Cannoli. That's All I Need to Say.

So sad...possibly my last Wine Art Wednesday for awhile...I am 27 weeks (and entering my third trimester) tomorrow!!!  Eeep!  And the two-hour drive twice a week is starting to take its toll.  I might just have to Skype from NJ to be involved every week.  Good thing it was a great one for me to end on (for the time being)!!!  

Artists: 

Alex (that's me!), Audrey, Denise, Donna, Jen, Joan, Jocelyn, Lauren, & Marjon!

Menu:

 

Appetizers:

Guacamole (Joan)

Artichoke & Cheese Dip (Joan)

& Chips, of course! (Thanks Jocelyn!)

 

Mains:

Two types of delicious Lasagna (Audrey)

 

Desserts:

Cannolis and Zeppoli/Creme Puffs from Del Prete in Bridgeport, CT

(Thank you SO MUCH Lauren & Marjon!)

(Food photos are always taken AFTER we dig-in! ;)

 

 

And it was definitely an evening of fine quotes:

"It shouldn't be Google.  It should be Ask Donna...she knows it all!" ~ Joan...and I think she's definitely right!

"Luck of the bottle" ~ Marjon telling us that the last glass of wine from the bottle is called this in the Netherlands, where she is from.  (I wonder if I took the last sip from the bottle if that luck would be good for the baby or me?!)

"I will try anything...twice."  ~ Me  "Sometimes the first is a fluke." ~ Lauren, as usual, knowing exactly how to finish my thought when I can't even think straight!  (And, so very true!)

"The kid in you should have seen it...haha, wait, there IS a kid in you!" ~ Jen to pregnant me.

"Wait, Johnny Depp is...available?!" ~ Jen, when we got on to the subject of celebrity divorces due to the recent news explosion surrounding Seal and Heidi...so sad.  Joan and I thought they were going to make it!  I was shocked by Ashton and Demi too, but what do I know?!  Because I certainly don't know any of these people!!!  Then, "I'd like him as a son-in-law!" ~ Audrey (already happily married, you see!)

"You get to that weird middle stage in art where you hate it...it's like middle school."  ~ Jocelyn on the facts of art.  Whenever you are painting, drawing, whatever, just prepare yourself for that middle time period of BLAH.  We all know it!

"OH...MY...GOD." ~ me, after eating a very-illegal-to-her-dairy-free-diet-but-so-freaking-worth-it cannoli.  Seriously, Del Prete, I am glad I live in NJ...that was heavenly!  (At least for the part that I was eating it...)

Okay, apologies, that was a lot of quotes and I bet there were many more that I was laughing too hard to write down.  How about a few process photos?

(Think it's time for a new tablecloth?  It works so well, but the colors always clash with our paintings!  Maybe we should paint it?!)

We also talked about the New York International Gift Fair (NYIGF), which Lauren is exhibiting (our favorite) HopeClips and Donna is visiting to see what's new this week.  (I told Lauren that I HAVE to remember to bring my HopeClip to the hospital when I go in to labor...the nurses will LOVE it and how perfect for hospital gift shops?!  You can lie back comfortably and get all of your hair out of your face in a chic way!  Now, to remember it when I am pulling out my hubby's own hair that day...)  I digress, sorry...we talked about NYIGF because if you are running a booth, you have about 30 seconds to sell your product to the buyers.  It is such a huge show, that buyers usually run through with a list and if you are new, you've got that 30 seconds their stride takes them to get past your booth.  (I volunteered with Lauren one year and she taught me SO much about running a business.  That girl is not only the sweetest, most intelligent, quick-witted girl...she is a wonderful entrepreneur!  Take notes, dear reader!)  She and Donna (who has been to many trade shows as a Buyer) both agreed that you have to really know your customer.  Which probably explains why we all want each others' paintings by the end of each night!

Audrey was squirting paint on to her canvas (to prime it/put down the base coat) and I loved how it looked on its own!

We said "let it dry (for a month) and then MOMA will buy it!"  Joan added "just say you sneezed!  It'll be worth millions!"  I guess it was our little commentary on how art is always in the eye of the beholder and is really like wine.  You have to look/try a lot of different things to find out what really makes you happy / makes you feel great!

