December Heart Thoughts . . .

From my Studio to Yours

I recently added some twinkle to my studio

and I love the feeling of happiness they bring to me

every time I enter my art space!

I had them awhile back and took them down,

(not quite sure why I took them away,

but they are back!)

How wonderful it is to have my very own

creative space

where all of my art supplies, books,

yarns, fibers, mixed media stuff,

paints, brushes, journals,
rubber stamps, washi tapes

and so much more

are all together

in one magical room!

December is such a hectic time of year

we have so much to do,

so many gifts to shop for,

creative gifts to make,

cards to send

and so much more.

I am currently enjoying

Hannah Marcotti's

Holiday Joy Up

21 days of connecting with gratitude.

What a gift I gave to myself!

 It is teaching me to slow myself down

enjoy the holiday

and find some breathing space
for just me!

So my December

will be filled with quiet moments,

not rushing through this holiday,
time for writing poetry,
good times spent with family and friends,

staying off the computer,

and taking a cyber break!

I want to work on re-designing

my precious little blog for 2013,

so I will enter the new year

refreshed, restored,

ready for new adventures

and coming back with a totally

new blog look!

So I wish you a holiday filled with love,

precious times with your family

and time for you to

rest within yourself.

Take the time to connect

with your thoughts, your faith

and your heart desires.

I wish you sincere peace.

I will see you in 2013!

I am looking forward to taking

Flora Bowley's E course

Brave Intuitive You

in January

so I will be off to a 

great creative start!

Blessings and Hugs

to you my creative family

Donna Lee

Thankful Wishes . . .

Wishing Tree from my niece Emily's wedding day

I recently watched a movie on the Hallmark Channel

entitled "The Wishing Tree"

and it really touched my heart.

Then after seeing one at a family wedding recently,

I realized what a beautiful idea that was!

Instead of putting wishes for a couple at a wedding,

I would create my own creative wishes.

It made me want to put one in my studio

and add my own wishes to the tree.

What inspiration that will be!

So right now I am on the hunt

for the perfect limb from a tree.

You know that got me to thinking

(for everything gets me to thinking these days!)

What am I wishing for right now, here in this moment?

It caused me to pause and reflect,

for I needed to ... life is going way to fast for me lately.

I keep finding myself trying to escape away to quiet

and think about this question

and here is what I finally WISH to share with you:

I wish for:

Peace of Mind

A Quiet Heart

More Writing Time

Happiness at Work

Health and Happiness

for my precious family

More time spent with my kids

(anyway and anyhow)

More time for Yoga

Cuddle time with the hubby

Getaways whenever I can

(lots of them!)

Reduce the chatter in my mind

 Always have time for poetry in my life

To be a beautiful and helpful soul

to others all around me 

I wish for you:

Beauty of Heart

Happiness and Spiritual Well Being

Well spent time with yourself

To always find 
the creative spirit inside you

Love and Laughter

Time to slow yourself down

Creative time to play

Wellness and Beauty

all around you.

Happy Thanksgiving

sending gratitude 

for what is right now

and what will be in the future

You are loved by me!

Donna Lee

I met Shelly along the way . . .

Shelly Norris of Soul Fire Retreats
writing on Maya Stein's "Type-Rider"

Last year at Serendipity Retreat

in the Outer Banks

October, 2011

I met this sweet and amazing girl

name Shelly Norris!

She was a teacher right where

I lived in Virginia Beach!

She came at the suggestion of her

good friend and author

Susan Pease,

my cottage mate at Squam by the Sea

October 2010

(are you getting all these connections?)

Retreats are always about 

 bringing others together. 

It was her first retreat 

and

she was on fire! 

She took in the entire retreat experience

with such joy and excitedness

that her attitude

was infectious!

She returned this year to the Outer Banks

for Squam by the Sea

and it was so good to see her once again.

For now she has quit her teaching job,

and begun a journey,

a beautiful journey all her own

called

Soul Fire Retreats!

She will be holding her very first one

in Sandbridge, Virginia Beach

in February of 2013

and has plans to hold

many more in the future,

each retreat having different

venues to choose from.

I just wanted to encourage you to check out her video

on You Tube here!

I wish much success along the way

for Shelly is a beautiful soul

wide open with expectations!

It was important for me to share Shelly with you,
I am so grateful to have loving and creative friends
in this artistic life of mine.
If you are looking for nourishment, looking for
a new life "shift"
then this is the place to look.
Fall back in "love" with 
your truest self!
Art classes, fellowship and so much more!

www.soulfireretreats.com

Participating in a Card Swap!

