Be Fearless Mixed Media Canvas and Random Life Photos From 2018

Hello and welcome to my blog.

Depending on where you live, there

are beautiful season changes

happening! May has shown up here in the mountains

in a summery mood

wearing her loveliest of greens.

There are little blossoms appearing and

all sorts of pretty things in the yard

today. All very small but 

very welcome and treasured. I

 will have to get out soon 

and take some

photos. 

There's been an assortment of fun projects

to work on in my little gypsy studio. 

Lots of painting and some paper collaging.

 Clay and glitter... buttons and gems.

It's all so magical and the messes on my table

come and go shifting from one pile of 

goodness to the next. 

I'm so happy that I'm finally 

getting the hang of this

new way of downloading my photos!

And I'm so much more consistent.

There seems to always

be something

stewing in my mind. And though

I'm not a fearful person, I am not

very assertive sometimes and have allowed

negative thoughts to stay too long in my

head. I never realized

that I was so negative inwardly.

 Toward myself.

But I am very happy to share that this

is beginning to change. 

Like a butterfly coming out of it's 

cocoon or chrysalis.

And as I promised, here is the finished

project that

was inspired by a tiny butterfly.

Butterflies don't fly around afraid

of what people think or

of what might happen. 

They are happy to flutter about and gather their

food and enjoy sips of water and take refuge when

they see danger.

This is a 9x13 canvas. I used gesso, acrylic paints, stamps, ink, vintage papers

and stencils as well as random things for texturing.

My beautiful, Sonoron shell 

pink guitar that my husband got me last year. 

I love playing it and get comments on it whenever I take 

it to gigs.  It's perfect for this Shabbi Gypsy!

They don't make them anymore.

I'm still playing a lot of music and am working 

on songwriting as well. There is so much to learn

but I think the most important thing is to

put our whole hearts into whatever we do.

Do you agree?

This beautiful leaf was collected two years ago. 

Did you know that you can use 

rubber stamps on leaves?

My lovely geranium from last spring is still with me. 

Last fall, it was nearly

 four feet tall and three feet wide. I had to 

trim her back some so she could fit inside

for the winter.

These two are so much fun. They are full of 

love and SHENANIGANS! 

Just as they should be ;)

Have you had a first time recently?

I boiled stinging nettle this morning and ate it!

It's very good. 

{The western version.} 

A friend brought us some for making tea to

help with allergies. I scooped it out of the container

with my hands 

and my little finger is still stinging. 

haha.

If you look it up, you'll find that it's packed with

nutrients and is a complete protein. 

I found this little lady at Ross and thought 

she was so special,

I just had to bring her home.

Whatever you're doing this week, 

I hope you're finding

peace and rest and beauty in your days.

Four peaks in the Sonoran Desert.

It's music for me tonight and a month

from tomorrow, I leave to

head to Ohio to get my girl!

I hope that you enjoyed your visit.

Thank you for coming.

I hope you feel welcome and leave inspired.

Have a lovely rest of your week

and a Happy May to you.

Tamara 

Xo

Adding Color .... Painting a Vintage, Western Style, Swinging Door

Hello...

It's a bright, sunny but cold Saturday

here in the mountains.

This photo was actually from a coupe of weeks ago.
The wispy clouds with the dark bank of threatening weather along
with that gorgeous sun caught 
my eye out the window.

I know many of you are experiencing

bitter cold temperatures and some are

starting to see signs of spring.

What a wonderful and diverse

land that we live in!

Today, I just wanted to quickly share with you

a little project that I did to add some color

I'm going to try to keep my posts a little more simple at times and perhaps I can post more!

Also, my computer won't recognize my new 

phone to transfer pictures. So that's a bit of 

a process! 

When we moved into our current home

nearly 20 years ago, I found a set 

of old western style swinging doors in the

garage. I have used them in their

natural state around the house but as

I shared before, I'm trying to add color

to my decor. So I found this wonderful

color to try and painted one of them.

What do you think? 

I am liking it. 

I have a hard time with

decorating large spaces and I love to use

items that I find here and there to fill

in around everyday things.

My rustic mantel. 

There's a story behind this that I'll tell one day :)

Limon roses in a pink hob knob vase.

I have always enjoyed pink and green!

I hope you're enjoying your day.

Isn't it interesting how 

life is always changing? 

