Spring Fling

When I first thought about naming today's painting, I was thinking about something with shoes in the title, like Spring Shoes, but it needed to be something that was fun. Then I came up with Spring Fling. Afterall Spring is a time of spring cleaning, out with the old and in with the new. These shoes look like they have been flung, and so the title seems to fit.



The process to create this one is pretty much the same as the last painting. Only the colors have been changed to protect the innocent. The size of this one is roughly 6 by 15 inches. It is acrylic on watercolor paper (Arches 140-lb. Cold Press)



I will be adding Spring Fling to my shop at http://dreamon.etsy.com/, where it will be available for purchase.

Escape of the Little Boats

This is my painting of the day entitled Escape of the Little Boats. They escaped off of my brushes and out of the bottles of acrylic paint and landed on a piece of Arches Cold Press Watercolor Paper that measures 8 by 16 inches. Now the little boats appear to be headed into cyberspace propelled by a vehicle known as my blog. So I say, "Gang Way," using a nice, nautical expression. Beware the little boats.

In order to create the escape, I first painted a gradated pattern of primary colors onto the paper. After letting that dry, I drew the foreground of little boats onto the paper. Then I used a techinique known as negative painting for the succeeding layers. This means that I painted the paper red and painted around the outside of the first little boats. After letting the red layer dry, I drew more little boats onto the red layer making sure to overlap the edges of the boats behind the first layer. Next I painted everything blue, again painting around the edges of all of the boats. When the blue layer dried, I again drew more boats. My next layer was a lighter blue at the top for the sky and a mid-blue for the water. As the paint was drying I blotted it with a wet paper towel which removed some of the paint and created some texture. At the end I added some finishing touches.

THIS PAINTING HAS BEEN SOLD. go to my shop which is located at http://dreamon.etsy.com/ for alternate choices. Enjoy!

Fun With String And Glue

So much fun today, making art!

I had been wanting to try this concept ever since I was introduced to it in a workshop. In the workshop it was presented as string between two layers of tissue paper. I wondered if it would work as string between a layer of watercolor paper and a layer of tissue paper. Eye Of The Ocean is the result.

The temperature of the piece is overall cool, and I wanted to add a splash of warmth as a focal point. I have spongy thing that my watch came in that makes a wonderful stamp, and I painted it and used it for the highlight.

I photographed this painting outside on the floor, and while putty isn't a horrible color for a background, I would like to see how it looks with other colors before making a final decision. I do think it should be floated in its frame, though. That way the strings hanging out on the side will show, and that's one thing that makes it a cool piece. In this photo, the strings show best at the top and bottom, but they exist on all four sides.

Eye of the Ocean is created on a 22 by 15-inch sheet of Arches Cold Press Watercolor. The materials used are gloss medium and varnish, acrylic paint, string and paper. When it dries fully I will use the gloss medium over all and take a look in a few days to see if I still want to keep it.

Finished Up One Fairy Shoe and New Art Too!

So this is how my Fairy-Kissed Fashion Slipper turned out when I got back into it today.

The background color is more of a burgundy than it shows in the photo. I needed to darken the background, because I noticed after studying it that the values were too similar. It helps to step back, in fact step away and take some time off, then come back with fresh eyes.

Also I had to go back in and work on the little fairy. I wasn't too happy with the way I left her last night.

Today I worked some again on a new "Fashion Diva." This one is on canvas, and she has a Western look. You'll get to see her when she's done. In the meantime, here is Adrienne, my daily art offering for today. She will be joining my Fashion Diva series section on Etsy.

Adrienne is a 15 x 7-inch watercolor fahion illustration with the line drawing done using a black Sharpie Poster Paint pen. The black on the sides is just Photoshopped in to make the illustration square, and I used black to make the paper look whiter. I need to figure out how to color balance the camera to make the paper look the color it is, but the illustration/painting is on Arches Cold Press Watercolor paper which is as I saw described somewhere else as "the good stuff."

Painting on lesser quality watercolor paper just isn't worth it. It makes this artist's temper flare to have to deal with paper that just won't handle the color like it should. Why risk a failure by using cheap, cheap paper? Not worth it!

Adrienne will be up on my Etsy shop (DreamON) this evening and available for purchase. Fairy-Kissed Fashion Slipper has now been sent up to Flourish Boutique in South Bend, IN for the grand opening in June.

Fairy-Kissed Fashion Slipper

This is my Fairy-Kissed Fashion Slipper. I must say it's still in need of some kissing. So tomorrow I'll be working on it some more.

I started with a 5 x 7 x 2 inch canvas which I painted with a red/brown mixture and textured. I had found a shoe that inspired me to paint it, and I thought pink with the brown would be an exciting combination.

Something in the texturing reminded me of fairy wings, and I was inspired to put the little fairy in at the left.

So at this point, I will have to look at the painting and see if the background is too busy, and put some final touches on the shoe and the little fairy.

I have sent this painting up to Flourish Boutique in South Bend, Indiana. Flourish opens early in June, 2008. Look for My Fairy-Kissed Fashion Slipper there.

