Abstract Color, Musings and Paintings

One never knows where the adventure will lead them! Recently I found a beautiful vintage beaded bag at a flea market that I love to frequent on Saturday afternoons. I've collected vintage bags and jewelry for many years never thinking I'd do anything with them except carry one on special occasions or wear a special brooch every now and then. But....you know there is something coming when you see that word! I decided to open an Etsy shop and sell some of my jewelry and evening bags. I had forgotten how much work it is to sell online but Etsy makes it as easy as possible. So if interested, check out my new adventure on www.etsy.com. My shop is                                                         MagpieChicBoutique Someone asked how did you come up with that name. Well the magpie is a collector of trinkets, especially shiny or sparkly items. Just like me! Here's one of the bags you'll find in the Boutique!

Here we are another week into our almost fall weather! It's my favorite time of year...the season when nature pulls out all the stops with its wardrobe. Glorious reds, oranges, yellows and purples decorate all the trees and the fields turn a golden color that glows in the early morning sunlight. While painting my thrift shop find, I kept thinking about how nature loves to brighten its palette each year. And gazing out my window at all the trees, I spotted a few leaves turning a rich orange. I knew that fall was on its way! Here's the outcome of the thrift shop find. I had so much fun rescuing this canvas and creating my version of Autumn. Let me know if autumn is your favorite season! carly

Isn't it fun when you spot that perfect treasure in a thrift shop! That's what happened a couple of weeks ago. Someone dropped off a 50 x 34 canvas covered with tissue paper collage! I think it was discarded because no one knew how to proceed with all that abstract texture. But to me, it was an inspiration!! This is a crop showing the texture after I've used acrylic inks to create vertical lines and liquid acrylics....I think it is taking shape as an abstract landscape. One never knows what might trigger an inspirational moment! Don't count out those really odd thrift shop finds! Sign up to follow my blog posts...there's a link at the top...and I don't use your email for anything ever.   carly Stay tuned for the final image in my next blog...

I'm often asked what inspires me. That is not an easy question to answer because a lot of things play into inspiration. Emotions. Situations. Relationships. The weather! Is it just one thing or a combination of many things that lead to inspiration? How do you find "the muse". Recently I've been uninspired...yes, it happens! Some might say that moving to a new location with such different scenery is the cause....and yet, I'm not so much inspired by scenery as I am by the emotional contact that happens when one stops to listen to the sounds of a waterfall or the rustle of the wind thru the trees. So...what then have I learned about my own muse...it does not appear but it does speak. It does not take a certain form but it does whisper to my inner core...it beckons...even shouts at times. And when I listen carefully....it sighs. Thoughts from a Tuesday, carly