Greenspirit Arts

Of Goddesses and Groundhogs

2012-02-03T01:34:00.003-05:00

On the circular wheel of the year, in Earth-based festivals we have just passed the cross-quarter day known to some as "Imbolc" which marks the half-way point between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox (in the Northern hemisphere). For those of us who live closer to the north, this is a very special time of year for by now we are able to notice that indeed the days are getting longer. Winter is not over by any means, but the return of the light of the sun is significant. Our spirits are lifted and we can start dreaming of gardens and green grass once more.

Here in America, on this "special" day, a poor old sleepy groundhog is dragged out of his nice warm borrow by a bunch of loud and rowdy humans. It is a bizarre ritual that even as a kid I felt was so unfair and it really embarrassed me to be an American with this very strange "holiday" that made absolutely no sense...and the whole formula for divining the remaining winter seemed so nonsensical to me...I mean, if it is sunny out, that should be good, right? But apparently not according to the legend. I can remember asking the adults in my world and no one had a good answer...it was just "tradition" and so we were supposed to accept it...and get into it. But the whole thing made me queasy...like it was a violation of something much deeper. But I was just a kid and what do kids know....right?

Did you ever wonder where we got such a silly ritual and why this day, February 2nd was the day chosen for this strange celebration?

Here is what made it all finally make some sense to me - though I don't quite yet understand how the groundhog got into the picture. I was in Scotland doing some independent study on Celtic Goddesses for a painting I was working on and found this little gem; the ancient peoples of what is now Scotland had many Goddesses in their culture. The most important was the one called The Cailleach, or by another name " Beira" the Queen of Winter. She was the oldest of all the Goddesses and many thought her to be the most powerful.... she was no fluffy snowflake, no snow bunny! She was a force to be reckoned with, striding across the land with her staff creating mountain ranges and with a flourish of her Ermine-tipped cape, spreading a thick blanket of cold and dark across the land...for as long as she deemed it should be so, there would be winter.
Scotland is even further to the north than here so it is easy to imagine how important this cross-quarter day was to those ancient communities. It was said that if Beira had decided to let winter not go on for so long, then on this day, the cross-quarter day half way between the beginning of winter and the beginning of spring, (Feb 1st or 2nd) she would make it be a cloudy day for better napping in her cave. But, if she had decided she was going to linger in the glens and lochs for a good while longer and keep the winter shroud tight against the landscape, then she would bring on a day full of sun so she had plenty daylight to gather the firewood she would need to get thru her intended, extended stay.

So now, when they drag that poor old sleepy groundhog out of his cozy den and search for shadows or none, you can be somewhat the wiser about what is really going on!!

******************************

To celebrate the return of the Light and to say "Thank you" to all my great fans, I'm having a special offer on my card sales. For the entire month of February, if you make a purchase of a set of greeting cards or a DVD, I'll add free greeting cards to your order...one for each pack of 6 cards, and 2 for each DVD. I actually started this sale in mid-January, and for those folks who placed orders in January, they got their extra cards already with their shipment. This is my way of saying "Thank You" for all your wonderful support! Your free card(s) will be in the same style as the collection(s) you have chosen. This is a good deal...it brings the cost of a card down to approx $2.14, so don't miss out. And if you have ordered from me before, make a note of it on the Paypal invoice and I'll try to make sure that you get an extra little something in your package. My way to share the love.

I am also preparing some e-cards which I will be giving away as we get closer to Valentines Day, as a way to say "Love you" to all the great people who have followed my work all these years but who perhaps don't send paper cards. I'll be announcing this next week.

And, as an extra special token of Gratitude, I am going to be raffling off one of my Faerie Houses! This is going to be a very rare opportunity for one lucky winner!! I'm working out the details and will let you know when it is ready to launch but the basics will be this: for a small fee, your name will be entered into a "hat". At the end of the time period, one name will be chosen from the pool of participants and they will WIN a Faerie House!! You will be able to enter multiple times. But I need to work out a few final details before I can officially announce this, but I should have everything ready to present to you in a week or so... so stay tuned, as they say!!

Finally, this.... I have just 5 copies left of the 2012 Faerie Houses calendar put out by Pomegranate. If you would like a signed copy, let me know and I can make that happen. Just email me.

Happy Imbolc Everyone!!

BIG Sale at Lulu

2012-01-30T01:28:00.002-05:00

This can't wait... I just received a notice that Lulu is having a 30% off sale! But only till the end of January 31st. To get the discount use coupon code : SHELFSTOCK305

This news was too big to let it sit for a day. The notice says it is good for all "titles" so this may not work for calendars, but it will work for my books...or ANY Lulu book you may want to get! Have fun!

FREE Booklet about custom-crafted Faerie houses now online

2012-01-29T23:46:00.005-05:00

Greetings Everyone!

Finally, at last! My first edition FREE information booklet for my Custom-crafted Faerie houses is finished! It is now available as a download or for online viewing in two different places at absolutely no cost. You can go to the top of this page and go to the special page labeled "Custom Faerie houses Info".

Once there you can see the pages of the booklet. However, because of the limitations of Blogger, I was not able to get these pages to full size without viewing problems, so these pages may be hard to read depending on your browser and screen size. If you've tried to view the blog page and if it is not working for you, try clicking HERE and you'll be taken to a tiny, simple website that has the PDF file listed on the page. From here you can choose to view it right away, or you can download it and save it to view later. Here is the URL if you are unable to click on the link:
https://sites.google.com/site/gsacustomcraftedfaeriehouses/home/information-booklet-pdf

There is a LOT of information in the 16 pages. I give a brief description of the materials, a bit of a basic step-by-step on what goes into making the Faerie houses, a look at the 4 different "levels" of complexity for my the sculptures as well as information on how the whole "custom crafted" process works. Then I have additional pages that look at some of the basic features each house would have but comparing the different levels of complexity. Finally there are pages about special add-on features and prices....ah yes, the nitty-gritty!!

It may take a bit to wade through it all, but the process is meant to be fun and inspiring and hopefully you will find it to be so...and there are loads of images! I will soon have an additional page which one can use as a worksheet/order form in case you might be dreaming of one of these houses for yourself or as a gift for someone else. I'll let you know when that is ready.

PLEASE do feel free to share the link with anyone you know who might be interested in my work. Anyone who makes a successful referral (to someone who places an order) will get a VERY nice commission!

I have a few other announcements to make later this week so do come back soon. There will be two very special pieces of news to celebrate the return of the Light! The cross-quarter day festival called Imbolc is almost here (usually celebrated on February 1st) and those of us who live in the north of the Northern Hemisphere are really noticing that the daylight hours are getting longer so it is time to share the love...which I will be doing for the whole month as you will see!! :-)

Midnight Visitor

2012-01-27T17:46:00.005-05:00

I had a very special visitor come to my bird feeder a few nights ago. A Flying Squirrel! These amazing creatures are supposedly fairly common here in the Eastern North American forests, it is just that they are so good at remaining unseen by humans, that we rarely if ever get to see them in the wild. So, I was thrilled to see this lovely visitor right at my kitchen window! The photo is not very good because the squirrel moves very fast and I did not want to use a flash for the photo because it might hurt its very sensitive eyes. We have owls here and this guy would have been temporarily blinded if I had used a flash, so, the compromise means we have blurry pics.

What a tail !!! Flying squirrels use their big, flattish tails much like the tail of a kite is used to stabilize the kite in flight. The squirrel is bigger than you might think... I estimated it is slightly bigger than a red squirrel. Here the Squirrel has backed right up to the glass which is why the tail looks a bit flattened to the right.

Here, the Squirrel is bumped right up against the glass with his rump. Here also you can see the large fold of skin which is between the front legs and the back ones. When the Squirrel launches itself, it does not actually fly, but glides from tree to tree or tree to ground. They often look like a handkerchief flying by if you happen to be lucky enough to see one at night. They don't seem to mind humans too much..at least the ones I have here are that way. I've been outside gardening in the late evening and have seen these guys leaping from tree to tree...coming quite close at times. Once, I found a nest of babies. It was in the hollow of a big maple tree right along my driveway. The hole was just low enough for me to peek inside regularly and watch their progress. Perhaps this guy was one from that nest, I'd like to think so!

It was such a thrill to see this spunky creature. Even though it was right by my kitchen sink, separated only by the glass and it could see every move I made, it did not seem to be too bothered by me...as long as there were seeds to eat!!

Why make art that no one will see?

2012-01-21T10:12:00.001-05:00

Why make art that no one will see?

Well, first of all, that statement isn't quite true. You are "seeing" this sculpture, in a way. Yes it is just a photograph. Yes it is not the full experience. You are not hearing the stillness of the forest, the gurgling sound of the waterfall as it tumbles over and under the ice to the pool below.
You are not feeling the cold in your fingers and toes (maybe this is a good thing! ) nor the exhilaration of standing in the icy water to get this shot (definitely a good thing!). But, you are seeing something of the magic that was present in this moment... the impossible view of shards of ice rising up to form a delicate archway over the black ribbon of water deep in a secluded corner of a nature reserve. No trails lead to this place so it is most likely, no one but me saw this sculpture once I completed it. And I know it did not last the night because we had strong, warm winds the next day and much of the snowcover melted so its a good bet this came down sometime in the night.

But the pictures don't convey the awe experienced when a beam of sparkling sunlight, drifted down thru the pine branches hundreds of feet above , to settle on the foot of the ice arch which set the whole sculpture glowing into a delicate crystalline bridge of light....sadly, the photos cannot capture what the human can see nor what the human heart can feel.

Which brings up another point... just because only one pair of human eyes got to see this sculpture does not mean it was not seen by others. And this is one of the parts that is so hard to explain... for when I am out in the forest, doing this work, feeling in harmony with the landscape and environment, I do not feel alone, not one bit. I feel the presence of the great trees, sleeping in the snow... I feel the presence of the small birds and lively squirrels high in the branches above...and I feel the deep and powerful Presence of both Mother Earth and the Great Spirit which hold it all together. And I feel more than this, even... I feel the presence of graceful beings of energy and light. Some might call them Faeries, some might call them Devas or Elementals or angels, even. But the point is, they are there too and sometimes, when everything is just right and peace is big in my heart, I get to feel them too.

And that is one of the big reasons why I do this art... as an offering... for them.

How and Why part 1

2012-01-16T20:41:00.003-05:00

Winter has finally come to these woods. It has taken the long route getting here. An extended brown fall followed by a warm brown December followed by 2 weeks of cold brown January...but no snow here during the whole of it except for a few soggy inches back around Halloween. I've never seen the likes of this sort of strangeness. Everything feels wrong...but none of us here are complaining because we knew what it should be like and we are happy to have the cold and snow holding off a wee bit longer.
The long, extended dry spell gave us all a rare chance to take care of chores we don't often get to do in early winter. In my case it was to collect more Faerie house materials in the forests and along the river. Yes, it was cold sometimes but the lack of snow made the collecting very easy. It also made magic along the river.

I've been writing a lot lately. Mostly trying to find the right words for my book, which is in process. I've been trying to understand and then describe why I do what I do... it has been very challenging to find the words... any words to wrap around the waves that rise up and push me forward into the creative process.

It used to be that when I would look upon a scene such as this, a magical creation made by the river all by herself, it was enough to just drink it in...to gaze in wonder and marvel at the magic. It was enough to just find such treasures, photograph them, perhaps try and paint them but mostly, it was a passive process of receiving the gift of the moment, straight from Nature Herself. And I always felt very grateful to be allowed to witness such Beauty.

But something mysterious happens when you take yourself and step into the frame, and begin to have a dialog directly with the landscape. When you start to co-create together WITH the landscape. That is another feeling altogether. That is the part I am having the most difficulty trying to describe. But I keep trying because I want to have an answer to the question : "Why do this work?"

I have come to realize that basically, for me, there seem to be 4 primary motivations:

1) Because sometimes, something in the landscape calls to me to come and work with it
2) Because sometimes, design elements in the materials themselves delight me so much that I want to play with the shapes and forms
3) Because sometimes I am given a vision and I feel the challenge to try and bring it into form
4) Because I know there are others who feel as I do and together we are keeping portals and doorways open between the Visible and the Invisible worlds... and when I am doing this work then I feel that I am part of that Tribe and I feel connected to a sense of purpose.

So when I finished with my bit of writing this morning, trying to wrestle the dragon of my creative impulses onto the page long enough to take form into words, I felt unsure about whether I would ever be able to put into words everything that I felt about what I do as a creative artist, making these little creations...and just then, I looked up to see a rainbow of magical Faerie Light dance across the Dragon House. And it made me smile because I had my answer in that moment.

I used to spend time with a very magical child named Ananda. He told me once that whenever you see a rainbow on something, it was the sign of a Faerie's Kiss... that the Faeries liked something so much that they covered it with kisses and that was where the rainbows came from. Even the very, very big rainbows that we see in the sky. His story came back to me in a flood when I saw this rainbow kiss this morning... and I felt very blessed and honoured once again.

Not long after that it was time to step away from the writing and go make some lunch, so I loaded a few more logs into the firebox of the trusty wood-stove and made some soup. When it is 8 degrees below zero, making soup on the wood-stove can also be a very creative and rewarding experience!! Yum!

Next up: we go into the studio and see what is lurking there!

Happy New Year!!

2012-01-04T19:40:00.004-05:00

Happy New Year Everyone!!

Wishing a peaceful and prosperous 2012
to all beings who share this beautiful Earth
together.

Most everyone I know is glad to have the chance to start a new year. Last year was so tough for many people....not everyone, but it seems that the resounding chorus these days is a sincere sentiment something like: "Thank goodness we get to put that year behind us!"

I have to say that I agree.

So here we sit on the edge of a New Year. I saw a lovely card once that spoke of the New Year as a fresh blanket of snow, with the suggestion to tread carefully for each and every step we make will leave a mark. I feel a resonance with that idea as we turn over our journals, daybooks and calendars. ( You did get a calendar, didn't you? wink wink). Who doesn't like the idea of a fresh start?

But before we close the books entirely on last year, I have a tiny little apology to place here: for those of you who contacted me during the Holiday break, thank you and my sincere regret for not giving you a timely reply. My holiday activities had me away from my computer for most of the time. I found that I needed to take a much needed break for a few days and the span between Solstice and what much of the rest of the world celebrates as New Years was the perfect time to do some much needed contemplation and reflection, as well as planning and prioritizing. So, as a result, many of your emails and requests did not get a reply until very recently. I hope that was not a disappointment to you. But the studio is now open again and things are getting the attention they need and deserve.

Currently I am still working on the book project and am very pleased with how it is going. I also am waiting to hear back on several projects that were in development with other business partners and projects. I've also been invited to another state to conduct a workshop in Faerie House construction (will let you know when details are confirmed) and so I am/we are developing a plan for (finally) conducting more workshops this coming year... something many folks have been asking for and I am finally able to do. I am also helping to develop a few small projects on the local level with other volunteers for programs in my area which are close to my heart. There will also be a few more fine art painting projects coming off my painting table and I'm hoping to have at least one good gallery show for my one-of-a-kind Faerie Houses. And there are other plans in the works as well, but they are too misty for the moment to discuss. So for many of us, myself included, now is a time of deep dreaming and practical planning - woven together like a basket to hold the New Year and all its abundant potential.

* * * * * * *

I love the deep nights of winter because we have the chance to become quiet inside, if we choose. Yes, the outer world of holiday-making and festivities can be overwhelming just like the rich meals and overabundance of sweets and goodies that seem to go with this season. However, a simple walk in the woods at this time of year can bring one into a deeply restive and quiet space within, if one lets it. The forest is so quiet wrapped in its shrouds of snow and low-angled sun here in the north. Only a few of the hardiest of birds are heard from time to time. No leaves rustle overhead or crunch underfoot. No insects buzz or hum. It is a time of deep stillness, long starry nights and moving with very careful steps whether one is on ice or fresh snow.

May the peace and stillness of this pause in time bring you refreshment and a chance to center yourself as we prepare to enter the coming year. From all angles it appears that the coming year will be one of powerful growth and positive transformation. I know there are many people who are feeling all sorts of mixed feelings about this year because so much has been made of what it might "mean" for our collective. One thing that Nature teaches me is that while it is good to prepare for what we want to have happen, it is also good to remain flexible to what will happen... sometimes the two are not the same and if we are too emotionally or egoistically attached to the former, we may miss out on the opportunities and gifts of the latter. So here's to dancing on the edge of all the positive potentials of the New Year and diving in to fully receive and enjoy all the goodness that it can bring.

Very best wishes to you all,

Sally

12 days of specials at Lulu

2011-12-15T00:26:00.002-05:00

Hi Everyone,

I've just received notice that Lulu will be having "12 days of Coupon specials" starting today. They have not indicated to me exactly what the specials will be so I will be just as surprised as you, but if you want to follow the program (and take advantage of any of the sales) here is the link to the page:

http://www.lulu.com/holiday_coupons/

I know that I said I would be raising my calendars prices after December 1st, but thanks to better than anticipated orders this holiday season I am delighted to announce that I can continue to keep my personal discount sale of 10% off going for longer than expected... we can all use a little extra holiday cheer, and now it appears that Lulu will be adding to the fun with the 12 days of coupons program.

Be sure to pay attention to the fine print on their offers - some of the offers may apply to all Lulu products and some of the discounts may apply to only books or calendars. Since I have both on offer (you can see all my books and calendars here:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/greenspiritarts ) this may make a difference to you.

Also a notification I received from Lulu recently: some rural customers are currently experiencing ordering problems and will see an notice that they have an "unacceptable address" and they will be unable to complete their order. If this happens, you can try using a different land address ( a friend or relative?) or you can contact me directly and I will place an order for you personally. This is a bug in the Lulu system that they are working on fixing but it still seems to be an issue for a few rare customers, so if you are unable to place and order because of this issue, please email me directly and we will get you sorted out. My apologies if this happens, it has/had to do with a Fed-Ex interface issue with the Lulu website and only affects a very small number of rural customers.

A previous Lunar Eclipse

2011-12-11T11:10:00.003-05:00

A while ago we had the chance to observe a lunar eclipse just like the one which happened yesterday for much of the west-coast US and pacific regions. It was the middle of winter here when the event was to unfold and I decided to make a "net" of icicles to see if I could frame the eclipsed moon somehow. I went to the lake and collected hundreds of long icicles, some almost 5 ft long, and brought them to the site I had designed. I knew the moon would be high in the sky, so I needed to get "under" the net somehow to capture the eclipsed moon in the net. Since I built this at night, under the light of the full moon it has a mixture of order and randomness that really pleases me, visually speaking.

