VBS 2009

I haven't been painting much at all lately...at least not fine art. I've been very involved in preparing for VBS at my church. We're doing Group's Crocodile Dock and here's some pics of the set that we finished yesterday. My friend Sarah and I work out all the design. I do much of the painting and delegate lots too. We have 119 kids registered, which is huge for our tiny little church. I think only 7 of the kids are from our church! Quite an outreach.

Happy Birthday America!

America the Beautiful

O beautiful, for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea.

O beautiful, for pilgrim feet
Whose stern, impassioned stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America! God mend thine ev’ry flaw;
Confirm thy soul in self control, thy liberty in law!

O beautiful, for heroes proved
In liberating strife,
Who more than self their country loved
And mercy more than life!
America! America! May God thy gold refine,
Till all success be nobleness, and ev’ry gain divine!

O beautiful, for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years,
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America! God shed His grace on thee,
And crown thy good with brotherhood, from sea to shining sea!

Faux Encaustic Experiments

As I said in a earlier post this morning, I've been reading about faux encaustics. I don't have all the supplies I need....oh yippie! More art supplies to order! But I decided to mess with what I have and see what came of it.

I didn't spend too much time on planning these small studies. I really wanted to get into using the mediums. They are both done on gessoed watercolor paper with fluid acrylics, acrylic mediums, Caran d'Ache Neolocor 1, cheese cloth and threads. The pics are by my sister, Roberta Fair. The first one is acutally not cut off on the right tree. I just took a crooked pic and ran out of daylight. On the second one, anyone know why the 'here kitty kitty? :)

Lots to learn here and several techniques and materials to try. And it's time to move to canvas. And bigger. EEEK!!!

Mixed Media Collage

Sunday I finally picked up a brush and have been sort of going nuts! I have only one finished piece to show for it, but lots of experiments in the works. I'm working on the faux encaustic techniques and have some supplies to get that will help, but I've got several little ones going that will be posted soon....if I don't wreck them in the process! Learning tons! More later...

This new one is a mixed media collage done on gessoed watercolor paper. It's 6 1/2 x 14 and is mostly acrylics. I've used several mediums, all by Golden, including a new one to me that's already a favorite, fiber paste. Cool stuff. It's also got garnet gel , coarse and extra coarse, and charcoal. The paints are all fluid acrylics. The photograph is by my sister, Roberta Fair, a fantastic photographer.

Lingering Muse

It's been several weeks since I've gotten my brushes wet. I've been in kind of a slump I guess. I've been really busy at work and church and dealing with some personal issues. My muse has not been gone, but lingering. So I've been doing what my friend Bob Hague says to do at such times....I've been reading my art books and watching my art DVDs. And it's working! I'm getting all inspired! Yippie!

I've been reading about encaustic painting and some of the faux encaustic techniques in my current 3 favorite books. If you haven't yet, check out Acrylic Revolution by Nancy Reyner, Rethinking Acrylics by Patti Brady, and Creative Paint Workshop for Mixed Media Artists by Ann Baldwin. There are so many cool things that I can't wait to try!

Congratulations Jessie!!!

I'm so proud of my wonderful niece, Jessie Fair, who graduated from Cornell on Sunday. She's one of the most talented people I know and I just know the Lord has big plans for her! Check out her fantastic tights on her new ShiboriLove Esty Shop. I love this picture of her taken by my sister and her mom, photographer Roberta Fair.

Waiting for Mom....

My babies waiting in the window for me to get home. By the time I got to the door, they were there waiting for kisses. That's Leapy on the left in the box and Sweet Face on the right.

My Annie

Today it's been one year since my Annie died. I still miss her so much and think about her all the time. I miss the way she was always with me, following me, never leaving me alone. I miss her sleeping on my chest every night. I miss her being next to my computer in her box whenever I was working. She was perfect in every way and there will never be another like her.

I'm very grateful for my new babies, Leapy and Sweet Face, who have done much to ease me through the grieving process. They are working hard to fill the void. I adore them and they're just what I've needed. I think Annie would like them. I can imagine her playing with them...she could be so kittenish at times.

