Mar 20 2013

We Love the Power of Art from All Around the World!

“Creating Art is magical! Our joy is enhanced when we observe another person realize the divine experience that takes place as they create their own art whether through painting, singing, or writing. The medium matters not–the magic is in the process. We’ve never called ourselves “THE” Mandala Sisters because there are many to claim this title–male and female alike. Our purpose in this blog is to generate interest for the everyday person to create their own art and feel the wonderment unfold.” Mandala Sisters, March 2013

Reclaim the Magical, Inner Child Through Designing a Personal Mandala

Our friend, Kerry Kennedy from Scotland, has done precisely what we have hoped everyone on the Planet could do—create and find the magic through the power of art! Kerry experimented with the mandala as a tool for self-realization. This is her first attempt at this type of expression. We say she’s well on her way to many possibilities.

Kerry Kennedy

Entitled: “Plant the Seeds of Your Consciousness”

We asked Kerry to explain her process…”from an early age I was a very expressive, loving child, always helping others and singing and dancing all of the time. Like most adults, I cannot recall when that inner child creative expression started to fade but, fade it did. My creativity shined through my singing and dancing abilities as I grew up, however I was not very inventive with art in school. At the age of 23, my singing abilities started to disintegrate slowly causing me alot of emotional pain. I shut down and my whole creative, inventive, flare went with my voice.

So why is this relevant to mandalas? Well, personally it relates to inner healing and finding ones’ self once again. Many of us struggle to find what we are good at, where our gifts lie within during times when great frustration, fear, and lack creeps upon us. I have always been fascinated with bright colours, the stars and the flower of life and this is where my creativity comes to meet healing and in artist form ‘blends together’.

This mandala paints the picture of the Universe and how manifesting takes form. The central Sun represents divine light which cleans, clears, and purifies our energy field and centres. For many it also represents light emanating from our hearts (loving vibrations). From this point the seeds of intention are created and transmitted through the Universe. The blue with gold dots represents the Universe and the stars. It can also be related to the throat chakra and communication. Words are very powerful when it comes to manifesting our intentions.

The green hearts represent again the heart, balance, harmony, healing money/prosperity and new beginnings. The mandala is sealed with this energy around the Universe, making it easier to attract what we wish for if we remain in the vibrations of love and balance.

Then we have the wonderful Archangel Michael, who serves and assists any time we call upon Him. The angel of protection and guidance, his energy surrounds this mandala to allow greater expansion with your life purpose and manifesting intention.

Finally sealed in golden light from the Sun, gold is an ancient colour of wisdom which lies deep within the soul, it is the ultimate source of all growing life (creation). Gold is also the colour associated with success, achievement, and abundance.

My creativity is flourishing once again by drawing and connecting with divine energies through mandala work, my patience has grown and unlimited abundance has started to show up easily! I hope you enjoy this mandala and can see and feel the light radiating from it that I feel.

Namaste–Kerry Kennedy

It Just Goes To Show You! It’s Never Too Late!

Both Mandala Sisters are lucky to call Ed our friend, but one of us is lucky enough to call Ed, “my father-in-law”. Ed began painting over 25 years ago as a form of therapy after heart surgery. Ed gave up painting in recent years when his eye-sight started failing and he became blind in one eye. Luckily, Ed was a healthy candidate to have eye surgery and now that his sight is restored he is back at the easel doing his thing!

You're Never Too Old To Pick Up a Paint Brush!

Ed Fairless

Mandala Sisters asked Ed why he chose to pick up the paint brush again at age 82…” Painting is therapy for me. There are times I should just stop and leave the painting alone and consider it finished. I’m getting better about that. I like using green and brown although I am ready to branch into other colors. I like to paint Nature. It makes me feel good.”

One of us recently had a birthday…

so we decided to celebrate by having a Thai Massage and look what was on the wall in the spa!

Both Mandala Sisters are walking a little straighter and taller because of it. This wooden mandala was selected by the owner of the spa and shipped over from her native Thailand along with many other beautiful teak and rosewood chests and tables. Love it!

Music from France

Magali Pietri

Spring Into Your Own Mandala

We just had to adjust our clocks and SPRING forward…now isn’t it time for you to do the same and SPRING into your own Mandala? Following is a Spring Mandala work in progress; we will keep you posted!

Feb 12 2013

Sometimes the Blog Tells Us What to Write!

Writing a blog is a fun challenge for both Mandala Sisters. One thing we have noticed is there are times information presents itself without either one of us setting the subject! Today’s post has had it’s own energy and it all revolves around hair and the art form of the hairstyle and how to achieve it. So where’s the Art? It all begins with the New Year! We were given an old-fashioned almanac calendar that gave the times of the year to plant, cut trees, and even cut your hair!

A woman in our village only cut her hair by the full of the moon! Now we’ve never attempted to keep such a calendar but it certainly worked for her. She had really long, thick, hair!

