Posted by Breezy on August 14th, 2010
I know, I know, I’m supposed to call it “violet.” None of the other artists would ever tell me why, so I’m going to keep saying “Purple” just to embarrass them. And anyway, it just sounds better for this post. I also could have titled it, “The Deranged Esoteric Musings of a Color Connoisseur,” or worse, “My Purple Problem,” but that would be just too weird. . . . I’m really asking for it, aren’t I? ;)
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Ever since I was a little girl, the color Purple has had me in a quandary. Have you ever felt that way with Purple? Where you just can’t quite put your finger on what it’s trying to tell you? It’s so tempting, yet so elusive. Well, I’ve been there. And I’ve grappled with the very issue of the enigmatic hue myself. So the other day I took the plunge. I bought a purple cardigan, spent an entire day wearing it, and by that night I figured out this whole Purple thing once and for all. Care to hear about my findings?
Here we go!
Each Color causes an emotional response. For example, Blue evokes a cool, calm peacefulness. Yellow can symbolize fear; Orange, anger; and Green, life. Pink implies weakness, softness, or femininity, while Red shouts passion, energy, ardor, and warmth. But what about Purple? In nature as well as the commercial world, you may have noticed that Purple is one of the least used colors. Why is this, and what does Purple mean, anyway? Before I go into this further, let’s take a quick look at color theory.
When looking at any single primary color, it communicates a solid, easy-to-read message. But combine two primary colors to make a secondary color and you get a slightly more complex message. (And of course Purple is a secondary color, a combination of Blue and Red.) All the other colors in between have even more discreet emotions.
So why is the color Purple so often passed over? I think it is because the specific emotion that Purple communicates is hard to pin down: juxtaposing Blue and Red, they communicate the most opposite and contrasting messages of all the colors.
If Blue is peaceful and calming, and Red is passionate and unceasingly energetic, then surely the union of these polar opposites would result in a clashing of ideas. It is a vacillating attempt to justify the equal strengths of Blue and Red. This delicate balance of mystery is what we find so enthralling: Purple is ultimately a fascinating suspension with no resolve.
All that from a wavelength of 400 nanometers, and a cardigan. :)
Posted in The Notebook, Thoughts on Art | 28 Comments
Posted by Breezy on July 29th, 2010
Being a Homemaker is a multi-faceted job. We want to learn new skills that will help us further our effectiveness in this ministry. But have you ever wanted to learn a new skill and not know where to begin? Have you ever wished you could fill in the “gaps” but were unsure as to how to go about it on your own? Well, let me tell you about the Autodidactic Homemaker. . . .
Continue reading at “Raising Homemakers”
Posted in Around the Hearth | 7 Comments
Posted by Breezy on July 19th, 2010
Lucy and Tumnus by Pauline Baynes
May I say that I simply love black and white art work? Especially Pauline Baynes’ pen-and-ink style. Pauline Baynes (the illustrator for the original Chronicles of Narnia) has such a wonderful style; there’s much I could learn from her—not to copy, mind you, but to enhance my own style.
In this piece by Pauline Baynes I can see she has already slightly influenced my work; my “Tree House” comes to mind. What I love most about her style I can’t say. For starters, I love the fluidity and liveliness of it. Her lines are living and breathing. I can hear the clinks of the crude tableware, and smell the aromas of the earthy fare.
Secondly, you can tell the characters are her personal friends: they, too, are alive. Thirdly, every detail is taken into account and utilized for the overall composition and aesthetic environment. Fourthly, her cross-hatching. I simply can’t get enough of her cross-hatching! It may have been this signature element of her work that first caught my eye and snagged my heart.
Even with color added, her work is simply wonderful. After I’m finished working on my *current projects,* I will hopefully get to experiment with pen and ink again, of course with Pauline Baynes by my side.
crunch, crunch, crunch
Posted in The Notebook, Thoughts on Art | 11 Comments
Posted by Breezy on June 25th, 2010
“Feeding Baby Brother” © Breezy Brookshire
A quick sketch made while taking a break from drawing. Just can’t get away from it!
Posted in From the Studio | 42 Comments
Posted by Breezy on June 22nd, 2010
I write poetry. Occasionally.
And I can’t wait to go to the beach.
“Cliffs and Sailboats at Pourville” by Claude Monet, 1882
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Run along the shore and find,
beneath your sunkiss’d feet,
that th’mild waters of summer’s kind—
the warm, the wild, and untamed—
have found you, now, complete.
