A Lemon and Liszt For The Florist: Daily Art Practice
Couch Talk
I had a relatively productive week and I am settling into a routine. It’s almost fun to get up and start the day. I love planning my own schedule and I make a list daily and a master list weekly. 8 hours flies by while I am busy and I still have so much yet to accomplish. Maybe by the end of the school year?
For those of you that stay home, do you find it difficult to accomplish your daily tasks?
Book Corner
I have read some GREAT books recently that I would love to share.
Paint Yourself Calm: Colourful, Creative Mindfulness Through Watercolour is a book filled with easy watercolor exercises that not only gets you used to how watercolor flows but helps one enjoy creating, without the stress of producing perfect artwork.
If you have ever watched You Got Mail, you will remember that the main character sits in the bookshop, crying as she talks about the Shoe series by Noah Streatfield. I have wanted to read them since then. I read Ballet Shoes (The Shoe Books) this summer and LOVED it.
Pages & Co.: The Bookwanderers is juvenile fiction but is such a great series. I am still working through the series but both books that I have read were fantastic. It is about a young girl that can travel into books and interact with book characters. SO fun!!
Winterhouse is a series about a young girl who loves solving puzzles and spends time in the large library of Winterhouse trying to solve the mystery of the house. This book was surprisingly enjoyable and I plan on reading the rest of the series.
The illustrations in Mary Blair’s Unique Flair are beautiful! This is a favorite in our house and I plan on buying our own copy. If you don’t know, Mary Blair is the illustrator of Disney’s Peter Pan, Dumbo and Alice in Wonderland. This book tells her story but in vibrant, colorful illustrations.
The Liszts is a book about the Liszts family that makes lists. I originally got this book out for myself but my daughter ended up liking it as well, which was surprising due to the interesting writing style.
PaperArtsy Post
I am over at the PaperArtsy blog, sharing my take on “Twinkle Twinkle.” I created a textured art journal layout in neutral colors. Have a look HERE.
Watercolor Shopfronts
My shopfront this week is the Jungalore Florist in Singapore. It is a beautiful building that sells beautiful plants!
In case you are interested, here is the first step in my painting. I sketch with pencil and then go over it with a Sakura Pigma Micron Card Ink Pen. The ink is permanent so the water won’t cause smearing.
I used Kuretake GANSAI TAMBI Watercolors to paint this shopfront.
Items Used:
Tea Day
It’s Tea Day and I am joining the T ladies, hosted by Elizabeth and Bleubeard. My tea today, Organic Positively Tea Company, Green Dragon Lemonade, Green Tea, is on my wish list. I am thinking of purchasing this with my next tea order. Does this sound interesting to you? I am not sure what I think about the “lemonade.” I like lemon in sweets but that is not the same as straight up lemon in tea. It has been a while since I tried a new tea so I am thinking I will give it a go.
Happy Tea Day,
Kate
I was home for over 17 years…I was a big list maker. I still am. It helps to have those items to check off. It’s also ok to give yourself some “off” time.
I love your creative endeavors this week, I’ve also been enjoying them on Instagram.
Nice selection of kids and YA fiction. It’s nice that your daughter shared it with you.
best… mae at maefood.blogspot.com
No, I don’t have trouble staying with my planned day, but I do leave it open if something else comes up. I love your art so much. You have a definite style that is lovely. Have a great day.
It always takes time to make adjustments, but it sounds like you have gotten a good way there. . I’m home now that I retired, and I don’t seem to get everything done. Some days it is just good not to do anything, although I must admit that doesn’t happen often. I do what is calling me, because there is always tomorrow to do something that it’s as important to get done then. Those books look interesting. . And that is another great storefront. I love the style of those buildings you pick to draw. Hope you have a super T day and a productive week. Hugs-Erika
You have a lot going on in your life now that you are on your own for 8 hrs a day. I find a routine is best and I try to create something every day. I know you paint every day and I really admire that,
Your books sound good, I like the Liszts, too. And I’ve never heard of Mary Blair before, but that was a great looking book. I’ve never seen You’ve Got Mail, so I have no reference to those books, However, several sounded good. I read so slowly, it would take me six months to read all those you read.
Your tea sounds good. I love lemonade, so I would love to try that tea. Thanks for sharing your books, your watercolor paintings, your Paper Artsy tutorial, and your tea you hope to buy with us for T this almost Tuesday, Kate,
That´s a lot of reading. Thank you, I added the Ink Pen to my bookmarks, great idea using this.
Also thank you for the tip with the green tea at Mae´s blog!! I hate bitter tea, problem solved now 🙂
Have a nice T-day!
