Time to Give Thanks

I thank all of my collectors, friends and fans for your continued support. I hope you all have a wonderful day with your families. Hold them close.  Remember, each day is a gift.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Iva

Spirits Are High

The last month has flown by with so much happening! Let's see:

• a two-and-a-half week trip to Northern California for Tinsel and Treasures and Halloween and Vine - both fabulous shows!!
• a week in between to visit my parents in Reno, Nevada. The evening sky is pictured above - and I didn't even change any of the photo settings it was that beautiful of a sunset over the Sierra Mountains!
• fly back to Florida and a week later Trevor and some college friends come home for the weekend and we all head to Gainesville for the big SEC football show down between LSU and the Gators (not the outcome we would have liked)
• a week later head to Spirits in Sanford, a Halloween folk art show about 30 minutes from Orlando in the historic town of Sanford. 

Whew!!

Now it's time to relax and enjoy fall and my favorite holiday - Halloween!!

Here are a few more pictures of my recent adventures.

The setting moon over the Sierras.

Playing catch in the Truckee River with Gutzi, my parents lab.

Say "Cheese!" mom and dad!

A pen and ink with watercolor of mine I sold at Halloween and Vine.

One of many amazing pieces from folk artist Jack Roads at Halloween and Vine. My good friend Colleen Moody was lucky enough to snap this piece up. Jealous! Although I did get a wonderful piece of his work too, pictured below!

 

Seeing my work published in Orlando Home & Leisure magazine! Yay!

Fellow folk artist Jorge de Rojas and I pose during the Friday night Preview Costume Party at Spirits in Sanford.

And this is just a small part of all the happenings in my world. I'll be finishing my decorating of our Florida house for Halloween and I will post some pictures of that next. Until then...

Heading for Spirits in Sanford Halloween Art Show Oct. 12 & 13

Get ready for some Halloween art and fun this weekend at Spirits in Sanford, Friday and Saturday,  Oct. 12 & 13, in Sanford, Florida, just outside of Orlando! I'm packing up my props and my vintage-style paper mache art, watercolor paintings and pen and ink drawings for this one-of-a-kind east coast event. Look forward to seeing you!

Witchy Woman Sneak Peeks

I'm putting the finishing touches on lots of witches this year! Somehow the spirit of "Witchy Woman" caught hold, and I've been busy flying high with these cranky ladies. I wanted to share some sneak peeks at what you'll find at my table during my fall show schedule. In fact, I hear some cackling in the background. I think they're calling me to finish their hats, pumpkins and brooms. Hope to see you in California or Florida this fall!

Pumpkins Soon Will Abound!

The recent full moon in all its splendor makes me think of the months to come. Pumpkins, black cats, spooky houses and then the big day...Halloween! Still working into the wee hours in my studio on paintings, sculptures and all manner of holiday fun. Hope to see you at one of my upcoming folk art shows! Yay...fall is almost here!

Magical Parachutes for Halloween

There's a goblin at my window,

A monster by my door.

The pumpkin at my table

Keeps on smiling more and more.

There's a bat-like shape in the sky

A pumpkin sprite with legs of green.

He's parachuting through the air

Just in time for Halloween.

• • •

Join my email list to receive news of my latest creations, like the one pictured above. (Actually, this stunt was all part of his bucket list.) He will be making an appearance at the folk art shows listed here that I'll be participating in this fall.

Happy (early) Halloween!

A Haunted Night!

"A Haunted Night!"

I am dreaming of Halloween and just listed an original Halloween watercolor postcard on eBay. You see, I'm preparing for three folk art shows this fall, two of which are Halloween shows!

First, I'll kick off the show season with Tinsel and Treasures Folk Art Show, Sept. 15 in Danville, CA. I can't wait to see all my friends and collectors at the show! I'll be in California for a week visiting friends and shopping, of course! Then off to see my parents in Reno. The trip will culminate with the wonderful Halloween art show Halloween and Vine, Sept. 29, in Petaluma, CA. It's always an awesome event with some of the best Halloween artists around! I love that I am returning again this year to this show!

And finally, I'll be participating in a Halloween folk art show closer to my home in Florida. Spirits in Sanford, Oct. 13, is in Sanford, FL, a quaint, historic town a little more than an hour from me. I will be celebrating Halloween so many times before the 31st!

With dreams of Halloween, I hope you enjoy the later half of your summer!

Imagine Halloween Night

"Halloween Night"

Original 9"x12" Acrylic Painting on Canvas Panel

As you know, I love painting with watercolors. But I got the itch to pick up my acrylic paints and create a Halloween scene similar to one I painted some years ago.
     This is how I imagine Halloween out in the country during a more innocent time. (Although, the headless horseman and a couple of wolves are heading this way, so maybe not so innocent!) Anyway, I'm going to continue to paint some of these off and on in between my watercolors. Let me know what you think! 
     "Halloween Night" is an original painting on a 9"x12" canvas panel and signed by me. It comes unframed, so you can easily pop it into a frame of your choice purchased at your local craft store. It's being featured on the EHAG Emporium tonight, May 31, at 9 pm eastern. Use the secure paypal button below to add it to your collection. First come, first served! And don't forget to check out all the other talented EHAG artists featured on the Emporium!

