Just Plain Grumpy

Well, I should say "Good Day", but honestly, it's not a good day....and I'm grumpy, so grumpy, too grumpy.  I feel very much like this ~ 

For the most part, I'm grumpy for reasons that aren't really worth discussing or sharing.  Little bits of irritation and crankiness, but nothing serious.


I don't like feeling grumpy.  I'd much rather dance and flit about and tend to my flowers  ~ 

I'd much rather be in my studio, happy, happy with not a care in the world ~ 

....or, listening to music, losing myself in the notes and lows and highs ~ 

I'd much rather pal around with the birds ~ 

...or walk a country path ~ 

But noooooo....I woke up feeling grumpy.  Unlike myself.  Like something stole my brain ~ 

You see....my loyal and steadfast computer of 11 years has finally given up the ghost.  :-(
Thankfully, my files were retrieved.  I had oh so many photos and art files and references wrapped up inside that old, electric box.

But now....I have no computer in my studio.  I am playing musical computers with my sons gaming computers.  They are much too big and powerful for me.  I desperately need my own computer in my studio.  I go back and forth between my art desk and my computer and printer almost constantly while I'm working on my art.


It is a worry.  It is a bother.  However, I AM thankful for my daily goodness and my Everydays.  I am trying my best to work around the situation.  But, with a very big secret project looming on the horizon for September of 2013, I am going to have to get a new machine.

So....make more art.  Sell more art.  Make more art.  Sell more art.  Even my last 2 fortune cookies spoke the truth ~ 


Due to this rather large glitch in my arty life, I will probably be having several big sales over the course of the next few weeks.  Starting with THIS ~

This is truly one of my all time favorite pieces.  I had intentions of keeping it myself.  It was created for an "Alice in Wonderland" themed show and later went on to place in another show.  I even won a bit of money in the second show.


I am offering this piece for half price right now and I am selling it framed.  It is a salted watercolor with a bit of mixed media.  The image size is 8" x 10" and the frame is 14" x 17".  If you are purchasing from inside the U.S. shipping is free.  The title is "Mi Corazon por Alicia".


The gallery price was $400.00.  My shop price is normally $280.  Right now...you can get this piece for $140.  I don't know how long I'll keep it listed at this price, as I might have a fit of panic and unlist it at any time!  


If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at gerushiasworld at aol dot com.


So....I am going onward, forward, taking steps to make this a better day.  Trying to stay focused.  Which, for me, is difficult on even the most delicious and positive days!


Until Next Time:
Kim
Gerushia's New World

Right as Rain ~

What is that distant pitter-patter I hear?  It's July in Southern California.  Surely it can't be.....raining? 


Well, it is, it is raining.  


Sparkles of new...pinks and greens ~ 

Washing away the dust and staleness of a dry summer ~ 

Little candy drops, orange sugar...Willy Wonka goodness ~ 

Fairy diamonds ~ 

....and dainty mermaid pools ~ 

The magic of a summer rain....It never ceases to amaze me.
The magic of a summer rain...You are welcome any time
The magic of a summer rain...Is slowly, slowly, slowly drifting away.  Come back soon.


Until Next Time:
Kim
Gerushia's New World


P.S.  Just a quick heads up.  Today is the final day for my "Buy One Get One Free" sale.  Buy any 4" x 6" print and get a 2nd 4" x 6" print of your choice for free.  At checkout, simply leave a note telling me which print you'd like for your freebie.  Easy Peasy...just like that.  Click HERE to have a look at all my 4" x 6" prints.  :-)


P.P.S.  Due to the many kind emails I received wondering if "The Burning of Eulalia" will be offered in a print version, I've decided to offer Eulalia in print.  For today only, she will be included in my "Buy One Get One Free" sale.  Tomorrow, everything will fall back to the original pricing.  Now's a great time to grab a few prints!  Click HERE to purchase "The Burning of Eulalia" in print version.  :-)

Mysteriously Drawn to Eulalia~

Truly, I don't believe in the supernatural.  But every so often, something happens to make me question my strong desire to NOT believe in spooky, spine tingling, un-explainable happenings.


