I wanted to roll out the last two little artworks before October so that everything I have done is available for the shopping season. I call the last ones my Charming Snow Globes.
The first one was inspired by just about any farm you see, but in the south, I used sparkle instead of snow. The second one is inspired by the World Equestrian Center’s Chapel. It is really quite impressive inside, so if you haven’t seen it yet, I highly recommend it if the opportunity presents itself. They host weddings and the grounds are beautifully maintained. We are very lucky to have such a wonderful venue close to us that sponsors many events and host horses from all over the country.
The original paintings are on a wooden plaque that measures 6.5″ in diameter, so they are very small and tedious. The chapel only measures about 2″ x 2″, so much smaller than it appears. It was fun to do, but no easy task.
I will be unavailable to ship anything out from September 28th thru October 12th. However, any orders placed will be shipped out upon my return. I made them all available in plenty of time to receive orders for the Holiday, so please keep me in mind if you are looking for something special this Christmas!
I’m also adding the prints below from last year’s Holiday series and they are available upon request.
Please remember that the watermark I use in NOT actually on the prints when they are ordered.
These artworks can be ordered in 5×7, 8×10, or 11×14.
I have always had a thing for lamp post lit streets since I was a child. I love them in movies, in pictures and paintings, and of course, in every small town I have ever personally visited in my travels. It is fitting that one of the back streets leading into our neighborhood is lit by lamp posts.
A vintage lamp post, in my opinion, is the hallmark of any town giving it a genuine feel of warmth and welcome and distinguishes it from the ordinary. We have walked the downtown streets in too many towns to recall each and every one of them, but a few stick out in my memory: Bardstown, KY, Van Buren, AR, Elk Rapids, MI, Medina, OH, Roscoe Village, OH, St. Mary’s, GA and Mt. Dora, FL. I would also highly recommend St. Augustine, FL, the oldest city in America.
If you find yourself in St. Augustine, be sure to visit the active, working lighthouse and Maritime Museum at the north end of Anastasia Island. It is the first established in Florida by the American Government in 1824. Walking around this area at Christmas was one of the highlights of our first trip to the area for me because of the rich history and the decorations.
It is here in St. Augustine that my next painting combines a lamp post fashioned similar to the one pictured above with a farm styled landscape. It also features a small log home in the background, which is another thing I truly enjoy. I call it Lamp Post Farm.
Lamp Post Farm
My painting is very similar to an area near the Ocala Forest where you will find many farms buried deep in the woods on back streets barely visible to the main road. Most of them are behind beautiful and majestic gates, proudly bearing the name of their farm.
It’s ironic that we live in a state that is best known for it’s beautiful beaches and oceanfront properties, but after much more exploring in the central areas, you might be surprised to find miles and miles of wooden rail fencing, live oak trees dripping in Spanish moss, cows and horses spread out over miles of pastures and some of the most beautiful farms in our country. They are far less touristy and you will find that boots replace flip flops, Stetsons replace beach hats and a tractor just might be the cause of a traffic jam instead of the beach. It is the best of both worlds and is probably why people have been flocking to central Florida. This doesn’t make me happy, but I was once a tourist too. I just don’t want to see our farmlands being replaced with housing developments where they stuff them in there like marshmallows between two crackers!
This print is #79 and is available for order in 11×14 (8×10 or 5×7 available upon request).
My favorite subject to date for my Holiday series A Charming Southern Christmas was my husband’s old barn that he built with his Dad when he was just a young boy. First- because I have fond memories of that southern trip we made to his old homestead in West Virginia. Second- because a beautiful blond cow was staring at me from atop the hill while I photographed the barn giving the moment even more comical charm.
The things that tug most at your heart once you’ve reached an age over 60 is anything that reminds you of your childhood and simpler times. Before the days of cell phones and computers when you entertained yourself outdoors and played outside with your neighbors till dark. For some reason, this old barn encapsulates that moment when I could see my husband’s past come to light right before my eyes. That moment when the stories we shared about our childhood, when we were young and had our whole lives ahead of us- became a reality.
