Who spends their days trying to save Lizzie’s? I do. Sad but true. I find them fascinating, so does Charlie, but in an entirely different manor. He loves the way they dart around. They’re everywhere, and he will stick his nose deep into dirt to find them.
Lovely.
This one likes my chair 😳, but only when it’s in the sun. Move over Lizzie!
Catch you back here tomorrow!
We ran to Costco last weekend, as we walked in we spotted this sign.
Do you see these prices? WOW! We pay so much more than that this is hard to believe! A (regular) gas grill propane tank is 20#. So the max cost would be $7.49 (+ tax). If you took it in to have it filled and it wasn’t quite empty it would be even cheaper!
We pay more than twice that right now!
Tanks are not refilled inside the store, so do not take your empty propane cylinder into the store. The Charleston store refills propane near the Tire department (I think that’s what I read). Definitely not inside the store (for obvious reasons).
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Over the next several weeks I’m going to post some our paintings, let’s see who can name the artist! I love the simpleness of this painting. How the artist edited just enough to keep it interesting without adding every distracting detail. Nice work!
Update…
Thank you to Billy Boynton for guessing the artists name: DANIEL COREY!
Dan has some amazing work, be sure to check out his Facebook page DANIEL COREY PAINTINGS (he has a fabulous sale going on right now, don’t miss out!) –
Also be sure to check out Dan’s blog LIFE FROM PAINT, always amusing and informative, his latest post talks about the fire in his apartment building, and the reason for the painting sale… our thoughts are with you Dan!
Dan also has some nice paintings at the Lupine Gallery (a favorite) and Art Collector Maine, so be sure to check them out!
Catch you back here tomorrow!
This is the Pemberton house plan by Karoleena. This plan is 1,300 square feet with 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. This is a stunning modern take on farmhouse living. The impressive number of windows brings the outside in no matter where you are! Classy design, as always, by Karoleena.
This house plan has the master bedroom/bathroom located on far left with wonderful closet space. Across the front you’ll see the Kitchen/Dining/Living, so well thought out. Located behind the main living space is another Bedroom, Bathroom and and another Bedroom on the far right. Joining the main home to the Garage and to the separate Media Room is an Entry space, which is where the washer and dryer are located. Very smart indeed! The Media room, the way it juts out a bit adds such interest to this plan. Making it a hideaway that is nearby and enjoys the scenic view, just like the rest of this fine home.
Be sure to check out their website: “Karoleena is a custom home builder specializing in designer prefab homes. Our modern homes are built in beautiful British Columbia and delivered anywhere.” Not familiar with their manufacturing process? Be sure to check it out, it’s very impressive!
All images via Karoleena.com, used with permission…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Leslie Belloso. Unique paintings. Interesting subject matter that catches your attention. Studio, above, is a fabulous, albeit, not typical, glance into a studio space. Fabulous green on the wall, love the floors with those subtle color changes depicting light. So nice!
How fabulous is this?? Two Fish, with that fabulous orange and the wonderful foreground and background colors… DYNAMITE!
Click to read Leslie’s Bio and be sure to check out her website:
All images via LeslieBelloso.com, used with permission…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
One of my favorite things in the world… AVOCADO TOAST! (Pictured above with red pepper flakes – YUM!)
There are so many renditions of avocado toast, each as wonderful as the next, but a few of my favorites are the avocado toast from The Daily in Charleston, SC – Last summer it had a slice of an AH-mazing heirloom tomato on top of the avocado- WOW! Lately it’s been avocado on grilled crusty bread with za’atar spices (OH MY GOSH!) and a drizzle of olive oil.
I had some good crusty bread from the bakery and thought I would give it a whirl. I didn’t have the Za’atar spices (will buy for next time, they sell them at The Daily), so I toasted the bread (I didn’t grill), then spread avocado, a drizzle of olive oil and S&P. I took a bite, hmmm, good but missing something, so I sliced a small lemon wedge, gave a little drizzle. BINGO! That was all it needed to brighten the flavor and take it from good to GREAT in a second or two!
Soooo good with or without the red pepper flakes! What’s your favorite rendition? Do you like the avocados smushed (YES!) or simply sliced (I think they slide off the toast like this, but it’s pretty!)
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Renee Emanuel. Wonderful paintings. I am enthralled by her still life paintings. I love this tablescape. This painting would brighten up any wall, wouldn’t it?
I think the looseness in this painting is so wonderful, the perfection of the shadows, wonderful colors in the bouquet and the great lime colors of the leaves. Not to mention a beautiful view out of the window!
Read Renee’s Bio and be sure to check out her website:
Renée Emanuel, a native of Northeast Pennsylvania, graduated summa cum laude from Marywood University with an MFA in Painting. She creates colorful paintings in acrylic, watercolor and casein that celebrate her strong connection to the land and the still life objects that evoke an interior landscape.
She also loves to share her passion for painting with her students. For the past six years, she shared a director position at ArtWorks Gallery and Studio in Scranton PA with her husband and fellow artist Bill Teitsworth. They both have been inspired by the ArtWorks special artists who they mentored in watercolor and acrylics. Currently, she co-teaches plein-air workshops with Bill in Pennsylvania and in Rockland, Maine. They’re planning to offer more opportunities this coming year at their studio in Moscow. Additional information with Bill on their classes and on her work can be found online at www.etstudioart.com. (Click HERE to read the Bio on Renee’s website in full)!
