To create is to breathe

Doggies For Sale

2012-01-29T21:29:00.003-06:00

Dog portraits can be made of your dog,

a dog breed you happen to admire,

or perhaps you would like to

give someone a special gift.
visit my etsy shop for details.

Art Exhibit and Wine Tasting - Feb. 24, 5-8pm

2012-01-23T18:35:00.000-06:00

This original "Rooster" woodcut

will be available framed

along with a framed original

"Passion Flower Botanical"

hand-colored etching seen above.

To find out more about

the wine tasting and art exhibit

go to Gibby's Wine Den.

New Print Available In My Etsy Shop

2011-12-28T19:19:00.001-06:00

This is a digitally printed version of my
hand-colored Passion Flower etching
available in my etsy shop

Gift Idea

2011-11-29T16:56:00.001-06:00

Little red fox available in my etsy shop/sandim.

Many little pieces of art you view here,
in my blog,
are available in my etsy shop.

Holiday Greetings

2011-11-29T16:45:00.001-06:00

I wish you the happiest of holidays
this wonderful holiday season.
Peace

"Wesley" Barn Owl drawing

2011-11-14T08:47:00.001-06:00

Recently I became aware of a sweet story of an injured barn owl named Wesley the Barn Owl.

A dear woman asked me to draw a barn owl because she had read this story and loved it so. I looked into the story, and I too fell in love with this darling bird and story. If you get the chance to read about it, here is a link for you to make it a bit easier.http://www.wesleytheowl.com/

Beautiful FiestAmericana Resort Cabo San Lucas

2011-10-08T23:04:00.000-05:00

So sweet.

Seriously, does it get any better than this.
Took so many photo in Cabo that will soon become little pieces of art
in my etsy shop.

This is the simple beauty that was sound everywhere.

2011-09-30T10:04:00.004-05:00

This beauty is soon to become a lovely etching which I will hand color.

Bless You All, Everyone

2011-09-11T09:37:00.003-05:00

May peace be with you on this and every day.

Halloween Invitations

2011-09-08T13:18:00.001-05:00

After drawing this little pumpkin for cards and framing, I decided to make it into invitations for a Halloween or Autumnal party. You can find them in my Etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/sandim or in St. Charles, Illinois at SG Too.

symbolism art

2011-08-23T17:51:00.000-05:00

Not sure which I like better,

sample one

or sample two?

More Etchings

2011-07-16T21:11:00.000-05:00

Rabbit Clover

Mushroom with color

Wonderfully fun digitally printed color on special paper that retains ink when soaked for a few minutes before printing my copper etching over the color.
First I printed the plate as usual, second I scanned the image to my computer, third I "painted" the color onto the scanned image in Adobe Photoshop, adding and erasing color until I was happy with it. I then printed the color image onto the special paper, and printed the etching plate over the color. I will do more of these in the future. So fun!

Etchings

2011-07-16T20:24:00.000-05:00

I so enjoyed making these little etchings, and others that I will add as soon as I get my Photoshop turned back on. Now for sell at Scentimental Gardens in Geneva, Illinois.

Birdhouse Nest original etching

Bird Nest Egg original etching

New Prints and Cards

2011-07-04T17:39:00.000-05:00

Available at Scentimental Gardens in Geneva IL

View Scentimental Garden's beautiful blog

Happy 4th of July.

Yesterday's creation

2011-06-28T10:14:00.000-05:00

Yesterday I played around with one of my little paintings in photoshop.

This is the card front I came up with. Not sure if it is finished just yet, but for now it is.

Botanical illustration

2011-06-26T18:33:00.000-05:00

I have been through many stages of creating botanical illustrations, and now I want to try something new. When I decide what to create, I will share it with you here, but until then you can always visit my Etsy shop if you desire.

This is the little Italian plum that decorates the top of one of my love letter art pieces which includes an excerpt beautifully written by a famous writer in a love letter to their beloved.

Lemon painting

2011-06-21T08:23:00.000-05:00

Summer begins, and it's time for lemonade.

Lemon painting 1 is "complete" I'm not sure how I feel about it, but at least I know what not to do for Lemon painting 2, I think.

My new profile image

2011-06-08T09:48:00.000-05:00

Caitlin Hazelton, did a fabulous job capturing the feeling of my daughter's March wedding. This is just a snippet of one of the photos. Check out her blog here: Hazelton photography blog

cards for sale

2011-06-07T18:34:00.000-05:00

I have new cards available at SG Too in St. Charles Illinois.

SG Too is located at 116 Cedar Ave.

This is the blue delphinium,

the pink foxglove, and

the yellow hollyhock card.

If you are in the area, I hope you will stop by and check them out.

And as always, stop by my Etsy shop (click on Cards for sale title) for new additions as well.

This is now my art diary to share.