Growing up on a farm is in his DNA and so is this old barn. Inside this barn is where you would find two of the animals that were very important to the success of their farm. A work horse named Prince and a milk cow (presumably named Betsy.) They also had a large chicken house with a bunch of domino chickens to produce eggs and plenty of white chickens that ended up on the supper table. Across from the barn was a hog pen where they raised a couple hogs every year for fall that would end up in a smoke house, and eventually on the table.
This is what you called living off the land. This was life. You were poor, yet, richer than many. You grew your own fruits and vegetables, you needed a horse to help clear and plow the fields, a dairy cow for milk and butter, and raised hogs and chickens to put food on the table. And of course, you walked over a mile just to catch the school bus every day with chores both before and after school.
This barn is the reminder of simpler times, yet hard work and perseverance of a family. It is proof that you can do anything if you set your mind to it. It is the good old days and a stark reminder of the bad days you suffered through. It has weathered many storms and is still standing strong from over 60 years ago. That is what this barn means to me.
So I would like to introduce you to Prince inside the barn today. He was a big fellow- and probably not nearly as handsome as I pictured in my painting, but this is my rendition of peeking inside the barn and what Prince looks like to me. It is quite a plain and simple picture, yet so much prettier than an old barn truly is. It was challenging for me to capture the essence of an old barn with the warmth of “tis the season.” It is also safe to say that a Christmas wreath never hung by the entrance of this old barn with poinsettias down below. That is a little gift from me to his family to add a little charm and a bit of cheer!
Prince
My rendering below of the actual picture taken of the old barn entrance
Back home in Ohio where I used to live, we often drove past a farm on Route 3 where several Highlander cows would be grazing in a pasture. I looked for them whenever we drove by, but sometimes they were in the barn or out of sight. You will also find these types of cows in the Midwest, Texas, Georgia and here in Florida.
The Highlander is a Scottish breed of hardy rustic cattle notable for its long horns and long shaggy or hairy coat giving it the ability to withstand intemperate weather conditions. They are raised primarily for their meat because it is lower in cholesterol, but how often have you ever seen on a menu that their steak is a low cholesterol beef from Highlander cows? My theory on this is; they’re just too damn cute and no one wants to send them to slaughter!
Here are eight fun facts about Highlanders- which I have nicknamed Hairy Cows:
1. Oldest registered breed of cattle in the world
2. Nobody is sure if these cows can actually see where they’re going or just have 4 other sharp senses.
3. It is said that due to Queen Victoria preferring the red colored cattle, selective breeding of the reddish color is why we see them most often today. (I guess they’ve reserved black for Angus cows.)
4. If you were seeking to find them roaming in their native land in Scotland, you would have more success if you asked a local to point you in the direction of the “Hairy Coos.”
5. The Queen has her own herd of Hairy Coos, as it is rumored to be the only kind of beef she will eat.
So I bring to you my version of a Merry Hairy Cow in my latest painting and hope you will enjoy him. I call it a “him” because I gave him a Santa’s hat and I believe that Santa is a he- not a she or some other gender; assigned or unassigned. Yes, that is my serving of sarcasm. Santa Claus was, is and always will be a man no matter how else you or anyone else would like to picture him. NO woman would ever want a pot belly that shakes like a bowl full of jelly! Period. The END.
Remember to visit LT Gallery by clicking on the menu if you would like to purchase an artwork. This will be available with 3 background colors in 8×10 or 11×14. The 5×7 would have no background matting. This would make a wonderful gift to someone you know that is inspired by the Cow. Or perhaps one of my other Holiday paintings featuring small town charm.
11×14 prints are $60.00 (comes with backing board and packaged in resealable clear plastic)
8×10 prints are $40.00 (comes with backing board and packaged in resealable clear plastic)
5×7 prints are $20.00 (comes with backing board- and packaged in resealable clear plastic)
I offer interactive artwork with Old Florida Charm. What is interactive art you ask?