This photograph is quite deceptive because you don't get to see how this net is suspended out over the space below...the space I had hoped I could place my camera in and take photos of the moon as it was turning red in the shadow of the earth...the photo also gives no clue as to the scale of this thing...but one could put a large couch in the middle of this net and have plenty left on any side, it was that big...and, it is completely rigid since it is made of single icicles, stuck together.
Well, I was very happy with the sculpture, but the experiment was limited by my (at the time) low-tech camera...it simply was unable to capture the low light scene sufficiently when it was in full eclipse mode. So, I just enjoyed the show instead.
The next night, which was also clear and cold, the sculpture was more or less still there so I tried to get the full moon photographed against the crystalline web and this time, with the increase in light, it worked.

Some of the icicles had fallen down, but as luck would have it, the hole that was created was actually where the moon ended up being, so it all worked out just fine.

I decided to re-post this sculpture for a couple of reasons. One, to celebrate the eclipse that just happened and was visible to so many...and two, because it reminds me that even when we make our best plans, sometimes things happen that we cannot predict, giving our human limitations....but, sometimes things also work out in spite of our human limitations too...sometime great things.

As I continue to work on my book, and share my images on calendars and cards (thank you to everyone who has been able to make a purchase...every bit helps truly!) I want so much for this work to continue. There is magic here and this artificial world we humans have created for ourselves does not feed my soul the way Nature does...and I suspect I am not alone in this. So, somehow, some way, I want to keep this stream of work burbling along, even if it means revisiting older works from time to time along with new pieces that I know will still get created. And perhaps, in this way, the flow might take the work forward to find new resources and outlets which would support me enough for me to keep making more environmental sculptures. In the meantime, there is certainly much to celebrate in terms of what has already been created.

Next week I will have a special gift for all my readers, so stay tuned!

Bright Blessings all around you and yours!

2011-12-06T14:28:00.002-05:00

Hi there Everyone,

I am continuing to do work in the studio on the book and also on other projects which are in mid-process so there are not a lot of tangible images of things to share right now from my hands. Fortunately, there are plenty of extremely talented and deeply spiritual people out there making their gifts of creativity available to help us all feel positive and powerful as we move forward here in the middle of much transformation.

Here is a beautiful video that really speaks to my heart and is one that I thought the readers of this blog would enjoy as well. I hope it brings a sense of Peace and harmony to you. I'll share more of my work as it becomes available or if there are any other big sales going on at Lulu. I did receive a very nice email from one of the developers at Lulu outlining the changes they are about to make for next year. They have been listening to the issues and problems that some people experienced with Lulu and they are going to be addressing many of them soon, so thank you those of you who took the time to write to me and share your issues.... I sent them ALL into Lulu and they are working on fixing the problems some folks had. For instance, some people got a message that they had an "invalid address" and were therefore unable to place an order. That will be fixed!! The problem was using the Fed-Ex database which does not always recognize rural addresses....so there will be progress and I thank you for being patient and for your feedback.

OK.. on to the video.... enjoy!!!

Here is the link to the video if it is not showing up in your browser... it is worth viewing...very relaxing and beautiful. A Mini-vacation of sorts!

http://youtu.be/wBKANDobw28

A meditation on Gratitude

2011-11-25T00:45:00.005-05:00

For all of you who know and love Beauty, I hope you enjoy this glimpse into another artist's view of this magnificent creation we call Life. I also hope you enjoy the wise words spoken by the young Innocent and the wise Elder as much as I do. This is a celebration of gratitude that resonates deeply in my heart and gives me great joy to share with you.

Happy Giving-of-Thanks Day

Please click here to see the video....

( I'm not sure if the video will embed or not... I can see it in the preview so hopefully you can too, but if not, click on the link above and you'll be taken to the TED talk. My apologies for multiple postings for my followers)

For Moon trackers

2011-11-22T00:16:00.005-05:00

Dear Readers,

Some of you may wish to know about a wonderful new calendar put together by my friend Jennifer. For anyone who wants to work more closely with the cycles of the Moon, tracking its influence in your life and/or looking towards the future to see what the moon might be telling us about the waves of energies as they ebb and flow, then this calendar might be of interest! You can click on the image to find out more.

This is a little bit different from a standard calendar and it is packed with very useful information. She has created it as a spiral-bound "book" so when you go HERE to see the information page and preview, you'll see the pages in the sideways (portrait) orientation, but the calendar actually works in the horizontal orientation, either opened flat on your desk or I use bulldog clips to hang it on the wall.

The calendar really honours the cycles of the moon because each "Month" is actually a lunation cycle and so each page begins with the New moon in the first position on the 7 day grid. This year she has used lots of lovely art (some of it my readers will recognize !) and there are many levels and layers of interpretation for each and every day. The best way to see what I'm talking about is to go check it out for yourself! I just got my copies and they are really beautiful. I can't wait to give these to my friends who already do a lot of work with the Moon... this is something totally different and very special. It will bring meaning and thoughtful reflections for the very important coming year of 2012.

OPPSSS... I've made a goof that I need to correct: for a few hours here I mistakenly said this item could be bundled with my calendars to get the great discount, but because this item is actually a book, functioning as a calendar, it does not qualify for the same deal. My apologies.

However, you can still get it for 25% off! YAY!

To get the discount simply create a new order and input coupon code :

BUYMYBOOK305

My apologies for the confusion.

Enjoy!!

Some news and a silver lining

2011-11-19T19:12:00.004-05:00

Dear Readers,
I've been considering recently whether to write an honest reckoning post here. I've been going back and forth about whether it is better to just keep a positive spin going or is it better to frank and honest and just say what is really going on... you see, I have hit a point in doing all this work, where I may just have to stop for an undetermined period of time.
Here is why:

While I absolutely LOVE doing the sculptures and photography work itself, along with making all the various products to share the work, there seems to be a big gap between my love for the work and my ability to generate a livable income from it. I had hoped that people would fall in love with the work enough to keep me going financially, but, sadly, that has not been the case.
As with many artists, especially us shy types, the idea of always having to be hustling our work is an anathema to what is in our hearts and souls. This is extremely so for me. The work that I do, out in Nature is pretty much the total opposite of what is required to be successful in the Marketplace. I know my work is good... I don't mean that from an egoistic place, but it comes from knowing deep inside what it takes to make sculptures and photographs like these...and how much work is done that is never seen by you, the viewer because it is not quite good enough. But to just be accomplished technically is not enough if one is to make a living at being an artist, and I have been unable to get that part of the process to work... I think mainly because there is just simply too much for one person to do and have it be a success financially.

I had hoped that the work would sell itself and that the people who liked it would help grow the business so that it could naturally and organically grow enough to sustain me in my simple and very modest lifestyle. Perhaps in a different economy this would be easier. Or perhaps, if people didn't have so many other shiny, expensive toys to spend their time/money on, there would be more for artists like myself who work very hard to produce something very special and somewhat spiritual to nourish and inspire others. I simply don't know what it takes to "make it" these days, but I've had to face facts and realize that I simply cannot do it all, alone, any more. I am not able to make ends meet and it does not make any sense to keep doing what does not work.

I am still working on my Kickstarter book and it will get finished by the end of the year. I hoped to have it done in time for Christmas giving, and am still pushing hard for that, but given Lulu's printing schedule, it may be down to the wire....but I will NOT compromise any quality in order to finish by some marketing deadline...this book is just too important for me to not give it my very best attention.

I do not know what the future will hold. I have some very exciting potentials that are still waiting to take shape, but if none of it will pay the bills anytime in the near future, then I have to think carefully about what I can and cannot do. More than anything, I have to face facts and look to this reality and get my finances in order.

Now for the good news...the "silver lining" part I mentioned in the title of this post. If you would like to help, there is a great offer that is just now been made by Lulu that could be a nice way to celebrate this whole adventure. Lulu has just announced that they are offering a 35% off sale on calendars till the end of the month.

This is HUGE...really!!!!!!

You will only get to use this coupon once, so be sure to get all your calendar gift-giving needs into one order and then be sure to place it before the end of the month.

Here is the coupon code: STUDIOVIP305

The notice said it would be good till the end of the month. Now, I don't like to say negative things about Lulu, but in the past I have seen them take away offers before they have actually expired, so don't leave this till the last minute. I don't think you'll get a better offer for the rest of the year... with my discount of 10% off and Lulu's 35%, that is an unbelievably good savings.

Here again is the link to the Eartherials calendar: click HERE

and here you'll find the Spirals calendar: click HERE

As for what the future holds, I am still going to post here, I am still going to fulfill any orders I get thru my website at www.greenspiritarts.com so please do continue to stop by and visit and see what might be new. However, I will have to be taking up other work of some kind so that I can increase my income stream. If there is anyone out there who would like to be an old-fashioned patron, please let me know. :-) If you would like to take some of my cards to your local gift shop to promote them, let me know and I'll send you a sales kit. If you would like to have your Holiday cards printed with one of my sculptures on the cover, let me know and I'll be happy to work with my printer to get custom cards printed just for you.
If you'd like to get a truly rare and collectible original sculpture, I will be putting more Faerie houses up for sale soon. (see the top of this page "Faerie House" for more information) However, I'm not going to reduce the prices to fire-sale levels because I need to honour all that has gone into them....hundreds of hours in some cases. I'll donate them to a children's hospital or something instead of selling them for less than what they are worth. But if you would like one, I'll do everything I can to work out a payment program or what I can to get one to you. And if you'd like one, I am still very happy to create custom houses.

It has literally been painful to my heart to come to this place of reckoning, but as agonizing as it has been, it is also important to recognize that at some point, one simply has to accept certain limits. For me, I have been extremely happy with the progression, refinement and quality of my artistic work, and sadly, for whatever reasons, it is not providing me with anything close to a sustainable income stream.

I have come to peace with this, and finally, after feeling like a failure and a disappointment, I know that I am neither. I know that the work I've done has merit and for some people has been a magical experience. For me it certainly has been, and I want to keep it that way. I know I will continue to do Environmental art in some form or another, but, I have to find some way to earn enough "dosh" as my dear Scottish friend says, so that at the very least I can pay my bills. I will keep posting here but I do not know what shape the future holds for me as an artist.
I want to thank Everyone for all the ways that you have supported my work in the past and I hope you will still do so in the future. I am deeply committed to continuing to create artworks that inspire the deep part of each of us that wants so much to re-connect with Nature and with the Magical realms that do indeed exist here and now. Now, more than ever we need to honour the Earth and our place here as stewards, caretakers and collaborators; with Nature and the Beings that inhabit the unseen worlds. My work, whatever form it takes will always have this as an underlying foundation because that is the core of who I am as an artist and as a person.

Deep gratitude to each of you for your support, your encouragement and your enthusiasm... you made my days shine ever brighter. With palms together and a deep and humble bow, I thank you.

I'm now going to focus completely on getting the Kickstarter book finished, honouring my previous agreements for my Kickstarter patrons, and then taking some time to figure out what I can do to earn a living wage.

Blessed Be to all of you,

Sally

NEW CALENDARS are HERE!!!

2011-11-16T21:51:00.005-05:00

Hi Everyone!

I am very pleased to announce that I have TWO new calendars now available for ordering online thru Lulu.com

The first calendar is my 6th edition of "Eartherials" (wow, I didn't realize I've been doing them this long!) You can click on the photo to go to the Lulu page to see previews of all the images. If you have a few moments, please fill out a review to help other viewers know how much you enjoy this work, it really helps boost sales and interest!

Here is the URL if you need it: http://www.lulu.com/product/calendar/eartherials-2012/18661650

Here is the cover for the new 2012 Spirals calendar. There are some great new spirals in this calendar for those who love this kind of design.

Here is the URL for this calendar:

http://www.lulu.com/product/calendar/spirals-2012-calendar/18671939

As you'll see, both calendars are currently at a discounted price. This discount will expire and the price will go up on December 1st so plan ahead.

I know a lot of you have been waiting for these calendars and I think this year they are better than ever. If you live outside the US please note: Calendars may be available in your country! Just go to the page and try placing an order. Lulu literally has printers all over the world to help you get my products, so do check it out!! And please write a review if you have a moment, thanks!!

Dragon Faerie House debuts at Faeriecon

2011-11-05T02:29:00.006-04:00

This is what I have been working on the past 6 weeks, 8-14 hours a day nearly non-stop... an over-the-top Faerie House for the Faerie Magazine promotion/launch of their new project. I cannot tell you about the project just yet, but I can tell you about this house! The house is making its big debut at the Faeriecon convention happening as we speak, this week-end in Baltimore, MD. If you are there and want to see this house in-person, go tot he Faerie Magazine booth and you will find it there.

The first thing to say about this house is that it is big. Over 2 ft tall with an approximate footprint of 13in x 13 in. It features 3 different bump-out bay windows and 2 oval windows plus two magical ruby-red glass gem windows. There are two sets of battery powered LED lights to vary the lighting intensity. A pair of lighted quartz crystal lights are on the front stairs, 4 removable roofs and a very special Golden Birch door that opens. It also features a very special surprise which I will tell you about shortly.

Here we have the house in a quiet indoor space with low lighting. This allows you to get the sense of how the interior lighting looks when it is turned ON.

Here we have the house outdoors, albeit not on a very good day as far as taking photos was concerned!! This is the front of the house.

Here we have a side view with one of the Bay windows. Each Bay window has a glazing of magical Faerie film which acts like a mirror in daylight but allows light to pass thru when lighted from within. Also each window has a green velvet upholstered window seat on the inside.

Here is the view of the back. You'll notice a dark cave at the base of the Faerie House.... this is the secret Dragon's lair entrance so the dragons can come and go without disturbing the residents of the castle too much. One of the light switches is hidden under the leafy roof. The other is just to the left of the front door.

Here we are coming back around from the other side towards the front of the house. You can see the other two Bay windows here. The second light switch is under the slope of mossy roof over the entrance-way. What is not very visible in these images is the fact that the entire castle is perched upon real stones, as if it is on top of its own little mountaintop.

The Front door. This whole sculpture began with the piece of driftwood shaped like a Dragon's head and neck that arches over the doorway. It was almost complete when I found it... I just added the eyes of Garnet beads and the "crest" down the head and neck.... the rest is as I found it. Here too we get a glimpse inside. The entire interior is finished in the flower-petal infused Mulberry paper I like to use for the houses. There are multiple lights in the inside including the narrow Hermit's Tower at the very top of the castle.

All four roofs do come off, as previously mentioned. Here they all are lined up next to the house. Each one fits nice and snugly to help contain the light within the house during the darker hours.

Here is a peek inside the Dragon Cave. There are glittering, real quartz crystals and several neatly hidden lights all nestled in a velvety red background to give the feeling of a warm and magical cave. This picture does not do it justice!

More images and details are available... just email me if you'd like to see them. This house IS for sale: $2,850. The price reflects the one-of-a-kind nature of this sculpture, the 300+ hours it took to create it and the fact that it is the premier house to help launch Faerie Magazine's new project plus their commission. The buyer can get additional interior decorations added upon request. I've left it rather clean inside in case the new owner would like to add their own collection of decorations and furnishings. I am open to "lay-away" arrangements if you want to break the purchase price up into multiple, smaller payments. Please inquire if interested. This is by far my most enchanting and detailed house. It took such a labour of love to create... and it will be quite awhile before I make another to this scale and/or level of detail. Contact me if you want to see more details photos.

Soon Faerie Magazine will be announcing the new program. This house was created to help celebrate the new project and it is now on display at their booth at the Faeriecon convention. Kim (the Editor for the magazine) has told me that already the house has had many humdreds of admirers. Since the house is currently being seen by over 5000 visitors to the convention, if you think you might be a serious buyer, do let me know ASAP since I've authorized Faerie Magazine to sell it at the convention if a buyer shows up and wants it.

Tempus fugit and Carpe diem! :-)

Murmuration

2011-11-04T16:15:00.002-04:00

The Dance of Unity: individuals in tune with their collective.

Imagine what we could/ (will?) do with this kind of connection between humans.

With love and Blessings towards All

Murmuration from Sophie Windsor Clive on Vimeo.

An inspirational video

2011-10-27T14:44:00.003-04:00

Dear Friends,

Your generous support has been amazing!! If anyone would like to watch a short video about the shelter, you can watch it here, or click HERE to go to Youtube to see it.

Wicked good offer

2011-10-25T19:43:00.010-04:00

WOW !!! Due to amazing responses from all of you, all the prints have sold!! Thank you so very much to everyone!

I've heard from the shelter and they've told me that they have also received donations directly from readers who have seen this post, so a great big "THANK YOU" to everyone who has been able to help with this very important matching grant opportunity.

If anyone would still like to make a donation there is still time. What is especially important is that whatever you can give will be DOUBLED by a matching grant, so every donation counts! We're so close now!!

Click HERE to make a donation and thank you!!

The local animal shelter is down to the wire on a fund-raising campaign. They have a matching grant opportunity that can't be missed. The deadline is Nov. 1st. I don't have money to give them, but I have prints I can sell!

So here's what I'm offering: I have one each of the following prints. Each is approx 11 x 14 (some slightly smaller, some slightly larger). All are printed on Archival watercolour paper and will be signed by me. Can be personalized if you wish. I'm going to offer these prints for a very reduced rate with 100% of the proceeds to go towards the animal shelter's fund. This is a hugely important goal for them to make and you can help them get there with your donation, plus you'll leverage the matching grant... and get some cool art all at the same time!

I have only one copy of each print. Each is for sale at $35. Email me at:
greenspiritarts@westelcom.com and let me know which one(s) you want and I will mark it here as sold. I will create a Paypal invoice for you and we'll all be feeling great about doing something important for the animals who need our help !!

Since time is of the essence, I can only accept Paypal orders up till noon on Oct 31st. The prints will be sent rolled unless otherwise requested and postage will be an additional $5.
If you'd like to help out a VERY worthy cause, and get one of my prints, here's your chance!!

