The Golden Rule

I hope when you come to Red Hill Gallery you will find us to be pleasant and helpful. And happy to see you- because we are.



Horsey Boy by Shannon Peters - Original Painting 16x20

This week, one of my kids had a problem that required me to make lots of phone calls and visit lots of different stores looking for something specific. It was slightly stressful and at times frustrating.

Cutting straight to the point:

Kindness goes a long way. A smile goes a long way. In fact, even a FAKE smile goes a long way.



Parker the Pig by Cari Humphry- Original SOLD - Reproduction available

I talked to people whose job it is to help me, and they acted as if I was bothering them. This goes against everything our parents taught us and everything we are (hopefully) teaching our kids. And it annoys me.

Something is really wrong when a store clerk's kindness nearly brings me to tears! (That girl must think I am a nut case!) But that is where I was this week-on the verge!

So, today's thought is 'Treat others the way you want to be treated.'

I hope we are all practicing this everyday. Life really is too short to be a grump!

Okay, now that I've vented...

It would be great to get some comments from some of you. Have you been to the store? Planning to come but haven't made it? Love it? Hate it? Let us know. We are on facebook, so if you do like us, maybe 'like' us there, too. It would make our day!

In other news, we are working on a new line of t-shirts for the store. We plan to have kid and adult sizes in time for the warmer weather.



Toddler t-shirts featuring original art by 5-year-old Hadley Humphry

Other new merchandise is still coming in regularly. Our new candles in fun scents are in the store now.



Paint Can candles with Vintage design labels 



Well, come see us soon! Have a happy day!

Spring Cleaning & Stuff I Love

Even though it is still nearly a month until the official start of 'spring,' I have spring fever. I know I am not the only one, as evidenced by the fact that I have seen folks in public wearing shorts-who, by the way, would be my children if I would allow it, which I won't. (My grandmother always said you shouldn't wear shorts in a month with an 'r' in it. Lucky for my turkeys, I let that go in April and September.) While I have NO urge to wear shorts just yet, I am itching to open my windows and let in some fresh air, to change the bed linens from flannel to cotton, and to hide the coats and gloves that are still scattered all over the place.

So, I am going to start my spring cleaning before spring gets here.

In my heart I am a neat freak. Or maybe that is in my dreams. Either way, I know I have it in me somewhere to be that person who always has a tidy house. If you've been to my house, that might be hard to believe, but it is true. It is the goal.

Happily, right now my house is pretty tidy because I had company yesterday and we were out of the house most of today. I love having company. And I love having clean sheets on all the beds. And I love making lists.

Just for fun, here is a list things that I love:

I love pictures of my family.

I love dishes.
I love quilts (and all kinds of linens).
I love old glassware.

 

I love my kid's artwork.

And she's not a 'thing' but I love my dog. (and I am buying her some "Critter Repel" handmade soap!)

Okay, enough of this. Off to do what must be done- laundry. NOT on my list!

February, the beach, and Valentine's Day

So much for January being unpredictable. February just set some new records! Actually, February is our usual month for snow around here, but NEVER EVER have I seen anything like the snow we've had this year! In particular, last week's snow. I went to bed expecting a few inches and woke up to nearly 2 feet! It was beautiful and amazing and really wonderful. During the previous week at home due to only 6", I felt  frustrated and trapped. (I knew Target was probably open, but I couldn't get there.) But with 18"  of snow covering ALL of  Northwest Arkansas, I knew we were ALL in the same boat- nobody's going anywhere. Somehow, that made me happy. Maybe because I didn't feel like I was missing the fun somewhere else. (Am I totally selfish?) So, what to do with kids at home for days on end? We made our own fun. With four kids, you can pretend it's a party without even calling anyone to come over! We played Phase 10 (a lot), made  popcorn everyday, snow ice cream several times, and brownies and homemade pizza and and and...you get the idea! We fed the birds and we fed ourselves. I decided I would cook my way through the Pioneer Woman cookbook. Until last week, I had only looked at the pictures, though I have had it awhile. Anyway, Ree (the PW) seems like a kindred spirit to me and I like to eat, so...pot roast, chicken pot pie, soup, muffins- all good. The turkeys (my kids) are really hard to impress. (I only get 'Mom, this is really good!' when we have Hamburger Helper.) But they ate it! I also did quite a bit of on-line shopping. And, at some point during the week, I booked our family a house at the beach for a week in June.

Obviously, the idea that I had to wear a swimsuit to the beach was not really on my mind. Oh, but it is now! Just in time for Valentine's Day- the holiday of love and chocolate. :) I will eat chocolate, I'm sure ( I have never turned it down), but this year I am getting my kids wax lips. They are so fun and funny and I can't resist.


Well, it is Saturday night and nearly bedtime at our house. I will be in the store on Monday. The romantic in me hopes you all buy your love a Valentine. And the mother in me hopes it doesn't snow again till next February.

