Inspiration Avenue Etsy Street Team Weekly Challenge

Shwew, that was a long title. Anyways, I wanted to let you all know about a weekly challenge we as a team have decided to host. Each week we will have one of our team members choose a color, word or both for the challenge. We will post the challenge on our team blog, Inspiration Avenue.

The challenge is for you to create something, anything, that has to do with summer, whether it be something that reminds you of summer or something that has summertime colors in it or the word summer is used in the piece. Whatever your little heart desires. Some examples might be a necklace, photo, mixed-media piece, painting, using the colors of summer, the word summer or be made with seashells, pearls, palm fronds, or whatever evokes summer to you.

The creations will be unveiled on Sundays. So if you want to participate just click on the link above and post a comment linking us back to your blog post showcasing your creation, so we can all come by and see what loveliness you came up with. I love these fun challenges. They really get the creative juices flowing.

I can't wait to see what you all come up with.

~Tammy

Creative weekend

Well, yesterday the creative juices were flowing. I added 4 necklaces, 4 pairs of earrings and 1 glass pendant to my shop. I am painting today as I get bored with one medium and must move on to another to keep my muse happy. ;D
The weather has been lovely this morning. Sunny with a breeze and maybe 68'F. The leaves are rustling and the birds are chirping. It feels like fall. One of my favorite seasons because I can cozy the house up with throws, candles, spicy colors, make chili and stew, etc. Feather my nest, if you will. What's your favorite season?

eeeheheehe...a witches cackle I do hear...

Get your brooms ready, my dear friends, for a thrilling ride over to A Fanciful Twist to learn more about this fun Halloween Extravaganza that she is hosting again this year. We had such a good time last year that I am joining in again. There will be treats and prizes to be won. Decorations and stories to thrill. So mark your calenders and if you feel so inclined please join in.

Summertime harvest and treats

Summertime goodness. Fresh tomatoes and lemon cucumbers right fromt he garden. Yumm!

Slice 'em up and toss with an Italian vinegarette and voila you have a nice side dish, or lunch.

Fresh strawberries from the market go so nicely with extra sharp Vermont cheddar cheese and crackers. A perfect summertime lunch or snack.

Look, I still have them. Remember the momma Robin must have been scared off by a wandering cat and these were abandoned for quite some time. Many of you suggested I keep them . I just adore the color of the eggs and the nest is perfect, so I did but not until this past week did I put them in this little greenhouse next to my favorite chair on the front porch. Now they are there for everyone to enjoy.

Look what was in the mail on Saturday. It came from a wonderful blogging friend in Canada. She sent me a destash pkg. How fun! Thanks, Trudi!!! You're so sweet.

The blogging world is full of such wonderful people. I am so happy to be making friends like you. Have a wonderful Wednesday. xoxo, Tammy

Aaaahhh...Artful Blogging take me away...

I went out and bought a treat for myself Friday night. Something full of deliciousness and to be savored. Yep, a copy of Artful Blogging. I saved it until Sunay morning when I awoke a few hours before anyone else. I made a pot of yummy coffee and Chance and I headed out to the front porch to enjoy every morsel of it from front to back, page by page. Not acare in the world.

Chance decided to get cozy on my lap, as he so often does. Yes , I'm still in my nightgown.

So we sat there and enjoyed every last page of the magazine. The words were written with such care. The images a feat for the eyes. A smile was on my face when I saw many blogging friends in this issue. How fun to see them geting national exposure. They truly are deserving of it. Vanessa of A Faniciful Twist hosted a Halloween Blog Party last year that I was a part of and here in the pages were pics from last years events. She is one talented lady and has such creative flair when it comes to bringing a story to life. If you get a chance have a look at her blog and you will see what I mean.

Another wonderful artist whom I just love is Tascha of Time with Tascha. I have the print of hers in the lower left corner of the page on the right. Her work is whimsical, and full of happy colors. Usually with a bird, kitten or puppy in them. If you have a minute to be cheered up go have a look at her stuff.

Have a lovely Tuesday. A big hug to you all. I have missed you so much. I am off to blog hop now. xoxo, Tammy

Hurricane Bill

I am sending prayers up for those of you whom are enduring Bill's wrath. NC was hammered by the storms and a dear friend's home has been flooded. My boss is on a cruise to Bermuda that left Saturday morning, from New York. I was surprised it didn't get cancelled or that he even went. Not sure I would have.
I am off to work now. I promise to post more this week. Life has been pretty hectic here as of late and I have been slacking on my posts, but don't think I am not thinking about each of you, because I do often. You all bring so much happiness to me. Your comments are like hugs. Always putting a smile on my face. I missed blog hopping this week so I look forward to visiting yours.
Have a lovely Monday,
Tammy

A day at the beach

Gotta love this shot. A little shopping beforehand. Look at the awful flip flops they were trying to sell in a souvenir shop. We had to take pictures because no one would quite be able to picture them with words only. And NO we did not purchase them. lol Mine are the red toes, you see on the pale feet. Look at that gorgeous blue sky. No photo retouching here, just pure mother nature.