I am on the verge of a big change.

Seasons of life can be scary yet

exciting at the same time.

There's gain and loss.

Joy and pain

Beautiful and hard times

It all makes up our story.

Embracing it all with hope and an

open heart seems to be 

the best way for me. 

Wishing you a wonderful week ahead

and joy in your journey!

Oh... I'm considering changing my

blog name to 

The Shabbi Gypsy.

It matches my IG account

and my business name.

Any thoughts?

Hugs and Blessings...

Tamara x

Art Inspiration: My Quest ....A Winter Canvas Collage and Keeping Inspired

 I hope that your week has been happy and inspiring. 

Inspiration is one of the staples that I live on.

It's so easy to get in a rut with everyday things. Not that we aren't thankful but it's good to have new experiences. 

I like to work at conjuring up happy thoughts 

and fresh things to do.

How do you keep inspired?

I am trying to work hard at learning new things

and today I wanted to share my winter canvas

with you. It started as a Christmas project but quickly was

set aside for seasonal activities.

So, I turned it into a winter project.

Isn't that one of things that is so lovely about art?

There are really no rules.

Allow yourself a lot of grace, flow with the 

circumstances and  follow your heart.

It's one of things that keeps the inspiration coming.

And how amazing to not have any boundaries or rules but full

freedom through creativity!

This is just one of the wonders of it all.

This project was inspired by 

Vanessa at A Fanciful Twist.

She is an artist of many talents! Lovely, creative and

whimsical. A person who celebrates life at every turn

and shares her inspiration with such generosity of spirit

through her beautiful photos. 

Thank you, Vanessa!

I saw one of her canvas' in a magazine and decided to 

try my own with a little different approach.

 How magical it was to enter this little world of make believe

with pretty papers, glitter and colorful paints to create 

a fairytale story through my imagination and art!

To get lost in it all was simply blissful.

Here are a few new things that I learned..

*large collage piece

*planning a story to tell in the picture

*drawing with detail

*painting animals with acrylics

I learned so much and it gave me confidence to keep moving forward.

By some miracle, I inspired myself.

Isn't it a good feeling to have dreams in front of you and 

to accomplish something that brings you one step closer?

Even if it's just a tiny step?

Most big things are accomplished through small steps.

Have you ever experienced that?

Please..

I would really love to hear about yours!

Thank you..

________________________________

Below are just a few photos of my life..

A bear sighting! :)

I was picking this up for my daughter at Christmas.

One of the ways to get inspired is to do something out of the

ordinary fun or even

a little crazy; like push a bear around the grocery store 

while getting your groceries. 

Smile..

That is a very large grocery cart with a very 

large bear inside!

Reading this Renoir book has been very inspirational.

I learned that many of the artists 

of his time carried their knapsacks 

to the fields and forests to 

paint because having a studio was a luxury.

One of the most fulfilling, inspirational ways to stir up creativity is to be someone else's inspiration and then help THEM accomplish

what you inspired them to do. 

I made a pillow.

My grand daughters saw it and wanted to make one, too.

So the other day, they spent about four hours learning how to hand sew these little pillows.

They did a beautiful job and were so pleased with their work.

It made me so happy to be a part of this 

fun and enriching time! 

Thank you for coming by.  

I hope you find some very lovely inspiration

and then have a wonderful time inspiring someone else.

I find so much creativity on many friend's blogs.

So thank you for sharing your talents and lovely ideas

so that others can be inspired and learn new 

ways to enrich our lives.

Wishing you a happy weekend!

Tamara XO 

Another Year Has Begun...And Some Random Art

 Hello everyone!

How I've missed you.

What an amazing holiday it was..

It seems that we're still partying with family every chance we get.

Celebrating life every day is what I often talk about

and I think I'm finally getting the hang of it.

Last evening, two of my daughters and myself stayed up late watching

Persuasion. It's a Jane Austen classic, period drama and one of our favorites!

If you're interested, you can watch the trailer here. 

(I have yet to get my pictures together for our December trip. The cord to the camera

was lost and though one has been ordered, it's coming from overseas and must be on a slow boat!

I still have a few more holiday pictures to share besides our Nutcracker holiday.)

***************

I hope your new year is off to a wonderful start with many promises

of good things! I find the HOPE that a new beginning offers is

 such a treasure. And the possibilities of 

achieving the dreams that sometimes lie obscured by cares and responsibilities,

seem to make themselves known as I reflect and search for deeper meaning.

