Being an artist means more than creating  just art.  Far more. But, for the sake of discussion, what artists do at the most basic level is create.  And in this regard, creativity is a broad, warm brush stroke that covers some of the most seemingly uncreative activities. For years, I blocked the idea of being [...]

New beginnings?  The world is full of them.  Just look at opportunities that today presents. It’s really not that hard to embrace the possibilities that this day offers. Cultivating habits that move you forward and into the world around you are fundamental if you want to maximize your creative energy, create a new direction for [...]

So many gifts have been extolled on me in the past year.  I don’t have to look very far to see blessings all around me, in so many shapes and sizes. A fun, interesting, and very busy season.  We had so many great guests this year, and spent so much time laughing and talking.  I [...]

click on thumbnails for enlarged photos top row, left/right: cobalt glazed bowls second row, left/right: contrasting green and chartreuse bowls third row, left:  wave bowl, chartreuse third row, right: brilliant red muesli bowl fourth row, left: wave vase, chartreuse fourth row, right: frilly fruit bowl, chartreuse, venetian glass fifth row, right/left: small bowls

   This TED video featuring director, producer and cinematographer Louie Schwartzberg made me feel very blessed to be alive and human.  I hope it does the same for you. Have a wonderful holiday weekend. 

Walking back into the studio after a long pause is always a little daunting. It feels a little like the first time, and I wonder if I remember what I need to do. I cut a piece of clay from a block with a pottery wire. I weigh it and mould it into a ball, [...]

Yesterday I came across the blogger/intuitive/counselor Amy Oscar through Twitter (are there really people who don’t twitter?). I spent some time on her gorgeous website and was sort of emotively taken in by what I heard her saying. She sparkles with a kind of essence and vulnerability that touches me on many levels. I find myself [...]

We’ve lit the wood burning stove for the first time, signaling the inevitable arrival of late fall.  We’ve been blessed with beautiful weather and  happy guests.  It’s been our busiest season ever, with occupancy somewhere around 80% for the season.  People seem to love Piemonte, and seem interested in returning again and again to a [...]

Our bed and breakfast season is rolling to its gentle close, with the heaviest occupancy behind us, and we’re starting to have days where we are the only ones present on our hill. The colors are changing, and as a special gift, Nature has given us splendid days to enjoy here in the Piemontese hills. It [...]

Everything that’s worthwhile requires focus.  Focus is hard today, because we have so many things competing for our attention.  Even if we are all alone, standing perfectly still, we know full well that text messages and emails are arriving, urging us to stop what we’re doing and look.  And once we’ve looked we’ve lost something [...]