New Art

I am going to renew my committment to produce a painting a day, or at least 4 to 5 times a week. Since painting and making art are how I came to have a blog and a shop on Etsy, it is now time to concentrate on making art. I intend to blog on processes when I find them to be especially interesting or helpful to me in hopes that someone else will try them out and find them the same.

I have been working on a couple of series(es) or seriae as the word police prefer. One is about martinis, and the other is Fashion Divas. I have found that Fashion Divas come in all shapes, ages, personalities and sizes. This seems to make them more interesting. The latest "Fashion Diva," who is I might add totally different from the previous four, is Thelma. I found Thelma when doing monoprints in a workshop.

How to Do a Monoprint Using An Old Painting and Some Acrylic Paint

The method is to take an old painting that isn't working and do a drawing or design on that painting with needle-nosed squeeze bottles of acrylic paint. Thelma was my drawing and Pearl is the monoprint onto Yupo (plastic sheet).

Step One. You mark your original and your monoprint with an "X" in a couple of places (which are matched by the "X") so that you will be able to "register" them if you print a second or third time with another color or design.

Step Two. You do a line drawing (black is a good choice) using the acrylic in the needle-nosed bottle.

Step Three. With your original on the table, place the sheet you are printing on on top of your original, and registering your "X" marks exactly matching the two sheets, lightly rub your hand around on the back of what will be the print.

Now you have two. You will find, with practice that you won't want to use the same pressure all over the sheet as you rub. You will also find that you won't want to try to do too much small detail, as this will create big blobs on your papers.

Step Four. If you are going to print again using other colors, let each layer dry first. You don't have to color all over your print, you might just want to do hair or another small portion and use just a small sheet as a blotter. You will need to do some additional artwork to finish up the background to your liking using additional techniques such as stamping.

Now I'm going to introduce you to Thelma and Pearl.



So, for today, here are Thelma (finished) and Pearl in her current state.

Two of the girls in the Fashion Diva series (Claudette and Marcee) are now available as reproduction prints in my Etsy store. I will post Thelma (original) today.



Right here: http://dreamon.etsy.com/

Purrfectly Devine? Must Have a Cat Somewhere?

"My full-time job is a special education teacher and I work in a grocery store deli part-time. My husband and I have one daughter who is pretty much on her own and planning to get married in 2009. We share our smoke-free home with 3 cats and one grandpuppy who are banned from the bead room," says the York, PA owner of Etsy shop, Purrfectlydevine.

Yes! There was a cat somewhere. I just knew it.

While the cats are in the other room, look what's happening (above). It's a beautiful necklace called Purple and Teal Sensation.

Reading her blog entitled Life As I Experience It, I gather it's been an awful winter in Pennsylvania this year. Now that it's March, soon the snow will end. That's the way it's written anyway. March is the threshold to Spring.


Shown on the right are the Jadite Earrings which have a matching bracelet in her shop.

Attention to the left ,where you will find the Victorian Inspired Necklace and Bracelet ebtw Spring Bouquet. Says the owner, "The lampwork beads with the flower design serve as the focal for both pieces. There are rose Sworovski crystal in 2 sizes, small green pearls, and larger mauve pearls. All metal is sterling silver." This piece is a part of the EtsyBead collection which is done to theme.

Be sure to look up Purrfectly Devine at these locations:

http://purrfectlydevine.etsy.com/
http://purrfectlydevine.blogspot.com/

Lucky Girl Trading Company - Make Every Day Your Lucky Day!

From Morrisville, North Carolina, to you comes Lucky Girl Trading Company. There are bounteous choices in this Etsy Shop. At left you see the Streaky Blue Gold Flower Pendant.

This pretty streaky blue fused glass pendant features a bright 22K gold flower fused onto the glass. But, should this one not catch your eye, there are 84 other Art Glass pendants in the shop!!!! And then, there are the Dichroic Glass pendants, of which there are 112 to choose from.

Shown on the right is Lucky Girl's Celery and Aqua Patchwork Pendant, an example of Dichroic Glass Pendants.

But should you fear buying a pendant and not knowing what to do with it, there are also 63 chains offered in different metals and leathers, etc., such as this one, the Sterling Silver Twisted Serpentine Chain of the 24 inch variety shown below.

Besides all of these things, one also has the ability to join the Jewelry of the Month Club for a period of six to twelve months and receive a piece of jewelry each month from Lucky Girl.

You can find Lucky Girl Trading Company at these locations:

http://luckygirltrading.etsy.com/

http://luckygirltrading.blogspot.com/

Berry Beads Brings Badge Bling

The owner of Berry Beads on Etsy, Rosi, a native of Long Island, NY, says "I have always enjoyed crafts and was encouraged as a child to make gifts and things by hand whether it was crochet, embroidery, drawing, what have you. My latest passion has been designing jewelry, specifically Badge Lanyards. They are fun to make and also functional. My other hobbies are drawing, digital art, photography to name a few."

