What Is Your Recipe For A Delicious Life?

Recipe For Two - ATC

The weather we are having today makes me want to cook some real "stick to your ribs" food. The rain is constant and streams down the gutters. The temperatures are relatively mild compared to what we have been experiencing. But still, there is a distinct chill to the air that makes you want something warm and comforting for dinner.

Looking through a cook book, I found inspiration not only for a meal, but for an Artist Trading Card as well.  Attached to a fragment of a recipe was a photo of two women. Irony, Synchronicity, or Muse...the recipe was "for two"...and begs the question: "What Is Guacamole?"

I couldn't help but think...isn't everything more intense, more joyful when shared? Problems don't seem quite as unconquerable. Our happiness blossoms. Creativity soars by exchanging new ideas.

The substrate for the ATC is illustration board. I copied the photo of the two women on to newsprint paper. I stained craft paper with tea. The recipe is from a newspaper printed in 1970. Washi tape, sewing pattern paper, and metallic gold acrylic paint complete the card.

Isn't the recipe for a happy life one that includes a mixture of generosity, compassion, and creativity?  We all have the basic ingredients within us. May you find that person who encourages you to explore a delicious life.

Oh, and in the end I decided on slow cooker lasagna. 

My Tea with Agatha

My Tea With Agatha

Keeping on a Food Theme...I am an insatiable reader. I usually have at least two or three books going at the same time. I normally read non-fiction...but I do love the twists and turns of an Agatha Christie story. My Mom is a great mystery reader and she introduced me to Agatha and her ingenious plots.

For many years I lived in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. Agatha went missing in December 1926. A manhunt ensued and she was discovered at the Swan Hydropathic Hotel registered under the name of Mrs. Teresa Neele. The Old Swan, as it is now called, was an easy walk from my house. I would stop there or at the Royals Baths, or Betty's for tea.

I loved using the photo of Agatha as a young girl. With her faraway expression, was she  searching for her own Muse? She did inspire me.

My collage again has canvas as the substrate. Included are a photo of a young Agatha Christie, tea stained cloth, dictionary pages, handmade and found papers, and....tea bag tags. There's even a Taylor's Tea tag...a right old Harrogate tea...and a company I had the pleasure doing business with when I was a commercial screen printer.

What Would Julia Do?

Travelling through France by car, I will never forget the incredible, intoxicating scent surrounding me as I neared the South. I had heard and read about garrigue...the heady signature aroma of Provence, but to experience it was more than I ever imagined it could be.

When thinking about "food" as inspiration for art, my first thought was to the warm and delectable food and drink from my travels. And I can't help but connect these flavours to years of watching Julia Child effortlessly whip up her creations on her television programme.

In the collage, I used vintage papers and images. The map was one I collected when travelling in the South of France. The recipe was from an old copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

The  substrate is canvas. It’s been a long time since I have worked on canvas. I forgot how pleasant an experience it can be!

The sights, the smells of Provence...what would Julia do?