Creativity ...

I'm not Mormon, and I don't think it matters what religion you are to appreciate this beautiful message for all of our souls.

Thrifted Cashmere ...

I have a soft spot for old cashmere sweaters. I often find these gems in my local thrift store hangouts. I love them for their comfy-fuzzy goodness.

So when find them for cheap (when they are new they usually sell for over $75), I take them home and add my own twist to them and sell them with a new lease on life. Sometimes they remain as a sweater, but I've also started turning them into purses and slouchy hobo bags. I've been selling on Etsy for a while now, but I recently sub-leased some retail space at the amazing Citizen Video store in South Park and have been selling a variety of clothing, accessory and stationary items.

I just added these new goodies to my retail space yesterday. I just thought you might enjoying seeing what I made this week.

Halloween & Dia de los Muertos ...

Halloween in Golden Hill last night was quite a surprise! This little corner of San Diego sure came to life. I bought 2 jumbo bags of candy and that certainly didn't last long. The streets came alive and it was so fun to see two diverse cultures mixing it up and having so much fun. The girls had a good time, and so did Jon and I. It was a great introduction to the neighborhood.

So after we got home last night, Jon and I started getting our stuff together for a Dia de los Muertos event we are attending this evening. We'll be decorating sugar skulls, walking the streets of Sherman Heights to visit some homes that are decorated for Dia de los Muertos, we'll also be decorating an altar/shrine and enjoying posole with friends. It's good to be celebrating my cultural heritage and traditions with the girls.

These two holidays in particular were taboo while I was growing up. It's good to able to make my own choices and share my values with my own family now. So we took the girls out last night to explore and connect with our new little neighborhood. I feel that Halloween is a PERFECT opportunity to walk around your block, peek into peoples homes and actually talk to your neighbors.

For me, my belief is that above all else we are commanded by God to show love to our neighbors, and not to judge them. And in the immortal words of Forest Gump ... "that's all I have to say about that".

Now for the really good stuff, this is a painting that Jon made for me last night. He hasn't painted anything in over 20 years, so it's good to see him get back into painting, he's got such amazing talent. So, we'll use it for a decoration tonight for the Dia de los Muertos fiesta. But it's certainly coming back home with me, I can't wait to hang it up above my computer table so that I can see it all the time, I just love it!!!

My favorite artist right now ...

I have a new addiction, pop surrealism aka "low brow". Here's some of my favorite pieces by Mark Ryden, enjoy =)

Collage by John Ashbery ...

“Chutes and Ladders III (for David Kermani)” (2008)

In case you don't know who John Ashbery is, his poetry has being officially declared national monuments. This month the Library of America will publish “John Ashbery: Collected Poems 1956-1987,” a 1,050-page volume encompassing roughly half of his output. He is the first living poet to be included in this series.

I find it cool that at the age of 81 he's having his first New York Art Gallery Show. Mr. Ashbery says, as if slightly surprising himself, that making collages “sort of stimulates my writing."

I love this particular piece of his. The background is the board game Chutes and Ladders, which originated in India ...

"Where with each toss of the dice, you either climbed upward toward spiritual bliss or slid down".

Cool stuff!

Art by Natalie ...

We managed to take some extra time this past week to get creative. Packing up boxes is not Natalie's idea of a good time - crafting is =)

Hope you like her latest creation!

I love this artist ...

I came across Seonna Hong's work recently, and I have to say I love her art and thought you might like to go take a peek at some of her other creations. This one is called "Self Defeating".

Hong says her paintings reflect her exploration of personal evolvement and how your environment such as family, friends, and society can shape one's existence. There's so much truth in that. I think we are shaped by our surroundings. Makes me think, what have I surrounded myself with and what am I becoming???? Something to ponder, I love it when art makes me think.

This one doesn't require much thinking to figure out, it's called "Happy Ending" ... the girls say this one is their favorite. Of course ... don't we all love happy endings?

Art by Jon ...

Jon had his wisdom teeth pulled yesterday. I'm making him take it easy. I didn't know what he's been doing on the computer this morning, until now. He just sent this to me, he took the picture of Emily last weekend and then he worked on it this morning ... I LOVE IT!!! and thought you'd enjoy a peek at the wonderful stuff Jon does when he can squeeze in some "spare" time.

The picture is from last Sunday, just after the Spelling Bee in Long Beach we drove back towards home via the Pacific Coast Hwy. When we drove past Huntington Beach the girls saw the sand dunes and wanted to stop and play. So of course, we did. Collecting shells and getting sand between our toes and stopping at Gina's Pizza in Laguna Beach on the way home is our favorite way to end a perfect beach day.

Lila & Frida ...

I came across this little snipppet recently. Lila Downs is a great Mexican singer that has that husky vintage tejana sound that I love. This song is Alcoba Azul. It's paired with some original Frida Kahlo art & photos of her and Diego Rivera, both two of my favorite Mexican artists. Some of the other photos are from the movie "Frida" starring Salma Hayek.

Hope you enjoy this little MezoAmerican moment!

I love this picture!

I found a new artist on Etsy today. Her name is Kelly Rae Roberts. I especially would love to have a print of these three girls. But, sigh ... she's sold out of this one.

But check out her shop, maybe you'll get lucky and find something to hang in your home.

Who do you love?

Jon and I went to a great work convention last week in Las Vegas. The main band for the night was George Thorogood and the Destroyers .... I loved one song in particular "Who Do You Love".

The next day Corey, a friend & co-worker with Jon sent him this graphic that he made in response to the hate he hears coming out of "Christians". He says ...

I created the posters above to try in my small way to fight back at this view of sinners. No one is better than me or less deserving of Christ’s grace. I need to remind myself daily to love everyone no matter what, because Christ loved me, a wicked and filthy sinner.

WOW! What a great reminder of how we all can be so judgemental. Not a one of us is perfect, and who are we to say what sin or choice is worse than another ... so back to the question, Who do you love?

Cute Russian Bear ...

This is adorable! It's the Russian version of Winnie the Pooh and it's awesome. It's all in Russian, but you can still understand the story. It's very different than the Disney versions, and so much better! You have to check it out. Hope you enjoy it!

Retro Illustrations ...

I love vintage inspired illustrations. I've got quite a collection of vintage children's books that have the most amazing retro art, I'm so inspired by them. One of my ideas is to do a line of t-shirts with my own art and that of my kids. Here's a little sampling of some illustrations that are retro inspired with a modern day twist. These are not my art. But, I thought you might enjoy them, just because they are so fun!

Like Gnomes?

I don't know why, but I really like gnomes. Natalie recently drew this picture of one for me. After I told her how much I liked the drawing, she decided to sculpt one for me. He's too cute! I thought you might enjoy taking a peek at "gnomie".

Million Dollar Painting Found In Trash ...

I had a real debate with myself,” said Ms. Gibson, a writer and self-professed Dumpster diver. “I almost left it there because it was so big, and I kept thinking to myself, ‘Why are you taking this back to your crammed apartment?’”

But, she said, she felt she simply had to have the 38-by-51-inch painting, because “it had a strange power.

As an occasional "dumpster diver" myself, I really enjoyed this story. You can read the complete NY Times article here here.

Creativity ...

"We are educating people out of their creativity," Robinson says.