Annie, I will always love you. My girl.

He is Risen!!!

Peep Surgery

Easter's almost here and while it is a spiritual holiday for me, I still love peeps.... stale ones. I usually open the package and let them sit for a day before I eat them.

One of my favorite websites is Peep Surgery. It's an oldy but goody. Make sure you check out all the phases. Too funny.

Afternoon in the Window

My babies, Sweetface and the Leaper, love to sit on the top of the cart in my studio, on the curtain, frequently changing position.

Here Fishy Fishy....

Had a good weekend painting. Got lots in the works in various stages. Finally finished one. LOL!



This one is 11"x14" claybord. It's another mixed media using acrylic inks, fluid acrylics, tissue paper and gel medium.

Forest on Fire

It feels like forever since I last posted! I've been in a really busy mode at work and church. I'm finally finishing up several paintings that I've started. This one is 12" x 12" on clayboard. It's mixed media using acrylic inks, fluid acrylics, tissue paper, and acrylic mediums. Here's a close up so you can see the colors in the darker areas. I did a smaller one like this that I gave away, not realizing it was one of my husband's favorites. I promised Gil I'd do one for him. Here it is honey!!!

On our art website, Painting Friends, one of our members, Desiree, set up a challenge for us.

She took a photograph and divided it into 10 sections and sent one piece to each of us who were participating. None of us saw the whole pic, just our piece.

We painted our pieces in watercolor and sent a pic back to Desiree, who assembled the final painting.

So here's the painting and the ref pic. My piece is the 4th one down on the left side. What do you think?

Check out this video from Nita Leland. I have her new book Confident Color and this is a taste of her upcoming DVD. Looks really good! Love the book. Love all her books!

My goofy cat, Moses, spent all of Sunday afternoon sleeping in the garbage can in my studio. There wasn't anything but paper stuff in there, so I just let him stay until he decided to move. :)

Another bunch of little mixed media pieces....

Here's some more. Making progress on finishing them up. Still have a few more to go! I'm learning a lot by doing these little guys.

These are all on 5x7 or 6x6 clayboard. I've used acrylic ink, fluid acrylics, tissue paper, cheese cloth, mica flakes, garnet gel and polymer gloss medium.

A bunch of little abstracts...

I've had a lot of these little guys started and am trying to get them all finished up so I can work on some larger ones. Really need to get my Etsy shop up and running to see if they'll sell...not to mention getting some room in my studio. LOL!

These are all either 6x6 or 5x5 claybord. The first one has wood chips mixed with gesso, cheese cloth, fluid acrylics, tissue paper, and polymer gloss medium. The rest are are fluid acrylics, acrylic ink, tissue paper, polymer gloss medium and a couple have gold mica flakes.

Acrylics...abstract and landscapes

These are all done on Aquabord or Claybord, 5"x7" and 6"x6". I've used acrylic inks, fluid acrylics, rice paper, tissue paper, gesso and polymer gloss medium.

I'm working on a larger one now and will be trying a larger canvas soon too.

Sandy's comment on a close up of my collage earlier this week led me to do another one of the close up...with a few changes and additions. This is on 6"x6" Ampersand Claybord. I used Golden soft gel, gold mica flakes, fluid acrylics and watercolor. I've embedded it with wire mesh, cardboard, pine needles, pine cone pieces and chain.

Made a change....

My friend Amelia, on Painting Friends, suggested something was needed to complete the balance. It was confirmed by Sandy Maudlin, who made what sounded like a good suggestion. So, I've added a short line on the right side, using some charcoal lines that were already there, and on Nora's advice, I added a bit more of the gold to the circles. The changes are subtle. I think they help with the balance while maintaining the tension that I like. What do you think?

My awesome niece!

My niece, Jessie Fair, is a senior at Cornell University where she is studying apparel design. Last November, this gown (top pic) that she created was awarded the top design at the International Textile and Apparel Association. Her award will be a two-week internship in London with renowned British designer Zandra Rhodes. Jessie is so gifted and I just know she's going places!!! I'm just so proud of her! Here's an article about Jessie and the gown. Cornell Chronicle Online.

