man I loved dearly. We don’t know anything about the portrait; we don’t even know who painted it. Some evenings we sit in front of fireplace with glass of wine and talking about this mysterious person, what family he came from, what happened with his life late, was he married, did he survive Civil War? There are no answers for my questions. May be it is good – still keeps us entertained.

I photographed my paintings and just now can see His reflection in old French mirror.

Swedish Folk Art

I try to do some Swedish painting yesterday using watercolors. It is interesting to see difference between Norwegian and Swedish folk art, even they so close geographically. Surprisingly, I found that it is much easy to do Swedish. I remember some book of fairytales from my childhood and try recreating some illustrations. I am not sure if it is close to what I remember, but that’s what I got finally.

Norwegian decorative painting - Rosemailing

My new passion. Hard not to fall in love with it. So many colors and designs. Couple weeks ago I found some really interesting tine-boxes from Norway and now I try to paint in the same style. Seems not too hard, but it take time and lot of practice to do it.

Rosemaling, the decorative folk painting of Norway, began in the Norway in late 18th century when Baroque, Regency and Rococo were introduced to Norway's rural culture. First artists who rosemaled would not have been land owners but poor, city dwellers. They being trained within a "guild" then would travel from place to place painting furniture or interior of homes for the healthy for the money or sometimes just room and food.

There is some of my painted furniture. I finished it couple days before Christmas.