A few days later we read a random article about hairstylist, Djelani Maachi. His shop in Paris serves a loyal following that come to have him cut their hair in his shop late at night on the Full Moon. He claims hair grows faster when cut by the full of the moon.http://http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRDeCgNusrde2X_FFfH_CXQdjAf5v0nQ1NNdU4kuY9BYWqJIoi9

We’re intrigued by what the public finds interesting enough to purchase as their official calendar for the entire year. What type of art is speaking to them? This would be a guy that definitely needed a calendar.

Speaking of which…

Happy Year of the Snake

Jan 14 2013

How to Find Your Own Color of the Year! Use Your Smart Phone!

Happy 2013!

We welcome the New Year and look forward to creating new art. How about you? Are you ready to challenge yourself and your busy schedule to make some time for you?

2012 was an interesting year for us. We were grateful to lecture, teach, be on radio, work with clients and continue in our love of self-expression. It was just as we’d projected.

2013 is the year we’ve freed ourselves from other’s making our color choices for us. Yup, we found our own Color of the Year, thank you very much. Now we aren’t in a huff about Pantone’s choice of Emerald Green for 2013–we love that color– but it is time to realize a different path. Honestly, part of this decision is based on being forced to accept a color we don’t care for at all year after year. We’ll explain about that later in this post.

Mandala Sisters know that many people’s jobs and industries depend on a color of the year and that will go on just like it always has. If you’d like to see where your energy field is vibrating on the color spectrum let’s turn to the Ancient Teachers and merge it with modern technology!

Come on–we’ll show you how. Get out your Smart Phone and open up a musical keyboard app. No app? Use a keyboard or piano to conduct your own personal search for your personal Color of the Year.

Here’s where the Ancient Teachers come in. Long ago Pythagoras (yes, from high school Math class) theorized that the musical scale and the color spectrum were related. This truly goes deeper than what we are presenting but for the sake of ease here is the basic cross-reference of the color spectrum and the musical scale.

Our color sleuthing will begin at Middle C and end at B. Here is the cross-reference that we learned from long ago.

B=Violet-Red

A#=Pure Violet

A=Blue-Violet

G#=Blue

G=Green-Blue

F#=Green

F=Yellow-Green

E=Yellow

D#=Orange-Yellow

D=Orange

C#=Red-Orange

C=Red

Close your eyes and run up and down the keys a few times to get your ears ready then slowly, and with pause between each key, tap once or many times to see how you react to each note. There WILL be one key that is more pleasing than the rest and you may have two or three that harmonize for your frequency. For those that aren’t used to quieting your mind to listen and feel for this type of thing do it a few times. Give your body a chance to assimilate the information. Your main color/key will come. It will. Your body knows what sound it likes best and that is how you derive the color you are in harmony with. It’s fun. Give it a try. In fact, let a few months go by and try it again. Your answer could change. Enjoy a sacred science that has been around for thousands of years and still applies to today!

Would the Old Masters have treated themselves this way?

Mandala Sisters visited with more than one person during the holiday season that claimed they just felt a case of the blahs and it was affecting their creative output! So what’s going on here? What’s at the root of this? One thing we heard repeatedly were the restrictions they were putting themselves under. Mostly these conversations occurred while being in the midst of what should have been a pleasurable activity like eating, relaxing or just sitting down and doing nothing for Pete’s sake! It seemed to both of us that it might help their creative output if they just gave themselves a little breathing room but it needed to be GUILT FREE!

We doubt if Monet, Renoir, or the other famous Masters worried so and stifled their creative drive. Relax and be good to yourself! You don’t have to over-do it–everything in moderation but please, nothing is going to be accomplished with guilt. It just doesn’t work!

We are going to baby you a little and give you our Aunt Jewell’s recipe for her famous Hot Fudge topping! Make it once or twice before Valentine’s Day so you can get the hang of it and wow your loved one(s).

AUNT JEWELL’S FORGIVABLE HOT FUDGE

This recipe is so-o-o-o forgivable we have even walked away from it while it is cooking and it has gone to a sugar stage but has come back with a little extra liquid and some mild stirring. Just four little ingredients and you are there!

Ingredients:

1 stick of butter, less one teaspoon

1-1/2 squares of unsweetened chocolate

2 cups of powdered sugar

2/3 cup of evaporated milk

Stir together in the top of a double boiler and simmer until thick…around 45 minutes! We don’t stir it continually.

Here’s another forgiving aspect of this recipe: we have even been out of the bar chocolate and used cocoa and a little oil to substitute, just like it says to do on the cocoa can!

Now before you get too worried…this goblet is actually 3.5 inches tall! Just a little something in moderation to stir the guilt-free creative soul.

And now, part of the reason we couldn’t let anyone push us around about color….