This next piece is another one she did that just blows me away. It's one of my favorites. She recently started a business, ShiboriLove, where she sells one-of-a-kind hand dyed tights and accessories. They're gorgeous!

A couple of acrylic and mixed media abstracts...

I've been messing with acrylic mediums and having fun. There's so much that can be done with them...my mind is spinning with all kinds of ideas. These are both done on Ampersand Claybord. One's 6"x6" and the other is 5"x7". I'm staying small until I have a clue what I'm doing then I'll go larger.

The first one is done with Golden light molding paste and fluid acrylics. The second one is done with Golden soft gel, gold mica flakes, fluid acrylics and watercolor. I've embedded it with wire mesh, cardboard and chain. The third pic is a closeup of the chain section. IRL it shows up much more clearly. On both there's some iridescence that isn't showing well in the photograph.

On the first one, I know I've broken some rules with the obvious division and nothing except color to unite the two sides. I like the tension and left it that way on purpose. On Painting Friends, an online art community, some have commented that they don't like the tension and some do. What do you think?

On the second one, a friend on Painting Friends has suggested to put some of the copper color that's on the side side in the blue on the upper right and some of the blue near the green. I'm thinking of maybe doing just a touch of the copper on the second ring on the right. What do you think?

All this is so new to me, so any suggestions or comments are most welcome! Don't worry about my feelings! I want to learn! LOL!

A Couple of New Year kitty pics....

Gil was resting under the blanket and Leapy got all curled up in it. The ever jealous Sweet Face just had to join her. They're growing so fast. They'll be 9 months old on January 4th. Hard to believe. They're wonderful and we love them more each day!

I've decided to give them a place of their own in my studio. Can't fight them anymore! Hopefully it will keep them off my table. Well, I can dream, can't I! LOL! They love to look out the window and spy on our neighbor. Today it's all frosty so they can't see much, but they're loving it anyway.

Finally getting creative again....

My life has felt kind of nuts lately with colds and work. I'm on vacation this week and have finally gotten to a place where I feel like picking up my brushes and other tools and start painting again.

I've been reading books on acrylic mediums and have started to experiment. This is just a playtime ditty. The underpainting is acrylic inks on clayboard with squirts of alcohol. Then I did some stenciling, sponging, and imprinting just to see how they all would look. I used Golden soft gel, Daniel Smith iridescent watercolors, and Golden iridescent fluid acrylics. It was fun and there will be much more to come.....maybe even on this piece!

Which Jane Austen heroine are you???

I love Jane Austen, so when I saw this quiz, I couldn't resist. Sometimes I think I fit more than one answer so I tried it using the different ones. Both times I came up as Elinor Dashwood of Sense and Sensibility....a favorite! Think I'll watch it this afternoon!

Take the Quiz here!

More from the sketchbook....

I went to a conference the other day and sketched a few things on the table. Brought my paintbox hoping to use my new waterbrush, but I couldn't use it there...too close to the speaker! So I did the color when I got home.

I really love fall and am missing the colors already. Wish the season was a bit longer. That said, I'd rather have what we're blessed with than not have it at all. In the 70s I lived in California for at time and I was amazed at how much I missed the distinct season changes.

More from the sketchbook....

This first one I did in my sketchbook. I'm trying to just practice. I'm not worrying about doing it perfect, just actually doing it everyday!

The second one is on watercolor paper and it chronicles my day at Wappingers Jr. High School doing a Character Workshop for the 7th graders. They're always fun and these classes were particularly nice.

Sketchbook Journaling

I've been checking out some art journaling websites and have decided to give it a try. Today was my first day. My pastor gave a really good sermon today....just what I needed to hear after a stressful week and it inspired my first page. I actually did a preliminary sketch as he was preaching.

I plan to do as many days a week as I can. I'm not going to say everyday because I don't want to feel guilty if I miss one, but I'm going to try!

Pen/ink and watercolor on Arches 140lb CP 5"x7". I'm trying to not be really nuts about the writing...I have such sloppy writing that I need to work on it. I know I skipped a space on one of the words and the Scripture like is a little crooked going down the page, but who cares? Not me. I keep telling myself that!

