New girls

Earlier this week I mentioned that I sat down last Sunday and spent the day making a bunch of girls; they follow two themes so I’m grouping them as two sets of four.

Here’s the first set:

Clockwise from top left: receiving girl, faithful girl, worry girl, perceptive girl

Prints available in my shop now; I’ll share my other girls next week once I get my act together and get them listed for my shop.

Hope you all had a nice 4th of July; enjoy the upcoming weekend!

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Whimsical Wednesday: Girls in progress

As mentioned the other day, I took one night last week to sketch out some new girls while watching American Idol (I’m a dork) and came up with these 3 curly girls…as you can see, they are mostly in sketch mode still but the one in the foreground as least has a background and a dress…now for some arms…yeah, I forgot to include those!  (I told you it’s been a while since I sketched!)

A couple weeks ago I did some finishing touches on my latest sisterhood/friendship piece but still feel like it needs some work…words on the dress, something else in the background?  This is a 16×20 so it’s pretty apparent that there’s some empty space going on, so I still have yet to figure it out!

This is a piece I created a while ago, but never quite finished it, so here it is complete…now I have to scan it 6 different ways as it’s also a 16×20 and my scanner is much smaller.  Then piece it together, edit, then take more photos, then list…I tell you, so much more than just painting pieces in this business!

Remember that pile of paper pieces all over the couch and floor from the mayhem of last week?  Well I finally cleaned up…

But as usual, the dining room table took the brunt of all my projects in the process of being worked on, touched up or photographed.  A clear dining room table is reserved strictly for when company comes over and that’s a rare thing!

I haven’t been able to do any painting/creative work this week and not sure I will be able to.  I forgot how much extra work it is to hold down the “fort” and 3 ADD dogs without help, so days have been spent working to fill orders; nights are cleaning, laundry, dishes and more work.  I’m looking forward to when David gets back on Friday and think I just might put my shop on hold for a couple days just to reconnect with him and take a breather.

I have more pieces I’ve worked on, but I’m still sticking it out with licensing and need to keep most of my non-girl stuff under wraps for a bit.  But I’ll still try to provide glimpses of work each week.  Thanks for stopping by and take a peek!

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Who wants a cupcake?

So, I’m releasing another new piece I did about a month ago.  Also part of a series of cupcakes.

This collection is BRIGHT (and this one being the most muted one of them all)!  I’m not used to using this much color, but trying to push my creative boundaries (not to mention that most people don’t typically associate cupcakes or themes that include cupcakes with drab colors).

Right now I’m in Connecticut where my sister’s power was finally restored after 6 days without (still half a million without power in this small little state!).  I arrived tonight and in the dark, but it already looks like a warzone with trees down everywhere.  My sister said that her usual jaunt to my parents place 5 minutes away took a full hour earlier in the week as most streets were closed due to downed trees and powerlines!

I packed a bunch of sweaters, PJ’s and wool socks, but alas, they have heat now. This weekend we are off to our folk’s house to do some heavy duty tree removal.  It’s quite a scene in the dark (the entire lower part of their driveway is covered with giant broken tree branches and entire limbs are just listlessly hanging from the trees in their front/back yards and will need to be taken down by chainsaw).  I can only imagine what it’s like in the light!

Here’s to counting your blessings.  Safety of your family, a warm place to rest, food to eat, hot showers, and yes, cupcakes are a blessing too.  Sometimes you have to include the small blessings in with the big!

 

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New artwork! Loving Angel and Inspirational Hearts

Okay, so I was given the okay to start showing a few pieces here and there, so I wanted to share an angel I completed this week (one of 4 I created);  guess my Halloween inspiration is getting replaced by holiday (although these angels are year-round and not Christmas-specific angels).

I see this image being utilized by people who want to send comfort to others; I sell a lot of the goods in my shop to the cancer community or those who are trying to support those with cancer, illness, grief, so I thought this would be a great message to send to others.  Listed as a print in my shop now, but image can be used on cards, journals, magnets, etc. using the “Pick Any” option here.  I’ll be selling the 11×14 original down the road, so let me know if you want me to put a hold on it for you.

Last week I talked about the 8 hearts I created for my shop.  At that time, I shared 4 sacred heart images; here are the other four:

Hope you are all having a great weekend.  Come back tomorrow to see my Halloween costume for this year!

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Shop Update & a Sneak Peek

As mentioned yesterday, I’ve given my lil’ art shop some attention this week and added some new options featuring my previous works, including several postcards, magnets, note cards and yes, those collaged frames I’ve made eons ago!

And here’s a sneak peek on tomorrow’s post…yes, I’ll be sharing some new artwork just for my shop

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Unearthing from scrap piles

Sorry guys; it sucks not being able to share my artwork with you right now but it’s a necessary evil in order to launch a new portfolio for the Atlanta gift show in January.

But I’m still a creating fool…creating about 20 pieces a week (or about 60+ hours a week, not including working on orders for my shop).  It’s tiresome but exhilarating to be creating so much.  The house is still a crazy mess covered in paper piles, bottles of matte medium and tubes of paint…

Ah, but it’s all good.

