A Little Bit of Catching Up To Do.....

It's hard to believe that it's been exactly 8 months today since the last time I blogged.  At that time, my husband was working through his second lay-off in 15 months.  It was only a couple of weeks after that last time I blogged that he was hired.

Things are still difficult in some ways, but oodles better than they were during the lay-off days.  I suppose it will take a long time to "get back on our feet."

During the last 8 months, I have been up and down.  Thinking, figuring, trying to make some sense out of life.

As always, I have found peace and balance through my garden and nature....

California poppy and a busy bee ~

Hollyhocks reaching for the cerulean sky ~ 

A sunny yellow blossom.  My beloved Mexican tulip poppies ~ 

 I have found that the gifts of nature can be healing....

blustery clouds ~ 

rainbows ~ 

and Johnny Appleseed skies ~ 

Garden strolls with my puppy.....lizard patrol ~ 

He runs himself ragged chasing my garden lizards.

Time for a nap ~ 

Sometimes, just getting away from home for a little while is the best thing... 

I went with my daughter to get her first tattoo a few months ago.  I wouldn't trust anyone more than this guy for my daughter's first!  He's the only artist I've ever trusted for myself, so it was only natural that he would be my daughter's first.

On our way home from our tattoo journey, we left the beaten path and found the wild wild west ~

Even a visit to a local bookstore can be a welcomed journey...

My inspiration ~ 

I am sad to say, I have not been prolific in my studio.

I haven't created a single collage/mixed media piece in 2016.

I have, however, revisited sculpting ~

My son and I worked together on some sculpting projects.  The skeleton you see is his work in progress.  I am working on sculpting a Humpty! 

During the holiday season, I dabbled with some fun, salted watercolors.

I am not a person that loves the winter, but I do love a snowman ~ 

The originals have all sold, but you can get these 3 in print versions right HERE.

I have also continued to work on a series of Humpty Dumpty salted watercolors.  These paintings have helped to get me through some rough patches.

Again, the originals have sold, but both can be purchased in print versions.  Simply click on the titles to view the print.

"Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall."

This piece is about burdens.  Never-ending burdens all year 'round.  Humpty pulls his burdens along with him everywhere he goes, all year.  Winter = the snowman.  Spring = the rabbit.  Summer = the lawn gnome and Fall = the pumpkin.  The thing is, Humpty doesn't have to bring these burdens with him, but he doesn't know how to let them go.  

"I Didn't Ask For This."

This piece is about empty promises.  Humpty promised snowman that this would be a safe trip home.  A smooth ride.  But Humpty can't always be trusted.  He gave the pig a little kick in the ribs to make him buck, knowing that it would scare snowman.

Empty promises are one of the things that I have learned to loathe since the time my husband was job searching.  Companies would make so many empty promises, and not follow through.  Sometimes, not even calling back.  It was beyond frustrating.

There is no way I can sum up the last 8 months in a single blog post.  So, I hope you can enjoy the photos and know that things are better now.  We are hopeful that life will continue to get better and the last 2-1/2 years will one day be nothing more than a blurry memory of a time gone by.  

Thank you so much for visiting me again.  I won't make any empty promises about blogging more often.  I love my little blog.  I love taking photos of my garden and sharing my art.  I hope to be back soon....but I won't promise.

Until Next Time:

Kim

Gerushia's New World

Autumn is Here ~ Time For Decorating, Watercoloring and Tattoo Finishing!

Can you feel it in the air?

Autumn is here.  It's finally here ~ 

Preparing to decorate the house in Halloween colors ~ 

But first I have to show you the best thing.

Some of you know that I have a print in my shop called 

"Dancing Fiona"

I even have a little tattoo of Fiona on my arm ~ 

My daughter bought me the most lovely treasure.

My very own Fiona head for my studio wall ~

I am in love with it and was so surprised when she gave it to me.

I keep Fiona hanging where I can see her while I'm working.

Isn't she adorable?

She's very happy to share the space with one of my Orange Sparkler pumpkins!

I have so many beautiful pumpkins this year.

They are especially warty and chock full of punkin pox ~ 

I am a pumpkin hoarder

They are all around my fireplace, creating a perfect orange glow ~ 

Halloween decorations are my favorite.

Little strings of bony goodness hanging here ~ 

and there ~ 

Bloody candles ~

and a front porch visitor ~ 

Right in the middle of all the Halloween chaos, I found the most unexpected gift.

A hidden Calla Lily, very much out of season ~

The explosion of Halloween inspired me to paint something

 Jack O' Lanterny ~

Work in progress ~ 

Still working ~ 

And finally ~

"Harvey The Halloween Balloon Wrangler"

You can find Harvey in my Etsy Shop by clicking Right Here.

Ohhh, and also, I am now offering my Alice themed piece in a print version. This piece was created for the "6 Impossible Things Before Breakfast" show at The Dream Factory in Frankfurt, Germany.

"Neither More Nor Less Than A Pig"

And, last but not least, I have had several people email me, asking to see my finished tattoo.

It is completely done and healed beautifully.

These photos were taken the day after, so the tattoo was still a bit swollen and distorted, but I think you can get the idea.

The tattoo is gorgeous.  If you live in the Southern California area and are considering a tattoo, Dan Smith from Captured Tattoo in Tustin is an amazing artist.  He used to work at High Voltage in Hollywood, but he's opened his own shop and it is absolutely gorgeous.  

Full view ~

Back view with morning glories ~ 

Front view with red poppies ~ 

So....I've been keeping busy, as usual.  

Decorating.
Art.
And a fresh tattoo.

What's going on in your neck of the woods?

Until Next Time:

Kim

Gerushia's New World