You see, a month or so ago, I was drawn to the name "Eulalia".  I couldn't get the name out of my head. Eulalia found her way into my dreams, my nightmares, my thoughts.  Always, always connected somehow to fire ~ 

Throughout my life, I have found that the best way to clear my head from nightmares is to transfer the nightmare images, feelings, colors, into my art.  So, I sat at my desk and got to work.  So simple, so easy this piece came together.  Nuns???  What's that all about?  I'm not Catholic and I know next to nothing about Catholicism.  But, I knew this piece had to include nuns.  Nuns and death and fire and strength and fire and fire.  Why?  

The title ~ "The Burning of Eulalia" rolled off my tongue and my bones.  It felt satisfying.  Properly composed without the usual serving of whimsy that finds it's way onto my canvases. 


So, I created this piece a couple of weeks ago.  I read this 2 nights ago ~ 


"Eulalia was a devout Christian virgin, aged 12–14, whose mother sequestered her in the countryside in AD 304 because all citizens were required to avow faith in the Roman gods. Eulalia ran away to the law court of the governor Dacian at Emerita, professed herself a Christian, insulted the pagan gods and emperor Maximian, and challenged the authorities to martyr her. The judge's attempts at flattery and bribery failed. 

She was then stripped by the soldiers, tortured with hooks and torches, and burnt at the stake, suffocating from smoke inhalation. She taunted her torturers all the while,^[4] and as she expired a dove flew out of her mouth. This frightened away the soldiers and allowed a miraculous snow to cover her nakedness, its whiteness indicating her sainthood."

I am fairly sure that many people know the story of Eulalia.  I'm sure that many Catholics have known this story all their lives.  But....I had never heard it.  Never heard of "Saint Eulalia". Never knew about a martyr that suffered in fire.  Weird right?


What does it all mean?  Who knows?  Probably means nothing.  But, it's fun to ponder and wonder, isn't it?  Why would a plain ol' southern girl like myself find Eulalia in her dreams?  It is....curious, yes?  


If you are interested in this piece, the original is listed in my shop.  Prints will be offered at a later date.  Simply click HERE if you'd like to have a peek at "The Burning of Eulalia".


Until Next Time:
Kim
Gerushia's New World

Quiet Treasures and Memories ~

What do you treasure?  Memories?  Beauty?  Family?  Isn't that a big question?    


For me, I treasure memories.  Sometimes to the point of sadness.  I treasure my southern heritage and the simple things left behind by my mom and dad....


I treasure this photo.  The last photo ever taken of my mom when she was still able to help in the kitchen.  The last batch of potatoes she was able to prepare ~ 

Memories of my dad creating acorn pipes.  When I was a little girl, my family would venture out to "The Apple Orchards" every Autumn.  To me, it was a magical place that smelled of warm fall leaves, country air and bear poop.  (Yes, I said bear poop).  We would picnic under the big oak trees.  After lunch, my dad would search out the biggest and smoothest acorns and the straightest sticks to create these little pipes for me.  He would cut off the tops with his pocket-knife, clean out the inside....make a wee little hole for the stick and, just like that, I had a pipe.  I have quite a collection of pipes, actually...but this photo shows the last pipe my dad ever made. He made it for my son ~ 

A single lace glove, worn by my grandmother....many, many years ago ~ 

Recipes for southern goodness....Fried Green Tomatoes ~ 

Chicken Pie ~

....and Boysenberry Pie ~ 

Taste, smell, sound....built in senses that rush memories through your heart and mind.  Cutting and healing both at the same time.  


The sound of a distant lawn mower conjures an image of my dad, slowly, meticulously mowing the big back yard of my childhood home.  My dad...the sensible guy who loved grape Kool-Aid on a hot summer afternoon ~ 

Treasures....memories.  The last quilt my mom hand-stitched.  Never finished ~  

The needle is still in the same place she left it  ~

There are new treasures too...not just childhood goodness and memories.  