Do new beginnings bring you to that place too?

Here is one of my favorite quotes by Mary Oliver.

 I wrote this out for our New Year's party.

  POM POMS!

 They are fun, easy to make and so festive for special occasions.

The white ones edges weren't trimmed. I forgot but I loved that it

 turned out like a beautiful rose! It was made of crepe paper while the others

  of tissue paper.

If you'd like to try them, there's a tutorial here on the 

beautiful blog White and Vintage. Christine is very sweet and

and very talented! 

The shy one... Burliose~

or.. SIR or Mr. Dainty Paws.

Have you been doing any baking in the New Year?

My granddaughters, AKA, the GIGGLES..

helped me make pizza dough last week.

There was a little leftover and so I made some

little cinnamon sugar monkey breads...

We all enjoyed those with some hot cocoa!

They are the hot cocoa princesses! Oh my..

Here we are working on phonics. It's 

one of the things that I do when my grand daughters come.

I help them with their school. 

We homeschooled our kiddoes and now our kids are 

doing the same. 

 I have mentioned my winter canvas that I'm working on.

Here's a small part of it.

It's my first attempt at drawing and painting, so I'm a bit timid.

Like my little mouse.

It's coming along though and I should be done in a couple of weeks.

It would be sooner but I'm going with my husband on his business trip 

to San Diego and I will leave my friends and all the glitter behind.

Do you ever have a word for the New Year?

I don't every year but sometimes a word just keeps coming to me. 

Right now it's CONTENTMENT. 

This is a page from my journal..

I had done this a few weeks back. Then after the new year, Fox shared the word flourish 

 for a good word. I liked it. A lot! I was envious and thought, Oh! I'll change my word.

But I told myself no.. That's cheating. Haha!

And then I read my journal and I had actually attached the

word FLOURISH to contentment.

I had forgotten. So I'm excited to see how the year will go and what

loveliness God will allow to flourish in my 

"one wild and precious life" 

as I seek to learn more about being content.

I do wish you Happiest of New Years, my friends.

(I'm sorry I am tardy.)

Filled with love peace happiness and fulfillment.

Thank you so very much for supporting me and being my friends.

You are all such jewels and I feel so blessed!

Hugs and blessings to you

Tamara~

Decor Easily Crafted from Your Garden

Hello and happy November!

It has been a wonderful start to my day.

It's raining.

 That's always a treat!

Burly, our black cat, is laying all cozy on the rug next to

the woodstove and he looks up at me

with sleepy eyes and meows as if to say 

"thank you for the warm fire."

Don't you love it when your animals are all

happy and cozy? It warms my heart.

I've been outside a couple of times this morning

to grab wood for the fire. 

I do love the smell of the rain-soaked earth and leaves.

I have candles lit all over the house to add some light and warmth

 to this wonderfully chilly and cloudy day.

The window is slightly opened so I can hear the raindrops

hitting the metal roof. The tea pot is whistling to let me know that

I can pour it's boiling, steamy goodness in a cup now.

The laundry is in and I have my tea and can now sit down

 and write to you on this fine day!

I do hope you've had a good week. 

On to my post content...

Do you like using natural findings in your decor?

Sticks.. rocks.. bark.. dried flowers or even pretty, native grasses.

These are garlic seed heads. I thought that they would look pretty 

painted gold and put in a pitcher or a jar. 

I love how you can see the tiny black seeds inside.

I had this spray paint on hand and I appreciate the quality. It came from a florist.

I hope you don't mind my sweet, pet photo bombs! 

They are so curious and often nearby when I'm working.

Here are the seed heads drying.

Do you think they're pretty?

And here they are. There are so many different ways that one could display them.

I'm thinking that they would also adorn a gift very nicely. 

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Have yoou been thinking about and planning for the holidays?

Are you working on any special projects?

I have finished my angel that I mentioned awhile ago and will

share that with you soon. I'm just finishing up some glittery, 

sheet music ornaments.

It's sort of a mixed time of year for many.

If you like making gifts or crafts to sell, one really has to begin 

several months ahead. There are already 

Christmas Bizarres and craft shows happening! 

And if you want to plan special outings, they really have to

be planned in advance or you may not get a ticket!