"Trust the Process"

This year I participated in the "Inspirational Card Deck Swap" with

Jessica Brogan of  In Search of Dessert 

I had read about her first swap earlier this year

and when she decided to hold another swap this fall

I knew I wanted to participate this time.

I had the pleasure of meeting Jessica

at Squam by the Sea this year

in the Outer Banks,

how wonderful it is to connect with

new friends from our social media world

and actually have a conversation

in person!

Jessica inspires me in so many ways,

please check out her link above to

her beautiful blog,

she is doing amazing work over there!

The deadline to have our 52 cards

to Jessica is November 15th,

so I am very proud of myself

for having completed and mailed

them off to Jessica this week!

It all began when Hurricane Sandy

decided to do her number on the East Coast,

and on Monday last week, she pounced

on Virginia Beach!

My office was closed and I found myself with a day off.

 I spent the entire day beginning and working 

on the process!

(Kinda cool hearing wind and rain while creating)

The challenge was to  start with a deck of cards,

all 52 of them

and I started playing away.

First Layer was white gesso

I used Liquitex gesso . . . I love it for many things

(even covering up pages for journaling)

Decided the second layer would be a stencil

Robin's Egg is my favorite color

Starting to come to life

Something starting to happen here ...

Added lots of different dimensions

to the cards that I use in my own

collage pieces

I have learned along the way

More Card Detail

(bubble wrap, smudges, rollers, palette scraping, bottle caps) 

A Little rubber stamping too

Almost there!

Writing down 52

Inspirational Thoughts for my cards

I then decided to type them on the computer

in a favorite font

Print onto Tracing Paper

and use on my cards

(learned about tracing paper on a tutorial)

I wasn't sure if it would work in my printer

Added inspirational quotes with matte gel medium

This is my favorite one!

I used a fun metallic marker around

each quote

Added a heart from ephemera 

to each card

A thin layer of top coat

Then finished with black gesso

along the borders

My hubby would just pass by the kitchen table

day after day to see how they progressed

he didn't get it

but knew it was something I had to do!

Love my hubby!

I packaged them up pretty

and mailed them off at the end

of this week

after thoroughly drying.

Now I wait . . . 

later this year Jessica will mail back to me

with 52 new cards (including one of my own)

and I will have a deck of inspiration

to begin my new Creative Year with!

One for each week to ponder on!

What fun it was, it took a lot of time

but was worth every minute of it.

Thanks Jess for putting it all together for us,

now the work is on you!

This was a great artistic experience

just having returned from the Sea!

Retreats are good for you!

Squam treasures

Gathering special mementos along the way

I am not sure where to begin with my blog post (which is certainly way over due) but to let you know I have returned after five amazing days at Squam by the Sea Retreat at Pine Island, in Corolla, North Carolina. It was a retreat that was full of so many memories and good things, I wanted to share with you.  I was able to re-connect with friends I had met two years ago and gather new friends as well.  There were so many first timers this year, it was fun seeing Squam through their newbie eyes!  I remember that was me just a few years ago.  I got to meet teachers I had never met before, learn new painting techniques, write poetry in my journal during quiet moments, spend time with my roomie Karen D and share fellowship and giggles with my housemates, take in the early morning sunrises, knit socks with the sound of ocean waves in my ears, look for the meteors with my roomies at 1:00 in the morning, capture photos and experience the beautiful sunsets over the sound.

It was an amazing soul searching experience and I came home renewed with my spirit and with my artwork.  Re-entry into normal life was extremely difficult this time around. I still am not ready to let go of all I took in.   I went with the mindset of wanting to experience and receive as much as I could, and I certainly came home overflowed with emotions.  So here are a few memories of mine to share with you, and you can perhaps understand the Squam experience with me. Next time around, perhaps you will be able to join me.

I was so excited to be here!

This was there to greet us as we arrived

My classmates gathered for dinner the night before class

I took three days with Flora Bowley

"Release and Become"

Maya Stein brought her "Type-Rider" for all of us

What a privilege to type from her writing prompt

it was such a thrill for me

A small and precious gift from Flora

we chose before starting class

Trust Your Intuition

I picked just the right one for me!

Opening ceremony with Flora

Letting go of  . . . 

