From The Nest

seeds for the garden

Seeds....everything starts with the seeds....these are my garden seeds that I painted as part of the organic garden collection....in each of these seeds is the formula for the perfect flower...if planted correctly, nurtured, watered, fertilized....each one will grow into something unique and beautiful....

seeds....the source of all in the garden is the seed....it is the very essence of life.....plant one of these and watch the garden grow....tended with love from the hand of the gardener.

so, now all we need is sunshine with warm weather so that the soil will warm up and be ready for all these wonderful seeds to be planted .....
sort of like people you know, each one starts from a seed of sorts, is nurtured and fed, needs sunshine and lots of Vitamin D to grow and prosper and some one to take care of them, a gardener of sorts, to make sure that they grow straight and tall, stay healthy and receive plenty of water and extra TLC.

I am waiting....patiently....for the warmness to return to begin this next journey...today was damp and rainy, which is also good for the garden, but it is time to move on to the next season so that the planting can take place.

tomorrow is April 1st...April Fools Day....the first day of April...the month of my birthday ...along with my daughter Amy, my friend Ellen ( whose birthday is the same as Amy's) and 3 of my little munchkins Adam, Ashley Ann and Olivia...so it is always a busy month for gift buying and for gift receiving!

April...the month of birthdays for all the nurtured souls in my garden including me!

MMMM, I wonder what the Captain is going to get me this year...it is always something wonderful....

Happy April!

more later,
Carol

In the garden

Inspiration from the garden...it is springtime here in New England, or trying to be....can the garden be far behind?

Here are some little paintings I have done of the organic items in the garden...the ones that I am hoping to see soon. These are patterns derived from the natural elements in my backyard garden. Please take a look.....the first one is called "Leaves".

This one is "Ferns" tossed around with the yummy combination of lime green, yellow and magenta for a treat.

"Stems" came out of the tulip stems all clumped together when I laid them out on the table...I loved the variations of greens, the thickness and thinness of the stems, the multiple look of all them laid out next to one another just naturally creating a pattern of lines and color....

"Grass"....here is hoping to see some of this really soon...bright and happy...without any snow or mud or strewn branches all over it.

In this pattern called "Swirls", I have taken some of the organic items from the garden and made this design as if the seeds and furrows in the soil made a design when they are all spread together.

Down the preverbal "garden path" but what I really meant by this little pattern is the winding stone path against the softness of the green grass attracted me and made me want to see where it goes...also if it was on fabric, think how cool the pattern would be winding around on a chair.

there are more designs to come and all inspired from my Backyard Garden....

more later,
carol

In the spring, a young man's fancy....

well well well...the sun is shining...the birds are chirping, the tulips are awakening...could it be...you know....spring?

I think so-the smell of springtime is in the air...there is still an East wind, but not nearly as bad as last week, so I am excited to revisit my friends in the garden that will soon be poking their heads up again.

So, in the spring a young man's fancy turns to ......fancy pants....oh sure, you know, all the cool chics are wearing these....hot hot hot!

so, here we are, Easter has come and gone, spring is in the air and I am working on a new Christmas line...go figure...it never fails...we work so far ahead that it is almost always in the wrong season, so we have to be extra creative to think sleigh bells and snow when it is spring tra la la outside.
So put on your fancy pants laugh and dance and enjoy this wonderful weather....the ocean is sparkling and it won't be long before the Captain puts the boat back in the water...summer fun!

enjoy the day,

more later,
carol

Happy Easter

In the center of our Easter table is one of the wonderful Pascal lambs that I get each year in the North End that the bakeries there all make out of marzipan. I put the lamb on top of some bright green paper grass to make it look more like a nest. I love to go in and shop at all the little stores there and buy goodies for the traditional Easter dinner. For some appetizers before the dinner I got some ricotta salada cheese, drunken goat cheese, 2 different kinds of salami, spices and some amazing balsamic vinegar that I will make a vinagarete for later today. I added some of my own treasures to the centerpiece. You will recognize my favorite red and white polka dotted mushrooms and then I put on the hand painted eggs with my girl's names.

The dining room is all set up a few days ahead. I find it easier to get the table set and all the dishes out, planning what I am going to use ahead of time. Working and traveling as much as I do, I am very organized and find it helpful to have that part of the job all done and ready to go.

Looking down at the table you can see the beautiful white lace tablecloth my parents brought to us from Greece one year. It is especially pretty for a springtime table setting I think.

