International Day of Peace

Did you know that today is the United Nations' International Day of Peace?

According to their website: "The United Nations' International Day of Peace - marked every year on September 21 - is a global holiday when individuals, communities, nations and governments highlight efforts to end conflict and promote peace. Established by U.N. resolution in 1982, "Peace Day" has grown to include millions of people around the world who participate in all kinds of events, large and small."

Click here to see their website, which is filled with information, links and a short video about the important work the United Nations does worldwide.

Peace and Love,
Angela

Synchronicity and Simplicity

I've been feeling uneasy and out-of-sorts the last few days. I've been feeling out-of-step with my immediate surroundings, much more in tune with what I read on many of the blogs I follow.

So when I read Bonnie's post this morning on her blog, Original Art Studio, I knew I just had to post the quote she has on her sidebar here, on my blog, as well. Whenever I'm bombarded by other people trying to impose their materialism on me, I want to have these words to come back to:

To live content with small means;
to seek elegance rather than luxury,
and refinement rather than fashion;
to be worthy, not respectable,
and wealthy, not rich;
to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages,
with open heart;
to study hard;
to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently,
await occasions, hurry never;
in a word,
to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious,
grow up through the common
--this is my symphony.
~ William Henry Channing, 1810 - 1884

Yesterday, in the midst of hundreds (many of them were my in-laws), I felt very alone. Bonnie's very thought-provoking topic in her post is about loneliness vs. solitude, based on this quote:

Loneliness is the way by which destiny
endeavors to lead man to himself.
~ Hermann Hesse

The synchronicity of my reading this post this morning, when I'm feeling like this, took my breath away. It was just what I needed. To read her post and follow this worthwhile conversation, click here.

(Thanks so much, Bonnie!)

"Death is a tragedy ...
but only for the living.
We who have died go on to other things."
~ Charles de Lint

For Renee, my wise and generous friend at Circling My Head.

Rest in peace, dear Sheldon.

My tiny world

Mimi Kirchner
Tiny World Pin Cushion

I can't tell you how delighted I am! Me. Someone who never wins anything. And here I am, the winner of my third gorgeous giveaway prize since February. This time I have won a Tiny World Pin Cushion in a tea cup from the incredible doll-maker, Mimi Kirchner. To visit her blog, and see her beautiful dolls, click here. To see a very interesting Etsy Handmade Portrait video about Mimi and her dolls, click here.

Thank you so much, Mimi, for giving me my own Tiny World!

And my dear new blogger friend, Sue Barton, recently presented me with the Domestic Witch Award. Thank you so much, Sue! Please be sure to visit Sue's blog, Barton Originals (click here), to see her delightful art dolls, as well as the many interesting people, places and things that inspire her in her beautiful corner of Ontario, Canada.

It's been hectic here in my little part of the world, but Mr. C and I were able to get away to a smooth jazz concert last Friday. We saw jazz greats Craig Chaquico, Warren Hill, and The Rippingtons. What an awesome concert that was! Mr. C and I haven't been out alone together too often in the last few decades (yikes!), since we took the kids almost everywhere with us. So this was a real treat, and something we will be doing again more often, now that Little C and Kat are in college.
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I've been painting an old bookcase and a storage bench to put in my growing art corner in our dining room. They're going to be bright, colorful, and possibly outrageous. There will be no doubt that art is being made in that room from now on. No more traditional dining room for me!

And last, but not least, thanks to everyone who's been stopping by here to leave me all your wonderful comments. I appreciate them so much! You have no idea how much I look forward to hearing from all of you, and visiting your blogs to see what you've been up to. There are many, many blogs I'm planning to visit again in the next few days. I have so much reading to catch up with!

See you soon.

wabi sabi

little wabi sabi bird
leaning into the wind,
tipping, but never falling,
trusting her heart
to show her the way
~ Angela Recada

Artistic expression isn't always "pretty." Neither is life. Both can be messy, and you'll make mistakes. But if you grow from the experience, it's worth making a few mistakes. So, I am no longer avoiding looking my mistakes straight in the eyes to find the good, the "pretty," that's hidden beneath.

