Summer 2025 Recap
Summer is winding down and, as always, it went by too quickly. Here’s what happened this summer in studio/life.
Puppies! At the end of April we welcomed home two, 2-month-old mini poodles named Sam and Dean. They are siblings from the same litter, and give us so much joy. These adorable babies needed full attention and many walks around the pond. Mid July they were ready to go to daycare during the weekdays, and they love being there playing with other dogs. When they mature a little bit more they’ll be wonderful studio companions.
Miniature poodle puppies and their walk around the pond.
We had a lovely getaway to a lake cabin in Chetek, Wisconsin. Pontoon boat rides, afternoons reading and sketching, and admiring the sunlight on the water. That never gets dull.
The A-Frame cabin on the lake in Chetek, Wisconsin, United States
A highlight of the summer was a visit to Ovans Peony Farm in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. I gathered a wealth of floral reference imagery. More images here.
Part of Ovan’s Peony Farm in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin, United States
Also this summer I moved my studio to a different room in the lower level. If you’ve ever had to move studio before, you know it’s a real chore. But no complaints here! Now I have a bit more space and a view of the tree line and wild flowers. The wildlife moving past the window often gives me a delightful moment of pause while I’m painting.
A new studio room with a view. Deer and turkey spotted regularly.
As for art and design, this summer was one of productive pause. While I was on pause designing prints for the collection, while wrapping up admin tasks for the studio and caring for puppies, I was refreshing my painting skills with Natasha Gulliford’s Complete Compositions course. I’ve taken it before, in 2020, and learned many excellent lessons. Taking it now has been a great companion to get the brushes moving again. I’ll share more about it later in the year when the course ends.
A few good friends and I also began working through the book Color: A Workshop for Artists and Designers by David Hornung. We’re mixing paint (I’m using Winsor Newton traditional gouache) and creating color studies by hand. It takes me back to my college years and has been very good to slow down and reconnect with color and paint in this studious way.
Watercolor painting exercise of filler flowers from Natasha Gulliford’s Complete Compositions course. A hand painted color study of muted saturation and broad value.
Overall summer 2025 was a time for making space to reflect and reconnect to creativity.
Kelly x