This is a April Cornell quilt that I found for get this $4.50 at a thrift shop in Charleston. We were in need of a beach blanket so I ran in to see what they had then laundered it and voila it was perfect. I love the colors and the vintage look of the fabric.

Well I have housework calling my name so off I go. Have a lovely Monday.

Great FREE photo editing website

I was getting tired of my background andwas looking for something happy and this is what I am trying on for now. I just love being able to change things up depending on the season or my mood. It's like finding the perfect pair of shoes to go with your dress.
I found this great little photo editing website called Picnik just now and so I have been playing around with it. This is what I came up with for my signature. I think Imay make it even smaller. It is FREE. It is fun and has some neat tools. Check it out. You may lose yourself in it for hours. I know I could if I weren't tired. I hope you are all having a lovely weekend.

Life is a Beach... or so they say and another giveaway

Feeling inspired to paint a beach scene.

The colors are so calming. These are my first clouds ever. I watched a tutorial on painting them on Youtube. They are not super easy. Trust me.

I added more clouds to show distance and some water rolling in.

I need something perfect to finish it off but I'm not sure what. Palm fronds cascading in at a corner? Adirondak chairs? A beach ball for the vivid color? A kite flying into the scene? I hate getting this far and risking ruining it, as I am pretty happy with the way it is turning out and I am not having to look at it from different angles or squint my eyes to make it look better, either. lol So glad you all understand my sense of humor. Any ideas? Please share and don't say people as they would have to be inpressionistic as I can only draw faces not bodies. Maybe some day. Let me know what your ideas are.

If you like to give gifts then this giveaway is for you. This lady has awesome ideas. Check it out here.

Before and after painting and a giveaway

Before with the colors so bright:After with crackling and antique glazing:

Cose up of the crackling:

Love this orange with the crackling and antiquing:

Lok at these colors: I love blending blues and greens. I am off to list it in my etsy shop. There's a Giveaway going on over at: Cindy's Art and Soul. She makes gorgeous jewelry and is offering a $50. Gift Certificate to her online shop. How fun. So hop over there and check it out.

Creative idea goes awry.

I bought 4 canvases yesterday and 5 new tubes of paint with the anticipation of creating a beachy scene.

I gathered my paints, a rag, brushes and one of the canvases.

Well, as you can see my muse had other ideas. I think it is so funny how the creative process leads you along and not necessarily where you might have intended to go.

I was initially thinking of senset colors but this is what came about. Not even close to a beachy scene. The colors are there, yes but this is not where I wanted to go. Oh well, we adapt.

So after all of this I brushed on a layer of crackle paint and will let that dry over night. Tomorrow I will add some antique glazing to it and see what happens. Anyway, it is interesting what comes about sometimes when you just roll with it. Ever have that happen?

Have a lovely day,

Tammy

Nature inspires me

See the bee to the left in this image. I caught him mid flight heading in to find some pollen. I love these flowers. Can't remember the name but they remind me of fireworks. There are all sorts of little pink curlicues that look like those golden lights streaming down from the sky.

Daisies in my garden make me smile. They are sunny and dance towards the sky. This one seems to be floating right before my lens. The white is so white and the lines in the petals are so subtle but they are there. Just lovely. The center reminds me of a sunflower with row upon row of miniscule yellow heads. There is a pattern there that you can only see upon closer inspection. I must get a macro lens. Things like this itrigue me.

When I was little I remember having fun trying to figure out what the partial photo was, that was in the back of a kids magazine. You know the ones where they only have a small fraction of something or a macro view of say a bees abdomen.

Our bathroom remodel

Remember last month I mentioned that our bathroom was finished. Well here is the grand unveiling. This is after demolition, with new green and blue tile backer boards up. TA-DA! After. We love it!

I chose a neutral pallet for that spa like feel. I love the bronze finishes on all of the accessories.

That's a Jacuzzi jetted whirlpool tub, ladies. We still have yet to take a bath in it, though. I'll have to make some time for that, soon. Rub-a-dub-dub...

I'm on the hunt for just the right window treatment. I frosted the bottom pane of the window for privacy. I traded in some of my old white towels for some new beige/taupe colored ones, to my husbands dismay. The old ones had seen better days, a long time ago, so off they went to the rag pile. Oh yeah, that gold door knob is being replaced to match the bronze on everything else.

It's Party Time! Woohoo!

Well hello there! I'm so glad you came. Don't you look wonderful! I love your dress! Grab a cocktail and there are some finger foods if you are hungry . Oh my gosh, the cucumber sandwiches are fabulous! Try this Fruitini. It's yummy and refreshing. So as you can see the party is in full swing. Okay, I am to list 5 Inspirations for my art. So here goes:

nature and colornew suppliesdelicious papersgorgeous embellishmentsvintage ephemera As part of the Etsy street team"Inspiration Avenue", we decided to host this blog party and offer up some wonderful prizes. Alls you have to do is hop on over there. Good luck and have fun mingling with all the other members. Cheers! I am so glad you came by. Now go get your chance to win.