This little birdie started with some leftover paint I didn't want to waste, a stray piece of paper, some corrugated cardboard, early-autumn leaves and some paint-stained fabric I had used to clean my brushes. I worked it, glued it, overworked it, tried some new things, and created my own little piece of wabi sabi.

Wabi-sabi is the Japanese art of finding beauty in imperfection. If you'd like a fuller explanation and examples of wabi sabi, you can click here. I love the idea of finding beauty in imperfection, don't you? What a load of pressure it would take off of us if we stopped trying to achieve something which is essentially unachievable. (Who decides what is perfect, anyway? And while I'm asking questions, who decides what is art, and what isn't?)

To keep the little birdie company, I added a quote which had been floating around my art supplies for a few days:

Autumn is the mellower season,
and what we lose in flowers
we more than gain in fruit.
~ Samuel Butler

This little birdie helped me get a lot out of my system. Simply painting a silly bird, giving her a crown, and stitching the paper to represent the seeds she needs to grow - it all felt good. I can move on and grow some more, myself, now that I'm totally comfortable in my mellow, fruit-bearing autumn years.

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May all your fruit be sweet and juicy!

I won some Heavenleigh Art!

I recently won my first give-away! A beautiful angel painted on wood, from Julie-ann at Heavenleigh Art. You can click on the picture to enlarge it to see the gorgeous details.

This painting is especially meaningful, because Julie-ann generously shows how she painted it step-by-step. So before I even won the painting, I had fallen in love with it while watching her paint it!
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If you're interested, you can see how Julie-ann painted this painting starting here on her blog, or here on her Youtube channel. Also be sure to check out her blog, Heavenleigh Art by Julie-ann (heavenleighart.blogspot.com), here, and her Sweet Art Gallery (sweetartgallery.blogspot.com), here.

Julie-ann is truly a sweet heart. Thank you again, Julie-ann, for this precious painting!

Angels have definitely been coming my way this year. Or maybe my eyes have just been opened to the angels all around us.

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The Flora Schmetterling Story

Here she is, my first attempt at papier mache. She told me her name is Flora Schmetterling. Schmetterling is the German word for butterfly, so I think her name suits her, don't you?

She started as a discarded water bottle, recycled aluminum foil, some cardboard and some masking tape. Most of the papier mache was made from recycled newspaper, but for the final layer I used some pieces of watercolor-stained paper towel I had been using for months to clean my brushes.

Flora Schmetterling has finally emerged from her cocoon. She realizes that her days are numbered. She is fragile, beautiful and determined to fulfill her purpose.

She loved being a caterpillar. In those early days she was colorful, curious, traveled extensively, and loved to dance the night away on various plants under the moonlight. And she could eat and eat and eat. Those were the days!

Finally, it was time to grow up and cocoon. Those were dark, formative years. They were necessary but difficult, because all her beauty and talents were hidden in her cocoon. Even her cocoon was hidden from the world, to keep her safe.

Finally she felt a stirring inside her soul. She was changing and no one could stop her! Her cocoon couldn't contain her any longer. First there was one little crack, than another, and then POP! There was air, there was light, and she could breathe again.

She remembered those days long ago - travel, adventure, dancing.

She basked in the new day - her wings drying and becoming more radiant, delicate yet powerful. They would carry her far.

From now on she would no longer be confined to the ground. She could fly! All her beauty and talents gloriously visible and impossible to contain in a cocoon ever again.

As I see it, Flora Schmetterling is like so many of us women in "middle age" who are ready for new challenges. We're ready to show our true colors and talents, and we're ready to fly. No more crawling, no more cocooning. It's time to spread those wings and see where they take us.

I really like the way this first project turned out. I like how wrinkled her face and neck look, and I like how she looks like a piece of naive folk art. There are a few things I will do differently when working with papier mache from now on, but overall, I'm quite pleased with Flora Schmetterling.

The idea of a folk art piece came to me when I found a book about folk art at a resale shop recently. This book has hundreds of stunning photos of the folk art collection at the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, New Mexico. I don't know how I missed visiting this museum when I was in Santa Fe a few years ago, but it's definitely on my list of places to see the next time I'm there! (If you are interested in the museum, you can find it at www.internationalfolkart.org/)

I hope you find your wings, like Flora Schmetterling!