Here is the shelter's website so you can see what it is all about:
http://www.ncspca.org/shelter

Our local shelter has been a woefully sub-standard place for over 2 decades. The animals have the barest minimum and dogs and cats are sheltered in the same, noisy kennel, so it is very stressful, especially for the cats. It serves a HUGE area in a place where people abandon pets FAR too regularly. The staff is incredibly dedicated to doing the best they can. This new facility is something that they have been working towards for over a decade. I can't tell you how much I want to help them secure this grant. PLEASE help if you can !!

Circle of Light
SOLD to a fabulous supporter, thank you!

SOLD - to a super supporter !!
kitties are purring a "thank you" too !!

Bellflower House

13 Stone Spiral
SOLD to a terrific supporter THANK YOU!!

Ring of Fire

SOLD to a generous supporter!

Dandinet New Moon

SOLD to a savvy supporter, thank you so much !!

SOLD - to a generous supporter !
Puppies are rolling all over themselves with glee
saying "Thank You" !!

Leaf Sphere over stream

Winter Solstice

SOLD to a very generous supporter, thank you!!

One thing after the other

2011-10-09T22:36:00.003-04:00

This piece is such an illusion. It stands there, looking all calm and peaceful... all poised and harmonious... you'd never know there were struggles, drama and crashes galore before this shape could finally pull itself together.

A few weeks ago, I arrived at the edge of the Ausable river in a place I had not visited before. The banks were composed of fabulous fragments of what appeared to be a kind of sandstone. The stone lined the entire width of the river making it exceptionally clean, clear and free of debris. I was in heaven. Because of the abundance of good stones to work with, I got ambitious. I tried one crazy stack after another. Always they would get just nearing completion then I'd get cocky and try to add one more stone and the whole thing would come down.

The sun was warm, the river cool and pleasant...what did it matter? I kept at it. Four tries ... crash! Maybe I shouldn't try to make it so tall... OK ... just ...one... more... stone....CRASH! Five tries.

OK.. THIS time, I'm going to go really slowly and make double, triple sure I've got everything just right. I worked very carefully for about 15-20 minutes watching each stone rise in perfect balance. It was working beautifully. Finally it was complete and astonishing! And as went back to the bank to get my camera and tripod to bring them out into the river to shoot the stack.... CRASH ! Six tries.

Now the sun had dipped below the treeline. It was still warm... I was laughing so much at the sheer silliness of it all at this point that I decided I'd try just ONE more time. (Seventh time is the charm, right?) I'd be really conservative in the design and just do something simple. After I had pulled all the fallen stones out of the river, cleared away all the ones I knew would not be used, I began stacking once more. This went up in just under a minute. It is about 60 inches high but since there is nothing to give you a sense of scale it could be any size. I like that.

Yes... just as calm and peaceful as can be. Inscrutable.

I like the meditation of stacking stones. I do them fairly frequently. I don't usually photograph them because they are for me, more about the experience of creating them rather than the finished object. They are my private offerings for the River Spirits and I like to mostly keep it that way. But this one had played sooooo hard to get, I just had to take the photo. It would have been far prettier drenched in the golden sunlight with the afternoon light glinting off the water, but apparently it had other plans!

This sculpture is also the perfect metaphor to use to talk briefly about what I have been working on these past weeks/months. There have been so many things going on and like this sculpture, I have many times gotten near to the finish line only to have it all come crashing down and I'd have to start all over once more. But now some of these projects are finally coming to completion and in the next few weeks I'll be telling you about:
- 12 new greeting cards that feature Autumnal images
- a new service being offered for those who like to send out personalized Holiday cards
- TWO new calendars (my own publications done thru Lulu)
- a new project being developed with Faerie Magazine that will be loads of fun for Faerie House collectors
- an update on the book
- a brand new series of sculptures that I have just begun.
- a new limited edition print of one of my dragon paintings (yes, some of you may not know I used to be a watercolour painter/illustrator before I started sculpting)
- a raffle for one of my sculpture prints
- and at last... after many requests, I am finally ready to take orders for my custom Faerie houses that I am co-designing each client. These can include some very special optional features... some of which you have seen here but some are new developments I've worked on this summer. I very much look forward to sharing these with you.
- and finally, (as of this writing), in December I will be able to talk about a secret art project that I've been working on that may be of great interest to those who also like puzzles...

So there will be lots of news from here over the next few weeks. I have been so busy on so many fronts these past few months that writing in the blog always seemed to be just outside the circle of what I could accomplish in a day, consequently, it has not gotten a lot of attention this summer. But the fall leaves are turning to gold and orange now and soon will be coming down and it will be time to put the gardens to bed and get the place ready for winter. Perhaps I can find a better rhythm soon rather than feeling like I'm trying to sprint through an entire marathon!

Hope you all have a splendid week!

A piece of Inspiration

2011-10-07T02:35:00.002-04:00

In response to a very thoughtful recent comment to one of my posts, I felt it would be nice to share with you a short video about how some inspired people have learned how to work WITH Nature to create beautiful, functional and practical bridges. This is such an inspirational message about how, if we are willing to be thoughtful, patient and sensitive, we can work with Nature to find elegant solutions to solve problems.

Enjoy!

We're all going Batty tomorrow!

2011-09-30T13:35:00.004-04:00

Tomorrow, OCTOBER 1st, the Pumpkin Tour for the Bats begins!!

Do you remember the story about the boy and the starfish? (there are many versions)
A young boy walking with his father on the beach encounter a mass stranding of starfish. Hundreds of thousands of them, washed up on the beach and dying.
The father, wanting to spare his son the painful reality tries to turn him around, but the child walks up and starts to toss the stranded starfish back into the water. His father objects... "You can't possibly be serious? It won't matter what you do... there is only one of you and too many of them. It won't make any difference." the father laments.

The boy smiles, holds up a starfish and gently tosses it back into the waves...."It made a difference to THAT one!" he says.

The terrible epidemic that is infecting bats, called White nose syndrome is a similar story. If you don't know about this mysterious and spreading disease, you can click HERE to find out more. If you'd like to read about one woman's rescue story of how she "made a difference" to one very lucky little bat you can click HERE .

And if you'd like to see some crazy and creative artists all celebrating the Halloween season and doing their bit for bat conservation, you can join us starting October 1st on the virtual studio tour! I've been given a sneak peek and there are a lot of talented and creative doll makers and other artists showing off their work, studios and scary selves (in costumes, of course) for this fun event. You can click on the poster above and it should take you directly to the tour. If that doesn't work, here is the URL :
http://pages.total.net/~weric/trick_or_treat/enter.htm

When you take the tour you'll find all kinds of spooky diversions and tid-bits to enjoy along with all the artist's work. Be sure to collect all the hidden letters to de-code the secret message to be entered into the Creaking door prize drawing. We hope you'll come, find something you like and support the artists AND support the bats. I'll be there in one of the glowing pumpkins... see you there!!!

YOU are invited!!!

2011-09-21T10:13:00.003-04:00

I have a very special event to invite you to!!
Starting on October 1st you will be able to visit a wonderfully whimsical, surprisingly scary, and gleefully ghoulish online studio tour! The site is being organized by a wonderful woman, Karen Waschinski, and it is all for a GREAT cause; Bat conservation.

You can click on the image and get to the website but the studio tour page is not yet available. For the actual tour, you will have to wait till October 1st.

Karen gave me a quick peek and I can tell you she's done an amazing job of creating a very fun adventure for visitors. Basically, there is a fanciful map, with "trails" and glowing Jack-o-lantern pumpkins along the trails. Each pumpkin represents an artist's "studio" created specially for this event which you can visit. There are also a LOT of extra fun features: recipes, Halloween decoration tips, history lessons, and a few hidden contests as well as a wonderful door prize! It costs nothing to take the tour, but we hope people will come and support the artists who have all already made modest contributions to Bat conservation.

Here in the Northeast we have seen a huge decline in our native bat populations and I am seeing the results personally in the forests here. There are tons more mosquitoes than I've ever seen before and I'm sure the loss of bats is part of the picture.

In my "studio" I will be showing a brand new Faerie House for the first time... the Golden Birch Faerie house. It is a darling, and one of my personal favourites. I'll give you a sneak peek here... plus you'll see 2 new sets of greeting cards appropriate for the season. And you'll see two of my previous houses, now for sale and retrofitted with amazing battery-powered micro lights. The lights make the houses even more magical!

So visit the link for the studio tour , bookmark it and get ready for a lot of fun. The artists are all contributing creations that have a Halloween or fantasy type theme. Many are doll and toy makers so it will be step into a very different universe... a "dark and scary" one, suitable for the season!!! I hope you will come and visit the virtual studio tour... it is for a great cause and there will be LOTS to see and discover!

So here is just a glimpse of the Golden Birch house... you'll have to wait till Oct 1st to see the whole thing!

Still here!

2011-09-16T22:57:00.004-04:00

Greetings Everyone!

Yes, it has been far, far longer than I could have ever imagined since my last post. The only word that can best describe these past few months is : RELENTLESS.

What have I been up to? First, I am still working on my next book though progress is slower than I had hoped for... too many unexpected things keep appearing that demand my attention, so it has been a summer of making plans only to have to re-configure them again and again. It has felt impossible to count on anything going right this summer.

Some dear friends of mine lost their son due to suicide early in the summer. This came as a complete shock to all of us as we all thought he was doing so well and had finally found a new direction for his life. He was a beautiful, artistic and deeply spiritual young man and it is easy to imagine that he just found the brutality of what humans do to one another and the planet to be just too much to bear anymore. We all feel that he was simply too sensitive and unable to shield himself from all that is going so badly wrong here. His family is still trying to cope and comfort one another, but he has left an enormous hole in their (and our) lives.

I also lost two of my beloved kitties. The first to go was Miles, and as readers here may remember, I thought he was walking off this earth in late winter. But he had a big rally in the spring and he had a fabulous summer, spent mostly in his favourite spot, a big wicker chair in the shade garden. But by early July, I began to see him decline again. Since I was now used to big ups and downs with him, I wanted to see if he was really ready to go, or was just having another lapse. Finally, near the end of July, he gave me the sign that he was done and with the help of our wonderful vet, he began the next leg of his adventure leaving this incarnation behind. I miss him very much...even now almost 2 months later.
My second kitty, Shanti mysteriously vanished less than 2 weeks later. I had been getting strange impressions, fleeting thoughts of him being ambushed by a predator, perhaps the Bobcat I had seen here last year. Every time I had the feelings come to me, I tried to dispel them worried that I might be creating something unconsciously. Now, in retrospect, I suspect that I was being told in advance of what probably took him. I have never had this happen to me before, receiving messages ahead of time from a companion animal. I was very surprised and somewhat upset when Shanti did not return home one Monday. I looked and called for him for many days afterward but part of me already knew he was gone. I am grateful for the message because it has felt to me like this was something of his choosing, which seems strange to say, but that is how it feels. He and Miles were best buddies and it is easy to feel that they are now keeping each other company... so whenever the grief begins to well up, I picture them together, rubbing faces like they always did, and it is easier... but only a little.

In addition to these sad events, July and August were also filled with a very demanding and exciting new art project which I will tell you about another time once I have permission to share the photos. It was a return to one of my old skills; painting, with many new challenges. I had no idea what I was doing but it actually went quite well. The project was delivered on time and everyone seemed pleased with it... I will share more soon.

Then came Irene. You have no doubt heard the stories and have seen some photos. We were impacted quite strongly here. At first it was all about just shifting into emergency function mode. We lost power for 4 days and then one more, so there was lots of scrambling, chainsaw work and simply coping with life but no electricity for many days. It was hard to not know how the rest of our area was faring. Radio stations finally started filing news reports and we began to realize that in fact, we were the lucky ones.
The worst part was that the rivers rose... higher and faster than anyone could have imagined. We had between 8 and 11 inches of rain in a short period of time and all the steep mountains around here drain very quickly as they cannot possibly absorb that much water. We estimate that on our river alone, the water rose 12-14 feet in less than 6 hours. It was quite frightening. We were unable to get out for about 2 days because roads were flooded or bridges washed out. My neighbour who had a beautiful organic farm lost almost all his crops to the flooding. Only a few plantings high up on the hill survived.
Other neighbours lost much more... livestock, garages, barns and homes were either drowned, swept away or flooded too badly to repair. Fortunately, no human lives were lost. Several close-by mountain communities were severely impacted and it will take years for them to recover. Some places will not recover because they have been swept clean by the water. For some, not only did they loose their homes but the very land their homes were built upon no longer exists.... only boulders and a newly channeled river remain where there had once been lovely green gardened homes. I have only just been able to start venturing out to see some of the places that are familiar and near to my house...and it is heart-breaking to see the damage done.
Here are some shots from a normally tiny little stream. I have made many little creations along this stretch of stream. Some have been seen here on this blog. Now, it is a challenge to even find where these secret places were because the landscape itself has been so severely altered. Here are some photos to give just a tiny taste...

This tiny stream turned into a powerful, raging flood and tore through the forest, uprooting mature and young trees along its banks. When the waters receded everything is left a jumbled mess. Deer paths and trails that used to give access along the stream are now impassable and the stream itself is often not recognizable as boulders and sand have been whipped into a froth and re-deposited in the newly carved out channels. This is but one stream of hundreds, if not thousands in these mountains. All will have damage like this. Some not as bad, others far worse. I know in my mind that this is just Nature at work, but still, it breaks my heart to see so much destruction and dying trees everywhere. No one is going to come with a chainsaw and clean this up... it will take years for the trees to rot enough so that they can come apart and the streams will be open and free of debris once more.

The winds too helped to destroy certain trees. Here we have twin Hemlocks that had been simultaneously pushed over by wind and undercut by raging floods. Where I am standing is easily 15-20 feet above the river, yet this area had clear evidence of being flooded by powerful currents which just peeled the trees off the rocks, roots and all. Next to where these trees have fallen had been a lovely little glade of ferns, mossy tree stumps and gorgeous wildflowers in the spring. Now the glade is filled with sand, boulders and tree debris... nearly 4 feet deep! It is bizarre to see river debris where there previously had been no evidence of waterflow at all.

Here, is where the road goes over the stream. If you look to the tree at the right you'll see debris stuck up high in the tree. It is hard to get a sense of scale in these photos, but the red line I've drawn on the photo is at about 7 ft... I could barely touch the debris.
I noticed that the river had brought down a lot of Golden Birches. I also noticed that there are a LOT of roots now exposed from trees that have lost their footings and have been swept downstream. I've started collecting some old pine bark and roots and any other bits of materials from the debris fields that I might use in my work. If I can, I'd like to make some art pieces to sell to help the flood families who lost so much. I would never use roots ordinarily, but so many are now exposed, no longer able to sustain life and their unusual shapes may make for some interesting sculptures once they have dried out. I am debating whether to go back and collect some of the bark off the downed birch trees. It is a rare opportunity to collect fresh and gorgeously bright bark... but it is so hard to be in the forest amid such destruction. It is like walking thru a battlefield after a great battle is over. The dead lie everywhere. To take anything feels like a desecration... yet, trees are so generous in the gifts they wish to bestow when their time to lie down has come. I will have to find the courage to revisit this forest to just sit and listen for guidance as to what is most honouring of the trees... to remove some of the precious golden bark or just leave them be, and let Nature finish what she started.

I'll be posting other brighter messages soon. I have a new and very magical Faerie house to show you. Some news about fun event I'll be participating in and of course, sharing more new card images to get geared up for Autumn. Tonight we are having our first frost and the trees up high in the mountains are already tinged with reds and oranges. We may get a really good foliage season this year...which means I have to get FOCUSED and get ready for the very shortest season of all; Autumn.

Sorry it has been so long since I have posted, but as you can see, things have been challenging... and there have been deep emotions to process and embrace and dear friends- human, feline and tree-people - to say good-bye to... creativity has been hard to come by these past few months. But I do have some bright spots to share as well... so I promise to not let so much time go by before writing again. And since this has been an unusually sad and emotional posting, I'll finish it with an appropriate image... this was taken by by neighbour as it apparently arched over my house at the end of August and is used with their kind permission.

Peace and Blessings to you all.

Fresh News and catching up

2011-07-12T13:14:00.011-04:00

To try and help everyone keep cool in this hot season, here are some icy images to help the imagination remember what the other half of the year is all about. These are the latest new cards from my card line. Here is a brief bit of background on each image and a final announcement at the end of the post.

May these cool reminders help make your day and week more comfortable!

The Winter Holiday collection are images specially chosen to evoke the time of year when so many traditions celebrate festivals about Light. For me, these images all have the magical feelings associated with that time of year when the sun is low on the horizon and daylight is precious and golden.

This image is called Aurem Aura, meaning Aura of Gold. It was constructed out of very thin pieces of ice which had melted and re-frozen over several days. These alternating extremes left the ice with a beautiful crackled lace texture that reminded me of cathedral glass.

This piece was constructed with icicles and reminded me of a futuristic yurt. I was surprised and delighted how the light from the tea candle traveled up the vertical spires and made for a dramatic contrast with the twilight blue ice-field.

This piece was constructed especially for the Mountain Lake PBS program. I was especially pleased when the sun went down because it lit the whole structure much like a crystalline lighthouse.

This piece was a technical experiment that succeeded. I was inspired by the thought of what the Ice Faerie might have as a magic wand... this seemed it might be a close contender. The deep furrow in the foreground was actually made by some sledding activity... as you can see, I have a fabulous sliding hill in my "front yard" when the snow is deep!

This piece was created right after the earthquake and tsunami struck Japan. This image is also available as fine art prints to help raise money to donate to Japan relief agencies. Since it was shot at sunrise, and since it is about hope, it felt very fitting to have in this collection.

This sculpture was made out of icicles and is perched on a black rock that just breaks the surface of the water. I made this piece right at the time of the Winter Solstice. I just love the image of a single candle in the gathering twilight.

The next and final collection of new cards are an experiment. I've had a lot of requests from fans to add some sort of "message" to my cards to make them even more inspiring to share. There are so many wonderful quotes and words of wisdom out there, so I tried to use selections that were perhaps a little less well-known... except for the Rumi quote which is one I try to live by and is well-loved by people all over the world.

One of my all-time favourites : "Be humble for you are made of the Earth. Be Noble for you are made of Stars".
The image is of a Snow Iris (eternal symbol of the earth) held up against the sun (our "star") when a gorgeous solar halo was happening. I tried to keep the text a bit pale and mysterious... you have to really look to see it all... there is a message in that as well!

I always felt that this Faerie House had the feeling of a mystical monastery tucked into an ancient cave somewhere. It seemed much like a destination for pilgrims... hence the quote : "Every journey has a secret destination of which the traveler is unaware."

