Wow! Christmas came early!

My neighbors, Michael and Sharon, are both wonderful, accomplished artists.  Their medium of choice is oils but they are trained in all mediums and are a wealth of information; being entirely self-taught,  if I've got a question or a problem, I've got a great resource right next door.

I was talking to Sharon about mixing colors and clean up of nibs and brushes--basically picking her brain.  Long story short:  About 10 minutes after I hung up the phone, here comes Michael to the back door with an armful of art supplies--a HUGE assortment of watercolors, gouache, brushes, and Derwent  pencils.  He even brought over a watercolor palette the likes of which I have never seen and his favorite water color mixing tool--an old porcelain meat tray.

WOW!  I am totally overwhelmed with all these new 'toys'  but even moreso by the kind generosity of my wonderful neighbors.

A good neighbor is a good thing.  A good friend who lives next door is a blessing beyond measure.

Nancy

Joy!

Glorious Sunshine

Flowers for Friends

New toys!

I got a shipment of supplies from John Neal today!  Getting a shipment from John Neal is usually a little like Christmas because I always try to buy myself a new little toy to play with.  This time I ordered a sample pot of Twinkling H2O's.  They're just $2.00 for a pot, but you have to take whatever color they send you.  Lucky me!  I got a pot of Indian Copper, a lovely glittering copper.

I played around with it a little bit with the pointed pen, adding distilled water and mixing it right in the pot with my brush, then painting it on to the nib.  It wasn't too hard to get the right consistency for lettering.

Couldn't get a very good picture but maybe you can see a bit of the twinkle. . .

The Business of Thanksgiving

I'm awaiting word about whether or not  I have permission to use some copywrited material from a very popular modern author.  I contacted her literary agent with a letter of explanation of what I would like to do and for what purpose and figured it would likely be months before I received an answer and that the answer would most likely be 'No.'

Within five short days, I received an answer.  I learned from the representative from the office of the literary agent that they are not in the position to grant or deny my request, however, she did send me all the information I need to pursue my request through the proper channels and wished me well in my new business.

I was totally blown away by the swiftness of the response and the kindness and generosity of the person who responded on behalf of the literary agent and, by extension, the author.

I'm thankful for busy, professional people who take the time to respond to and encourage the little people like me who are just starting out in small business.

The Business of Thanksgiving

The sun is streaming through the windows in my studio.  The pens and brushes are standing at attention in their jars, and the light is glinting off them merrily--a visual invitation to come, sit down and play.

The bed is not made, I haven't had breakfast, I need to sort laundry; so many morning tasks remain.

I think I'll get off the computer and get busy.  The sunshine will have moved on, but its bright, inviting image will remain, calling me to 'come and play.'

I'm thankful that my work feels like play.

What are you thankful for?  Be sure to stop by Rebecca Writes and see what others are thankful for!

Cross posted at Hiraeth.

The Business of Thanksgiving

I'm thankful for some new sources for leads and the time in which to pursue them!

The Business of Thanksgiving

I'm thankful for creative inspiration.  Some days I sit down to work and nothing comes together.  Any creativity is elusive and seems to be planted deep in heavy sand--irretrievable.  Nothing works; nothing looks right and I have to walk away before the tension of frustration finds its way into my pen grip.

But then there are those days when multitudinous ideas seem to elbow each other to the front of the line, where one idea leads to another and the work is fluid and nearly effortless.

Most days fall somewhere in between.  And that's life, isn't it?  It would be hard to live with endless frustration; it would be so easy to just give up.  I think it would be equally hard to live with ideas popping constantly; who has time to follow all those tempting ideas?

There's a time for everything. . . a time for inspiration and a time for struggle. . .

To everything there is a season,

      A time for every purpose under heaven:
        A time to be born,
And a time to die;
      A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
        A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
      A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
        A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
      A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
        A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
      A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
        A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
      A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
       ⁷ A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
      A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
        A time to love,
And a time to hate;
      A time of war,
And a time of peace.