Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Practice, practice, practice....

I need to practice composition more. It's honestly something I struggle with. So I've been folding a piece of paper everyday into four rectangles and doodle something in each one. Here's what I came up with the other day.




What are you working on?


Marilyn.


Today is life-the only life you are sure of. Make the most of today. Get interested in something. Shake yourself awake. Develop a hobby. Let the winds of enthusiasm sweep through you. Live today with gusto. ~ Dale Carnegie



Saturday, August 28, 2010

Family Fun Magazine! Oh My Gosh!

Sometimes, lovely things just fall into your lap. I'm walking on happy today, folks. TheToymaker.com made the top ten best websites for kid's list in Family Fun Magazine.


"I love that it starts with the computer and ends up making something real." 
 

All's I can say is, I'm pleased as Pandas, Pearls, Parsley, Punch.

Hee hee hee!

Marilyn.

--
I would not exchange the laughter of my heart for the fortunes of multitudes.
~ Kahlil Gibran


Sunday, August 22, 2010

Toys all over the world

Every now and then I get an email from some far off place showing kids that are enjoying my toys. I've received emails from almost every country that you can think of. Here's is a class in South Africa that made circus books. Made my day!

Also in the news... my twelve-year-old niece came over and we experimented with making paper fairy lanterns.

The wonderhub made me a lovely classical guitar this summer. Mister Pretty kept me company while I was practicing this morning.



If you could learn one new thing what would it be?

Wishing you a creative week,

Marilyn.

--

Develop interest in life as you see it; in people, things, literature, music - the world is so rich, simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people. Forget yourself.

~ Henry Miller

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Stars and Doodles.

Spent some time playing with watercolors tonight. I need to get some more watercolor paper. 

 

Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions.

Small people always do that,

but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great. ~ Mark Twain




Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Clair de Lune


 

Clair de Lune

Votre âme est un paysage choisi
Que vont charmant masques et bergamasques
Jouant du luth et dansant et quasi
Tristes sous leurs déguisements fantasques.

Tout en chantant sur le mode mineur
L’amour vainqueur et la vie opportune,
Ils n’ont pas l’air de croire à leur bonheur
Et leur chanson se mêle au clair de lune,

Au calme clair de lune triste et beau,
Qui fait rêver les oiseaux dans les arbres
Et sangloter d’extase les jets d’eau,
Les grands jets d’eau sveltes parmi les marbres.

Moonlight

Your soul is a select landscape
Where charming masqueraders and bergamaskers go
Playing the lute and dancing and almost
Sad beneath their fantastic disguises.

All sing in a minor key
Of victorious love and the opportune life,
They do not seem to believe in their happiness
And their song mingles with the moonlight,

With the still moonlight, sad and beautiful,
That sets the birds dreaming in the trees
And the fountains sobbing in ecstasy,
The tall slender fountains among marble statues.

Paul Verlaine, 1869
~ Translation, I believe, by Mark Till ~

Saturday, August 7, 2010

The Farmer's Market

Went to the Farmer's Market this morning, the big one out by UC Irvine. Yeah, I know it's a suburban sort of thing to do. But this time of year there are just so much veg in season that it's worth braving the aisles mashed full of Baby Boomers, college students, and kids eating roasted corn on the cob and bags of kettle corn.

It sucks the money right out of your wallet, especially if you go like I did for the goat cheese and local made sausages. We have dinner guests coming so I loaded up on onions, corn, beets, strawberries, tiny champagne grapes, peaches and these tiny purple green plums the size of golf balls. They didn't look like much on the outside but were ruby red and juicy inside.

If you like vegetables or are interested in vegetarian cooking, here are three of my favorite cookbooks. 

First, The Greens Cookbook... the recipes are a bit complex but worth the extra mile. It's the book that I reach for when we are cooking for company. The lentil salad with mint, roasted bell papers and feta is stellar. 
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The Moosewood Cookbook is a great veggie starter cookbook full of easy to make salads and soups. The French Onion soup is the one of our favorite meals. Try the popovers or the Welsh rarebit.
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Our friends, John and Thea gave me this book for a birthday present and I use it all the time. If you want to know how to roast beets, make pancakes or what to do with kohlrabi, this book is one stop shopping.

How about you? What's your favorite cookbook? Do you have a favorite veggie meal? Love to cook? Hate it? What's in your kitchen?

Marilyn.

--

"Some people like to paint pictures, or do gardening, or build a boat in the basement. Other people get a tremendous pleasure out of the kitchen, because cooking is just as creative and imaginative an activity as drawing, or wood carving, or music."
Julia Child

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

By the sea, by the beautiful sea.

Spent a lovely evening at the beach with the family. My M-I-L put together an outrageous picnic with bratwursts, potato salad, deviled eggs, chips, spinach dip, chili, feta and olives and a thermos of tea. Does everything taste better out of doors? On a balmy summer night, yes, yes it does.

We also made S'mores, a dessert that can't possibly be on any restaurant menu, because, done proper, it requires hot coals. When I was a Scout, long ago, we joked that to make S'mores one must eat the chocolate, burn the marshmallow and throw the graham cracker away. However, the Wonderhub toasted a golden brown, slightly crunchy on the outside, marshmallow and served it up open face on a graham cracker with melted chocolate squished on top. Darn tasty!

Tired and time for sleep.

What's your favorite out-of-doors food?

Marilyn.


--

I honestly think the beach is the only place children actually entertain themselves.

~ Donna McLavy

Monday, August 2, 2010

Mystery Car!

I was tidying up my website and found a toy that I hadn't posted before. So, here it is!



If you put a large marble underneath it you can make it roll quite fast.

I highly recommend the Moon Marble Company.

http://www.moonmarble.com/

Make toys! Play more!

Marilyn.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Do you need your dose of Surf Ukelele?

Do you need a cuppa Surf Ukelele? Well walk, don't run to relax on a sandy beach...

How to Draw Pebbles

Here is a little video that my art teacher, Bob Singer made on how to draw Pebbles Flintstone.

You can read more about Bob here on our Studio Five site.

http://studiofiveart.org/index.html

To the Sketchbook


Well, I've spent the last couple of hours messing around with Blogger and it seems to be working just fine. I love figuring out computer stuff up to a point and then I glaze over and wander off to find something else to do... or draw.




The lyf so short, the craft so long to lerne.

~ Chaucer