Breakfast....fresh from the tree on an already overly hot morning ~ 

Loyal and true....Morning Glory.  Growing, growing, growing up and over her familiar arbor ~ 

There are quiet treasures and memories all over our Everydays.  Some are embedded in our skin, in our bones like a piece of our body and soul.  Some are carefree and fun and easy.  Some are colorful and new.  


A new memory a new treasure...a confetti of color ~ this bouquet given to my daughter by the sweetest of friends.  A memory forever, long after the colors have wilted ~ 

What is it about a hot summer day that makes me remember?  Makes me thankful for memories, old and new?  Every muscle and pore and sense remembers and treasures on these days, these summer days that drag and fly all at once.


Until Next Time:
Kim
Gerushia's New World

Let's Do This Again ~

So....hello there.  It's been a long while, hasn't it?  I almost gave up my blog.  Over the last year or so, it's slipped away from me, mostly because no one has been able to leave comments.  I've gone 'round and 'round with my settings, I've talked to the good folks at blogger, and still, the comment issue was on-going.  Now, it looks like the comment issue may have been because I was using an older template, so, I've chosen a new template.  Let's see how this works!!


Where to begin?  Well, let's begin with today.  It's HOT!!  Ever so hot.  The kind of licking flame hot that makes you thankful for air-conditioning!  


I stepped outside this morning to take care of a few garden chores and found this ~ 

A wasp enjoying a delicious meal of cutworm!  This makes me happy for 2 reasons.  1:  because that's one less worm on my tomato plant...and 2: because this season has seen a very sad decline in wasps and bees.  This is actually the first wasp I've seen this year.  The bees are  virtually non-existent in my backyard garden this year.  As a matter of fact, without the bees to pollinate my vegetables, I've had to pollinate them myself.  Especially the squash ~ 

I won't go into detail about what I have to do to pollinate my squash...but let's just say it requires a male blossom and a female blossom.  I do the rest!  :-)


Ohhh...and look how pretty...pretty in pink.  The first Sweet Pea blossom of the year ~ 

After all these years of growing these pretty flowers from seed, they are still my favorite.


We've also been spending a lot of time hand-transferring our baby Mantises all around the garden ~ 

Hmmmm...what else has been going on in my world?  Oh, I know, I picked these ~ 

....and turned them into this ~ A deep dish Nectarine pie!  So, so, so good!

You'll have to excuse my very plain and simple photos.  My computer finally gave up the ghost, and I lost my favorite photo program along with it.  Thankfully, Mr. Gerushia was able to retrieve all my art files and photos!  So, for now, I'm posting naked photos.


Since last we spoke, we've had a birthday celebration, an anniversary celebration and all sorts of fun stuff.


On the art scene, just for the fun of it, I entered this piece in a local art show ~ 


Mi Corazon por Alicia  (this piece is currently for sale in my shop).

and I actually won a bit of money!  It's always fun to win money, right?  

It was a fun evening and I got to hang out with my pal, Shell ~ 

I have another piece in a show opening up next weekend.  The theme of the show is "Fan".  I created this specifically for the show.  


"Fanning the Flames" ~ 

The original is not for sale, but you can get it in print version right Here.


I also have a new original in my shop.  A wee bit darker than my usual pieces, but I think I really like it.  It's called "The Burning of Eulalia" ~ 

For some reason, I felt the urge....the need to make this piece.  The name "Eulalia" means well-spoken. The name was borne by a 12 year old Spanish martyr who was burned to death because she refused to renounce her faith.  I know it sounds weird, but when I created this piece, I was drawn to use the name Eulalia, but had no idea about the story of the burning of a 12 year old martyr.  Something made me connect the name with fire.  Curious, yes?


The original is now offered in my shop.  Just click right HERE.  Once the original has sold, I will offer prints.


So...as you can see, I've been keeping busy.  In between working in my studio and working in the garden, I've also managed to read a few books, go to several author signings with my daughter and start a Pinterest.  Feel free to follow me over there if you like!


