her gentle wings carried her far

her gentle wings

mixed media collage

(c) 2011 julie king

fine art print available

in my etsy shop

she had a gentle spirit and demure presence. many thought of her as shy and often wondered what quiet thoughts she was harboring in her solitude. she had big dreams but few knew what they were. those she kept to herself as well. she wasn't shy about showing her wings off to the world. she had an innate awareness that her wings were her vehicle to all her soul's longings. and she was so right. her gentle wings carried her far.

a new series i started a few days ago. the original sold but you can buy a print in my etsy shop. 

we all need a little color!!!

sun tea is brewing on the porch

birds are twittering in the trees

seeds are planted on the window sill

snow is melting on the ground

hands are busy in the art room

life is sweet and joyous

each of the above originals is available in my etsy shop! we all need a little color to brighten our lives these days! enjoy!

give me wings to fly

after months (years?!) of scheming and figuring and praying and cutting back i made the decision this week to give notice at my corporate job. my feelings waiver between uncontrollable, giggling euphoria and mind-stopping, heart-thumping fear. omg, what have i done? i told my co-workers i just can't do this anymore but the truth is i CHOOSE not to do it anymore. this is a drastic lifestyle choice and change. i'm trading in dress clothes and a loooong commute for jeans, sandals and a diet of peanut butter sandwiches. i'm blessed that i love peanut butter! i'm blessed that i'm surrounded by my family who think i'm nutso but are here to spur me on and prop me up.

how does one come to this kind of decision? for me, i've envisioned for a looong time the kind of life i'd like to lead. it's about simplifying and having less. it's about setting your ego aside and not equating your self worth with the amount of money you make. it's about making a list of all your skills and talents and developing concrete plans for making money doing those things. it's about believing in yourself.

give me wings to fly . . . please.

my studio "helper"

me: willow, please get down and don't jump on my fabric!

willow: i just have to figure out what is causing all that rustling noise.

me:  willow, please don't make me scoot you off the art table. i'm trying to cut this fabric out so i can make a new slouchy hobo bag.

willow: aaaaaah . . . i not only like the sound but i like the feel of this crinkly paper as well.

me: willow, you're going to get that pin stuck in your paw and then you're going to bleed all over my fabric.

willow:  can't she tell i'm not listening to her? when have i ever listened to her in the past? the worst she's going to do is pick me up and gently set me on the ground. and then guess what -- i'm going to get up and we'll start the whole process all over again.

hooked on art

i found these cute hooks at hobby lobby and bought them with no idea where or how i would use them. last weekend i was noodling how to fill an empty space on my dining room wall and voila! this idea came to me. first i added some extra color via fluid acrylics to the face of each of the hooks. then i hung them on the wall via velcro sticky back tabs. looove these tabs so much! then i sorted thru all the small art pieces i've been collecting for the past few years. i selected one piece by flor larios, one by courtney p and one by cori. i spray mounted decorative scrapbook paper onto a heavy piece of mounting board then added the print to the face of that. the ribbons are glued to the back of the board.

i have so many creative projects in the works and hope to finish at least a couple of them today. i'm still driving back and forth to dayton to work every week day and never miss an opportunity to take a nap or two on the weekends to catch up on my rest. soooo, it will be a nice mixture of rest and play.

i hear it raining out my art room window. i guess i'll be walking my girlie girls bella and zoe in the rain today. thank goodness it isn't snow!! 

wip it wip it good!!

a few more photos of my wip -- work in progress little cottage. the vintage-ness of the kitchen makes me smile. all those white cupboards with the black metal inspire me and make me happy. i made the curtain from a remnant i bought at joann's and the good morning coffee cups art is a julie king original.

another kitchen shot with my mantra on the blackboard -- give more, expect less, laugh often, appreciate the little things and simplify. i'm so inspired by those words and my kelly rae calendar. loooove all the sunshine that streams into my south-facing windows.

i made the tiny room at the back of the house my bedroom so i could use the larger room for my art room. a creative girl knows her priorities!! i get wonderful afternoon and evening sun from this south-facing window plus there's another window that faces north.  and, again i made the curtains from remnants from joanns.

more bright light streams into my art room. i bought the long white table for $40 at the thrift store in dayton last october. it was already knicked and scratched so it made the perfect surface for painting and getting messy. i'm on the hunt for a super-cheap chair that has height adjustment. the old dining chair at the table is too short. i'll be lurking in the thrift store and at goodwill again next week.

soon i'll show you the adorable bird houses i made out of antique books and creative ways i've been hanging art on the walls.

what are you "wip"ing these days?

seeing thru the haze

the sun and warmer temperatures melted all the snow away this week. the icicles hanging over my front steps evaporated into the air. the large branches and small twigs that rained down during the ice storm have been carted off by the city crew. my heart swelled in my chest and my winter funk floated away. i celebrated my 58th birthday over the holidays so i've had lots of experience with the heavy winter blues that keep me isolated in a bear-like hibernation every winter. but i don't ever recall in the past having the moments of clarity and focus that i've been experiencing this week. maybe i just have to reach a certain level of low in order to look far enough up to visualize what i need to do and where i want to go. here are a few of the things i realized this week:

••• money brings comfort and security but it can be a trap that tears me down emotionally and physically.

••• the time to live, do, create, fly, follow my inner muse is now. i can't wait for the perfect time; it will never arrive.

••• when plagued by doubts, i need to stay the course, believe in myself and hold out for what i want.

••• it's ok to listen to my heart and pursue my dreams instead of always taking the safe, rationale path

••• no one else can decide what is best for me

••• quit sitting back and waiting, waiting, waiting . . . make it happen!!

hopefully it will be sunny and warm again tomorrow so i can start to put all this vision into practice!!