From New Year to the 4th of August

is actually quite a while, and so much has happened that you get in to the conundrum of that it is too much to tell in an orderly and quick fashion...... so I am not going to bother, but instead have a little rummage through the drawer of my mind that house the odd and funny stuff that life is made up of!

1) I had a month on etsy I could actually have lived of, happily I am not dependent on only my etsy income, and it has always just been a little cream on the already quite topped fairycake, but after having made a real effort it is paying off..... I like that of course, as I get all the proceeds, well, not all, etsy and PayPal wants theirs, but that is so tiny...... so yeah me....very happy about that.....

2) Buying the house in Denmark and moving there, feels like the best decision i have made in a long time.... i think my husband wonders a bit what it is going to be like, but he is happy as long as I am happy, he says... not that I was unhappy, but unsettled and feeling rootless, the way many, too many years of expat life, makes you rootless and unsettled, maybe I am having quite high expectations, well b-gger it, I will..... rather feel too much than too little!

3) getting a new friend for Becky is going to be great fun, I want a puppy, 6 months or so...so I am sure they will play..... is there and RSCPA in Denmark??

4) why does it seem so difficult to take a good photo on etsy??? please, use a lamp for goodness sake, or..... get one of the many cheap, or free, photo enhancing software packages, and just use the exposure button, that would help a lot!!

5) How come peanut butter never seems to go out of date?

6) I had forgotten how fun it is to write something instead of proclaiming something, like one often does on Facebook... well, you can write on facebook too, but does anyone bother reading it?

On that note, I'm done, does not want to wear out my resolution to get back to blogging.....
oh folks, can't wait to get my studio up and running again, I am having severe working withdrawal symptoms!

my new studio space, up the stairs will be the gallery!

the studio is in the old warehouse, and the whole lot on the island of Moen, in Denmark

Cascada Studio moves out......

Outside in the breeze workstation

Cascada Studio is basking in the incredible June weather we are having here in Andalusia, lots of sun and warm enough for even the eggs to be fried on the sidewalks...... so to catch the breeze, i had to move out to the patio, absolutely lovely, so am thinking of setting up something more permanent now that summer is most absolutely and definitely here, glorious summer with late nights on the roof, enjoying the cooling off at the end of the day.....

bougainvilla delight

My bougainvilla, that got a good cutting back for the first time in many years, is also a very happy individual, with a show of flowers that is nothing short of spectacular this year, I go out, and have a look every morning, determined to enjoy it as much as I can, it is quite a feeling, to go from having been the least photographed house on the street, to being one of the most photographed .... makes me
feel quite proud of my beautiful house/studio . I have quite a few wonderful artists coming through this summer to work in the studio, and that is such a good feeling, the exchange and the delight in showing something that is so near to me, and to see what creative people do with their new knowledge, makes me feel like a truly blessed person! Happy last day of June to all of you!

Cascada Studio basking in the sun

In Love and Summer

oh my god, I am so totally in love with this song, and with the guys face... he has the most wonderful face....... have listened to the song 15 times.... and am getting worried! :o))))

PS: small note to summer: please come, I am ready!

Warhol and Titanic !

Went to the ArtScience Museum yesterday, really to see the Titanic exhibition, which was as moving as you would expect, although somewhat hyped, did love the underwater images of the wreck, it is almost not possible to think about what happened as real, to imagine the horror......
Strangely enough, the ArtScience Museum chose to juxtapose the Titanic with Andy Warhol..... a rather bizarre mix if you ask me (which of course you did not:o) but.... but but but.... and here I am going to surprise myself... I quite liked it.... it was like one end of the human spectrum to the other, from the blatantly commercially irreverant to the eternal quest for understanding what life is all about...
Does that make any sense?
I was even more surprised to see that there were pieces of Warhol's I actually liked, yep, cat out o the bag, he is not my favorite.... think I have changed my mind a bit though..... am thinking about it, now that we have time to think?

This is why we blog.....

Plates for Inspire me

because nobody wants to be alone! and thank you for your comments on my last post.....
they are fun, and true and there is a great deal more to be said on the subject, but I am good!
It is only one moan a day after all.......
Sometimes I have a look in the self help section in the bookshop, and it amazes me, the variety and the multitude of books on this subject, why is that, why are there so incredibly many of these books?
Most of them on subjects that are scarily simple, and no, I am not perfect or very smart or anything else, I am just incredibly curious as to why this section is so huge?
And should we write one? "Suicietsy" ? Have a good, positive, lovely working day :o)

a small moan a day, keeps the wolf at bay.....