The quote : " For behind all seen things lies something vaster: everything is but a path, a portal, or a window opening on something other than itself." seemed the perfect thought to go with this image. Anyone who visits my work knows that I am very fond of portals... and while some may say that this disc is not an "opening" per se, there certainly is "something vaster" behind it... the rising sun!

When I made this Faerie Tea house with the meandering bridge, it was such a delight to be in this utterly peaceful place. The very special quote: " Lose yourself in Nature and find Peace" seemed the absolute perfect way to express what I felt here.

Rumi's quote " Let the Beauty you seek be what you do." is a motto I have always lived by. Certainly, this sculpture, one of my personal favourites, seemed to be a perfect mirror for this sublime message.

It is doubtful that Frank Lloyd Wright had a Faerie House in mind when he said: "Study nature. Love nature. Stay close to nature. It will never fail you. " but I hope he would have approved of this little architectural gem!

So those are the new cards and I hope viewing them has brought a cool wave of refreshment to your day!

In other news, two final announcements... first, I've been working closely with Monica Becker at Pomegranate and they will be running a three part feature about me and my work on their blog!!! They plan to post it in the next day or two. You can find it HERE once they put it up. It was loads of fun to do and Monica has done an outstanding job of putting all the bits and pieces of our conversations together into one thoughtful presentation. I am very pleased with what she has created and I hope you will find it informative and enjoyable too. If you need the full link, here it is:
http://pomegranatecom.blogspot.com/2011/07/environmental-artist-sally-j-smith.html

go check it out!!

And finally... (in more ways than one!)... the 2012 calendars are HERE !!

The calendar release is much anticipated and as you will see, the cover image is much discussed in the blog. Last year the calendars sold out quickly and none were left by the end of October, so if you absolutely MUST have this for your gift-giving, keep that in mind. I am particularly pleased with this collection of images as I think they represented of the absolute best Faerie Houses I have had the great joy to make. I hope the calendars bring you much pleasurable viewing for the year to come!!

Anyone can make a difference

2011-07-06T20:37:00.003-04:00

Dear friends,

I was going to review my last set of card images but someone just sent me this video from youtube and it is so powerful I wanted to share it with you... especially all the people out there who may be feeling that their work (whatever it may be) might not be making a difference. This video reminds me how each of us, using only what we have in the moment, and with our determination and perseverance can potentially have a profoundly positive impact... for someone.

It takes 8 minutes to watch, but is well, well worth it.... enjoy!!

ICE show at Lake Placid, NY !!!

2011-07-01T15:52:00.004-04:00

Hi Everyone,

A quick note to say that some of my ice work can be seen at the lovely "A Point of View" Gallery in Lake Placid, NY until July 18th. They are holding a very special show that is inspired by theme of "ICE". Margarete is the owner of the gallery and she is just the nicest person. Here is a link to the Facebook page featuring some photos from the opening as well as some news from past shows. Go to: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150254373599208.347475.242187904207

If you are not familiar with what the gallery offers, here is a GREAT review written by Athena Roth in one of her blogs: http://www.lakeplacid.com/blog/2011/04/lake-placid-gallery-offers-unique-point-view

It is a brave choice to do a show about Ice after the long winter we've had! But if you are in the area, do stop by and check it out... the gallery is warm and inviting and beautifully lit and there are many wonderful pieces of art to discover!

Now... on to other announcements..

Well, Jennifer, my webmistress, is even faster than I had thought she would be.... and the new Greenspirit Arts website upgrades are all in place!!! I need to tell you a wee bit more about the next new set of cards, the Winter Eartherials collection called "Winter Magic". Here they are:

This first image is called "All One" and was something I had imagined doing for over a year. In a way, it is the polar opposite of the dandelion puff circle I made last summer.

This image is from my Chapel Pond Ice Spiral series. This image was taken at the sun was rising and cresting the ridge behind me to illuminate the cliffs on the far shore in front of me. The deep blue shadows are only possible when the sky over head is clear and bright. It had been cold enough the night before so that all the open water that I had been wading in the day before, to make the sculpture was now re-frozen and glass-like. It was very emotionally hard to break the ice to set up my tripod to get the photo, but this view was only possible from being IN the lake, not from the shore.

This piece was made from more curved ice that I pulled off of some boulders. The main bowl of ice was perched atop a tripod of giant icicles I gathered along the big lake near my house. The lapping and freezing action of the water on an old piece of lumber made the incredible rounded shapes which I harvested and affixed tot he tripod. Again, I am hip deep in 33 degree water to get this shot. Ah the sacrifices we make for our art! ;-)

This image is a detail of a larger sculpture which was created between two Balsam trees after a big ice storm had coated them thickly and given the landscape a crystalline look. The idea for this piece was a fallen star had come to rest in a safe haven here in the frozen north.

Here we have another view of the Japanese Maple leaf ice disc that I created after the earthquake and tsunami event of this past March. This image shows the effect of the sun about 30 minutes after sunrise shining across the frozen expanse of lake and bouncing up into the disc. It is one of my favourite all time images.

This simple spiral was made out of a dogwood branch and wired in place while it was still supple. It was allowed to dry in this shape and then the wires were removed. I had fun trying to capture the long shadows of a winter sunset. The juxtaposition of the warm golden light on the cool purple and blue shadows is endlessly fascinating and challenging to capture digitally.

All of these new cards, and more can be found on my website here: http://www.greenspiritarts.com/Greenspirit_Arts_Cards_-_Eartherials_Collections.html

Have fun looking around, and next I'll tell you about the last 2 new sets ... but of course, you can go see them right now!! Also, I have a nice surprise announcement that I'm working on with the great folks at Pomegranate... but we have to wait till they are ready before I can tell you what it is.

I know it is strange to be talking about winter and snow here in the middle of our (supposed) summer, but sometimes it is the contrasts in life that show us how rich it can be!!

Have a great week-end

New Greetings cards!

2011-06-27T16:54:00.004-04:00

Hi Everyone!

Here is your first sneak peek at my new greeting card lines. I have 4 New collections to share with you. Over the next few days I'll be telling you a wee bit about each new collection and, as a bonus to my loyal fans and followers, I'll give you a brief background about each image, just for fun!

My fabulous webmistress, Jennifer Star, is currently putting together the web pages so you'll be able to order any of these sets right from the website, so hang in there and we'll get that up and running as soon as possible. If you just have to get something now, email me. I have all of these in stock now and can create a special invoice/shipment just for you in a heartbeat.

Some things to remember:
1) if ever you want a print of any image of mine that you have seen, custom made for you or as a gift, just email me and I'll be very happy to set that up for you. Thanks to my wonderful printer they make all this very easy now. Prices vary with size and materials (paper or canvas) so think about what size print would be ideal for your order and we'll start there. Allow 2-3 weeks lead time.

2) If you would like to send out a really special holiday cards this year, consider using one of my images for your custom-printed cards!. I can work with the great folks who print my cards and create personalized Holiday cards just for you, with your special message on the inside. Minimum order is for 25 cards, all of the same image. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. No custom orders taken after Nov1st, so plan ahead. I have some special images that have a "Solstice" feeling which I will present here in a few days, or you may find any of these winter images perfect for your personal message. Prices will vary depending on number of cards ordered, etc. I will be posting some basic pricing information for the custom cards here shortly.

OK... on to the new images! These are very small thumbnails with much of the lovely, sparkly detail not so easily visible in these small files. I used the small size files for easier uploading.
This first collection are the Winter Faerie houses:

This crystalline landscape was made on several boulders in the middle of a freezing mountain river. I worked at night in the full moon light. The curved ice was pulled off a boulder the day before. All Icicles were collected on location. You can just see this sculpture in background of my profile photo to get a sense of scale.

This miniature house is made from a hollowed out Pomegranate! A traditional fruit of the Winter Solstice in some cultures, but I seriously doubt they've ever been used like this before! Light is from a battery-operated tea light inside the house.

This Faerie House is gigantic, the biggest on-site sculpture I've ever made. It was well over 9 ft tall! Built overnight, it is photographed in the light of the pink sky of dawn, moments before the sun actually rose. It was about 4 below zero when I took this shot. I had to keep spare camera batteries in my vest pocket and swapping them every few minutes so the camera would continue to work.

This fabulous fantasy was created this past winter in the center of the stone circle in my garden. It was about 5-6 ft tall. There are several flaming tea candles inside providing the light inside the castle. A few of them go too hot and melted the ice shelves they were sitting on, which is why I had to start out with so many! The spiral path does lead thru an arched doorway into the inner castle.

This castle is made entirely of icicles gathered along the rock-cliff shores of the lake after a huge storm. They are "glued" to the vertical rock using a technique I've developed to attach ice to stone. This also has a spiral-like "pathway" leading up tot he house. It was 90% gone by the next day due to the fierce, dry winds that roared thru the valley all night.

And finally, this little treasure of a Faerie house is nestled deep in a balsam fir forest. It is decked out with a moss wreath and berries from the high-bush cranberry shrub in my garden. Fresh snow from the night before adds the perfect finishing decorations. This house now belongs to one of my fabulous Kickstarter backers!

So that is the first new collection of Greeting cards! Again, these are the Winter Faerie houses. Next up, we will look at the 6 new Winter Eartherial cards I've selected.

Enjoy your day!!!

Looking for a bit of calm in the crazy season

2011-06-24T01:37:00.003-04:00

Dear Friends,

It has been far too long since my last posting, I know. Time has just flown by! There is so much to say it is hard to know where to begin.

Firstly- "All is well". I think it is especially important to remember this simple phrase when everything can feel overwhelming as it often does these days.

This spring didn't really happen for us in this part of the northern forests, despite how it looks in this photo of a rather festive Faerie house all decked out in glorious blossoms. This was taken on one of the very rare sunny days we had early in the month. Mostly it has been grey, damp and cool. Perfect for the mosses and mushrooms, but not so great for making Faeriehouses with flowers. Sadly, most of the spring passed by this year without being able to work with the usual flowers, they were just too wet and passed their prime in just a day or two rather than the normal week or so for each variety. So it has been challenging for me to do my creative work. The local farmers however had it much worse. I think everyone in this area is feeling uneasy about things because it has been a spring unlike any we have ever seen before with so much water. Everyone is cranky, edgy and trying to figure out how to cope with the rapidly changing conditions. Planting time was seriously delayed and many of us have only just gotten our gardens in... 3-4 weeks behind schedule. Everyone is affected by the changes and not sure how to reconnect to the feelings of joy that the warm seasons used to bring.

Now, we are into the summer cycle, according to the calendar and Solstice, but it doesn't feel much different! Fortunately I have have many projects going on indoors and those have taken on lives of their own, but here too unpredictability has been the norm. Various pieces of equipment have needed repair or upgrading and not just one or two. All this slows down the work and makes it hard to keep momentum going, but one does the best one can.

On a very positive note, the new line of Greeting cards have been printed and I finally got the proofs a week or so ago. They look wonderful. Now I'm working with my fabulous web designer, Jennifer Star and we are putting together the new pages to share all these great new images with all of you. I have 4 new collections of images, 3 of them are all winter-based images. I will show the first set here in the next few days so you can see all the cards here first. I know it is strange to debut winter images a few days after the summer solstice, but that is just how it worked out this year!

The book project continues to progress...but I have not been able to work on it as much as I had hoped these past three weeks because of a flurry of requests for special projects and photo submission deadlines that had to be met. But those are now finished and I'll be back to the editing and layout process. I'm also attempting to write some thoughts about my work for the book, but so far I am not happy with any of it. It is a challenge we artists face sometimes... putting in many, many hours into something only to realize that what we've done is unusable. It can be very discouraging if it goes on for a long time and this spring seems to have been epic for devoting endless time to things that turn out to not be what I expected or hoped for. This is the real gritty part of being an artist... sticking with it when it isn't flowing smoothly, but then I remember : "All is well" and that brings a smile and onward I go.

So I will be sharing the new cards here over the next few days and will be catching up with some other bits of news from around the studio and from this beautiful green world here that is incredibly lush, thanks to all the rains!

I hope the sun is shining wherever you are today!

Asking for help

2011-06-09T14:15:00.002-04:00

Hi Everyone!

I'm putting in a special request now for my good friend Rachael. She is trying to raise funds for her very special educational and practical program for raising awareness about and actually cleaning up the ocean. It's one of these "click and vote" fund-raising sites and she needs more support to get to the top... so I'm asking any of my readers who love the ocean, believe in good causes and want to help a worth program to do the following each day, for the next 4 days till the contest is complete:

go to: http://boatus.com/foundation/Grants/vote.asp

and click on the "vote" button.... it will open up a new page to the various projects that are in this competition... you have to look closely for the following:

Trash Tour - A Marine Debris Education and Clean up Event by Rozalia Project for a Clean Ocean

(it's the second row down, on the far right)

click on vote now. You may have to fill out the security word in the popup window.

Rachael works very hard to educate kids about taking care of our natural world, so helping her out now is a way to touch hundreds of kids lives and the future as well. Please help if you can. It is a small thing we can do to help her get the funding she needs to make this worthy program a reality.

Thank you SO very much for your help!!

New Beginnings tale #2

2011-06-03T22:23:00.004-04:00

Last month I had to go to Vermont to do a bit of volunteer teaching at the Craft School where I first learned about art when I was a wee lassie. It was a great class and a wonderful experience for me to come "full circle" so to speak... and it certainly set a tone for the next adventure.

After, I headed to the place where I grew up. There is a stretch of land along the lake that is protected by a 4ft sea wall. Usually the beach slopes down an additional few feet to the water. I wanted to collect some of the special rounded slate stones that I knew I'd find there. It was about to rain but I decided to go anyways. What a shock to get there and see this due to all the flooding! Normally, there is no water on the left side of the road. Now the seawall was completely covered over with about a foot of water. The water was over 2 foot deep over the road which was now impassable so I parked here to get out and look for driftwood and stones, even though it was raining.

While I was collecting driftwood. I found a cool roundish thing that looked like it was made out of wood or leaves glued together. It was rather hard but I could push in the shell if I tried. . It was about an inch and a half long. I had never seen anything like this before and when I picked it up there was some sort of seed inside that rattled. I was very curious about this so I took it home thinking I would research it further wondering what sort of seedpod it might be.

I put it on the windowsill to let it dry out and so I could admire it while I washed the dishes.

And life carried on and I got busy with all that had to be done around here. I did not get around to ID-ing the seedpod, in fact, I did not lift it up or touch it again.

A month went by. A few days ago I came up from the garden, tired, very dirty and needing to make some dinner. I was about to reach for the cutting board, which happened to also be on the edge of the kitchen sink when out of the corner of my eye I saw that something BIG was on the edge of the cutting board....

What I had thought was a seed pod had in fact been a chrysalis for a kind of giant silk moth we have here called a Polyphemus moth. I knew immediately it was a female because her abdomen was so huge. Also her antennae are small compared to the males who have huge, fern like antennae to find the girls!

I was thrilled to see what this "seed pod" really was and was astonished to think of her floating in that debris field of driftwood. I doubt she would have survived the pounding in amongst all the big pieces of wood as they were battered by the waves when the winds got up on the lake. I felt so honoured to have her in my home.... and felt a lot of responsibility.

These creatures have no digestive systems and only live for a few days maybe a week. Their sole purpose is to breed and lay eggs, which is why her abdomen is so big... she's FULL of eggs and not much else. She was so heavy and, it was cold out here... so she was slow. Too slow to fly. and it was raining so I couldn't take her outside. I put her in a safe place and waited till morning.

Next day it was still too cold to release her. But a warm front was coming and I knew the next night might be warm enough. I was a little worried because when I tried to test fly her, she failed miserably. I hoped it was just the cold. But it was VERY stormy that night so I could not release her anyways.

The following day the front did come in and it was steaming warm and humid so I knew this was the night if she was ever going to make it on her own.After the rain storm (yet another one!!) I checked on her and she had laid a bunch of eggs on the driftwood I had put in her terrarium. I knew they would not be viable but I was so touched by the urge to procreate that drove her now. I brought all the cats in (they were not happy about this) and got my camera out for one last pose:

She kindly obliged and we went out in the very warm and fragrant twilight. I just held her up to see what would happen and awaaaayyyyyyy she sailed headed for the trees !! I was so thrilled and happy for her. Now maybe she'll be found by a male and some of those eggs will get to continue the cycle.

What doesn't show well in the photo above is that the "spots" that are encircled by the yellow rings, they are actually windows of clear wing material... quite amazing. I had hoped to get a few more shots of her, but she allowed me only the one... after all, she had work to do and had enough of hanging around with me!!

What a treat this whole adventure was for us both!

Happy Transformations of all kinds to you!!

New Beginnings #1

2011-06-02T01:01:00.006-04:00

On the back of my barn is an old ladder. At the far end of the ladder I noticed some birch bark and twigs... a Faerie visitation, perhaps?

A flurry of wings, and then a closer look... ah! A Robin's nest! A beautiful construction with lots of fluttery birch bark. Four gorgeous eggs were inside.

The pair of birds were very alarmed with me being there so I tried to stay away as much as possible. My compost bin was nearby and so I had to find other places to put my compost for the near future.
I went out to check on the nest every third day or so and the female got used to me coming around the corner and she'd stay on the nest if I was very careful to pretend I was ignoring her. Finally after a week of torrential rains, when I was able to get out and see the nest, I was sad to discover that it was empty now. I think a hungry red squirrel must have helped itself to the eggs.

The next day I was working in my garden and I saw another Robin, was it from the same pair? setting up a new nest site in a balsam tree. I have not checked to see if they were successful... I don't want to draw any attention to the nest if it is there. I hope this time they can have some good success. The constant rains have made it hard to find good nest sites.

I have 2 other "New Beginnings" tales to share in a day or two.

Meanwhile, I found this location in my garden that I hope to make a wee faerie house for sometime soon...

I am still having a lot of trouble signing in and posting to my blog so I apologize for the spotty posting. I see that other bloggers are also experiencing trouble. Supposedly it has to do with corrupted Google cookies. I hope they can fix it soon.

BEST sale of the Year at LULU!!

2011-05-27T21:04:00.002-04:00

For anyone who has wanted to purchase any of my book items, THIS is the week-end for you!

