Change is always happening

I recently created a small, fun mosaic with the intention of selling it.  While I was working out the design and actually creating the peice, I cut some of the glass into the tiniest little pieces that I have ever worked with and needed tweezers to pick them up and place them on the wood, (it was for the "grass").  The tedious work that I created for myself was the most theraputic. It really did put me in a different world listening to my music forgeting all about time, and the world outside my studio.  There are many things changing right now.

My real estate business has come to a screaching halt do to the increase of initerest rates.  People are still buying and selling homes, but the frenzy is over with. The days where people were offering 10, 20, 50 or even 100 Thousand over list price is gone. Mega multple offers, gone (which is good news for buyers). However, I am getting flooded with notifications of price reductions on listings, which means there are many more homes on the current market for sale than there are buyers. I am a Buyers agent.  The market is balancing itself out, but inflation and higher interest rates are making everyone leary and on edge, and I am one of them.

so back to my art....

I have been thinking about the art I have created over the years. I sold some artwork and have a lot in my home. I have watched friends that I met 20+ years ago that have kept with it, and have become pretty succesul artists, while at times, I feel I had quit on myself, looking for a "real" career. I kept saying I did't want my art to be my job, but if feels good when I create it. I think I need to reconsider my choices and start working a little harder in my studio. I have a couple more ideas for mosaics that I need to start working on. (yes, they all have cats in them)

The weather is changing which means I will be ready to turn my kilns on when it cools off!

Midnite Under the Moon 

9.5"x11"

Down and out

 I've been sick in bed with Covid since Saturday afternoon.  I've been popping aspirins and Nyquil like candy. I think it's a mild case since I'm sitting up typing this on a Tuesday night. It actually felt like I came down with the flu and I really didn't leave my bed  except to go to the bathroom and pretty much slept from Saturday till today.  I went downstairs today and ate a little bit of dinner so I'm hoping that by tomorrow I'll be feeling even better and by Friday I will be okay and test negative.  My hubby has been taking care of me and my pets have all decided to stay with me the entire time.   I am praying that my husband doesn't come down with it, and the only difference between me and him is that he got his booster and I didn't.  

On a more positive note, I had finished my stained glass windows last week and wanted to share how they looked in my art studio, my daughter called it my art cottage, which I think is cute.  

at dusk with all the lights on.

It's cloudy and it feels better!

The clouds cast over San Antonio the last couple of days and finally broke the 100+ record of consecutive daily highs.  It was in the 90's and my skin didn't feel like I was getting scorched by the sun as I walked to and from my car going on appointments or to the store.  I have so many things to say today.

I have been stressed, depressed, overworked and just plain sad.  My work level stress has finally calmed down as the interest rates rise and that market has slowed.  This past year and a half, there was no setting appointments a day or two early, it was as soon as a house hit the market I was off running, bidding against 20 other offers for my clients, and most of the time losing to people who had an extra 20, 30 or 50 thousand extra dollars to pay over the market value. It was frustrating for me and for my clients. It seemed every phone call I received I would have to jump up and go work at that moment.  My life felt very stressful. I went on a vacation to New Mexico to see something different and destress, only to be inundated with phone calls, emails, not real chance to relax and decompress. I did the same thing going to visit family in NY.  I was running away to decompress to no avail.

This month really was a game changer. I don't know what my future holds financially, but my mind is finally relaxed, my phone isn't constantly ringing or dinging with text messages, and I am able to set up appointments at a more normal pace.

This past Saturday I got up, started painting on my canvas at 8am (I hadn't touched that canvas in several years). Around noon I went into my studio and finished copper foiling my 2 remaining stained glass windows, cut some glass tiles to draw on, and before I knew it the day passed me by.  It was the most stress free, calm, lose all track of time kind of day.  It is what I was searching for in Mew Mexico and NY and here it was in my own studio. My music was playing and my phone wasn't ringing or dinging!

On another note, I was working with a lady, who is now 81 years old. When I first met her I thought she had a stunning, glamorous look about her even at her age. You could still see how beautiful she once was. When I did see a portrait of her in her younger years I wasn't wrong. She was drop dead gorgeous!  As we got to know each other over the summer, she informed me that she had published a book about her life experience. I am a sucker for books so I HAD to buy it! She told me she was very blunt about things in the book and she couldn't promote it because of her family and friends. It was of course published under a pen name because it was scandalous, and on the copyright page, the note states, This is a true story, names and places have been changed.  It was VERY erotic (XXX) and it was not professionally edited, or at times politically correct, but I couldn't put it down and read it in just a few hours! As I finished the book, I was in awe of how she did live in that time of her life, and how it all came about for her.  

She emailed me to let me know how she felt: Now that I have been out of hormones for at least 20-30 yrs., I can't believe I was that woman. I have come to the conclusion, love does not make the world go around, it is hormones. :)

Memories of an Erotic Soul by Lorelei Von Boehm-Renard

Art Studio: work started in October 2021 and it's finally ready!

When I moved to my new home in 2015 I lost my studio space which was was built a couple of years before we moved. It was half of the garage that was converted with air conditioning. My husband, brother-in-law and my brother all helped build it. My daughter had painted kites and clouds on the ceiling. It was a special studio and I missed it.   

In the fall of 2021 my husband convinced me to take a ride to look at sheds on the side of the highway going to Seguin. Most of the sheds out there were in neutral colors or barn red.  There was one I liked (160 sq ft) but I wanted to think about it. As I was leaving I asked the guy, does it only come in Red? he said No you can pick any color on our color chart.  I stopped dead in my tracks, and went back in to his office to see all the colors!  I don't live in an HOA so I was free to pick what I whatever wanted.   Bora Bora Blue with a white trim and white metal roof, SOLD! ( I love the beach and wonder more often than not, why I am living so far from it).

6 weeks later, the contractors arrived, built it on site, and painted in all in one day.  It took another 6-7 months to get everything else together, electrical wiring, insulation, sheetrock, The final installation was the electric panel and a spilt AC unit.  My studio was finally complete on Memorial weekend.  I had a setback with a freon leak in the AC unit, and that was repaired this week so I finally got to use my studio!  (It's been in the 100''s here, so no way to use without AC)

I am currently creating 3 stained glass panels for the upper portion of the windows. I also did a short walk through video: https://youtu.be/D7NOYYMJcbA  

Finished Building

I added exterior decorations and made a mosaic window planter.

Sheetrock going in

I installed the floors

My youngest don and hubby putting together my Ikea cabinet

Organizing my work area

Kilns

Installed stained glass and painted interior of doors

My best friend sent me this beach wind chime!

I installed the backsplash myself!

painted the chair for my guests!

This one is ready to be foiled!