The idiom “spice up”, to no one’s surprise, means: “to make something more interesting, lively.”

We stopped in a fabulous cooking store called Surfas ( http://www.culinarydistrict.com/ ) while in the LA area. Shelves and shelves of spice mixes. Cool tools for slicing and dicing. I bought a bag full.

Despite mounds of work needing attention after a vacation I couldn’t help the urge to combine browned Chicken, tomatoes, onions, garlic, golden raisins, wine, cinnamon and cilantro, etc., etc., and a fabulous North African spice mix from Surfas.

It was just like having new paint, or a new brush, or some fantastic never-tried-before ink. I was “itchy” to see what can happen with new materials. (It was delicious, by the way.)

If I haven’t been in the studio in a while, or just feel uninspired, sometimes a trip to the art supply store is all that’s need to “spice it up”.

As the determination to “finish” work for the Open Studio can be felt in the air, there is a tendency to get tight and maybe a little stale. A quick fix, if the budget allows, may be as simple as a new tube of paint. (Not to tempt too much—Link to Jerry’s Artarama’s collection of fabulous, French, Charvin acrylics- http://search.jerrysartarama.com/search?keywords=charvin+acrylics&x=0&y=0 )

This week’s focus is works in progress.  If anyone needs more than a new tube of paint to get going I will provide a past exercise.