Our loyal followers might remember from a past post about how much we despise BEIGE. It may have seemed a little dramatic but we can’t apologize. We blamed it on our father, as he didn’t like those colors either. Recently we read a story about this kindred spirit named, Micah. Now some of our dislike is beginning to make sense.

We’re not the only ones with a deep distaste for beige (and most browns!) Micah sees letters and numbers in color due to a genetic condition called “grapheme-color synesthesia”. Some people take on this condition through sound or taste as well. Yes, there are those that hear letters and numbers and can taste them too.

Micah interpreted our least favorite colors by saying “something was off”. And, like us, she believes orange is just too much to wear on the body! We’ll raise a glass to that! It’s just too much!

The story, Reading Rainbow can be read in its’ entirety at www.voxmagazine.com Author Chantal O’ Neal gives a realistic glimpse in to this young woman’s life. It’s unlikely that we’ll take the time to check this out medically but let’s just say we realized our distaste was bordering on extreme and now perhaps, we know why. There are several places on the Net to test yourself. Mostly this trait affects woman who are lefties…and yes, we both are!

Yeah! Art is Surviving in School with the Help of the Masters!

Being the daughters of a very creative Art Teacher (color-blind, we might add); we are thrilled to see the education and creative output that surrounds this following teaching. Can you even imagine a world without Monet, Picasso, Van Gogh? We could go on and on! As you know, we are all about “transformational art”. Admit it, aren’t you transformed when you see a piece from one of the classic artists? Aren’t you moved by something simple your child has done? Well, aren’t you??? There are some wonderful programs out there that are trying to keep art alive in the schools; Art Masters and Meet the Masters, to name a few.

One Mandala Sister was fortunate to participate in the Art Masters teaching for her daughters.

Here’s the format: a famous artist is selected along with one of their famous paintings. Volunteering parents attended a training by a contemporary artist that taught the techniques for the selected painting. Starry Night was our subject! While the parents trained for the technique, the children learned about the artist’s background in the school cafeteria…(yes, the subject of Van Gogh’s ear came up in the place where they eat lunch!)

We used oil pastels and transformed our pieces of black paper into our own works of art. The next day, we taught the children all of the amazing techniques we had just learned. The kids were wonderful and really enjoyed making their Starry Night come to life. Of course, we quizzed them in the beginning regarding what they learned about the artist…and we are happy to report that although the ear story was an overriding theme, they had actually learned much more! You may want to consider implementing this type of program or even finding a local artist that would devote some time for something similar in your child’s school. Last year the classes learned about Escher, Magritte, Kandinsky and Nevelson. We find the pieces that our daughter’s have done every bit as wonderful as the original! Following are a few works from the recent 2nd Grade Class teaching on Van Gogh!

Oct 4 2012

What’s The Big Deal About Art Anyway?

Mandala Sisters talk about Art all the time.

We didn’t always. There was a time, Dear Reader, when we two weren’t very savvy about the “Power of Art”!

We shake our heads at the wasted time but what good would that do?

So why do we write this? Why do we want you to care about taking the chance and creating your own Art?

Here’s the answer:

Because there is only “ONE” YOU.

We have experienced the power of Divine Energy and there is nothing else like it! That’s the reason Art is such a big deal. It is the expression of our Soul Information about who we are.

Have you ever seen the type of movie or read the novel whereby the one character finally gets the chance to see another character’s art work, whatever the medium may be, and they are in awe of the beauty that was created because they never suspected that was going on inside? It’s like that.

We giggle when people say, “but I’m not artistic!” or “I can’t do that!” Our personal journey in the art world coupled with our experience teaching others causes us to come face to face with this persistent protest.

There are so many forms, styles, and types, of Art to create! When this pesky statement arises we secretly know what’s really going on–it’s a fear of getting down to knowing their nitty-gritty self.

We offer a wonderful tool in our emporium of “courage builders”.

It’s time for a trip to the bookshelf to bring out one of the best-no excuses-can’t get around it-anybody can do it art techniques ever!

Deborah Koff-Chapin’s book, “Drawing Out Your Soul“, is an easy but extremely powerful way to experience and create your own Art. Watch this video to get the gist of it.

Deborah stumbled upon this technique in a very innocent way–while cleaning up the print shop (don’t you just love it when those moments are introduced into our lives?). The rest is history as they say. There are therapeutic, personal, group, and educational sessions that have evolved from this technique.

It might not make sense until you need it but just the physical repetition of re-rolling the paint, laying another paper down and pressing your hands over and over is a signal from the brains’ cortex through the hands to the paper. It’s a powerful release. Thank you, Deborah!

Our Huckleberry Friend

Art Collector, Andy Williams

Andy Williams was a very dedicated collector of Art! Aside his paintings by Warhol, Pollock, and other Modern Artists, he had a world class collection of Native American rugs and artifacts. Mandala Sisters have had the privilege of viewing this collection at the Saint Louis Art Museum. (We had no idea at the time about Andy Williams’ love of Native American tapestry.) See? The Power of Art!