It’s the nickname I have given certain paintings where I swap out a few natural elements I use for dimension (and what my clients have grown to enjoy about my artworks.) It is a form of communication between us and gives me feedback for future artwork. It gives my customers some choices to personalize my art to their liking and to specific colors of the season.
The third painting I introduced today in my Southern Charming Christmas series is one of my interactive pieces.
One of my favorite charming little towns that I have written about recently during our day tripping is called Micanopy (pronounced- mic uh no pee). It is reported to be the oldest inland town in Florida known as “The Little Town that Time Forgot.” If you were walking down Cholokka Blvd past the antique shops to the Herlong Mansion B&B, you would walk past an antique rustic carriage that was once a beautiful Surrey (I imagine with fringe on top) drawn by one or two horses and very elegant in the 19th Century. I don’t know any history on this antique sitting in the woods, but I am calling my painting Hidden Charm, as it is almost hidden now in the brush and probably many years later after the photo below was taken.
I love this classic carriage and wanted to make it the subject of my painting, along with the Herlong Mansion in the background.
The dried leaf is one that I picked up in a campground in Max Meadows, VA from a Sweetgum tree. The acorns are from Ohio, along with the miniature pinecones from our seasonal summer campground.
I picked up so many natural elements in our travels that my husband gave me a storage compartment (referred to as the basement in our motorhome) so I could store them as we traveled for future artwork. He always said “I’m probably carting around an extra 25 lbs of seashells. What are you going to do with all that stuff?” I answered “I’m not sure, but I do have ideas.”
I still have some of those items from our first trip to Key West in 2013, but I think I am long overdue to return to the island and stock up!
These prints can be purchased on this blog by clicking on the Menu and LT Gallery
If you follow my Blog, you know that I have recently introduced 2 of my artworks from the new Holiday series called Southern Charming Christmas.
I thought since I have an established following on this blog site that this would be the best place to show the pieces, but I also invested a tremendous amount of time researching E-Commerce sites to possibly open a storefront online business.
Well let me share with you what an enlightening experience it has been just in case you might have the same idea for something you want to sell.
First thing is; you need to establish a name for your company or for what services you’ll provide. I’m an acrylic artist and found out that there is another artist and writer with the exact same first & last name- which complicated the very first step for me. I have been going by “LT Land & Sea”, but I Googled Land & Sea artists and so many others show up! I don’t need to be invisible among such a large group of artists, so for now, it’s just LT Gallery. I use my initials for all my paintings, so there’s that.
Next; you need to decide if you want to be a sole-proprietor, LLC, Corporation, etc. that requires paying Uncle Sam his fair share of whatever money you make. If you skip this step, you could end up surprised by unexpected tax issues, so I chose sole proprietor and I will receive a 1099 in the event I make any profit. Ok. Got the complex part figured out. Did I mention it’s the only option without associated fees?
People ask me all the time if I do Art/Craft Fairs to sell my art as a Vendor. Well, if you want to do it correctly, you need to have an inventory of product, a credit card reader, a TIN (Tax Identification Number), and a vendor’s permit for your state or a license- depending on where you live to prove you are legitimate. Then you have to pay for a table or a booth to sell from (some are mighty hefty). You better hope your first couple of shows are successful so that you can break even.
Building an inventory to load up your car with is no easy task. It is is exhausting thinking of all the work that needs done to turn a room in my house into a warehouse of art and the money I would need to spend stocking up on prints and merchandise without knowing who my audience will be or what they might be looking for. So I will try the online route with a larger audience and keep a very minimal inventory.
First things first; I need to have a constant supply and you can’t do that with just original artworks, so I needed really good photographs of my artwork to have prints made. That takes hours and hours of work, especially since the sun has not provided a good natural light source lately with our frequent thunderstorms and rain events almost every afternoon. Once I had quality photos and downloaded them, I spent endless hours researching companies that could print them on quality paper and that wouldn’t cost a fortune: Canvas Pop, Miller’s Professional Imaging, Bay Photo Lab, Candela Fine Art printing, LokTah, Finer Works, Printkeg, Blazing Editions, White Wall, Prints Giclee Shop- just to name a few. Keeping overhead costs down is the key to offering an affordable and competitive retail price to my clients.
