Laura Gaffke Studio

Sunday Slowdown 🌺

In Good Spirits

A slow afternoon.
Glasses clinking.
Something simple, shared.

This piece was inspired by a tradition we’ve held onto for 11 years—our Memorial Day weekend wine pairing party. A gathering that marks the beginning of summer, where everyone brings something to share… and somehow it’s always a little different, a little special.

This year looks different.

We didn’t gather in the same way, and life has felt a bit heavier. But this piece still holds what I love most about that tradition.

It’s never really about the wine.

It’s about the laughter, the creativity, the feeling of being together.

This piece feels like that, a quiet reminder that the most meaningful moments are the ones we create and share, especially in tender seasons.https://tinyurl.com/2c9d4wfu
💞

Sunday Slowdown 🌺

Watchful Eye

There’s a quiet sense of joy and peace in this painting, like everything in nature is being gently held.

What if we’re here simply to notice and appreciate life as it unfolds, even with all the ups and downs? (not always easy)

I have to trust that there is a season for everything and that something steady, benevolent, and unseen is watching over us…guiding, holding, supporting us, even when we can’t see it.

This painting is a reminder that you are always being held. It’s about hope✨✨✨

🌺 If this piece speaks to you, you can bring Watchful Eye into your space here: https://bitl.to/5iTl

A little light from the studio… 🌸

I’ve been noticing how much the smallest shifts can change everything—a new color, a different arrangement, the way the light falls just slightly differently than the day before.

It’s subtle, but it’s enough.

These quiet moments of beauty have a way of guiding what happens next…
in the studio, and beyond it.

I’ve been sharing some of my posie portraits and how they shape my work on a new page on my website, if you feel like taking a peek: https://bitl.to/5nSB

What’s something small that’s been catching your eye lately?

🌺 Slow Sunday....

I've been thinking a lot about how connected everything is.

When I look at flowers, I don't really see them as separate things. I see them leaning into each other, almost like they're communicating like good friends.

This painting is like a lively conversation, the kind where you want to stay up all night enjoying each other.

Whispering Petals is about that sense of togetherness~how nothing in nature feels fully isolated, everything is in conversation.

May you find a moment today to slow down and notice the beauty around you.

(🌺Whispering Petals has SOLD and found its way to a beautiful new home. Grateful💞)

Happy Earth Day! 🌍

I have a deep love for this earth.

For the way it shows up every day~the sun setting without fail, the flowers 🌺 returning after a long winter.

There’s comfort in that. And it’s so easy to miss those subtle shifts if I’m not paying attention.

So much of my inspiration comes from this🎨. Not just in the studio, but in everyday life and moments like this one.

I recently wrote a blog post with some simple practices, films, and ideas that have helped me feel more connected and live more in harmony with the earth. I think you will love it!

→ You can read my "Love letter to the Earth" & get the beautiful inspiration HERE--> https://bityl.co/PTpg

There’s a moment each spring when everything feels like it’s happening all at once…

The daffodils open faster than I can gather them, the weeping cherry tree blooms and lets go just as quickly, and I find myself wanting to hold onto it all—knowing I can’t.

These moments have been finding their way into my painting… and into how I think about caring for the earth in my everyday life.

Tomorrow, I’m sending a quiet Earth Day letter from my studio~part reflection, part inspiration with simple practices, films, and small ways I stay connected to the natural world.

If you’d like to receive it, I’d love to send it to you.💞

Join my studio letters, and I’ll share it with you in the morning 💌 https://bityl.co/RLIK

✨ Surrounded by Love ✨

On a gloomy, gray, slow Sunday, I wanted to share something a little uplifting. 🌺

This painting was originally inspired by summer light, warmth, and the feeling of being surrounded by life and color in the garden. 🌿

“Surrounded by Love” is a reminder that even on quiet or dull days, that sense of connection and brightness is still there—it just takes a different form. 🌼

If you need a little lift today, you can find it here: https://bitl.to/5onO

April 14 is National Gardening Day 🌿

I don’t think of my garden as something I “maintain”…
it’s where I go to return to myself.

To breathe.
To notice.
To remember that growth doesn’t rush.

There’s something deeply hopeful about tending even the smallest thing — a pot of herbs, a single bloom, a quiet corner of earth.

Lately, I’ve been noticing how a flower opens… slowly, without ever forcing its way there.

It feels like a lesson I keep needing.

I refreshed a favorite post to celebrate the season — with simple gardening tips, a few recipes, and bits of spring inspiration.

If you’re craving something gentle today, it’s waiting for you HERE--->https://bitl.to/5nx0

🌺 Slow Sunday…

Still thinking about Aruba 🏝️—the light, the color, the endless horizon.

Mind’s on a Permanent Vacation came from those quiet moments by the water… when everything felt a little slower and softer.

I’ve been carrying that feeling with me.

Take a moment, breathe, and linger here with me. 💛

Mind’s on a Permanent Vacation is still here in the studio, a small watercolor (5 x 7, matted to 11 x 14) if it speaks to you. https://bitl.to/3TSe

A little shift in the garden lately… 🌱

After a long New England winter, things are starting to come back into focus—color showing up again, light feeling a little different, everything softening into a new rhythm.

I love going out into the garden each day to see what's popping up and slowing down just enough to really see what’s changing.

There’s something about this time of year that always finds its way into my work.

Spring is a reminder that beauty doesn’t always arrive all at once… sometimes it’s already right in front of us, just waiting to be seen.

I’ll be sharing more about this (and a little studio + garden connection) in a blog post next week for National Gardening Day, if you feel like coming along for that... 🌿 https://bityl.co/MSbx 💌

What's your favorite spring flower?🌺🌸🌺