Lulu is having a very special promotion and you can get 25% off your order! Here is the fine print according to the Lulu website:

Enter coupon code CYBERMAY305 at checkout and receive 25% off your order. The maximum savings for this coupon is $500. Offer good towards print costs only - shipping and tax amounts are excluded. You can only use the code once per account, and you can't use this coupon in combination with other coupon codes. This great offer ends on May 31, 2011 at 11:59 PM so try not to procrastinate! While very unlikely we do reserve the right to change or revoke this offer at anytime, and of course we cannot offer this coupon where it is against the law to do so. Transaction must be in US Dollars

Here is the link to my Lulu storefront:

http://stores.lulu.com/store.php?fStoreID=749151

Bradfield concert in Ottawa

2011-05-27T20:40:00.003-04:00

This coming Saturday May 28, both Anael and Bradfield

will do separate presentations at the Ottawa Sound

Healing Conference event in Ottawa, Ontario.

Bradfield will do a full concert with lights and projections in the evening at 7:30 pm, joined by very special guests

Debbie Danbrook on shakuhachi flute and Anael with her heavenly vocals.

I know this is late notice, but if you happen to be in the Ottawa area, this is a very rare and wonderful opportunity for you to experience Bradfield's music in the present moment. It will be a wonderfully memorable event for all who can attend.

Please support this amazing artist if you can! Your heart will be opened and your spirit uplifted! Enjoy!!

Here is the link for tickets and more information:

http://www.ottawasoundhealingconference.com/

technical difficulties

2011-05-27T19:31:00.002-04:00

Hi Everyone,

Not sure when I'll be able to post again... Google and Blogger have been experiencing some problems. This is the first time in 4 days I've been able to log on and I'm not using my usual computer. I will try to post again just as soon as I can. I do apologize for the delays but as I said, it is out of my hands. Many other Blogger users have also been reporting problems so it is not just me.

Thank you for your patience and hopefully they will get the bugs worked out SOON!!

Best wishes to all!

Happy Spring!

2011-05-21T13:45:00.003-04:00

Happy Springtime, Everyone!

Yes, I had a long hiatus here. My apologies to regular readers. A combination of too many deadlines and not enough hours in the day coupled with a relentlessly wet spring meant that something had to be set aside temporarily, and so the blog-writing took a back-burner position for a while. Unfortunately it was longer than I had planned, but now things are slowly getting more manageable and I will be back to more regular postings. I may be able to manage only once per week here in the busy months of spring and summer, but I'll do my best.

Shortly I will share with you 24 new greeting card designs including a new line of images that have inspirational quotes on them. I had received quite a few inquiries asking for images coupled with thoughtful messages/saying so I've been on a collecting spree of sorts to find some copyright-free messages that paired nicely with some of my images. I will share all with you soon. The first set of proofs for these cards is being done as I write so as soon as I see them and they pass the grade, I'll be posting about the collections and making them available thru my website.

Also on my plate is working on my book project. That has been going very well but it is painfully slow work at this stage. I'll be posting a more in-depth update on that project shortly as well.

Additionally, I have good news that Pomegranate and I have just buttoned up the calendar selections for 2013 !! We've got a great grouping selected but of course, the public won't see this calendar for quite some time yet! Calendar publishers work so far in advance! They've asked me to write a spot for their blog and I need to get busy on that now that the calendar process is finished.

And then there is working with the rushing season that is spring. It has been incredibly challenging this year because it has rained nearly every day. This has brought on tremendous growth but also blossom time is unusually short-lived as they don't last long at all when they are soaking wet most of the time. So it has been a mad dash to try and make pieces that look pleasing but, frankly, it has been extremely challenging because even if one can get the flowers to co-operate, by the time the scene is set up, the rains come again and wash it apart, so it has been a very frustrating spring. But, the moss is loving it so that is where I hope to make some progress this coming week.

Also I did some guest teaching last month and I'd like to make a quick report about that but I'm waiting for the kids to finish their project so I can get some photos. More on that later, hopefully.

Meanwhile, two pieces to share with you now. We had a sunny day a few weeks ago and the Coltsfoot flowers were at their peak. A few Fiddleheads were up (before the river rose and put everything underwater once more) so it was spring spiral time here in my moss garden. It was fun to work with colour again and while many flowers have already gone past before I could work with them, there are still many getting ready to bloom. Hopefully the rains will subside long enough to let me make a few more sculptures.

Thanks to everyone who has been patiently waiting for the blog to return, I hope to be able to keep up better now. I hope everyone is able to enjoy the pleasures of spring where ever you are!

Blessed Be and Faerie Blessings to you all

Collaboration - in 3 parts

2011-04-16T00:15:00.004-04:00

Ice Sculpture by Greenspirit Arts
Photo by Derek Muirden

Ring Of Fire

Caught in the ice
preserved, magnified
yet still as lively
as Fall itself.
A ring of leaves
crimson veined,
shot with gold
edged with a
lingering green
to set the heart
longing for spring
to break winter
into chunks and channels
which frees
the ring of fire
to spin down the river
one last time, astonished.

- Hilary Matthews, Scotland 4/11

Rushing along

2011-04-13T00:07:00.004-04:00

I don't know what it has been like where you live, but here it seemed winter would last forever. It was just last week that I was bundled up and huddled along the ice-bound shores of the lake waiting for the sun to rise. I still had the chance to make ice sculptures it was so cold here. The snow was deep in the woods, but it was crystallized and granular. The delicate flakes long gone, but now a coarse sugary texture. Difficult to make sculptures with as it does not stick together well. So this time of year is tricky in terms of making sculptures. But the sun is so strong now that the snows do melt, even if the temperatures can only rise to the low 40s which was all that could be managed last week. But the emerald green mosses are emerging and letting me know that soon, very soon it will be time to play with this exquisite green once more.

The combination of melting snow and icy nights makes for some fascinating sculptures to be found however! One day, while walking in a nearby field, I found these delicate polka dot creations creating an exquisite lace effect at the edge of the snow. The day was grey and the wind was cold, but the day before had been sunny. Just warm enough to create the droplets on the underside of the paper thin ice... which re-froze in the chill and still night air.

I had planned to go back the next day and collect some of the ice to make a tiny creation to go with the snowdrop flowers that I had also found that day, but alas, it was raining and I knew I had missed the moment. This is how it is here in April. One moment winter still has her grip on the land, and then in just the turn of a day, the great melting begins. It has been that way here once more. The week that started icy ended balmy and we have not looked back.

All it took was 2 really warm days and the peepers (tiny frogs with a VERY loud voice) returned to pierce our eardrums each night. Birds of many kinds returned to the area and some, like the large flocks of Juncos that now are gathering in these woods are now getting ready to fly north having spent their winters here in our more hospitable forests. Two days ago, as the warm thermals pushed up from the south, I was witness to a rare event... a male Marsh Hawk (also known as a Harrier) courting his Lady with a spectacular display of acrobatic flying. I have lived here for 15 years and have welcomed a pair back each year but I had never seen this spectacular display of flying skill. I was very worried when none arrived last spring... not sure what might have happened to them. And it was a strange an somewhat empty summer to not have them patrolling the open fields, keeping the vole population in check. So this year, when a pair arrived (returned?) to these fields, I was overjoyed... and his courtship flight said exactly how I felt about their arrival.

This time of year things are not at their most photogenic in terms of backgrounds, so I like to use the weeks of April and November to scout out possible locations, such as this mossy stream. The location looked like it had loads of potential. But, as one who has grown accustomed to naked branches, I had forgotten how transformed the forests become once the leaves emerge. I returned to this location just two weeks after I shot it last year, and it was a deep dark cave of green. No sunlight was allowed to reach the pool as the trees overhead completely filled in all available sky with their new green garments. So, I was put on notice. If I want to use this place I have to plan ahead and watch carefully and be here the one week out of the entire year when the leaves begin to emerge but are not fully so... and, if like last year, that week happens to be a week of rain, well then, you just have to wait till next year and see how it goes.
I'll let you know ! :-)

Ice Palace at Twilight (reload)

2011-04-02T18:04:00.002-04:00

For those of you who have had the chance to see the Mountain Lake PBS segment of my work, you may have seen me photographing the Ice Palace sculpture that I made just for the shoot. The day after we finished filming, I took a lot of photos as twilight crept into the forest. I managed to put together a short video by piecing together several of the short video segments into one longer, time-lapse type video. Here (hopefully) it is for your viewing pleasure.

Prayer circle for Water at Fukushima nuclear plant announcement

2011-03-29T20:07:00.008-04:00

Image: Frozen raindrops after an ice storm, melting in the sun

This is a very special message and invitation.

On March 31st at noon, local time all around the world, an unknown number of people will be performing a simple yet powerful prayer for the waters around the Fukushima nuclear power plant. Please join us. Here is the announcement:

Dr. Masaru Emoto is calling for a Water Ceremony for Japan ( which is
really for the whole world)-- this Thursday.

Day and Time:
March 31st, 2011 (Thursday)
12:00 noon in each time zone

Please say the following phrase:
“The water of Fukushima Nuclear Plant,
we are sorry to make you suffer.
Please forgive us. We thank you, and we love you.”

Please say it aloud or in your mind. Repeat it three times as you put
your hands together in a prayer position. Please offer your sincere
prayer.

The full letter from Dr Masaru Emoto...

To All People Around the World,

Please send your prayers of love and gratitude to water at the nuclear
plants in Fukushima, Japan!

By the massive earthquakes of Magnitude 9 and surreal massive
tsunamis, more than 10,000 people are still missing…even now… It has
been 16 days already since the disaster happened. What makes it worse
is that water at the reactors of Fukushima Nuclear Plants started to
leak, and it’s contaminating the ocean, air and water molecule of
surrounding areas.

Human wisdom has not been able to do much to solve the problem, but we
are only trying to cool down the anger of radioactive materials in the
reactors by discharging water to them.

Is there really nothing else to do?

I think there is. During over twenty year research of hado measuring
and water crystal photographic technology, I have been witnessing that
water can turn positive when it receives pure vibration of human
prayer no matter how far away it is.

Energy formula of Albert Einstein, E=MC2 really means that Energy =
number of people and the square of people’s consciousness.

Now is the time to understand the true meaning. Let us all join the
prayer ceremony as fellow citizens of the planet earth. I would like
to ask all people, not just in Japan, but all around the world to
please help us to find a way out the crisis of this planet!!
The prayer procedure is as follows.

Day and Time:
March 31st, 2011 (Thursday)
12:00 noon in each time zone

Please say the following phrase:
“The water of Fukushima Nuclear Plant,
we are sorry to make you suffer.
Please forgive us. We thank you, and we love you.”

Please say it aloud or in your mind. Repeat it three times as you put
your hands together in a prayer position. Please offer your sincere
prayer.

Thank you very much from my heart.

With love and gratitude,
Masaru Emoto
Messenger of W

PBS segment now online

2011-03-26T00:32:00.003-04:00

The Mountain Lake Journal Extra program is now archived and available online at last !!!

Click HERE to go to the video.
If you want to see the program in the coming weeks and months when this blog has moved on to other topics, you will still be able to find a link to the right of the current post window, in the list as well as in my "Links of Interest" page found at the top of the blog. If your browser cannot link, here is the URL:
http://video.mountainlake.org/video/1857661479/

Host Derek Muirden and J. Scott Parker did a wonderful job filming this segment. They had quite a challenge getting all of my recent creative life distilled down with the footage they shot and then bringing that into a cohesive whole. I think Derek and his Editor did an outstanding job creating a short program that flows well and gives people a good taste of what I do. This has been a very humbling process for me I must say, and I've learned that ultimately, I am MUCH happier being behind the camera taking the shots than being in front of it... but Derek is a consummate professional and made the whole process a lot of fun.

Thanks Derek !!!

Also, I want to say a special "Thank You " to Thom Hallock for opening the segment with a mention of the Japan relief print project. It was very thoughtful of him to choose to put this first and I hope it will generate more interest in the print. We've already had several sales and the first prints will be shipping out shortly. Thank you Thom !

Please feel free to share the video with friends if you'd like to. Mountain Lake PBS makes it very easy to email your friends and tell them about it, just click on the "email" envelope in the top of the video window and you'll pause the video and be able to send a quick message to your friends about the program. And, if you have not yet done so, PLEASE become a member of your local PBS station. They work incredibly hard to bring stories just like this one to local communities everywhere and they really need our support, especially now.

Enjoy the "Mountain Lake Journal Extra" segment everyone! And if you feel so inclined afterwords, please send them an email using this link to tell them how much you liked the show. We are hoping to make a longer program on just my sculpture work. Your feedback would be much appreciated!!

Japan Tsunami relief print now for sale

2011-03-16T19:54:00.004-04:00

Please click on the tab at the top of the blog for more information about ordering the print.

And thank you.

3-17-11 - update: new lower price! :-)

Sending Prayers

2011-03-16T12:29:00.003-04:00

This sculpture was created just two days ago, right in the middle of the biggest humanitarian and ethical crisis we have faced in quite some time. It is both a prayer and an offering.

I will be making prints of this image available as a fund-raiser for Japan relief. It will take me a few days to get this organized, but I will let you know when this becomes available if you are interested in supporting this project and/or getting a copy of this image. The low-res version that is posted here lacks the subtle delicacy this image has in high resolution. The prints will be very nice and sharp.

A few words about how I made the piece in a moment, but first things first. The nuclear situation in Japan is, I believe, very dire. More so than is being reported in the media. I would ask that everyone who participates in any kind of intention setting activities to focus on a best possible outcome for the people and the environment regarding the nuclear plant. It seems that this week-end is a make or break moment for us collectively and all prayers and intentions could really be useful now. Many people will be gathering for Equinox circles and celebrations. Others are preparing for other Holy day festivities according to their beliefs. Sending prayers for a good outcome could really make the difference now, maybe even ALL the difference. Please , if you can, set aside some time to give this your attention.

How this piece came to be: I was cleaning up my studio on Friday, the day of the earthquake and tsunami. I found a bucket that had a bunch of leaves in it from this past fall. All the leaves were brown and dry. But in the bottom, I found a zip-lock bag with the dried leaves from a Japanese Maple tree I had hoped to use. They were tightly curled up and very brittle, but they were very red. I suddenly had an inspiration. I wondered if they could become flexible again if I poured warm water on them, like one does with tea. I tried it, and it worked. After about 30 minutes in warm water, I could separate out the individual leaves.
Out in the cold garage, I had a disc of ice that I had made a few days before. I did not know at the time what I was going to do with it, but now I knew.
I took the wet leaves and laid them on the ice disc and let them freeze to the ice. The next day, we had a sunny day but it was too warm and windy to take it out to photograph. I waited till sunset when the temps began to drop and the winds settled a little. I had hoped I might get the rising moon somehow, but we are a few days too early for that. When the sun went down it was a rather grey sunset and I was a bit disappointed. But I waited a little longer. I've learned that sometimes there is a flood of colour after the sun goes down. The waiting worked, a flush of golden orange appeared and I was able to get the shots I had hoped for.
When I reflected on the whole experience, finding the Japanese maple leaves on that very day when Japan lost so much, I knew the two events were connected. I also knew I wanted to use this image as a special fund-raiser for Japan relief... so I'll be working on making that happen very soon. And... I think this may be the cover for my hardcover book project which, I discovered when I came home from this shoot, had reached the funding goal. I am so humbled by all these events. Thank you.

Please set some time aside, particularly in the next 4 days to envision a positive outcome for the nuclear situation in Japan.

Unity and diversity

2011-03-15T05:04:00.004-04:00

There are times when things just look chaotic and confusing.
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.
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When that happens, it is best to stand back a little, get a bigger picture or, change your perspective.
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Then you can see things in a whole new way and appreciate that sometimes, what appeared to be only chaos can come a moment of Beauty. But these revelations happen only if we are willing to risk a little and shift our perceptions and/or our point of view.

Infinite Prayers to Japan

2011-03-12T00:17:00.004-05:00

Sending thoughts and Prayers to the people and country of Japan.

Today
There are no words
to express what we feel.

Underneath the disbelief
underneath the sorrow and loss
underneath the fear,

there is also strength
from the Infinite reserves
of Compassion and Grace.

May these Infinite Powers hold you close
when all else seems to fail.

You are not alone.
Today
We are all One People

**********************************************************************

The sculpture above is based on a Japanese cultural symbol called a Torii. Traditionally, they mark the boundary between ordinary space and Sacred space. They also honour the concept of "The both-ness of everything" ( a bow to Nik for that phrase ) in that they frame a view but also are the view. In this way, these simple symbols acknowledge the paradox of polarity which is an unavoidable condition of embodiment.
When I created this sculpture, I wanted very much to extend that concept further to say that the wholeness of a thing, reflected, becomes infinite. The whole circle is now an Infinity symbol, albeit a bit refracted.

With all the social, political and physical upheaval going on in our multiple worlds these days, I know I need this reminder.... that there IS an underlying wholeness as the worlds re-organize and re-structure themselves.... but it is essential to not give in to despair at this crucial time. At this crucial time it it important to Be the Light you want to see in this world.

Shine on, everyone, shine ON !

Adirondack Life Photo contest honorable mention

2011-03-06T17:19:00.004-05:00

I'm very pleased to announce that one of my photos has won an honorable mention in the 2011 Adirondack Life Photo contest.

You can visit all the winners here : http://www.adirondacklife.com/content/view/270/207/

you'll have to scroll down through the many wonderful images to find my entry "Rhodie Inspector"

Now, for my fans, I can tell you that this image was a secondary one for me. I had been out shooting one of my sculptures, this one:

when I discovered that I had a visitor, the tiny little green frog you see in the photo that won the honorable mention. I was so pleased this little guy got to be seen by the world... s/he was just the sweetest little creature and it kept following me around as I continued to photograph the Rhododendron bush near my house that was in full flower.

New Features added

2011-03-06T17:03:00.004-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Just adding two new features/pages to my blog that I have wanted to create for some time now. They are found by clicking on the tabs at the top of this blog.

"Musings" will be a place where I can post longer rambles, guest articles etc that have some sort of relationship to this work or just creativity in general. The second new page is for links to articles, websites or pages that I have found to be inspirational or that I want to help promote. If you would like me to add your website to this list, please just drop me an email and I'll be happy to include you if it feels like a good fit to the rest of the offerings. The list is very small now, but I have tons of things I want to add and will... when time permits. I hope these new pages add richness and more inspiration for all who come to visit here.

