Little Pink Houses-Sunset Bay Collection

Little Pink Houses Collection:
Breeze Avenue, Sunset Bay, and Life at the Beach.


As you may have guessed, I've been busy creating away the last few weeks. I set a goal to make 12 new pieces in September, and I'm just shy of that goal but may come in under the wire as I have 2 small pieces and 3 more 6x6's that are just about completed. It's funny how once you set your mind to something, if you are really focused, you CAN do it. Now mind you, I'm not all that focused. I let a lot of little things get in my way and I let a lot of things go that should not be let go of. I procrastinate, a lot. Mostly because I wear myself down and get tired of trying to do it all so then I just pick and choose what I want to do and most of what i pick to do is my artwork. The heck with laundry. There is a price though that comes with letting chores and little duties go. It's that voice calling you to get it done, it's gotta get done, and the stress that comes with it knowing it hasn't been accomplished. I admire those that seem to have it all under control. I surely don't!

My big push to get a bunch of work completed is my new store I'm going to be in starting this week. I want to have a collection of items for my new potential customers to choose from as well as have them all ready to go before First Friday. Do you have a First Friday in your town? What is a First Friday? Well, here, it's really an effort to promote local shops, artists, and musicians. The downtown shop owners stay open late (usually 8 or 9 compared to the normal every day closing of 5pm), and they promote artists openings, host concerts in the park or in the restaurants, shop owners usually set out little munchies and it's as much a social event as it is promotion for the owners of the local shops. I highly recommend you visit your town's First Friday events if you haven't done so already! It's a great way to have a evening out as well without spending a lot of money unless you want to. If you DON'T have a First Friday event, why not start one? There's strength in numbers and the more shops, restaurants, galleries that participate, the bigger the crowds you will gather!


This series is named after my early childhood years growing up in a small town in Western New York called Sunset Bay. It's really a charming place to visit and an interesting place to grow up. Especially before they put the break wall in on the lake. My Dad was a volunteer fireman and every winter after the a big warm up, the ice would churn down the hills of Western NY, log jamming the creeks with mini glaciers of ice leading down to the local bays leading out to Lake Erie which then flooded many areas. We were flooded almost every year. My Father along with many other volunteers would go from house to house by boat rescuing people. I'm very familiar with floods even though I was a wee one when it happened year after year. The land is all flat but the houses now (at least they were) are all built up on a tall foundation. To visualize, we had a above ground pool, well my Dad redid our house and built the foundation up so the above ground pool was flush with our back door.


For those of you who haven't had the pleasure to see our Great Lakes in person, other than the smaller beach areas and the woodsy landscape on much of the lakes, you'd swear you were on the ocean. In most parts, you can not see to the other side of the lake. It is a grand sight whether you visit in the winter when the ice freezes the lake over or in the summer when the sunsets on the horizon. Except for the last 10 years, I've always lived near water and it is quite an adjustment to move to a landlocked area. I miss the peace one feels when staring out on the open water or walking along the beach with sand in between my toes.



I'd love to live near the water again, and the South surely has her range of choices. But we have to deal with hurricanes and the danger they bring to your precious home and town. It ALMOST makes snowstorms and shorter summers that much more appealing again. Almost.
I do miss walking down to the beach though, meeting up with friends at the infamous Beach Club, visiting the little deli which as a child we coined 'The Little Store' because it was the only store in the bay and it indeed was very very very little! It was the happening spot and oh boy did they have great subs, oodles of penny candy, and you could even walk in and not wear any shoes, it was after all, the beach. I wonder if it's still there? Is the Beach Club? What about Calico Jacks, I can remember sitting up on top of their roof at the beach eating seafood dinners, chicken wings, and of course a cocktail or two, later on in my years. Lots of memories, lots of fun....thank you for letting the winds of time take me back to the places I have lived and loved.