Watching Watercolor Dry – An ASMR Activity

Watching Watercolor Dry – An ASMR Activity

Feb 18, 2024 | Art, Essay, Humor, Ink, Nature Journaling, Reflections, Sketchbook, watercolor

Gouache painting of Kiki, my daughter’s cat.  

“Leap” as a word doesn’t get the love it should.  “Jump”, “leap’s” dynamic cousin, has gotten top billing for as long as I can recall.  “Jump” reached the top of the Billboard with Van Halen.  It has been splashed across screens, big and small, in titles like “21 Jump Street” and “White Men Can’t Jump.”  Speaking of jumping, why is it that athletes JUMP rather than leap to make a basket or catch the ball?  And if I want to purchase a one-piece-does-it-all addition to my wardrobe, it’s a “jumper”.  (We will leave romper for another day!)

“Jump” is a downer.  “Leap” is an upper.  Say the words aloud, you will hear what I mean.  Is that why “jump” is used more frequently and “leap” is shunned?  It’s always a little (or a lot) uncool to be TOO happy.  “Leap” sounds light and frivolous.

Well, I am choosing to leap into Spring!  I am leaping from the doldrums of winter.  I spent the winter months hibernating, taking solace in countless hours of You Tube, Patreon, and Skillshare.  Watching watercolor dry is a form of ASMR.

But the dark hours are shrinking, and Punxsutawney Phil has predicted an early spring.  Even February has added an extra day!  To celebrate, I will set up at Wildflower Cafe Art Market on Leap Day, February 29th from 5pm-8pm.   Stop by the cafe to see what local vendors have to offer.  The cafe offers a unique shopping experience with artists and artisans showcasing their wares on the cafe tables.  It’s a cozy experience!

As Spring approaches, I would like to invite you to leave  a comment on this post about your favorite experiment on this post.  What art do you hope to see me create this year?  And what is your favorite way to display art?  Do you like housewares or cards or prints …?   You get the idea.

In the Studio

I will keep it short today- maybe just a few pictures.  The winter months make me a little gloomy and tired, so I retreated to the realm of experimentation, education, and reflection.  I am curious to see how it all plays out this year.

A two page spread from my watercolor sketchbook.

Sea Dragon with flowers… ink and watercolor 9×9.

Exploring my beachy wishes… watercolor and ink.

What I’m Reading

  • Eve by Cat Bohannon-  My book club chose this one for our February gathering. It has been a FASCINATING look at the evolution of the human species from the FEMALE perspective!  At times challenging, this book has been a joy to read.  I have learned much about the paleontological evolution of the female body, but also about the pervasiveness about the male bias in all things science.  

This post has been written by Renee Griffin, a human being.  The art has been created by Renee Griffin, the aforementioned human.  No AI has been used in the creation of my art or writing.

Food IS the Destination!

Food IS the Destination!

Sep 22, 2022 | Art, Humor, Reflections, watercolor

Hadley’s Date Shake, it was on our list of destination foods.  Some people travel to destination cities or resorts- but Christine and I were traveling to food. 

In the 9 days I spent with Christine traveling from California, through Arizona, New Mexico, and Southern Texas I ate my way across multiple continents. Meals included: Persian, Korean, Chinese, Punjabi, Puerto Rican, and Mexican.  (I am sure I have missed a couple.) If you have never wrestled with goat on the bone swimming in biryani while balancing your styrofoam plate on the dashboard, then you have never really road-tripped.

This morning as I sipped on my homemade Chai Date Smoothie I fondly recalled that heavenly date shake that kicked off our traveling culinary adventure. Hadley’s appeared on the map shortly after we departed Burbank while my stomach was still full of leftover Chinese dumplings and pastries I scavenged from the refrigerator.  And despite the fact Hadley’s is a “fruit stand”, they were clearly famous for their date shake!  The tiny flecks of nature’s sweet goodness suspended in thick creamy vanilla ice cream.  There is no ice cream in my smoothie.  I have sacrificed the frozen creaminess in consideration of my ever expanding middle-aged waistline and cholesterol count.

It’s mid-September and I feel as though I am just now climbing out of the food-induduced coma only to discover that the world has moved on and my clothes no longer fit.  So, I dusted off the stationary bike and said a quick prayer of thanks for Spandex-infused denim and yoga tights.