Many Blessings your way,
Sally

SHOWTIME announced for PBS broadcast

2011-03-06T16:12:00.006-05:00

Hi there everyone !

I'm thrilled , honoured and pleased as can be to finally be able to announce the air date and time for the piece we did on my work. It will be part of the Mountain Lake Journal program which is produced by Mountain Lake PBS.

The piece will air on March 17th (a day to honour the Faeries and anything Green if ever there was one !) at 8:30 PM on Mountain Lakes PBS. It will be re-broadcast on:
Friday the 18th at 6:00 AM and 12:30 PM
Saturday the 19th at 7:30 PM
and Sunday the 20th at 6:00 AM and 10:30 AM. (the final day of our Kickstarter project !!!)

WOW ! so many synchronizations here I can barely contain my excitement!!

For those who live outside the broadcast area, this program will be archived and be made available online shortly after the first broadcast date. As soon as it is posted online, I will provide a link.

Greenspirit Arts and the PBS shoot

2011-02-26T12:10:00.002-05:00

Here we are getting ready for the Ice castle filming!

Derek Muirden, Senior Producer, and J.Scott Parker, videographer for Mountain Lake PBS are preparing the second camera on a dolly. We were so blessed to have a sparkling blue day, but it was cold in the morning. There was a small bit of pressure because we knew the sun was tracking quickly and soon would be on the castle and we needed to be ready for the moment. I know this creative tension really well. But in the end, all went perfectly and as it turned out, we had plenty of time to get all the shots we needed. But all this excitement is part of the creative process, and when you do get the light captured well, it makes it all so worthwhile!

Here Derek is shooting close-ups of the Ice castle... I can't wait to see his footage. They are both excellent cameramen. They were both very respectful of trying to stay just in the path, but eventually, in order to get better shots we had to work outside the path. Fortunately, the snow had firmed up and we didn't sink in too deeply. It was such a treat for me to be able to share my work with people right after it was made... this is a very rare event for me. Usually I'm just off in the woods by myself.

Here J. Scott sets up another shot with a different camera. I want to apologize to him.. I forgot my mic was on and he had to listen to Derek and I chatter back and forth while he was trying to get his shot... my apologies!

Later that evening, as the sun set behind the High Peaks, I was able to catch the last rays as they were caught in the panes of the Ice Castle... it was lovely and still.... but cold!

Even later, as twilight gathered, I put some candles in the sculpture and snapped a few more photos. I absolutely love this time of night.

Later that evening, a pack of Coyotes visited the site and one or two individuals even came right up to the path we had been all walking on earlier. I could not see how many were there, but soon they all broke into a chorus of yips and howls RIGHT here! It was amazing to have their song to finish off a very magical day!!

Thanks so much to Derek and J. Scott. They made the whole process very enjoyable and put me at ease right from the get-go. I have to say, this was a HUGE stretch for me because normally I am very shy and do most of my work totally alone. It was a real treat to have these two consummate professionals here creating what we all hope (and I'm sure will be) a memorable and delightful segment on their program. I will be sure to let you know what the air date and time will be, and how to find the link once it goes up on the Mountain Lake PBS website.

I have more news for tomorrow!!

It's a Wrap!

2011-02-25T16:57:00.003-05:00

I just love double-duty titles ! I'm pleased to announce that we have finished all the principal filming for the PBS segment that will be aired shortly. (I promise to let you know just as soon as I do when the air date will be and the link to the archived segment when it becomes available.) So, in that sense, we have our first "wrap".

The odd photo is showing my latest sculpture under a protective wrap to hopefully preserve it through this latest blast of snow and wind. The location is the stone circle in my garden. The circle is still under construction so the 4th "gateway" still has to be built.

When we has a warm spell last week, I created the spiral path to the center of the circle. I did this because the film crew from PBS were going to be here and they wanted an ice sculpture to showcase for the segment they were producing, so this would be the foundation for the sculpture.

Then, this past Tuesday, Derek Muirden and his cameraman Jay Scott from Mountain Lake PBS did indeed arrive right on time and we had a very successful day of shooting here. I'll have photos shortly. The day was very cold and sparkling blue, just what we had hoped for. We were finally done with all the interior shots and I now had to get to work to build the ice sculpture. Derek and Jay left at 3:00 PM and I worked nearly non-stop for the next 12 hours through the night in the deep cold to create a suitable Ice Palace fit for a Faerie Queen. This is the sculpture that is under the wrap and I can't wait to show it to you, but not just yet!

I'll tell you what happened on day 2 of the shoot in my next post and show you the Ice Palace. I think you'll like it! :-)

It's all about perspective

2011-02-16T02:25:00.002-05:00

It has been very challenging to get outside to make any sculptures lately. But today I discovered I had 45 minutes of free time after running my errands. Was it enough time to "do" anything?

I went looking for ice. It was brutally cold with a fierce north wind. I was not properly dressed but I didn't care. I went right down to the waters edge and found these jewel-like bits of ice right along the water's edge. I managed to fish a few out of the freezing water. The sun was disappearing fast and I knew I had only about 10 more minutes of daylight. I took my ice baubles and drove up to a place that has a commanding view of both the east and the west and found a very un-glamorous place to position the ice. It was about minus 15 with the windchill and my wet pants were frozen stiff. But the light thru the ice was fantastic!

After the sun actually set, there was a brief moment when it was still illuminating a distant mountain to the east. It was fun to just shift to the other side of the ice to get a completely different experience. The nearly-full moon insisted it wanted to be in the frame as well.

Sometimes you only have a few free moments... the important thing is, what are we going to do with those moments?

Reflecting on an edge

2011-02-15T01:42:00.002-05:00

When I made this house the conditions were nearly impossible. Only I was just starting out working with ice and didn't quite know it at the time. I just forged ahead and tried it and by some grace, it worked. There is something innocent and quite powerful about NOT knowing "The Rules" of what "should" and "should not" be possible. This image is a good reminder that sometimes there is something present that carries us well beyond the place of "knowledge" into a deeper place of purer understanding and in that place magical things can happen.

As I have been caring for my aging kitty who has been hovering on the edge of this incarnation and what lies beyond this world, he continues to teach me... simple things...powerful things. I was washing his face the other morning. This has become a several times daily ritual for us now because he cannot do this very well for himself any more. It is a time of incredible sweetness for us both. As I gently washed his eyes and face, he smiled and glowed at me.... and pictures began to form in my mind. I saw him as a kitten, his mother washing his face as I do now. The pleasure on his kitten face and his now-ancient face were the same look of pure bliss. As I allowed myself to relax into this vision I heard someone, I know not who, remind me that these bodies we incarnate into are such a gift. And yes, sometimes a burden too. Yet regardless of how we would evaluate the moment, in the end, our bodies belong to the Earth. It is where they arise from and it is where they must eventually return. Like everything here, it is on loan to us, it does not belong to us. And sadly, most of us have forgotten how to take care of this loan.

As I sat cleaning my cats face listening to the voice coming from somewhere, I was invited to take a look around the room... I did... the voice continued on with an astonishing idea:
Every THING that I could see with my eyes in that moment, with the exception of the cat and the living plants, had come from the UNION of something from the Earth and an idea from a human at some point in time. EVERYTHING. The dresser, the clothes within it, the lights, the wiring to power the lights, the room, the paper in the books, the books themselves, the candles, the tiny bits of flotsam that everyone has in their space..... all of it came from the earth and an idea in some human's mind.

This is a simple yet (for me) very profound thing. Take a moment right now to look at what is in your space, to the left and to the right of your screen. Look at what is there... see it not as the object you see (and ignore) every day, but see it from a fresh perspective: a gift from the Earth and some spark of inspiration that came down from someone, or perhaps several someones, to make these objects. ALL of this "stuff" comes from the Earth. All the wood, metal, glass, plastic .. it all came from the Earth - even the body that housed the mind that had the idea to make/design/build/sell all of the items you see before you, even that body came from the Earth...and yes, even your hands on the keyboard, and the eyes you use to read these words... in a very real way, they are all gifts from the Earth.

How incredibly generous She is to us.

What a miracle this is!

We live in a world that is utterly and completely composed of miracles. And mostly we don't even see it.

This is what I learned the other day washing the face of my cat.

So much abundance

2011-02-13T02:31:00.004-05:00

It has been a phenomenally busy couple of weeks. Each day I've thought... I must write in my blog to catch people up... and each day morphs into the next at such a relentless pace that time itself seems somehow to be in a constant state of transformation. Like the whole rest of the world !

First, for those of you who have sent prayers and concerns for my ancient kitty - thank you so very much! He is still miraculously here, though his body seems as if it is all but used up. Still, he manages to enjoy each day in the smallest of ways, but each pleasure is so sweetly received that I am in total awe of how miraculous life truly is. This whole journey has been such a learning curve I can scarcely begin to describe it. I will hopefully be able to write about it soon, but for now, it is still a work in process as I support his process. But your thoughts and prayers for us are most gratefully received and I'm sure have made all the difference. Thank you.

As you may have heard, the Book project with Kickstarter has been re-launched and has a new deadline, March 20th. In every way it is exactly the same as the previous book project, we just wanted to make sure the project got funded. The only way to do this was to start a "new" project with a deadline further down the road. Click HERE to get to the new project and bookmark it if you want to follow the progress. We are already over half way to the goal, and the goal is slightly lower than the original project so we should be able to make this happen more easily now.

I am very excited to announce that I will be showing my DVD at the Vermont Flower Show on March 5th at 4:30 PM. Here is the link to the Flower Show information. Come by if you can for a visit. I will not have a booth there, but will be available for chatting after the presentation. I will also be selling copies of the DVD and many of my other products as well. I'd love to see you if you can make it. The fragrance of the flowers is always so welcomed at this time of year!

I'm also incredibly pleased to announce that Mountain Lake PBS is going to be filming here next week in my studio and hopefully out in the snow and/or ice for a segment in their program called Mountain Lake Journal. It will be broadcast either at the end of this month or the beginning of next. I will be SURE to let you know when it will be airing. Also, once it has aired I'll be able to provide you with an archived link to the segment so you'll be able to see it online. I am feeling very nervous about this because I'm actually a very shy person. But this is such a wonderful opportunity to share my work with kids and those who are young-at-heart that I just have to push past my reluctance and get on with it! So... stay tuned. I hope to be able to share more with you soon. But right now, I have to get ready for the shoot, so I'll sign off for the moment.

There is more to share but for now, this is enough. Thank you for your patience and your continued support of my work. Your encouragement towards the work keeps me going more than you know. Thank you so much.

2011-01-27T19:04:00.003-05:00

Departure

2011-01-25T18:50:00.002-05:00

One of my best friends is making his transition out of this world and into the next. This is Miles, in his prime. Miles was a wild cat for the first few years of his life. How he survived our brutal winters, all on his own is a testament to his powerful will to live and his resourcefulness. I used to see him making his way along the fence lines in the snow and wish he would come and live here where it was more comfortable. But my other cat was not having any of that. When Muffin did pass over a few years later, it took Miles only a matter of weeks to check me out and then another month or so to decide maybe he'd try out domestic life for awhile. That was almost 10 years ago. I guess he liked it here well enough.

He was always so sweet and easy going. More cats came out of the woods and soon the house had a tribe and they all adopted me as their den mother. There were squabbles of course. But because Miles was so laid-back it seemed that most of the time he was the one on the receiving end of the debates and he just let the youngsters blow off steam. He knew he was the real king of the place.

Years passed. There were adventures and near-misses and medical scares that came and went. He got very thin. But always he seemed to be smiling (though he doesn't look like it in this photo ) and happy to see me and he became absolute best buddies with all the other cats. The only one who is equally loved by all the tribe. A beautiful example of Zen-like peace and calm.

Last week things began to change. Another shift towards the inevitable. But as is often the case with elder pets, you don't quite know if this is just a new plateau of less activity, or a looming illness, or, the shuffle towards stepping out of the fur suit. We had a good week of extra brushings and extra tidbits and morsels on offer, but last night I felt his energy shift and it became clear that he is beginning his last walk out of this world. It breaks my heart to see him go. He has been utterly loving, faithful, joyous, playful and sweet in all the ways he lived his life here and he has been such a Blessing in so many ways.

I am going to take some time off to be with him till his departure, and then I'm going to need some time to recover... but I'll be back. I have some wonderful news to share but just now, I can't... my friend is leaving and I need to be with him and see him off to his next adventure. I may not be replying to my emails very much the rest of this week. I hope you will understand.

Ice Faerie lost her wand?

2011-01-25T00:20:00.003-05:00

I chuckle to myself as I wonder just how many other images of very cold thermometers got posted to the internet today. I'm sure I'm in good company.

It had been a long time since we've seen this kind of cold.This was taken around midnight. I know it got much colder by dawn.
The stillness and quiet outside at night is powerful in its depth and weight. It is as if we are all holding our breath for some reason... this sort of cold is dangerous and our animal selves knows it. Everything retracts and is held tightly within... Plans, activities, thoughts, chores.... all are put "on hold" if possible as we wait the passing of this particular dense, arctic clarity. Personally, I like the stillness. But I am blessed. I am in a warm house as are all my loved ones, so it is easy to put another log in the woodstove and make another cuppa tea and work quietly some more on my book.

But then the sky clears a bit (it had been a luminous grey for much of the day) and even though it was very cold, I thought I might take a chance and see if I could get a photo of the sculpture I had made the other day. The light held and so did my camera for the time needed to get the shots, but the sky never cleared completely so the brilliant blue shadows of a clear winter twilight never appeared. But the first round of photos gave a good result. I covered the sculpture up to slow the sublimation process and I hope we may get some better light later in the week. Till then, this works quite nicely, I think.

Reading material

2011-01-21T11:02:00.004-05:00

If anyone would like to read the article published On January 20th in our regional paper, they have it online now. Here is the link.

http://pressrepublican.com/0500_what_to_do/x71342484/Magical-vision-drives-Wadhams-artists-creativity

You can click on it or paste and copy if your browser does not take you there. I apologize in advance for all the advertising... I'm not in control of that.

Reflections on "Found Magic"

2011-01-19T19:15:00.003-05:00

Conditions are becoming nearly perfect for some ice work and I am very excited! Actually, we have had good conditions for the ice WORK many times this winter, but the problem has been the grey skies. I've learned the hard way that without good light, you can't get good photos of ice, so I've had to let a lot of good working days pass by this winter because the light was just too flat and dull to get any good photos no matter how inspiring the sculpture might be. There are so many limitations to this work sometimes!!

But, when it all comes together, then it is all worth it.

I love the fact that light and water are all that is happening here.... at least in the first image. I had the feeling when I was making this house of a Gothic, vaulted room, or possibly a magical hall in Valhalla where the Valkyries retired to after they were done ferrying the souls of the dead warriors from their earthy end. A place of Light and glittering inspiration would be just the thing after a long, dark slog in the muddy/bloody earth planes down below. It is pure speculation of course, but that is what makes this work such fun... to be able to bring one's imagination to the moment and lean into the Quantum flux of pure potential and possibility.

Without any scale references it is hard to tell how big this piece is. That is something that pleases me and sometimes frustrates viewers, I know. So, I can tell you... the portion of the sculpture in the upper photo that is above the horizontal "floor" of the structure is approximately 24 inches tall, to the top of the "roof" but not the top of the spires. Yes, this thing was BIG. I had tremendously beautiful and long icicles to work with and that was a big part of the inspiration for this piece.

Some sharp observers have asked me how I managed to make the round ring of ice which sits atop this crystalline house. I usually give my most popular reply and say "Magic" and smile. And for most folk, that seems to be enough. In truth it was "magic"... but found magic as opposed to intended magic.

I had finished making the piece and the container that I used to make my slurry mix used as "glue" in these sculptures had developed a thick ring of ice all around the inside. To clean the pot up before heading back home I decided to let it float in the nearby lake which was still open albeit very cold.... but the 32 degrees of the water was warmer than the 20 or so degrees of the air. I continued to clean up my other tools and came back to the floating ice-lined pot to find the lining was now loosened up and in a continuous ring. I saw an opportunity.

I removed the delicate and rather scruffy ring of ice and began dipping it carefully in the lake to remove the crusty bits and shape the edge so it was more uniform and beautiful. It took quite a while... but in the land of this very linear material, found curved ice is very exciting. So, I was willing to stand in the lake for another 30 minutes and shape this ring till it had a pleasing proportion. The hardest part was attaching it. This sculpture was so tall that I had to stand on tip-toe right next to it, and reach up as far as I could and then hold it in place till it welded to the rest of the sculpture... about a minute. All the while making sure my bulky jacket did not bump the delicate sculpture and knock it down. But it worked out. And, even more "magically" , there was an unexpected parting of the clouds shortly afterwords so I could finally get some blue sky which had not been seen all afternoon.

This process of working with "found magic" is a big part of what I love about doing this work. Anyone who is an observer of Nature will know what I mean by "found magic". I guess that for me, it is one of the big reasons I get so excited about each season because each has its own quality of potential magic to offer up.

So, before the blistering cold arrives on Friday (when it will be too cold to work the ice) and the clouds move in on Thursday afternoon, there may be some good light for shooting some ice work tomorrow morning.... which means, I may need to work all night tonight under the light of the full moon, if the clouds depart in time, to make something so it is ready to shoot tomorrow morning. If the skies clear, then I'll be tempted to give it a try!

Welcome to my world :-)

What is your sign?

2011-01-17T00:17:00.004-05:00

We have all kinds of signs here !! The morning sun rose on a fat inch of very fluffy snow. The chance to join the snowdance was irresistible. Almost as good as coffee in terms of the "wake up" effect !

With the party over it was time to clean up. Out came the broom and away went the flakes... those that could get away. This effect surprised and delighted, and it got me thinking about how could one work with this process to create an interesting sculpture...

So we all came in to meditate on the idea and see what we might come up with. We are still contemplating.

Meanwhile, at long last I can begin to report on the book project. We are now less than a month away yet only 37% funded. A walk of Faith and trust, big time. So many wonderful friends and supporters have stepped up and made their pledges and I am so grateful to each and every one.... and I feel the weight of disappointing them if this does not get funded by the deadline, so there is a bit of tension creeping into the days now as the countdown continues.

My backers will be receiving a detailed update later today about how it is going and what I am doing now in the studio in terms of working on the book itself. It's a strange combination of hi-tech and low tech methods that work for me but would probably drive other people crazy, but as I say, it works for me.

