Saturday:) Some Talented Outlaws

“When the world becomes a massive mess with nobody at the helm, it’s time for artists to make their mark.”

~Joni Mitchell

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This evening, I had the pleasure of attending the opening reception for “The Outlaws In Art” a ten year reunion of four fabulous artists and friends. The reception at The Martin Place opened today and will run through August 30th. 

Lisa Temple, Vicky Saylor, Tina Wantland, and Sandy Bauder have been friends for a long time and artists even longer.

The reception was packed, and the neat part about the McKinney art scene is, you’re guaranteed to bump into dozens of friends. Local artists always support one another. 

The Martin Place is located at 1799 N. Graves St., McKinney, TX. If you’d like to see some lovely pieces of art, stop by before the end of the month when The OUTLAWS will be riding out of town. Well, at least their show will.

http://www.themartinplace.com/

A Steamy Saturday On The Square

“If you seek creative ideas go walking. Angels whisper to a man when he goes fora walk.” 

― Raymond I. Myers

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It was REALLY HOT today, but I was tired of being cooped up in the house, so I headed over to the Square. That’s my happy feel-good place. 

My first stop was a visit to Sweet Spot Bakery. Miss Elizabeth was working on a beautiful wedding cake. Why didn’t I take a picture? Here’s a sample.

I walked over to the Little Free Pantry outside of Hugs Cafe and added some canned goods. It’s looking pretty empty. If you have some things to share, stop by and drop them off. Of course, you kinda have to live near McKinney. 

Right next door is Bay Willow Design. The owner, and my friend Jenny, was busy creating a wonderful hat, and there was a workshop going on. Ladies making and spdesigning their own hats.


Jill was working on a clothing project using vintage fabric and original patterns.

Now, for my favorite visit to The Cove, a wonderful art gallery a few blocks away. This week, they were featuring several local potters and ceramic artists. 

My friends Steve, and his daughter Alex were there. Both fabulous potters, but Minda, Steve’s talented wife was out of town, so they created a paper plate face called, FLAT MINDA. This way friends could take selfies with her at the reception.

Steve, Minda, and me. We had a nice visit, and I found several beautiful pieces that will soon be decorating my house. 

When I went back to my car, hmmm….I think someone hid one of those cute painted rocks in a pretty obvious spot.

A nice day on the Square in McKinney.

Theme Song Thursday:) That Old Time Rock N’ Roll

“And yet we couldn’t leave–it was if the rocks were holding us there. I mean, they were only rocks. But for some reason, those rocks made lonely feel good.” 

― Cynthia Kadohata, The Thing About Luck

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A super fun day “Rockin'” with a lovely group of artistic ladies. Well, the “Rockin'” was actually painting rocks on the porch of the Heard Craig House in the McKinney historic district. The concept is people or groups paint rocks and hide them around McKinney. When someone finds a hidden rock, they can either keep it or rehide it. On the back, it will say…please post on the Facebook McKinney Rocks page where you found it or a selfie of you and your found treasure. Such a charming idea.

Here are some of the “Rockin’ Painters.”

Very nice, right? Mine are in the upper right hand corner. I need to find some more rocks to paint. If you find a beautiful painted rock somewhere in McKinney, pick it up and enjoy the random act of rockin’ kindness.

They could be hidden anywhere. 

Thursday:) The Coolest Art Club and Some Cool Clouds

Any time women come together with a collective intention, it’s a powerful thing. Whether it’s sitting down making a quilt, in a kitchen preparing a meal, in a club reading the same book, or around the table playing cards, or planning a birthday party, when women come together with a collective intention, magic happens.

~. Phylicia Rashad

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The Art Club of McKinney is the oldest Art Club in Texas, founded in 1914. It remains a thriving, ever evolving organization. Today was our annual Christmas luncheon, ornament exchange, and silent auction at the historic Heard Craig House. 

The group isn’t comprised of only women. There are a few daring and patient men who attend the meetings.  I’ll admit, the cackling and chatting can get a bit overwhelming, but in a good creative kinda way.

Lynne, Sherry, me and Lynda. We’re the Tiny TOTS (Table Of Talent Sisters.)

When a lot of ladies get together, there is a lot of really good food.

The ornament exchange was cool this year. It was suggested that all ornamnets to be exchanged should be handmade, embellished, or decorated, instead of store bought. Then, they were wrapped or in a bag, so no one knew what was inside.

Here is the one I was lucky enough to receive. A lot of beads and sparkle.

Here is an example of the ornament that I brought. Bluebonnets this year, in a handpainted box.

Oh, then we had a silent auction. Everyone was asked to bring two handmade ornaments. One for the exchange and one for the auction. And, there were over a dozen paintings donated for the auction. Here are the two paintings that I won bids on. Both of these are fabulous watercolors.

It was a fun afternoon, with fun and talented artist friends.