I’m pushing past my creative boundaries and trying bright colors…

But still sticking to my earthy vintage hues that I love…

Still using vintage stamps…

And trying new styles yet also keeping to my inspirational themes…

I was really hoping to create some new stuff for my shop but frankly, I’m running out of time, but it’s still a hope!

Thanks for following me along and as soon as I can share more, I will…promise!

It’s supposed to snow up here this weekend, so I’ll be sharing pics if it does!  Have a great weekend everyone ♥

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It’s all good…

in the hood?  Nope.  The sticks?  Nah, doesn’t rhyme.

Let’s just say this mountain girl is much, much lighter today.  It’s so challenging when your head and heart are in conflict and you’re unsure what to do.  So that’s when you have to listen to your gut.  I did that, made a difficult decision and wouldn’t you know that in response, I got the best outcome possible.  Relief.

This morning I woke up to it being only 40 degrees outside and all day today, it’s been in the 60′s.  I’m a happy girl.

If you’ve been following me for a year or two, you know that fall is my favorite time of year.  It’s definitely the New Englander in me.  And I LOVE Halloween.  So I’ve created a bunch of Halloween girls (though only 2 complete at this time).

This is Jack 0′lantern girl who like me can hardly wait:

And this lovely lady who is ready for the masquerade:

I’ll have the originals, cards, magnets, etc. in my shop soon, but it’s hard to keep up as I’m creating way faster than I can get all the possible options up.  So if you ever see a piece that you like but it’s not listed in my shop, know that you can choose any of my “Pick any” options and when checking out, let me know which image/girl you’re interested in.  Don’t ever feel like you have to wait for me to list something.  I make everything myself in my studio so I can make anything as soon as I complete a piece.

I also just finished another coffee collection, have a heart collection in the works and more and more girls.  It’s mayhem over here but I’m really enjoying all this creating.

Tomorrow I’ll talk more about my creative process, from sketch to finished product and now the extra steps that needs to happen now that I’m licensing my art.  Lots of new stuff I’m learning (and wish I had known when I first started mixed media!).  It’s all good.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

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Whimsical Wednesday: Coffee and heart collections

So during the Paintapalooza from the weekend before last, I created 2 new collections for my coffee and hearts series.

While working with an agent, I’ve learned that collections are a group of 2 or 4 pieces that are very similar in theme and style yet differ slightly.  So in trying my hand at this understanding I created the following 4 coffee pieces:

I’ll still probably add paint to the coffee cups, but wanted to make sure I had the “collections” piece right!  I think these will make a fun note card set and will be adding these to my shop (but each will also be available for prints/magnets/journals, etc.)

I was also encouraged to try some new fonts/techniques, so I created this fun coffee piece (the complimentary piece is partially done, so I’ll share it later).

This is not me at the coffee shop, but I’ve been behind plenty of people who order like this.  Eh, to each their own I guess!

Here is my attempt at a heart collection:

Tomorrow I’ll show you some attempts at a new style of girl (don’t worry, not replacing my current style of girl, just may be utilized as another line for a more youthful/younger audience). 

And perhaps I’ll show you my sketchbook; it’s been getting quite a bit of use!  Signing up with an agent and being labeled a professional artist (even calling myself an artist took a long, long time) has really inspired me and I’m just going to town sketching out ideas.  I even purchased over 200 canvases, that’s how much I plan on creating in the next couple of months.

We’re working out a lot of details right now, but once we get some of these things worked out, then I’ll be on an all-time painting spree and will probably have dozens of new pieces to share weekly, so stay tuned!

Thanks for taking a peek at what I’m up to!

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Whimsical Wednesday

I realized it’s been a little while since I created a cupcake for my cupcake series, and I found a great crown image that I wanted to incorporate in my art, so the Ruling Cupcake is what I came up with!

I’ve been wanting to make a heart with layered wings for some time, so I also created Winged Heart with french ephemera in the background:

And to continue with my Law of Attraction series, I also created “Life is a Mirror” Wings:

And remember last week when I mentioned I found some open frames at the antique shop?  Well I painted and distressed one of them and decided to frame my Intentions Girl piece, the only piece I’m not willing to part with, despite several requests to sell, as it’s such a personal piece.

I didn’t get get a chance to create any original ACEO’s, but I think I still got quite a bit done.

Thanks for taking a peek at what I’m up to!!

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Friday Shop Update – what’s on the horizon

One of our stops while visiting with family this last week+ was with my in-laws.

They are 80 and are in generally poor health, so there is not much that we do other than watch TV in a very warm house and go out to eat.

Rinse.  Repeat.

It’s a challenging couple of days, but one that forces us to really slow down.  Anticipating this, I brought my sketchbook, pencil and giant eraser knowing that I could sketch some girls while there, sketching that would just need paint and a background once I got home.  In less than 3 days, I completed 15 girls.  Holy cow, there are a lot of girls coming down the pike!

Here’s a sneak peak at just a couple…I hope to get at least two girls completed a week for the next couple of months now that I have them started and am home.

It was a nice silver lining to a couple of otherwise challenging days.  Stay tuned!

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