Missouri Getaway - Day One

 This past week, we traveled to a couple of destinations in Missouri for a quick get away.  I had discovered some things that I wanted to see and they all happened to be not too far from each other.  We reserved a VRBO in Hermann, Missouri as our resting spot.  

 First of all, we drove to Fulton, Missouri on the way to Hermann.  In Fulton, is Westminster College.  Westminster is a beautiful little campus in the small town of Fulton that has beautiful architecture and some interesting history.  I specifically wanted to see America's National Churchill Museum that is on campus.  It is set in a chapel building that was moved from London and rebuilt onto the college campus.  The chapel is the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury. Originally from the 1600's, it was bombed by Hitler during the blitz of World War II. The story of how it came to rest in Fulton, is worth the visit. The museum commemorates the life of Winston Churchill and they also have a small exhibit of his paintings.  Did you know that WC was an oil painter? He was invited to speak in the chapel and his "Iron Curtain" speech, "Sinews of Peace" was given there.  

Lake Scene at Norfolk

oil on canvas

1930

A big piece of the Berlin Wall is also on display next to the Chapel.

Check out more about this museum at https://www.nationalchurchillmuseum.org

Plein Air Workshop

Who is this you ask?  It's me.  Still hanging around.  I'm usually on Instagram @imkarensb if you're curious.  I had a wonderful week attending a painting workshop and thought I'd share some photos here with you.  Let's see if I can remember how to post on here.  Things have changed a lot and I also don't remember how they work.  

The workshop was by Kim Casebeer in Manhattan, Kansas.  Kim is a well known oil painter and has multiple awards and professional associations.  Since the workshop was reasonably close to me, I decided to take the leap and join in.  

This area of Kansas is home to the Tallgrass prairie in the Flint Hills of northeastern Kansas.  We were able to enjoy beautiful vistas like this of the Konza Prairie which is owned by The Nature Conservancy. It is located within the largest remaining area of unplowed tall grass prairie in North America.    

We spent 3 days painting plein air (outside) in the wind, sun and rain showers.  For this rookie painter, that was a challenge.  

Kim demonstrates at our first location.  Her subject is a big, gorgeous tree that is sweeping over the trail.  This was one of the few days that the sun was out and the sky was beautiful.  

Packed up and ready to find my spot.

This is the spot I chose.  I loved how the trees arched over the creek.  Of course, I would choose a complicated scene.  Finished painting to be revealed at a later date.  

Scenes from the drive back to the hotel.

In the evening Ken and I went to the overlook and waited for the sun to set.  This photo was taken just an hour after the first one in this post.  I really will try to continue posting over the next week about this wonderful experience.  

Take care and try something new!

Karen

What's Been Going On?

Hello everyone!  Is anyone out there?  Would you like an update on life with us?  We are still in the Dallas area.  However, last year we bought a home in the Kansas City suburbs with plans to eventually retire there.  That's is originally home to us, although we haven't lived there in 34 years.  Wow.  It still seems like home since we visit family there multiple times a year.  Our youngest daughter has been living in it to keep an eye on things and to save for her own house.  Which she just bought yesterday!!!  Woo Hoo!

Last Fall we began a remodeling process to get it ready before we moved in.  I thought you might like to see some before and after pictures.  My main goal was to lighten up the rooms.

We mostly remodeled the kitchen and master bathroom, but we added additional wood floors and painted the entire main floor.  So, I'll just show you some glimpses.

This is the living room. We painted the walls Creamy (SW7012) and trim white Snowbound (SW7004) and the fireplace Sherwin Williams Anchor Aweigh (SW9179). We removed the carpet and added wood floors stained a Dark Walnut matte finish.  Removed the ceiling fan and replaced it with a brass chandelier.  I really wish I'd painted the walls a "whiter" white.  Picking paint colors is extremely difficult.  In the end, the goal of lightening the rooms was achieved.  

The original kitchen.

We removed the appliance garage in the corner and extended the cabinet above the ovens.  We extended the top of the island and obviously, painted the cabinets (Zurich White 7626) and added new countertops and backsplash, sink and faucets.  I haven't taken final photos yet because there is still a punch list to finish and it needs to get cleaned up.

Here's the repainted dining room and new chandelier. 

Just small changes in the Family Room.  We painted the cabinet Navy (SW9179), painted the walls Light French Gray (SW0055) and refinished the floors. 

Well, I think I'll show you the rest of the house in another post.  There were a lot of changes in the master bathroom.  We also updated the laundry room, powder room and piano room.  

Thanks for stopping by.  

Twenty-two Gifts

In my last post I told you all about the art retreat I went to in Vermont earlier this month.  What I didn't show you were the gifts I made everyone.  We could bring a simple gift or just give "calling cards", whatever we chose. Typically several women make some pretty fun and creative gifts.  I labored over this decision for too long and wanted to make something that reflected my skills and interests.  The decision was made, I had a plan and bought linen napkins to embellish.  I'd make a set of two for everyone.  My plan was to dye them using the Cyanotype method (sun prints) you may have seen me do previously.  Something like this idea.

Cyanotype Napkins

The more I thought about it I realized that the process would take too long for the amount of time I had left.  So I had to come up with Plan B.  I already had purchased 44 napkins.  I decided to embroider Fall designs on each set using this fun embroidery book I bought in Japan.  

You may remember that I used it to make some pretty coasters for a friend's birthday while I lived in Japan.  This is how they turned out.

So, I got to work! Now, so you don't think I'm TOTALLY nuts, the second napkins had a simple word stitched on it: Blessed, Grateful, Gather, Thankful.  They are perfect for Fall dinners for two.  

Other attendees made some sweet gifts too. Several gave out packs of ephemera to use in our art for the week. One woman picked flowers out of her garden and brought a large bouquet for EACH of us. It was full of dahlias, zinnias, cosmos and forget me nots. Here is a sweet paper clay doll that was made for everyone.  

I didn't get a photo of every gift, but when you get creative women together, it's bound to be good!