I am looking forward to tonight!

 

 

As a happy coincidence would have it, this month’s Blog-o-Sphere Think Tank topic is, what are you looking forward to?

Tonight is the opening reception for my first joint artist exhibit, Botanical Expressions at Commonwheel Artists Co-op in Manitou Springs CO. I am most definitely looking forward to tonight!

I’ve shared a bit about my preparations and some of the new works. Here’s another sampling of some of the works that will be on display and available for purchase if any call to you.

 

 

 

The reception runs from 5-8 PM tonight. If you are in the area, I hope you can join us. The exhibit runs through June 13th. A wonderful opportunity to see Chasing & Repoussé art jewelry with beautiful watercolors by fellow artist and friend, Jo Gaston. Great art, great people, great location. A perfect way to spend your Friday night!

Now let’s see what my fellow bloggers are looking forward to:

Andes Cruz
marie bell
Diana Bell

Until next time, I continue to aspire to be more as an artist and a person.

How do I envision my future?

August’s topic for the Blog-o-Sphere Think Tank:  “How do you envision the possibilities for the future?”

My husband and I have been thinking about this with greater focus for the past couple of years. We’ve been doing a lot of research about where we would like to live, because as my husband puts it, “Retirement opens a whole new world of opportunity”. Why not consider relocating?

As I have thought about the future, my future, our future, these are some of my expectations, hopes, wishes, goals and more.

Where ever we choose to live, I want to get up every morning and enjoy some form of exercise. Whether that’s walks with the dogs, workouts in the privacy of our home or refreshing swims. It’s important to me to keep active. It clears my mind, releases those lovely little endorphins and keeps the blood circulating.

I want to be more involved as an artist. Work in my studio every day. Get together with fellow artists. Be part of the local art community. Continue to find new venues for my work. Being creative is essential to how I want to live.

Location, location, location. Where will we live? We’ve been exploring the NW. Washington state has an appeal for all its beauty, proximity to the ocean, mountains, wildlife, hiking, photographic opportunity and artist community. We love living in Colorado. It has much of the same appeal as Washington state does, yet the winters in Colorado can be more cold with more snow. We are still undecided on this topic and fortunately, we still have plenty of time to make decisions.

It’s my opinion that you have to prepare for the future you want. That doesn’t mean that you need to become obsessed with it in terms of the “I’ll be happy when…” syndrome. It just means that there needs to be some awareness of where you want to be and what you want to do as you make decisions in the present. Those present day decisions will have an affect on your future.

I can say I am looking forward to what the future may hold and trust that it will be good.

Let’s see what my fellow bloggers had to say about their anticipated futures:

Andes Cruz
angelojones
Tosca Teran
Diana Bell

Until next time, I continue to aspire to be more as an artist and a person.

Blog-o-Sphere Think Tank ~ What I do just for the sake of doing it!

December’s topic for the Blog-o-Sphere think tank is, what I do just for the sake of doing it.

Listen to music.  I love how music can alter my mood, feed the creative juices and bring relaxation or energy!

My mom wanted me to learn how to play the piano when I was a child.  I took lessons.  I never practiced enough to be good, but one thing I took away from it was an appreciation for classical music and I love, love, love piano.  One of my favorite piano artists is David Benoit.  What a master.

Jazz is probably the genre I listen to the most now.  Artists like Brian Culbertson, David Sandborn, Richard Elliot….well, I could go on with quite the list.  Let’s just say my iTunes library has a great variety of my favorites.

Listening to music is something I do everyday, just for the sake of doing it.

Now lets see what the rest of my fellow bloggers have shared!

Andes Cruz: http://www.andescruz.wordpress.com
Stephanie Clark: http://thethinkingsofacoldweathergirl.blogspot.com/ 

Until next time, aspire to be more as an artist and a person.

“favourite quote(s)?” (and why? if you want to share..)

This month’s Blog-O-Sphere Think Tank question is: ” favourite quote(s)?”  (and why? if you want to share..)

I definitely have one….actually I have several, so here is my short list aka my Top Five.

