happy birthday!

love you, babe!!

hermit down...

our sugary white winter snuggli has come and gone...

so beautiful while it lasted.

mind you, it is still cold...

the garden frozen,

ice on the pond.

a great excuse to hermit down in my studio.

wearing yesterday's make up and

an old sweatshirt,

canvases and paint tubes scattered,

rhythm of the music flowing through me,

glass of wine delivered by my hubby,

no sense of time...

i may be incommunicado for a while...

this is what i've been preparing for.......

treasures found...

during a long, frigid walk with my love...

snow gently falling...

i gathered treasures for our dining room table...

a beautiful mossy-lichen covered branch,

dried weeds,

and branches with simple, gorgeous silhouettes...

thank you mother nature.

thank you very much.

Boxes, Orbs and Urns

looking out the kitchen window to a very frigid day...with a light coating of snow, i've been chatting with a blogging friend (hi Karen!) about after holiday blahs and inspiration......

i often struggle with the pull of wanting to be creative,

but not being able to GET STARTED.

what i do know for sure, is that i MUST have ...

my DUCKS IN A ROW.

i have put away ALL traces of the holidays to reveal areas that need

New Vignettes.

Primping.

Tweaking.

Creating.

Nesting.

Homemaking.

AND I HAVE DONE JUST THAT.

getting ready...

nothing looming...

clean slate.

ducks in a row.

the fireplace mantel, for one needed new dressing.

the focal point of this room.

i settled on Boxes, Orbs and Urns.

hence the title of my post.

everything here collected in my house.

except the new mossy orbs which i made from moss and newspaper balls (you know, balls MADE out of newspaper and tape).

Styrofoam balls are pricey! why! oh why!

i've been collecting Mystery Boxes for a while now.

don't know why.

it's a mystery.

lighting is very important.

the magical glow of candles.....


and fire.

nature surrounds me...

even indoors.

EVER INSPIRING.

even the Blue Ray player is juxtaposed by driftwood and braided branches.

a beautiful specimen preserved forever.

my life in order...........

with the help of angels.

NO loose ties...

PEACE all around...

i then.........

can start to create.