living the dream

art journal page 3

Today was one of those hectic days from the get go. I was doing my normal routine of reading and responding to emails, tweeting, uploading new pieces on my Etsy shops...and then I went to work on a new post and saw that Amanda from EBSQ had chosen my blog for the Friday Five since I started my new art journal! Totally made my morning! Thank you so much Amanda and EBSQ!

pendants drying

The other day I was putting up some shelves for more pottery in the studio. While I was looking at all these pieces, I decided right then that I needed a sale of some kind. I'm running out of room! So I called my mother to see if she knew of any craft shows coming up and she did! I was given a number to call to see if there was any space left. There were 3 spots open and I jumped on one! I'll be in the Holiday Art and Craft Show in Salida November 26th and 27th. If you're in the area, stop by and see me!

trivet drying

I immediately brought out all my pieces and started doing an inventory. Then I started thinking about other things related to my work that I could put in the show. I've thought about making pendant necklaces for awhile and thought this would be the perfect time to try them out. The cool thing is that I have almost a month to make more pottery too! I'm excited and motivated. Love this combination!

I am so so blessed to be living my dream of making art, riding horses and playing with my dogs. What's your dream?

...finish what you start?

art journal day 2

Do you remember way back when I started the bragging art questions? Sheesh! It took me forever to find the last one I left off with.

#8. What professional and personal obstacles have you overcome to get where you are today? What essential lessons have you learned from any mistakes?

Professionally, I've had to overcome rejections from shows, galleries, even a job I once had as an artist in residence. But what I've learned from all those particular obstacles is that they have made me stronger as a person. I have learned to develop new ways to approach art events, marketing my work and myself as an artist. I am also learning to say no to certain commissions that are just more stress than they're worth. I have found that with commissions, you should only take on what is relevant to your work and not take on something just because you'd like another sale.

Personally, I had all the normal struggles of going to school full time and working 1, 2 or 3 jobs, maintaining a bad relationship, and having a social life. That was in my 20's. Now that I'm in my 30's, I have the most supportive husband in the world, friends that actually go to my shows and support my work, and the luxury of working as a full time artist in my home studios.

Lessons learned:

• Don't give up no matter how hard life gets
• Give thanks
• Be patient
• Don't lose site of your dreams
  
  

art journal: day 1

Today is my first attempt at art journaling and I'm having fun with it too! I am realizing that it's my journal so I'm incorporating words that will inspire me when I'm in a funk. I've never really been that great at doodling, so that part is a bit challenging, but I am getting ideas for some new paintings.

( S M I L E)

Have you started your journal yet?

journaling and such...

I've been away for a few days with my love. It was great to visit friends that I haven't seen in over two years and it's always nice seeing family. While I was gone, I visited Planet Earth and the Four Directions Gallery and Theresa Hochhalter's working studio. Both places are amazing! The gallery is one of my very favorite places to visit. It is a vintage thrift shop and gallery owned by my dear friend and artist, Caole. Theresa is another amazing artist friend that paints and sculpts in her studio full time. I was excited to visit with her in the studio and have a lovely chat about her work. Needless to say, I had the best time! I always find inspiration and motivation when around other artists.



Not to change the subject, but I've been thinking a bit about art journaling. I don't do it. I love journals. I love to create. Why not create an art journal? What a concept! So this week, I'm going to start an art journal and along the way I'll post what I've been jotting down.

Do you art journal? Have any tips or tricks you'd like to share with me? I would love to hear from you! I've missed you all and look forward to being home creating again!

200 + Daisy

Lexi and Daisy

Remember a week and a half ago I found a little dog sitting in the middle of the road? I posted fliers, reported her found to the humane society and local veterinarians. Unbelievably no one has claimed her, so in a few days, she'll officially be our newest member of the family. We call her Daisy. She is the sweetest little girl and loves her new friends.

Today I've reached 200 posts on my blog! Can you see me patting myself on the back? If you noticed the title of my blog, you can see that 200 is a big deal for me, especially looking back on the last few weeks...or months. I feel like time is slipping through my fingers. But I have a plan, one of which is to have a new post up on Monday, Wednesday and Friday of every week. I don't think I've succeeded once, but I'm still trying! It's a goal that I am determined to reach. And hey! It's Wednesday, so I'm 2/3 of the way through my goal for this week! (Even if I did miss Monday somehow).

