Location. Location. Location. It’s so important when you’re buying a house or looking for a place to rent. I love the area we live in. We don’t live on the marsh but we do live near it. There are several daily walking routes that I take, each seems to pass a marsh or two. The views are always spectacular! So peaceful and ever-changing! Enjoy your weekend!
Island Inn. Monhegan Island. Maine. Vacation. Heaven! Wow, back in 2009 my mom and dad, Fred and I rented a cottage in Port Clyde, then we came to Monhegan for a few nights. What a dream! My dad had recently had knee surgery, so those of you who have been to the island know what a challenge that can be. Right as you step off the boat you have a rather steep hill to climb. He did it, no problem. (Dad, you were a sport. You had to pass on the hike through Cathedral Woods, but you stayed mighty busy. I’ve told you all about a sketch book that he surprised me with. Full of fabulous ink/watercolor sketches of our time on Monhegan and a few other things. I cherish that book!
Joe Fidler – Monhegan Island
The island is such a fabulous place to just be… to do what you want to do… you see all kinds of people, lots of artists and bird watchers. You meet the most interesting people and life long friends on the island.
Sheila Fidler hiking on Monhegan…
This is the day we went hiking. Mom found a great walking stick… part way through Cathedral Woods she said, whew! That’s far enough… Noooo Mom!! You have to see the “reward”… the peacefulness of Cathedral Woods cannot be matched anywhere in my opinion. But when you get through that trail to Squeaker Cove your jaw drops. Wow! Mom was thrilled that she went the entire way! The beauty is breathtaking!
A pretty cool house for a coastal area, don’t you agree? This plan is on a raised foundation, which you need in this area. Note the french doors that lead to both the living and dining rooms. This is the perfect house for those of you looking for something on the smaller side. This house is approximately 1420 square feet of heated living space. I think it would look nice with wood chip shingles on the exterior and a metal roof… or all white horizontal wood with a metal roof… striking either way. You can search the website HOUZZ.COM for interior shots of some of examples of this plan that were built. I think this house plan would look equally as good on a crawl space if an raised foundation wasn’t necessary! This is Southern Living Plan SL-297/Allison Ramsey Plan C0059
I think I would consider screening the entire porch instead of just the side… only because then the french doors could be opened in the living/dining areas to let fresh air in minus the irritating mosquitoes that hunt me down everywhere I go!
I’m not the best at interpreting house plans. From the looks of this it seems that your view into the living room is somewhat obstructed. I would give up the washer and dryer being in that location in order to extend the kitchen a wee bit providing me a clear site line to the living room… I would move the washer and dryer to the master bathroom. We don’t need a tub, so it would easily fit… I would also be willing to give up a sink. It’s mighty handy having our washer and dryer in our master bathroom.
For many of the interior doors I think some nice pocket doors or, BARN DOORS, if they would work. I love barn doors in a house! The kind that slide back and forth! This plan packs a lot of punch into not a lot of square feet. Efficient as always, Allison Ramsey Architects have done it again!
Meet Dean Buhler’s dog, Gustovio! Dean captured this dog so perfectly. These are such elegant animals, and you can see that in this painting. What a fabulous background! The very realistic dog against the abstract background … love it! The colors in the wall really makes Gustavio stand out! Take a minute to look through Dean’s website. Breathtaking paintings, one after another. Whoa! This painting by Dean was one of the finalists in Southwest Art magazine’s “Artistic Excellence Competition” – Very nice!
Sun Worshipper by Dean Buhler [sold]“I first drew my dog, Gustavio – on my website, the drawing is called Sun Worshipper. It took 1st place in the drawing/pastel category in the Scottsdale Artist School’s Best & Brightest Competition, 2013” says Dean. A pretty remarkable drawing, and such an impressive painting!
Awaiting the Crown of Laurels by Dean Buhler
Dean can paint anything, his people are quite amazing! Just look at how exquisite this painting is! How realistic this woman looks… and that FABULOUS background! This painting is available at the Blue River Fine Art Gallery.
Here’s a little blip about Dean from his website, take a minute to check it out for yourself!
Dean Buhler is an artist who creates colorful and impressionistic portraits and figures. His favored media are oils, charcoal, and graphite. He enjoyed a multitude of educational and professional experiences that he draws upon in depicting different subjects.