In the Studio

I LOVE learning, watching others, trying to replicate their techniques, their strokes, their accomplishments.  So, I have been focusing on some in-depth tutorials.  I spend hours watching and re-watching slowed down videos with my paintbrush in hand.  Then I take those lessons to my personal projects.

Gargoyle on the Moon AKA “Night Watchman” is one of those projects.  The original painting is approximately 7” square.  I actually painted it twice!  I digitally adjusted the second version for greeting cards.   The first version (seen below) contains much more detail and gold mica dust.  I have made a few prints available and the original is for sale.  Contact me if you are interested.

I am leaning into ink as October approaches and I plan to participate in the annual Inktober Challenge.  I hope you will follow along on social media.

A Singing House Whistles While I Work

A Singing House Whistles While I Work

Apr 11, 2022 | Art, Digital Art, Essay, Garden, Humor, pattern design, Reflections, Surface Pattern Design, watercolor

April blew in with such ferocity this year!  My doorways have been moaning for weeks on end- a slightly eery sound that I have begun to liken to Moaning Myrtle.  If you have never heard your house “sing” before, I will explain.  The wind comes through the gaps with such strength that it causes the copper flashing to vibrate and intonate.  The first time I heard it, nearly 19 years ago, I was home alone with my babies while my husband was away on a business trip.  It frightened me until I was able to process what was happening.  But I digress.  Resuming….

As I sat down to write today I reviewed my posts from 2022 and I startled myself with how much I wanted to share with you.  I have let more time slip by than I intended.  So, please, pause here to grab a cup of tea, a glass of wine, or perhaps a cookie and a glass of milk.  But get comfortable and let’s catch up!

In January I shared my Intentions for 2022 and it is important to me that I continue that conversation.  Accountability.  I set these five intentions for 2022:

  1. Eat more veggies!
  2. Keep a cleaner garden.
  3. Become more disciplined in my approach to learning.
  4. Learn to create process videos.
  5. Create free downloads for my website subscribers BEFORE March!

Let me start with Number 5-  I’m a little late, but I have done it!  I have created my first free download for you.  It is only the first; you can plan on more.  When visitors sign up to receive email from me they will be taken to a Thank You page where they can download the freebie.  Those who are already on my mailing list will receive a separate email with their link.  This first freebie is a bookmark.  I haven’t decided how long the free bookmark will be available, so download it when you receive the email.   If you have troubles with the download or you don’t receive your email, just let me know.  I will post a follow-up blog entry with suggestions for how to print your bookmark.

Flowering Quince Bookmark

Plant Babies!

New Art!   “Hummingbird with Screen”

Number 4-  Sadly, I haven’t even BEGUN to tackle this one.  Let’s get that garden growing first!

Number 3-  Becoming more disciplined in my approach to learning has been a biggie for me.  Sometimes I feel like I am stalling out-  but when I grant myself a little grace and look at my work with objectivity I see great strides here.  I have spent considerable time painting birds lately under the tutelage of several self-guided classes with differing approaches and strengths.  The instructor in me says I haven’t earned an A- yet.  But, I will get there! 

Number 2-  Oh My!  In order to keep a cleaner garden, I have to clean it first!  The ideal time would have been Winter- but if you know me, you know I hibernate when the weather is anything less than 68 degrees F.  So, that leaves Spring.  And if you are a parent, or remember parenting school-aged children (or adults), then you remember how your calendar can simply explode overnight!

My son is a Senior in high school and just attended prom this past weekend.  Graduation events are beginning to fill the calendar.  Soccer matches have begun to populate the little white squares.  And in between grass fires, weird cold snaps, and the occasional promise of severe storms, I know the garden is calling!  But each day only holds 24 hours and I demand to sleep at least 7 of them, so something gets ignored each day.

In the past I have delayed gardening until the last possible minute holding onto the fear of losing seeds and seedlings in Spring Flash Floods or odd late frosts.  This year won’t be much different.  I have begun to clean out last year’s crops, but I haven’t finished.  We haven’t even turned on our irrigation system yet.  The baby plants are thriving in my studio nursery.  I have sown a few seeds outside, with disappointing results.  If the wind wasn’t bad enough, the squirrels immediately dug up the fresh soil.  The morning after planting seeds I discovered holes dug all over my cleared beds!

Last-  1.  Eat more veggies!      Do convenience salads count?  We haven’t made a heap of progress here-  but, if you recall, the whole point of setting Intentions instead of Resolutions is to emphasize the PROCESS or the journey.  I have eaten a few extra salads, which is easier as it becomes increasingly warmer.

