apr '26 favorites
Small things that made my April just a little bit better.
creating
Making collage paper is a low-pressure way to warm up, use your leftover paint, and have fun, but those stacks can grow quickly. If you have accumulated more collage paper than you know what to do with, I’ve got some suggestions for how to put those papers to good use.
Watch the video here.
following
YouTube: Art with Antonio is a channel I recently discovered. I enjoy his unique art-making style and creative ideas.
Pinterest: Betty Franks boards reflect the aesthetic of her bright and cheerful artwork.
Instagram: Misty Mawn is an artist I have followed for years. Her art, especially her portraits, always inspire me.
Many situations in life are similar to going on a hike: the view changes once you start walking. You don’t need all the answers right now. New paths will reveal themselves if you have the courage to get started.
—James Clear
inspiring (artist)
Helen Khal was a Lebanese artist born in Pennsylvania in 1923. She began painting at 21 while recovering from an illness. She went on to study art during the 1940’s under influential teachers of that time.
Khal then moved to Lebanon, which for the remainder of her life she always considered home despite moving back and forth to the US. She continued to paint, got married, had two sons, and in 1963 established the first art gallery in Beirut.
She is described as resilient, paving the way for women artists, and as a vivid reminder of the transformative power of art. She died in 2009.
In this photo, I show my study of her 1980 oil on canvas painting, Ochre and Yellow over Green.
reading
I read How to Be an Artist by Jerry Saltz about once a year. The short essays cover topics ranging from self-doubt to originality to creative blocks. The book is filled with tidbits of encouragement, practical tips, and even prompts. After reading this book I always feel like I had a session with a coach giving me pointers from the sidelines.
Bad art teaches you as much as good art, maybe more.
—Jerry Saltz
growing
This beautifully laid out garden bed is courtesy of my husband, city gardener Rick. Meticulously planted seeds have sprouted, and the day is coming when I will be overwhelmed by produce. Which, as Martha Stewart used to say, “It’s a good thing.”
Looking at this photo, I am in awe of the straight planting lines, as my approach is more willy-nilly. Straight lines make me nervous, and I blame that for my poor grades in geometry. So I will leave the planting symmetry to Rick, and he will leave the weeding and harvesting to me.
eating
Although we are moving past soup season, I couldn’t let my sweet potatoes go to waste, so I made Half Baked Harvest’s Spicy Peanut Soup. In my opinion, the soup’s name should be Sweet Potato & Kale as the soup is neither overly spicy nor overly peanuty, although both ingredients are present. Regardless, the soup is delightful and tasty in all the best ways.
I’m sorry to report that I could not find this recipe online, and a similar recipe used too many different ingredients for me to recommend. If you’d like to make this version, I suggest finding a copy of Half Baked Harvest Quick & Cozy.
Even if you’re on the right track, you’ll get run over if you just sit there.
—Will Rogers
arranging
Let me guess. This was not what you were expecting for the arranging category. Clearly not the bunch of flowers that I normally share. I realize not everyone will consider this aesthetically pleasing, let alone an arrangement. When I say this stack of old bricks makes me happy and that it ranks in the beauty category, you are probably ready to unsubscribe. I get it. We’re all different…ahem, peculiar…in our own ways. I feel the same way about shiny. Give me cracked, mossy, and weathered any old day.
capturing common
That moment you catch a sunrise. Ordinary. Dazzling. Magical.
An artist is an ordinary person who can take ordinary things and make them special.
—Ruth Asawa
reforesting
I come from a long line of people who cleared and worked the land, the daughter of a logger. So when I am caught taming wilderness that is admittedly not my own, well, I claim predisposition or some such nonsense.
I live in the city, so opportunities for such endeavors are limited. But by chance, we pulled three root-bound Blue Spruce trees from large pots, and my first thought was to set those babies free. It was time they integrated into their native homeland. Hello, Earth Day.
Thankfully, Rick was out of town, giving me a chance to put my ancestral roots to good use. Clear the bramble, dig the holes, and plant those little guys before anyone noticed.
interviewing
Despite never encountering an AP class in our lives, Rick and I had the privilege of being interviewed by two high school juniors from our church. Their AP History assignment was to interview someone who had lived through a personally significant historical event. Honestly, I think we were just the oldest people they knew, but I still considered it an honor to speak to them.
Rick spoke to the impact of the Berlin Wall coming down as it related to his parents, who both escaped from East Germany in the late 1940’s. I spoke to something less globally known, the Northern Spotted Owl controversy, as it related to the Oregon logging industry in the 1970’s. It made me realize how our personal narrative connects to larger historical events, building the foundation for who we are and the lens through which we view life.
My soul longs for deep forest greens, a grey-laced sky; foggy wisps traveling by.
—Angie Wieland-Crosby
I’m curious, what’s on your list of favorites?
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