Ohhh...and one more fun thing coming up.  I'll be having an art give-away for a couple of my print sets, but it won't be on my blog.  More information on that in a day or two...but I'm over the moon excited for this give-away!  It will be "Fanciful" for sure!  :-)


Until Next Time:
xoxo
Kim
Gerushia's New World


P.S.  Ooopsie....forgot to mention that I'm having a "Buy One Get One Free" sale in my art shop.  Buy any 4" x 6" print and get a second 4" x 6 " print of your choice for free.  Simply leave a note for me at checkout telling me which print you want for your freebie and I will include it in your package!  Easy Peasy....just like that.  Click HERE to see all the prints included in this sale!  


xoxo

"A Constant Presence"...

Hello Again!

Just wanted to pop in and show you my newest little watercolor.  This piece is entitled:  "A Constant Presence".  The image size is 5" x 7" with a border large enough to allow for framing.   It's listed in my new shop category called ~  "Affordable, Original Watercolors".

I am having so much fun creating characters with watercolor again.  You see, once upon a time, my dream was to write and illustrate children's books.  I would spend hours creating characters and illustrating these "books".  This is really taking me back to where it all began and I am loving it!

If you're interested in this piece...you can view it in my shop right  HERE.

Keep in mind...these watercolors are not masterpieces.  They are not perfect.  However, they are fun and affordable.  This is a great way to own affordable, original, one of a kind art.  I am offering these at the same price as my art prints!!  AND...I'm hoping to offer 5 a week.  This will challenge me to create almost daily!

Thanks so much for stopping by and having a look!
Kim
Gerushia's New World

Oh the Craziness...

Hello There:


 It's me...bet you forgot about me, didn't you?

It's been crazy busy these last few weeks...months really.  I want to share a few things with you, but I don't want this blog post to be 100 pages long, so I'm going to try and sum up my busy-ness with few words and some photos.

Over the course of the last few weeks, I've been preparing for another art show.  This show, entitled: "Down the Rabbit Hole" is a group show inspired by the art of "Alice in Wonderland" ~

I'm super duper happy with my new piece for the show...

"Mi Corazon por Alicia" ~

...and, here's the piece all framed up and ready for delivery ~

Because this is an "Alice" themed show, this piece is going in as well.

I'm so happy to be included in this show and I'm looking forward to the opening reception this Saturday.  Should be a lot of fun!


In March, I was honored to be invited to a private preview of the new show, "I Want to Be First", at Kat Von D's Wonderland Gallery ~  (Sorry about this blurry photo.  My husband secretly snapped it behind my back while I was talking to Ms. Von D).

It was also the delivery day for Ms. Von D's custom piece  ~ 


"Piaf Sings the Blues"  ~ 

Kat's cat, Piaf, is so photogenic.  Really fun to work with his image ~  

So, in between the comings and goings of my Everydays, I've also decided to add a new category in my Online Shop... "Affordable, Original Watercolors".  I just think it's so important to offer small, affordable pieces of original art in this terrible economy.  How nice to find something colorful and fun in your mailbox....along with all the bills.  When people are struggling to pay their mortgage and put food on the table, it's very easy for luxuries like expensive pieces of art to be put on the back burner.  So...my hope is that I can help to bring art into your home at an affordable price.  

The images are 5" x 7" with a border large enough to allow for framing.  They are $14.00 each....which is the same price as an art print!  So, for $14.00, you can get an original, one of a kind, numbered watercolor.  I'm hoping to offer 5 a week.  This is also a way to help me create almost everyday! 

Here is the first piece created for the series (sold) ~

"Little Tangles"

and....here's the second piece in this affordable series  (currently available) ~

"Find Me"

In between the art and my gardening and my other daily "stuff", I took time out for a new profile picture, which I need for a new art adventure.

And...just for fun, here's a picture of some of our Easter eggs ~ 

I guess this brings me to a somewhat current point in my crazy life!


Also, let me say that I am not sure what the heck is going on with the font in this post.  Blogger must be doing some updates...so, just overlook the weirdness of today's changing font!

Thank you so much for stopping by.  Hope to see you super soon!

Until Next Time:

Kim

Gerushia's New World