Friday, September 26, 2008

Bad Dog Gallery - Bitchin'

Last night was the opening of the Bitchin' show at the Bad Dog Gallery, and here are some pieces from the show!

Nina Rizzo - Dog Star
Ann Flowers - Hell Cat

Billie Giese - Astrobitches
Christine Lofaso - Lamentation Series: Blair Tom Berenz - Kip

Karen Brown - Venus
It was a perfect night for a show! I am going to miss this warm weather we have had this week.
Lastly, here is the beautiful Ann who posed next to her piece for me. :)

Thursday, September 18, 2008

Beginnings.

Just some projects I am working on for my fibers and painting classes:




Projects in Progress

I just made a trip to the craft store so I could get the yarn to finish this bag:

It is a knit version of my crocheted grocery bag pattern, and I'm hoping to get a pattern written up very soon to share with you all. I love the structure of the bag, and the kitchen cotton I'm using is very very strong.
Our tomatoes are coming in full force now. I know it is a little late, but, in my defense this was my first time gardening ever- and I'm just happy they came in. I learned a lot for next year and have been planning next summer's garden in my head. We've been able to eat everything that we've grown, and my favorite thing so far has to be the homemade pesto. We had some last night on some wonderful tomato basil wheat pasta. We just took about a cup and a half of our thai basil, added some fresh parmesan cheese, and then some extra virgin olive oil, and blended it until it was mostly smooth. A little bit of this goes a long way, and we've been using the left-over pesto on our sandwiches as well.

Sunday, September 7, 2008

Eat. Sleep. Paint. Class. Knit. Repeat.

I cannot believe it is already going to be the third week of school next week! I am just starting to get into the routine of school again, and somehow I've been able to time manage everything in my life (barely!). My garden has been bearing some more fruits lately, here is a snippet of yesterday's bounty:

I've also been cooking a lot these last few days, trying to use the food from our garden, and also taking advantage of the fact that I go past a fresh food market every day on my way home from class.
This is what we had last night for dinner -- It is a portabella mushroom burger with provolone cheese and homemade pesto (which is hidden under the bun) on a toasted rosemary bun. We had it with bakery bread and cooked green beans and brussel sprouts.
Friday night we also ate well. We had panini sandwiches with provolone, beef, pesto, and honey mustard sauce on them. There was also corn on the cob, but it didn't make the cut due to our scarfing it down so quickly. Anyone looking for a panini maker, don't buy one. Buy a George Foreman grill with a floating hinge instead. That is what we have, and once summer is over, it is really the best thing ever for grilling indoors, and with the floating hinge you can make paninis and grilled cheese without squishing them.
Yesterday for lunch we had nachos. I know, really healthy, but it was really yummy. I've been playing around with making fresh salsas from canned tomatoes, and I'm getting near what I would consider the perfect salsa. We also made some guacamole. I think Nate had two full plates.
Other than cooking a lot, I've also been knitting a fair amount. A lot of this is because Nate and I have been carpooling to class, and therefore, I wait around for him quite a bit (I'm not complaining, I actually use the time to write lesson plans and knit!) I've been going to the Dekalb stitch and bitch as well the last few weeks, so I get a lot of knitting done there too. This is Emerald from Knitty, and I've been chugging away with it. I'm almost to where I'll join the sleeves to the body, and then start the cabled shoulder decreases. I've also started a little vest, and I'm about halfway done with the back. The lace stitch used is really easy to memorize, and I think it will really pop once it is washed and blocked. It is the Vine Lace Vest and I'm knitting it in Cotton Ease as well.
I can't wait to be done with both of them so I can wear them. I've got a sneaking suspicion that I'll finish the vest first though. :)
Here are some more little treasures from my garden.
Not all of the flowers are being destroyed by the little aphids from hell!
It is such a nice morning here, I've got the windows wide open, it is quiet, and there is a nice cool breeze coming in. I'm going to be doing homework most of the day, but as long as it is so lovely outside, I don't really mind that much.
I've got a fun (but busy) week coming up, involving taking my students outside to draw, visiting artists, and some classes that I really enjoy.
Hope you all have some things to look forward to this week as well. :)

Monday, September 1, 2008

Painting Accomplished! ...Back to the Grind...

I don't know about you, but Nate and I (well, mostly Nate...) decided it would be a great idea to paint the living room the same week that we went back to classes (and the same week I started teaching my Drawing Foundations class). I had also just painted three whole drawing rooms (2 coats each room) as a part of my graduate assistantship. Maybe not the smartest idea... But, it looks great so really, it wasn't the worst decision I've ever made. :)
Here I am ready to tackle some painting ass!!
I did all of the taping, edges, corners, and detail areas, and Nate did the big areas.
When we were finished, we were both a little tired. What better to do than plunker down and have a cold one? Or in Nate's case, a giant cold one! Our nice beer steins came from Nate's little bro who had recently been in Germany visiting a friend.
I'll get some pictures up of how the finished living room looks once I get it cleaned up. I'm also going to try and get some pics posted of the various projects I've been working on.
It has been a busy week so far, but I can't complain too much! I'm excited about my classes this semester (two painting classes and a fibers class) and teaching has been going very smoothly. I do have 19 students though, so it gets to be pretty crammed in our drawing studios. Anyways, I've got to get some lesson plans written up and get in some quality relaxation time before tomorrow!