Am I crazy or what? I logged onto Kelly Rae's blog this a.m. and there it was. A post about her new e-course. I was so excited to see this so I signed up right away. Anyone else?  It doesn't start until the end of May when my Dream Boogie class will be just about ending. I am excited! Here is the link. Flying Lessons.
Maybe we will see each other there!

Tracy Porter. She not only is a wonderful designer of everything from fashion to home furnishings she is also super gorgeous and so inspiring! She has a ton of short videos about all sorts of things... passion, cooking, being positive, believing in yourself. She is full of life and energy. I have been enjoying her immensely!

A great video and art for you

In case you haven't seen this video. I caught it on Kelly Rae's blog. Kelly Corrigan, author of The Middle Place and Lift. She talks about women and dreams. Such a great video as this one was too!

One of my creative dreams, and probably where most of all the other ones come from is to spread joy with my art. I have these four collages packed away. I made them awhile ago and art isn't meant to be packed away. I want to give them to YOU.  So if any of these pieces of art bring YOU any bit of joy (and please, please, please don't say yes if they don't. It really is o.k.) leave me a comment on which 1 is your favorite. Next Saturday, May 1 (can you believe it?) I will come back and let you know who the 4 winners are.

I just want to say thank you to all of you who come by and say hi. It really means alot and many days keeps me going. So thank you!

xo,
dana

Hello All-
Here is an iris from last summer for you.

Dream Boogie is going great. There is alot of "ownwork", Sark's version of homework.  It is bringing SO many things to light for myself. There is a supportive community of fellow dreamers, videos, interviews, and worksheets. There are many challenges and so many lessons I am learning.

I wanted to mention this book. Expressive Drawing :Freeing the Artist Within by Steven Aimone. I borrowed it from the library and I really recommend it if you want to be a little more free with your art. There are lots of exercises to try. Here is the synopsis:

The many people who long to draw—but feel too intimidated to try—will rejoice at the wonderful first entry in this brand-new creative series. Written by arts educator Steven Aimone, it’s packed with solid, friendly, hands-on instruction, as well as inspiring images, and backed by the trusted AARP name. Aimone teaches an accessible style called expressive drawing that emphasizes line and mark, rather than rendering a specific object, which for many people, can create barriers to self-expression. Exercises start off simple and quick, encouraging readers to work on instinct and feeling, while the later ones focus on detail and refinement. The book features hundreds of
images of work by well-known artists from Debuffet to Jim Dine—and each chapter includes a profile of someone who came to drawing late in life and achieved recognition.

I am only at the beginning and haven't tried any of the exercises yet but plan to over the weekend!
I hope you have a great one!
xo,
dana

Free Hugs

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Isn't this great?

Some flowers for you

Inspired by lovely Regina I am sharing some blooms from my crabapple tree with you! I cut some to bring inside. They are just gorgeous!

The universe was in my favor and I was able to sign up for the Dream Boogie class with SARK after all! So I may be a bit quiet here. There is alot of work to do as I am a bit behind.
xo,
dana

Slices of Life

Walking, enjoying the flowers and trees, working in my sketch book

Butterflies

"The butterfly counts not months but moments, and has time enough." ~ Rabindranath Tagore
1. Butterfly On Red Flower, 2. Blue butterfly, 3. Orange Sulphur or Alfalfa Butterfly..., 4. Blue Glassy Tiger Butterfly, 5. Queen Butterfly, 6. Butterfly, 7. ~ Butterfly ~ " What Wingspan " ? ~, 8. inachis io / dagpauwoog, 9. the wings-become-windows butterfly., 10. Transparent Butterfly

These beautiful photos were taken by some wonderful photographers. Links above to them.

Don't you just love the colors and patterns of these butterflies? And aren't those glass wing butterflies just the best?

I really relate to these bits below. A couple of years back I myself had a butterfly dream. At the time I was rediscovering my spirituality and after having a very vivid dream I began noticing butterflies everywhere. On billboards, in magazines, movies, etc. I looked up the symbolic meaning of butterflies and was delighted to read similar information as below. 
From around the web:

BUTTERFLY  -  is about transformation. Butterfly fearlessly leaves the safety of its cocoon to meet a new world in a new form, trusting its untried wings to allow it to fly. It is a powerful symbol for anyone who's contemplating or in the midst of a major change.  It is about bringing color and joy to our lives, learning to dance with joy as we make those changes in our lives transforming us and our lives.

