A Thrill, an Honor and a Giveaway

A Thrill!

My dream has come true! I've always dreamed of having one of my creations published and now that dream has come true!

Prims magazine has published a 10 page feature on TDIPT Mercantile. The talented Karen Brady Hammontree of Brady Bears Studio has written a lovely article about TDIPT Mercantile that accompanies the 10 pages of lovely creations by TDIPT Mercantile artists.

It is such an honor to be included with such a group of talented, nuturing and supportive artists. I was so pleased to see my creation featured on the same page as Suzanne Davis of Pear Tree Primitives. In addition to being an incredible painter, Suzanne was so encouraging in helping me to take the plunge into starting a blog and originally submitting my work to TDIPT. Thank you always & forever Suzanne!

This is the piece that I submitted and was published.

Ever (adverb) 1.at any time 2.increasingly 3.used as intensifier 4.always
Ever Thankful. That’s how I feel about my many blessings.Thanksgiving Day, one day, just isn’t enough. Instead it is a constant theme of my life ~ deeply embedded and heartfelt.

To celebrate this thrill and honor, it is time for my next giveaway...

The Prims Magazine Autumn 2011 issue (a $14.99 value). Then you can have the opportunty to read the entire feature on TDIPT Mercantile and see all of the lovely primitive folk art featured in this issue.

Simply post a comment on this post or send me an email at pgagliardi9@hotmail.com with TDIPT/PRIMS in the subject line. I will draw a winner on October 12th.

Thank you so much for letting me share my excitement!

Blessings, Patti Gagliardi

Robin Redbreast

I love robins ~ they are my absolute favorite bird (although I have a soft spot for wild turkeys as well :) I'm not sure what it is about them ~ they seem like such a "homey" bird ~ sweet and motherly, not flashy. And I anxiously await them each spring.

For the first time in the 15 years that we have lived in our home, a pair of robins have decided to make their home here as well. Their nest is right outside our mudroom window, although you need to crain and strain to get a glimpse out of the window...


I don't know who was more startled to see who!

Each spring I celebrate the robins return by decorating my home with images of robins... This lovely painting is by Suzanne Davis of Peartree Primitives.

I love this old wooden breadbox painted by Chris Robinson. The sentiment states my thoughts perfectly...

This spring, I've added to my collection:

Isn't this robin family just amazing?!?!

TDIPT sister, Audrey Baker of Bay Ray's Child created this incredible piece.

The detail is just amazing. I expect Mama Robin to fly away at any moment...

And those sweet little babies...

Audrey also created these other robins a few years ago.

Another new addition for me this spring is this incredible mohair robin perched on an antique victorian wire basket turned pincushion. It is the creation of Cathy Pendleton of The Cheswick Company.

Some creations that I've created myself. The little nest pillow is based on a design by Maggie Bonanomi. Here's the original design:

This was created in a Maggie Bonanomi class a few years back at the Country Sampler in Spring Green, WI.

Another Maggie Bonanomi class creation from Spring Green. I can't recall what color the bird was supposed to be, but of course I had to make it a robin :)

I never thought of adding pennies & patches to the bottom and the tongues, but loved the way it turned out.

It's a busy piece, but I love the colors and pull it out every year when the robins return.

It's time to add a new robin creation this year. We especially need to celebrate the robins making a nest right next to our "nest" :)

Here it is in progress... not sure how I will finish, but I will be sure to share when I do!

"When a robin cocks his head

Sideways in a flower bed,

Does he hear the tiny sound

Of a worm beneath the ground?"

~Anonymous

Blessings, Patti

Love at First Sight

Are you familiar with Suzanne Davis' blog - Painter of the Past? Or her website Pear Tree Primitives? I am a fan of her work and her blog. A short time ago, I was reading her blog and saw this picture: I was immediately drawn to the pair of paintings in the upper right hand corner. I was convinced that they were antiques that were inspiring her new drawings. For some reason I kept thinking about these paintings and went back several times to look at them again.

A short time later I was taking a peek at Suzanne's etsy shop and low and behold... There he was!!!

He wasn't an antique, but one of Suzanne's paintings! Don't you agree that this lovely painting in this aged frame looks truly old? Suzanne noted that this was inspired by a circa 1830 silhouette by an artist now known as the Red Book Artist (as in the book that he is holding). I kept going back and looking at this painting all night. Should I buy it or shouldn't I? Around midnight I finally asked myself - how would I feel if I woke up in the morning and found that it had sold? I hit the buy button immediately! Then I went to sleep with visions of a certain prim silhouette dancing happily in my head.

In the middle of the night I awoke. How could I possibly separate the pair?! Weren't they destined to be together forever?? Now in my cold little corner of the world, you don't get out of bed unless it is absolutely necessary! So eventually I did fall back to sleep. But can you guess what was the very first thing I did when I woke up (before I did ANYTHING)? You've got it! I fired up the computer and ordered...

Now they'll be together forever! What was I thinking just ordering one? Lucky for me, Suzanne is a very quick shipper, so I didn't have to wait long for my beloved paintings to arrive. When I saw them close up I was even happier with my purchases (could that really be possible?) The lace on her collar is incredible, you feel like you could just reach out and touch it...

I think they look quite at home with my old books and this great landscape painting on a book cover by Lori Brechlin of Notforgotten Farm.

Words can't express how thrilled I am with these paintings. Isn't it amazing when you find a work of art that truly touches your heart?

“I wish I was a little seed,
I’d grow and grow and grow.
I’d twine myself around your heart
And never let you go.”

-from the late 1800’s

Blessings, Patti