Now for my cool clouds. After all that yummy food, I needed a long walk. It was pretty darn cold out. In the 30’s, crisp and cloudy. I wore my heavy coat, gloves and sock monkey hat. But, the lovely evening sky was worth the cold nose and frozen fingers.

Friday:) A Few Special Friends, Fine Food, and Fun Gifts

“Homemade and handcrafted with love is the greatest gift to give, and the greatest gift to receive.”

-Toni Armenta Andrukaitis

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“Presents are made for the pleasure of who gives them, not the merits of who receives them.” 

― Carlos Ruiz Zafón

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Christmas is my favorite time of year. Personally, I think we should have the Christmas spirit all year round, but it doesn’t work that way. I like that people seem jollier, strangers are cheerful, and I love all the lights, decorations, and glitz. Yes! The more glitz the better.

One of the cool things about being an artist with many artist friends is, we get to share our talents with one another. We share ideas, teach each other various crafty techniques, share art supplies, and sometimes go shopping and thrifting together. The absolute BEST part is the homemade gifts for birthdays and holidays. Homemade and handcrafted with love is the greatest gift.

I was thinking about that this morning as I was making my homemade pasta salad for lunch. If I was given the option of the gift of a pair of two carat diamond earrings or a pink  painted noodle necklace that my son made just for me in kindergarten, well, you know I’d choose the noodle necklace. I don’t think I’m the only one, either. So, as I packed up my handpainted ornaments for my friends and finished embellishing my homemade pasta salad, I was excited to see what creative and lovely gifts would be shared at our little artist girlfriend gathering. 

Lynne, me, Sherry and Lynda. The talent and creativity of these lovely ladies could light up the evening sky. 

This is the ornament that I made for my friends this year.

We had lunch at Lynda’s new studio in the historic district in McKinney. The room is filled to the brim with amazing watercolor masterpieces. An artist’s dream studio. We sat and visited and giggled and ate. It was a wonderful afternoon, sharing food, friendship and special gifts. That’s what the holidays are all about.

Here are some the special gifts I have received from a few of my special friends. I will cherish them always. By the way, I still have that painted noodle necklace that my son made for me in kindergarten, and all the other treasures my boys made for me. Noodles over diamonds any time.

Saturday:) Some Seriously Talented Artists

“There are painters who transform the sun to a yellow spot, but there are others who with the help of their art and their intelligence, transform a yellow spot into sun” 

― Pablo Picasso

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Today was he first day of MAST, the McKinney Art Studio Tour. Local artists opened up their working studios or displayed their work at local galleries. The best part of the two day tour is visiting with many of my artist friends or making new ones.

My good friend and fabulous watercolor artist, Lynda Kingsley, recently opened up her new studio space above her garage. It’s an expansive room complete with all the amenities of home. Lynda also teaches classes in her studio.

Steve Macias is a wonderful potter. Here they are working on some outdoor firing and raku demonstrations.

His daughter, Alex, is a talent in her own right.

I always pick out a special crucifix made by Alex for my collection.

So many artists, so little time.

Most of the artist also demonstrated and worked on projects, answering questions. A group of curious Boy Scouts were mesmerized by the wood turning.

Jeni Tomlinson captures wonderful portraits and animal subjects with her masterful brush.

Lynne Hubner is a superb printmaker, but also a great teacher. I’ve taken a few classes with her at The Art House.

Soona Knox, founder and owner of The Art House can creat magic with a lump of clay.

It was an enchanting experience, but we (Me, Bonita, and Sherry) didn’t get to see half of the artists on the tour. It’s a good thing that MAST resumes tomorrow noon to 5. 

For more info, search mckinneyartstudiotour.com   There is also a magnificent silent auction on the website. Bidding ends Sunday at 3. If you didn’t get a chance to attend the tour, you can find some amazing artwork on the auction site.

Theme Song Thursday:) Add One New Thing To Your Life

“If only you can add just one great and distinctive thing to your life each day, you shall surely not just live and leave one great thing!” 

― Ernest Agyemang Yeboah

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Today was our monthly meeting of the Art Club of McKinney. It was our make and take meeting. We had three different projects to learn with three different instructors. We formed in groups and rotated every thirty minutes. 

This was an amazing project for me because I don’t sew. Thank goodness Lynda threaded the needle for me. But, I cut the felt, sewed the button on and glued on the felt. Learning something new can be rewarding. Although, I cut the felt hoping to fit my phone, but I didn’t allow enough room for the stitching. Now, it is a glass case. 

This origami ornament was made with five squares of three inches,  folded and glued in just the right places. If I could learn how to do it, any one could. Little folding things drive me crazy, but I was patient.

These artist trading cards are just started and need a few more embellishments. I learned that…not everything gets finished in thirty minutes.

So, today I learned three new things and had a lot of fun with my artist friends.