Day One Hundred-Twenty One

                                                             'Cherry Takeout'

6 x 6 oil on panel

40.00 + 6.00 s + h

     I started this last night, very late...  Just sketched in the shapes, and added the flat color... It was getting dark, and hard to see my exact tints and shades.  This morning the woman who is buying my table from Craiglist is coming in an hour, and I HAD to finish before I moved everything.  (We just purchased a new diningroom set, because we have a growing family and needed a bigger place to eat)  This table got moved into the toy room temporarily.  Anyway...  I think the highlights came out pretty good, and I was surprised at how much reflected light I saw when I really studied it...    I just loved this little container I found at the Container Store !  They had lots of different colors, too.!

Day One Hundred-Twenty

                                                               'True to Scale'

6 x 6 oil on panel

40.00 + 6.00 s + h

     While trying to come up with yet another still life arrangement, I thought I'd maybe do my Meyers lemons again, since they are still so beautiful, and I haven't eaten them yet !   I looked around the room (the baby girl's room, that is) and spied the girls' tea set that I found not long ago at a garage sale.  They play with it occassionally.   Well, I figured, "why haven't I thought of this before?"... The scale looks so small, but yet, that's the correct size... much smaller than my big ole lemons.   I think I'll have to be on the lookout for more of these to work with !   Each day, it seems, I discover something new that I didn't know the day before. ha !

Day One Hundred-Nineteen

                                                'Shawnee elephant pitcher'

6 x 6 oil on panel

40.00 + 6.00 s + h

     Oh my, Sandy.... could you have made this a bit harder ?.... I KNEW it was going to be challenging to get this little guy represented, because he's a bit unusual in shape, etc... but REALLY... did you have to put him at this angle?, and did you have to do him on a 6 x 6, where you barely had enough room to nagivate ?-- Oh, well, live and learn...   Next time, do yourself a favor, and 'simplify' a bit ! ha !
     Hope he comes across, because I have to quit on him... I've spent forever on that face ! ha!

Day One Hundred-Nine

                                         'Two's Company'

8 x 8 oil on stretched canvas

50.00 + 6.00 s + h

     This time I tried the orange wedges by themself  (no knife), and I like that look.   The plate really was plain, though, and I guess it lacked interest a bit.  It's also quite a bit softer than the other painting.  Maybe I'll try again and change the blue to violet or teal....Color is so much fun !

Day One Hundred-Eight

                                           'Surrounded'

8 x 8 oil on panel

50.00 + 6.00 s + h

     I found this cute pitcher, and again, I couldn't resist.   (I don't even look for the sugar bowls, I don't know if this had one or not)  Well, I loved the color, it seems as if it's from the 1970's or earlier, and I also loved the cool squared off shape.  I thought the color would go nicely with my shiny red pink lady apples. I always ask my daughter's opinion on paintings if she's around at the time.  She wants to see more of a connection between the elements in the paintings, and I know she's right.  Tracey's a photographer and has a particularly good eye for composition, so I value her suggestions on such things....The pitcher and apples are not 2 things that would relate so much... Oh, well, I'll have to spend more time on thinking about that too !!!

Day One Hundred-Seven

                                                        'Oranges on Orange'

8 x 8 oil on panel

50.00 + 6.00 s + h

     I haven't done oranges before, but watching other painters do them has made me interested.... I also like the way I have seen them cut into wedges... Anyway, I got these started last night, and this morning I started looking for darks and lights, and debated with myself as to whether or not to put the pattern on the plate. (it was solid white, with only the shadows added)  So I thought, "what the heck"  I'll add the pattern, because the plate was rather boring without it.  I did it, and was pleased with the effect.   Sometimes I seem to bite off more than I can chew... anybody else do that ?

Day One Hundred-Six

                                       'Two Apples a Day'

8 x 8 oil on panel

50.00 + 6.00 s + h

     Pink Ladies have these fabulous red skins.  The highlights are so visible that they are fun to paint, so I always really shine them up...  I added the blue color to make it interesting.  It's good to have these on hand to paint, because then maybe we'll eat an apple for a snack instead of another Christmas cookie !
   