Sculpture projects have been back-burnered the last two weeks because a) the weather has not been very conducive and b) I've had several big other projects that have needed my attention. And then there has been the snow that needed plowing, and wood that needed stacking. :-) Life is never dull here! But so many wonderful projects are taking shape and when I can tell you about them, I will. Also, this week, I will make some announcements about upcoming public events (for my local friends) so do come back later to see what is up ahead!

Meanwhile, get out there and do your snow dances!!

The Spirit of Play and a Lulu update

2011-01-11T14:09:00.006-05:00

Ok, business first: I've just learned that Lulu is once again offering a substantial sale on calendars. For those who want to order a few more, there is a 30% off sale on now until Saturday, the 15th. To get 30% off just put " SEASON305 " in the coupon code box on the "confirm order" page. 30% is a very nice discount from Lulu. They probably won't do this again this season, though they might do 20 or 25% down the road. So if you wanted more calendars, here is one instance where procrastination does pay! :-)

Now, on to the Spirit of Play. You might think that anyone who makes Faerie houses already gets enough play in her life. Well, every now and then I like doing something that is just about trying something new and expressive. Over the Holiday break I got into playing with wool a bit more and decided to felt some rocks.

Yes, felted rocks.

Instead of trying to describe them, I'd better just show the results:

.

I have had such fun with these! I want to make a whole collection of them. I find that working with the needle felting process is incredibly meditative and centering. It has a lot of similar qualities to throwing clay on a wheel ( making pottery on a turning wheel with wet clay). But the colours and textures are just so luscious to work with, especially this time of year when all is white, blue and dark green outside. I also appreciated the chance to do some pure creative play, not knowing what the results might be since I had never worked with the medium before. It feels really good to try new things. To step outside your comfort zone and into a new world of discovery. Maybe there is something you've always wanted to try but have not been able to carve out the time... if so, maybe a felted rock might give you a boost to take the leap!

Taking a Moment

2011-01-10T18:11:00.004-05:00

I had planned to write a posting today about some news and projects I'm working on... but given the waves of deep feelings that are rippling through the collective right now, it feels appropriate to hold off on that for a few days.

Instead.. a tribute.

To Compassion
To Courage
To Hope.

And hopefully learning from our mistakes. Blessings on those who have journeyed on and blessings on those who grieve their departure, and blessings on those who remain in-between.

And blessings to all beings who are suffering, which includes pretty much everyone on some level or another.

May Grace, Courage, Hope and Peace come to all hearts everywhere who are in need of comfort and healing.

Blessed Be.

Inside the Faerie House

2011-01-07T11:52:00.007-05:00

For those who did not see it before, this is a very special custom Faerie House made for a very special little girl. The house had two tiny battery-operated tea lights inside, one in the main house and one in the tower. The windows are a very special material that shine all the colours of the rainbow in normal daylight, but are transparent when lit from within. The roof was specially designed to be removable to view the interior of the tiny cottage. It was not designed as a dollhouse per se, but was strong enough to withstand careful play.

Here , at last we can get a peek inside the magical, wee house. As mentioned before, the battery operated lights are quite magical... they change gently from one colour to another...here it is in the green phase. The inside of the door has a personalized plaque with the new owner's initial. The door-step is a naturally curled bit of Birch bark. The bay window to the right of the door in this image has its own felted roof that is a bit hard to see in this image.

The roof by itself. The roof was hand-felted using needle felting techniques built over a hand-built form. This roof took over 12 hours to make. The underside (not shown) was covered in Scottish Harris tweed, and then dark, sparkly yarn was needle felted onto the "brim" area to provide light blockage so that when the interior light was on, no light would "leak out" from under the roof. It worked quite well. I love that it also looks a bit like a Wizard's hat... maybe I'll make one for myself one day then I would really be camouflaged in my forest walks!

The support joists to hold up the roof are made from White Cedar branches that were peeled by the river in the spring floods. I go along the mountain streams in spring and collect the newly peeled and polished twigs. They are silky soft and smooth. I love to work with the twigs and use them in many of my constructions.

The walls were wall-papered with handmade rice paper that had various flower petal embedded in the paper. The tall vertical tube is the chimney for the fireplace, which is also the tea light. The tea light is activated by blowing a tiny breath of air down the chimney.

The walls were all decorated in such a way that you saw something special as you looked thru each window or the open door from outside. It is a bit hard to see, but here we have the edge of the bay window just visible. And the wall of flowers that decorated the tower wall (the tower is attached here ). The floor is laid with a fresh carpet of green silk leaves and a sparkly spiral is part of the floor decoration.

Here we are looking towards the other window which has a leaded glass effect. More floor leaves are visible, some with pink, sparkly edging. Amethyst coloured sparkly hearts decorate the walls here and there. The round, green silk leaves circling the room provide a soft edge for the roof to sit upon.

A last peek out the open door. This whole "room" is quite small, only about 6 in x 8 inches and only about 6 inches high. It was really hard to work in and hard to get the photos too.

I loved the miniature scale and am starting to dream about making tiny twig Faerie Furniture to go inside these rooms... but that is a whole new level of devotion.

Thanks for coming on the tour!

And, if you have read this far, may I ask for your support on my book project. I'm beginning to be a bit worried that we might not make the goal. So many people have come forward to support the project and I am so very grateful to all their contributions... but if the goal is not met, we won't be able to make the book and that would really be a big disappointment to all those who have pledged so far. Please consider telling a few of your friends and most especially any groups you belong to about the book project. Your personal recommendation for my work goes a long way to get people to take a look at the project. There are many pledge levels, some quite affordable. Each pledge really makes a difference because if the project receives a lot of activity, it will get selected to be featured on the front page of the Kickstarter web-site. This is great coverage that only happens if a project is generating buzz... so many small pledges really do count a lot!!

I need your help. Please tell your friends about the Kickstarter project, here is the link:
Greenspirit Arts Book project

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!

Improvisation and creativity

2011-01-06T18:22:00.010-05:00

Greetings Everyone-
A slight digression from what I had planned to share today...

People often ask me how do I figure out how to make my sculptures. It is a question that has many answers... sometimes I have an inspiration that comes from the beauty of a certain location. That is what inspired this piece. I was deeply attracted to the texture of the tree and the rich, lush moss on the sculptured rocks :

Then, sometimes it is a material that inspires me to make something expressive like this piece, which is a celebration of the giant mushroom that I found along a trail and the Wild Irises that were growing around the nearby pond:

And then sometimes it is the anticipation of a celestial event that inspires me such as the triple conjunction of Jupiter, Venus and the New Moon... all planetary bodies, so the idea of using the round orbs of the Goldenrod stem with galls just naturally arrived as a symbol of the planets in orbit around a central space which is how this design came into play:

And sometimes it is the pure technical challenge that interests me... the idea comes and I think... can I actually DO that somehow? In this instance, can I figure out how to wrangle several hundred flower blossoms and keep them all together in a formation? I'll give you a hint: waxed dental floss!

So, creative inspiration comes through many avenues for me. But all of these pathways have something in common; they are a dialog of sorts between myself as the artist/human/feminine-receptive part of the equation and all the other elements that have their own "voices" so to speak. I've often said, that I "listen" to what Nature, or the material has to say and go from there... it is a conversation to be sure.

Now, the really fascinating part is that science is now beginning to understand that this is not merely a metaphor, but in fact, and actual brain process. If you have 16 minutes or so you may want to watch this very interesting video from one of the TED talks. Dr. Charles Limb is studying the brains of creative people when they are engaged in creative processes, especially improvisation. It turns out that one of the parts of our brains that does get highly involved when improvising is the area that is responsible for processing language, even though words may not actually be vocalized, still, the communication centers are very active when engaging the creative flow. I found this to be quite interesting... perhaps you will too! enjoy!

http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/1046

Kickstarter report and Faerie House prizes!

2011-01-04T00:07:00.006-05:00

The Kickstarter project is going very well so far. For those who don't know, I'm using a website called Kickstarter to raise funds to produce the first hardcover, limited edition book of my work. The response has been amazing and humbling, to say the least!! You can click on the title link for this blog entry or you can click on the new image to the right in the nav bar to see the video about the project and read about the rewards program for those who want to support the project. We are just over 30% funded which is awesome but we still have a long ways to go and the goal MUST be met by the deadline or the book won't happen, so even if you can't pledge what would really help is for you to tell your friends about this project. We really need to spread the word now to get more people who want one of my books to come and pledge. Think of it as a pre-order, just like they do in Amazon and all those big publishers. This is the same thing.

To help entice more people to become backers of the project, I've created two adorable little Faerie House cottages that will be given away to two lucky supporters in a drawing that will happen after the project ends successfully. I will put all the supporters names who pledged $5 or more to the project into a magic pot and a small friend has agreed to help me pull two names out to determine who will be the lucky winners! ANYone who has contributed at the $5 and above level to this project will be eligible. And... EACH additional pledge by any one donor will be entered as separate entries, so you can increase your odds of winning with multiple pledges! The two winners will be notified by email after the close of the fund-raising portion of this project.

Each house features a felted roof and an enchanting little tea light inside the house that glows softly and changes from one colour to the next cycling thru 7 different colours. VERY magical! Each house has a door that opens and two lovely wee windows. You can peek inside and imagine tiny Faeries having tea or dancing lessons in the wee cottages. They would make perfect gifts for any young person or those who are young at heart. The cottages can also be personalized on the bottom if you like. Here on this blog I'll show the cottages in single view but if you want to see more views click HERE for the first cottage and HERE for the second one.

Here are the cottages that will be given away to two lucky people who back my project:

Cottage # 1 the one with the swirling roof

And cottage # 2 the one with the purple spiral motif on the roof.

So please do tell your friends about the Kickstarter book project and sign up. For a $5 pledge (or more if you can) you could win one of these houses!

Lots of News

2011-01-02T23:54:00.003-05:00

Happy New Year Everyone! I hope everyone had a very peaceful and relaxing holiday break, whatever your traditions may be. Things have been really rich and full here but we've had a surprise thaw and all the lovely ice that I had been planing to work with is now melted and gone! It's absolutely astonishing how quickly things warmed up and melted. Winter is just not like it used to be here. But cold is returning and hopefully in another week or so, the icicles will have a chance to form again. They were lovely.

I will be posting lots of news this week so do check back often. I'll have an updated report on my Kickstarter project ( we have reached 30% of the goal!! YAY!!!) and news about two more Faerie House prizes I will be giving away to two lucky supporters if the project is successfully funded. Click HERE if you want a sneak peek. And I also have a really fun project that I did over the holidays that was a pure, creative experiment... but you'll have to wait to hear more about that, but it involves rocks and felt! I also will have more photos from the inside of the fancy Faerie House I just finished a few weeks ago. A glimpse under the roof, so to speak. All of that will be coming this week... but for now, I'll share one sculpture that turned out to be the last one for 2010.

This is a subtle piece that may not translate well in this small format. The big snowstorm that came thru here during the holidays did not bring much snow for us, but did bring a lot of wind. Along one road, amazing snow sculptures were formed by the winds. This one was just like a wave the surfers look for in the ocean... breaking and curling and frozen in mid-break. It had amazing detail inside the curl that was made just by the winds. I wanted to do something that celebrated this beautiful creation without interfering too much with what was already there. So I scouted around for more inspiration.

What really interested me were some stems of Goldenrod that I found in a nearby meadow. They had gall formations on them that made beautiful, round forms on and of the stems. I found a whole corner of a meadow that was full of these strange baubles. The colour was a rich mahogany brown which is hard to see in this image. I saw that they made great shadows and was now I had an idea and was ready to try working with the snow-wave.

I placed the trimmed gall stems along the crescent edge of the snow wave and was really pleased with the lovely knobby shadows that formed. I took several shots but liked these that came at the end of the shoot the best because the shadow extended down, broke and encircled the other mysterious snow cave that was also created by the wind. The sun was intensely bright and the snow was glittering with sparkling rainbows of colour... which the human eyes can see but sadly, my digital camera cannot, at least not to the same degree! Still, the day was gorgeous, even if a bit cold and blustery. But all this snow is now a recent memory. We will have to start over here and hope for more of the white stuff soon.

So, check back later this week... there is a lot of news to share!!

Happy New Year!!!

Happy Holidays !!

2010-12-24T20:11:00.001-05:00

NEW Faerie House!

2010-12-23T18:58:00.003-05:00

Greetings Everyone,

It has been FAR too long since I've made a posting here. I've been very busy with creative projects of several descriptions. The one I am most excited about is my latest Faerie House creation. This is the first house I've made that is designed to be seen inside and out. I'll give you some exterior images now and more images in a few days.

The roof is very special. It is removable and is made using the needle felting process. I'm thrilled because it is a way to bring bright colour in while still retaining the natural feel for the house. The material is custom-dyed sheep's wool. I've been searching for a material that would mimic a moss roof and I think this is finally it, only better!

The front door does open but we will have to wait for the next set of images to see that. This cottage has a sweet little tower that has a tiny flickering light inside which is visible thru the "stained glass" windows. On the Main floor we see a bump-out bay window, also with stained glass. There is a spectacular large Amethyst heart decoration just under the window. Glittering pink and lilac rhinestone hearts are tucked in the foliage that skirts the entire house.

On the back we can see more flowers in the foliage surrounding the house and up on the roof we see a leaf covered "chimney" that has a special, magical function which will be revealed in the next posting.

I'm so excited about this new direction of incorporating felted wool (and other fibers) into my constructions. They bring in colour, texture, whimsy and fun... and even more creative ideas about where I can go with this new material/technique. The felt is soft, and very easy to work with but it takes a long time to make a roof like this. This roof took approx 8-9 hours to make! But part of that was because of the need for it to be worked on all sides since it is removable and also to make the chimney hole that was a particular challenge.

But this technique gives the houses a look of refinement and finish that I've been trying to achieve for several months now. For those who have ordered custom-made houses on my book fund-raising project, this technique was developed especially for YOU !! I knew I wanted to offer my new patrons something really special and this is a great start in that direction!!

Stay tuned for more images. The inside is really rather simple, since the client wanted this for his very young daughter. But more creativity and decorating possibilities await for future projects. Creating houses that "work" inside and out is a whole new level of technical challenges since it has to look good from both the outside and the inside...and be strong enough to hold together, yet be delicate and fanciful to stay in scale. All of this has taken a LOT of hours to work out and it is mainly why it has been so long since I've posted!!

Wishing everyone a magical Solstice (belated) and Christmas... and a bountiful New Year!!

BOOK Project LAUNCHED!!!!!!

2010-12-10T12:34:00.005-05:00

Greetings Everyone!!

Well, I know I had said I was hoping to do a count-down for this project but the planning and preparation was far more complicated than I originally thought and took longer than I had hoped so in the end, I just had to hit the "launch" button on the Kickstarter website and make this all active!

For those who don't know, I've started a new experiment and you can help with the dream!!

In a nutshell: I want to make a beautiful, hardcover, Collectible First Edition book of my very best images. To do this I need to raise funds. There is a new, innovative online program called "Kickstarter.com" that hosts projects like mine and allows people to submit pledges towards the project. If enough pledges are made to meet the funding goal by the deadline, the project is a success and the pledges are turned into funds (via deductions from the pledger's credit cards) and then the book project can go ahead and the books can be made!!! It is very exciting to think this can now actually happen!!!

HERE is the website that tells all about it: Sally's Kickstarter project.

I've also created a special blog which you can find here: GSA BIG BOOK BLOG
I'll be posting special messages and updates here that will be just about the fund-raising project and the book project once that gets going. Also, there will be an exclusive email feed of updates and special tid-bits for all who sign up to back this projects, even at the lowest level of just $1.00, so there will be stuff of interest for everyone all along the way!

Now, here is the really important part: This is an ambitious project with a significant funding goal. If the goal is reached by Feb. 15th 2011, I'll be able to go ahead and make the book. If the goal is not met, I get no funding at all, and the book will not happen. :-(
So it really is up to ALL of us to see that the goal is met so the book can be made. This means networking!!

I've created some really fun rewards for ALL levels of participation. Pledges start as low as $1 so anyone can get onboard. None of the rewards can get activated until the process is complete, so if you are thinking this is a great Holiday gift idea.... you're RIGHT! But... it will be a delayed gifting because the gifts don't go out till after the goal is met. So again... we MUST meet the goal by the deadline or this will not happen.

PLEASE tell all your friends about this project. I'll be doing my part to tell all my contacts and anyone who has ever expressed interest in my work will want to know about this. The book will ONLY be available to those who fund the project ( and I'll have just a few extra copies made) but this is absolutely a rare opportunity. You may want to consider pledging for 2 books. Imagine what a hand-signed, numbered, personalized copy of a first edition may be worth someday. I'm also going to put small little surprises in the front of each book... so it is a very exciting project and I do hope you will be onboard as a supporter, and telling your social networks about the project. We need this to succeed and it will, with your help!

Oh and... when you go to the project page, you can see a new video that I made for this project... and you'll hear my voice! (but only images of my work... I'm still too shy about being on camera myself!)

So, here is the project URL once more:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/551175469/the-first-limited-edition-hardcover-book-by-greens

Please come and check it out!!!

Bright Blessings to All !!

Sally

Two gifts for you !!

2010-12-06T13:28:00.009-05:00

There is a surprise waiting just for you here on my blog. Can you find it? I am celebrating three years of creative expression and sharing and I want you to have a small gift of gratitude.

In addition, if anyone wants a printable card, just email me and I'll send you a PDF file which you can print on your printer. The card is a 5 x 7 vertical format card. You can print as many of them as you like. Perfect for holiday card sending. Free to you. Share the love, if you want! Here is a VERY low res version of the printable PDF:

Bright Blessings for a beautiful, bountiful holiday season and New Year.

Three Years

2010-12-04T23:30:00.000-05:00

To all my readers,

Thank you for all your interest, encouragement & support over the past 3 years.

Since Dec. 5th, 2007 over 33,266 visitors have passed thru this portal of magic & discovery! It is hard to imagine so many visitors would come to this tiny, obscure patch of creative process and flow, but that many have actually been here since I started. Amazing!

Many of you have taken the time to write to me and tell me your stories and/or purchase my products which help keep me going in a very practical way, and I am grateful beyond measure to each and every one of you.

