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Enjoy my photos from my October "Big Sky and Open Road" trip...all year long! From Sedona, Arizona to the Grand Canyon, enjoy the great outdoors with me. You can order your calendar directly from Zazzle. Click on the calendar image above. Merry Christmas!

Painting Buddies

Painting buddies are a great way to help inspire and motivate you to paint when you're feeling blocked. My painting buddy, Sheri, came over to the studio today to get our creativity on. She's working off one of my Sedona photos. It was really fun having her there, and I actually got some painting done! Thank you, Sheri!


Another way to get past a creative block is to try something completely new. Here I'm trying some unfamiliar oil glazing techniques for the under-painting of this soon-to-be ocean scene. It's feeling very Wolf Kahn and I'd love to work within this color palette, but it's a commission so it needs to reflect the local color. This 12x24" is a preliminary study for the final 15x30".


Here I've applied some more glazing on top and it's mixing with the paint beneath and not really working as a glaze...I'm thinking I should let it dry before I do anymore. I'll revisit it tomorrow. I may not have the patience for this technique! We'll see...

The Artist's Pad in Sedona

So, catching up on my blogging... Thursday, October 21, I avoid the rain and stay cozy in my jammies...sipping coffee, blogging and eating the last night's leftover gourmet pizza, which is classically better reheated...why is that? My room is strewn with a wet painting or two, heart shaped found rocks, electronics, travel notes and inspirational books.


Who makes the bed when traveling, anyway? Very comfy and restful.
I could stay in it all day...ahh.


Working on my blog in a pretty sweet studio apartment at the Sedona Summit Resort, thanks to Nick and Anna's time share. Thanks, guys! (Can I book it again next year?!)



From my second floor balcony I can peak through the trees to watch the clouds roll in and out, and the sun dancing across the tops of the red rocks. I enjoyed the cool breeze with the door open, but it's too cold for that today...I have the heat on, burr!

(See the heart shaped opening in the trees?)



After a day of blogging and relaxing, I bundle up to go paint in the field just outside my parking lot...a stone's throw from my room. The light accents the rocks, trees and grasses every now and then, against a really dramatic dark sky, warning of more showers to come.



Minutes later the scene theatrically shifts, of course, and Mother-Nature throws a couple of rainbows my way! See the two rainbows?


"Nature's First Kiss" by S'zanne Reynolds, 12x9" oil

So here's my attempt to keep up with the fickle lighting around here...I did this 12x9" oil in about 30-40 minutes so it's not exactly finished. I got rained on, stepped in mud, and interrupted by a cute guy....what's a girl to do, but stop and flirt a little? OK, more painting, less flirting may be in order...or not? Wish I'd had more time...for painting, I mean. Sigh.

Did I mention that I love Sedona?

Healing in Progress

Sometimes we may find ourselves lost or confused or hurting...aimlessly going throughout our life without much purpose or direction. I was feeling very much like this on Tuesday...driving around, not knowing what road I was on or even what city I was going towards...and crying a lot, feeling an overwhelming sense of sorrow. I pulled over to take in the scenic view at a rest stop. On the way to the facilities, I saw this sign above. "Healing in Progress. Please stay on the trail." See the heart shaped rock next to it? God sure is direct, but gentle...He didn't say, "Hey silly girl, what's up with you? and where to you think you're going, anyway?" He just gently reminded me that all is well and to keep on His path...that spiritual journey of knowing myself in Her image, as Her beloved of Love. God doesn't need directions...He's with us everywhere we go...giving us the signs, love, supply, creativity and encouragement we need all along the way.

Meanwhile I found out that I'd driven all the way to Flagstaff! But I don't think it was by accident or without a purpose, do you?

So the lesson for me was that being lost or without a purpose, or feeling unloved or uncreative, or feeling lack of any kind...is always the illusion. God has created each of our hearts with a unique purpose. Think of it. Your heart has a purpose. What is it?