Watching Flora demonstrate for three days

what a beautiful experience it was

I learned so much

My art table ... full of goodness

My painting view

Twinkling lights all over the room

Early morning sunrise

each day got more beautiful than the last

Candlelight closing ceremony

on the beach

My word to Elizabeth

"Fullfillment"

Gallery night and sharing our work with others

"Love on the Beach"

I brought this with me from home

created by Ro Bruhn

Of course there is always treats to bring home

Flora bags, Maya tee shirt and poetry book

Ish (read by Flora during class)

and new Mary Oliver Poetry book

found at the local Island Bookstore

Somehow these pictures just sum up my Squam experience.  Perhaps another post will be all the wonderful pics with friends along the way.  I did post a Squam 2012 photo album on my flicker page if you care to see more! I felt that these favorite moments expressed my retreat for me.  Thank you Elizabeth for your vision to gather women together in a beautiful surrounding and let them let go, create, share, cry, dance and let the experience unfold just the way it is supposed to.  I am grateful . . . so very grateful!

Donna Lee

Heading to Squam by the Sea

The sunrise view from my room last time

I am so excited to be heading

to Squam by the Sea

this week.

I have been so ready for this

experience

for quite awhile now.

My bags are packed,

the art supplies are

ready,

 my camera is packed 

and ready to capture

unforgettable moments.

Squam is a time to rediscover

yourself,

it is a time to reconnect 

with special friends

and make new

connections along the way.

My heart and my soul

are ready for what lies ahead.

My first Squam experience was
after I had just lost my mother.
I was afraid and unsure of myself
 I didn't know anyone
but one person.
It didn't take long for everyone
to embrace me
and I grew as a person
and as an artist that year.
I still carry memories of that
first Squam experience
and cherish the friendships
today that were made there.

I am grateful to be able to attend

this amazing event

I never want to take it for granted

I will be missing a few friends

who won't be there this year

my heart is already missing you

So off I go . . .

to the Outer Banks

eager and ready

to experience my art, 

to fill my creative self

and to find new things along the way.

I promise to share and have

lots of photos when I return.

Incredible moments are

just waiting for me

to come and receive.

I wish you a week of 

peace and beauty

until I return home.

Cerulean Blue

I recently took a Poetry Workshop 

with the Poetry Society of Virginia

with the amazing Daniel Pravda

a Professor from Norfolk State University

on a beautiful Saturday afternoon!

We shared poems and lunch together, 

analyzed and broke down poetry,

shared our interpretations and insights

along the way.

He then gave us a poetry prompt

to write about an object that we can relate to

that will bring the reader in about the object

for me it was a tube of watercolor paint

Cerulean Blue

it just seemed right.

So this artist (slash poet) would like to 

share her words with you today . . . 

Cerulean Blue

This dried up tube of paint

still sits upon her art table

covered in dried up smudges

no more life to squeeze from within

Every ounce of color poured out

from it's crumpled little body

Now only showing the letters

U and E and C

Beautiful paintings of skies and clouds

found it's way from this tube

to the painter's palette

to the empty canvas

Cerulean Blue  . . .

bright and magical

soothing and calming

such a feeling of serene

It's color will exist here

upon the canvas

hanging in beauty for

the eyes to behold

Long after this tube of

Cerulean Blue

has been thrown away into the can

(poem inspired by Daniel Pravda Poetry Workshop)

Life's Yummy Moments

Yummy Red Velvet!

Special times with family

Quiet writing time

Afternoon naps

Walks in the beach

Vacations

Girlfriend time

Creating my Art

Seasons changing

Cupcakes

Riding bikes

Delicious food

Candlelight and Incense

An intimate restaurant

Laughter

Hugs

Good Music

Bubble Baths

Gardening

Aromatherapy

Long walks

Starbucks

Retreats

Life is full if yummy moments, 
just look for them and you will see! 
Tell me what's yours?

Artist . . .

Self Portrait on a Sunday Afternoon

I just had a quiet day to myself in the Outer Banks,

as I was shopping I came across this sign in an art store

it read

"Artist at Work"

it was for sale.

I am always playing with my camera

looking for just the right Instagram photo,

and the word Artist

just kept speaking to me

I took out my camera

and focused just on the word Artist.

I also saw my reflection from the glass

staring up at me.

I began to realize and begin to think

YES little girl inside

I truly am an Artist!

I am seeking to live creatively

each and every day.

Art is personal, it is reflective,

it is expressive.

There are no rights and wrongs.

As I saw my own reflection

in the window yesterday

I spoke to myself

"Be proud of yourself Donna Lee"

and the work that you

have accomplished so far.

I have come a long way in my 

artistic life.

I have learned so many things about

myself along the way.

Art truly makes me happy.

Writing expresses the thoughts from within.

Creating gives me peace.

I love painting on the Beach

I do have something to offer others.

I am truly an

A R T I S T