Are you looking for a quick appetizer? An easy to throw together, yet super special concoction of all things good? Well, I was searching for the same thing a while back, and low and behold, Pioneer Woman (a wonderful blog, I highly recommend it!) posted this recipe… Don’t tell anyone, but once in a while we have this for dinner ;) it’s beans… pure health food I’m telling you! I don’t add any salt because there is salt on the chips (and next time we’re buying the blue chips with no salt)… Here goes… If you haven’t heard of Pioneer Woman (whaaat?) Ree Drummond, she has a cooking show on Food Network, she’s got books, you name it… pure entertainment at its finest!
Drain and partially mash the black-eyed peas… You don’t have to mash them to death, some chunks are good. Texture. Is. Good!
Add in everything else… the salsa, sour cream, onion, and jalepeno’s!
Don’t forget the cheese! Add it to everything else and stir it around.
Then spread it into a baking dish (I use a ceramic tart pan), and bake at 350 degrees F for 20-30 minutes or until its nice and hot and bubbly.
Serve with tortilla chips!
AND… if you’re in the mood for a good book that will make you laugh, her book “Black Heels to Tractor Wheels: A Love Story” is wildly entertaining… her real life story about how she met her husband, Marlborough Man… hee hee…
Artist & Craftsman Supply – what a pleasure to stroll through this store. Charleston has such a unique art store, full of knowledgable staff, GREAT prices and such a wide array of choices. The only thing there isn’t… parking. They did have a few spots that they were leasing for customers, but something is being built/or changed behind that building and everything is dug up. So… right now there is only meter parking, which isn’t so bad ( and it’s FREE on Sunday). If by chance you have some big items you can either go in/call, shop, pay, and then drive up and someone in the store will run the items to you (call first to be sure they aren’t too busy). They’re doing their best to make it as easy as possible for you to shop. So if you’re in Charleston, SC check them out.
Artist & Craftsman Supply Charleston, SC
GREAT prices! Bargain basement prices (hee hee)… they are located in a basement, a very cool basement – check them out! They also have locations around the country and you can order online as well!
We headed out on a long walk… tide was fairly low, the weather was pretty nice, just right for a long walk. Had to stop and snap this… the marsh is just so beautiful!
Enjoy what’s left of your weekend!! For some, tomorrow is a holiday (President’s Day) – if you’re off, enjoy!
Coastal Landscape 1 (2014) by Dru Warmath Image: GalerieOnBroad.com
If you’re in Charleston, SC this weekend – what a treat! There is so much going on in Charleston with the Southeastern Wildlife Expo and all the events that go along with it! Be sure to make time to stroll through the different galleries in Charleston. We have some of the best galleries ever, with a wide array of styles to please every art loving person on this planet!
I just wanted to share one of the new pieces that came into Galerie on Broad (29 Broad Street), this is by artist Dru Warmath. Dru is a fabulous artist…she’s from the Charlotte area, and her coastal landscapes have been wildly popular. They just don’t stay in the gallery long!
Congratulations to Chad Poppleton for being named Southeastern Wildlife Expo’s featured artist for 2014! This is quite the dramatic painting. Just look at that water. I can absolutely hear it! Fabulous!
Southeastern Wildlife Expo (SEWE) begins this week. SEWE is a huge exhibit with art, wild life, demo’s… you name it, they’ve got it! This expo seems to be the kick off for the busy season. There will be a lot of people in town this weekend, and there is so much to see. SEWE has a fabulous website, check it for the EVENTS, purchase TICKETS, learn more about the ARTISTS, and check out the EXHIBITS. Of course there is more, much more, so see what all it has in store for you!
While you’re in town, don’t forget to hit the galleries nearby! Charleston is more than the #1 Tourist Destination in the USA, it is chock full of fabulous art galleries appealing to every sense of style possible. Broad Street has some great galleries, as well as a few places to stop and get a bite to eat!
There is so much to see and do this weekend in Charleston, don’t miss out! Catch you back here tomorrow!
Nothing can heat your innards like a good bowl of soup. This is an easy one, and oh so delicious. I double the recipe so we have leftovers. This soup will warm your soul (I’m not being dramatic, really)!
