Take Flight

My latest hand carved bird stamp. I used a Speedball Speedy-Carve rubber block instead of the Steadtler Mastercarve ones that I normally use
because they've been out of stock for months. Can't find them anywhere.
I'm really happy with the pink stuff. It works very well for detailed stamps.

Imaginary Sketchbook

Digital collage of my hand drawn birdies.
No glue residue in my hands with this one ;-)
There are lots of free digital collage images available on the web to play with.
A few wonderful resources I've found here, here & here. Have fun!

Outside

Fall weather is just perfect for being outside :)

Flower Garden

My newest rock creation.
This painting on stones thing is becoming an obsession.
I can't have any rocks laying around in the house
without the compulsion decorate them.
I will list a whole bunch of them in my shop next week
in case you want to adopt one. They're taking over my studio!

October Desktop Calendar

My second favorite month of the year is almost here :)
Download the new free desktop calendar from this link
or by clicking on the image below.

Tunic

Yesterday I went all Project Runway and tie-dyed some beautiful aqua
Globalweave linen I had stashed from Purl Soho and sewed myself a tunic
based on one I bought on Etsy three years ago from Linumgirl.
I eyeballed the pattern (I had never made a garment before)
so it's a little different but I'm really happy with my new hippie top.

Night Bird

Watercolor & acrylic ink on St-Armand 100% cotton handmade paper. 4 x 5 inches
Pretty lesser goldfinch I spotted this morning from the kitchen sink.

Salsa Verde

Photographic companion to the salsa verde recipe
I shared at Nate & Salli's They Draw and Cook.

The book is available for pre-order and will be out in October!
I made Manolo some 'huevos revueltos con nopales' (scrambled eggs with paddle cactus) which is a very traditional Mexican breakfast.
He ate them with my salsa verde & corn tortillas I warmed up on the griddle.

Roast the tomatillos, serrano chiles and cactus paddles in a hot griddle.

Finelly chop the onion and garlic

and give them a few wacks in the mortar and pestle to let all the juices out.

Once the tomatillos and chiles are cooked puree them using an immersion blender.

Put the tomatillo puree back in the mortar and mix with the onion, garlic and a handfull of fresh finally chopped cilantro.

Season with salt to taste and the salsa verde is ready!

Chop up the roasted nopales and mix them with two beaten eggs.
Season with salt and pepper and pour the mixture
into a pre-heated non stick pan with a little bit of oil.

It's very important not to overcook the eggs.

When the eggs are ready serve them with warm corn tortillas and salsa verde.
If you're not into paddle cactus like me,
you can scramble the eggs with sautéed mushrooms instead.

Hope you guys have a wonderful weekend!

Decal Rocks

Made some stones using laser jet water slide decals I printed
with my artwork & varnished them with pva glue.
I used a 005 micron pen to draw all the black details
on the butterfly before I varnished it.

Extra Fancy

Playing with Lola (my dear sewing machine) this morning
making a patchwork cover for one of the inkjet printers in the studio.
I used a beautiful vintage rice sack cover my friend Diana gave me when she came down to Mexico in February for the ACE Camps workshop (thank you friend!)
and some lovely Bookhou fabric squares I bought from their Etsy shop.
The gorgeous fabric calendar in the first photo was a b-day gift from my very sweet
& generous friend Arounna. You can get one at her Bookhou etsy shop.
It's for 2012 but it's so beautiful I hung it right away. Thanks A! I love it!

Cosmos

The first cosmos of the season just popped up & I'm always inspired by them.
The other pretty flowers are globe amaranth and not red clover
as I mentioned in my previous post (thanks Margie for your keen eye!)
Some of you have asked where I get those smooth flat stones...
Manolo bought two big sacks full of them for a project and ended up not using them.
Luckily for me because now I've got stones to paint for the next ten years!

Around the House

1- On the wall next to where I have my computer
is a beautiful embroidered medicine shield Margie made
hanging from a colorful tin frame I found in San Miguel de Allende.
2- I love the window Manolo made on top of the sink.
Makes washing the dishes more enjoyable. You can't see it in this photo but the hill just outside the window is bursting with tiny wild flowers.
3- Red clover on the hill just outside my kitchen window.

Golden Orange

1- New stone I painted with FW Pearlescent white
liquid acrylic from Daler Rowney which is very hard to photograph.
2- My sweet husband Manolo's gift for my birthday was this beautiful flat file cabinet.
When he organized his studio downstairs he took his beloved old flat file with him
and I was left with no place to keep my large sheets of paper
so he had this one made specially for my studio :)
The wonderful wood veneer lamp and plant pot cover are from Bookhou.
3- The hills are alive and covered in tiny specks of golden orange!
Which is why I ♥ this time of year.
4- Wild golden daisies are everywhere.

We Have a Winner...

Congratulations Marilyn!!!
I've just emailed you the good news! If you see this first please contact me as soon as possible with your mailing address so I can have the package flying to you!
You have until next Friday to contact me.
If you haven't by then I will choose another winner from the comments.
Thank you so much for all your heartfelt birthday wishes,
it was even more special because of you!
I'm so happy y'all liked the fabrics!!!
I will let you know as soon as they're available sometime in the Spring of next year.
Love you guys! Have a great weekend! xoxo

A B-Day, a Fabric Line & a Giveaway!

Dear friends,
As you must all know by my multiple previous announcements ;)
that today is my 44th birdthday!!!!
And if that wasn't exciting enough I also want to show you
my new line of organic cotton fabrics in collaboration with Cloud 9 Fabrics!
The collection is called Alegria which means "happiness" in Spanish.
Available in the Spring of 2012 :)
I am incredibly honored to be a part of the Designer Series at Cloud9Fabrics. Michelle was like a dream to work with.
It has been a really wonderful experience that has been brewing for a whole year!
To celebrate I'll be hosting a fun giveaway bundle that will include a copy of this book,
a 6 x 6 inches watercolor/collage original birdie, three prints from my shop
among many other surprise paper goodies!
Leave a comment on this post with your contact info so I can find you if you win.
I'll pick a random lucky winner tomorrow morning when I wake up
& I'll announce it later in the day.
Happy birthday to all my b-day twins that read the blog!
***Anyone in the whole wide world can participate, I will ship wherever you are!***
Please comment just once, any duplicates will be deleted.

UPDATE: Comments are now closed. I will announce the winner later today.
Thank you so much for all thhe birthday wishes, I had the best day and reading all of them was a wonderful gift!