Looking Up, Blue Skies & Positive Intentions:FTR

It’s another gorgeous day in Jamaica. Things are looking up. For now, my computer is tolerating my digits punching the keys. It’s hard to say how long this will be the case. It’s pretty hard to type with your fingers crossed. My computer fritzing out effects my dailies greatly but is nanoscopic in the wake of the recent tragedy in Japan.

I haven’t had the words to even touch on the magnitude of damage following the recent earthquake/s and Tsunami. Today I am sending blue skies to the survivors. Blues skies, grace and healing.

I traveled to Japan as a three year old. I have never forgotten the kindness, grace and beauty I experienced in Japanese culture as a child. My few weeks there had a life long impact on my view of the world and folks in it.

More life and love for Japan today. May Japan be embraced by the powers of loving and positive intention.  May we hold a vessel for the hurt as well as the hope. May we hold an open heart, and open hands for the dreams. May we recognize and celebrate the arrival of the dreamers. We feel our brothers and sisters anguish from across the waters. May hope ignite your hearts when the storm has cleared.

I snapped this blue sky image while driving up our little lane the other day. I find it remarkably refreshing and simple. Keeping it on the positive isn’t always easy, especially when so much of the world is suffering. Perhaps, if we all meditate blue skies and the calm they offer, the state of current affairs will improve. It’s definitely worth a try. I can’t imagine that meditating blue skies and healing could make the situation worse.

One Love, walk good, keep your head to the sky…

Read Full Post »

Obsession, Dependency & More Eye Candy:FTR

I started writing this from the car Friday morning, on the way to Montego Bay. A beautiful day for a drive, even if the purpose of the mission was to sort out yet another Jamaican postal calamity/bureaucratic bull shi*! I find I sail through such situations smoothly when I put on my happy face and grin with gratitude.

Update: Eight hours later, after a very long day of bureaucratic servitude, the grin of gratitude waned, and I didn’t have the energy to continue this post. I am having an impossible time typing because my keyboard has gone ballistic and refuses to function without an external mouse (which is sitting on my desk at home, oops).

Which reminds me that I’ve yet to share with you the very sad news that my beloved macbook is on the fritz. I don’t know that I’ve ever felt so emotionally bonded to and dare I say, dependent on a machine (with the exception of my first record player, and perhaps my last mac). My mac is my home theatre, stereo, blog center, and correspondence aid. Almost everything to me!

There is no doubt that my creative, artistic and computer skills have grown infinitely in the last few years of relationship with this laptop. And I am sad to admit that this trusty mac is on the fast track to retirement. Hopefully, she will be grazing greener pastures and browsing the net in easy, relaxed fashion in no time. For now I am squeezing every ounce of usability from this workhorse for as long as the keyboard and mouse hold out. Fingers crossed!

This week I’m obsessed with flower forming and polenta recipes though not in combination. The options presented by these two very diverse mediums (polenta and flowers) are limitless. I had no idea! I am including a few pics of recent creations and am considering adding a recipes category.

Have a fabulous weekend!

One Love, walk good, fingers crossed, hope to blog again soon…

Read Full Post »

Studio Friday: Specimens & A New Name?

As you can see it’s been busy  over here on the rock. My head is swirling with inspiration, imaginations and images.  I am over at Studio Jru again for show & Tell. Participating in this Friday engagement keeps me on my toes and definitely makes me more cognizant of my work/s in progress. 🙂

Thread, needles, beads, findings, embellishments and curiousities are abundant. And I dare not show you a wide angle view of the work area! Scary. But I will be doing some scooping, storing and organizing in the studio this weekend to make it more roomy and bearable. Sometimes I am so overpowered by the muse/s I actually forget where I am and what I’m doing. Moving from skrap to skrap, objet to objet, image to image. It consumes me. Perhaps too much.

Honestly, sometimes I just can’t turn it off. I need to learn how.

Nonetheless, it’s been a relatively productive week. I am gaining momentum and excitement about the potential for said new line of hair adornment/s. I am stuck on the name. I would love to enlist you to help me and give some feed back as to which name you think best suits this pursuit?

So far I’ve come up with with:

 

blüm by ila blu

or

flora by ila blu

Of course the blüm is pronounced bloom and flora is pronounced flora.

Which do you prefer? I like them both and think either could work. So???……

I am wishing you an oustanding weekend. I hope you start or continue something you love, preferably creative.

One Love, walk good, gone to get some sunshine…

Read Full Post »

Passion, Desire & Blooming: From the Rock

Traditionally, flowers have significant meanings attributed to them. In times past, folks gifted flowers with intended messages. Red flowers and particularly roses can symbolize, passion, desire, red hot, love, and energy.