or something like that...... it sure helps to have a sense of humour, in this world! Reading various blogs on networked blogs, all of them from printmakers, we are all looking back at the amazing period we just lived through, when sales were so brisk that we did not know how to produce enough!! That was fun, and great, and good money and all that..... I did not even have to think about etsy listings as etsy was a hobby thing, something I did because it "forced" me to take a decent photogrpah of a lot of my work, far from all though, remember, we were SO busy!! Today, and it's a challenge to come up with new ways of making the monthly expenses and keeping the wolf at bay..... ahh, you see, it did tie in, a little moan now and then, takes the edge off, it's nice to blame etsy`s listing requirements for me not selling, makes me feel a lot better (rememember..humour;o) in my mind, you add up the right now 44.000 listings of linocuts, times 20 cents and you know what, they are busy!!! :o) so the laugh is on me! Was that what I wanted to say, no, but I always get sidetracked, it...etsy...that is, made me think, maybe today, what happens on the net is all about fashion, a while back etsy was in fashion (still are says all the people selling "handmade", but then they would) remember Flickr, I have a huge Flickr account, and loved it.... Facebook, am just coming to terms with that, and now Pinterest..... so maybe, I should just quit being such a "good quality will last for ever" kind of girl hmmm woman....old lady grr... and get out there and pull on the hippest shirt right now....because clearly sites on the net, are coming in fashion, in fashion, or starting to go out of fashion, has consumerism reached the actual sites we use??? Or am I just blind and it was always there...? Anything that makes you think, is a good thing, so a slowdown, means we all have to think again, and I am happy, I like thinking, and in a way, I forgot I always did my best work when under a bit of pressure... and paying your phone bill, now there is real pressure for you, not a bunch of galleries and shops screaming for prints to sell, that, my dearest reader is all illusion, smoke and mirrors! Back to reality....with a bang! And if I knew how to add a photo from my Ipad to this post, i would....hang on.... I have time to read my ipad book....:o)))

etsy listings - a moan warning has been posted!

Nancy

ok, so a moan warning has been posted, as I am going to have one... moan, that is..... I am working with my etsy shops, trying to make heads or tails out of the new search "rules" if you can call them that, and it so reminds of when I was asked to participate in the Mosaic Music Festival's Art and Craft stall exhibition, here in Singapore, many years ago, the organizers were going to have art and craft stalls on the forecourt of the Esplanade Concert hall and it all sounded very fancy and nice.
 I was next to the guy with imported handbags from Taiwan, oh yes..., amongst other stalls of similar stuff...... he looked with concern at my stall, full of etchings and linocuts and handmade cards etc, during the whole 10 days!! of not selling anything,
and gave me this piece of good advice when we parted ways on the last night
- "You should think about changing your product, Miss".
This has stayed with me all these years, and been cause for many a good laugh, and also some rather caustic remarks from other artists...... well, etsy, reminds me so much of this now.....which makes it pretty obvious.... time to walk away!
PS: the photo is only there cause I miss her!

Art and Wine evening

Cascada Studio...... so close to ready it is not true!!

every day, brings me closer to being ready to start work, to start courses, to start, in short, my new life..... it is going to be wonderful, to fall back into a routine of studio work.... being your own handy man is fun, for a while, but the last lamps are really tough to put up, there is such a resistance, and such a pull from the studio, all organised and in order, and me with ahead full of new ideas..... this week, is dedicated to getting as much done as possible, last night I bought pots and plants for the front, all looking pretty and cute now!
You can smell the September freshness in the air now, the mornings are crisp and clear, and both the sky and the Mediterranean are so blue it is almost impossible..... next week comes the feria, the big village fiesta, a sure sign that autumn is around the corner, and I for one, can't wait to get that cardigan out. It has been a long hot summer, and sitting indoors has never looked so good, copper waiting, lino waiting, and I am READY!!!
I have uploaded all the new Spring 2012 courses, and please note, to get my new venture off the ground.... there is a hefty discount, so don't miss out on a great opportunity to see a very pretty little bit of Spain, and get creative at the same time. Cascada Studio is waiting for you!

the password dilemma and other really fun concerns!!

Is it not amazing how much time, remembering your passwords for all the darn accounts you have takes..... or do you have the same for all of them? I am trying so hard to be responsible and proactive and all that stuff that they tell you to be... so am changing my passwords quite often... but it means that it can take me up to 15 minutes sometimes to find the "right" password for that thing.....grrr....... not to mention the various e-mails for different things, ah... and then the iPad, the laptop, and your iMac.... all 3 should somehow be synced, but are they..... heck knows ;o)))

In a strange way, I don't mind, and in an equally strange way, I rage at it, having to spend so much time on all the various "sites", the bit I don't mind about is chatting to you guys, I mean.... hey... a more supportive group of people than bloggers are hard to find...... and I am not exactly dishing up any interesting stuff recently....