Stubborn Kitty

Gil came home from work today and put the laptop away, leaving the case on the end table. Leapy has fallen in love with the case over the past few days and sleeps on it. Well today, Sweetface got there first. Leapy was on the couch, very annoyed. She finally decided to try to regain her territory. It seemed like a good idea, but stubborn boy that he is, Sweetface would not give in and leave, so they slept like this for a couple of hours! I just love these two so much! They're so much fun. They turned 7 months old on Election Day. Hard to believe! The time has gone by so fast.

Autumn Leaves

Fall is my favorite season. I love all the colors, the weather change, the scents. It seems that my body is programed for it. Maybe it comes from living most of my life in the north east. I remember when I lived for a short time in California, when September came, I was ready for autumn. I started craving cider and apples. I longed for the cooler nights. My friend, Carol, kept saying I'd see the change, but I never did. I was glad to get home!

This one is watercolor on 1/4 sheet of 300lb. Fabriano Artistico paper. After doing an initial wash in Quin. Gold, I applied paint to the leaves and pressed them onto the paper.

Coming out of my slump....

I've been in quite a slump lately. Not sure if it's because I've been so busy at work and with church stuff or if my muse has been on vacation. But it seems that it's lifting and that's a good thing!

This abstract was done on Yupo using fluid acrylics and acrylic inks. I really like the vibrant colors and there's more depth than the scan is showing.

1 Claybord and 2 Aquabords

I love autumn and burgundy and orange are some of my favorite colors for this time of year. I do plan to do some leaves and trees, but today was a play day with the colors. These all are a mix of fluid acrylics and acrylic inks. They all have a little gold sparkle in places from the gold acrylic ink. One has white webbing spray and one has gold.
5"x5" Claybord and 6"x6" Aquabord.

Yupo for Randy

OK Randy, this one's for you!

I mostly played and it's going to take time to get used to it, but I do think it's cool and will do more. This was done with acrylic inks and fluid acrylics and lots of water.

First Sketches

I've been wanting to start sketching regularly and finally took the plunge to get started. I'm working at learning how to draw as well and I think these ones I did today show that I have a way to go. :) I did the sketches in pen first then did some watercolor washes. They're fun and good practice I think. I'm going to start trying for at least one per day.

Sparkly Aquabord and Acrylic Inks

This is a 6x6 Aquabord that I had done when I first started using the Aquabord. I never liked this one much so I played around with some sparkly acrylic inks figuring I'd just bin it when I was done. You really can't see the sparkles in the pic too well, but it looks kind of cool IRL.

I haven't posted any paintings in several days because I'm getting several of the little abstracts and landscapes I've done ready to hopefully sell on Etsy. Had to varnish them and am photographing them again too. It'll be a couple of weeks before everything is ready to post.

I am working on a few larger leaf macros that I'll finish and post later this week.

Small Leaf Macro

I've been experi-
menting with Golden Crackle Paste. This was done on a 5"x5" Aquabord with mostly fluid acrylics and a drop or two of acrylic ink. I tinted the crackle paste with yellow and did the rest with washes and brushwork. The ref photo is one taken by my sister, photographer Roberta Fair.

My Father

This picture is of my father, Stewart Cole. It was taken in the early 1970s during his Tres Dias weekend (a Christian retreat).
Seventeen years ago today he died of an aortic aneurysm. He was only 63 and it's really hard to believe he's been gone so long. Sometimes it feels like just yesterday when I could talk to him and touch his strong arms.

I still miss him so much and some days I just want to be able to talk to him, run things by him and access his wisdom. Sometimes I talk to him anyway. It brings me comfort to think of what he would say or think about things.

I know he's in heaven with our Lord Jesus, and that brings me the most comfort of all, knowing with certainty that I will see him again. I look forward to that day.

I love you Dad.

Check out ShiboriLove.com!!!!

My niece, Jessie Fair, (pictured last) is a senior at Cornell University studying Fiber Science and Apparel Design. She just started her own business! ShiboriLove.com

She's offering one-of-a-kind hand dyed tights, scarves and socks for women, babies and girls. Here are some samples of the tights, socks and a scarf. Aren't they cool?

