Just Some Life...

Jonathan and I love living in a beach town...sure it has lots of negatives like lots of kill-bambi type of losers, a serious lack of vegetarian restaurants and being a solid 4 hours drive from any major hub BUT it has lots of benefits too like lots of deep green forests & numerous fresh water lakes all around...oh and being able to drive not even 20 minutes away to pick over 20 litres of strawberries...

...and getting to take a fun tractor ride out to the fields...

...here's my honey on the wagon with me:D I was abit worried because he's still recovering from a major back pull, but he did great.....

...I got such a kick out of this giant straw man, I just had to have Jon take my pic with him...too cool:D...ha ha...

...and of course Jon is forever teasing me about my draw/pull to water...what can I say, I am happiest & most calm when I am near it...it's like my skin can sense when water is near by..seriously!...

...we had lunch by this view one afternoon this weekend....

...and many other lunches at one of our favourite new spots called "The Narrows"...we plan to bring our kayaks here as soon as we get em:D....

...and what could be better but to close an awesome weekend with a double rainbow....ahhhh a good omen for further goodness to come I am hoping....

This was abit of our last weekend & the perfect soundtrack from it still echoes in my head....how was yours??? what did yous do? See you soon with another new illustration...

New Illustration "Fauna & Flora 1"

I am so excited to show you all one of my newest illustrations. This little sweetie is suppose to be our beautiful Jin. When she was sick a few months back, I was doing some sketching to keep myself from going crazy with worry and the drawing has been sitting there in my sketchbook calling to me and whispering 'come on, colour me already, I bet I'll be something extra sweet...' and well I think it turned out to be just that...I love the simple message, I love the soft colour, I love the serenity in it and that sweet delicate little birdie, & of course the subject matter, ha ha...What do you all think? I think more of these little beauties are to be conjured up...

(Prints are now available in the shop. The original however has been adopted, by me! ha ha.)

I hope you all had a great weekend...we sure did, (I'll share some photos soon), despite the heat we still managed to jump in the car for a few hours of adventuring, we spent lots of time by the water, had some great meals, picked over 20 litres of strawberries which included a super fun tractor ride, ha ha and we also fit in lots of gardening, yard work and most importantly of course, the buns got oodles of time outside, so needless to say we're all somewhat pooped but ready to head into this Monday & what will be a very busy week with happy hearts. Thanks for hopping in...come again soon, I've got lots of new stuff to show you all. XO Bijou & The Buns.

My First Ad Spot...

I am soooo very excited to have purchased my first ad spot ever...I feel good things coming creative biz wise, I really do because here is my theory; to buy any kind of ad space at all you must have confidence & believe in your own work...if you believe in your own work you most likely envision & plan wonderful things for your creative biz...and if you really truly believe & positively envision all kinds of goodness than the universe will/must respond kindly & positively and send more great things/opportunities and abundance your way...that's my current positive thought process/hope anyhow, ha ha... As soon as I popped into Krista's awesome RikRak Blog I was hooked. I just instantly liked the feel and find it to be hip but calm, creative yet clean and abunch of other great things...I think it's just the place for my first little ad spot, yayyyy, ha ha...

what do you think? I wanted it to be very simple but catchy, do you think it is?

Just wanted to pop in and share this bit of goodness with you today. See you Monday, where I'll show you that rabbit illustration I was mentioning earlier, oh I love it so...Have a great weekend everyone XO Mandy a.k.a. Bijou of Bijou's Whimsy...oh and of course XO from the Bunnies too!

A New Mixed Media In My 'Celebration' Series

This little series of mine was started from something as simple as having a craving to paint with acrylic paint on illustration board. Than it seemed natural that the designs were well suited for birthday cards etc but I didn't want to pigeon hole these birdies of mine, they seemed more life lesson-y/life celebratory to me...hence the name "Celebration" series...

....You can see the first in the series if you click here... ...These two cuties share a message which I think is a good one and that is "You Can Learn More With Two Different Perspectives Than With Just One..."

...Now, don't you think that wording is nicer and more interesting than just a 'Happy Birthday'...I do...

( ...Prints of this new illustration o' mine are in the shop now...)

...I've drawn and just finished colouring in the sweetest little bunny with birdie...I can't wait to show you. Be Well all and thanks so so much for popping in and extra thanks to all of your sweeties who take time to leave me a message/comment, I can't tell you how much they make my day.

