Spring Is Here For Real I Guess ...

Plants are starting to grow in the field again.

A couple of days ago, I found the first blooming snowdrop.

This morning, the sky looked like this.

Birds are chirping louder and louder.

We just got a hail storm.

So, spring is here for real I guess. :)

You know I'm always happy to hear from you, don't you?

Please, feel free to leave a comment here or on Facebook,
or contact me at ritajc(at)inbox(dot)lv

Spring Is Here

Normally, February would be the coldest month of the year here in Latvia.

But this year, winter has been really short and mild and meteorologists say that the average day temperature is constantly staying above the freezing point.

They say the snowdrops are blooming at some places. Haven't seen any myself yet, but the willows show pretty big catkins already.

So, yes, spring must be here. YAY!!!

How is it where you are?

My Creative Space - Color Challenge Yellow

There is a creative color challenge hosted by Louise Gale on her site. The color for April is mustard yellow. As I really like yellow, the color of sun, daffodils, dandelions, and bananas, I wanted to participate. Unfortunately, this month was pretty stressful for me, so I completely forgot about the color challenge. Yesterday, I received an e-mail from Louise, that there is a wrap up open to link to our creations. But I had nothing to show!

But than I thought: hey, it's still April, isn't it? So I grabbed a piece of water color paper and my so far unused dandelion stencil, and started to play! I challenged myself even more and decided to use only this one particular stencil! For now, it's just a piece of decorated paper, but who knows, what it will become some day... And I had so much fun creating it! Thank you so much, Louise!

To see other challenge entries visit the wrap up post and/or the Flickr group. Feeling inspired? It's still April! That means, you can still catch the last train and join the fun!

My Creative Space

The last week was a pretty busy one for me again, but I still managed to create something every day, that makes me feel really happy.


I started and finished a page for the Life Book class with Wyanne .

And did the first exercise for an on-line workshop with Jane DesRosier  :)

I started and finished two spreads in my art journal as well. With the first one, I was pretty much stuck, until a spirit showed up and wanted to say something. It was Julia, who is believed to be the receiver of the first Valentine's note. No wonder, she wanted to remind me, that: "Faith and patience bears fruit. Always."

And this is the other one, featuring some paper and cards sent to me by one of my Sisters of the Book, the lovely Becky Young.

And I even made a little spring decoration for our place using eggs, flowers and hearts felted by me and the first spring flowers from our garden.

To see more inspiring creative spaces, jump over to Our creative spaces

My Creative Space

Last week wasn't very productive for me: we're living like in an a storage room because of all the things my oldest son left here. I have started to sort them out, but it is a hard task for me, as dealing with things and having to make thousands of decisions about their use and place is a total energy drainer for me...


As I said last time, I have started a new art journal though. And this is its cover so far. Might come back and add something to it later.

This is the front inside cover. The initial inspiration came from a live stream with Tee Thompson, but than I started to see those images emerging from the background without any idea, what it was. Now, it seams to me, it must be Pan and all the symbolism connected to him.

And there is one more spread I consider finished in my art journal. It was inspired by this equinox doll I received from the lovely Palma Rea along with a beautiful tag, pieces of craft paper and some tissue paper in a gorgeous lilac color the doll was wrapped in.

So I started my spread gluing down pieces of that tissue paper, taping on the tag and playing with paints trying to capture all the different colors from the doll. Later I used a flower stamp made by myself encouraged by the 52 Play Dates' videos by Jan Fox. And the spread was finished on a sunny note boosted by the gorgeous spring weather here and my body starting to feel better after I restarted to take supplements it needed.

To see more inspiring creative spaces and to show off yours, if you like, jump over to Our creative spaces

My Creative Space

Last week was a really busy and stressful one: had a couple of technically tough translation projects and one of my sons was moving to Canada and visiting us together with his partner on Saturday (and leaving loads of his stuff in our tiny shabby place). And the capricious spring weather wasn't helping me to recover at all: I was feeling better on the sunny days, but have almost no energy on the dull and rainy ones :(
So not much of artsy activities completed in my creative space to show off today, just a couple of art journal pages

 Saying good bye...

Chapters begin and come to an end, but  the way goes on

 

Reminder to my freaking out ego: I am, who I am, no matter, what anybody is thinking of me :)

 Inspired by this video in Seed Journals with Milliande Demetriou

   

Feels unfinished, I might go back to this one some day in the future

And there is another old work book prepared to be my next art journal. YAY! 

I 'm sorry for the bad images again: not much of a good daylight here in the North for now.


To see more inspiring creative spaces and to show off yours, if you like, jump over to Our creative spaces

Monday News

Happy Equinox to everyone!

We don't see sun here today. But I know it's smiling behind the clouds and it's still the first day of spring on this hemisphere!

The Euro Week has started on Etsy!

My green Monday Moodboard is on the blog of European Street Team on Etsy.

And Lori is having a great give away ;)

Update: Sun is starting to lurk through the clouds! YAY!

Saturday Shopping Day - Flowers for a Bride

This week, I started and finished a custom order: a set of beaded flower hair pins for a bride. I was so happy about the order and how they turned out, that I just couldn't stop shooting pics of them :)


To see more beautiful hand made creations and to show yours visit Sandra's
and Annemarie's

My First Garden Day

Today was the first time in this year I could work a bit in my garden.

A couple of weeks ago it was only a pond.

Today it was dry enough to set my feet into it.  Weather was sunny and warm, so I could work outside in a T-shirt with short sleeves. For the first time in this year, too.

I want to share with you some shots of the first blooms and the first friend and helper I met there. Sorry for not so good pictures: as there was some breeze the blooms were moving constantly.