2 new watercolors completed today

a few of my new collages

I've decided to start selling my collages at www.moderndesign901.etsy.com and have my other etsy store for drawings and paintings.

Pink Poodle

from my personal poodle collection

Poodle Gocco

I finally learned how to use the gocco printer today, this is what I made

Sneak Peak at Poodles...

This photo was for a sneak peak of our home on Design Sponge last year, I sure do miss my girly pink bathroom! You can see a few of the poodles here, will work on a display of them and take some better photos.

Poodles in Bubbles

Wouldn't you know, the same day this piece sold on etsy, a friend of mine said she would like to have it. I am working on some new poodles in bubbles and may end up doing a series of them. In case anyone is wondering, I collect ceramic poodles!

If you love creepy movies...

Check out The Night Porter starring Dirk Bogarde and Charlotte Rampling. Did Dirk Bogarde do anything that WASN'T creepy? The Servant was pretty darn creepy too.

Our Portland residence,,,

We love our new home in North Portland and just recently discovered our new favorite Thai restaurant in Kenton (less than a mile from our house), E-San Thai Cuisine on Denver St.

Jean-Paul's favorite from IKEA

We should have bought more of these, there is always a line of cats waiting to sit on this fur throw from IKEA that we bought to make the rocker more comfortable. My favorite thing there was the swedish meatballs!

IMPORTANT: this fur piece was labeled handwashable, DO NOT believe it, I washed ours and it looks awful now.

The Little Sparrow

I watched La Vie en Rose this morning starring Marion Cotillard. What an amazing and beautiful film, I must say I agree that she deserved best actress for her portrayal of Edith Piaf. I have enjoyed Piaf's singing for years and knew that her life was a tragedy but didn't know just how bad it was. I will probably cry every time I heard her sing now...

I don't want to work, just want to read this book...

I started reading this a few days ago and can't seem to put it down once I pick it up. I tell myself that at the end of this chapter, I'll get up and wash the dishes, do the laundry, etc. It's a great read and I can't wait to check out Mark Haddon's other work!

Her Head was Filled with....

New piece just listed today in my etsy shop. She looks so relaxed too...

We finally made it to Portland, OR

After almost one year of talking about re-locating to the NW, we've done it, we are now proud residents of Portland, OR. We love it so far, the scenery, the people and the weather and we've hardly left our neighborhood so far! Our cats have adjusted pretty quickly after only one week of being here.

I still can't believe that I'm not on some kind of weird vacation and that I am not going back to my job at Lakeview Personal Fitness in Birmingham! I miss everyone there but they will just have to come out and visit us. Pictures coming very soon. I also need to get back to doing my art on a regular basis. More art work to be posted soon also.

If anyone cares to see my online library, it can be viewed at www.librarything.com/catalog/viviennestrauss. It's a great website for those of you anal enough to want to keep up with your books and see what others are reading that share similar interests with you!