Photo Calendars On Sale Now, Plus More

Happy New Year to all of you and I wish you a very healthy and prosperous one. I just finished putting together a Pacific Northwest calendar of Cannon Beach. Some of you may know, I love that area. It is beautiful year round. I hope you enjoy this as well as other items from my store that also make great holiday gifts.

Giving Back To My Favorite Charity

I finally finished my collage for the Humane Society of Southwest Washington. I will donate it to their auction next year. I thought I should start early this time. They are building a much needed new shelter. They are going from a 11,000 sq. foot facility to a 30,000 sq ft single story building which will double their capacity for dogs and triple the capacity for cats. Many hands, many hearts are making this a reality. We are so grateful. If your interested in donating please click on http://southwesthumane.org/ and donate now! Please let them know Michelle Tourtillott sent you!

Almost Time

Well, the summer is starting to slowing come to a close here. School starts for my girls in 3 weeks and we are off to see family in Colorado before that happens. We've had really unusually hot weather here in the Pacific NW and today I heard my first huge thunder clap! It almost sounded like an explosion, it was so loud. Then the rain came. It's actually been several weeks since we've had a good rain. So this is good. I love the sunshine, but a little rain is always nice and needed too. Back in Colorado they've had their share of weird weather. They've had some very hot days and it's cooled down 30 to 40 degrees in a very short period.

I went into Portland yesterday and found a 70% off sale on stretched canvases! I had to buy one. I got a 30 X 40. It just made since. It was the biggest one and down to 17.00 from 60.00! Can't beat that. I'm still not sure what I'll paint, so it will sit there for a bit till schools in gear and I have several hours to play! So stay tuned. I'll post when I get started.

New Paintings Can Now Be Yours!

Some of my new paintings that you have seen recently are now on sale. I have them up in my store at Michelle M Designs. Also check out my Secret Escapes! Some of my photographs and paintings I have decided to use there are on beautiful keepsake boxes, tiles and cards. Start your holiday shopping now and enjoy this season stressfree!

Here is one of the paintings for sale. Tuscany Farm. $50.00

The Creative Side Of A Teen

My daughter has been spending a good amount of time drawing when she has a feel for it. She has developed a style of her own with her playful theactical imagination of pretend from her childhood and her love and passion for what lies in the present and future. She still loves the world of imagination and discovery. These beautiful and colorful drawings bring back youthful memories and feelings of love, happiness and dreams. Come see for yourself the creations she has developed. They're avalible on t-shirts, totebags, journals and teddy bears and so much more!

Successfully Completed Cannon Beach Sunset!

Here is my finished painting of Cannon Beach Sunset. It is a 24 X 36 wrapped canvas. I really enjoyed it and I love how it looks in different light! I am excited about starting a new painting soon. We have company coming in for a few weeks so I may have to wait. Maybe I can sneak in a few minutes here and there. It's getting hot out now. This will be our 2nd day of 90's here in the Pacific Northwest! Stay cool!

Wrap It Up And Put It Away

Don't wait until the winter holiday season to find a holiday gift for your loved ones. If you live in the north pacific come by the Art and Wine Fair in Vancouver, Washington for the perfect glass of wine and beautiful hand crafted gifts. Find the perfect gift , wrap it up, and put it in a safe place until the holidays. With a glass of wine in hand, you can stroll the winery grounds, listening to music and perusing the many, varied works of our artists. You'll find established artists and up and coming artists working in a variety of media from oils to watercolors to acrylics to mixed media: landscapes, still lifes and abstracts to pique your interest. There will be wonderful objects of wood, of glass and of metal. Silk flowers, arranged in gorgeous bouquets. If you love beautiful photos of landscapes and nature, of people and places, you'll be in photo heaven. Crafted jewelry, purses, totebags, note cards, specialty foods, recycled wine bottle chimes, soaps await your choice. Meet and talk to the artists creating these unique works.
All the works are crafted locally, and the prices are affordable.

If you can't make it to the Art and Wine Fair come take a peek at a few of the gift items that will be there and also my store! or my other store at Secret Escapes!