This vermillion beauty is definitely a dose of sexy. Worn as a hair adornment or on a blouse, purse or shoe, as a fascinator, a pretty drop of red goes a long way. This simple accessory can take your winter blahs to fabulous! I am a huge fan of hair adornment and head dressings. Honestly they make my day! More often than not, I clip a little beauty into my big ol’ bun o’ hair (natty dreadlocks minus the dread) to pull my look and self together. It adds such a cheerful element to my face and outings. Often a conversation opener and always an eye catcher!

I am so loving and inspired by my recent floral explorations. I think I am almost ready to offer them for sale. I feel myself blooming in new directions with this craft that draws on so many of my gifts. It is challenging and gratifying and eco savvy as I am incorporating primarily reclaimed fabrics. Yay!

What do you think?

Might you consider adding one, two or three, of these to your wardrobe experience?

One Love, walk good, hope your day is red hot!

Read Full Post »

Manifest Monday and Rainbow Country:From the Rock

It’s manifest Monday again. I am working on more floral eye candy for your viewing and more importantly, adorning pleasure. And rainbows…

Today, I am cleaning up my computer desktop which has grown chaotic with a multitude of file folders and images. It is a simple, mundane and above all time consuming task. But when I open up this trusty macbook and behold a clean slate on the screen it’s truly refreshing and inspiring.

Don’t you love how simple chores can make a pathway for great things to come?

I snapped this photo (water color rendered) Sunday evening. A glimpse of one side of the most full rainbow (as in visible from beginning to end) I have ever witnessed. And right in our own yard! I can’t help but wonder if Bob Marley was singing about Westmoreland in his famous song, Rainbow Country. Legend has it he used to make his way thorough these very parts with his bicycle. I wasn’t able to capture a wider view of the whole thing in a way that did this arch spectrum, phenomenon justice. So, Here’s a piece for you. A reminder that even that which waits at the end of the rainbow is attainable through baby steps. Wishing you rainbows.

What are you manifesting this Monday?

One Love, walk good, catching rainbows…

Read Full Post »

Another One Bites the Dust: Love, Life and Loss On The Rock

As you may know already, Jamaica is pretty rugged. Life and weather arrive and disappear in the blink of an eye. Sometimes it’s rough. Sometimes it’s sad. And most of the time it’s not easy for children to grasp the concept of people, pets and plants going back to the earth. Or as we say in modern times, death.

Yesterday, we lost our cherished, little friend Mylo (pronounced My yo in our household as we are still working on annunciating l’s). Mylo was a survivor and lived through the tumultuous storms and floods of 2010. You may remember we were trapped (by rain) up in the hills and could not get to the GPs to protect them. We finally arrived home to find Mylo, shaking, hungry and terrified but her sister, Spot, and babies, weren’t as lucky. We nursed our beloved, last remaining Guinea Pig back to health and she’s been fine ever since. Until, just the other day when she became a little sluggish. Mylo died at home yesterday morning. The transition appeared peaceful. Ultimately, we think it was a heart attack.

Living in Jamaica, the children have become excellent grievers. Over the years, they have lost three grandparents, a couple of close aquaintances, fish, guinea pigs and their best friend, Cree Dawg. As parents we have discovered how crucial it is to provide opportunities for them to participate in the ritual and celebration of life and it’s passing. And so, we have fabricated several funerals.

Mylo’s celebration and burial was particularly heart warming. The children gathered flowers, made a heart and Iz (6) wrote out the head stone himself. We buried Mylo early in the day and returned after nap to decorate the grave site. Beautiful songs were sung. Memories laughed about and many, many, tears were shed. It almost broke my heart. Mylo was “such a pretty yady” (lady). “We yoved her so much.”

I think it’s important to help children through rites of passage. Allowing them to guide a ceremony for lost loved ones is empowering and healing. In some ways, I am sad that they have witnessed so much loss. At the same time, I realize how spiritually connected they are to life and nature. Gratitude.

Yesterday evening, as the babes headed outside for a sunset, ackee picking session, I overheard Izra say to his little sister,

“Miwi (meely), life comes and it passes. It’s alright, baby, that’s just how it goes.”

One Love, walk good, RIP Dear Mylo…

Read Full Post »

Inspiration Doesn’t Sleep & Get Your Own Goat!

Paint, digital and textile media are running things in the studio this week. Today I am featuring infamous, studio patron goat, Luma. She is not entirely random, I am after all, a capricorn. And this is my goat.

I’m over at StudioJRU again for Sneak Peek Studio Friday! Lots going on in this lil studio as of late. I am occasionally blessed with flash floods in the form of creative brain surges (i.e., ideas). The last few days have been a consistent onslaught of artistic imaginings. Inspiration doesn’t sleep. I lay awake visioning, untangling, planning, problem solving. I am practicing inhaling gratitude. It is at the root of everything. Sincere, humble gratitude for life, breath, sunshine, greens, time to create, fruit, my hands, my family…

But perhaps most of all this week, I am grateful for the abundance of the ilaful, strikingly beautiful, color saturated, coat of mother nature that dances daily across the horizon.

