Pet Portraits by Hip Chick

This is what I love to do while I'm at the studio, paint. I started painting pet portraits a couple of months ago and it's going very well. I did my dog Chester the black and white shaggy dog and thought he turned out well. Then I did various other dogs which can be found on my website http://www.hipchickdesignsca.com/. The most recent is "Brady", probably the cutest dog ever. He is smiling and happy and radiates joy. I wanted to let you all know I do this for a very reasonable price. $100-$200 depending on size. The portraits are wonderful gifts and I can produce them in less than a week generally. All I need is a photograph. So far I've just painted dogs but I can paint any animal. Let me know if I can do one for you!!

Living in Paradise, St. Croix USVI

This is my favorite place in the world. St. Croix Virgin Islands. This picture is actually Buck Island a small National Park that is a few miles off of St. Croix. My favorite thing in the world to do, is sail to Buck Island on Big Beard's boat and snorkel the underwater trail. JFK loved Buck Island so much he designated it a National Park and it's one of the most beautiful places in the world. I was lucky to live in St. Croix twice in my life. The first time was in 1977-79 and I was 14 and hated it. That was until I fell in love with it and then ironically we moved back to California. My dad was transferred through Bank of America at the time and I had never even been out of California and we moved all the way to the Caribbean. It was a cultural shock to be sure. Things at home were tense but my social life was in full bloom. I had my first crush, my first date, my first boyfriend, my first kiss, my first drink, and the list goes on.....I look back on that time as my absolute favorite because everything was so new and exciting. This was the school I went to in 8th and 9th grade it's Good Hope School and it was excellent. I have found many of my old classmates from then on facebook and it's wonderful to see where they are now in their lives. One friend Alice Henry teaches at Good Hope and lives in St. Croix and I hope to visit her there someday. My family has never been there with me. I want to go with everyone next year for our 20th wedding anniversary and have Big Beard sail us to Buck Island. That's the plan. I went back to St. Croix when I was older about 20 and lived there for 2 years and had way too much fun once again. This time on my own and in full on party mode. You can image how great living in paradise is for a young partier. It was sailing and playing in the day, waitressing and going out all night every night. (Photo of my friend Big Beard on St. Patrick's Day in the parade)I thought I'd live there forever but fate intervened. My best friend convinced me to go back to California to 'check in' and visit our families (hers was getting divorced sadly) and I humored her. While I was home two significant things happened, one was a friend telling me I wasn't even giving it a chance (being back in Ca.) and the other was dating my husband Ben. Suddenly I had a decision to make, Ben or St. Croix and obviously I chose Ben (as I am married to him now). I had never really tried at the relationship thing, I had perfected playing and having fun and I guess I was ready to see if I could settle down. I was only 23 so it's nothing short of miraculous that I didn't go back to the island life. I stayed and got married, started our family and never returned except for one brief day when I was in St. Maarten about 12 years ago. I took an island hopper over for a 24 hour St. Croix fix. It's always in my heart, and I often reminisce of all the good times I had there. I might go back sooner then next year it turns out. Ben is on a trip to St. Thomas in April and I'm going to try my hardest to see if I can join him. I have to cover my daughter in school and it won't be easy but I'm pretty determined. I need to go back to the mother ship. It's calling me. "Carrie, come swim in my ocean, come play in my sand and return to your homeland from whence you came." OK maybe I threw that in for effect but I do feel like I have to get back there. I've always been a beach bum when it comes right down to it......

Inspiration and road trips

Sometimes a road trip is just the thing to get inspired. Today I took a road trip with my friend Linda to the Napa valley which we are so lucky to have so close. It started out cloudy and just as we got to the Benicia bridge the sun was shining and it was a gorgeous day. The scenery is so beautiful just driving the road to Napa was inspiration itself. Passing through vineyards filled with mustard plants, hills covered in green grass, the clear blue sky and white puffy clouds were visually stimulating this artist. We stopped at Dean and Deluca, a fabulous chic grocery and got a few unnecessary items and continued on to the charming town of St. Helena. We went to a shop called Lolo's a clothing and accessories consignment shop and I purchased two must have items. 1. a turquoise garden gate straight out of the Mamma Mia set and 2. a brown velvet corset with lace for $10 bucks. A spectacular score! We looked at numerous charming shops as everything in this town is charming with a capital C and had lunch at Cindy's backstreet kitchen. We ate a duck burger and I would NEVER order such a thing ordinarily but it was amazing. I was inspired by all the beautiful imagery in all the stores and I had my camera with me to capture the images I might eventually paint.
I got filled with good tidings, my companion was superb, the weather excellent. The charming town and shops filled my artist head with many ideas.....stay tuned for more to come!!