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Poem Copyright © Breezy Brookshire 2010
Posted in Sketches with Words, The Notebook | 18 Comments
Posted by Breezy on June 19th, 2010
Does my love for the Lord and fear of Him run so deep and shine so bright that it leaves an impression on those around me? Does my love for God’s law outshine my own interests? Or do people have to look hard to see my devotion to the Lord? When people look at me, do they see me or do they see my Savior?
Do I draw attention to myself, or am I humble and focus on exalting the Lord Christ Jesus? Do I live to please myself, or do I live to please God?
I am so thankful that I can see the continual work of the Lord in my life; His gentle guiding, and even chastisement for those He loves. Yet I also see so many things that I fail in. At times I despair at ever reaching the other side of the hill. But He is always there to cheer and comfort me, show me His mighty deeds, and whisper His promises to me in His Word. The love and joy and peace He fills my heart with can only come from Him.
“I am not what I ought to be. I am not what I wish to be. I am not what I hope to be. Yet I can truly say I am not what I once was. By the grace of God I am what I am.” —John Newton
(Remember to click on the post title to leave a comment)
Posted in Life Journal | 7 Comments
Posted by Breezy on June 14th, 2010
“Gathering Potatoes” by Jules Bastien-Lepage, 1879
One of my latest favorites quotes comes from Charles Bridges in his sermon,
“The Virtuous Woman Described”—
“Her personal habits are full of energy. . . . Self-denial is here a main principle. The virtuous woman goes before her servants in diligence, no less than in dignity, imposing nothing on them which she had not first bound upon herself, ruling her household most efficiently by the government of herself.” (emphasis mine)
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment
Posted by Breezy on June 9th, 2010
“In today’s culture, the homemaker is seen as unnecessary, uneducated, and unfulfilled. But as a counter-cultural daughter, I refuse to believe this lie and have chosen to stay at home and prepare for the wonderful life God has called me to. . . .”
Continue reading over at Raising Homemakers.
Posted in Sketches with Words, Uncategorized | 5 Comments
Posted by Breezy on June 1st, 2010
I have met many wonderful women who are committed homemakers. These godly women love serving their families in the home and desire to teach their daughters to do likewise.
But there’s something interesting that these women also have in common: They were not taught how to care for a family and run a household. They were not raised to be keepers at home. And now these women are dedicated to giving their daughters the skills they had to learn on the job.
So , it is with great joy I’d like to announce a new website called . . .
Raising Homemakers
This website is the brain child of my sweet friend Sarah Mae who has a heart for equipping women to be all that God has called them to be. In Sarah’s own words, Raising Homemakers “is dedicated to inspiring, teaching and blessing mothers who have an interest in raising their daughter in godliness and preparing them in the arts of homemaking to the glory of God.”
So get ready to join us as we roll up our sleeves and get busy!
Posted in The Notebook | 1 Comment
Posted by Breezy on May 28th, 2010
I was recently discussing with some dear friends the subject of stay-at-home-daughters and time. We talked about all the things we hope to learn and skills we want to have before entering marriage. Beyond the basic skills of cleaning the home, caring for children, sewing, cooking wholesome meals and decorating cakes, there is a vast world of other useful skills that stay-at-home-daughters have time to learn.
As young women not yet married, we have the responsibility to become as well-rounded and useful as we can be. Right now you probably don’t have the full care of running the home—this is an excellent opportunity to prepare yourself for the rest of your life. The more helpful skills we acquire, the more useful, the more of a blessing we will be to our future husbands and families.
Think of these skills as an Invisible Hope Chest.
Your husband could have any kind of job: mechanic, business owner, economics professor, etc.—are you studied in many areas to be able to help him in whatever his calling may be? Your family may someday have special diet issues—would you know enough about nutrition to accommodate those needs? Could you start a homestead or home business from scratch and live self-sufficiently? Do you plan to home-educate your children? Are you collecting excellent books for them to read? How do you plan to raise them to become God-fearing and useful men and women?
There is a host of other things to learn as well. Systematic theology (there’s enough there to keep you constantly in awe for the rest of your life!), finances and banking, how to keep everything in the home running smoothly together, history, English, a foreign language, herbal medicine, science, home birth, and even some carpentry skills will be found quite useful. And how are your communication skills?
How are you filling your invisible hope chest? Perhaps you haven’t started on it yet, but what would you like to fill it with?
Posted in Around the Hearth, Life Journal, The Notebook | 24 Comments
