Happy Halloween!

A trio of Pumpkin Men from 2011

to wish you.....

Joie de Vivre

Lately I have become interested in (obsessed with) botanical eco printing.  Here is a new piece using this technique.

"Joie de Vivre"

She is wearing a silk tunic with vintage trim and Hawaiian beads.  Her cotton booties are topped with a felt ball.  Her hat is an acorn cap that has been dry brushed with pink lumiere paint.  

And her trousers are printed with Chinese tallow leaves and another leaf that I can't identify (but have had success with and it grows prolifically around here).

To finish the piece I did some botanical printing on card stock, ran it through my printer and attached it to the underside of the base.

This piece will be displayed at the International Quilt Market & Festival in Houston, TX October 29-November 6.

North Carolina Adventures

Bob and I just got back from beautiful North Carolina.  Our first stop was the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, where we celebrated our thirty-fourth anniversary!

These beautiful flowers were waiting for me in our room when we arrived.

We had a lovely dinner on the terrace.

What a view!

We spent one day hiking to Catawba Falls.

Another day was spent at The Biltmore.

The view behind the house

Hundreds of carvings outside

View from the roof

On exhibit in various rooms of the house were period wedding dresses from many different movies.

Next, we headed to Huntersville, where I took a water color workshop at Donna Downey Studios with the fabulous Jane Davenport.  Here are a couple of my efforts in progress:

Thank you Jane for a FUN workshop!

Women in the Arts Award

I had the very great honor of receiving the Women in the Arts Recognition Award this month from the Daughters of the American Revolution.  

 "The purpose of the Women in the Arts Recognition Award is to recognize and honor a woman who has made significant achievements at the community level in her artistic field. The award, comprising a certificate and lapel pin, may be presented by the American Heritage Committee to DAR members and non-members......

The recipient is expected to have contributed to her artistic field in an outstanding manner beyond mastery of technique. This may include innovative design work, featured exhibitions, publication, research, and technique development."

Wow!  I'm so honored to receive this award!

I had to give an acceptance speech at the Texas State Conference, which I was nervous about - it was by far the largest audience I have faced (over a thousand!).  I took a peek at the auditorium before the audience was seated - gulp!  

I kept my speech short and sweet and tried to just enjoy the moment!

receiving the pin

the beautifully framed certificate

These lovely ladies with me are the American Heritage Committee Chairman and the State Regent.

This was such a huge honor for me - thank you DAR!

Heartfelt

Heartfelt wishes for a Happy Valentine's Day!

Nuno felted merino wool, silk habotai, silk gauze, wool yarn; hand dyed.

2015 Year in Review pt. 3

Our family's third and most important celebration of 2015 was the wedding our our daughter Christina to Curt Christopher Smith.

St. Luke's United Methodist Church

Houston, Texas

 Christina and her bridesmaids

Christina and her sister Roseanne, maid of honor 

Christina and parents

Christina chose to wear my wedding dress, which made me so happy!

getting ready to walk down the aisle!

just married!

The reception at the Junior League of Houston

The beautiful floral arrangements were 

from Blooming Gallery

The cake was made by Susie's Cakes

The newlyweds' first dance

My husband Bob giving the welcome speech and prayer

parents having fun :)

guests having fun!

At the end of the night, ribbon wands were waved 

to send off the bride and groom

 I had to include photos since Christina and I made these wands ourselves.  I think they look pretty wonderful, if I do say so myself!

It was a beautiful wedding and a day we will always remember!