Oh, my gosh, it’s been such a wild and crazy ride these past few months! I haven’t had a chance to write in ages, so I thought I’d do one big post to show you what I’ve been up to. I want to catch up on things before I head off on another trip…tomorrow!
After teaching in Florida in February, I flew to California in early March for a visit with a friend in Carmel-by-the-Sea. I was only there for four days, but we managed to fit a lot of fun into our time together.
She was staying in a cute little cottage just a few blocks from the village center, so we walked all over town, popping into adorable shops like the Cottage of Sweets.
We hiked at Point Lobos on a spectacularly beautiful day…
and then drove down to Big Sur and had lunch at a restaurant with an incredible view of the coast.
During my stay on the Monterey Peninsula, I had a chance to visit Asilomar, where I’ll be teaching back-to-back workshops with Madeline Island School of the Arts in November 2026. (Link)
The location is nothing short of incredible. Just steps from our studio is this……
Can you believe it? What an amazing place to paint the sky and sea!
During my brief stay in Carmel-by-the-Sea, we hit all the touristy spots like Lover’s Point and Fishermen’s Wharf and spent a rainy day at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which was so-o-o-o cool. I LOVE the sketch I did after my visit…
While I was away in California, exciting things were happening back home. My first and only great-niece, Viola Fae, was born! She’s the first baby in our family in ten years, so I was long overdue for some snuggling. I’d forgotten how small a newborn is. She’s perfect in every way.
After I got home from Carmel, I had to pack up and get ready for a weeklong “Creative Travel Journaling” workshop with Kanuga Watermedia Workshops at Montreat Conference Center in Black Mountain, NC.
My nineteen students really kept me hopping that week. They were a great group, so enthusiastic and excited about learning.
And they did some very creative sketches! These are a few of their sketches about packing for a trip…
I hardly had a chance to catch my breath when I got home from Kanuga, because one week later I would welcome the first students to Summerhill Cottage for “Find Your Flow”, a 5-day workshop here in my home studio.
With only eight students in the class, it felt like a gathering of friends. We had wonderful discussions about art and creativity, and many of the women felt that the class was a real breakthrough for them.
My mother helped my put together a fabulous lunch for the group each day.
And my husband Fred acted as the outdoor welcoming committee, parking lot attendant, and umbrella carrier.
But most of the time, he just stayed out of our way! 🙂
(He helped with the pre-workshop house cleaning, too. Halleleujah!) I couldn’t do it all without he and my mom helping me manage everything.
After that first workshop, I had a couple of weeks before my next trip and it was finally starting to feel like spring was on its way. We started working on the yard and garden, took the grandkids to the park…
hunted for Easter eggs…
took goofy family pictures…
and celebrated a birthday!
And then it was time for me to hit the road again, this time to Santa Fe for a workshop with French Escapade.
I loved Santa Fe, but the weather was, shall we say, challenging. We had a lot of rain, plus hail, fog, and even some snow. In May!
It made plein air sketching seem like an extreme sport! Luckily, we had a nice warm, dry studio back at the hotel where we could work comfortably without hats, gloves, and parkas. And when the sun came out, we were almost giddy!
It was a great week despite the weather. I enjoyed experiencing the different culture and architecture of the southwest. Santa Fe feels like a small town in many ways – it was walkable and felt welcoming.
My students did some wonderful sketches – they took what I taught them and ran with it.
It’s so gratifying for a teacher when she can see such positive results from her efforts.
I got home from Santa Fe on May 9th and had two more workshops at home scheduled for just eight days later.
“Watercolor for Sketchers” was an intensive two day workshop where we painted everything from window boxes filled with flowers to sand dunes and bacon cheeseburgers.
The subject matter varied, but what I wanted them to see was that we use the same techniques for everything we paint. Glazing, blending, spattering, dropping in paint, wet-in-wet washes, etc. – once you know how to use these basic techniques, you can paint anything!
Having a nice sit-down lunch every day gave us a chance to chat and get know each other better.
I love hearing people’s stories and enjoy seeing the smiles on their faces when they take a bite of this…
or this!
We served delicious main courses, too, like Shrimp and Quinoa Salad, Quiche Lorraine and Spinach-Feta Quiche, Pizza Casserole, and Hungarian Mushroom Soup. And every day, I had a new centerpiece for the table.
I appreciate the fact that people make such an effort to travel to western Pennsylvania for my classes, and I like to make it nice for them when they’re here. I want it to feel like a mini-retreat.
And they seem to really enjoy our time together. I get the most beautiful handmade thank you cards that show up in the mail after the course is over. They really brighten my day. I have a shelf in my studio where I display them. They remind me of all the wonderful friends I’ve made through my classes over the years.
A 3-day “Sketch Your Life” workshop followed directly after the watercolor class in May. I always enjoy teaching this class because it’s so much fun to see people discover the endless possibilities of sketchbook journaling.
We did a LOT of projects during our three days together.
I’m sure their heads were spinning with ideas when they left to head home.
I’ll be announcing new classes for 2026 at Summerhill Cottage later this summer.
It’s been a busy spring workshop season but a happy one, too. I’m looking forward to a family vacation in Maine this coming week. We’ll be heading north tomorrow, stopping to visit family along the way.
I plan to visit all my favorite places in midcoast Maine, read lots of books, play board games with the grandkids, and sit around the campfire in the evening. We’ll explore tide pools, search for sea glass, and maybe do a little kayaking.
I’m taking along art supplies for me and the kids, and I hope to do some sketching. But most of all, I plan to rest and relax. After the busy spring I’ve had, I think I need long hours of just…being. I’ll sit on the shore and stare out to sea, letting the peace and calm of doing nothing wash over me.
I hope you find moments this summer to do the same.
4 Comments
Love all the sketchbook pages you and your students have been doing. Santa Fe is one fantastic place for artists (and non-artists)! I was there for a workshop in April with crazy weather as well. Snow the first weekend we arrived, then sun came out and it was perfect for the next 2 weeks. I loved sketching the architecture, the landscape and of course the dramatic skies! Looking forward to your workshop in Giverny in September! Haven’t sketched food yet, so that will be fun. Also hoping I can manage the fancy lettering as can barely read my own handwriting these days!
I always enjoy your posts!
Peri
Glad you enjoyed the sketches. I have so many pictures I wanted to share of the clever work done by my students. They’re amazing! See you in Giverny – it will be here before you know it.
Enjoy Maine. You sound like you need a well deserved rest. I’ve never enjoyed a workshop as much as I enjoyed yours. Thanks for all your hard work.
Awww, that’s so sweet of you to say, Mary Ann. I enjoyed having you in class. I have your book on my coffee table, so I think of you every day when I see it. Enjoy your summer!