Anyway... could I have a bit of advice, please.... I am going to advertise in a local magazine here in Singapore, to see if I can revive my somewhat flagging giclee business, the gallery that represent me here, Red Sea Gallery, shows my original paintings, but not really my giclees, so am doing a campaign to get people to my studio here in Singapore to see and hopefully purchase.... what do you think of the ad...... too simple.... too messy..... I am quite, somewhat, arrogantly, assuming that people here in Singapore recognise both my name and my images... famous last words maybe ;o)))
A bit of input is so appreciated...... I got some wonderful feedback on my new website, which, because i did not bring the password, to Singapore, for my admin site, I can't go in and change/update/upgrade as I had planned whilst spending a couple of weeks with my lovely husband.... ahhh, and there we are, neatly back to the beginning ...xxx Mariann

Drinks anyone?

All ready to pour the cool white wine.... a couple of nibbles and life is great...... just waiting for my removal van to come now with my studio, all my plates, my small press, and oodles of printing paper.... hilarious that, I am bringing lots of Fabriano paper back as it is less than half price is Singapore, a return trip for the Italian paper!

As soon as the studio is all set up, there will be lots of photographs for you to get excited about coming to do one of my courses...... am so looking forward to having a studio full of people, printing away, and in such surroundings.... from my window I see the church steeple and the sea, beyond the little orange tree plaza, and to the back, my lovely shady patio.... is it any wonder I feel like I am in seventh heaven?

List and small things in life....

Do you know what I am talking about when I start my morning with making a list, and then diligently try to get through it, and the next morning I transfer to my new list what I did not get done from yesterdays list, and the list grows, and I am thinking about other things..... just like Nancy.... contemplating if she should lay the floor first or maybe grout something..... with my head all over the place I try to be patient and breathe...... be patient and breathe..... which reminds me that "My Blue Bird of Happiness brings me the Fireworks of Hope", so there.......

Horses and turtles, and lots of flies....

Yesterday was a day almost totally in the animal mode..... first thing in the morning, lots of horses started coming through Mijas, I am not sure what was going on, a meet of some kind, but fun, beautiful horses and very proud owners galore. We are of course moving towards Semana Santa ( Holy Week) here in Spain, and Easter is taken serious, both as a religious holiday and as a time to celebrate that it is spring, and it is glorious weather and sitting outside a bar enjoying a fino (sherry) can be indulged again! Then I went up to the house we have in the country, and there the fine weather was also being celebrated, by the turtles having a serious sunbathing session in the river, in the company of a little frog?? I have never seen a frog sitting on a stone sunbathing...... but that's what it is, on the little stone to the left.... came back home in the afternoon, and as usual the fruit flies had a serious party going in my patio???? hmmmm.... at least I am telling myself they are fruitflies, I could be forgiven for thinking I have moved to Australia, there are not a couple, but hundreds, just kind of hanging about in that kind of weird fly mobile thing they do..... I hope they soon "move on", as it is kind of unnerving..... but never mind, clear blue sky, 28 degrees and who am I to question their right to enjoy "my" patio..... Spring is a beautiful time in Southern Spain, flowers, bees, birds and it's almost impossible to be inside... so I am going back out again.....:o)

a pat on the back.....

Today I think we all deserve a pat on the back, you for being one of the wonderful people that read my blog, to me for actually managing to create anything surrounded by a building site, and to Nancy for for the first time in her life wearing a sweater, and loving it! Mornings can be chilly this time of year in the South of Spain, and she snuggles right into her sweater for the first morning walk of the day,
she loves it here in Mijas, the cats on the street, that people open their doors to get some air, so she can look in, she always was the most curious dog, and all the little buddies she is making all over our neighborhood...... Friday morning, and the week is almost done, is it just me who thinks there are only Fridays in a week?? What happens to the rest?? Big smile from you to me, to go with the pat on the back.....

Orange Blossom and Sun

a little teeny weeny report from an incredibly beautiful sunny day in Mijas in the South of Spain: this morning I woke up to the beautiful perfume of orange blossom, it is finally so warm that the flowers all came out over night and the top of the tree, in my patio, that I see from my bedroom window, is covered in blossom! Orange blossom in Spanish is "azahar" and it is just the most incredible smell......
very quickly replaced by the smell of cement as Jose starts his workday and the cement mixer gets going..... the smell of wet cement, just as lovely in it's way as it signifies progress and that things are going forward..... it is fun, and hard work, to live in a building site.... mostly fun actually once I got past the eating of the dust and the moving stuff around to be able to do anything, now Nancy (in her favorite basket that came with us from Singapore and a very quickly becoming favorite blanket, having a snooze) and I are in to a little routine of sorts, where the house gets "cleaned up" (well, don't get carried away now) on a Friday night to be enjoyed over the weekend..... piles of brick are very handy for placing your coffeetray etc, there is an upside to everything, verdad?!
My website is also almost done..... it'll be such fun to "unveil" the new www.artcanbefun.com !!! So life is great.... the sun is shining and I am so HAPPY...... (missing my husband a little, maybe a drop of bitter, makes the sweet all the sweeter?)