New Prints Now In The Shop...

I am excited to have just put prints of the first 5 lovelies in the "Beautiful Birds" series, into my Etsy Shop...

...I hope people love them and gotta have them as much as I love making them.

It was a good few days off and I found that I had to make myself stay away from this dearest blog of mine, ha ha. I did start 2 new series that I am having a ball with...I still can't believe I've resisted series work for so darn long...well live and learn I guess!

See you all tomorrow. XO Mandy & some well rested bunnies...

My Process and Summer Days...

I've been feeling abit on edge the last couple weeks and I didn't quite know why, than it hit me, something sooo simple...too much time online which is often, for me a pretty quick and direct route to a whole bunch of stressing, worrying & negative thinking about running out of time to make my dreams come true and not being brave enough to let my creative biz soar...

It's okay, no worries, this is just my routine...the magic that is me, ha ha...I work and work and work and dream really hard, I spend to much time bouncing around online, I flounder about abit, I feel like I am spinning my wheels, I wonder who's looking and caring, I get discouraged (yet my flame is never even near being extinguished!) and than I remember what works for me, what my best process is and what really matters at the end of the day....

...I remember after a couple tiring and tortured weeks that all the stress and worry and excess time online takes me away from my healthy balance and my creating the work that is the main part of my dreams! And once again, like a hundred times before, I realize I can't rush this creative journey of mine, it is what it is and it will be what I want it to be but rushing won't help anyone, especially me...

...SO, I am once again only allowing myself only a few hours online each day and than I get back to what has always embraced me in kindness, calm and abundance...to all of the simple pleasures that help fuel my creativity; coffee, naps, favourite old movies, bike rides, lunch with friends, playing outside, reading, rearranging furniture, baths...and of course days which are beautifully full of time for art making, honey loving, bunny snuggling, music blasting, dancing, good food, time outside with large pastels whiles bunnies romp around my feet...

...you get the point....I am back in my balanced state, it probably won't be for long, I am after all a creative through and through, ha ha but today...today indeed my spirit is calm, my heart is smiling wide and my creative aspirations are feeling incredibly strong willed...

...Ahhhhh...and even my headaches & migraines haven't even been that bad this month, whoot whoot...

....Today I am wishing you all a great weekend with full, calm, happy and hopeful hearts...the photos below show what our weekends usually look like...

We don't have any big & exciting summer plans, no travel will be had...well we did have 1 event that I was looking forward to all year but that was cancelled on us...the bunnies keep us pretty housebound, which sometimes is abit hard because even though we are both homebodies, we are also equal part road hobos who love jumping in the car at a whim BUT when it really comes down to it, we never complain because we wouldn't trade our bunnies for a trip around the world...so indeed, we're having beautiful summer days...hope you are all as well...especially to all you 9-5ers...See yous next week. XO Mandy and the Buns, Ella Luna, Roo, Jin and Apple Jaks.

p.s. Some of these shots will be in my "Bella Bijou" photography shop, opening soon, I am going to take a leap with this, I believe in my photographs and hoping others love em too!

p.p.s I am going to take a couple days off from posting and will be back with you with some new work, oodles of bunny pics and other goodness next Wednesday...

A New Wee Whispy

Another new cutie pie in my "Wee Whispy" series...

she quietly whispers..."Kindness Is Key".

(The original is currently available at the Art On Main Gallery.)

The super sweet Lori over at Happiness Through Art posted about a piece she bought from me recently...it so made my day and surprised me when I popped into her blog...thanks Lori so much, so glad she's in your home...she's in good, kind, sweet and lovely company:D

In my studio I always have music playing, often even when I am not in there, just becaues I like to 'fill' my space with my favourit tunes, often jazz...and I am soooo in love with Melody Gardot's music, I think she is my favourite female jazz singer next to Diana Panton and I just can't get enough of this one song...it's so fantastic and I am playing it over and over, I just had to share:D

A Wonderful Concert...

On Friday night Jonathan and I had a nice night out and treated ourselves to a fantastic vegetarian meal at one of our favourite local eateries called "The Urban Cafe" and we booked dinner on this particular night because I knew that the 'The Folkstar Vagabonds" were playing, which is a duo made up of Elaine Ryan and Melissa Bandura... I asked if they minded me taking some shots...and they didn't...so here are a few of my favs...