Once I picked a company and had the first 6 prints, I realized I needed to package them professionally, so onto another search for back boarding and clear resealable bags to place the prints into. Thankfully, I had a good recommendation that saved me some time.
“Now I’m ready to sell” I thought to myself. WRONG!
I need a venue (a website) to sell online and a method to accept payments on that site, so more research for the safest and best plan for a business site that I could set up a PayPal account on. I won’t bore you with all my lists and details, but I got tired after researching about 24 sites. Here is what I learned:
Don’t waste your time unless you have a bunch of money to spend on a great E-Commerce or storefront site! I upgraded this WordPress sight to a Premium site for now, which gave me access to a pay button.
Yes, there are a few places that are free, but free means fees or NO services without upgrading and the reviews were not favorable. (You get what you pay for; so pay nothing- get nothing.) You can pay a company a monthly/annual ($50/$600) subscription, or you can pay fees per every transaction. They can add up quickly because they are a percentage of your retail sales price and then some.
I am not impressed. My Dad always said “It takes money to make money.” It took me a lot of research to learn that he was exactly right even before the days of internet business began. Some things never change. The investors and web designers will be profiting from your talent and hard work from DAY ONE while you remain in a state of wait and see. Will you reach the right market, or make any profit after time and money spent, and do you have what the majority of folks are looking for? Wait and see, but they can’t lose. They have thousands of you that have already paid! The reviews of some of these companies can certainly give you pause to press that button.
I learned it takes four things to sell Art successfully online:
The right art gallery website
The right marketing plan
The right community (providing the right audience)
Guess what the forth thing is????? You guessed it! MONEY to pay for the online subscription.
Here are 10 things YOU NEED TO KNOW about me:
I offer affordable and professional artwork.
It takes me approximately 2 weeks to get it to you (if I don’t have it in stock).
I can offer popular sizes- 5×7, 8×10 or 11×14 on most prints.
I offer different backgrounds on some of my work giving you options to fit your home decor.
Some of my artworks have a matted look without putting additional dollars toward a custom job. All you need is a frame to fit your taste.
I have never had an unsatisfied customer since I started in 2013 selling face-to-face while camping.
I am well known to many in the RV world and Key West friends and family. I am considered unknown in the Art world (not in any Galleries), so I charge accordingly.
I have sold over 80 original pieces and around 80 prints and canvas artworks.
I’ve spent my entire life supporting the local small businesses in my communities, even when I traveled. I hope you will consider supporting the little art business I have and just tell me what it is that you’d like without me running a fancy storefront business that only puts money into the pocket of the website.
I am always grateful for the beautiful comments I receive on Facebook and would appreciate your recommendations to your friends and family to help me grow my audience. I am also open to any suggestions for something in particular you are looking for and thank you in advance! Also; if you have recommendations for a successful business site that you have experience with, please do share.
I will be showing my next artwork soon, but here is another view of The Old Barn my husband built with his Dad and my interpretation of it during the holidays.
Last week, I introduced the first artwork in my new holiday series called Christmas at Grandpa’s. This week I would like to show you my second artwork called The Old Barn. Click on LT Gallery (Menu at the top of this page) to purchase this 11 x 14 print.
#76 The Old Barn
The inspiration for this painting comes from two things: an old car photo similar to one I saw on a Facebook post combined with the backdrop of the actual barn my husband built with his Dad on their farm in West Virginia.
The story of The Old Barn:
When Roger and I first met, he took me to his family reunion the following summer in NC. I got to meet more of his family and hear childhood stories of them growing up on the farm. Times were tough back in those days and life was full of many struggles just to put food on the table and clothes on 7 children. His Dad worked in the coal mines and his Mom passed away when he was 10 years old, so life certainly was full of grief and challenges for his family. He planned to take me to see his childhood home in West Virginia on our return trip where I would meet his best friend, who now owns the property and resides there with his family. It’s not very often that someone can still visit their childhood home 64 years later.