If you’re in the Pennsylvania area be sure to check out Renee’s work at the Misericordia Unviersity – The Pauley Friedman Art Gallery through April 23, 2016!
A GOLDEN MOMENT
So the darkness shall be the light, and the stillness the dancing.
T. S. Eliot
Whether it’s the tapestry of the natural world that calls her, or the beautiful patterns and relationships in her still life, Renée believes that painting can be a meditative state, opening up to both observed reality and her inner landscape. She feels that the image that is created from a point of stillness is transformed by that experience into something new. Paintings for her remain in flux and are characterized by the addition of objects, patterns and aspects of nature that sometimes appear in her work without premeditation on her part. A certain synchronicity seems to happen and the right combination of “stuff” comes together to express something that she often finds surprising. The artist echoes the words of the painter Grace Hartigan, “I cannot expect even my own art to provide all of the answers –– only to hope it keeps asking the right questions.”
This exhibit is a survey of still life done over the course of the past 16 years with an emphasis on more recent work. Selections of cherished objects sometimes make repeated appearances and claim a kinship with the natural world she explores in her landscape painting. The promise and perfection of eggs, birds, feathers and shells evoke her love of nature. She’s becoming more and more interesting in bringing the outside in and the inside out, and in marrying still life and the landscape. She painted still life on the rocks at Lucia Beach in Maine and feels it’s a direction she’ll continue to pursue.
About her work she says, “It’s a great blessing in my life. It’s helped me to face cancer last year. I want to explore things that are essential, elemental and magical through my work. It feeds the soul… It’s what keeps me painting, still!
Pretty cool that Renee shares her studio with her husband, Bill Teitsworth (hence the website ETStudioArt.com)!
All images via ETStudioArt.com, used with permission…
Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.
Catch you back here tomorrow!
When Charlie came into our lives he didn’t have “big” hair. They said it would get fuzzy in time, boy were they ever right! Look at the difference!
When this dog gets a bath you see how he’s not so big, but with all this hair he sure looks big! I wish I had his curls, ha ha. It’s fun looking back through old photos.
Enjoy your Sunday and I’ll catch you back here tomorrow!
Such a pretty photo of the sunlight beating down on the Easter Lily!
Do you still have an Easter Lily and aren’t quite sure what to do with it? We always plant them outside (Zone 9 – Charleston, SC). They appear each year so beautifully. This time I moved the plant outside and cut the flowers and put them in a glass jar. They were beautiful for 4-5 days. When I Googled it, the directions said to keep about 1/2 of the plant, so I couldn’t put it in a tall vase, which was fine. When I have cut lilies, I do remove the stamen (see inside of lily where there is yellow, I just snip them off).
I will put the plant into the ground and see what happens next year! The lilies from years past mulitply!
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Update: This wonderful painting is by artist Geer Morton. What a guy. Nicest guy ever and his paintings… pure magic! If you get a chance be sure to check out his website! We bought this painting at Wiscasset Bay Gallery, they have a nice selection of his work!
Over the next several weeks I’m going to post some our paintings, let’s see who knows WHO the artist is!
Stunning in every way, I treasure this painting by…. OOPS, I can’t tell you until tomorrow!. (I have removed the artist’s signature on this image). The abstractness is so wonderful.
Can you guess who’s work this is?
Comment on this blog with the answer or on the ART FOOD HOME or Barbara Stroud Facebook page.
I will post the name of the artist tomorrow, underneath the image…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Images are not for reproduction, they are property of the artist.
Meet the 25 Bay Portsmouth Lane plan by Our Town Plans. Magnificent! This plan is 3,370 square feet, with 3 bedrooms and 3.5 bathrooms. The nice thing about this plan is that you have options for additional space. There is an optional Guest Suite (433 square feet) and an optional Attic Suite (680 square feet) available. Nice! The plan below shows the optional Guest Suite, check their website for the optional Attic Suite. Wow! The side porches both up and down make this house irresistible!
What a perfect house for entertaining. There is so much living space downstairs. From the wonderful porch, to the Great Room. Then the Dining, Kitchen (with a pantry!) and Keeping room – what more could you ask for?
What a Master Bedroom! With access to the wonderful upstairs porch. Two additional Bedrooms, each with Bathrooms, along with Washer/Dryer space – no running up and down the stairs with laundry. The Optional Guest Suite is located above the garage, what a wonderful space that is! Be sure to check out Our Town Plans website for more details including descriptions of features and images!
All images via OurTownPlans.com, used with permission…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Elise Schweitzer. Wow. Elise paints with joie de vivre! Her paintings are fresh and lively. This apple tree painted against a strong blue sky is mesmerizing. Everything about her paintings from the composition to the fabulous colors just makes each and every painting STUNNING!
Elise paints a story. Her skydiver series is remarkable. Different landings, each unique. Just look at how much is going on in this painting. I could look at it all day. Oh the stories I could come up with! Great movement from each and every person. I am blown away!