Check out her website! I just know she's going to make it big someday!!! Go get 'em Jess!!! ShiboriLove.com

Can't stop with these little ones!

This first one is on Aquabord and is mostly acrylic ink with some fluid acrylics too.

The second one is Claybord and is all acrylic ink.

I'm really having fun trying out the different color combinations and seeing how the inks work with the paints. Lots of ideas yet to try!

Mini Landscape

I just really love the Claybord. This one is a tiny 4"x4" I did to go on a little easel I have. It's fluid acrylics by Golden and DaVinci. Love them!

Claybords

These are both acrlyic inks and fluid acrylics on Claybord, one 6"x6" and the other 5"x7". The blue in the top one is more of a Prussian blue.... couldn't get the color just right in the pic. I really like the smoothness of the Claybord and how the paints and inks respond. The honeycomb effect was done with paper towels as I was blotting up some extra ink on one and dabbed it on the other. Didn't realize the towel had that much texture in it! LOL!

Doing a flip!

Nick Simmons said he liked this one better with the blue on top and I have to agree. What do you think?

Here are a couple I did last night. Both are acrylic ink on Claybord. I got some other colors in the acrylic ink and these were more experi-
mental than anything else. I am pleased with the first one. The variations and textures show up better in real life and the orange under the blues are quite vibrant. The 2nd one I can take or leave. LOL.

This one is the same colors as yesterday's but it's on
6" x 6" Ampersand Claybord, which is smooth as opposed to the Aquabord, which is rough. I only did one spritz of the alcohol. Didn't like how it responded at all. Same technique though, no brushes, just the acrylic ink the water spray bottle...lots of spraying!

Tonight I was making some pieces that I'll tear up and use for a collage once I get the new acrylic medium supplies I've ordered. I was using watercolor paper, acrylic inks, India inks, water and alcohol. I was really having fun spraying the paper, dropping in the color and squirting it more, rolling it around, hitting with the alcohol. Got some cool stuff.

So I find these 2 colors that I'm really liking together...Antelope and Indigo acrylic ink. I grab a 5" x 7" Aquabord and here's the result. These 2 colors only, no brushes used, only the dropper from the ink bottles and the water and alcohol spray bottles. What do you think?

Tonight's painting is water- color on Amper- sand Claybord, 5"x7". Sprayed it with water and alcohol. The Claybord is really smooth compared to the Aquabord and the paint responds completely differently. Love it! Ordered some more...and a few larger ones too!

2 more from last night...

I'm really struggling with getting good pics of these latest ones. And trying to get them more accurate in PhotoShop isn't working either. These and the one in the previous post are much brighter and more lively in real life.

Think I'm going to call my sister, Roberta Fair, the photographer, and go over for some lessons.

Another Aquabord Abstract

I'm still working with the small Aquabords. I'm experimenting with the various pigments to see how they work on the surface and with each other. This one is 5" x 7" and done with fluid acrylics and ink. Again used the water and alcohol. The inks were mostly sprayed off, leaving just a little wash of color. When hit with the alcohol, it reacts kind of like an oil slick. Cool.

Messing around with an old one...

I originally did this on Aquabord awhile ago. Pic here. The webbing spray came out of the can in a clump and for me, it really wrecked it, so I started spraying it with water and messing around just seeing how it responded. Threw in some more orange and yellow of some sort. Can't remember what but it's likely that it was DS Quin Burnt Orange and Quin Gold...favorites. Kind of turned it into a diamond shape and the orange and gold looked like fire. It was kind of cool. No pics.

I didn't really see me doing anything with it, so when I got some new clear stamps today, I thought I'd just use it to mess with them and see how they worked. That's why my name is in this. I had just finished the Blue abstract #1 I did with the fluid acrylics and had some blues left over. So I got out the stamps and the sprayers...both water and alcohol....and went to town. The more I played the more the color lifted...I used watercolor the first time....leaving just a little color. Got out more fluid acrylics and just played. Lots of water and alcohol. This is how it ended up. I really like some of the alcohol effects and I wish I didn't do the name thing. LOL!