While we’re discussing Andy and Saint Louis, it seems that he has his own 6 degrees away from everyone in the entertainment industry. He credited multi-talented actress, singer, composer, writer, and mentor, Kay Thompson with getting him started in the business. The Williams Brothers sang back up for Saint Louis native, Miss Thompson.

Kay Thompson

This renaissance woman seemed unstoppable as nothing was out of range of her artistic talent. She taught the singers to sing!

Mandala Sisters LOVE her children’s book character “Eloise” with it’s signature rose and pink striped color scheme. Love it!

May we pour you some tea?

Our well-used “Eloise” tea set

Aug 3 2012

What You May Not Know About Your Body and Color!

Mandala Sisters have never been at a loss for color.

Our childhood home in the village was a sleepy-looking, little, one and a half story, circa 1920. But– open the front door and be prepared! Our parents loved red. And we do mean loved it! Red was everywhere they could apply it or use it in furnishings. (Maybe they were both related to Diana Vreeland!)

Despite being surrounded by such a strong color in our childhood home, there was one color we absolutely rejected on all levels…BEIGE! We just disliked it so much and still do (an apology for those who love this color and feel at peace with it…there, that’s over) now back to the rant! We just knew this color wasn’t for us at a very instinctual level.

So why the strong feelings, Mandala Sisters?

What happened in your youth to provoke such feelings on such an innocent, benign, color? Why? We found our answer from a friend and the truth set us free. Now we share:

It All Began With A Towel!

Warning: The secret the Mandala Sisters are about to give can and will change your life! It can be applied to men, women, and children of all ages.

Gentlemen or Ladies: If you color your hair pin it flat to your scalp. This is necessary as you may be coloring your hair the wrong shade.

Remove your make up and lip color, if applied.

For the test you will need:

a hot pink towel or t-shirt (COOL PALETTE)
an orange towel or t-shirt (WARM PALETTE)

Do not use neon for your test colors.

Stand in front of a mirror in natural light. Hold the hot pink towel around your face. Remove. Then place the orange towel around your face. Repeat the process only this time check to see the difference the color of each towel makes when held up to your face. You are looking at your face only to check the difference the color of the towel will make when held next to your skin.

This exercise will tell you which color palette is best with your skin tone.

What To Look For If This Is Your Correct Color:

Your face will look lively
Teeth will be brighter
Any blemishes or dark spots will be less noticeable
Dark circles will be less noticeable
You will appear healthier in your correct palette
Your eye color will be enhanced

What To Look For With The Incorrect Palette:

Dark Circles Under Eyes Are Prominent
And now to really flip you out…have you ever heard of “white” circles? White Circles appear for the person that should avoid The Cool Palette ( Think of a nice little rind from Brie Cheese under your eyes. It sounds crazy but it appears when a warm-headed one wears a cool palette around their face!)
Men: Your beard will look darker and kinda dirty when you wear the incorrect palette even if you’ve just shaved!
The color will drain from your cheeks.
A line will form underneath your chin suggesting the appearance of a nasty, little, wattle!
Lips and eyes will fade. Veins will appear to be more prominent. Your smile area sometimes even looks green. Yuck!

Get the picture? If you look better with the hot pink color draped around your face then buy your clothes in the cool palette. If better in orange, then warm palette. Now you do know the cool and warm palette, right?

Here’s a brief little lesson…

Cool Palette

White will look best! (Beige will age you and do nothing for you, so do not wear it around your face. Save it for your bottom half if you must be a part of the khaki brigade!)
Black
Grey
Navy Blue/Teal Blue/Turquoise Blue
All Jewel Tones
Silver
Reds, with the exception of orange red
Purple, plum

Warm Palette

Beige
Ivory
Khaki, Tan
Orange
Yellow Greens
Warm Browns
Yellows/Ecru
Teal Green/Turquoise Green

Now this is not to say we recommend anyone wear hot pink or orange—these are extreme indicators though you could. For that matter we could have suggested using a pure white towel or a yellow beige towel for the test. But some people can’t distinguish a yellow beige and anyone can pick out hot pink and orange!

Mandala Sisters, why are you sharing this information?

Well, dear reader, we are generous with our information and it is such a simple, time-honored thing to do for yourself. See we learned we were “cool” girls and that is why we so disliked beige. It was such a powerful thing to know and still is. Here are just a few reasons to apply this for yourself.