2011-03-31T16:45:00.000-05:00

Here is the first of many posts for me to share what I create.

Kitt'n

Spring Fairy

And since my daughter just got married...

And that's it until next time.

Small

2011-02-19T19:34:00.000-06:00

Original paintings, prints and drawings. This is my way to go. The direction to take. I still want to do a few large pieces too, but for now small is my priority.

This little drawing, 1 1/2" x 2", is now a copper plate etching that I will post here soon. He will be hand colored and available at my Etsy shop. http://www.etsy.com/shop/sandim I'm making several small copper plate etchings measuring from 1 1/2" x 2" to approx. 3" x 4". Very fun. All are nature and/or garden themed.

I will, starting today.

2011-02-18T18:21:00.000-06:00

I am on track with the selling of my art. All avenues are leading me in the right direction, and I am willing to follow where ever they shall take me.

I've joined an entrepreneurs team on Etsy that will be helpful for me, and I shall do all I can to be a gracious helper to my team members. http://www.etsy.com/shop/sandim is my shop on Etsy.

Hope you can make it by for a look around soon.

Sandra

new job

2010-10-17T19:27:00.000-05:00

Started a new job today at the most beautiful shop in the world! Scentimental Gardens. http://scentimentalgardens.com/ and http://5thandstate.blogspot.com/ check them out!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/sandim

2010-06-01T19:27:00.002-05:00

I am in the process of getting my art seen by people who are interested in my style. Wow! who knew it would be this hard to figure out where to start? Any help, opinions, leads, etc. will be greatly appreciated. These painted pieces are in gouache and the other pieces are in pencil. I am in the process of painting larger acrylics. And I'm also doing lovely nude drawings for sell in my Etsy shop.

Sorry, some of these pieces are already sold, but I'm always painting others and I am also open to doing commissioned work.

Signs

2010-05-19T09:42:00.002-05:00

Have you ever received a sign that you could not ignore? The Tiger Swallowtail is my chosen trademark because a few years ago my life was touched by three individual lovelies. The first was an elderly tattered and torn butterfly that chose to alight on my patio table, which I believed at the time had come there to die. After several hours of protecting her from becoming lunch to a passing bird, she miraculously decided it was not yet her time to leave this world. With fragile wings she took to the air and flew off to a place unknown.

A second tiger swallowtail came into my life just a couple of days later by way of a chrysalis that had wintered over in my garage on a flower pot. Upon bringing the pot outside to clean and plant with my annual lantana, which is known to attract the tiger swallowtail, I discovered that the "dried leaf" that I could not easily brush off the outside of the pot was none other than a butterfly or moth chrysalis. My daughter and I kept close watch on the chrysalis throughout the day, and even though we were not there to witness the emergence of this second lovely, we were witness to her first few hours of life as a brand new butterfly. She was bigger than most of her kind that have visited my yard before. Maybe from wintering over? This I don't know. As you can see in the photo, we were able to closely admire her for quite awhile before her wings were dry enough to fly off into her new beautiful life. That is her chrysalis just above her.

The third lovely came into my life the very next day. While walking around my front yard garden, I came upon a tiger swallowtail walking on the ground. Now this I had never seen before, and so I thought that maybe it had been injured. I put my hand down in front of it, and to my delight, she walked right up onto my hand. I held her for a little while to check her for injury. Although she looked to be a "middle-aged" butterfly, she appeared to be okay. I was wondering what I should do with her. and just as I was about to offer her a place on a nearby bush, she took off to a tree in my yard. I watched her fly, and wished her a safe journey.

This all happened within one weeks time, and I thought about a saying that I had read somewhere not that long ago, "First God whispers." This triple occurrence has touched my life, and it will stay with me for ever.

Have you ever had something happen that spoke volumes to you? Do share.

Getting started

2010-05-17T07:07:00.006-05:00

If you are having trouble getting started,here is a great place to start.
http://www.oprah.com/spirit/Discover-Your-Purpose-Robert-Holden/2

What is your passion?

2010-05-16T20:24:00.002-05:00

Do tell what your passion is, what makes your soul sing?

Living happily into old age

2010-05-16T18:17:00.000-05:00

Find your passion. Whether it is creating, teaching, adventure, or any other calling, so to speak, find a way to experience it. Take a class, search the internet, join a group. However you do it doesn't matter. That you do it does. There is not better day than today, but if that is impossible, make a date with yourself, and do it.

Female Artists

2010-03-28T11:23:00.000-05:00

"The entire visual world, was dependent on the emotional world. The power of painting depended not only upon technical skills but also upon emotive powers. Line, perspective, composition and technique would supply only half of a painting's real power; the rest would derive from spiritual content."

Taken from, Georgia O'Keeffe: A Life, a biography by Roxana Robinson.

2010-03-20T12:24:00.000-05:00

Trust your intuition to find your true bliss.