My veggie valentine

How often do you get to follow a work of art from an idea popping into an artist's head, to watching a hand and a brush and a sketchpad doing their intricate dance (sometimes a Viennese waltz, sometimes the Running Man), to holding the finished product in your hand?

(Sudden internal query: Am I showing my age by mentioning the Running Man? Am I the only one who remembers that fine, fine creation?)

Anyway. I recently interviewed a group of artists who meet in a Mountain View apartment to paint greeting cards. Artist Jayme George, who has a fondness for carrots, decided to go with a Valentine's Day theme. I watched her painting a pink hair bow on the girl carrot's head and chatting away, sometimes seeking advice from her fellow artists. It looked like fun, like a writer's group. Only with artists.

After my story ran in the Feb. 3 Weekly, the artists sent me a thank-you note -- in Jayme's hot-off-the-presses new Valentine's Day card. I felt like I had been there since the beginning. Now I can tell everyone I am a true insider.

The artists, who call their card line Ella and Monk, are planning a spring show with other local artists at the Treasure gift shop at 151 Main St. in Los Altos from April 3-24. Call (650) 948-9900.

Pictured: "Young Veggie Love" by Jayme George.