You will look better in your palette
It can save you money and time because you immediately eliminate the incorrect colors.
Everyone has their significant “body” colors; that’s a natural fact, so why not go with it and use it to your advantage.
Eliminates confusion on what color would look best if you color your hair or facial hair.
No sales person will ever be able to take advantage of you and push the wrong color on you.
Your eye will be trained in a very short time to find what’s best and eliminate the needless. It really will be second nature.
Your clothes closet will be instantly rectified because you will eliminate the less than attractive colors for you.
It’s easier to coordinate your clothing with accessories.
Once you get the process down it is a breeze to choose furnishings, cars, wall paint, wedding dresses, tuxedos, bath towels, eyeglasses, etc!

Would you believe we have had someone tell us they didn’t believe in this?!!!!

Oh yes, the shock of it all… but we gathered ourselves and politely pointed out the science of the color palette. It all depends on the melanin in your skin. Yep, we all have an undertone, so to speak. So just because you are a natural red head don’t take it for granted that you will instantly be in the warm palette. Now you know the secret to be sure.

You can try to wear the “other” palette but even if you dyed your hair/beard and bought all corresponding makeup, it will fade. Something will look amiss and it will be. Why wouldn’t you want to look your best? Trust Us On This!

So What About This Tip In Real Time?

Men: If you look better in the warm palette, do yourself a favor and buy an ivory or ecru colored shirt. Do not wear “White” next to your face. You’ll look so much better at that job interview! Really, you will!

Conversely, if you are a “Cool” guy gather up every beige, tan, ivory and yellow shirt and give them to your “Warm” friends.

Women: Bypass all the wrong colors at the cosmetic counters. You will look better in your complimentary colors to enhance your natural coloring.

Apply this information for your children. Babies look better in their correct palette too!

and now…a little tip from “Opposite Land”!

If you are an actor and are playing a “sick” person, your opposite color palette will help convince your audience of that characteristic.

Of course, our savvy readers have probably realized this little “opposite tip” could help convince your Boss you really did have the flu…..LOL!

**Maybe now that you know the secret, you are ready to experiment with your own color palette and start a new Mandala!**

Jul 12 2012

Do You Look or Do You See?

Mandala Sisters have been caught up in a whirlwind of life! (read vacation) Along the way we like to observe the world around us and see what’s reflecting back!

Some times we look; sometimes we see.

Actually,we’ve taken two vacations together this year! ( As it should be!) Our sojourn at the waters’ edge was revitalizing as always! One of our energy teachers from long ago advised we students to go to the ocean to absorb all the different types of prana–from the sand, the air, the sun and the water–and nuture ourselves with the help of Mother Earth.

Get your body, mind, and soul together with Mother Nature’s help!

So do you look or do you see?

There is a huge difference! We’ll explain the difference by saying that both involve the eyes and the images taken in.

Yet looking involves using the eyes only.
While seeing is when the brain gives those same images meaning or symbolism.

It helps to use both while painting. That ability with artwork can set an artist apart because their work has feeling.

You know about Light, right?

It’s all about the vibration when it comes to Light. Those vibrations cause a reaction on the optic nerve. That’s when color “becomes” itself as the eye meets this vibratory motion.

“Light” gave the Art World a whole new direction in past times. Impressionists bucked the trend of using line and strong definition when they painted. This new thought gave the directive to ‘paint what the light reveals!’ You can do this too–just paint what the Light reveals and stop thinking about the extreme line and shape of something. It worked for the Masters, it can work for you! Have fun with it!

Oh yeah, it’s Summertime and that means one thing!

Look at that color!

Mandala Sisters left the Village often during the summer when it was State and County Fair time. We were all about the “Power of Art” even when we were girls.

We looked forward to creating our Summertime Art with one of the greatest inventions to hit the Midway!…SPIN-ART! (we’d scream that for you if we could…)

Is this spin-art rug from Urban Outfitters where “girl meets woman”? We think so!

We loved horses, ponies, and livestock of all sorts and participated on the “show circuit” with our family. We observed all sorts of thought provoking people and things And what could be more socially educational than observing a smart-alecky carnival barker? They were the people that left conventional mainstream to live life on the edge! Carnival workers were a rare people in those days.

No matter how much cotton candy we bought, or how many animals we pet, or ferris wheels we rode there was always time planned for our artistic adventure at the spin art booth. (An invention we consider cousin to the cotton candy machine)

Hey, Cotton Candy Head!

“And now Ladies and Gentlemen, step right up as we offer a mental oddity for your brain to wrangle with:”

Cotton Candy was invented by a DENTIST!

Did that just stop the Tilt-a-Whirl of your mind? Yup, it happened at the 1904 World’s Fair, only then it was given the mythical name of “Fairy Floss”. (Here’s the part Mandala Sisters love about the above information:) Our granny attended this fair in 1904. Here she is–pretty good looking, don’t you think?

Our granny, attendee of the 1904 World’s Fair, undoubtedly a first time “fairy floss” customer!

May 21 2012

Mandala Sisters Are Not Only Going to Show You How to Paint Your Portrait With A Toothbrush, We’re Going To Offer You a New Name Too!