He first took me on some of the smallest back roads of West Virginia that I had ever seen to view some landmarks and the coal mining area his Dad once worked at. I got to see his local post office, what’s left of the general store, the property where his school once stood, the cemetery, and of course, his house and the old barn. Something about this barn stole my attention as he told me a story of him and his Dad building it when he was quite young. All the while, I had the strangest feeling as though I was being watched and a bit distracted. And then the spying eyes revealed themselves to me as I heard a chomping chewing sort of noise coming from behind me. I turned around and there it was above me. A cow! A big beautiful blond cow was staring down at me while we stood below the hill by the barn. I snapped a photo of it to capture the moment, but it’s not every day that you have a cow looking down on you!
We had a nice visit before we left and I have fond memories of that first time seeing the family homestead deep in the backwoods and down in the holler.
I am introducing the first of my new Christmas Series artworks today. This painting has a special story behind it and I chose a special day to introduce it- Happy Birthday to my Husband!
This Country Christmas series features specific places or things in my life, all of which are in the south and in a country setting. You will also notice that there is no snow in the paintings, as we are in the deep south where we may see only a heavy frost a couple of times in January. I also did not use any seashells in these paintings, but the originals do have some special touches- like sparkling trees, wreaths or decorations. This painting is acrylic on a primed wooden plaque and prints are 11 x 14. There will be 50 prints available and 5 Artist Proofs.
The inspiration for Christmas at Grandpa’s comes not from actually visiting this old house, but rather, the many stories my husband has shared with me over the years. The only actual picture of the old homestead I had for a visual image is a small black & white photo that our Nephew had printed on a refrigerator magnet. (It was the only way we could enjoy seeing it in the small space of an RV.)
The Story of Grandpa’s House:
Roger’s Grandma & Grandpa lived on a hill looking down over the farm where Roger was born and raised along with his 6 siblings in West Virginia. His Grandma passed away in 1954, and sometime in the mid 50’s, the little house on the hill burned down to the ground while his family looked on helplessly from below. Grandpa moved into the house of his birthplace just further up the hill about a mile or so within walking distance.
It is this 1800’s house with no electric and no running water that I featured as the backdrop of this painting because it is so intriguing. I left out a few items that sat on the porch, but are faintly visible in the black & white photo below. There sat a gas powered washing machine, a wash table & towel for dirty hands to be cleaned before supper, and a #3 wash tub. Grandpa passed away at age 97, but his memory lives on in many stories.
Roger shared how he would sit for a time on the front porch with his Grandpa and how he seemed to have a remedy for everything. Who knew that chewing tobacco could help reduce the swelling of a bee sting or help heal a cut? Roger helped his Grandpa grow tobacco and vegetables in the garden, he helped haul logs with a team of horses, cut firewood and hunted rabbit, squirrel and deer. Most of his farming days were spent in some fashion working with his Grandpa.
This old homestead slowly melted away into the dirt and brush after Grandpa passed in 1979 and no longer stands where it once was, but the memories are tucked away deep in the woods on a hill in West Virginia. I brought it back to life complete with a 1950 Chevy pick up truck. Roger’s Dad owned a black one, but I imagined it as an old rusty red one to give this image some life for the holiday season.
You can purchase this print by clicking on the menu at the top of my page and click on LT Gallery. It is available in the actual image and also a Vintage inspired version. The Vintage print has a more earthy feel with green & brown tones, and the actual one is more cool with grey & blue undertones. Either way, I hope you enjoy the painting, and please let me know if you like it even if you don’t purchase it.
Thank you!
#78V Christmas at Grandpa’s (Vintage version)
My rough sketch drawing for the painting. Remember- the watermark LT is used for posting purposes only and not actually on the prints.