Marriage

What can I say about marriage...it's complicated to be sure. I have actually been married for 18years which is nothing short of miraculous. I don't think I'm the married type and yet obviously here I am, married. I knew my husband as friends first and we had fun partying together back in the 80's, then years later we ran into each other at The Chart House and I saw him differently, as someone I could 'date'. So we went out and have been together ever since. All together 23 years, half of our lives. What's so mind blowing about it is I had never really had a long term boyfriend as I wasn't the 'commitment' type. I still struggle with the confinement aspect to be honest, the constant negotiations and power struggles. It's very exhausting. And I think we probably have a better than average marriage so that's what's funny. It's just so tiresome being with someone day in and day out I don't care who you are. The only person that I don't get sick of is my children and that's because they are my children. (and to be fair sometimes they even get on my nerves...) So the difficulty lies in keeping things fresh, exciting, fun and light after all the years of responsibility take hold. I know this sounds rather drab, and yet is is accurately honest. I know there are good days where I can't wait to see him and we just click but I forget those when the struggles are in my view. Neither one of us are quitters and that has saved us on many an occasion to be sure, we both want to make it work. The trouble is sometimes trying too hard makes it's own kind of trouble. Then it feels forced, unauthentic and awkward. So time to let go and let God, to focus on the good and let it be. I'm a fixer and I want to make it all better right now. It's not so simple sometimes. Sometimes the solution is in not doing something and that's what I am going to try. I would love to hear from anyone who cares to share their experiences with marriage, it's quite a topic!!!!

Goals and mainfesting your dreams

This is January and the beginning of a new year, full of possibilities. Yes there are many tragedies happening in the world, but this is always the case. I choose to focus my intentions on things I can contribute to and make better. I can't tackle the world and all it's problems, but I can try to make my life the life I dream of. I can focus my intentions on good and then good shows up for me. It's uncanny how I have had this happen over and over again. It's not to say that I deserve more than anyone else, I just show up and put out what I want, and it comes back to me. I believe in this wholeheartedly, it works when you trust it. So what are my intentions for the year 2010? To grow creatively and prosper professionally. To love deeply and fully. To maintain good health and balance in my mind and body. To give more in my marriage (don't tell Ben, he doesn't read this anyway...) , to try new things I wouldn't ordinarily try (hot air ballooning for starters). to keep my artist fed and seeking new projects, to take advantage of all the opportunities that come my way, to give back whenever I can, to be grateful and ever aware that this is all a journey and I'm just along for the ride. This is my focus. I'd love to hear what yours is. Today I am going to the studio and I can't wait. I love the crossing of the bridge, looking over the water to the horizon knowing I get to go to my creative hideaway. I am greeted by my cheery decor and good vibes upon entry and then I get to see what the day holds. Some days it's quiet and I putter, paint and reflect. Other days I meet people who I never knew, I chat and make a sale or two. The joy is in the unexpected unfolding of the day. So off I go to see what this day will present, I hope it's a good one for you too.........

Just an ordinary day

Not much to write about today but I thought it's been a few days and I should probably say something....so "something". hahaha. It's a football fest at the house so I'm escaping to the movies. Going to see A Single Man with Colin Firth. I know it's good from reviews and reading about the story. Tom Ford the fashion designer directed it and it mirrors his life, coming out in NY as a young gay man in the 70's. I squeezed in a run so I can eat my popcorn guilt free and I'll sneak in my soda and chocolate. My first week at the shop was quiet I must say, the weather was defintely a factor as it was a torrential downpour most days. Saturday was nice and I had some lovely ladies come and buy goodies. My favorite happening was from "Cathy" a woman I just met who bought 2 paint by number pictures from the 60's. She was saying how the colors in them were her favorites, turquiose, white and cranberry but she was a little sad that the cranberry was so dull. I had my palette out and offered to spice it up with some fresh red and she was SO happy. You'd of thought I painted her a masterpiece, she was so excited. So it's the little things that happen in the day, the small ways of making another person happy that truly make it a success. Hope you are all having a good Sunday and I hope to see you soon at the shop!!!

The Art of a Community-Benicia Art Gallery

Here's my painting at the benicia art gallery in the arsenal near my store. They are having a show called The Art of a Community. On February 6th, 2010 at 5:00 Arts Benicia will host the exhibition’s annual reception and party, The Heart of a Community. This event is free and open to the public, and we encourage all those wishing to meet and support the exhibiting artists who are at the heart of Benicia’s art community to attend. This is my first time showing in a gallery and it's another 'first' for this hip chick. There are many talented, amazing artists in the arsenal so I'm humbled to be able to show something with them. It was freezing at the studio today, I had all the heaters on and it never dented the frost factor. I painted Aunt Gig's dog "Angel Baby" and enjoyed myself even though I was anxious to get home to a fire. Let's just say the studio is most enjoyed on warmer days.... Hope to see you all soon!!