What a busy week this has been! After a fun and productive weekend at the Shadyside Arts Festival, it’s time to get back to a serious painting schedule. I have so many projects to do before the end of the year! First of all, I apologize for the confusion last week. There was a small communication glitch, but now my first holiday card in the Jolly Old Elf Series, “Shhhh!” is ready and available to purchase on my website. Just Click Here to purchase yours. The cards had a great kick-off last week at the Arts Festival. They’re only available…

Welcome to the start of a new season! Not only is it Back-to-School time for the kids, but it’s already about that time that most folks (well, at least most organized folks!) start planning for fall and winter holiday excitement. It’s also the time of year that, for the past 17 years, I would print my annual holiday card to benefit the American Cancer Society. As I told you back in May, that program has come to an end. I was honored to be a part of their fundraising for all these years, and it was quite an emotional evening…

On our way home, but coming to you live from the road one more time… Tom and I had quite the adventure in Canada, Vermont, and New York as we visited Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, and Lake Champlain. It was delightful being back on PEI after 12 years. Back then, we were accompanied by our children. We went to see the brilliant musical “Anne of Green Gables” and then crossed the island to Cavendish to visit her home – or at least the home that Lucy Maud Montgomery created for Anne. Returning 12 years later sans daughters, we retraced…

We’re still on the road, and Tom and I are about to head over to Prince Edward Island after our lovely visit to Nova Scotia. Nova Scotia is a quaint place and stunningly beautiful with its brightly painted little homes and waterways filled with fishing boats. The photos I’ve taken just don’t do it justice! We took the Cabot Trail around Cape Breton yesterday, and then a wonderful Ceilidh (Celtic music) concert last night was a perfect ending to our stay here. If you’ve ever visited Nova Scotia, you may recall seeing Peggy’s Cove. The red boat in the front…

This week, I’m writing to you from upstate New York as I begin my three-week working vacation. I call it a working vacation because I’m doing a lot more work than I am relaxing! Let me take you back… way back… back 34 years to when I was a 23-year-old newlywed. In a leap of faith, I took a solo trip (leaving my new husband behind!) to North Salem, New York, to study with a legendary portrait artist I’d read about in American Artist Magazine. Daniel Greene was known internationally for his work, and his list of accomplishments even back…

After the announcement last week of the closing of Macy’s downtown store, I felt like I had to blog about that sad news and what it meant to me, so I postponed my original topic. This week, I’d like to share with you about the wonderful event I had at Kane Glen Hazel last Wednesday. “A Stroll Down Pittsburgh’s Memory Lane” was a glorious day spent with Kane residents, staff, and visitors. Other attendees were a group from the Alzheimer’s Association and some of the staff from KDKA. I was honored to see that Ron Cook from KDKA had decided…

This week, my blog was supposed to be about my amazing event Wednesday morning at Kane Glen Hazel, but when it was announced that the Downtown Macy’s (formerly Kaufmann’s) was closing forever, I knew there had to be a change in plans. When Macy’s announced this week that they were selling the building and closing their Downtown store, I’m sure that, like me, you were saddened at the loss of a lifetime of traditions. For me, it was always about the “Big Three,” Gimbels and Horne’s, but especially Kaufmann’s/Macy’s. Nothing compares to those holiday window displays along Fifth, Forbes, and…

Today I have a special invitation for you! On Wednesday, July 15th, the Kane Glen Hazel facility on Rivermont Drive will be hosting an exhibition of my paintings that is free and open to the public. Over the last year, I’ve partnered with Kane to create oversized versions of 20 of my paintings for the residence halls at the facility. The idea is for the residents to “walk down Memory Lane” and share their stories with everyone they meet. I am honored to have an opening there from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. to share my own stories about the…

I have so much to share with you this week! I told you last week about our terrible experience with the storm at the Three Rivers Arts Festival. With the damage done to my tent and my art (not to mention done to ourselves!), I wondered if I would ever do an outdoor show again. But you know what they say… when you fall off the horse, the best thing you can do is climb back on and keep riding! That being said, I have a brand new tent that I’ll be setting up for the first time this weekend…

To say the least, my first year at the Three Rivers Arts Festival was certainly a memorable one! I love exhibiting at shows because I meet so many wonderful people, and I look forward to helping them find the perfect piece of art. However, in the past, I’ve always been hesitant to exhibit at the Arts Festival because of its history of stormy weather. I used to make the excuse of “that’s the time of year I’m painting,” which really was true. But for some crazy reason, I decided this year would be different, and I applied. I deliberately chose…