Grandpa’s actual birthplace homestead in the hills of WV
That’s what my Momma always told me when I was unsure of something I wanted to do. She always encouraged me to pursue what I felt strongly about, and that included writing. The only reason I haven’t tried publishing anything is that I never wanted to enter the game. Writing is a big business just like anything else and everyone wants a big bite of your business. Contracts, book deals and endless promoting of your stuff to everyone you know.
I spent the better part of my life selling for Corporations and promoting luxury goods, so I woke up with a number over my head for years. I used to always say to my Mom; “Some day, I’m gonna wake up without a number hanging over me!” That day finally came. I no longer want to “produce” revenue for any big businesses, so I share my stories here for free to anyone interested enough to read them. I pay a yearly subscription just to enjoy writing for those that love RV life, travel, art, heartwarming stories, and my humor served up with a side of sarcasm (my trademark!)
Making money is a necessity for everyone to live, but I have a hard time dealing with demands and deadlines that fit someone else’s agenda, so I march to my own drum these days. I do things for the pure joy of it without restrictions, and to earn some spare change during my retirement.
So just like my writing, my art never made it into any Art Galleries because I didn’t want to hike up my price for someone to take 50 – 60% of my money and tell me how many pieces of art I need to produce with a shipping deadline for their next show. (I know people doing it and it can be exhausting and stressful!) Your work is also at the mercy of a curator who may not deem your work acceptable for the gallery. So I continue to paint for my enjoyment and I sell a few of my artworks when someone says they would love to have a piece. It’s an enjoyable hobby with no contracts and sold without a gallery mark up, all for the love of creating something new and different.
I have finally stepped into the technological generation and can accept payments electronically for my art. It has been requested several times in the past, so I am willing to give it a try for my customer’s convenience. I will post my new artworks here in my blogs and tell you the stories behind the creation. It is always the story behind the art that is the attraction to it for me. It is that “something in common” or a relatable experience that creates the desire to own art or gift it to someone you care about.
I have added LT Gallery to the Menu at the header of my page for you to view some of my unique artworks and to make purchases when something tugs at your creative side. There is a PayPal button once you make your selection and enter quantity, but you must retain the number of the artwork and the quantity before clicking on the “Shipping Info” page. Shipping will be entered on the “Contact us” page that comes directly to me. You will need to provide the art print #, the quantity and your “ship to” address information. It’s important to note that I am not stocking all prints shown in my Gallery sight, so once I get an order for one, I will place the order with my vendor, and upon receipt- expedite it to you. Please allow approximately 2 weeks for delivery, but the Christmas series will be stocked and a quicker turnaround.
It is super simple and self explanatory once you click on LT gallery at the top of the page. You can contact me by commenting here if you just have any questions. Shipping is estimated at $15 – $20+ and I am assuming that cost and giving you FREE SHIPPING.
I will introduce my Christmas series of 8 new prints very soon. I already have 11 x 14 prints available for several of them and working on getting more. They are signed and numbered and professionally packaged. I may sell some original paintings if there is any interest. My rate is $2.00 per sq inch for originals and nothing is more than $200.
The artwork pictured below was a best seller and I am going to be offering prints of it once more, as it will make a great gift for the wine lovers out there with the holiday just around the corner! This was the first painting that I never sold the original- only prints.
It was displayed in a resort clubhouse for two years. When we moved into our house in 2020, I got it back from the resort and I couldn’t bring myself to part with it. It has found a home on our dining area wall.
The story behind it: A friend of mine, and true follower since day one, asked me once if I ever did anything featuring wine. We had met in Key West and I was known for my rooster artworks by many people. They called me the “Shell lady” or the “Painter of Shells” (which you have heard here before- the title of my unpublished book.) I told my friend I would let her know if I ever did something with wine. I ended up creating three wine and grapes artworks just for her, but I continued with the series due to demand.
White Wine & Grapes #56
“I was lucky enough to acquire three of Lorraine’s beautiful shell artworks of wine bottles, grapes and glass. One was for me, one for my daughter, and one for my daughter-in-law. We ALL love them! Beautiful and meticulous creations.”
