Check out her page for some awesome photography and another painting inspired by her photograph by Lyn Donald @ https://www.facebook.com/LynDonaldArt

Day 1 vs. Day 2

Dr. Martins liquid watercolors on Yupo vs. cold press watercolor paper.

Image via Wikipedia

Pinterest addictions:

Over the last couple of weeks I have discovered how to use Pinterest. It is a virtual storage system or “Pin-board” for EVERYTHING you are interested in. If you are building a home, having a wedding, planning a party or you just want to file your creative images—Pinterest is for you. Here are a couple of ‘Pinaholic’ quotes that have come to mind lately. If you have not discovered Pinterest, ignore this post—you won’t get any of it. I hope you enjoy.

Hot Guy/Dream home:

I am a Pinaholic:

Dis facebook:

What I am doing vs. dreaming of doing:

Realism:

The dog ate it:

Gay guy:

Storage Locker:

Related articles

• Poll: What Do You Think About Pinterest? (pbs.org)

Inspired by skhedrdesigns.blogspot.com

“Creativity is the ability to move from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.” Winston Churchill.

Winston Churchill was a brilliant man.

I often hear people say “I’m not creative,” or “I can’t draw.” That concept might be currently true in a person’s mind, but why? Why does one person become good at drawing and another an expert in engineering, or business? Nobody was an expert in any of these fields at the age of five. Each person has different innate qualities, personality traits and gifts from birth. How these gifts are nurtured and practiced as a person matures makes a huge difference in the success of any skill a person might have as an adult.

When I was very young, I remember people liking my drawings. Because I liked the complements, I wanted to draw more. Believe me—my drawings were not all that great, but I kept going—wading through a lot of really bad sketches. I took all the art classes I could; I practiced and studied hard. I still need to practice and study to do well. So when people tell me they can’t draw, I like to tell them that is fine. They probably have other things that they like to do better. If you want to draw, you need to practice, just as you would need to practice if you want to be a professional athlete. Success comes from interest first and practice second, lots of practice.

I like to think that Winston Churchill’s quote is the secret to success. Read the quote this way: “Success is the ability to move from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.” Fear of making mistakes will hold you back. If you love what you do, you are probably willing to persevere through your mistakes. So make your blunders and move on. Practice makes progress. And the way you practice determines how you perform—no matter what your interest!

I struggle where to start (and end) with this blog. Do I describe the process we used to paint the room, or how tired I was by the end of my shift, or describe the feeling of being on common ground with hundreds if not thousands of others just helping one another out of the goodness of their hearts? I don’t know. The experience as a whole was amazing! I am so happy that I chose to be a part of it.

The Hype:

Excitement in the Rogue Valley soared as we waited to hear which family would be the recipient of the Extreme Makeover. A website was set up and volunteers were gathered to help with skills, talents and time. Many small businesses in the valley were the major contributors in the build. I was so impressed, our Medford valley area people are so generous, even in a very tough economy.

As time to build (and surprise the family) neared, sightings of the Extreme Makeover bus became frequent. One of my friends (who will remain anonymous) even stalked the bus to try to find out where the build would take place. Many rumors flew as people anticipated this big event for our small valley. On Wednesday morning the family was announced: the McPhail family would be receiving a new home. McPhail? It sounded familiar, but I didn’t really know them. Then it occur too me, I had been following a local blog, “Earth Monkeys” and one of the bloggers was Lindsay McPhail. I had made a few comments on her blog and we have happen to have quite a few facebook friends in common, so I was excited to be helping out even though I really didn’t know her or her family. Along with many others, I wondered, why the McPhail family—why were they picked?

The McPhail family has three children, two with special needs. Despite the daily needs of their own children, Lindsay and CJ McPhail head up the Southern Oregon Sparrow Clubs. They have started many new Sparrow clubs at our local schools. Read more about Sparrow Clubs USA here. They were not chosen just because their home was not safe or because they have kids with special needs. They were chosen because of just HOW much they have done in the community for others with special needs. Watch this video interview with the McPhail Parents.

The Work:

So I was recruited by a friend to help paint a mural. I like to paint so of course I said “I’m in,” not knowing it would be an all night shift. There was a little confusion with our shift day (probably because our shift spanned to dates) so we arrived a night early and our room was not ready for us yet. It was a blessing to be able to look around and get a feel for what we would be doing the following night. We were on team “Yogi” and would be helping with a mural of a Barn Storming theme, designed by Travis Yogi. The room was for Thatcher, a young boy with Autism.

“Team Yogi” Melody, Holly and Cheryl. We are each small business owners based in Jacksonville, OR. Melody owns a “French BouTEAque” (clothing and accessories), I own Holly Herick Design (graphic design, web/blog and small business consulting), and Cheryl owns Cheryl Von Tres Design (interior design).

Checking out Thatcher’s room for the first time.

So after arrival on the correct night, we ran into some old friends who were hanging the wallpaper part of the mural.

Cheryl,  Jerry,  Melody,  Holly, and Jeff working on Yogi’s Team

Yogi’s design had been turned into a huge digital print that would “wallpaper” everything except the trim and parts of the doors and windowsill—that would be our job, to extend the mural. Sounds fairly easy right? WRONG. Why, you are probably wondering—what is so hard about painting little bit of trim?

Working on Thatcher’s room

Well first of all, we were not supplied with matching paint colors. We are not sure what happened, but the paint in our closet did not match the mural, nor was there enough paint to mix all the colors that we needed. So at a time I would usually be asleep 2:00am Cheryl ran to Lowe’s and picked up the paint colors that we were unable to match by mixing with what we had. Issue number one tackled.