 ~ SOLD ~

Happy Halloween!

Scaring the Boys and Girls on Halloween

Original ACEO watercolor, now available on eBay here.

"We're the farmer's scarecrows

We scare away the birds

We keep the farmer's corn safe
Without any words.

But when Halloween comes

We jump out of the ground

And we scare the boys and girls

When they come walking 'round."

- anonymous

Dreaming of Cool October Nights

I am already dreaming of October and the fall weather, even though summer hasn't officially hit! My latest painting up for bid on eBay, "Haunted Halloween," is on Arches watercolor postcard paper. You can fnd it by clicking here. And, I'm painting more pieces, and creating other art for my upcoming folk art shows, Tinsel and Treasures, Saturday, Sept. 15, 2012, in downtown Danville, CA and one I will be participating in for the first time Spirits in Sanford, Saturday, October 13, 2012, in Sanford, FL. I can't wait to see everyone and meet new faces! Mark your calendars!

Oh....and if you're creative yourself and would love to learn a new technique this summer, check out ArtfulGathering.com! I'll be teaching an online art workshop about paper mache using strips of newspaper and a homemade paste recipe to create a hot air balloon ornament. There's lots of other artists too, so have a looksie! Here's a movie trailer for my class. Hope to see you soon!

Howling with Delight

I hope you enjoyed that large glowing orb on Saturday night! We were out and howled with delight as it rose to its closest point to earth this year. I was so inspired by the perigee moon, I created my first Halloween ACEO of 2012. "Harvest Moon" is up for bid on eBay, just click here to head to my auction. Happy Haunting!

Watch for Hooting Halloween Puffballs

Our new neighborhood has lots of tall oaks and is surrounded by a wooded preserve. So it's no surprise wild life is abundant here. Still, I was awe-struck to see not just one, but two, fluffly baby owls living in our trees.

I had heard the typical WHOO-WHOO, WHOO-WHOO while I was outside a few times, but I couldn't find them. Finally, some neighbors told me where to look and sure enough, two baby great-horned owls were just above in the trees! I was able to get a few pictures with my zoom lens. This is just what I need to get me in the Halloween spirit as the hot days of summer begin to descend upon our beachside town. Now I'm off to work on some Halloween watercolors and paper mache. Happy spring-time Halloween!

Halloween Art Giveaway!!

Up for grabs are some amazing pieces of Halloween art from the talented artisans of the Eclectic Halloween Artists Guild (EHAG). Just post a verse and your contact info on their blog by April 29, 9 pm EST, and you get a chance to win one of three original pieces of Halloween art! Hurry! You don't have much more time before the witching hour strikes!

EHAGemporium.blogspot.com

Come Along for a Video Tour of My New Studio!

Drum roll please....my first studio tour is on video! Watch as I unveil the final transformation of my new studio. It's my first video effort, so I'm hoping the critics circle will be kind! ;)

The door is wide open, so please come in! 

Full Moon Magic

In case you didn't notice, the moon was amazingly full and glowing the last few days. Since we have several 100-year-old oak trees on our property, I wanted to share the view from our front porch. I'm still getting used to a new camera and am not sure how to adjust the aperture and shutter speed manually. So the clouds are a bit blurry, because they were moving while the camera's slow shutter speed was capturing the moon in all it's glory at night.

And here is a picture from across the street looking at our front porch that night. It's the old southern style wrap around porch on a craftsman style home. And the oaks are full of Spanish moss that hangs and arches over the walk toward our front door. The possibilities for Halloween decorating are endless!!

I hope you were able to glimpse the moon's magic and bask in all it's mystery!

How I've Missed You During Our Move to Haunted St. Augustine

My word it's been several months since I was last here!! So sorry! You see, we've packed up and sold many of our belongings and moved across the country from sunny northern California to sunny northern Florida! So as you can imagine, there was lots of "stuff" to shed, boxes to pack and a few holidays in between to celebrate with family and friends before the big move.

But now we are here and have almost unpacked all the boxes. I've refurbished a thrift store find into my new art work table and have a beautiful studio loft above our detached garage. And I am itching to get back to my paint brushes and paper mache creations.

We are now in St. Augustine, which is the oldest continuously occupied city in the nation. It was first settled by the Spanish in 1513, and then other European countries tried to establish a stronghold on this beautiful piece of Florida coastline. The city's history is full of battles and bledshed, which makes the area ripe for ghosts. Tales abound of the haunted fort, cemeteries, drug store (picture above) and jail/general store (pictured below). I can't wait to incorporate these, along with the areas large oaks dripping with spanish moss into some of my watercolors!

I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and have started the new year on a bright, but spooky note! I want to share one more photo with you. This one was taken on our move/ road-trip across the country. It's a huge mansion that will make its way into one of my future paintings, which will commence soon! Happy Hauntings!