A little one in our family told us she came

from “the Stars”! According to this video, she was RIGHT!

The Most Astounding Fact by Neil deGrasse Tyson

So now for the “self-portrait” instructions!

Choose canvas, paint a dark background to your intuitional liking. Include some color variation–you’ll know what to do.
Take toothbrush, dip in white paint, hold horizontally, and with your finger, pull the bristles back and release.
Do until your intution says “finished”.
There! It’s your portrait in Stars…aren’t you Beautiful!

Yeah, we all come from ” The Stars”.

What about your new name? How about CHON Stars?

Don’t tell us you forgot high school science class when your teacher let you know you were nothing more organically than Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen and Nitrogen? Now that you know you came from ” The Stars”, how about this new name? *smile*

Mandala Sisters Have Their Favorite Number.

Mother Nature Has Hers!

Mandala Sisters admit our favorite number to use when creating mandala is 8!

Mother Nature may prefer 6 in her creations. The hexagon is seen in the cell of a beehive.

Are those little mandalas in the center of those cells?

It takes 6 spokes to make a snowflake!

Mother Nature’s Mandala. Earliest known photographed snowflake by Bentley.

The pattern of a tortoise shell is composed of hexagons. (is it wrong to admit here that we just don’t feel like looking at a tortoise?)

Quartz crystals: six-sided formations before we knew “6″ was six!

Okay Mandala Sisters what does this have to do with painting a mandala? Six has represented “family” for ages. What better way to give a loving tribute to your child when they are born than with painting a mandala to represent the energy of the child coming in to the family.

Conversely, what about painting a Mandala for the elder in your family as a new version of the family tree.

So let’s start with the number six and let this be about the love of your family. Yeah, yeah see the directions above and make your family tree mandala!

Mommy and Daddy Welcome Their New Baby With A Painting!

May 3 2012

The Queen’s Portrait(s)!

It’s the Diamond Jubilee for Queen Elizabeth

One of us has seen the collection of the Queen’s Royal attire on display at Buckingham Palace. Guess what? She’s tiny!

Did you know:

If you are in London during May 13-18, 2012, the Mall Galleries will host 35 years worth of portraits of the Queen?
A Royal portrait painter is given only (6) one hour sittings to compose their painting unless SHE gets chatty?
There have been more than 130 official painters of Her Majesty?
Queen Elizabeth sat for more painters than any other English Monarch?
One famous painting of the Queen was created using a photograph?

So who painted the Queen from a photograph?

Andy Warhol!

To paint a person during a limited time frame is like painting a baby…where you, the artist, must capture everything possible before the light changes or the mood changes! Talk about working quickly!

Artists share their experiences of painting “Queen Elizabeth, the Monarch” during this show at the Mall Gallery. Will viewers get a glimpse of Elizabeth, the human?

Elizabeth, age 7, Painting by Philip Laszlo

Now please, get your timing straight while discussing the “Diamond Jubilee” as you eat your Sticky Toffee Pudding in the pub…

Most people might think a Diamond anniversary represents 75 years but no, this is a 60 year celebration! HUH?

“Mandala Sisters, how can that be?” you say.

Worried that she wouldn’t live until her 75th anniversary as Queen, palace officials”bent” time under Queen Victoria’s rule so the 60 year benchmark was proclaimed the “new” official length for a Diamond Jubilee.

Wabi-Sabi

During our “formative” years in the Village, our Mother kept tea in a commemorative tin made to honor Queen Elizabeth’s marriage to Prince Phillip. We loved that tin! That childhood memory inspired the collection one of us has pictured above. It’s just a bit of our personal collection of old tea tins from back in the day. It seems fitting to be thankful for all the cups of tea our dear Mother served us as we honor her memory for Mother’s Day. Thanks MOM!

Mary Cassatt

(um, that’s not us…)

You, faithful, dear reader, know neither Mandala Sister has the courage to get tattooed. We’re too yellow for that but we do respect the artisans that participate in this form of art. While we’re at it let’s go ahead and have a little discussion about YELLOW.

Just coming out of Tax Season can leave many feeling punched in the gut so it may be a good time to stimulate your Third Chakra (location: solar plexus) with it’s key color yellow!

Since we are on the subject of the Queen, in Heraldry, yellow indicated loyalty and honor. Yet, historically, yellow was connected with cowardice. How can this color create such a range of feelings? Yellow symbolizes joy, happiness, intellect and energy for our modern times, but did you know that scientists have confirmed that babies cry more in a YELLOW room (anyone grabbing a paint brush and choosing a new decorating shade for the nursery…hmmm)? To this day, most men will not purchase a yellow car ….perhaps they’re a Yellow Belly?

What about Blue?

Does the color blue evoke a feeling of calmness, purity, and peace for you or are you scared of blue? JULIUS CAESAR WAS!