Blue Abstract #1

Did this one yesterday. I used the fluid acrylics and lots of water. It's 5" x 7" and done on Aquabord.

I sprayed it with with water and alcohol (not in the same bottle). Oh yes, and it's got some gold webbing spray on there too...it stands out more and shines a more more IRL.

I'm really enjoying the fluid acrylics and am just using the small sizes to experiment and get a feel for them before I go larger.

First fluid acrylic abstract

I got a new DVD by Pat Dews, Designing Great Starts with Texture and Form, which is excellent and really inspiring. One thing she suggests at the end of your painting time, so as to not waste paint, is to have a sheet ready and do a start using up what you have left. Sounded like a good idea to me.

So last night I was working on my full sheet....haven't ripped it up yet. I've put some liquid acrylics on it to see if I could brighten up the dull, overworked area. It may be working. Anyway, when I was finished, I had a tiny bit of left over paint. So I took a 6" x 6" Aquabord, wet it down and literally slapped the paint on there. I sprayed it with some water and covered it with crinkled up waxed paper and put a make-up mirror on it to weight it down. This is what I found this morning.

I'm thrilled with the vibrant color, brush strokes and the textures. Really looking forward to going bigger on this and trying them out on paper, and being more deliberate in my design.

Getting braver.....finally

I've been really struggling with getting the courage up to try a full sheet, 22" x 30", because it's just so big!!!

Well, I feel good because I've finally given it a go. This is not a painting that will be finished because it's getting terribly overworked as I need to get some bigger brushes. I'll do that as soon as I get paid next week.

But I did have fun and it's a first step. The 2nd pic shows some waxed paper and cheesecloth on there to create texture. In the 3rd pic, I took the frisket off the house. I'll probably cut it up and use it in a collage or maybe use a section that's not too bad for another painting.

I'm looking forward to trying again when I get the brushes. And I'm starting to feel what Peg always says.... FEAR NO ART!!!

Arte y Pico Award

Randy Carboni, who I met on Wet Canvas, has awarded my blog with the Arte y Pico Award. Thanks Randy! He and his daughter are working on a draw a lime a day for 100 days project. Very cool. Check out Randy's blog HERE.

“Arte Y Pico” is described by Ana, the award originator, like this: "Basically, ironically, it translates into a wonderful phrase in Mexico, 'lo maximo'. It will never find its counterpart in English, but if it HAD to, it would be something like Wow. The Best Art. Over the top" How cool is that?

Here are the rules:

Pick FIVE blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material, and also for contributing to the blogging community, no matter what language.

Each award has to have the name of the author and also a link to his or her blog to be visited by everyone.

Each award winner has to show the award and put the name and link to the blog that has given her or him the award itself.

The award-winner and the one who has given the prize have to show the link of “Arte y Pico” blog.

Small Landscapes

Little 5"x7" Aquabords with mostly Daniel Smith PrimaTeks and webbing spray. The black spray is clumping way too much. Not sure why. I scratched some of it off with a scalpel. Not a bad thing because it gave me a new idea for more texture, but I'm still going to try a new can and see if it helps. Got to solve it before I go to the larger boards. They're too expensive to wreck! LOL!

My babies are becoming cats!

They're 15 weeks old today and growing like weeds! They've been such a blessing to me and have really helped me through this time of grieving my Annie.

Billy, AKA Sweetface by his mom and Billy Bob Boy by his dad, is a purr box boy! He's very affectionate and has started to drink out of the bathroom faucet, just like Annie used to do.

Abigail, AKA the Leaper, is such a riot. She does these amazing flying leaps and is so fast. She's soft and loves to cuddle. In this pic she's sleeping in the spot near my computer where Annie's box was.

It's so sweet that they both have done these little things that Annie used to do that I always loved. I'm so glad we got both of them. They're very close and are usually together, either playing or sleeping. They sleep with me every night, on top of me and sometimes under the covers. They've completely stolen our hearts!!!