Speaking of making you happy...Pretty Woman and My Big Fat Greek Wedding are movies that we all agreed make us happy.  If you turn on your TV to see what's on and you find one of those, you will inevitably watch it from whatever point it is at...and laugh...and smile...and be happy!  Life is good.

One of the girls started laughing and told us the story of finding lumps in her breasts when she was a teenager.  "Laughing?" you ask?  Yes, because she was watching TV when something prompted her memory, maybe a news brief or a part of a show, and she remembered that her girlfriends told her that you are supposed to check your own breasts for lumps in between appointments.  (Read here for how to do it ladies, it is important!)  So she did...in her living room, while she was watching TV, and found quite a few!  After telling her mother, they went straight to the Doctors' office and then in to surgery and had some removed.  She was laughing because it all happened so suddenly and all while these two girlfriends were traveling all over Europe, and she had to stay home because she couldn't afford the trip.  She said "now I'll have a story for them when they get back!"  And also, still can't believe how quickly she was rushed in to surgery without tests at that time.  Now she knows that they are actually fibrous cysts.  This made two of the other girls laugh and they looked at each other and laughed harder realizing that they were thinking the same thing!  They both had them as well, and there first times at the OB-GYN (yes, both of them and again, as teens) told their Doctors that they had Cystic fibrosis and both Doctors had quickly corrected them and luckily, explained to them the difference so they didn't make the same mistake again!  What are the chances?  The world really is smaller than we realize and we all have so much in common and share experiences.

Okay, I have truly typed my fingers off today!  If you made it this far, then WOO!  You are seriously a true Wine Art Wednesdays fan and it is time for you to start your own weekly session with your best friends!  Email me at WineArtWednesdays@gmail.com if you have any questions on how to get started.  We love to share the passion and fun!

<3 Alex and the Wine Art Girls

P.S. We discussed future painting ideas.  Maybe a poll is in order?  We thought of sushi, lobster, coffee-themed, personalized paintings, and a few more.  Any ideas, readers/fellow bloggers and artists?  And also, please forgive us if our timing is a bit off in the next few weeks.  Since I won't be in CT to take part, it may be that the blog isn't live by Friday and/or the paintings aren't listed by Monday, but we will do our best!  To us, it is more about being together than anything else and we hope to not disappoint any fellow believers!!!

...the paintings...

 (Most of these will be posted for sale on our Etsy.)

(Some of these are not quite finished!)

HAPPY FRIDAY!!!

Blue Chickens

Wine Art Wednesday... our weekly art/wine therapy session was in full swing with seven returning attendees: Joan, Naty, Audrey, Jen, Denise, Gina, (and me; Lauren) and we welcomed a first timer at this week's get together as well, Marjon. While a newbie to the group, she certainly was no newbie to art-- she is a great artist! Her website is www.babyroompaintings.com. Within minutes she was part of our family and was regaling us with stories of the Netherlands, where she is originally from. (Like indoor skiing and snowboarding facilities that are there! How cool!) When asked what brought her to live in the US, she explained that she was only intending to visit, but then fell in love, and now is married and living in Connecticut!  This sparked conversations about international living and we traded stories about the process of getting interviewed to prove you're really married when getting a green card in the US. In Marjon's case it was easy, she explained that she showed them e-mail history for years and countless pictures of their wedding and all their adventures together and explained that the interviewer basically took one glance at them and knew they were the real deal--haha!

For dinner, Naty prepared an amazing split pea soup and paella. My mouth is watering just remembering how good they both were! 

(Photos courtesy of Gina!)

On the topic of food, we talked about how they say you can change your tastes within 12 times of tasting something--So let's say for example if you originally don't like a food, it's said you can learn to like it if you continue to try it and each time tell yourself "yum! this is delicious!" This sparked stories of interesting foods we've eaten when traveling. Naty said she really enjoys eating authentic cuisine when traveling, and we all agreed. Naty and Marjon shared experiences of eating raw herring in the Netherlands.  Joan told us of blue chicken.... Apparently, a chicken whose skin is actually blue?! We had to look this up to see for ourselves:

 (taken from = http://www.eatingclubvancouver.com)

(Image courtesy of http://www.fowlvisions.com/)

We also talked about "aquavit"-- and thought it would be a good question to post on the blog. Does anyone out there know what "acquavit" is exactly? None of us knew!

