Envelope art

I've got several different sorts of pencils now so I'm taking my time trying them out and getting used to some of the new ones.

This little drawing went out on the corner of an envelope today.

Cheap envelopes are a bit difficult to blend colors on. Most of the time I'm just trying to make sure that extra color doesn't rub off them onto the rest of the mail. I just rub them down with a tissue or a rag to make sure that they're good to go.

Old paintings, new money and what's next

I sold a couple of paintings this week and can't quite wrap my head around the idea because the whole reason I started putting images of my paintings and drawings on products at zazzle is because I figured that people just don't buy paintings anymore.

Now I'm not sure what sorts of things to be working on so I think I'll just "play" with my flowers as I answer my mail. I'm reaching for my pen and pencils now.

Courting Inspiration and stepping into the flow

I don't do well with "real" life. When I'm away from my paints I feel awkward, underwater, and unable to swim though or around the obstacles, problems and bills. I can't breathe and know I need to get back to my paints. Some days when I'm not sure where to start I begin with my supplies. As you can see by the first photo, just sharpening my pencils can take quite a while and as I do it I begin to relax and think about the paints and where they'll take me today. All the  other photos are the same canvas panel at various points in the process so you can imagine how surprised I was to see that last one when I stepped away for a while. I'm not sure what I'll do with it (or to it) after I grab a shower and rest up a bit so if you like where it's gone, Stop me now! I'll check for comments before I go back to work.

Well, I wasn't sure what to do with that canvas board so I grabbed a couple of others and just kept working although nothing really emerged from it. I'm looking at it as a start to some backgrounds for this seasons floral paintings.

Extreme Scrapbooking

This poject started last summer when I grew this sunflower and shot the photo of it. Next I mounted it in my sketchbook and drew leaves around it in pen and ink.That was going well until some jello landed on the page and left a stain I decided to work over in colored pencil.This probably would have worked out fine If i'd stuck to one or 2 colors of pencils instead of the 14 I managed to get my hands on.
I think this one was saved by scissors, all I need now is a nice mat and frame to finish it off. Was it worth al those months of work? Probably not but each stage of the project was a good experience for me and I'm sure someone else will like it now that it's Jell-O free.

Big Hit at the Nursing Home

I have a lot of fun drawing flowers on the envelopes and more bits of flowers and leaves around the ones I clipped from the days"junk" mail . Now my cousin Susan tells me my "lumpy mail" is "a big hit at the table" in the nursing home she visits. It's been great timing too because this time of year there are garden catalogs in almost everydays mail so I promised I'd keep them comming and I'm already beginning to wear that new set of pencils down in the effort but it's fun to see the looks at the post office when I go in to mail them. For me it's the very best kind of art exhibit, more satisfying than "serious work" in a gallery setting and unlikely to be judged by anyone. Yes, I'm gutless but I'm happy and so are the folks that enjoy my letters and today that's all that matters.