Last night was the grand opening of a new gallery in the Linden Hills neighborhood of Minneapolis called Everett & Charlie. I have known the owner for a few years as she used to be an art buyer for another company that I had worked with. I bumped into her again at the Craft Council show in Saint Paul where I was an exhibitor in April and she invited me to put some of my work into her new gallery and of course I said yes! I have a nice selection of my handbags there so far and have also been invited to display some of paintings in the future. Here is a peak into the gallery which also turned out to be a fun night with my fellow artist and friend Heather and our supportive art loving husbands.

It's my favorite time of year and just a hint its not winter. I have been busy painting a garden in my studio and thought I would post an image of my newest floral called White Peony. It was inspired by a beautiful mixed bouquet of flowers with the center piece being none other than a white peony. This painting along with many others will be on display and for sale at the Edina Art Fair in Edina, Minnesota on June 1,2 &3.

It's that time of year again, meaning its Art-A-Whirl in Minneapolis. I'm getting ready to open my studio space to thousands of art lovers who stroll through my building to view and purchase artwork. This is the official kick off to the summer art fair season for me. The studio space is getting a thourough spring cleaning and although people want to see where we work I really want to save them from having to walk through the mess that creativity generally kicks up. I have been hard at work creating fresh new paintings and a variety of leather bags to have on display during this event. If you are in the Minneapolis area May 18,19 and 20 stop by my studio and say hello!

A little peek into the sewing studio!

This is my gallery space from last year. I'm not quite camera ready for this year yet but I will be by opening night!

Studio Address:

Northrup King Building, 1500 Jackson Street NE Studio 317, Minneapolis MN

I just returned from a visit to California. My family lives in southern california and I now reside in Minnesota so I only see them maybe once or twice a year. I forget how big California is and am only reminded when I have to get in a car and drive from one city to the next in that famous gridlock traffic. While I was on my trip I stayed with my sister and enjoyed playing with my two year old nephew who enjoys playing in his toddler pool and asking Google to play him his favorite German Pop music songs( his father is German born). I was entertained daily by his antics, his attempts to sing and dance and his morning greeting of, "Oh hi Christina." I haven't had a toddler in my home for a while, they are definitely full of energy. My kids are all older now so it made me a little nostalgic. My house is also so much quieter with no legos under foot and generally tantrum free. I thought I'd post this throw back painting for all of those mothers out there. It's called Seems Like Yesterday and was inspired by my own daughter. 

I recently took a trip to Paris with my daughter for the first time. It is such a walkable city, and we did just that we walked and walked. One of my favorite places was Tuileries Garden. It was just starting to come alive and became the inspiration for some new artwork. Below is the progression from  inspiration image to in progress painting. This piece still needs some work so stay tuned for the final outcome!

It's been a pretty snowy April in Minnesota and it has started to feel like spring will never show up. We just had another crazy snow storm which kept us off the road and indoors for a few days. The funny thing about snow is that the bleaker it looks  outside the more likely I am to paint something that will cheer me up inside. I also have a habit of painting over work that I am unsure about.... the painting in the last post is no more. I will give it another go but until then I decided to go into my comfort zone and create a market image. I love Latin culture and painting market ladies has been my go to for a while. This one was inspired a bit by Freida Khalo, so far there is no title but I'm sure one will come to me soon!

Welcome to the world of Urban Gypsy Design! This is my first official post on my brand new website. 

I love to travel when I am not in the throws of making or selling my work and I try to plan a trip to a far off place once a year. This year I went to visit Paris for the first time with my daughter and it was a blast. We spent a lot of time walking and eating. One of my favorite things to do is book a few tours to get to know the city a bit... I go into full on tourist mode! We went on a Paris by mouth tour which I fully recommend. We visited a variety of shops, but my favorites were the patissarie and the boulangerie. 

Everything in each shop lookd like a work of art and tasted just as good! Thus began the inspiration for a Paris foodie series which kind of piggy backs on my love for market pictures. Below is the first in the series! I will be adding the image into my print store soon.