They both had incredible voices which blended together so so beautifully.

...and here is me with my newest purchase making me oh so happy...Elaine Ryan's album...I didn't have enough cash on me to buy both c.d & e.p's so I opted for Elaines album called "Songs From The River" because the themes of her songs really speak to me...but I plan to buy Melissa's when her full album comes out.

They both seemed like really cool chicks and I was so inspired after I left the concert...there is something about seeing fellow artists, even if in a totally different industry, living and pursuing their dreams...living their art...that lifts me up and reminds me that with hard-work and preservance that such a thing is possible for anyone...including a little coloured pencil artist:D! If you ever get the chance to see these ladies perform together or separately, I highly recommend it. For me beautiful music makes for a happy heart and a beautiful atmosphere in my beloved studio...which is where I am blasting the cd right now:D...See you on Wednesday all. Thanks for hopping in.

Happy Father's Day

A good father makes all the difference in the world and I am lucky to have mine... Happy Father's Day Dad....We love you Oh So Much XO Mandy & Jonathan.

Also to my bunny honey....Jonathan you are without a doubt the best bunny daddy out there...We love you XO with nips, nudges & licks...your Bijou, Jin, Jaks, Ella & Roo Boo:D

My New Display at the New Art On Main...

So finally, I am posting to show you my new display for "Bijou's Whimsy" at the newly moved Art On Main (the artist collective I've been a member of since June of 2009). I've been getting tons of great feedback and people seem to love my Beautiful Birds Collection AND the water blue I painted the fantastic shelves Jonathan built for me...

I am also getting lots of positive comments on the cedar branches I decided to put up to hang my Nubbin birds from:D...

...I worked my butt off to get 14 (of the so far 20) Beautiful Birds prints mounted...and I am so so so pleased with how they turned out, the whole process of making them and the quality...

Two of my Beautiful Birds are in the window display alongside work from our newest member Dave Carlin. I find it such a lovely thing to be in the same window as Dave because he's been such a significant light to me and to my creative world...he was my first mentor in the art world and one of the first ones to nurture my creative spirit...and to this day, even after attending one of the best art schools in Canada, he is still one of the best art teachers I have ever had..and he is also a dear wise friend, so needless to say I am proud to be in the same space...

...So that's me and my work, what do you think of my new display???

A New Wee Whispy

Hi Everyone, I hope your week on this Tuesday is looking good and that your heart is going strong, that any obstacles seem doable...if not, take abit of advice from my newest Wee Whispy...she has a whisper of encouragement for us all...she whispers "Be Calm....Have Courage....And Believe In Yourself.... Because I think she's so right...when we calm ourselves enough to take a nice deep breathe and really believe that we can accomplish anything, than any hurdles in front of us just melt away...or atleast diminish in size...I am needing abit of courage lately, so maybe that's why I needed to make this little gal...Hope you love her.

I'll be posting 4 times this week instead of 3, so I'll 'see' you all on Thursday where I'll show you what my newest Art On Main space looks like....XO Bijou & The Buns

Painting Restaurant Chairs

My beautiful and dear friend Becca is opening a vegan/organic health juice bar and bistro called "Veg Out", everyone in town is so excited for it and I know with Becca at the helm and as the owner, it'll be a fantastic success and a lovely place to veg out. Becca commissioned me to paint 20 of her chairs...she told me she wanted strawberries and vines and for each chair to be different from the next...

So I started with a really bright and basic colour palette...

and I free hand drew the designs on each chair...it was really weird, it was as though each chair told my hand exactly how it wanted the design because each drawing and each chair happened without any fuss and felt very organic...

It took me 40 minutes to an hour for each chair...

...several of the chairs (yet to be photographed) had the vines going down the legs and up the back spindles, those took abit longer...

I have 2 more chairs to go, 10 bar stools and possibly a pillar/wall...

I honestly don't have friends hire me for work very often so I am so pleased Becca asked me and trusted me to add my bit of whimsy to her place...I'll post again when I've completely the other stages. I was thinking of video taping myself doing some of the other painting and then asking Jonathan to make it into a cool YouTube video for me...hmmm maybe:D ha ha.

Some Great Finds...

