Another Friday, another WAW passed! This week we were at Rita's house for the first time and we had 9 women! (Alex - that's me!, Audrey, Denise, Gabrielle - first time, Gina, Jen, Joan - pronounced JoAnne, Lauren - first time, and Rita! We also realized that I've never mentioned that there are a few mother/daughters at our WAW...we're all one big family now, though!) Okay, so we started off the meal with an appetizer from
Cocoa Shak - yeah, I told you, we're big fans - chocolate and caramel covered apples:
OMG - amazing! (And I don't care if I sound like a teenager when I say it!) This photo was clearly taken after we had a bit of them - hahaha. Hey, I'm pregnant, I could live on these...
Rita cooked an amazing pulled-pork (hopefully a recipe will follow in the comments! ;), asian-flavored veggies, coleslaw, which I unfortunately didn't try since I'm dairy-free and forgot to ask what was in it (sorry Rita!), and fresh bread!
(Thank you Jen for being a lovely hand/plate model!)
And then amongst the paints and wine bottles you may be able to see some of the delicious desserts we were spoiled by! (No, starting with chocolate/caramel apples was NOT enough!) Al made us a delectable lemon cake and Lauren brought her warm cookie-brownies - oh wow, we eat well at WAW.
I was so sleepy from present-wrapping the night before that I forgot to take photos during the painting process, other than this "diffusing light test." [Lauren saw a photo on
Pinterest - basically, if your flashes are making your photos looks a bit yellow or have too strong of a shadow, you take a piece of paper (I used a standard white paper plate since it was handy) and hold it at an angle in front of the flash, but obviously not covering the lens. I used about a 45 degree angle with the light hitting the ceiling. Can you see the difference between the one on the left (a little yellow and some harsh shadows) and the one on the right (much softer, diffused light)?! I am a huge fan of this new little trick! (Here's an example I found on
Pinterest - you can hold it though, like I did, if you don't have a fancy clip!)]
It was another night of beautiful conversation (this is what WAW is all about!). We talked about adopting cats and never knowing what happened to them before we loved them. Lauren told us to always keep a gown and heels in our cars so that we are always ready for a night of spontaneity (yes, she really used them for a yacht dance randomly in Annapolis one lovely evening!). We also wondered if Tony is pulling our legs by telling us that there used to be a "Barcelona Key-master" when he lived in Spain. (Told via Joan.) Apparently, he would take your apartment keys whilst you went out drinking so you didn't lose them. He would walk around the city singing so that you could find him and get your keys when you wanted to go home again. (Does anyone else remember this?!) And then we have another joke that we loved:
**A mother was talking with me about the blog and labels and how it works in Google. I was completely impressed by what she was asking and her complete understanding of it and apparently so was the rest of the table, including her daughter, who said: "What? You've had some wine and now you understand the internet?" Hehe - yes - then they proceeded to tell us about
Drunk History. Yes again!**
We also discussed favorite movies, which ranged from
It's a Wonderful Life (Joan) to
Wayne's World (Gabrielle) and so many more that I can't believe I forgot... We watched a bit of
Drunk History on YouTube and also cats attempting jumps they never make and babies-laughing-at-ripped-paper videos. And then lastly we talked about how we can never come up with names for our paintings at the end of the night!
A few great quotes from Gina: "The worst drunk is a moving one" (after discussing a story from college when Lauren was trying to find me in Manhattan as I bar-hopped) and "not everything has to be grounded" (talking about how my spools are floating in my painting, but realizing that it is a great quote to think on...). So true, so great, I love WAW.
We're hoping that you, lovely reader, are starting to understand exactly how a WAW works and can start one with your friends and family wherever you live! If you do, please email a blog post and photos and we will feature you (and your art, especially if you would like to sell it anywhere) on our blog! Our email is WineArtWednesdays[at]gmail.com. Happy painting!