Its Woad in England, Pastel in France

This little, yellow, plant caused all the trouble!

Yet, Woad created all the cash flow for the growers! Picked, dried, fermented, and formed into balls to be mixed with water and used as a dye, Woad or Pastel, as it is known in Toulouse, France, became a feared color back in the days of Caesar. Yep, for Julius Caesar, blue was considered a color of war and barbarian retaliation. The ink was used for tattoos or slathered on their shaved, naked, bodies as Caesar noted about the defenders of Briton. Blue was also known as the “Devil’s Color”!

and now…”The Other Side of the Coin”

Meanwhile, back at the farm, the growers of pastel in Toulouse enjoyed a wealth and status that is still evidenced by their historical architecture today! The buildings made of a light, red stone lent a pink hue to the city. Toulouse is known as “La Ville Rose”, the Pink City. Love it!

A 15th century mansion, now the “Hotel d’Assezat”

Times heals all wounds and colors!

The “energy” of blue slowly worked its way in to the stained glass windows of the cathedrals and churches around the latter part of the 14th century. Prior to that period, Mother Mary was painted wearing red garments. The negative connotation of blue finally faded and it became linked to the qualities of sweetness, innocence, and purity. Blue, once a color of war…now, a color of holy reverence.

Hey Mandala Sisters, why the change of heart about blue?

Vanity!

Like popular personalities of today, the Monarchs of Old realized the benefits of wearing blue garments or appearing in front of blue backgrounds for their portraits.

Some believe this is the origin of labeling wealthy people “blue-bloods” while others attribute the meaning to their having fair skin with blue veins. You decide.

How interesting is that for a color to evolve from a symbol of War to a color of Peace? The current color trends for war are khaki, beige, and olive green. Any energy readers out there will know these three are considered low vibration colors. It’s no wonder blue didn’t last through the centuries as a color of War.( Just can’t stick, it’s got too high of a vibration!)

Did you know they have found scientific evidence that 1 in 6 people have blue eyes and they can all be traced to a single, maternal source through the mitochondria? Wonder what color eyes Julius Caesar had?

Apr 9 2012

Creating Your Own Art Is A Gift! Sharing Your Gift Is Like Planting A Powerful Seed!

Do you remember the proud feelings coursing through your little childhood veins after you completed one of your masterpieces?

We remember those days vividly and we have a firm belief in sharing our knowledge with the young ones now. And here’s the extra blessing:

WE LEARN FROM THEM!

Mandala Sisters lived next to a very talented girl in the Village when we were growing up. Linda was gifted in singing and playing piano.

She shared her musical gift with us when we were children!

And now you might be thinking…

“Well, Mandala Sisters that’s wonderful and all and glad you had that lovely childhood experience”…

But wait, here’s the effect our neighbor’s generosity had on us throughout our lives:

We have a wonderful childhood memory worth it’s weight in gold.
We became interested in music from multiple time periods.
We developed a discerning ear for voice and instrument though neither of us went on to become concert pianists or vocalists.
We learned a bit about history and American culture through the music she chose to play.
We learned about a variety of musical artists.
We learned about different styles of music.
We spent time with a person that was safe, kind, and very loving.
But mostly, we are wicked good at musical trivia! Bring on the “Trivia Night”!

See what we would have been missing in our lives if she kept this gift to herself? So we’re asking —

“What talent do you have to share with another?”

Manage your own stress by sharing your creativity with another human being. This will get your focus off your troubles by helping another person.

The beauty in what we just observed…

They didn’t think they could do it but they sure did!

Creation Begins!

The Tropical Scene

The Underwater Cave

Homage to Jackson

Selena's Butterfly

One of our favorite people, little Miss M, used a shirt worn in a movie to provide her with inspiration to create some art.

We watch a Selena Gomez movie
Miss M says, ” I like that butterfly shirt Selena Gomez is wearing. It’s pretty.”
Mandala Sister replies, ” You could paint something like that to hang in your room”
Miss M asks ” How could I do that?”
Mandala Sister replies, “EASY! Just remember what you like about this shirt. Feel it. Then we’ll do it YOUR way!”
Miss M intuitively chose her colors then began her background with a splatter paint technique.

Little Miss M finished her painting and proudly showed off her art. Though the shirt in the movie was white and looked nothing like Miss M’s finished product, it was the energy behind it and the courage to follow through to do her own thing that was so wonderful to observe and be a part of.

Anchor yourself during the wild energy currently on the Planet by doing your own ART or helping another do theirs!

Ok, now we need to talk about teeth!

Mandala Sisters love and welcome the differences in everyone. It is individualistic style that make life and everyone in it interesting. BUT, we are starting to see a pattern that is not only alarming but a little disconcerting to those that love an interesting smile. Note, you don’t see Mona Lisa’s teeth, but you can only wonder and imagine what they might be like. The “original” Chatty Cathy Doll™ whose little teeth were quite charming started a trend that changed toys forever! We still love this doll!

