CHARMING HEART

I know it's not quite the holiday yet, but I just love everything that comes with Valentine's Day, like those adorable cuddly stuffed animals, big, red heart boxes full of decadent chocolates and of course those big gifts that come in small packages! I have been working on a couple of ideas for my actual holiday posting. and this is one of the few.  Again, I really search to challenge myself to create something unique and not typical.
 This piece starts with my silver "I love you" heart charm that my husband gave to me several years to add to my charm bracelet. He wrote the cutest poem in the card he presented it in and it's one of my most favorites. Ralph and I are actually the hand models for this shot and our friend Joanna was a great assistant photographer to help me capture my vision.  I cropped it and painted the image with a mix of the Sargent brush and Jeremy Sutton's brushes. The framing is a mix of weathered wood look and a texture overlay combined. I wanted to keep it fun and young! Share the LOVE and please leave a comment. Click on the image to view it larger for more brush detail.

My New Year Painting Gets Pic of the Week!

GREAT NEWS! I'm so excited that my new year painting of Gigi was chosen for the "Pic of the Week" by the editor at Corel Painter Official Magazine Website! Check it out here http://www.paintermagazine.co.uk/ . Her painting is on the front home page. What an exciting way to start off the new year with my art!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy New Year! As we close on 2009 and move into 2010, I can only hope this next year won't go by so fast! It's amazing how quickly we move through the month's, isn't it?  I hope that the new year will be a transition to recovery for our economy, the housing and families affected.  I'm excited to start the second year of my blog and am excited about all the new things I am learning in the digital art field. I will continue posting more art and possibly some videos explaining my thought process for each new posting.  I hope that you will stay tuned and thank you so very much for your continued support! I truly appreciate all of you and your comments.
  I really wanted to create something different for the new year art piece. I've seen lots of clocks, champagne and a few calendars used, but of course I wanted to incorporate Gigi into this piece, she has kinda of become my muse. The "smile" is a result of a good long walk on our warm day and the color tones were an inspiration from images that I have seen for vintage, Wells Fargo Messenger advertisements. I experimented with the Norman Rockwell brush and as always used my faithful Jeremy Sutton's Mish Mash and Den's oil bristle brushes. I added a canvas texture as I went back and forth between Adobe CS4 and Corel Painter 11 as I do most often. Don't forget you can click on the image to enlarge and of course please leave a comment.

I STILL BELIEVE

Ok, I admit it.

I Still Believe in Santa Claus! 

  I love this holiday starting with the tiny colorful lights and special ornaments that I hang on my tree every year! Takes me back to all the years that I would write my list and wait with great anticipation to search for the gift under the tree with my name. My dad still to this day say’s “Hey kid, I heard that the news had spotted Santa’s sleigh on radar". Some of my favorite gifts that I can recall are a Green Inch Worm that I could bounce on and ride, a pull toy Digger the Dog with a cute little red detective looking hat and of course my first bike with training wheels! Not only do I love receiving surprises at Christmastime, I enjoy creating surprises for my family and friends and sharing in their excitement when they open their gifts from me, that’s the  Spirit of Santa Claus that will never end for me.

   But my most endearing memories of this holiday is watching, It’s a Wonderful Life on Christmas Eve. It’s not Christmas until I see this movie. It brings a smile to my face when I see George and Mary dancing and falling into the school pool underneath the dance floor and it still draws a tear when George realizes Zuu Zuu’s petals were still in his pocket and he starts running down the streets of the town and realizing his wonderful life has returned!

I get my love of movies from my mom and the lesson that this movie brings is one to never be forgotten.

  My dog Gigi was the model for me in this painting near our fireplace. This one was a bit more challenging as she hates to be warm and didn't like the fireplace so I was lucky to capture it in only a few shots. 