Your turn-  Did you set any Intentions, or resolutions, this year?  Did you share them with anyone?  If not, I invite you to share them with me.  You can include them in a comment or send me an email.  I would love to return the favor of being your accountability partner.

Hops - A Rabbit

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Lingering Near the Path- Introspection by a Commitment-Challenged Creative

Lingering Near the Path- Introspection by a Commitment-Challenged Creative

Feb 4, 2022 | Cooking, Essay, Garden, Humor, Reflections, Surface Pattern Design, Watercolor

Hello, my name is Renee and I am an online-class junkie. I have spent thousands of dollars on classes and subscriptions and BOOKS. Wait- I don’t think this is the debilitating condition that plagues me. Under closer scrutiny, it is not an addiction to purchasing self-learning tools, but rather a refusal to commit to the process that has dampened the joy in my art life. I purchase all these classes and books to learn but then I fail to commit to the learning process.

Periodically I interrogate my inferior self- “Why don’t you follow through? Do you think you know more than the instructor? Are you too good for those exercises? Or is it just that you know you are going to fail? You are afraid that you will follow along to the letter and your bird, or portrait, or tonal strip is going to be shit!” My inferior self winces, squeezes her ears shut against the harsh line of questioning and begins whimpering… “No. I don’’t think I am too good. I just ran out of time. I am too tired at the end of the day. I can’t stay focused- there are too many other things clamoring for my attention.”

Weak excuses that all harbor a bit of truth. But that doesn’t mean I should hand all my power over to them. So- this year I intend to take my power back!

In my last blog entry,  I mentioned that in place of “resolutions” I have made intentions. A resolution seems to imply a 180 degree change in behavior. In my mind, the word intention implies that there is more room to make the turn and more than one way to succeed. Because I am so easily lured off the path I have set one of my 2022 intentions to become more disciplined in my approach to learning.

Being aware that I have strayed is the first step. It sounds obvious and easy, but how often have you set out to respond to a text or email only to discover an hour later that you have been watching cute kitten videos on Tiktok for the last 45 minutes? Now cute kitten videos are rarely my nemesis, but you get the picture.

In January I set out to complete a very simple watercolor class on Skillshare. I have managed to follow along- but only by self correcting over and over again. It has taken me WEEKS to get through the class. As I immersed myself in the painting process one evening, I became self-aware. I noticed when the impatience began to set in. And then I talked myself down. I reminded myself that I enjoy getting lost in the process when I permit myself to do so. Until I become a competitive sprinter- time is not important. Who cares how long it takes me to finish the project, or a simple flower?!

How often do I fail to follow through because I do not give myself permission to surrender to time? I think this should be my mantra for February- Surrender to time. Surrender to process.

In the Studio

I embarked on this Folk Art journey for three reasons: 1. to practice following through  2.  I wanted to use folk art flowers in my current project  3.  simplifying forms is difficult for me.

In addition to playing with folk art, I created “Siracha” (a working title) from inked line work to digital painting.  I will post the finished piece next week.  I am super excited by it!

In the Shop

You can find Valentine’s in my Hummingbird Fine Craft shop.  Coming this month… new travel cups.  I have restocked the scissortail travel cup and will be introducing two new ones to the shop-  “You Make My Heart Sing” and “Scissortail Flycatcher with Rose Rocks”.

For other products or if you don’t live in Tulsa, be sure to check out the Society6 shopping tab under the Shop menu at the top.

 

In the Kitchen 

With snow on the ground, it’s a great time to make bread and use what’s in the freezer!  Today I revived summer with a batch of Roasted Tomato Soup with garden “fresh” tomatoes from the freezer. 

Roast frozen whole tomatoes drizzled with olive oil in oven at 425 for 15-20 minutes.  Drizzle sweet onion slices and cloves of garlic with oil and add to tomato pan.  Increase temp to 450 and roast for 20-30 minutes until onions are golden brown.  I then add this pan of gooey goodness to a pot with homemade beef broth (or chicken), 4 TBSP butter,  and bay leaves.  Simmer for 30-40 minutes. Remove bay leaves, season, add 1/2 Cup or so of chopped fresh basil and use immersion blender to create smooth soup.  Add in some milk or cream to finish it.  My fresh Basil came from my counter-top Pod Garden.