Today I was at a small but very beautiful craft show full of happy people. It was at the Waldorf school in Shelburne, VT. It was a wonderful time and what I loved most was seeing the faces of the kids as they came up to the table to look at my work more closely. Some were chatty and bubbling with enthusiasm. Some were shy and quiet. And a few were really studying the images, taking things in at a very deep level. It was an honour to be there, looking into the faces of the future and feeling that we were connecting to something magical, together. Every child held such a special energy and sparkle and many had their own stories to share of making Faerie houses. It was such a joy to be there sharing with them fragments of creative expression that they could relate to and enjoy.

And then I thought of all the virtual visitors who have come to this blog over the past three years, perhaps stopping by on the recommendation of a friend, or perhaps as a result of an unrelated search... there are so many reasons someone could show up here on this virtual threshold. And if my work has left a spark or a smile, then I feel there has been a purpose fulfilled for having this blog in the first place.

I've chosen the above two images to celebrate this milestone for two different reasons. The first represents the spiraling journey of creative unfolding that this process has been and continues to be. There is also the suggestion here that I have often felt guided and supported by unseen forces to do this work. So the first image seems to sum up that feeling the best in all the images I have taken so far. And the second image feels a wee bit like a birthday cake with some pretty awesome candles! So these are my "gifts" of a sort, to you my readers and visitors as we stop and pause for a moment to acknowledge that it has been three years since this adventure began. May there be many more !!!

**********************************************************************

On some other notes: I've just finished up some big deadlines and will hopefully have a wee bit more time now to make more posts and share more stories and tell you about what is waiting in the wings to unveil!!

I'm now working on the very last piece of my Hardcover book project and we will be starting the countdown to launch sometime this week. I have a brand new Holiday treat to share with you and Lulu.com continues to quietly offer great sales on calendars and books which I can pass along to you. Please see the sidebar on the right for more links and important details if you are thinking about ordering my Lulu calendars or books as gifts for the holidays.

Thank you again for your continued interest in my work. I genuinely wish I could thank each and every one of you personally for taking the time to stop by for a visit, no matter how long it has been.

Many Blessings of Light, Love and magic all around you and yours for the coming year!!

25% off sale one day at Lulu.com

2010-11-28T16:29:00.000-05:00

Lulu has just advised me they are having a one day sale tomorrow , Nov. 29th for US customers only for 25% off any Lulu product.

For anyone who was not able to take advantage of the Calendar sale this is a nice deal. Or if you wanted to get some of my books for holiday giving this is a great time to order.

The sale is for one day only. I guess they are jumping on the cyber-monday bandwagon.

So if you would like to use this offer, type in the coupon code:
CYBER305
on the coupon code box which is usually on the last page before you confirm your order.

Click on the "My storefront" link on the menu to the right and you'll see all my Lulu items that could be ordered for this 25% off discount.

Thank you again for your support and I will be writing more of my usual blog entries soon...I've had three very critical deadlines coming due this week-end so I've been focusing on those. The snow is beginning to fall up in the mountains and we had a first dusting down here. I had forgotten how exquisite Balsam trees are when etched in a light snowfall.

And for those who have been waiting... here is the previous house after a wee bit of wet snow arrived. Enjoy!!

Only 40 left in the warehouse!!!

2010-11-24T04:07:00.000-05:00

I've just heard from the publisher that they only have 40 more calendars in their warehouse ! After that they will be officially unable to fulfill online orders. If you were thinking of getting these online, this may be important news for you!!

You can click HERE and it will take you to the ordering page at Pomegranate's portal.

I'm getting ready to announce the book project launch. I noticed that I'm coming up on a big milestone... 3 years of this blog on December 5th. I will start the countdown shortly after Thanksgiving (for US readers) for the big announcement about the book project... watch this space!! It is almost ready to show you!!

Faerie House of the Hemlock Forest, waiting

2010-11-17T13:48:00.001-05:00

A magical little home deep in the Hemlock forest is getting ready for the coming season of snow and festivities. Snow is in the forecast... we shall have to see if it makes it down to the hills that huddle at the feet of the bigger mountains.

Stay tuned!!

Things are really, really busy here in the studio. A lot of deadlines are coming due in less than 2 weeks, so I've been burning a lot of midnight oil. The book poll was very helpful, thanks to all who participated!! There will be more news about the book project in a few days... but not just yet!!

Look what YOU did this week!!

2010-11-13T19:06:00.001-05:00

I'm so thrilled to give you this news! Thanks to all of you getting your calendars, I am very pleased and humbled to announce that we made it to spot # 7 and # 8 on the Lulu top 100 calendar sales for the week!! That is incredible!! Way to go you guys!!!

Check it out: click here

30% off deal expires soon!

2010-11-13T11:56:00.000-05:00

A quick reminder that the 30% off sale for my calendars expires on Monday, the 15th. Follow the link on the right.

The last leaves of Autumn

2010-11-12T19:43:00.000-05:00

The last leaves of autumn. Gathered and circled on a spiral staff of dogwood. Saying farewell to the exuberance of summer. Saying hello to the subtlety of the quiet season.

A final turn on the wheel for these leaves.

A few notes on the upcoming book project

2010-11-10T23:31:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone,

Just wanted to let you know that the book funding project is NOT yet up and running. YOU will be the very first to know, believe me!!

I am having to create a video and prepare the whole website for the launch and it is a lot of work, so it will take about a week to 10 more days. I'll start a 7 day countdown when we are that close, so hang in, be patient and get ready for the fun!!

And thank you everyone who has voted so far, you've really helped steer this already!! :-)

another sale at Lulu

2010-11-10T19:38:00.001-05:00

In some ways, I dislike all these marketing announcements... but I also know everyone is pleased when they can save a little bit here and there. So, that is why I'll continue to post these notices when they come in since some of you may want to take advantage of the offers.

Today Lulu announced a 20% off sale on all items. The sale is good only for today and tomorrow as it is a Veteran's day sale. As per usual, the coupon cannot be applied with any other discount. If you are wanting just calendars, you should still use the "EARLYBIRD305" coupon code for 30% off savings on the calendars. I'm getting reports that lots of people are taking advantage of this sale and that is great!!

But if you were thinking about getting some of the books, this is a good time to use the " VETSDAY305 " coupon code and you'll get 20% off your order.

As an artist, all this talk of commerce is sometimes not what I want to be focused on, but it seems it is a necessary part of equation these days. I wish it were otherwise... believe me. But, these offers are gifts of a sort and as such, it seems most appropriate to share them with you in case you could use it.

I'll add a photo here just so it isn't ALL business!!

Settling in

2010-11-09T21:49:00.001-05:00

Please do fill out the poll to the right if you have not already done so. It is very interesting to see the results so far.

Also, please DO read the post below, it's a long one, but a very important message about a project that is taking shape right NOW!

Today I finalized the budget for the project (soooo challenging for right-brain types like me!) and set the rewards levels for those who want to donate to the project. I've made some really fun rewards that I hope will entice the fans from everywhere to consider becoming a part of the project. More news on this will be coming soon. Meanwhile... enjoy the gentle spiral dance of fall winding down and letting go.

Dreaming BIG and YOU can help! (soon )

2010-11-06T16:53:00.003-04:00

First, about this image.
Last full moon we suddenly had a clearing of the clouds that had been holding us hostage for days and days. I raced out to a spot I had scoped out and began to gather materials to make an Autumn Moon portal. Unfortunately, the moon came up much further North than I had calculated. Fortunately I had built into this portal some flexibility just in case something like that might happen. A bonus that I did not plan was being able to get the rather famous, snow-capped mountain in Vermont within the portal...that was a real surprise. Something I cannot explain is why this ONE frame out of the several dozen I took that evening has the gentle moonbeams radiating outwards... but they felt like a blessing when I saw the photo for the first time. Even though it was freezing cold and a bit windy, this somehow all worked. And it gave me another idea for the next full moon... but I am getting ahead of myself.

Now to the Dreaming part: I have just learned of an incredible opportunity. I have been wanting for several months now to have my work put into a nice, hardbound larger format book. It is not cheap to produce books such as these however. The proofing process alone will cost several hundred dollars. It seemed impossible to imagine that I could so this any time soon. Then I heard about a great new funding program for artists and other project-makers of many kinds. The place is called Kickstarter and the program works like this:
- the "project" gets screened thru a preliminary approval process to seek funding. Not all projects are accepted, there are restrictions and guidelines you have to meet. If your project is approved, you take the next step...
- the creator then writes the proposal/plan for the project and sets the funding goal, deadline, pledge levels and rewards for the various levels. And creates a video about the project. The creator has total control over all these phases. When ready, the project goes "active" and the fun begins.
- patrons are directed to the site or find out about it thru social networking. They visit and decide if they want to pledge an amount and how much. The patron then signs on and makes their pledge. Everyone is excited and hoping to meet the goal.
- now, here comes the dramatic part: if the funding goal is met by the time the deadline arrives, the project gets funded by all the patrons. If the goal is not met, you get nothing. Creator gets nothing. Patrons get nothing. No joy anywhere.
- but... if the word gets spread and if everyone gets excited, then it is possible to meet or even exceed the goal by the deadline. EVERYONE is happy then! Creator will get to do their project and patrons will get the fun of being included in the process and any goodies that have been pre-advertized. This is a true win-win.

I am very pleased to announce here that my project HAS passed the first hurdle! The idea has been accepted and I've been given permission to go ahead!!!!

So.... here's the part where you come in. I'm going to do this. I'm making plans to create my first hardcover book. But there are options... do we make a book just about the Faerie houses now and make another one about the other work later? Or, do I make a book about my other Eartherials and spirals and do a Faerie houses book later? Or.... do I make a book that has both genre of work but in two separate sections? OR (don't worry, last "or") do we make a book that has both kinds of sculptures mixed together but follows the seasons.... much like my Greenspirit book does.

Those are my/our choices! And, to find out how you might feel about this, I've created a poll which you will find on the upper right side of this blog. Please take a moment to consider these options. If this whole project is successful it will be very possible to make many more dreams like this come true. (I wish I had known about this when I was dreaming of making my DVD! )

I want this to be a somewhat collaborative process. It starts with us deciding what kind of book this is going to be. Then, once we know what kind of book most people are wanting to see, I'll launch the project funding site and I will want all of YOU to help get the funding for the project! This project will not succeed without your support!!! Remember, if we don't meet the goal by the deadline, then no money is raised and the project will not happen.

When the time comes to launch the funding website, I will let you know thru this blog and also through my newsletter. Patrons who pledge will get regular updates on the project and there will be special treats for all, no matter what level one decides to join in. There is a tremendous amount I have to prepare for this, but I'm very eager and very excited that this could really work!! So, I'm planting the seeds of this project right here and now. Today is the day of the new moon and astrologically it could not be more powerful. This is a big dream and with your help we could all have some fun making this a reality! It won't happen overnight but I'll keep you posted here and I wanted everyone to give their input first on what kind of book they would like to see. The book will probably be 8.25 x 10.75 (update: the 12 x 12 originally mentioned here was just too expensive for a first run project like this but if this process is successful, we'll do the 12 x 12 next time!) and have 50-60 (update... I'm aiming for 84 pages!!) pages. A big luscious celebration of this work. The books will be expensive to make but certain patron levels will receive a signed and numbered book as the reward. I'll let you know more about the details as they get refined. These books will be a limited edition run. I'll make the same book in paper-back format but without the Limited Edition features and those will be available to the general public or to those who can pledge at the lower level. Other pledge rewards are also in the works, some small, some very large. It'll be fun!

So stay tuned and please give me your feedback on the poll. Please, fill out the poll just once so the tally is accurate. Get your friends to take the poll, show them my work, get them signed up for the newsletter. Think about who you are going to want to tell about this project once it goes live. And get ready to take a very active part in making a dream a reality!!!!

Thanks Everyone!!!!

HUGE sale at Lulu on Calendars!!

2010-11-04T23:03:00.004-04:00

I've just received word from Lulu that they are launching a big promotional sale just for calendars sales. You can receive a whopping 30% off your entire calendar order if you place your order by Nov. 15th and use the coupon code: EARLYBIRD305 in the box at the end of the check-out process. That makes my calendars cost just $12.60!! That works out to a mere $1.05 a month... amazing!

Lulu never lets us know in advance when these sales are going to happen so my apologies if you recently purchased a calendar. If you feel disappointed about the timing, email me and I'll see what I can do. I do feel your pain, I myself just recently ordered several calendars and I did not get the discount on that order either. This sale is a significant savings and most likely will not come around again, and, as I said, I am not in control of these offers. As with all other Lulu coupons, you can only use it once, so plan accordingly and use it before 11:59 pm on November 15th.

If you'd like to go directly to the calendars, you can click on the link at the right that says "my storefront" or you can click HERE for the Eartherials calendar or click HERE for the Spirals calendar. I'll keep the coupon code posted over on the sidebar so you can find it easily in case this blog fills up with other entries.

New Look !!

2010-11-04T02:30:00.004-04:00

Welcome to the new layout for my blog.

It was time to update the look and bring it closer to my website's design.

This little jewel of a doorway was created very recently. I found a place that had about 20 different kinds of moss in one small area. It was so tempting to try and fit them all into this one shot, but not all of them made it in. The sun is at such a low angle now that shooting in the forest has become quite challenging because there are almost always shadows cast by the bare trees. The eye edits them out without thinking about it when you are in the woods, but the camera sees all!! Sometimes I have to wait for quite awhile until the shadows of distant trees move past the sculpture. All part of the seasonal attunements we all must make.

Hope you like the new look for the blog.

Faerie House with the golden door

2010-10-29T14:34:00.004-04:00

The last flowers of autumn in our area are the field Asters. Lovely shades of soft purple, lavender, and smoky violet. In the forest, the last mushrooms are popping up in huge quantities, thanks to all the rain. The cushion moss is exceptionally bright also because of the rain and the extra daylight that is finally able to reach the forest floor now that the leaves are down. All the leaves that is except for the Beech trees. They are still making their transformations from green, to gold to bronze and copper.

In the forest small mounds of bright green moss which cover the remnants of old logging stumps are now easy to find against the freshly fallen leaves. They make perfect little houses for the Wee Ones. This one is decorated in all the finest bits that late autumn has to offer.

Faerie sighting part 2

2010-10-25T11:15:00.003-04:00

Then as I waited, things began to change... a bright beam of light began to illuminate the Faerie house from a completely different angle, it was as if a spot light was shining on the sculpture and I began to take quickly take photos again. The effect lasted for only about 2 minutes and when it passed I finally looked up from my camera to figure out what had just happened... the sun was reflecting off a window and shining onto that exact spot for the briefest period of time. The beam had to pass between several trees but for a few minutes everything did indeed line up. I had no idea this was even possible as I had never, in all my years living here, seen this phenomenon at this location.

So those Faeries had my respect and attention after that!!

I waited for a few more minutes to see if there might be any more surprises, but the sun began to dip below the heavy heads of the white pines and I knew that soon not enough light for good photos would be making it to this location so I decided to take a final two snaps and call it a day. That is when I took the photo that I posted earlier that had the Golden glowing shapes in it. It was the second to last image from the day.

Here is an enlargement.

Let me say again that this is not a Photoshop trick, this is just what was in my camera once I processed the images. I do not recall seeing this at the time with my eyes, but certainly, I felt the presence of "something".

There is a second blur of Golden light below the obvious first one. Is it the same Being pausing twice or are they two separate beings? I do not know, so I leave it up to you to decide.

I have always wondered if Faeries, or Elementals or whatever they are, might one day show up in one of my images. I've always felt that if they did, it would be on their terms and by their permission, not by any cleverness on my part. I'm just so delighted to have it happen and I feel honoured that they want to work with me in these small and mysterious ways.

Exciting news : a Rare concert by Bradfield!

2010-10-24T13:50:00.003-04:00

Hi Everyone,

I've just learned some exciting news. For those of you who live in the area and who have enjoyed the music on my DVD, there is a rare opportunity to hear Bradfield play his music! He will be giving his first North American concert at the Earth Spirit conference in Shelburne VT on Nov. 6th.

Here is the link to the conference's website. You can come to just the performance if you wish. Just look on the registration page to sign up for it.

http://www.earthspiritconferences.com/conference.html

Bradfield tells me that this presentation will be a mixed media excursion into the crop circle phenomenon with music he composed especially for this program. Some of his music has been based on sound recording actually made in some crop circles in England. As anyone who has watched my DVD knows, Bradfield's music is very uplifting, and almost zen-like in its purity. When I listen to his works, they always astonish me with their clarity and brilliance.

I myself can't wait to hear him play live!! If you can make it, I'm sure it will be a memorable experience. The building that the conference meets in is also a very special creation... like a large Faerie house with a beautiful, round room at the center where the concert will be given. Please join us if you can!

I will post the follow-up about the Faerie visitation tomorrow.

Faerie Sighting

2010-10-22T04:29:00.005-04:00

I am very excited to share with you what may be my first real Faerie photograph. I will show just the original photo today, with detailed images coming soon! See if you can find it. There may actually be two here. This is not a Photoshop trick or a camera trick. I have used Photoshop just to process the image and improve the colours a wee bit, but the Faeries, which are visible in this image, were a surprise to me because I did not "see" them when I was taking the photos, but I did have a strong connection to them at the time. Let me explain.

I had the main portion of this sculpture all ready to take to a different location, a tiny rocky island in the river would give lovely reflections and a sweet sense of place for this rather large house. It is a complex design so I was looking for a simplified background. I thought the slow-moving river would be the perfect backdrop. As I was getting ready to pack everything up in the morning to go to the river, I asked the Faeries if the location I had in mind was the right one for this piece. I got a very clear message that NO, they did not want me to go there. I was quite surprised. So I asked where they wanted this sculpture to be placed. They told me they wanted me here at this stone wall which is very near my house. I was even more surprised because the location was considerably less "magical" than what I had in mind.

But I've learned to not question the Faeries!

It took several hours but I set the house up and began taking some photos. I had to do a lot of clearing and prep work for this location because it was just not really suited for this piece. By the time I was ready to start shooting, the sun was past it's high point and it was beginning to descend in the western sky so everything was backlit ... when the sun was out, but there were many clouds too. I took a few photos but was not overly impressed with the location. I wondered why the faeries wanted me to set up here?? It wasn't making much sense... but sometimes you have to wait for things to happen.

Stay tuned for more of the story! And close-ups of the visiting Faerie/Faeries !!