For the readers that have been following my blog since day one, you know that I started writing this blog to share our adventures of traveling in our motorhome (thus the title, Six Wheels Down.) It’s been an amazing experience dating back to my first trip over a long weekend in August of 2011 at Mohican Reservation on the river in Loudonville, OH. We took our first big trip to Maine that September and slowly became addicted to RV travel. Our trips led us to our eventual snow birding over a period of five – six months during the winters starting in 2013, which gave way to full time RVing in 2017 after selling our home.
It was our goal in each location to find the most charming spots in every town that we visited that would eventually lead us to make a decision on our retirement place to call home. I would literally Google the most “charming small towns” in the states we traveled in and we would take day trips in our car to see them. As I mentioned in my last blog, I dubbed these little excursions as “day tripping.” We have continued this tradition even though we now live in a stationary location in Florida. I am only going to focus on the deep south for the purpose of sharing some of the most charming destinations in today’s blog.
If you find yourself traveling South and you have some time to enjoy local food and atmosphere, here is a short list of must-see towns along the East coast:
Savannah and Tybee Island in Georgia are quaint and definitely a good host to southern charm.
St. Mary’s, GA is well known for the beautiful Crooked River State Park, gateway to the Cumberland Island National Seashore- and Georgia’s best kept secret.
Amelia Island, FL is definitely fun to walk around. There is plenty of street side shopping and eateries. Our favorite casual restaurant with a view was the Salty Pelican. Fernandina Beach is beautiful (although there is a bare minimum of public places to enjoy the views.)
St. Augustine, FL lays claim to being the oldest city in the US and known for beautiful Spanish architecture. I fell in love with walking around and eating with great views. A day pass trolley ticket is the way to get around and will take you to the lighthouse location well worth seeing.
Ormond Beach, FL (just north of Daytona beach) with a drive along Ormond By-The-Sea coast. One of the more quiet and quaint towns along the beach and not as populated as Daytona- which is more geared to tourist activities.
On the Gulf coast, Panama City Beach and Mexico Beach (34 miles apart) are among my favorites in the Panhandle area of Florida. I am not sure what Mexico Beach is like post hurricane Michael (devastated in October 2018), but it was so quaint and far less touristy than the beautiful Ft. Walton/Destin areas and the water has the same deep emerald color with white sand as the Emerald Coast.
We also love the drive from Key Largo to Key West and it’s a must-see for anyone that has not done it. However, Key West is not a “family” destination, in my opinion. It is an adult playground of fun, food and adult beverages. If you find yourself there, we enjoyed the local hang outs much more than anything on the famous Duval Street. Fort Zachary Taylor State Park Beach is the best beach on the Island. Great local spots would include: Geiger Key Marina- The Fish Camp (bar & restaurant), Hogfish Bar & Grill on Stock Island, No Name Pub and Boondocks Grille on Big Pine Key. For downtown Key West, everyone loves the true experience of Blue Heavan and First Flight Island Restaurant/Brewery, but we also enjoyed the locals and entertainment at Schooner Wharf Bar located in the Key West Bight Seaport and the Boat House Bar & Grill. For the most charming parts of town, you have to walk or ride a bike all around the small streets and neighborhoods where all the houses bare the most charming verandas and white post front porches laden with rich lush foliage.
The places in the North Central areas of Florida have some of the most charming little towns that we visit on our day tripping adventures. Ocala is famous for the horses that are born, bred and trained in this region and home to over 1100 thoroughbred farms. I love the ocean and I love the countryside, so I have the best of both worlds within a 60 – 90 minute drive. The Ocala National Forest offers 387,000 acres of sand pine forest- the southernmost forest in the continental US.
I mentioned in my last blog that I was working on a Christmas series of paintings that I will be posting here upon completion. A few of these charming places will be featured in the series with a theme of Christmas. If all goes well, you will be able to purchase high quality prints in several sizes of the originals with the touch of a button on this website.
I hope that my paintings will stir a little something in everyone for the upcoming Holiday Season.
“Memories of the past evoke emotions in the present, which lend to future traditions.”
Six Wheels Down 