Shown on the right is the Wearing of the Green Badge Lanyard. The term lanyard sounded familiar to me, but I had no idea what it was; however, I have seen people wearing cords and such with keys and badges hanging from them. I just didn't know they had a name. I've learned a new word today. This is such an attractive lanyard, as lanyards go. (There now I've used it three times. That's supposed to mean "It's mine," as in "Use a word three times and it's yours." Or so "they" say.

Here are some really cute and different earrings. They are called, Fishy Earrings. Rosi says, "They are totally formed by hand using silver artistic wire so each one is slightly different. But that adds to the primitive look."

This item is a zipper pull which is a very attractive way of dressing up your zip-up sweaters, hoodies and things. It is called, Butterly Bling Zipper Pull Charm.


To find Rosie and her bling and things go to:

http://berrybeads.etsy.com/
http://blog.berrybeady.com/

Katrin Lerman Jewelry

Katrin Lerman is originally from Germany but has lived in Massachusetts now for about 10 years. She graduated from the New England School of Art and Design at Suffolk University in Boston with a Degree of Fine Arts in Interior Design.

She describes her creative process in making jewelry as, "Naturally, I have lots more time thinking than creating and so my sketch book is filling up with ideas for years to come. I can’t wait to get working on all those ideas and designs!!!" It has been said that you should plan like a turtle and paint like a rabbit (Edgar Whitney), and I can well imagine that in jewelry design, the planning process is paramount also.

Fanciful --- Necklace with Silver and faceted Citrines (shown below)

Green Fortune --- Earrings with Silver, Peridot Roundels, and Faceted Lemon Smoky Quartz Heart Briolettes (at right)

The following describes how Katrin makes her jewelry; "All of my pieces are entirely hand made by me using sterling silver wire and high quality genuine gemstones. First, I create the desired shape/shell for a piece out of thick sterling silver wire. Then I string on the gemstones and wrap the entire piece with feet upon feet of thin sterling silver wire to give it a finished look. I add tiny sterling silver beads to the frame during wrapping to give it more dimension."



Philosophy--- Earrings with Silver, Rhodochrosite, and Faceted Labradorite Roundels (shown at left)

Please visit Katrin at these locations:

http://katrinlermanjewelry.etsy.com/ http://katrinlermanjewelry.blogspot.com/

and at this new Etsy shop she and her sister share:

http://kaleidoscopestyle.etsy.com/

Autumn Leah Re-invented, Finds Better Way of Keeping Baby's Legs Warm

Autumn Leah, a jewelry maker on Etsy, lives in Dallas, Texas, and has opened a second Etsy shop which has now become her main focus. She is now clearing out her jewelry inventory in the Autumn Leah shop, and offering Free Shipping on purchases of any two items over $15.

Says Autumn, "I still love making jewelry, but with soooo many jewelry sellers on etsy, I needed another outlet for my creativity:) Wangly Legs has definitely been that for me and I am excited to see where it goes!"

Enter, Felicity's Boutique

As the mom of an active baby girl, Autumn has found creating things for her is not only special, but also gives her creative insight to what other items are needed in baby wear. She says, "When my little girl started crawling, I got her a couple pairs of leg warmers to protect her knees when she was wearing onesies. I loved them!" She discovered, however, the price tag of ready mades was high, and the handmade leg warmers all had big seams on the inside that rubbed her daughters legs. So after searching unsuccessfully online for a pattern with no seams she created her own pattern!

Autumn says, "The cuff along the bottom allows the seams to be hidden away without rubbing baby or leaving nasty marks and they look SUPER CUTE too! Next, I needed a name. My husband and I sat down and he came up with "Wangly Legs" and I knew right away that it was perfect! I don't know why I just knew. I remember being a little girl and my parents telling me that I had "wangly legs" so I decided it would be the name of my new cozy leg warmers."

She says that since Felicity's Boutique has opened, the Wangly Legs are selling quite well. Great thinking! Find a need and fill that need: Always the recipe for success.

Visit Autumn at these sites:
http://autumnleah.etsy.com/

http://felicitysboutique.etsy.com/

http://autumnleahdesigns.blogspot.com/

Citrus Tree

Today's featured Etsy shop is Citrus Tree.

Featured photo at left is "Stormy Swamp." Says Stacy Beck, the owner of Citrus Tree, "This is a 'Through the Viewfinder' photo. The scratches, flecks, black border,etc will be visible on the print. These artifacts lend to the beauty and charm of each print.

I have used an old 'Brownie' camera along with my trusty Canon digital...this is actually a picture of what is seen in the viewfinder of the Brownie. ...using this method contibutes to the vintage look & feel of the photo. "

To learn more about TtV Photography go to:
http://jennycisney.1000words.kodak.com/default.asp?item=273519

Into the Light - Original Photograph - Card (right)



















BOARDWALK TO PEACE - Original Photography Fine Art Print (left)

Look for Citrus Tree Designs at:
http://citrustree.etsy.com/
http://citrustreedesigns.blogspot.com/