Quick Update: Christmas Bouquet

Christmas Bouquet - pan pastel & colored pencil - 10"x 17" un-matted - Pat Dolan

Meanwhile, I've gotten in the Christmas spirit and brought out a few holiday decorations. With Frank unable to help with a tree or decorating this year, we're just having a few of our traditional items out. Here's a peak at our home as we prepared for the holidays.

Can you tell I'm just a little bit German???! Lots of wood carved ornaments made in Germany.

May you and your loved one enjoy this wonderful season of peace and joy!

Time for a NEW Adventure! Pan Pastels!

Here we have the Pan Pastel Portrait set along with 3 other colors - plus what they look like on Canson MiTense drab gray paper. I've a portrait to complete within a month, and want to use pastels to capture the serenity as well as the lively spirited individual. This medium, combined with stick pastels and/or colored pencils, may be perfect for the task!

Of course, now I must learn how to handle a new medium... and figure out what kind of paper surface is best to work on to bring forth the portrait in the best possible way. Nothing like a challenge - especially at a busy time of year!!!

Meanwhile, I stopped by the Bellefonte Art Museum and photographed one of the several delightfully decorated trees gracing their exterior window display. I especially love the naturally decorated one - and would love to move it right into my living room for the foreseeable future! I do have lots of feathers, milk weed pods, etc., but not enough to decorate a large tree! So I'm enjoying this one and sharing it here for others to delight it!

May your holiday season be one of joy and appreciation of all that is.

Merry Christmas to All!

Wishing you all a wonderful Christmas full of love, joy, friends and family! From my house to yours, Merry Christmas!

It's Christmas Time in the Country!

So much to catch up on, but I'm in the Christmas Spirit, so the art updates will just have to wait! Did a little decorating today - we've chosen to have a tiny "Feather Tree" as our only tree this year, but it has some of our favorite German ornaments that I've been collecting since 1965. The tree is not quite 26" tall, but she can hold a wealth of memories on her spindly branches. Of course, it's not really made of feathers, but the branches have feathery greens so I guess that's why they named them feather trees. They, too, originated in Germany in the late 19th century (according to Wikipedia).

The little fellow above is similar to the very first ornaments I purchased on a trip to Europe following my college graduation. We always called them the "blah blah boys" because they stick out their tongues when you push the button on the cap. I believe in Germany they were called the Naughty Boys, which seems fitting, as well! I tried finding them on-line to replenish our supply a year or two ago, but no such luck. But we still have a few in good condition, as seen above. Our son and daughter each have at least one or two on their trees, as well. The paint may be missing from them here and there, but the naughty boy can still stick out his tongue on all of them!

Nearly all the German ornaments are made of wood, often with felt, sometimes with curled wood shavings, usually painted. I love them all! I know my father's family never had anything like these ornaments, despite being from the Burgenland region of Austria/Germany/Hungary (depending upon which year we're discussing). But I've always been drawn to German wood carvings, sculptures, and, of course, ornaments!

Above and below, the little wrapped presents under the tree are made from scraps from my quilting fabrics, plus ribbons, threads, bells, yarn, jewelry bits, etc. There are a few ornaments on the tree too, that are made of rolled bits of fabric, tied with yarns & embellished.

Above, the ornaments from our Maine vacations over the years - happy memories of Green Lake and Acadia Park.

Christmas is the time for families, memories, traditions, and so much more. I hope you are creating and maintaining those traditions for your loved ones that have meaning and joy.

Happy New Year!

Our Christmas photo from a few years ago, when Spunky was just a pup!

Our New Year begins with Christmas Eve & Christmas, followed by our wedding anniversary, our grandson's birthday, New Year's Eve, the New Year & finally, my husband's birthday. After all that celebrating, it was time to remove the Christmas decor and return to a simpler style. So during the twins nap time yesterday, the ornaments were removed, the lights taken down, the celebratory items that had been scattered around the house all were rounded up and put away in appropriate boxes.

I'm always saddest when I remove the Christmas music from the current style electrical player and put it away for another year. Christmas music, of all the different genres, brings back so many memories - most of which are very good. In high school, I was a member of Freshman Choristers & then the celebrated St. Joseph's Academy Glee Club. Each year we sang the Messiah in the school auditorium, and we sang with many other singing groups at the St. Paul, MN Auditorium annual Christmas concert. Our family loved music and music was always a large part of our holiday celebrations. Dad played the concertina/accordian and everyone sang along.

Or mom played the old upright piano while everyone sang along.

Above is the family Christmas Angel tree topper - in the family for as long as I can remember! Below, our Christmas Village, which began in 1937, the year our parents married. I have a larger version of the village now - but rarely set it up, since it's SO large, takes So much time to set up (& pack away) and we now have 17+ month old twins in our home!

The village church, which I've since donated to my younger sister's village collection.

This is a shot of my village - just the open fence in the front. Can't find the full photo of the whole village, complete with ice rink, skiing mountain, singers, trees, etc. all in the 1940-50's vintage, with a few newer items

And a quick shot of our 2013 Christmas tree, the smallest tree ever for our family! The twins are primarily responsible for the size of the tree, and just maybe our aging bodies!!!

And every January 6th or so, Feast of the Epiphany, our holiday decorations disappeared to the attic for 11 long months only to return, bit by bit, at the beginning of Advent. So, too, this year, our decorations have disappeared into the closet, our little tree graduated to the front porch, the vacuum has absorbed most of the pine needles, and all is well on Mayberry Lane.

Wishing you and yours a very Happy & Healthy New Year, 2014!