Each place setting has a dinner plate that I designed for Silvestri one year. The center colors on each plate change from yellow to lavender to pink so they are all very spring like, surrounded by daisies along the edge of each plate that are embossed into the chinaware. This plate, as you can see, has the lavender center. Very pretty. I made little paper bunny name tags for each guest and you can see the bun leaning up against the plate. Everyone gets an Easter basket as well and I have strewn jelly beans and pastel Easter eggs all along the table top. The napkins are all different springy colors topped off with a pretty silk flower napkin ring.

On either side of the lamb I made 2 yellow paper nests and place miniature pink hydrangea plants on each one. Flowers are a must for an Easter table and these just look so pretty next to the lamb.

Not to let the kitchen be outdone by the dining room, I have also added some more flowers in here along with bird's nests of course. It seems that everyone likes to congregate in the kitchen anyhow and since I am cooking a roast lamb that weighs over 8 pounds, along with roasted potatoes, squash, asparagus with hollandaise sauce, deviled eggs and all the appetizers, I will need to be in and out checking on the progress so I wanted it to be pretty in there as well.

So, Happy Easter everyone in blog land. Here is a close up of a white paper nest I made with the blue eggs for the kitchen. I hope all of you have a wonderful Easter, enjoy the spirit of the day, rejoice and hallelujah and all that good stuff. The munchkins are coming over for dinner along with the prerequisite Easter egg hunt today so we are happy that it is sunny with blue skies although it is cold. This is very early for Easter, March 23rd, so it is still a bit brisk out. Usually it is in April and much more spring like.

Happy Easter Everyone! Hope that the Bun is good to you!

more later,
carol

Michigan trip

The Captain and I just got back from a visit to see some of our munchkins in Michigan. While we were there we visited the Meijer Botanical Gardens to see the famous Butterflies in Bloom exhibit. It was so amazing. Inside the conservatory it was 80 degrees and it is the largest temporary butterfly exhibit in the country. There are over 40 species of butterflies fluttering all over the place. Just watching all of them dance around and enjoy the nectar is wonderful to see.

The 15,000 square foot conservatory is filled with species from Central and South America and Asia. The flowering plants such as azalea, lilacs, viburnums, phlox, butterfly weed, bee balm, daisys along with other feeding stations give the butterflies plenty to enjoy.

When they arrive from South America or where ever they are from, they come in a chrysalise form, they go to live in the Butterfly Bungalow until they emerge as adults and acclimate to the new environment.

Here are a couple of butterfly gals we saw in the conservatory and I understand that they are from a very rare species found only at the top of the Himalayas....mmm..

This little guy had just landed on this plant and I noticed how much the coloration of the butterfly and the plant leaf were so much alike...nature's way of protecting the little guy from birds and other predators.

The exhibit sign welcoming you to the conservatory and teaching you about which plants to have in your garden to attract the beauties.

This is one of the nectar stations being enjoyed by this little butterfly.

Everywhere you looked there was a beautiful butterfly....orange, blue, green some with patterns of contrasting colors, some big and some small. It was like a party in the sky and on the plants of fluttering colors, waving back and forth, dancing in delight at this wonderful place they get to call home.

This large lacewing butterfly was so close to me I could reach out and touch her. She was so delicate and graceful as she lighted on the edge of the nectar feeding station and sucked in the sweet liquid, fluttering constantly and looking almost like a little fairy.

The Captain's gentle hand extended out to greet a fluttering guest, who actually stayed with him for quite a while. It is considered very good luck to have a butterfly land on you and as I have told you before, the Captain is very sweet.

And of course, the ubiquitous gift shop at the end of the exhibit....Capitalism at it's finest...look at all the butterfly products....mmmm maybe a trend is emerging here...

anyhow, it was a wonderful trip..the munchkins are all darling and fun and it is always good to see them. We did a day of crafting, since their Nana is an artist and was a teacher, and made clay bunnies and chicks and paper designs to decorate the house and we all ended up in our bunny ears for a photo op by the Captain....it was delightful, one of the many joys of being a Nana...having that unconditional love and affection just fill you to the tippy top of your heart from all those eager faces when you walk in and they all scream in delight that you are there to see them. You just can't beat it!

more later,

carol

IF-Garden

Garden...mmm...my mind wanders to those hot summer days when I am out in my garden, picking fresh flowers and enjoying the backyard. I have developed a wonderful perennial garden with flowers that come out now each year so the beds are thick and full, sometimes reseeding themselves again and again.