VBS Day 5

Well it's over!
What a wonderful week we had. The kids all said what a great time they had and how they can't wait for next year....and yes, we're already thinking about it! LOL!

This pic is of the Daily Challenge section. Each day the children are encouraged to live out their faith using what they have learned. The next day, if they have done the challenge, the get to have a bubble coming out of the flask. Lots of good things going on here!!!

More videos are being posted on the Immanuel Church Blog.

We're having a special worship service and picnic on Sunday with our VBS families at a local park. Many have said they are going to come and it should be a fantastic day. I'll be taking my paints with me and should have some nice sketchbook/plein aire time with my friend Melissa!

Day 4 and VBS Videos

We've been having such a fantastic time at VBS this week! I've created a blog for Immanuel Church and I've moved all the videos to it and it's got a slideshow too! Have a look! Immanuel Church Blog The one from today, Day 4, called Come to Jesus is especially good!

VBS Day 3

Well hump day is over and it was such fun. The kids are having almost as much fun as the adults! LOL! I'm exhausted and off to take a snooze with the kittens! See the videos here. Immanuel Church Blog.

VBS Day 2

We had another wonderful day. We ended up having 109 yesterday! I'm in charge of the crafts and one of the kids drew this on the table today...warmed my heart!

VBS Day 1

Well we survived the first day of VBS! Not a clue how many kids we actually had. We had 115 pre-registered. There were some no shows and some late registrations. All I know is that there were lots there and we all had a blast. Here are some videos and pics on Immanuel Church Blog.

More Aquabords

Here are a few more little 6x6's abstracts done on the Aquabord.

All of them have the webbing spray and the first one is done with some of the Daniel Smith Primateks...just love those! The second one is done with some of the Daniel Smith quins. Love those too!

Getting ready for VBS!!!

I've been really busy over the past few days working on the set for our Vacation Bible School...VBS...that starts tomorrow. Here's the main portion of the set in the sanctuary. I'll post more pics on Pbase later.

We have 115 kids registered as of today. It's going to be a crazy week! But it's such fun and we all love doing it as much as the kids love coming to it! Pray for us!!! LOL!

Another on Aquabord

Here's another one on the Aquabord. It's also got gold webbing spray. I really like the way it absorbs water and how the pigments blend when working wet in wet. Going larger on this for sure.

Trying out Aquabord

These are little 6x6 abstracts done on Aquabord. I've wanted to try it and it's pretty cool. Lifts quite well with a scrubber.

I used some cheesecloth on the first one and the webbing spray (way too thick in the one spot) on the other.

Making progress

Well we're finally making some progress. Lukey, aka Big Fat Boo Boo, has been warming up to the kittens all week. Today Gil walked into the bedroom and found them like this. Now if only Moses would come out of his snit. He's still hissing...not that the kittens care! They so don't!

So I take Lily and Abigail to the SPCA yesterday, along with their other sister to be spayed. Go to pick them up and the guy said there's been some changes. I said 'what' ??? He said there were not 3 girls, there were 2 boys and 1 girl! EEEK!!!! Who are the boys????

Meet Billy...the kitten formerly known as Lily!

This was all pretty embarrassing because I worked as a vet tech for many years and have lots of experience sexing cats. Had them for a week and a half and just never looked! Took the word of the woman I got them from at her word. She was surprised when I brought her home a boy! What a day! LOL!

More Texture Experiments

I tried to paint with the kittens tonight for the first time and it was just not happening! Impossible! Had to kick them out of the studio.

I got some new Daniel Smith Primateks (just love how they granulate) and the new DB Sand and Surf Triad. Thought some might look good with the white web spray. I also used a sheet I already had sprayed with black and gold web spray...used too much spray on that one, but it's just an experiment, so it's ok. :) Used some cheesecloth and waxed paper on the last ones too. Here are full pics and some close ups.

A group of artists from the USA and the UK have pooled our resources and started a new art forum called Painting Friends. All of us have had experiences with various forums, some good and some, unfortunately, not very good.

We’ve learned lots from those experiences and have created a forum where we try to encourage each other to advance to the next level in our art, have demonstrations on techniques, offer serious but sensitive critique and get to know each other as friends. We’re not bogged down by unnecessary rules or expectations that we believe stifles creativity.