I have been making some plans for a special outing before

Christmas. I am so excited about this surprise!

My youngest daughter, Mikailah celebrated her

20th birthday last month. This trip will be an extension of her celebration

since we were traveling and also since we have decided to

dedicate the WHOLE birthday month to celebrating each one.

It am thrilled!

We will go on special outings that relate to their interests,

 have dinners, give gifts and just show them special appreciation 

with notes and cards. Don't you love celebrating the

 special people in your life?

That would be near the top of my list of favorite things! 

It's so fun~

This evening, I'm taking my husband to see

Deep Water Horizon.

(Nov. is his birthday month)

It's a very serious movie and not easy to watch.

There is much loss.

But for many, the ending is miraculous and it's very well done.

Whatever you're doing, I wish you joy and wonder for your day.

Thank you for your visit.

Blessings,

Tamara

Altered Writing Desk... Nature Friends and a Simple Painting

Hello dear friends..

I hope you're well.

There is so much going on right now...

Mucho mucho..

Probably for you also! I really have to pace myself .

I'm up early to get out and plant and visit my garden areas.

I am working on my 6th round of plants that we've bought.

Perennials... annuals... bushes...

What fun I've been having (and a lot of work too :) but I must get out before the sun

burns too hot. I plant something almost every day.

Today it was a pack of moss rose and six lilies.

The pulaski tool has become one of best friends

as I prepare new beds in this rocky Arizona terra.

It's all so inspiring and such good exercise.

And I'm so very excited to see so much more color!

And honestly, anything in this high dessert that's 

green, is a welcome sight.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Today I have a little project to share.

I wish I'd taken more before pictures.

It was a deep red and green writing desk that was decorated

with a primitive Santa. I rescued it from the 50 cent bin at a thrift store.

The hinges needed repaired and the paper santa motif was coming off..

Here are a few photos to show some of the changes.

Some vintage wallpaper.

I primed the desk and then painted it with one of my favorite acrylic colors.

Vintage White~

And I used some of my favorite scrap papers to decorate.

There was a little lid that opened at the top and I wanted to attach a 

chain to it to catch the door.

I did a little distressing with some fine sand paper.

And some blending with Frayed Burlap Distress ink.

It gave it that grunge worn look that I like sometimes.

And then I began to add little embellishments.

I love using odds and ends of rusty stuff for this kind of project.

I wanted it to look old and be like a letter storage box.

I'm sad that I didn't get many pictures of the finished desk

but you get the idea. The inside was all finished and the little lid had some 

extra details inside.

What're your favorite embellishments to use?

For the final look, I added very small rusted nails to the 

little ornate piece at the top. They became butterfly antennas. 

It was a really fun project and I'm happy to

say that it went to a new home in the Valley of the Sun.

Isn't it so fun to find old things and bring them back to life?

It's one of my favorite ways to create.

Now on to other things that I've been doing.

*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*+*

Meeting new friends in the garden is always a treat!

My thyme is home sweet home for this special creature.

When I drizzle the water over the plant, it scrambles out to say hello..

I love that!

Here is a White Admiral butterfly

I love what happens when I'm watering my plants and the water spills over!

It's magical...

All kinds of creatures come for a drink. 

I will share the movie I took when I figure out Hand Brake.

It's an editing tool that will resize my videos.

 Brutus taking a break from his garden duties.

He works very hard at re-arranging the catnip!
*A little update
(this morning, the little snoot chewed off a peony bush 
branch and broke another. 
STINKER! 
But who can resist that little fur ball when he's sleeping;)

Below are some of my new plants.
We've been having thunder storms.
The sounds of the rain hitting the roof is glorious and the smell after
the showers are so refreshing!
And the plants just seem to act so blessed to have that rainwater~

Here's a little painting that I've been working on..

I used to be so intimidated by paint. My techniques are very simple but it's a start.

Do you like to paint? 

I've been working on this post for days. Yesterday, our internet was down!

It's time to get it published..

Have a wonderful Wednesday and thank you for paying me a visit!

I always love to hear about what's happening with you.

A little side note.. I love to watch movies..
Many different kinds. Dramas based on true life experiences are
some of my favorites. They aren't always easy to watch but usually worth it.

I  just watched Nothing But the Truth.
It's a bit disturbing and it ended differently than I expected.


Love and hugs..

Tamara