1. “Well behaved women seldom make history” ~~ Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

I stumbled across this quote a few years ago.  It struck a chord deep in my soul.  I could and probably should write a book about finding oneself and coming into your own.  Let’s leave it at, the Genie has left her bottle and she ain’t ever going back in there.  So when I found this quote, I thought, YES!  Well  behaved women seldom make history.  Joan of Arc, Kate Hepburn, and others come to mind.  If you are going to leave your mark on this world, I’m not so sure being a well-behaved woman/person is going to achieve that.  So it has become one of my signature tag lines for my email and something I live by.

2. “I am not afraid…I was born to do this.” ~~ Joan of Arc

The determination that echos in this quote from Joan of Arc helps reinforce the understanding I have that fear is the worst thing any of us can feel as we approach a daunting task, make a decision, or anything else for that matter.  Do not give fear the power to hold you back.  Know that each of us is born to do something special.  Joan of Arc inspires me with her courage, strength and faith.

3. “Destiny is made known silently” ~~ Agnes De Mille

Thanks to the Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach, I was introduced to this quote early this year.  When I am experiencing self-doubts, I find this quote lifts my spirits and my understanding that my destiny is right there, right in front of me, no matter how quiet it may seem at the time.  I believe in letting my work speak about who I am as an artist, a person.  Yes, I believe destiny is made know silently.  Meditate on that one.

4. “Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life’s coming attractions.” ~~ Albert Einstein

Mr Einstein was a genius; still is in my book.  This quote just makes me smile and feel child like.  Exhilarated, filled with anticipation.  How true is it that we are only limited by our imagination? I agree that our imagination gives us a preview of life’s coming attractions!  It’s one of my alternative email signature tags.

5. “Until next time, aspire to be more as an artist and a person” ~~ Kathleen Krucoff  🙂

Yes, it’s my quote and what I like to use at the end of my blog posts.  I like how positive this sounds and I want to encourage others to Aspire, yes, Aspire to be more as an artist….and also as a person.  Strive to achieve what you aspire to be.  I hope you find it encouraging.

These are my top 5 favorite quotes.  What are some of yours?

Please see what my fellow blog-o-sphere think tank compadres have shared as their favorite quotes:

Andes Cruz: http://www.andescruz.wordpress.com/
Brad Severtson:     http://hammeringoutaliving.blogspot.com/
Wendy Kelly: http://www.wendykianakelly.com/
Mary Spencer:http://www.wattoonline.com/news
Stephanie Clark: http://thethinkingsofacoldweathergirl.blogspot.com/
Barbara Donovan: http://barbaradonovan.blogspot.com/
Laura Flavin: http://www.modernbirdjewelry.blogspot.com/
Beth Cyr: http://bcyrjewelry.blogspot.com/
Thomasin Durgin: http://metalriot.blogspot.com/
Shaun Young: http://shaunyoung.ca/
Kathryn Cole: http://www.kathryncolejewelry.blogspot.com/
Natsuko Hanks: http://jewelrybynatsuko.blogspot.com/

Andrea Bell:  http://feathersfreesiasandfishingtackle.blogspot.com/

And yes, I leave you with: Until next time, aspire to be more as an artist and a person.  🙂  I truly mean it.

2010 in review ~ My Blog Stats

WordPress sent me this information about how my blog did in 2010.  I want to thank everyone of you for stopping by and taking a minute or two….maybe even longer than that to read my posts.  We all love affirmation, thanks so much!  Here is the info WordPress provided…….

The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health:

The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads Wow.

Crunchy numbers

A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 4,600 times in 2010. That’s about 11 full 747s.

In 2010, there were 36 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 68 posts. There were 130 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 7mb. That’s about 3 pictures per week.

The busiest day of the year was October 16th with 131 views. The most popular post that day was 35 Lbs. of Pure Metalsmithing Joy.

Where did they come from?

The top referring sites in 2010 were networkedblogs.com, kathleenkrucoff.com, facebook.com, en.wordpress.com, and twitter.com.

Some visitors came searching, mostly for helen driggs, helen driggs jewelry, broom casting, neytiri’s bow, and broom casting silver.

Attractions in 2010

These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.

1

35 Lbs. of Pure Metalsmithing Joy September 2009
16 comments

2

Broom Casting June 2010
2 comments

3

One of a Kind! February 2010
7 comments

4

The Mastery and Craftsmanship of Gary B Wilson April 2010
6 comments

5

Ready to Bloom January 2010
19 comments