Wabi-Sabi

Chatty Cathy Doll

As for the dolls of Now…

The old saying, ” you broke the mold when you made that one”, takes on a new twist. These teeth seem to be the same for all these dolls.

More Teeth Diversity!

Is it the quest for the handsome Prince that causes everyone to now have the same dental esthetics?

The Mandala Sisters appreciate a different quality in their ideal of a Prince…it is not just the teeth, but a little humor goes a long way!

Billy Hill Disneyland's "Other" Handsome Prince

(If you visit Disneyland this summer do yourself a favor and see a comedy/musical act that is so entertaining and inspiring!)

Mar 28 2012

Oh the things we’ve done for the sake of Art!

Mandala Sisters have great appreciation for Mother Nature as she shares her artistic creations with all of us. Thank you Mother for your flowers, buds, and evidences of new life.

What do you get when you mix:

A scratchy recording of The Irish Rovers singing “The Unicorn”

A “Kimberly” 4 B graphite pencil–

A drawing pad

And a BLINDFOLD!

FREE-FORM ART!

The above was the recipe one Mandala Sister was given by her college professor to “loosen up the mind and the hand” for free style drawing!

It seemed like the biggest waste of time back then but he may have known something.

But why the same song, week after week? Did the Professor long for his Hootenanny days? Or was he trying to drive a bunch of college freshman a little cuckoo?

This is not a slap to the Irish Rovers or the song ”The Unicorn” (written by Shel Silverstein for fans of the book ”A Light in the Attic”) but finding your free form is a challenge when the chosen music doesn’t have much of a beat to begin with.

The semester ended and that Mandala Sister would have given anything to hear “Kitty, the Rose of Kilrea”, yet another hit by the Irish Rovers! It had a little more promise for the task at hand.

If you’re adventurous and want to do this exercise find something with a noticeable beat. It’s easier to work with and you can just close your eyes! No blindfold needed. Hey, switch hands, you’ll access another side of the brain.

It Takes Ca-Ca-Ca-Courage!

Really good instructors realize the power that resides in the creation of Art and the best of them are very nurturing when they spot the energy of creation stirring in their student.

Spirit and emotion are released into a painting and that means it is released from you when you create.

And now, here’s where we have had to suck it up and admit that we may not have gotten it when we started out but the fact is:

Music Lends Itself to Creativity!

That’s the reason the Mandala Sisters have tried to demonstrate throughout our posts the effect of music on your every day way of being. It can be calming, inspiring, but can also flush out those creative juices one has stirring.

We created our first Mandalas to Luciano Pavarotti’s recording of “Nessun Dorma”. We can still see ourselves painting when we hear that music! It’s like having that wonderful experience all over again!

She didn’t even like that type of music but here’s what happened!

One Mandala Sister had a “Foggy Mountain Breakdown” of sorts, the type that was inspired by the great Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs. While painting together in class, one Mandala Sister looked over to see the other Mandala Sister frantically painting with the speed of light, sparks and creativity like she has never seen before. Take a listen to this:

This was the outcome from listening to Flatt and Scruggs!

Try it for yourself!

Here’s a little fact about life on Planet Earth:

NONE of us are created alike. We are all created to be different. Period.

Don’t Make Your Garbage Man Mad. Here’s What We Did!

Whether at the Louvre, the Tate, or the museums in the States, a classic way of teaching world-wide is to try to duplicate the Masters. We never come close to creating like the Masters but it helps to understand the artistic process. It’s endearing to observe groups of small children trying their hand at what the Masters excelled at. They get it too! But here’s how we’ve used one of those lessons…

You can’t just throw out excess paint these days. That’s big trouble in this time of environmental concern and that’s fine with us but what to do with the excess? Jackson Pollock to the rescue!

Artist Jackson Pollock was highly criticized in the Art World when he began this free-form style of creation.

In our view, he cornered the market on fun when he put the classic way of painting down and started throwing the paint instead! Thank you, Jackson Pollock, for showing the way.

Jackson Pollock

This is really, really fun!

This is ours. And here’s the closeup below!

How to do it?

Paint the background a base color to compliment ALL your excess colors.
If something doesn’t look like it fits, don’t use it. There’s no going back in this painting.
Add enough water to make it really soupy but not watery.
We threw paint with a spoon, flicked paint with the pointed end of a paint brush but our favorite tool was a thin crochet hook that we just dripped in a circular motion.
We added each individual color in a layer before going on to the next color.
Voila´! The painting was finished when we intuitively felt it was so.

But Mandala Sisters, we don’t have a place to do this type of painting!

Sure you do! The bathtub! Cover the inside of your bathtub with a few garbage bags taped to the inside and throw away when you’re finished. Any mess cleans up with water. It’s latex! You are using latex, aren’t you?