Sundays at the Lake

Well, I guess I'm back where I started with this one. I'm trying to decide if I've ruined the sky or not but I'm pleased with the added dimension on the rocks and think raising the distant shoreline will be an improvement as soon as I put the trees back in. There's still a long way to go with this one so you can follow the work, make suggestions and help me decide when it's finished. Who knows, one of you may even buy it someday so speak up and have a say in how it turns out.

Outgoing Mail

The drawings you see here were each done on the lower left hand corner of letters I mailed today. I think the red one turned out the best. I did that one from a photo I took in my garden over the summer. The yellow one probably looks pathetic because I did it from one of the last surviving flowers in the front yard and it was in pretty rough shape.
I just LOVE that big set of pencils!!! I've got them in a bunch of beautiful glasses and vases on the dining room table so they're as much of a pleasure to look at as they are to use. I hope that passion, joy and energy shows in my work from time to time so people can enjoy it as much as I do.

Moving on

I showed this painting to a couple of gals yesterday and as I was answering questions about it the thought occurred to me that I'd better start writing down the stories behind some of these paintings.
After a decade or so this painting finally has a name. I'm calling it "Moving On" because it tells the story of the chaos and upset of leaving my first house after 22 years and how I got through it to the peace and quiet of the garden in my second house (shown through the window at the center of the painting). I worked on this painting on and off for several years from the late 1990's until 2007.
I'm very fond of it for a number of reasons but have no room for it so will be selling it as soon as a suitable buyer (and offer) can be found.

That's all for now - I've been Framed!

More of the same

I'm not sure where this painting is going but I DO know it's in NO hurry to get there. I added more shadows to the saucer and the creamer after this last photo but haven't had time to shoot the latest changes yet. Perhaps it's time to drop it in a frame and let it be for a while...

Full steam ahead!

I'm not sure just how many years I've been working on this painting but I know I'm not finished with it yet. What do you think of the changes so far? Current plans are to put it into a wooden frame that's about the color of some of the tea in the painting. The great thing about is that I found it at the sale for two dollars and it leaves the ornate gold frame that this painting used to be in for some of my better work.

Art Show

Attempting a sale these days is not an easy task so I was content to show a bit of my work and talk art and crafts with a few folks who enjoyed seeing it. Sure beats having it stacked away in a corner!

The Remains of the Day-torn painting saved...bits of it anyway

In the course of trying to work in a studio space under construction a couple of paintings have been punctured, torn and otherwise damaged. Today's solution for this one was to cut the canvas off the stretchers, remove the damaged bits with scissors and attempt to save the rest. It left me with 2 tiny paintings I was able to pop into frames from my husbands Aunt Evelyn. The project didn't cost me anything and was quite an improvement. Thanks Evelyn, I couldn't have done it without you!

Hawaiian Rainforest Stamp Page Projects

The stamps were nice but I just couldn't toss the rest of the page away without trying to do SOMETHING with them. So far the results are promising and I can't wait to see what I come up with next!

Playtime!

While cleaning off my worktable I couldn't resist turning this photo and these bits of scrapbook papers into some note cards. My room is still a mess but I'm having lots of fun and it will keep the mail interesting. Sounds good to me!

A Woman's Work is Never Done

It's been 14 years on this drawing and I still haven't decided whether to stop now or keep working. I could change the background or work more color into the flowers...

(tea) Time for a Change

I'm not quite sure where I'm going with this painting but it had gotten a bit beat up over the years and the weather was perfect to put a little time and attention into it working until the color balance in the background "feels" right...which at this rate could take years ;-)

My last Birdhouse this year