The Right Stuff

As I write this post, we are having a terrible wind storm. It rained torrents last night, followed by high winds and terrific gusts of wind. The wind has not let up and the gusts are getting even stronger. They are predicting 70 mph winds for this afternoon and this will continue for six or more hours. It has been about a 22 hour event. And now . . . I just looked out the window and it is snowing . . . sideways . . . and being blown by 30-40 mph winds. The firehouse is just up the street and the volunteers have gone by in their fire trucks and ambulance on their way to a rescue. It makes me very nervous and I remember how my mother used to react to this kind of weather. She baked. She baked banana breads, cookies, and cupcakes, as long as we had electricity. Then, if the lights went out, (and they usually did), we had plenty of treats to get us through until the power was restored. We would eat by kerosene lamps and gather in the kitchen around a little kerosene stove to try to stay warm in our un-insulated farm house. On a windy day like this, you could feel the breeze right through the walls! It may sound odd to you, but it was normal for us. We lived in an 1830's house . . . and not a fancy one of brick or stone. It was built of lath and plaster and when my parents did remodeling, they found a lot of other interesting building materials, such as wadded up newspapers! But it was home, and when I got scared, my father would say, "this house has stood here for over 100 years and has been through storms worse than this." I needed to hear those words again last night when I was in bed listening to the wind howl and the rain pummeling the windows . . . because I needed the reassurance that the house we live in has also survived many bad storms in its' lifetime. This house was built in 1846 and it is still here, solid as a rock. I was able to close my eyes and sleep through until morning.


So, to keep myself busy today, I have been cleaning out some neglected closets and making decisions on what to keep and what to donate to others. I even found some "lost" items that I was looking for a few months ago. They got pushed behind other things on the bottom of the closet, and I could not bend, lift, push or pull after my surgery, so they remained hidden. That is good bonus pay for my efforts!


I have watched a few YouTube videos today on techniques for my mixed media and paper crafting hobby and plan to head into my studio where I can get involved in some artwork and ignore the weather. I have lots of nice new supplies to use after shopping the sales a few weeks ago. I have been trying to use what I have on hand on my shelves, but there were a few things I really needed to add to my supply vault!


In order to continue learning how to draw and practice different techniques, I made the leap and purchased good quality pencils. While I was at the store, I took full advantage of coupons and made quite a haul. This should keep me occupied for quite a long time. The score at the store was made even sweeter by the fact that I was able to use gift cards that I have been keeping for a special shopping trip. They were aging in my wallet, so I unleashed them and it was fun.

If you would like a closer look at the photos, just click on them to enlarge them.



Amazon had the best selection and the best price, especially when I had gift cards to spend!$!$!



Look at all the beautiful colors!



A few "needs" along with a few "wants".
My husband was happy to drive me to the store for a little retail therapy! The sales were really good. At one store, with my gift cards and coupons, my entire bill was 33 cents!



I worked on drawing a perspective drawing after my first art class.



I practiced adding lamp posts and a tree.
Now for the architectural details and some color with my new pencils!



The challenge this week in the online group I am in on Facebook was "Spring,"
I opted to skip the chirping birds and tulips and went for a fashion theme.
6" x 6" on 140# watercolor paper with acrylic paints, inks, acrylic stamps, paper letters, and grosgrain ribbon.
#ArtfulEvidence

Thank you for stopping by to read my post. As always, your questions and comments are welcome. With more of "the right stuff", I hope I can make progress in my artful endeavors. By the time you read this, I hope the weather here has improved and that we are all getting more spring-like weather! And until we meet again, may the Lord hold you in the hollow of His hand.

Emmy