Day One Hundred-Five

                                     'My Favorite Mug'

6 x 8 oil on panel

40.00 + 6.00 s + h

     My favorite mug says ART as you can see, but I'm pretty sure it was meant for some guy named Art... oh, well, I like it better than all my others.  The coffeecake was a home-made apple one that my daughter made for Christmas morning.  Such good accompaniment for my 'studio snack'-  I went to set up and found myself wanting to paint my snack instead of eating it.... Now I can dig into that coffeecake !! walnuts, too... yum

Day One Hundred-Four

                                                   'Merry Christmas to All'

6 x 8  oil on panel

40.00 + 6.00 s + h

     This little guy was a salt (or pepper) shaker...  I'm sure he would want to stand on his soapbox and declare it a Merry Christmas to all the art bloggers and the ones who are out there appreciating art as well.   Hope that all of you have a healthy and happy Christmas with family and friends !

Day One Hundred-Three

                                                   'Sour Company'

6 x 6 oil on panel

40.00 + 6.00 s + h

     Thought I'd experiment with the smaller canvas this time.  I kinda like the simplicity of this one.  The idea, shapes,and colors are limited.  It was challenging to find enough contrast, so I made sure the shadows in the bowl were plenty dark...

Day One Hundred-Two

                                     'Cream of the Crop'

6 x 8 oil on panel

40.00 + 6.00 s + h

     I love these colors together.  The little cream pitcher was an antique find while on vacation in Alabama.  It just seems I can't pass up a cute cream pitcher... go figure... I guess it's the shape, and the asymmetrical aspect of it that gets to me.  Well, this one had the color going for it too !  And I don't even drink cream in my coffee !

Day One Hundred-One

                                                         'Over Easy Please'

8 x 8 oil on panel

   nfs

     I've been wanting to try this, knowing it was going to be challenging.  IT WAS !   The colors are so subtle, and the edges so soft.   I know the highlights look too big, but that's what they looked like... maybe because the bowl was close to the light source.  Anyway, I'll try it again, but for this time they're nfs.  If I don't get another one done today then I'll post this for tomorrow...   (still have some last minute shopping to finish, plus both cars need stuff done)   I will try this again... Carol Marine makes it look so easy-- ha !!!

Day One Hundred !!

                                                            'Pear Twosome'

6 x 8 oil on panel

40.00 + 6.00 s + h

     Day 100 already.  Time flies, but then it seems as if I've just begun.  Trying to come up with new ideas is challenging, but the painting part if still really, Really, fun !  Hope I can continue for a long time at this, and learn as I go.   --- here's to the next 100 paintings ! ---

Day Ninety-Nine

                                          'Florida Conch'

7 x 8 1/2 oil on masonite

40.00 + 6.00 s + h

     This is the shell I bought for $5. at a garage sale.   It was $75. when the woman purchased it in Florida many years ago... I love the sculptural quality and coloring.   The newer ones apparently have a hole in them, but this older one doesn't.   I worked on a smoother surface than I usually do ( I found some masonite pieces at another sale)   I think I like the canvas surface better.   I guess it's all what you get used to.

Day Ninety-Six

                                             'Pucker Up'

8 x 8 oil on panel

50.00 + 6.00 s + h

     I made a new recipe last week, and had to go out and buy lemons.  (It had chicken, lots of lemons, and was very easy... just baked in the oven)  Anyhoo, I've been thinking I wanted to paint some, too, so I picked up some yesterday.  During the ride home, I talked to a friend on the phone ( I know, I really try hard not to talk and drive) but, it was funny, because she said,"Why don't you paint some lemons?"..I told her that was what I was planning to do ! ha !
     Also, I have a good friend that has a passion for lemons in her tea...   She loves lemons a lot, too !  She can't drink iced tea without about 3 lemons in it.  
     This blue bowl was the creation of a wonderful potter that lives in Illinois.   His daughter is a teacher at the school where I used to teach.   We used to go annually to his pottery sales out in the country.   His cobalt blue pieces were my favorite.  This bowl has an unusual shape, thrown on the wheel and then modeled into a squareish shape.... very cool.

Day Ninety-Five

                                                  'Tangerine, Embellished'

8 x 8 oil on panel

50.00 + 6.00 s + h

    All of the altered art examples refer to stuff being 'embellished'.. well, the reason I picked these various tangerines was for their stems.   It seemed as if every single one of them at Whole Foods had a stem... so cool...  I think they taste pretty great, too.   He's actually much bigger than life on the canvas, but just something different to try for a change.