I decided my heart's purpose is to create healing art...that's a huge leap of faith for me, but I'm going with that for now. I have no idea where that will take me...I'll just keep looking for the signs! And I found a few more that day...



Heaven on Earth


Red Rain

Spirit Center

Thought for the day:
"Thank God for what doesn't need healing."
--Joan Borysenko

Chilly and happy, I woke up Sunday morning and put the heat on, snuggled back under the covers with a cup of java, and mellowed out to Native American Indian tunes. After a quick bowl of Special-K, I meandered through town and out onto another road with even more grand vistas...no time for photos, though, I'm off to church. Gotta get my Spirit-Center on in this place...it's got such a spiritual energy!

After the service, a couple of nice folks invited me to brunch...Cathy and Carol Lee. I had Omelet No. 92, out of 101...on Coffee Pot Drive. Well, naturally, after brunch I had to go see where Coffee Pot Drive leads to...and it intersects with...you guessed it... Maxwell House Drive! Tee hee! There was also Short Elf Way...no tall elves found here. (As I've had my share of short elves, I left immediately!)





I didn't get out of the omelet place without a few momentos and a visit to a nearby dress shop. Mental note to self...MUST go back to the funky dress shop before I leave. Plus, I met shop owner, Kimmie, a beautiful local redhead, who takes after the red spirited rocks here. She agreed to let me paint her on her days off this week. Awesome! I was worried about the rain forecast this week...and God's already got me covered!


So it's back to my room to change into paint clothes...I decided to work with pastels first to see if I had the right palette and to get a feel for the landscape. For my composition I chose the ambitious spot of my first Sedona sighting.


It was going very well until I tried a new fixative that I'll NEVER use again! It's that new stuff that is non-aerosol and supposed to be OK to breath, called Spectrafix. Well, perhaps due to the altitude changes, I'm at 4000 feet now, I think....but for whatever reason, the fixative left huge splats all over my painting so I'll have to rework most of it. It was an experiment anyway, so no big loss. From now on I'll only use my favorite fixative--Latour by Sennelier--but I'll check it out on a scrap paper before I use it up here!


I finished just in time for the rains...and got inside just as it started storming.


I spent the evening getting caught up on my emails and, of course, blogging...chilling out to jazz in my pj's, with my long stemmed pink-orange roses...and a few other sweet indulgences. ;-)

Thought for the evening:
"I have learned, in whatsoever state I am in, therewith to be content." --St. Paul
ie. only good is going on...no matter what it looks like!

Local color and cuisine

Grabbing a lil' of the local color for the evening...










Slap happy tired and drunk with vivid sunset colors swirling in my head, I decided to take in some of the local cuisine and went to dinner at Dahl and DiLuca, a pricey but divine Italian restaurant. OK, I thought, I may as well do it up big since I'm out with the big spenders! So I spoiled myself to an amazingly gourmet, romantic dinner. You should have seen the chandeliers in this place...wow! There was nice soft live music serenading us in the background. Incredible posh, rich atmosphere...gorgeous outdoor patio...I'm such a great date!

I had a to-die-for caesar salad with white anchovies...yum!...rolls with a chopped garlic/basil oil for dipping... shrimp/crab stuffed sole in with a lobster bisque sauce on top...and of course one of those chocolate cake tarts a la mode...I thought of you, Mom!

I ate in the bar at a tall table facing the whole length of the restaurant, so I got to see it all and talk to everyone who went in or out...including all the waiters. And, I met the nicest New York couple next to my table. We talked about them visiting Duelling Divas on their next trip to Florida and calling on me for a visit when they are in Austin this February. Give me a call, Howard and Paula, and we'll have dinner at the Driskell!

After I paid the bill, I figured I'd better head over to the local Safeway for a little grocery shopping so I can save up for the next splurge. Somehow I got back to my room eventually and rolled myself happily into bed.

Helloooooo Sedona! It's SO nice to meet ya!