This blog entry was found here
"The butterfly most commonly is a symbol of transformation. It begins as an egg laid by a butterfly. It hatches from the egg as a caterpillar. It feeds, and feeds, and feeds until it wraps itself snug and secure into a cocoon. In the cocoon it undergoes a transformation, a change, into it’s existence as a beautiful butterfly. Taking all of this into consideration it is easy to see that dreaming of a butterfly may mark the beginning of a transformation in your waking life. You may be ready to hatch from your cocoon and spread your wings, flying above the material cares of the world into a higher and more meaningful existence.
To see a butterfly flying around carefree in a dream may represent your own ability to fly free. If you have recently dreamed of butterflies it may represent that you are now free from an oppressing situation, problem, or relationship.Butterflies are also a symbol of spirituality. Many times when a dreamer dreams of butterflies around them, or of observing them, it means that in their waking life they are on the verge of a deep spiritual journey, full of new awareness and possibilities. This truly is a wonderful thing.In the book “Secrets of Dreams”, written by Caro Ness, the meaning of a butterfly dream is close to my own personal analysis…It mentions that butterflies can be seen as “symbols of transformation”, or, as “accurate, and startling affirmations of rebirth into a newer, brighter, and more illuminating existence…”

SARK's Complimentary Dream Boogie Class

Just stopping in to tell  you I did not end up signing up for this class (too pricey for me right now), however I am going to be on this free call on Wednesday. The info is below which came to me via my affiliate link.

 SARK (aka Susan Ariel Rainbow Kennedy) has just announced that she is inviting anyone to attend the first class of Dream Boogie with SARK for free, just so you can experience "Dream Boogie" first-hand and see what it's all about, without any cost or obligation.  It looks like space is pretty limited for the complimentary call, so I encourage you to reserve your spot to attend the class on Wednesday, or to request a complimentary recording of the class.

This is the scene around here. Super sunny day. Laundry fresh from the line waiting to be folded and put away. Fresh cut forsythia.

I watched the movie last night. It has brought up SO much for me. I would really love to talk more about it but I am still mulling it over. I do highly recommend you see it though.

Thank you so much for all of the good wishes about being published.  Now that I have sent off the article info I am happy to tell you that my wreaths will be appearing in Somerset HOME this August! Stampington and Co. has such a beautiful line of magazines. I had a full page in Somerset Studio back in Nov./Dec. 2008 and I am so excited to be included in this beautiful magazine with great art to create for your home.

I hope your weekend was fun and creative.
xo,
dana

Excited

Remember this movie? http://www.whodoesshethinksheis.net/  
I first heard about it while in the fishbowl. 
I remember crying while watching this trailer. It struck me so. It is now available as a party pack on amazon for $26.99!! I had to order it today. It is arriving on Friday! Here is the link. http://www.amazon.com/Who-Does-Think-House-Party/dp/B00375C24C/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1270659049&sr=8-1 I am so excited. Did you see this already? If you don't know about it please watch the trailer and consider purchasing the dvd and sharing it with others. If you have seen it I would love to hear your opinion on it.

I received some super exciting news on Friday. I am going to be published!! I will let you know where soon once it is all final. I am so thankful for this opportunity!

 Today feels like summer with the thermostat approach 90 degrees F. I hope you had a great Easter. We had a really fun one. We were all on chocolate overload.

And don't forget... Just one week to go.
 Dream Boogie with SARK: Dancing from DREAMing to DOing!

Drawing Exercises

I have been reading The New Creative Artist by Nita Leland. I am really loving this book. I borrowed it from the library but I think at some point I may buy it. It is filled with so many wonderful ideas and exercises. Some you may know already if you have taken any art classes. Like contour drawing. I haven't done this exercise in years. I worked from my daffodils I bought today. The drawings on the left side are pure blind contour drawings.  That is when you look at your subject and draw without looking at your paper at all. The ones on the right are controlled contour drawings. You can look a bit. And on the bottom right I drew with my left hand and didn't look. This was quick and fun. I have been doing many of these. They don't take long and are great drawing exercises. I am getting back into seeing things.

My Creative Space

This is what is going on today in my creative space. My painting on the right of the poppies was framed by my sweet husband. I painted it a beautiful grey/blue. I love this color now. It looks wonderful with so many other colors! It is going off today to a local library show! I have shown my work there years ago and it will be fun to go back.

The painting on the left is a work in progress of ranunculus. I love this flower. I find it so interesting. So it has a bit to go but I am enjoying it so far.

We are busy getting ready for Easter at our home. Dying eggs and making sock bunnies. It is spring break and today the sun is shining. I can't wait to see the kids opening their baskets on Sunday and hunting for eggs. I am really excited!

I hope your day is filled with lots of creative joy!