Spirit Beaded Doll

SpiritDoll1, a photo by megan_n_smith_99 on Flickr.

I've never marked down the prices on my beaded dolls but I have three for sale on Etsy right now, including the doll shown. and they are marked down from $275 & $300 to $220 for this weekend only. Sale ends Sun Dec 8th at midnight PST.

I will also take commissions for a 6" beaded doll for the same price - with a 50% deposit - though I could not promise to have those done by Xmas, so we'd need to discuss the dates.

you can see the dolls
here.

Oh goodness, though, I wish I was feeling as free and serene as the beaded doll appears to be. I think I will be going to the dr. next week - I've been under the weather for 3 weeks and I clearly need a tuneup or something.

I hope I feel like painting today, though possible I will just curl up under my electric blanket and read.

"Scarred creatures are my dearest companions"

Red Fox II

8x10"

watercolor & ink

I found a new quote today that I just have to share with you:

"Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won't either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You are here to risk your heart. You are here to be swallowed up. And when it happens that you are broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes near, let yourself sit by an apple tree and listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps, wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself you tasted as many as you could." 

— Louise Erdrich

& I may have shared this one before:

"I am a frayed and nibbled survivor in a fallen world, and I am getting along. I am aging and eaten and have done my share of eating too. I am not washed and beautiful, in control of a shining world in which everything fits, but instead am wondering awed about on a splintered wreck I've come to care for, whose gnawed trees breathe a delicate air, whose bloodied and scarred creatures are my dearest companions, and whose beauty bats and shines not in its imperfections but overwhelmingly in spite of them..." 

— Annie Dillard

& I how can I close without one from Ann Lamott, one of my favorite writers ever-- she's writing for all of us, all creative people, all parents, everyone who feels like they are walking in the dark half of the time:

"I said that I thought the secret of life was obvious: be here now, love as if your whole life depended on it, find your life's work, and try to get hold of a giant panda. If you had a giant panda in your back yard, anything could go wrong — someone could die, or stop loving you, or you could get sick — and if you could look outside and see this adorable, ridiculous, boffo panda, you'd start to laugh; you'd be so filled with thankfulness and amusement that everything would be O.K. again."
— Anne Lamott

Sunset Tree

Sunset Tree, a photo by megan_n_smith_99 on Flickr.

Groggy. Stayed up too late due to my Earl Grey bender, then woke up too early when my electric blanket controls fell off the window sill. Went back to sleep. Dreamed there was a Mcdonald's salad in my fridge.

Perhaps some watercolor will perk me up.

This is:
Sunset Tree
8x10"
Watercolor, ink, and colored pencil on paper
Available on Etsy

& for you, a quote:

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart
— E.E. Cummings

All Small Critters

I've been painting some small critters lately, as is my wont -- one of them, anyway -- and I've designed some clothing, mugs, etc. with some of my critters. You can see them at my Zazzle Shop. Zazzle has a lot of sales, too, and they're posted in the header, so watch for handy coupon codes.

As I quoted on one of the mugs:

"The fox knows many tricks, And the hedgehog only one; But that is the best one of all." --Archilochus:

what other critters do you think I should paint?

Cool Art on Etsy - Patricia Anders & Andrea Stern

I am not the only one selling cool art on Etsy. I'd like to introduce you to two other artists whose work you'll enjoy ...

Patricia Anders paintings and sculptures are all kind of creepy cool. And I don't know anyone who paints better hair!  Who hasn't felt this way when untangling holiday lights? And everything else she paints has her own slightly off-kilter - but delightful - world view. She's got prints, originals and more in her Etsy Shop. You'll love her Ornies - when she has them - they sell out fast so be sure to add her shop to your favorites.

Andi Stern's beadwork & paintings are amazing. I fell in love with her beadwork first & it's my favorite - but her mixed media paintings are equally charming.  The centerpiece of this necklace is a hand carved netsuke and is gorgeous-- truly one of a kind! There's a lot more to see in her  Etsy Shop.

Happy Shopping!

Mice and Hedgehogs - Oh My!

I have not not been a very good blogger over the last week or two. I have not been feeling well.  I think I am getting better. When you have chronic health issues, you are never really sure what better is going to men. I am just doing my best and we'll see where that goes.


I have been adding new items to my zazzle shop. It's been fun to use my artwork to design various items.. The mouse and hedgehog are features on several items - infant and toddler clothing and mugs.

I also have t-shirts for adults using some of my more elaborate paintings. And a few mugs, water bottles, tea pots, etc.

And of course I still have original artwork on Etsy. Check it out -- You may get some ideas for gifts!


And I am also working on a few new paintings. I think I'll have something to show you tomorrow.

Can you believe it's already December? I'm also trying to think about holiday gifts and I ordered my holiday cards!

Rose Cottage & A Winter's Tale

Rose Cottage, a photo by megan_n_smith_99 on Flickr.

I am listening to Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin - a book I've also read a number of times. It is unique in being fantasy, sci-fi, AND magical realism. It is a really wonderful story. Here is one of my favorite quotes from it:


"Who said," lashed out Isaac Penn, "that you, a man, can always perceive justice? Who said that justice is what you imagine? Can you be sure that you know it when you see it, that you will live long enough to recognize the decisive thunder of its occurrence, that it can be manifest within a generation, within ten generations, within the entire span of human existence? What you are talking about is common sense, not justice. Justice is higher and not as easy to understand -- until it presents itself in unmistakable splendor. The design of which I speak is far above our understanding. But we can sometimes feel its presence.
"No choreographer, no architect, engineer, or painter could plan more thoroughly and subtly. Every action and every scene has its purpose. And the less power one has, the closer he is to the great waves that sweep through all things, patiently preparing them for the approach of a future signified not by simple human equity (a child could think of that), but by luminous and surprising connections that we have not imagined, by illustrations terrifying and benevolent -- a golden age that will show not what we wish, but some bare awkward truth upon which rests everything that ever was and everything that ever will be. There is justice in the world, Peter Lake, but it cannot be had without mystery.”
― Mark Helprin, Winter's Tale

This painting is:
Rose Cottage
8x8"
watercolor & ink
Available on Etsy.
I've also got some new hats on Etsy.  Through the end of the day Monday, take 15% off in my Etsy store w/ coupon code NOV2012.

 & Zazzle is having some sales today too.. If you click the banner on the top of the zazzle page it will give you discount codes for a variety of products. My zazzle shop is: http://www.zazzle.com/megannoel

I hope you had a wonderful and peaceful thanksgiving!