Here are few new pieces that came out of the kiln over the weekend...

cappuccino butter dish

sPoTTy vase

Dragon-fly Mug and Bowl Set

dragon-fly mug set

ETSY FAVORITES

It's been too long since I've shared some of my favorite picks from other Etsy shops.

Here are some from today.

Have a wonderful Thursday!

how it all began by TheExtentofSilence

night and dawn by undeadmushroom12

burgandy brogade rembrandt by hatsbybuck

compass ring by outoftheblue

Little Interruptions

Boy did last week fly by or what?! I had all the intentions in the world to have a new post up on Friday and all of a sudden its Monday! Happy Columbus Day!

You'll never guess what happened to me last night. I was on my way to Salida, and not even 15 miles from my house is an adorable little dog just sitting in the middle of the road. I stopped and she didn't move. I pulled over when I saw another car coming towards her. I made sure they saw her so she wouldn't get hit. Then they stopped, so I put my car in park and got out. She came running over to me with her tail wagging so fast! By then the other car left. I looked around to see if anyone was around. No one. So, I picked her up and on we went. I have since posted her on fidofinder.com, made some fliers and have called some local vets. The humane society opens at 10, so then I'll be giving them a ring too.

So with fostering a little girl on top of visiting family, I'm hoping to get a little work done tonight. Here are a couple things that came out of the kiln over the weekend.

Dragonfly Tea Set

Cappuccino Plate

2 Giveaways!

There are two amazing artists that are having 2 different giveaways going on right now! Jennifer of Studio JRU is giving away a beautiful print of your choice. I'm hoping to win "Peace."

Mandy of Bijou's Whimsy is giving away an original lino-cut that would look amazing in my studio! but I'm being nice and spreading the word for all my friends to have the chance to win either one of these awesome giveaways!

A New Look and A New Show

I'm getting back into the swing of things. I feel like I've been climbing out of a hole the past few weeks and finally see the light. First of all I have a new website! It is under a new domain for the time being, but I'm working on getting my old one transferred. Once that happens, then the link will be the same with just a very new and fresh look.

Awhile back I had mentioned that I was struggling with the idea of letting my KoiStudios name go and just go by my given name. But when it came time to work on my website, I found a template that had two koi fish swimming in a circle. Now this is super special to me because 1. I have a tattoo that is almost identical and 2. it's the name of my studio! So as you can imagine, I was so happy and decided to keep the name KoiStudios.

I referred back to my Flying Lessons ecourse notes for websites and decided to go with Squarespace. It is real user friendly and I'll find out soon how the tech support is when I make the domain transfer.

bisque ware

Here's what I have been putting off. Glazing. For some reason I cannot find the motivation to glaze. I love seeing how they come out of the kiln, but deciding what to put on the bisque pieces is another story.

more bisque ware

This afternoon I took Night and Day (a large bronze) to the 11th Annual Artful Women's Show in Canon City. It's an annual fundraiser for the scholarship fund held by the Zonta Club of the Royal Gorge. Friday is the opening and I'm excited to see the show! Oh, another cool thing that happened was that my favorite number (27) was the # put on the bottom of my piece for the juror. You could imagine how big my smile was when I saw that!

Night and Day

...not my forte

Decorating has never been my forte. I feel like I have no style when it comes to putting a room together. And now that I have 1/2 of a house without vinyl wallpaper, I can actually adorn the walls with some art!

I usually have a large painting over the mantel, but yesterday I liked the staggered look of this diptych abstract I painted last year.

Here is my newest favorite corner of the house! My mother-in-law brought us an end table awhile ago that had been out in the pottery studio. It then made its way into the spare bedroom and was covered with a white sheet and piled with pottery. I decided it was time for a face lift. I painted it a matte black and nestled it into the corner which will house our pellet stove someday. But until then, this little table has a new home! And I'm loving all the color!

...and our dining room now has New Monday on the wall which was in the living room. I like it so much better in there. It pulls all the browns together with a hint of color.