Wordless Wednesday . . .

                             

Remembering A Sweet Moment. . .

Lou and Bosco

Newport, RI 10/7/04

As you all know creativity is a healer. During the most difficult times of my life I have turned to my writing, photography and now painting to help get me through. This time is no different. I am still reeling from the loss of my pug and some days feel as though I won't ever stop crying. On Saturday I went looking through some photos of my Bosco, shed some tears, and then put my focus to creating something beautiful.

I love this photo I shot of Lou and Bosco 7 years ago on a trip to Newport. There is something so amazing about capturing those candid moments that cannot never be posed or planned. I thought this image would be great with texture and I cropped it in such a way to leave room for an inspiring quote I found about dogs.
Lou loved what I did with this photo and I do too. The words really complete it for me. It made me feel a little better taking my pain and translating it into something beautiful.

Thought you might like to see the original image . . .

Thank you all for your ongoing support and kind words as I weave my way through this maze of grief.

I am grateful for all of you . . .
xo

Sunset Love . . . New Digital Collage

Sunset Love

prints available in my etsy shop

Here I am again with more digitally altered photos! What a surprise right?! :) There is a serious addiction developing here. But I am having fun so that is what matters right?! My blank canvas is still yelling at me. All I have done is sketch out my landscape and added a bit of purple for a sky. Then I happily went back to photoshop! lol

The above image was created using two of my own images. One is a sunset shot I captured in Puerto Rico on our honeymoon and the other is a photo of a heart a drew in the sand on the beach in newport. I layered the heart over the sunset, moved it around till I liked the image , and spent some time adjusting opacities as well as hue and saturation. I could spend hours playing around with all of the image altering techniques to be had!

I love the results! Hope you do too!

PS . . . I think I may need to change the title of this blog soon to "Photoshop Addict"!! lol

Newport Pictures and A Celebration

Hello my dear friends!! Thanks so much for your lovely comments on my last post!! Our weekend trip was fabulous! Despite the wind and cold temps the warm sun was shining all weekend which made Newport all the more beautiful!! We were blessed with great sunny weather! We always stay at a beach cottage that we love and waking up each morning to the sounds of the ocean is always amazing! Oh how I miss it already.

I will be sharing some photos in 2 parts since there are too many as usual! The ones here today were taken along Newport's famed "Cliff Walk". You can walk along the ocean for 3 miles and even see the mansions along the pathway!

This photo is from the top overlooking the edge of the cliff.

These are the "Forty Steps" at the start of the cliff walk. I didn't think I would make it back up! But me and my outta shape legs did just fine!

Lou and I took this photo at the bottom of the forty steps. Today is Lou's birthday so we will be relaxing at home, taking the pug to the walk trail and celebrating with some cupcakes later tonite! It is another sunny day here and I am grateful.

More photos to come! I have missed you all! I look forward to catching up and visiting your blogs soon!! :)

Wordless Wednesday . . . Beach Cottage

Beach Cottage, Castle Hill Inn

Newport, RI

In The Cove . . . New Abstract

"In The Cove"

acrylic glazes on 5x5" birch wood

These colors inspired me to think of the ocean. I don't normally go for colors this bold but thought I would give it a try to see what they looked like glazed on the wood. I used magenta and phalto blue (green shade) and I love them together! I also added some water soluble crayons in areas for shading. I mixed in some titanium white to lighten things up and to make waves on the left side.

In this one I found an image on the right that to me looks like a couple hugging while leaning against a rock wall. The title popped into my head as I was painting. It looks like a nice place to be. I really do enjoy creating these abstracts and feel a freedom I don't allow myself doing other types of painting.

For those of you celebrating Christmas I wish you a wonderful evening and a memorable day tomorrow spent with those you love!

Painting The Beach

The water has always brought me solace and comfort. One of my favorite places to go is the beach. Of course being blue eyed and fair skinned I need to find a shady tree to sit under! But what really comforts me is the sound of the waves crashing against the shore.

Most of the traveling I have done in my life has been to tropical places. I have been to Jamaica, Barbados, Hawaii, Cayman Islands, Puerto Rico, and my favorite of all Aruba. My last tropical trip was my honeymoon 7 years ago to PR. Unfortunately I am not a big fan of flying and since my last trip my anxiety has increased. These days I would rather go on a road trip to the beach.

This painting was inspired by my love of the ocean. It was done on 8x10 canvas board with acrylic. Whenever I look at it I am reminded of one of my favorite places . . .

Do you like to travel? Where is your favorite place?

Capturing the Ocean in Black and White . . .

I shot these photos last fall when my husband and I took a long weekend trip to Rhode Island one of my very favorite places to go. It is less than a 3 hour drive from our home in NY. I have been going up there for 10 years now and there is just something about the area that I love. We usually go to Newport and stay at a beautiful B&B situated right on the ocean shore. The above shot is the view from our beach cottage which is pictured below.

Soon after I was diagnosed with cancer 9 years ago I took a drive up to Newport alone and spent the day sitting on some rocks near the ocean shore. It was 2 days before my surgery. I sat there for hours just listening to the waves crash against the rocks as I pondered life and death. I found peace there that day that I believe helped me to move forward with all the dark road that lied ahead.

I will never tire of spending time near the water. It is what brings me peace and helps calm me. It is the place I turn to for solace and for hope. I believe that nature can heal us with its energy.

Where do you go to find peace? In some of your darkest moments what has helped you?