Although it is sunny out and we have had wonderful sun all winter long, it is still cold, no spring in sight quite yet, even though the snow drops are out now, which I guess is a sign. I have also noticed lots of birds chirping around me so that is another sign.

Won't be long now, just another week or so till the official date.

Always nice to see the change in the seasons and anticipate the next one coming along.

more later,
carol

Gouache Paint Cups

Just a little lesson here in Gouache 101. One of the wonderful things about gouache watercolor paint is that it can be reclaimed. I mix up all the colors that I need to do the job, label the top of each container with the colors mixed, and then snap the lid shut. The paint dries out eventually in the container and then you can simply add water to the dried paint and it comes back to life once again. I have been known to literally scrape the sides of these for color, adding water here and there, to get more of the pigment.

I buy these plastic containers with the lids attached at the New York Central Art Supply store in NYC, but I also think that Dick Blick carries them as well. They come in several sizes that hold 1 or 2 ounces of paint. I have dozens and dozens of these containers in my studio. With the cost of a tube of gouache sometimes being $12 or more, it is important to get every last ounce of use from the paint.

Before 9/11, I would take a shoe box on the airplane when we used to spend a month in Florida, so I could work while I was there. These paint containers would seal up so nicely and I would reinforce them with tape in case of the air pressure change, pack them all into the box, along with some brushes and I was good to go.

Another point here...sometimes on a particular job you may need to go back and make some changes or alterations to your piece. If you keep the key colors you needed in these containers, you have no problem to go back and use the exact color you needed for the initial job you did. Very handy and it keeps them nice in your studio as well, I have mine on a tray all stacked up and ready to go!

So, check it out. Just some helpful tips from the design studio for you.

more later,
carol

One Hot Chick

Just to get you in the upcoming Easter mood with my one hot dancing chick...I mean is she too cute or what?....dancing to say that Easter is on it's way in just a few weeks.

Wahoo!!! It is so sunny here today.... we had a big melt down, the snow is all gone and I noticed that the buds are coming out on my butterfly bush, so can Spring be far behind?

The Captain is on a business trip to Tampa for 3 days and of course I was invited to go along, but decided that I should stay here and finish up some work. I have been there several times before, so decided to be good and get some work done. Last year we went to San Fran for the same Finance Forum trip and we had so much fun. What a great city that is! Anyhow......

I have one of my clients coming over today for a meeting from the consulting side of my business. I do an Art Licensing consulting session for artists who want to learn more about the business end of Art Licensing. It includes a portfolio review, Licensing 101 "How to", marketing, trends, etc. Since I have been running a successful design business now for such a long time, I have a acquired a vast knowledge of all areas of the business, my particular expertise being in the marketing arena.
I have worked with most of the key manufacturers in the US in giftware and home decor and have given seminars in New York and Las Vegas on Art Licensing. I have exhibited my designs at the Surtex show in New York City, the Licensing show in London, England, the CHA show in Las Vegas and served on the Advisory Board for the Surtex Show for over 15 years.
My designs have generated millions of dollars in sales revenue for clients and continue to make people happy. I have over 20 active clients I work with on a fairly regular basis and have just added several more to the roster.

So it seemed to me to be a logical addition to my biz to add in the consulting, since I get so many calls and requests for information all the time from other artists. If you would like additional info on pricing for my services, please just email me directly.

So, I am here working on my new Christmas collection with Spring peeking over my shoulder. Ah, the life of a designer......

So happy day, enjoy this prelude to Spring because that means that summer is not far behind!
more later,
Carol

Sneak Peak....

It's done...I finished and it is on it's way to China...the "Harvest Moon" collection is off and running...after weeks of product development, sketches, color samples,measurements and adjustments, the designs I created are finally being sent to the vendor for sampling.

Think the Fall season's change of colors, the falling leaves, the Harvest moon, pumpkins, that wonderful season after summer where the air is crisp and clean. "Harvest Moon" is all of that and lots more....

If all goes well with the manufacturing process, the collection will be introduced in Atlanta at the next big gift show in July. I will be there for the launch doing a "meet and greet" and signing a special piece that I designed for a give-a-way for customers. So something to keep in mind.

It is very exciting. This is a home and garden group with everything from birdhouses to candlesticks to garden signs and votive candle holders. Over 43 items in this group alone.

I will give out more information about the collection as we get closer to July. For now, just a sneak peak at some of the designing and product development that I do here in the studio that very soon will be on the store shelves by early fall.

more later,
carol