Hi Kate, looks like you had a great week, with lots of reading and painting, that#s fantastic. Lately I don’t get much done at home I need a rest after I do anything and then the day is finished. But I do read a lot, and that#s good! Happy T Day, hugs, Valerie
Kate, a lovely T-day post! I want to try that tea too(love the name) and read all those books! I plan to try and find the Bookwanders for sure.
Your art journal pages are so full of yummy layers, and I love your Florist watercolor. Soothing sn pretty!
I always have a hard time fitting in all I want to do – whether a work day or a weekend day. I think that is true of anyone who loves to create or read – and harder if you love both.
I must admit that I make a morning a week to do a thorough clean and other days after our walk and shopping I do some small jobs but when I’m mid project I really begrudge the time to do mundane chores!
Lots of reading painting, I have months when I read non stop and then nothing , it just needs a good book to get me in reading mode again.
Have a lovely T Day
Jan
I remember those days at home, however, I homeschooled the girls, so that took up a significant amount of time. Working 40 hours a week now, when I do have a day off, it is filled with house cleaning and errands. Maybe someday I’ll get to make my own schedule, lol- right now, my job as a Project Coordinator calls me to make schedules for everyone else, lol!
I LOVE the movie “You’ve Got Mail!” Have you seen the Jimmy Stewart version called “Shop Around the Corner” or the Judy Garland version “In the Good Old Summertime?” Those are enjoyable as well.
The books you recommend sound wonderful, and I hope to read them someday. Currently, my grandkids are fairly young and can only sit so long as in “Green Eggs and Ham” level, lol!
Love your Watercolor paintings!
I like to make lists too so often accomplish things ahead of schedule …lol 😉. That looks like a great selection of books and I’d love to try that tea, sounds delicious! Wishing you a Happy T Day! Hugs Jo x
I stay home but don’t have daily tasks or lists. I love being flexible. When something comes up I do it, but otherwise I’m unstructured. My daughter had several books by Streatfield when she was a child. She loved them!
Happy T Tuesday
Good morning Kate, enjoyed your book list, I always love seeing your art too. I have been retired for around 20 years now and love it-we don’t get anywhere, but we always keep busy with house projects, and me my arts and crafts and lots of reading.
Happy T kathy
I will have to check out those books. I was just talking to my daughter about ‘the shoe books”. They loved them growing up. Some good suggestions for gifts. Love your watercolors. I just started a watercolor class at my local hs, adult Ed. Just looking for fun, no masterpiece required!
Your artwork continues to amaze me. Thanks for the information about the books. That one series sounds interesting to me. Kate, you commented on my blog about not knowing about Yoder sausage. I just wanted to clarify that the sausage is made in Yoder Kansas, which is an Amish community, not a brand name.
Happy T Day!
Aren’t the Gansai Tambi watercolors awesome? As to staying home and getting everyday tasks done. I found time management difficult taking care of my girlies and later my parents. Now semi-retired, I still have some problems with time management. I’d rather do art or play on the computer than chores. I found I do better if I just do one chore type thing per day like clean the bathroom, or dust and tidy the bedroom. I have the chores on coin envelopes in a small box and I choose one per day. Himself now does the dishes so that’s a big help. The chores cycle through 2 weeks. I don’t feel like I’m spending my whole time cleaning and the house stays picked up enough in case company drops by which doesn’t happen often. Happy T Day
I am a list maker. I have a school diary (a week on two pages) and I plan my day the evening before. But if anything crops up, I just move that item to the next day.
Thanks for the book review. I have not heard of any of them. I often read YA books. How lovely that your daughter also loved that last book.
Mmm, your tea looks interesting. I can imagine you are not sure about the lemonade in this tea, but you’d have to try it I suppose, or you’ll never know. Let us know what the verdict is.
I’m sorry to be late again, but as I’ve mentioned before, we are not home on a Tuesday and I can’t get to my computer.
Happy belated T-Day,
Hugs,
Lisca
About the kombucha: Yes, I do make it fizzy by doing a second fermentation with raspberries. The explosion is due to the bad quality of the bottle. I have to buy my bottles at the Chinese dollar store. The quality is not constant. Some are fine, but every now and then I have a bottle that can’t take the pressure, and it explodes. It’s just one of those things…
During the years I stayed home parts of my days had a certain routine like exercise and the typical household chores. Gardening always has occupied a big chunk of my time. Now I am home again, but am still teaching on Saturdays and have my Etsy shop, so a lot of time is spent on those. I don’t make lists (except my weekly shopping list), but I have a clear plan what I want to accomplish each day. There is always enough time to improvise and be flexible.
Oh I love the Shoe books, and I do remember that scene from You’ve Got Mail. The Paint Yourself Calm book looks interesting too, I might check that one out. Happy T Day! Elle/EOTC xx