“Team Yogi” with Travis Yogi our designer

At one point Yogi came by and made us take a break. He was always there checking on us, making sure we had what we needed, encouraging us and telling us what he knew about Thatcher and Autism. We wondered when Yogi crashed took his breaks.

Issue number two came about because of a combination of things. First of all, it was roasting quite hot so we kept the windows open for fresh air. Secondly, it was well after 2:00am and we were all brain dead very tired and losing any creative brain power we normally pridefully brag about. Take a look at the photo below. See how the wallpaper covers the window panes also…well with the windows open it is darn near impossible to match up the stripes. I guess we just didn’t think about that. I personally have never covered every square inch of a room with a mural. Apparently kids with Autism like to sort of cocoon themselves in order to feel safe. Thus, our job was to make the doors and windows disappear. (I hope little Thatcher doesn’t get lost in his own room) When we finally shut the windows the image did not match up. Cheryl stayed and sanded down the windowsill and repainted it. Thanks Cheryl—you are amazing!

Working on the window

The smoke trail from Grandpa’s plane.

We heard that Thatcher loves to look down on Medford from his Grandpa’s old plane. So a model of Grandpa’s plane and a structural barn that Thatcher can climb on will be added to the room after we finish. The barn will have a “perch” for Thatcher, another safe haven place that many Autistic children like.

The Memory:

It had been a very long time since I had pulled my hair out an all-niter. Yes, I was exhausted, sore and laughing at nothing and everything. Stronger than that, I knew I had just been used by the Lord. I could feel it. Everyone there could feel it. There was no way anyone could have been on that site and not felt the Lord’s presence! It was wonderful. So many people gathered in one place in support of another was magical. Yes, I’m sure most people helped because they wanted to meet Ty or another star they wanted to make the world a better place. We did not meet anyone famous, but the people we did met will all be stars in my heart forever.

We wrote some scripture under the paint and prayed for Thatcher the whole night through. “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”  Jeremiah 29:11

Taking a break to observe the glorious sunrise, a reminder that the Lord’s hand was in this miracle I witnessed.

Time to head home, sun is coming up and moon is going down.

Two-hour Special, air date: Friday, October 28, 2011. Please watch to learn more about Autism and Sparrow Clubs.

P.S. Melody did get to meet Ty Pennington a couple of days after our shift at our local Good Bean coffee shop here in Jacksonville. Lucky girl! Ty in Jacksonville

Many of my clients a looking to develop a blog to keep in touch with their clients and promote their business through social media. Check out my web pages tab to see some of my recent web/blog projects. I can help. Call me for a free consultation. 541.899.7093

Image copyright crowdspring.com

One of my favorite local ways to volunteer is at The Studio for Living Opportunities. This year I will be donating a painted piece of furniture for the “FurnARTure Auction” My piece this year is a kitchen table painted to look like it is already set.

I procrastinated on this project all summer, but sometimes one just needs a little pressure to get things going. I had many ideas, but finally decided on the sketch below. I removed the legs from the table in order to actually move it. The table is solid wood and is quite heavy. Then I sanded and prepared the table for paint. Look below and you will see some of my process as I painted the table runner, plates and cups. I wanted the table setting to look real, but not be too literal so I used a gel medium to build up the paint and create a lot of texture. Most of the paint is house paint from Benjamin Moore left over from painting our home seven years ago. I also used some bright acrylics when needed.

The finished piece of furniture or in this case FurnARTture.

The perspective changes for each setting. In order for the person sitting at the table to not feel like their glass was tipping over, I decided this would be the most fun. The perspective also entices one to walk around the table and look at it from each view, making this piece of art interactive, and functional too.

Third Friday Art Walk in Medford, OR

Last Friday evening my table, along with other FurnArture, was on display at The Studio at 32 Central—across from the Ginger Roger Theater. It was such a joy to watch people walk through the door and say “wow” and walk over a feel the table. This table and most of my acrylic paintings are very textural. Part of the experience with my acrylic artwork is touching the piece and I want people to do that. My piece and the other FurnARTure will be on display at Terra Firma Home on Main in Medford until the auction at Bigham Knoll in Jacksonville on October 2, 2011.

If you are interested in bidding on this piece, you will need to attend the furARTure auction at Bigham Knoll in Jacksonville on October 2, 2011. Proceeds from this table will be donated to my favorite charity, The Studio at Living Opportunities here in Medford. If you would like to commission a painted piece of furniture, you can use my contact me tab on the top right of my web page.

So as Dillon completes 800 sketches this summer (self taught program for Digipen) before he even gets to his college of choice, I watch in amazement. He is challenging himself, and that warms my heart while I release my space to him.

Dillon is concentrating on observational drawing skills.

I am thrilled. The legacy I get to pass on is amazing, not of myself, but of a higher gifting. I am blessed!

I know,  I have not kept in touch lately. I have been working on loftier subjects. By loftier, I mean other than my own. I have two clients right now that want to work on connecting to their clients and audience. How do they do that… by writing a blog and creating a web site catered to their audience.

One of my clients is Dr. Dan Tomlinson.

He is a dream client—always kind,  always appreciative, always above and beyond amazing. Dr. Dan, as a Speaker, wants to communicate with his clients via blog about End Times, and the correlation between the Bible and pregnancy. He has amazing stories to share. Tune into his blog to hear more about what he has to say about End Times, Pregnancy and the allegories related to the Bible. drdantomlinson.com

The other blog/webpage I have helped create is vickyarne.com.

Vicky is an amazing cook, with an amazing story to tell. Read her bio on her web page for more about her. Vicky has started a catering business here in the Rogue Valley—her Spring Rolls are to-die-for. Vicky always has a smile on her face that warms my heart and laughter follows her everywhere. Good luck with your new business, Vicky Arné Custom Catering.