I am a bargain hunter and a sales shopper...I hate malls and I love thrift and antique stores...I like buying things that I know not a million other people currently have...and I just had to share some of my awesome thrift store buys with you... This little shelf, I got for $4...I planned to paint in once I got it home but turns out the colour goes great in my studio and perfectly fit some sweet little tins and boxes I already had...awesome:D

...than I found this sweet little white rabbit, that can hold pencils or flowers or whatever I suppose...right now I have my camera transfer cables in it and I just love it...I guess a sweet little ceramic bunny shouldn't make a person so content but well it does ha ha...

...we found this old set of blue glasses at a local thrift store and I just had to have them, especially when it was something like $6 for the whole set!...

and I don't think it's entirely my imagination that milk tastes extra good in the larger ones and brandy extra sweet in the smaller ones:D ha ha...

and okay check out this cool little wooden bowl...now I have this weird thing of bringing wooden stuff into the house that hasn't been made my dad or Jonathan but this little bowl spoke to me...

...maybe cause I thought of someones dad turning it and some one not wanting it so I saw it as a lonely unwanted poor wooden bowl for only $2 that could hide many treasures so I brought it home...it pays off to be a sentimental shopper sometimes;D!

and tins...oh my goodness I used to have this 'thing' for tins, I used to collect them and I do still have quite a few hidden throughout the house here and there but I do have favourites and well when I saw this beauty which matched another slightly larger one I had just in a different colour variation, I couldn't resist....

Isn't she a beauty and I think a steal at something like 0.99 cents!

There you have it...some of my favourite cheap finds so far this year:D What are some of yours? If you blog about them, leave your post link in this here comment section. Have a great weekend all...from Bijou and the Buns:D....XO.

Another New Wee Whispy...

Another new Wee Whispy...this one's message is one that I've really steeped with and learnt over the last year or so..."Nothing Can Bring You Peace But Yourself"...

...because it's so true isn't it, it's up to our own selves to open our own hearts, minds and souls to the many many things that can bring us to a place of peacefulness (like me with my bunnies) and it's all up to our own selves to decide on how fully we want to be in that place of peace, how grateful we are for it and therefore how long we can dwell in and with it and carry it into other aspects of our lives...

...sometimes peace comes easily, sometimes it eludes us, but as long as we realize that only our own hearts can find it and bring it in...well that's most important...

It's funny, I find, most people would look at this simple little image/creation of mine and see something silly or cute and leave it as such but often even in cuteness I offer up my point of view and heart's place...most won't see that, but I trust that many will....

In other news, there are a couple new things on my sidebar, 1 being the North Bay Symphony Garden Tour which I will be a part of this year, it's an annual self guided tour to some of North Bay's most beautiful gardens, and at each garden there will be a quartet of musicians as well as an artist working...and I am one of the artists, I am really looking forward to it and see it as the perfect excuse to work with my pastels, which I haven't worked with for so long.

Also, I am booked for a solo exhibition next May of 2011 at the WKP Kennedy Gallery...I might do the whole show with my Beautiful Birds, because no doubt by then I'll have plenty more conjured up OR, I'll use the title "I am One Of The Long Earred" and you know what that theme would whirl around:D

Before I go, I wanted to share this new great website I just found, it's called "Spring - Inspiration In Bloom"...for those seeking more positivity in their lives, definatly check this site out...what I see so far, I love:D

I plan to do a speacil Sunday post to cover the AOM move and opening, etc...so if you've time visit again then please do...Happy Weekend All...

New Etsy Banner & Facebook Button

I couldn't help hopping in really quickly today to show you something that has me squealing in delight...my new Etsy shop Banner...I LOVE it...

What do you think? Head on over to my Etsy Shop and see how the new banner interacts so perfectly with the rest of my work...I am sooo glad, not just because it looks good but because a new Etsy banner has been on my to-do list for ages now...hooray:D Also...(we were busy last night, ha ha) we created this cutie-pie widget for my blog sidebar to lead people to my Facebook Fan Page...isn't she adorable? I think so...

Next some link back buttons and perhaps a custom widget on my blog for my Etsy store...

Well, it's super gloomy and rainy here today but I am good with that because it means sleepy and quiet bunnies upstairs and jazz and much needed studio time downstairs:D Have a good one, see yous all tomorrow for a new Wee Whispy.