There was a fabulous interview done by Painting Perceptions with Elise in 2013. Click HERE to read it! Fabulous!
Read a bit about Elise, and by all means, check out her website:
Elise Schweitzer is an Assistant Professor of Art at Hollins University. She received her MFA in Painting at Indiana University Bloomington in 2009 and her BFA from University of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia in 2006.
In her exuberantly large paintings people instigate or react to actual and metaphorical upheaval. “Parachute Suite,” her most recent complete body of work, depicts a moment of crisis when a skydiver crash-lands in a contemporary backyard. The action plays out through multiple canvases, showing the moments before, during and after the crash. A woman rushes to help, and a man searches the sky. Other characters bundle away the parachute or attempt to fill it with air. People react with frivolity, concern or irritation, and like a Jungian dream, all the characters are forms of self-reflection.
Images and Bio via EASchweitzer.com, used with permission…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
I could eat this Every. Single. Day. I always keep baby arugula in the fridge, I love it in omelets, on sandwiches, pizza and all by itself!
This looks very decadent, but these pieces of bread are small (wonderful bread from a local bakery. Very rustic, bread with substance).
I lightly toast the bread first, then add some grated sharp cheddar, put it on a baking pan and put it under the broiler for just a minute or two (HAVE TO WATCH IT – Don’t walk away!) Once the cheese starts to bubble, pull it out, cut it in half and put a heaping bunch of arugula dressed in olive oil & balsamic (you can even add to the dressing a tiny bit of honey, but not much). Then eat the rest of the arugula on the side.
This is a FABULOUS LUNCH!
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Paul’s paintings go above and beyond. They have light that is incredible. I love his nocturnes, even in the dark his paintings have light! Paul’s sky shows those beautiful stars twinkling down upon us. THAT LIGHT in the distance… OH! Fabulous! A little touch of something unexpected!
Paul can paint absolutely anything. This painting In Hope of Spring has won a few awards. Here is some information (from Paul’s website) regarding this painting:
“I saw Carolyn, an employee at a local arts council, wearing
the fur hat, scarf, and coat, with the vibrant, complementary colors.
I felt compelled to paint her. The scarf required about 24 colors
of paint. This painting is the first one I painted as a smaller
study for pose and background. I wanted something different
for the larger painting Winter Solstice. I liked this painting too,
so I went back and finished it.”
This painting has won:
First Place, TRAC2015 Online Art Competition, Fifth Round
The Representational Art Conference
Second Place Overall, Dec 2015 / Jan 2016
Plein Air Salon competition
Read a bit about Paul, from his website:
Paul Keysar is known for his classic, representational oil paintings and drawings of landscapes, still lifes, and portraits. He has received numerous awards for his work, including, a 2014 Certificate of Excellence and 2015 Honorable Mention from the Portrait Society of America, Best in Show in the Richeson75 Figure/Portrait 2014 Competition, First Place in The Representational Art Conference 2015 competition, Honorable Mention in the Artistic Excellence 2015 Competition from Southwest Art Magazine, 2nd Place Overall in the Dec 2015/Jan 2016 Plein Air Salon, and finalist in the figure/portrait category of The Artist’s Magazine‘s 2014 Annual Competition. His painting, Jacob in Winter, was featured as the cover of Southwest Art Magazine‘s December 2015 issue.
He has a passion for the land and is intrigued with the interaction of man and nature. “As an artist, I am continually observing life around me. I am fascinated by the effects of light, atmosphere, and weather. The figures I am currently working on reflect a moment of stillness and thought—a reflection on the subject’s place in time and their hope for a better future.”
Keysar started his formal art training at the age of fourteen with lessons at The Art League in Alexandria, Virginia. In 2000, he completed four years of fine arts education at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia. In addition, his training included a year of study from 1997–1998 under nationally-known portrait and landscape artist Carolyn Egeli of Valley Lee, Maryland. He has also studied the figure with Robert Liberace and Dan Thompson.
Keysar’s greatest artistic influences have been the art of Homer, Eakins, and the Barbizon School, along with the contemporary work of Randall Exon, David Graeme Baker, and many others. He has participated in numerous solo and group shows, and his work is owned by collectors throughout the country. He is available to give demonstrations and lectures and serve as judge/juror for art competitions. Keysar offers private art lessons, classes, and workshops for beginner through advanced students in drawing and painting. He accepts portrait, landscape, and still life drawing and painting commission requests. Keysar currently resides in Charlotte, North Carolina, with his wife and children, and maintains a studio at ClearWater Artist Studios, in Concord, NC.
All images via PaulKeysar.com, used with permission…
Catch you back here tomorrow!
Charlie and I headed out for a quick walk a few weeks ago and came upon this in a neighbor’s yard. So inviting, the two chairs posed for conversation by whoever happened upon them. The azaleas blooming wildly in the background and this wonderful morning sun. Just beautiful! The leaves are falling at an alarming rate (as you can see), but it all adds to the beauty of the scene.
Take some time to enjoy the day! Catch you back here tomorrow!
ARTFOODHOME.COM 