Cheesy Potato Soup – recipe by Cooking Light magazine (myrecipes.com) – Click HERE to print.
1 tablespoon butter
1 cup chopped onion
2 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups chopped red potato (about 1 pound)
1 1/4 cups 1% low-fat milk
3/4 cup fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
2 tablespoons chopped green onions
Preparation
Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until onion is tender.
Sprinkle with flour; cook 1 minute, stirring onion mixture constantly.
Add potato, milk, broth, and 1/2 cup water to pan; bring to a boil.
Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes.
Add 1/2 cup reduced-fat sharp cheddar cheese and ground red pepper (IMPORTANT NOTE: remove from heat as soon as it melts so that it doesn’t curdle); cook 2 minutes or until cheese melts, stirring frequently. Top each serving evenly with 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped green onions.
Note… my secret… I use a potato masher and squish the potatoes a bit… I’m not mashing them per se but breaking down the chunks a bit so they’re smaller… this is tasty soup!
The important note above… removing the pan from the heat as soon as the cheese starts melting. I didn’t see this note at the top of the recipe and didn’t do it. It curdled… tasted great but didn’t look as good as it could have. Next time I think I will just opt to add it to each individual bowl as you can see in the top photo I over sprinkled… For as good as this soup is it’s quite hard to believe that it was this quick and easy! Thanks to Cooking Light for yet another great recipe!
Breathtaking, right? Look at the light in this painting. So nice! Gorgeous sunset and all the colors reflecting around it… WOW! It wasn’t easy to choose only a few images, each and every one is stunning, you must check it out for yourself!
Morning Shadows at Smith Rock by Sally O’Neill
Just look at that rock. The pinks and oranges against the blues and greens are dynamite! Such nice brush strokes! This painting won 1st place at Smith Rock Paint Out!
A native of Southern California, Sally O’Neill has lived in the foothills of the Northern Oregon Cascade Mountains since 1991. Throughout her life, Sally has always been involved in the arts. As a child, she enjoyed painting and drawing in addition to music studies. She majored in music in college and is an accomplished pianist. Sally worked in the medium of watercolor for a period of time in the 1980’s. In 1998, Sally went back to painting seriously working solely in oils.
“As soon as I started painting with oils I knew I had found the perfect medium to express my artistic vision. As an admirer of the impressionists, I am obsessed with light, color and atmosphere. Through the layering of colors and texture I’m trying to achieve the effects of light at different times of the day. Overall, I want my paintings to bring the viewer into a world they would love to be in, that of beauty and sun drenched days.”
Sally’s plein air and studio paintings reflect her enthusiasm for life and an appreciation for her subject matter. She has studied painting with a number of prominent artists including Ruben Arizpe, Sr., Camille Przewodek, Bill Ahrendt and Ovanes Berberian. Until his death in 2007, Sally also had a constant mentor and artistic ally in her father-in-law, watercolorist, Don O’Neill. Sally also teaches group workshops in addition to private art students.
Sally’s has been the recipient of numerous awards. Her work can be seen in a number of private as well as corporate collections.
January’s Second Sunday on King was such a beautiful day. Lots of people out and about. The perfect day to walk, take photos and nibble a few tasty morsels…
Christophe Artisan Chocolatier-Pâtissier is located on Society Street right off King Street… this is a place you don’t want to miss… the best coffee, pastries and the chocolates… oh. my.
Classy guy playing his music in front of the Apple store – he played beautifully… Wish I knew his name… if you see him today, contribute to his college tuition if you can – Charleston is such a cool city! Head on downtown (or remember next time you’re in Charleston!)…
Well, we finally got our Charleston weather back! Can’t complain too much, things were handled well during our cold snap, but it is nice to see temps creep back up! Things are definitely looking up… speaking of looking up… images of Charleston… looking up – I believe a few of these were taken during the last Second Sunday (when the city closes King Street to car traffic allowing people to walk in the streets. It’s a festive time here in Charleston!).
We just have the most wonderful architecture here in Charleston! Love, love, love it!
Little details like that bit of gold make things really stand out!
Fabulous old brick, and the color of that sky! Wow… it was a beautiful day!
![Sun Worshipper by Dean Buhler [sold]](https://artfoodhome.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/dean-buhler-sun-worshipper-pencil-on-paper-db.jpg)
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