Woodland Advent #1

Dec 1.

Greetings December, you feel so different already.
 I overslept dreaming of foxes when my own fox-dog Pearl awoke me with her "something is out there" talk. You see, she sleeps by my head on the big pillows meant for reading. She is my guardian. She looks like a gray fox. Husband and I sat up and looked out the
window to see a real live fox, majestically posing in the drive, flanked by dark twisted oak limbs, in the halflit blue of early morning.  The fox and I locked eyes, then suddenly I knew what I am doing for Advent this Christmas...make a drawing each day of something magical I see outside. My drawing hand is rusty and in need of an assignment. I look forward to tomorrow...I'm going into the woods up the creek bed to forage greens.  I wonder what I will see?

xo milady

Help from Above

sir william blake

sir jujeemous maximus (kitty) and

perhaps a fairy?

william blake

sulamith wulfing

me

i drew a fairy card today.

after driving home in awe of the diamonds yesterday's winter storm laced the cottonwood limbs
magical
wish i could download my brain to show you
how it glistened and winked
and made everything go slow mo....
feeling the very center of moment
and feel how lovely it feels
and bitersweet longing
wishing i could stay in it
always

i drew a fairy card today and this is what it said:

                                            Fear came knocked at the Door
                                            Trust opened it
                                           and nobody was there.

thank you!
xo milady

The Color Keeper

I feel like the Color Keeper most of the time. I try to not be too whiney on my blog, but the feeling is there...a deep sad not good enough feeling that keeps me hostage. I need artsy souls around me to keep me going - like i need oxygen.
 Comments from down under and up over help in ways i can't explain. Thank you friends. thank you. I loved watching this little diddy about it from another artist, greg pecknold. it makes me feel good to know i/m not alone and that it truly is the artist's chore...to operate from such a humble authentic place with a bravery fit for a knight knowing that just doing it will make everything alright.
The Color Keeper from Sean Pecknold on Vimeo.

and on a lighter note...pure sweetness from This Years Girl on etsy.

xo milady

White Winter Hymnal

Found some new music-
Fleet Foxes White Winter Hymnal video is so clever. I especially like that He Doesn't Know has goaties in the video.
It reminds me of  red nose studio   Chris Sickel's process on his blog  such as here & here.
He makes me chuckle and feel like a sloth. He has 3 kids too!
My need to see and discover grows with each day.
There are so many unbelievable people in the world.
I am thankful for each spark of inspiration that comes my way!

xo milady

it's coming!

her name is Stephanie she loves lambies and talks to ghosts...

sings like an angel and loves woodland tales... the how could i not be smitten?

owl in the dark

magic of the holiday season is coming, fast, too fast. when i return all will be white and lights will need to be strung, cookies rolled & little villages created out of wine corks and cardboard.

but first we have to celebrate Thanksgiving - a gluttonous American tradition full of old family recipes (usually of the jell-o variety) and lots and lots of whipped cream and gravy.

i am in the South for this event. just think of Gone with the Wind. the family is gathering. the cousins are getting loud.

thank goodness for this find. owl in the dark , a magical sweet reminder of what really makes me feel like home.

xo milady

Crafty Folks

ann wood

anna willi's ethereal paper scuplture

roadside attractions jayme mcgowan fun with scissors!

martha stewart, i mean, her staff... just plain cute everytime.

ann wood 's ships and this little diddy: red riding hood

hans christian anderson 's papercuts

God, how i love craftiness! These folks take the preschool basics to the moon.
enjoy looking!

xo milady

Feeling Fairy Tale-ish

Good morning. Enjoy a little fairy interlude through the eyes of Edmund Dulac.

The last picture is me waking up. I wish.

Have a wonderful day!

xo milady

Shoulda Coulda Woulda

a friend's wedding card- milady productions

I had a dream, to become a self made millionaire from my whimsical little drawings that would take the world by storm like Harry Potter making me one
happy mom free to live wherever, whenever, in style without a care in the world.
my 1996 Christmas Card - milady productions

I even made it to trade shows in places like Seattle and NYC with fabulous response. But then i had 3 little children and we came to a stand off. (imagine an old western town, no one out except 2 gunslingers on opposite sides of the main dirt street. on one side Milady Productions...on the other my family.)

And when i see wonderful companies like this one Rifle Paper Co.(thanks for reminding me Make mine mid-Century!) i feel 2 things at once:

1. inspired and delighted by seeing someone doing what i thought would be a good idea

and its evil twin,

2. jealous that it isn't me and that i must've missed the boat.whaaaaa.

But then again, i look at this darling work and simply wish i had a portrait

of my family for Christmas cards. I just love it.

So, if you suddenly see me illustrating the alphabet or making little family trees with angels, i swear, im not copying! :) its a great idea indeed .

Cheers to Anna and her success!

This lady continues to find her balance.:)

New! Gifted Magazine

xo milady

Goatie and Lambie

Here is a little diddy that I made for Morgan when he was a wee babe. It's called Goat Boy. (If you look closely you'll see I forgot to draw the rest of the harness!)

that little dog looks an awful lot like Pearl who was but a twinkle of a star sky back then.

Ah, the good old days...when a kid could ride a goat for fun. I have some photos of my great-grand-people riding goats. So does my husband. We're working on bringing that trend back. Its good old fashioned clean fun.

Goatie reluctantly leaving me. Goats heads can turn around like an owl's. He escaped twice this way . He has a good home, its down the road. In fact, we kinda knew whose it was but figured if they really wanted him they'd come at least look for him. Goatie was free to go wherever but he chose to stay with us.

Lambie goes wherever she pleases and is always there to greet me when I pull up the drive.

Goatie was just too cool. Calm, and quiet. His little bleat was so sweet. He would just come up and let you pet his funny head and stroke his long bassett hound ears and liked it. If you quit, he'd lean in and wait patiently. I'm missing that little guy!

I BRAKE FOR JUNK bumper sticker from my friend Mary Randolph "Carter"

And as a true goat, he got in my car , first the front seat, then he checked out the backseat, then the 3rd row...(yes it is a HUGE car) and finally made his way out the very back. He never pooped or ate my seats. Silly goatie.

Roscoe feeding Blossom.
We are all looking forward to spring when we can have a goatie of our own!

xo milady

Obsession

antique German ornaments found at christmas past collector

I have a lambie obsession, I love them, I love the way they look, I love what they represent. Now that I have my own little lamb (who is a full grown overweight sheep) I am even more obsessed. Now I want a goat. Did I tell you about the goat? A goat came a wanderin' into our lives and stayed with us for almost a month. Naturally, we named him Goatie, he lounged on the deck, napped under the horses' feeder, snuggled with Lambie once she got over her fear of him.

Then, sadly, his owners came. He reluctantly left, rope around his neck, escaping his leash twice.

I miss that guy but I don't think Morgan misses him that much. At least when he's trying to paint en plein air.

Come springtime, I'm getting a baby goat. :)

xo milady