Finishing up and A Botany Question

I've been spending the past few days whooping it up in my studio... finishing the unfinished. Here are my honey and I in San Francisco about 5 months before we were married. I'd wanted to give it to him in June. Didn't happen :) There are 2 others being 'wrapped up' as well. These are larger paintings on canvas that I'll probably keep.

Does anyone know the name of this 'flower'? I bought it at a little market with fresh cut stems... the girl said is was called (and I spell phonetically) ''Pressia". (I did a search and didn't find anything) Anybody??? I'd love to learn more about it. It's quite large and the zig-zag leaves are so unusual! (planning on drawing/painting it)

Happy Friday everyone.

PS I've updated the etsy shop and will add a few more prints Saturday... check it out here!

Calistoga and the Little Lavender Girl

The Elms - Calistoga, CA

Little Lavender Girl

2 new woodcuts I've started this week... actually Calistoga (the house) I did the drawing this morning! The lavender one is going to take a long time because of all the lines and little buds to be carved. Not quite sure how successful it'll be but, I wanted to try. It is really a lovely image if I can just translate it into wood :)

The house is from way back when my hubby and I used to vacation Napa and Sonoma with friends (on this trip) and sometimes alone. I love the house - it reminds me of my fave Hopper painting. This is a B&B we stayed in called The Elms - absolutely enchanting! I highly recommend it if you're staying in the wine country. Brings back such great memories of our salad days together.

San Francisco Row Houses

I love architecture and the old buildings and styles of San Francisco. I took this photograph a few years back on a trip to Sonoma and Napa... of course we had to hang a bit in SF and go the a great restaurant - The Stinking Rose (yummy garlic food!). This is close to being done, I don't want to overwork it but I may tweak the buildings and lower sky a bit more.

Sausalito Store Front

Here is another Jewel Box painting in progress.

I don't know why I'm so fascinated by Sausalito, California but I am! I've been there several times and always feel like I'm in the south of France (except it's usually kind of cold). The houses are cute, I like the way they're perched on a hill. The place has kind of a 'small town' feel but also hip and happening... plus it's so close to San Francisco. My husband and I used to go there on our many trips to the wine country... but now with kids, who knows if we'll ever return. Those were good, old days - 'todays' and good too, though!

Walking Home - Sausalito Ladies

Here's a larger woodblock print recently completed for the spring show. I did it from a painting from a few years back. It was just getting dark and these ladies were walking home in the damp, foggy evening, the Bay bridge off in the foggy distance...

Santa Monica Pier

Woodblock print 4 x 6 in.

I took a photo of this lady reading a book sitting on a bench at the Santa Monica Pier in Los Angeles. She looks quite average here, but in real life she was absoutely eccentric... dressed in a tube dress and low heels, about ??? 70-75 years old. I caught a glimpse of her and knew she was a painting waiting to be painted! (perhaps in the painting I plan on... I can capture the 'real lady')

Sonoma Mountains continued

Here is a more finished version of Sonoma Mts... I would like to add some more colored shadows especially on the road and do something more with the leaves on the trees. It's a good thing these 'daily paintings' are not due for a show or something, because, I work best when I can mull them over for a period of time. Maybe I should change my blog name to 'Mulling it over...' nah.

Sonoma Mountains - in progress

8 x 8 in acrylic on canvas

I received a nice shipment of painting surfaces from Dick Blick and built 15 8 x 8 in canvases! It was a grind but, I became obsessed and had to finish building them the other night while watching A Room With A View. (what a beautiful film that is... everyone looks so young in it! It is from 1986... )

Anyway, I was hungry for painting this morning and with a lovely stack of fresh canvases on my painting cart, I got started. This painting is from a photograph I took in the Sonoma Mts on a trip to the wine country a few years ago. We took 'shortcut' and ended up on this long, winding road which turned out to be quite scenic. Stopping to stretch and snack, I took some photos knowing there was a painting there, somewhere!