In a couple of weeks, Beloved and I are going on a much-needed vacation in our favorite spot in Mexico. I am so excited, I can hardly stand myself. I’ve been gleefully pawing through my summer clothes, and planning my resort-wear wardrobe, so these cheerful, charming paintings by artist Debbie Rose Miller are giving me life! Miller self-identifies as a late bloomer, at least when it comes to painting. However, like most of my favorite people, she’s spent her life creatively, from memorably decorating her living spaces to cooking beautiful looking-and-tasting meals, to mastering a selection of crafts, the detritus of which has filled her house and her life for years.

It was in 2016, at the age of 58, that the already-creative Debbie discovered painting. She started a daily painting practice, which inspired her to finally commit to an art form. Miller and her husband started a learning platform for arts education they called The Make Art University, and it popularity speaks volumes about the kind, patient, creatives who run the program. Let Them Make Art!

You can follow Debbie Rose Miller on her They Make Art University website and on Instagram.