Super excited about branching into flora adornment, head dressings, blooms of color, etc. Above is an example of my recent explorations and musings with floral creations. I am currently focused on durability and the versatility of wearability. Ideally, accents and accessories of this fine blend can be worn as brooches, hair pins, or clips, etc. More ideas and lovelies soon come.

It’s the last week of painting class and I’m already missing it. I thrive on the consistency and challenge of keeping up with assignments, community encouragement, feedback and all. I am still catching up as I find painting time slips away into the oblivion. The thing is the only way to do it, is to do it! So I’m gettin’ busy with many mediums but most of all paint. I have a long way to go. And I am thrilled to be painting often. 🙂

 

In the meanwhile, I am wishing you a fabulous weekend. Full of color, floods of inspiration, rest and relaxation, and anything that you find beautiful!

One Love, walk good, living in gratitude, especially when things get sticky…

Read Full Post »

Little Things You Can Learn from a Pumpkin: FTR

Sometimes it’s the little things. A recent development on our Jamaican acreage is the bounty of this magical fruit/vegetable. We are cultivating it in abundance, nearly by accident. It is a hearty grower with huge thirst and passion for life. Lately, it’s not uncommon to see plump, round bursts of color shooting up from the compost pile. Joyful. Effortless.

Imagine. Programmed to thrive. Hardwired for life. Each sprout reaching for the sun to extend the best leaf, pumpkin, self. There is a whole heap to be learned from pumpkins. Perhaps, even better than their performance in soup or pie, is the fact that these squash can do what they do almost anywhere. Pumpkin can grow on a rock, literally and with very little maintenance. Pumpkins put themselves out there for all of the universe to see. Rugged. Vulnerable. Authentic. Happy just the same.

What are you happy about? What are you reaching for? What is effortless today?

One Love, walk good, embracing effortlessness…

Read Full Post »

Six Pics, P Words and Vulnerability: From The Rock

From the studio this week I present to you…

Six Pictures, Six P Words and more vulnerability.

Patience, perseverance, presence, positivity, possibility and politeness are the order of the day. I am striving for all of the above while feeling like sticking my head in the sand as I re-coup from a week that in retrospect may look prettier but currently looks like hell. Well, not entirely like hell, but close enough for government work.

I played hooky with my blog this week. I have retreated into a creative hibernation and a brief social hiatus. Not to worry, it’s temporary. Bracing for change necessitates objectivity, deep breathing and baby steps.

Still able and more than willing to be vulnerable and share a few peeks into the studio. It is after all, Friday and I am over at Studio JRU again, for a fabulous collaborative of creative folks being vulnerable! I am currently loving lessons in color and happy to share some of my recent explorations.

Injoy the scenery and have a fabulous weekend.

Last week’s painting, acrylic on 9×9″ reclaimed wood:

Last Week’s palette:

Digitally altered painting:

Skraps and inspiration:

One Love, walk good, more soon..

Read Full Post »

You’ve Gotta Be Bad to Be Good:Art and Vulnerability:FTR

Vulnerability is the order of the day. Authenticity is imperative. Forget fear. Abandon barriers. Recognize and embrace your limitations, these are clues that will help you navigate the journey. Live out, and up!!!

I am over at JRU Studio for Sneak Peek Friday! Scroll down for more studio views.

For me, the image above is an iconic example of the mystic space between strength and weakness. So in honoring myself today for my achievements (the greatest of which, are bringing two amazing artists into the world), I am putting it out there!

I am embracing bravery on this day, as my little boy turns six. Happy Birthday Iz!!!Without a doubt, birthing and parenting have taught me more about vulnerability and courage than any venture I’ve ever dived into. I mean, if I can survive two successful water births, and four plus years of breastfeeding (between the two babies), I can do pretty much anything. In my experience, there is nothing stronger or more vulnerable than a mother just after birth.

I am squelching my fears by pouring salt into my wounds. I am sharing my weak and sensitive side, for all the world to see, laugh at, spit upon, or injoy. Trust me, this is no joy ride. But I have to do it. This is, after all, part of my ten year expansion plan.

As you may know, I am currently enrolled in a painting class that is kicking my creative ass. Today, I am sharing studio glimpses of a piece I have worked on, despised, painted over, embraced, questioned, despised again and continued to work with. One of my Mondo Beyondo dreams is to be able to sketch and paint faces in a way that invites the viewer to look just a little longer. No easy feat, especially in paint. I am surrendering to the suck. Realizing that I have to be really bad before I can be really good. Presenting the suck for all to see is crucial to growing as an artist. What is art if no one sees it. Right now, it is better for me to produce bad art, than to produce no art. That’s how “bad” I want it!

Here I’ve shared snippets, glimpses and tidbits of the layers I’ve been creating this week. Have a look. Feel free to comment. Feedback welcomed. This is me doing one thing that scares me today. Showing you the many faces of my painterly style.

One Love, walk good, being really bad doesn’t always feel good. Do it anyway!

Read Full Post »