Ranunculus #122

This truly is my favorite flower... I can't really explain why... Peony runs a close second...

Big Brush #121

 

    Still determined to conquer this rose.... ha ha

Dueling roses #120

      I found this at the grocery store today and decided I needed to challenge myself.   I was not happy with my attempt at them about 2 or 3 months ago.
    The rose is definitely the most difficult of all flowers for me to paint.  I'm gonna keep trying til I get it, though.    Bigger and bigger brushes are something I'm working on !
     As you can see, I did give it 2 tries !! ha ha

Girls bouquets #119

 

 

Here are both the little arrangements the girls had on their placemats at dinner last night...  such a fun family get together... Di made the lasagna and birthday cake, chocolate, of course... she did a fantastic job !

Spikey mums #118

 

 

     We hosted a birthday bash for Bus (aka Paw Paw) last night with flowers I bought to paint.... Grace and Kate had special little bouquets on their placemats, along with the larger centerpieces.....  Thought I'd better paint them too !  These were so different, but so hard to paint.... all those spikes !

Crimson pear with plate #117

 

 

An arrangement, once more, with my crimson pear.  The color is so fantastic. 

Crimson pear #116

 

     There was only one of these at the store.... It really grabbed me as I walked by it.  I've never seen a pear so red, or so shiny, and I had to have it.   It's lonely here, by itself, but it had to be painted... what can I say?

Dolly with mary janes #115

     This is an old school doll.  She's similar to one my sister had ( I wasn't big on dolls back in the day)  Anyway, I rescued her from the basement at an estate sale a month ago.  She looked pretty ragged, with a filthy dress (homemade, which I love) and grimey skin.   I cleaned her up ( that part was fun, cause I kinda talked to her the whole time, ha !)  and decided to paint her... Very big challenge to get her right and still keep a sort of looseness to the painting...   Well, I think it turned out, even though it got a bit more complicated that I had thought.... maybe I need to think ahead before I get into this kind of detail... Oh well, she's finished and maybe I'll do something simpler today... especially since it's Superbowl Sunday !!!

February Fun.....

     Since the 30/30 challenge is over, I've decided to work on a little bit bigger painting.  Actually 11x14 seems big to me, ha !  Here's a start on my latest.  I love painting baby shoes, especially little mary janes..... I thought the antique doll I found at a recent estate sale might be fun... I knew it would be challenging to get all those angles right !

Whew... It's been a busy January

     I've learned a lot during this challenge.  Several things stand out in my mind:
           1. Have fun with what you do.  It is always more enjoyable if you can make it light, and not get too stressed  about the task at hand.
           2. Mix it up a bit.  You don't have to have hard and fast rules for yourself. 
           3. Just the act of painting daily give a sort of rhythm to your work.  It frees up your technique.
           4. Try something new.  I've always wanted to try doing a palette knife painting, and even though I wasn't too impressed with the outcome, I'm glad I wasn't afraid to get out of my comfort zone.
           5. Even if you've not had much time to paint, get a painting started ANYWAY. ! (I mean, even if it's 10:00 at night )  It's surprising how just getting an idea down on the canvas can spark some energy in the artist... ha !
           6. Be kind to yourself... Every painting is not going to be a masterpiece, and that's alright !  You may just 'hit the ball out of the park' when you least expect it !
           7. Be diligent.  If you WANT something, MAKE IT HAPPEN.  You are the only one who can really discipline yourself...
           8. Think about marketing.  I've decided that 2013 will be the year I finally take that seriously.
           9. Enjoy the camaraderie of other like minded people.   Being part of this challenge has connected me with tons of wonderful artists on the blog and facebook.  It's so fun to see what they are doing and sharing my work with them.
          10. Let the people around you (i.e.family, etc.) see your passion for what you are doing, by making it a priority in your life.  People always spend time on things that are truly important to them.

p.s.  Remember to always say 'thank you' to those who are supportive !

Red-orange with hydrangea #114

     Just couldn't resist getting one more out of these flowers.... also, I couldn't resist this vibrant red-orange to go with them !!  Thanks to Leslie Saeta for hosting this wonderful challenge.....

Palette knife hydrangea #113

 

 

     Thanks to Leslie Saeta for her sponsorship of the great 30 Paintings in 30 Days challenge !  Also for my confidence to complete at least one palette knife painting during the challenge.!  I've been wanting to do one, but never got around to doing it. This seemed like the perfect time to try it.Thanks for the inspiration, Leslie !

Cropped JCS #112

     Changed the background to try these again.   A little different perspective and use of negative space.....
     They had a photographer at the Gala event the other night,.  Here is one of the 2 photos they took.....

JCS centerpiece #111

 

     This is the flower arrangement from the table at the Gala the other night.   I was wondering how to get the subtle off white of the flowers in shadow, knowing that there was not much color or contrast.  It was a challenge, for sure.   I bought a couple full sheets of matboard to use as backgrounds.  This periwinkle is one of my favorite colors !

Hyacinth tops in swirl vase #110

 

     Finally was able to get this picture on my front porch, which earlier was so covered in a sheet of ice.  These blooms separate as they age.  There are spaces between the smaller blooms that I didn't see before.  Painted this before my son and I went to this huge Gala fundraising Event for the Injured Military Heroes of  Iraq and Afghanistan.  It was so great to be part of it. My son was in on the beginning stages of this organization, called JCS (Joshua Chamberlain Society).  This year they had over 350 people attend.  awesome.

Spiral vase #109

 

 

     I always loved this vase, but I had forgotten about it, tucked way in the back of my cabinet.  My friends delivered it to me filled with flowers awhile ago when I was recovering from surgery.   It was the perfect fit for my double bouquet, I thought.  I did have to place it lower on my work table, though, so I had to try and work with the background, which was my horizontal shade.  I was worried about doing the shade, but then I thought maybe it would add some interest.... Well, here it is, and I like it  ! ha

Cropped bouquet #108

 

 

     For today's challenge I just picked a portion of the tulip bouquet, trying to make a composition without the vase.    It was challenging, alright.   I like the way the flowers go off the edges.  The soft inner colors were a test for my eye... ha ha

Forward reach #107

 

     These are the second batch of tulips I purchased at, of all places, Walmart.    I was at a friends the other day and she had the most gorgeous vase of flowers.    She had gotten them at the market at Walmart.... who knew that I'd be giving them good 'press'?.. ha ha 
     Again, they moved during the night (I got them started after dinner), but this time I made sure I had the petals well established before turning out the light !!

Tulip dance #106

 

     Still one of my favorite flowers.  These tulips had such a natural sway to them, almost a dance. (and I LOVE dance !)  Anyway, I started them late last night, and by this morning they had certainly changed positions.... just like a dancer to never stand still !     I love this goodwill rectangular vase, so much fun finding the values and reflections !

Hyacinth tops #105

 

     Smaller version of just the tops of these beautiful, fragrant blossoms.  They were tied together, and I just left them that way.  The color was so delightful to look at on this cold St. Louis morning.