owl butterfly

owl butterfly, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

paperwhites, planting

paperwhites, planting, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Six months ago I packed up all of my Christmas decorations and put them on the truck to Denver. The are residing in the basement of Whitney's home along with too much of my other stuff. We all thought I would definitely be there by this time. Wrong! It looks like I will still be living in sunny California through the end of the year so I am without Christmas embellishments! Merde! Solution: I have gathered a shallow red pot from the garage and filled it with paperwhite bulbs in anticipation for a show of white and fragrance in December. I will chronicle their progress:
First day of planting 20 paperwhite (narcissus) bulbs in a pot. I placed a layer of rocks on the bottom of the container and rested the bulbs on top. Then filled water to the level of the base of the bulbs to stimulate the roots to "wake up" It's showtime in 6 weeks (That's December 29...Oh I might be too late...let's see)

Before the fall

before the fall, rose, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

After the fall

paul bocuse rose petals, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

A few days ago one of my climbing roses was full of blooms. Even though I love to see them on the bush I had to cut them and bring them inside so that I could not only see their beauty but smell their frangrance as well. Yesterday the blooms lost their petals. I scooped them into the kitchen sink and this is the spill the petals made. Paul Bocuse rose petals..... a fitting place to fall

Mushrooms in sherry shallot broth

mushroom soup, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Another soup! A pretty fast preparation time, too. I found this recipe in Sunset Magazine October issue. The shallots mild flavor complement the mild and earth tones of the mushrooms. I used all portabellas...some little ones and 1 big one. But use any kind of mushrooms you have or can find.
1 lb mushrooms cut into bite-size pieces
1 cup chopped shallots
butter
sherry
thyme
4 cups chicken broth

Saute the shallots in butter until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Add mushrooms and 1 tsp fresh thyme. Cook until mushrooms are lightly browned, 8-10 minutes. Add 1 cup sherry and bring to boil, stirring. Add chicken broth, cover and return to boil, then simmer 3-4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with a garnish of thyme and flat leaf parsley.
Bon Appetit!

The spa at La Quinta

The spa at La Quinta, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

Early this morning I took my rescue pack (art on the go) out to squat in front of this building known as The Spa. Soon into my sketching a resort employee driving a cart offered to bring me a chair to sit in. About an hour later the Spa manager offered to let me come in to the Sanctuary to do my art there. It is interesting when you take the risk to "be an artist" in public what kind of people come by to watch. Anyway I spent a couple of hours on this and then we had to come home so I finished it this afternoon at home. It is a bit larger than this....my scanner needs to expand a bit to get it all. It is 15" x 11"...a little big for me. It was a good art weekend.

La Quinta

La Quinta resort and spa, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

I decided to tag along with Ryan this weekend to La Quinta. He flew out to attend a high school friend's wedding in the desert and I was welcomed along. He had social events all day on Saturday....I had nothing to do.....but sketch and paint. It was the best studio imaginable. This resort was built in 1926 with a Spanish colonial design and was full of charm. All of the buildings were white stucco....lots of curved details. The roofs were all tile. I studied them carefully and the technique of an authentic tile roof is amazing. All of the window frames and shutters were a beautiful cobalt blue. These elements were repeated in all of the structures whether build in 85 years ago or 10 years ago. The Santa Rosa mountains back this resort as most of La Quinta. This sketch took more than my normal 20 minutes but I had the whole afternoon. Lots of work on the roof.

It was a fast but very relaxing trip. I am grateful for Ryan letting me tag a long. Happy Birthday Ryan!