  In closing the Spirit of Santa is what inspired my painting above. I hope you like it and hope that it brings the spirit of the season and a twinkle to your eye this Christmas. If your in the holiday spirit please leave a comment!!!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.  Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.”   
Melody Beattie

Happy Thanksgiving to You and your Families! Although I won’t be fortunate enough to share this holiday with my own family this year, distance will not diminish my gratefulness for their love and support that I feel every day throughout the year. I feel so grateful to have such loving parents, a brother and sister that are more like best friends to me, fun loving nieces and nephews, friends I can laugh with, a husband who inspires me, a puppy that warms my heart and the blessings of having good health.

  Of course, at times I also experience stress and frustration but after “venting”  I always try to step back and remember the things that I’m grateful for. Feeling gratitude has really balanced me.

  I’m thankful to be able to have such creative software that allows me share my passion for art with you through my blog here and am thankful to all of you (my subscribers) who support me. I hope that my posts lift your spirits on those moments that aren’t as happy as others and I hope that you have so much to be thankful for this holiday season too! Share with me what you're grateful for this Thanksgiving in my comments below!

FABULOUS 40

 

 It's official. As of today I will no longer belong to the 30-something group. But don’t feel sorry for this now 40 year old… I embrace the start of my future ahead. I never really obsessed about what number age I am, but after a lot of self re-evaluation I realize this year feels different. 

  Of course there are things I’m not able to still do like I was in my 20’s but maturity has not only taught me the value of meaningful friendships but also brought a deeper passion for things that I believe, a deeper understanding of myself and a deeper understanding of the word “grateful” and I am grateful for those things simple things that are keys to a happy life..

   I appreciate my new “life lines” surfacing on my face because with each one I have a memory. However, I do admit gray hairs are a little more difficult to accept but nothing a little time at the salon can’t fix!

  I think Oprah’s outlook  says it all "At 40, something magical happens to you-something liberating and rejuvenating and exhilarating. You acquire a healthy disregard for what other people think. You gain the confidence to define yourself boldly and on your own terms. You don't accept anyone else's judgments but your own. In short, you stop living your life for other people and start living it for yourself. The force is with you because, at long last, it is in you."


 I have no desire to turn back the clock. I’m going to keep moving forward! I’m enjoying discovering who I AM and look forward to wherever my journey leads me because my eyes are much wider and my heart is much deeper. As one of my newest friends tells me "My Dark Ages are over and I am now in the early stages of my personal Renaissance with ongoing personal and creative revelation and expansion." That's what I was trying to capture in this image. I enhanced the lighting and added the canvas texture as you will see in detail if you click on the image to enlarge it. 

So here's to being a newbie to the 40"ish group.  I'm going to soak it all in! And of course if any of my "mature" friends out there has any advice, feel free to post it in my comments.  

GIGI TURNS 3

November is full of birthdays in my family!  Our dog Gigi turns 3 years old Nov. 22! I know what a lot of you are already thinking, and no I did not give her the cupcake!  If it’s not chicken….she won’t even bother!   I made sure to “take care” of the deliciously fluffy, whipped cream laced cupcake, myself. That’s what any good mom would do, right?

  It’s funny when I think of each new posting and what kind of art I will post here on the blog the overall photo painted image shape comes to me almost immediately. I knew I wanted to celebrate Gigi turning 3 and put her in a hat and have a side view of her looking down at a cupcake, but knew it would be challenging to find such a small hat so I compromised and bought a balloon weight holder that was covered by this pink “hat” you see.  I removed the weight and put a rubber band on it to help it stay on her head.

  I have always loved animals but it’s difficult to describe what this endearing, precious “little spirit” brings to our lives. Looking into her deep dark eyes, I see her soul. It’s hard to imagine that the full life we already had could be even fuller. Her quirkiness makes her extremely special and  a lot of her characteristics remind my husband of me! She is very independent but is starting to show more of her affection with “little kisses” once in awhile. Because we know she is not overly affectionate, we feel a little “kiss” on our noses means all that much more! Hope you like what I’ve done here. If you are an animal lover, leave your comment below!