Later in the evening, when Jen complimented my skirt, I started demo-ing how it actually could be worn as 4 different dresses, 3 different skirts, a shawl, a cape, etc.... the options are endless! I was actually wearing this amazing wrap by Angelrox, a designer in Brooklyn  (www.angelrox.com) 

Some quotes of the evening: "double fisting sangria" ... "mmmm beet water" .... "I don't have ice cream, but I have goat's milk or sour cream!"

xoxo,
Lauren

Chilli, Match.com, Gravity Still Works

(Note: My apologies!  I must have only hit "Preview" for the Friday post and not "Publish" since I'm having some technical difficulties with getting the photos from my camera to my computer this week.  Sorry for the delay in this weeks' post!!)

This week's Wine Art Wednesdays was a bit subdued due to all of the winter colds going around!  Luckily, Joan was able to cook a million and one things to make us all feel better...

Appetizers:

Roasted Mashed Turnips with Garlic to be spread on...

Homemade Bread

- (with Roasted Red Peppers on top, if you wished, as I did - YUM!)
Salad

Curried Shrimp (those went FAST!)

Mains:

Spicy Potato and Leek Soup

- (with more Curried Shrimp and Parsley to garnish)

Beans and Meat "Lick-Your-Lips" Chilli (and we all licked the bowls too!)

- (with Cheese and Hot Peppers to garnish)

Desserts:

Chocolates from...you guessed it!  CocoaShak!  (According to Facebook, they have just released a new Vegan Truffle - YAY!)

Wines:

You'd think that one week I would actually remember to write them down, but as I cannot actually drink them, I do tend to forget!  (I had delicious Apple Cider, if you wanted to know! ;)

 (red peppers nearly gone)

 (delicious salad)

(chilli)

We were a little "hodge-podged" with our theme this week.  It started off as a Valentine's week, but if you are an artist and have something on your mind, it's hard to not follow it!  So, you know how it goes.  Still, I think you will be please once our Etsy is updated.  I feel so lucky to get to paint with these Artists so often!  

The topics of note most certainly include Match.com profiles.  Did you know that some people actually COPY & PASTE other peoples' profiles in to their own?!  We were appalled to find out one of our girls was C&P-ed, though not shocked, we do think she is both a highly talented artist and writer after all...not to mention her profile is extremely witty and brilliant!  But, I am biased and I digress - call it Baby Brain.  At least Match lets you contact them to remove the copiers, but the nerve!

After one of the girls *slightly* missed her mouth when attempting to drink some water, we found out that Joan tried to disprove gravity in her teens.  She was lying in her bed reading a very good book and thought "why do I have to sit-up to drink my coke?  I'll just take a sip lying down!"  Well, after her coke was up her nose, in her ears and eyes, all over her face and pillow, and HEY, a little in her mouth, she realized why she had never seen someone else do it before.  I wish she remembered the book she was so enthralled in!

I remembered something about my first art class after reading over notes from one of the past month's WAW's that didn't actually get posted in to a blog (we slacked a bit and relaxed over the holidays - and we deserved it!).  Joan had said "When you paint yourself in to a problem, then you just paint yourself out.  This is art!"  We all love this quote - it's so true!  I remember my first art class because we were drawing elephants and I somehow got red paint on the foot.  The teacher said "paint her toenails red!"  I've never forgotten it and now I look at every "mistake" as a possibility for something I hadn't thought of when I began.  Art surely evolves from the moment it starts.

*I also want to know who uses those really long (1.5 feet or so) paintbrushes?  I always hit myself in the face - haha!*
 

We discussed how to tell if you are done with a painting.  The best quote?  "Drink Wine and Walk Away."  It seems you will know when you come back!  And another great one about WAW specifically: "This is Slow Food and Fast Art."  Yes, yes it is.

(girls at work...and play)

Welcome to 2012, friends!  We wish you a WONDERFUL one!

<3 Alex

 (some of these ones are not finished)

 (finished paintings)