January is NOT my favorite month. In fact, I somewhat dislike it. It is cold and unpredictable and usually has nothing to look forward to in it. This year, however, January was actually kind of exciting: Cari and I, along with Cari's sister Cristie, went to Dallas to the buyer's market for the first time ever! It was really lots of fun. (Cristie is a buyer for a department store and has been many times. We begged her to go with us and help us- thank you Cristie! If we were dorks, it was not her fault.) As I said, we had lots of fun. The mart is HUGE

 and the whole experience was rather overwhelming. We concluded that we felt like we were at the world's biggest shopping mall, but unable to buy anything (at least, not immediately). Or like we were at a party we weren't sure we were invited to-in other words, slightly intimidated. Everyone was nice, but it was difficult to appear confident while trying to make so many simultaneous decisions: Is this something we like? Would it fit in our shop? Could we sell it? Can we afford it/ keep it affordable for the customer? Along the way, we were distracted by the popcorn, ice cream bars, dips, candies, and coookies. Honestly, I had no idea so much food was involved in these events! While we snacked, we were able to snag a few items cash and carry and ordered several items that will be coming in over the next month or so.

I'm completely satisfied with what we did buy, and I think RedHill customers will like it. Our shop is still so new, we are still working out exactly what we want it to be. Of course, we know what we want it to be, but a shop changes almost daily, and we want to make sure we keep it moving in the right direction. Overall I think we accomplished a lot- and learned a lot- and laughed a lot, mostly at each other. We will definately go again, and next time, we will go confidently and we will wear our comfortable shoes!

Craving Spring

I don't know about you, but the snowy weather has given me spring fever!!!  Just walking into the gallery puts me in a better mood because all the new inventory is just ALIVE with color.  There are so many fun things to brighten up your home (and your mood)!  Take a look.

These antlers would be perfect in a grouping on the wall.  These are made from REAL antlers, not molds!  We currently have 3 in stock: turquoise, red, and champagne.  We will have more soon, or if you would like a specific color, just let us know! 

We also have these great checkbook covers/business card holder combos.  We have lots of different designs,  and they are all super cute.  Every stylish lady needs one to jazz up the mundane tasks usually associated with checkbooks! 

Another great addition to our inventory are these adorable tea towels.  We have 2 different styles -- screen printed with various designs (such as bicycles, honey combs, and electrical poles) or accented with pretty spring colored fabrics and brick-a-brack. 

In addition to the new inventory, we've rearranged the store.  Come by and see -- you never know what you might find!

Artist Feature: Helen Eaton

We thought it would be fun to do a feature on each of the artists whose work hangs in the gallery.  Each painting carries a little piece of the artist within it, and we wanted you to know their stories!  We are starting the series with Helen Eaton, an elementary school teacher and Fayetteville resident who took up painting when her children learned to drive and she had time to learn something new.  Helen took her first art lesson, a 6-week Intro to Oil Painting class, in 2007 and hasn't stopped painting since!  Helen has always told stories through her writing, and now she is doing the same through her painting.  And we are so glad!! 

Check out our "interview" with Helen.....

RH: What is your favorite piece that you have painted? 

HE:  My favorite painting is always “the one that I just finished.”  I always love the one that’s still drying on the easel.  But, if I have to pick one that I never tire of looking at, it would be “Aspens in Autumn.” I love the big size, the colors, the shapes, and the warm, peaceful feeling it gives to my living room.

RH: Where do you get your inspiration? 

HE:  I choose to paint images that tell a story. I love to paint people (especially toddlers) from a back or side view who are doing something that they love – blowing a dandelion, feeding ducks, touching a butterfly, reading a book, climbing a tree...

 

I love to paint flowers or vegetables that I planted, watered, weeded, and picked myself.

I love to paint places that trigger memories of where I’m from, where I’ve been, or where I know I’d feel comfortable.

RH: What would you like to paint, but haven't yet?

HE: I want to paint a big tri-panel piece – a large piece that continues across three canvases.  I have kind of a vision for it in purples and greens, but I haven’t found the image that feels right for it... Maybe it will be mountains... or a bed of irises... or turnips!  I’ll know it when I see it.

RH: When is your favorite time of day to create your art?

HE: Evening.  But, really anytime that there’s not a long “to do” list of housework or errands waiting.

RH: Do you do commissioned work?

HE: Yes.

RH: What's the strangest request you've ever had?

HE: I painted the three portraits of someone’s pet monkeys.  Any truth about the human face or anatomy that I’d learned was skewed in a weird way to make this human-like animal... well, not human...

Helen combines her love of writing and painting in her blog, Art by Word Weaver.  You should check it out to see more of her work and read the story behind the piece.  Then, come by and see her paintings first-hand here at Red Hill.  We have several new pieces, including this adorable original that is perfect for Valentine's Day!

Happy 2011!

Happy New Year! I hope y'all had a great Christmas

and were able to spend time with the people you love.

The shop has been open more than a month and so far, so good!

We are grateful for the response we have had to what we are doing. We are still adding new goodies to the store, almost daily. We have lots of ideas and plans and are looking forward to sharing these with you in the coming days. (Along with LOTS of photos, of course!)

In case you didn't get one for Christmas, we still have some 2011 calendars.

There are super cute! and 25% off, too.

Have a happy weekend.

P.S. Find a copy of @Urban magazine to read an article featuring Red Hill Gallery's own Cari Humphry. One of her chickens even made the cover!