Fleamarket bargain, and officially mad.....

My mum and I went to the fleamarket in Fuengirola today.... I LOVE fleamarkets...there is something so fun and so exhilarating about buying other peoples old junk!! How about this though.... you see this table.... is it not nice???? and it opens, and its in good shape, and it's just the size for me and and and...... am so HAPPY.... and of course, even happier by the fact that it was such a bargain...25 euros, folks...unbelievable..... oh yes, bargain princess, that's me..... what am I going to use it for.....hmmmm.....god knows, but I'll think of something, tralalalal.....tiddlideetudum....... I used to have my husband to talk to in the evening, now I have YOU........ traidadada......rampampamtada...... iiiiiiiiiiihhhhhhhh
Please note that these photos are not taken from my cell, they are taken in my studio in Spain, ALL Spanish houses have "rejas" that is iron grills for their windows....I promise.....:o)

new roller!!

ahhhh, the sweet feeling of a brand new roller.... and it is so nice, heavy and hefty.... just the way I like'em....... I went to Marbella yesterday, to the little art supply shop there, that has most of the printmaking things I need, apart from block printing inks????? What do people use instead????..... It is going to take me a while to find stuff here, it seems to be very spread out, but have also managed to find a website, so I can order online..... Spain is such a contradictory country when it comes to technology..... here, the phone still reigns, and yet.....
where do you go to find a second hand car, to the internet of course..... who would have thought.
As always, driving around, doing a lot of talking, passing by the new house, where the installation of new electricity is almost done..... is tiring, so far removed from my usual day of being in the studio.... only thinking about the studio...., here, there are 5.000 things every day to sort, file, think about, consider and talk to... I fall into bed every evening, dead tired and can't sleep, because of the list..... ahhh, I am sure you know what I am talking about, that list that keeps running in your head, on a spool, round and round, and my list does not seem to have any sheep.... how ever, I am SO happy with my new roller.... so have to try it out today and see what it feels like!

Spain colors

gray skies and overcast, and i went for a walk this morning..... took some photos with my phone, which is as good as taking no photos, don't know why I bother when i have no idea how to retrieve them, so I'll go back down to the river again, and take them with the camera.... off what?? you ask... spring flowers.... am searching for spriiiiiing in every nook and crannie, right of the boat from the tropics, I am COLD.....so this photo from last week,of my big white bowl full of mandarins ( 2 kgs for 2 euros!!) will do to warm me up!

a tad premature.......

alright alright.... I was a bit ahead of the actual season, as so often happens here in Spain, right after a couple of weeks of very mild weather and all the spring flowers marching on... comes a day of chilly north winds, and look... SNOW...on El Torcal, (our beautiful and incredible natural park right next door) and that is amazing as it happens very rarely...... brrr.... nice to able to stay inside on a Sunday, fire in the fireplace, floor heating running full blast.... nice wine in the fridge, and Sunday lunch coming up... life is GOOD!!
And I found a car... Yippeeeee...... felt like being let out of prison, done with driving round looking at the one crud heap after the other... I have paid a deposit on a pretty good Renault Kangoo.... 2008.... not too many kilometers on the clock and in a really half way decent state.... to be picked up next week..... proud new parent I feel like... I'll have to name it.....:o))))

spring is here!!!

Almondtrees all over our beautiful area of Spain, are coming into blossom, the valleys look like snowdrifts and it is just breathtakingly so beautiful, and what am I doing.... running round looking for a second hand car, there are no two things further apart than looking at almond blossom and looking at cars, secondhand at that..... girls.... for once, and this does not happen often, I say: where is my MAN!!!! I need a MAN..... they ( the wonderful sales guys) have me clocked as soon as I set foot in the showroom.... ahhh, i do the right things, i kick the tyres, I look under the bonnet, I even, lately, pull on wires with a frown..... do they buy it??? I think, not for a minute.......:o((((( So this morning, I am going to look at almond blossom, I am going to sit and look at the wonder that this is, and enjoy it..... all those beautiful fragrant blossoms that become an almond, an edible thing, is that not a miracle, and boy.... I am in the mood for miracle gazing..... alternatively... anybody got a man to lend me????
Psssst...don't tell my husband:o)