 

Add a loaf of Sour Dough Bread with Cracked Pepper, Rosemary, and Walnuts and you have the perfect snow-day supper!  A few years back I took a bread baking class with Cat Cox and it has been money and time well-spent!  Using her techniques and basic instructions, I have created countless creative loaves of bread- all stunning and irresistible!  If you get a chance and you are in Tulsa, take a class with @CatCoxBaker!

Summer's Bounty on Winter's Day

Digging into 2022; Reflections on the New Year Revolution

Digging into 2022; Reflections on the New Year Revolution

Jan 19, 2022 | Art, Cooking, Essay, Garden, Humor, Reflections, Watercolor

January 1st signifies new beginnings, a fresh new calendar and the promise of a better self and a better tomorrow.  Well-oiled gears of capitalism quickly speed up, cranking out magic machines and elixirs to give us the bodies we admire in the media.  Gurus across all spiritual and economic planes sell us subscriptions to their wisdom so we too can rake in the six figure incomes while vacationing on our Covid-proof private yachts in the middle of a sparkling Mediterranean.

Each year I am slower and slower to join in the New Year Revolution.  This year is no different.  It’s CERTAINLY not because my svelte twenty-like body doesn’t need some attention.  In fact, after nearly 2 years in the Covid-Free Pub of my own living room, downing beers and “bar food”, my body would appreciate a good detox and a steady regimen of downward dog.

Nor am I late to join the Revolution because of an out-of-control-wildfire art career that I created from nothing but aluminum cans and social media followings.

Nope.  The increased velocity of time itself has opened my eyes to the silliness of the whole shadow play.  We all know we have the ability to change tomorrow every day.  However, I am grateful for the collective will to examine the past in order to forge the future.  Remember those gurus I spoke of earlier?  Well, I am pretty sure they would tell me the first step to change is accountability.  In other words, SHOUT those intentions to the mother-f-ing universe.  So, friends, that is what we have happening here today.

  1. Eat more veggies!
  2. Keep a cleaner garden.
  3. Become more disciplined in my approach to learning.
  4. Learn to create process videos.
  5. Create free downloads for my website subscribers BEFORE March!

Now its your turn.  Hold me to the fire.  If all six of you return a comment, we can break the internet! 🙂  In all seriousness, it makes my day to hear from you.  You can send me your favorite way to eat veggies.  Gardening tips.  Or tell me what my first free download should be-  a printable bookmark? A wallpaper for your phone?  Something else?

And don’t forget to check out Hummingbird Fine Craft in the Pearl District of Tulsa.  Make an afternoon of it.  There is a Cuban cafe next door, a kick-ass vinyl (record) store across the street, and The Church Studio (also across the street) will be opening soon!  So you can shop for locally created crafts and art, grab lunch, and pick out some tunes all in the same outing.

Avocado Green is not for Appliances

Avocado Green is not for Appliances

Sep 15, 2021 | Art, Essay, Garden, Humor, Reflections, Watercolor, watercolor

Do you have a favorite color?  I confess, I do not.  In fact, I am hard-pressed to find a color that I dislike, but that hasn’t always been the case.

In the folly of my youth, I would have quickly denounced yellow and orange as gaudy colors- obnoxious and undesirable.  Avocado green sent shudders up my spine and triggered flashbacks of shag carpet and outdated appliances.

Fortunately, life propels us toward change!  Each day we are blessed with the opportunity to see the world with fresh eyes.  And if we earnestly turn our attentions inward, we will note the fatigue in our very bodies from clenching relentlessly to notions that no longer serve us.

Today my closet proudly harbors multiple yellow items including a pair of pants and sandals that have each found their way into my weekly rotation.  And while I still maintain appliances should not be manufactured in Avocado Green, I am happy to spread it on a canvas, welcome it into my home, and wear it without shame.

Do you have a complicated relationship with color?  Or are you one of those who can readily answer the security prompt- “What’s your favorite color?”  Inquiring minds want to know!

In the Studio

This month I completed my first commissioned watercolor pet portrait.  These two darling kitties are nestled in among the Daylilies.  I have a couple more commissions in the works.

I finished my Okie-themed Christmas card and have sent it off to the printers.  I can’t wait to show it off, very soon!  It features a gold-foil star in the night sky and a silent lone bison.

I have been prepping new cards for the Cedar Ridge Outdoor Market which is this Saturday-  Sept. 18th from 9-2.

 

 

 

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