In the short time we’ve been online, we’ve grown into a warm, peaceful community where artists are having fun sharing their knowledge and stepping out of their comfort zones! Sound good? You’re welcome to join us!

Texture Experiments

Last night I was playing with cheese cloth, seeing how it responded laying it on while the paper is wet. Some I spritzed with water, some I dropped in more color. Some I washed away more color by spritzing when it was dry.
These were inspired by Karlyn Holman's book Watercolor-The Spirit of Spontaneity, which I just love. It's full of fantastic ideas.

I really like all the effects and I think they'll be really cool in a large landscape and mixed with other things like waxed paper and web spray. Because the cheese cloth is such a loose weave, I'll be able to move the fibers around into cool shapes, which I didn't do here. Think I'm going to try a landscape on a half sheet later today and see what happens!

Let's Paint!

There's nothing like kittens!!! A total distraction!!! This morning the girls discovered my studio. When I wouldn't let them paint, or at least chew on my expensive brushes, they sulked away to the box! LOL!

My girls in action!

Lily and Abigail are insanely playful and Gil and I are having so much fun with them. Here's a shot of them in action with a box I had today. Excuse the background noise...The View, talking about HIV/AIDS.

Imagine my surprise when I came home from church today and found Lily sleeping in almost the exact position as my Annie used to sleep, as round as she could be. She's a real cutie and woke me up this morning buy swatting my nose.


This afternoon as Gil and I enjoyed a movie, Lily and Abigail got comfy on the back of the couch. Every now and then they would rearrange a bit and fall right back asleep. I have a feeling they're so well rested that I won't get any sleep tonight! LOL!

They are getting more brave with the boys, who are still in a bit of a snit. There's less hissing and growling today, so that's good. Lily actually went nose to nose with both Lukey and Moses. Luke let out a huge hiss and Lily just sat right there and didn't budge. The guys are in for a challenging time, I think!

Meet my new girls....

Lily is in the front and Abigail is behind her. Both are about they same size and they're sisters. The boys are in quite a snit but they'll get over it! :)

Lily is very sweet and purrs a lot. Abigail is sweet too, but she's also tough and I see her as ruling the roost once they all get past the initial struggles and she tames the boys.

Right now they're sticking close to Gil, their new daddy. He's playing his xBox and they're sitting behind him and peeking out to check out the guys. It'll be a fun adventure! I was pretty sure I wouldn't get another black and white kitten because it would be too much like my Annie, but Lily really grabbed my heart today, so here we are! And I had asked Gil the other day about what if I wanted two! He said,"TWO!" Then he said, "I don't care!" He's such a sucker! LOL!

Getting my brushes wet....finally

Yesterday was 4 weeks since my Annie died. It's really hard to believe how fast time goes sometimes. I miss her so and still am not sleeping very well. The boys are trying to fill the void, but it's not the same and never will be.

I am trying to get on with life and have had a welcome distraction in the past couple of weeks. Some friends and I have started an art website called Painting Friends. I did most of the technical stuff setting it up and it was a huge learning curve for me, but fun. Most of us are into watercolor but any medium is welcome. We have some good demonstrations and challenges and we're having fun. If you have any interest, it's http://paintingfriends.com/.

I finally got my brushes wet on Sunday for the first time since before Annie died. It felt very good. I finished a painting I had started and did another one, both dandelion clocks. Ruth put a wonderful demo on Painting Friends and it was so helpful. I'm working on a few other paintings as well.

A week later....

Well it's been one week today since I lost my Annie. It's hard to believe that much time has passed. Much of it's a blurr and it's not getting much easier. I've stopped crying as much and that is good, but I miss her so much and have had trouble sleeping because she's not with me. Lukey, who we also call Big Fat Boo Boo, is trying so hard to comfort me and stays with me all night, which is so sweet. Gil took a video of Annie last March and when he told me he had it, I had to watch it. I think it was too soon.

My father died in 1991 at the young age of 63. About a year after he passed away, I had a dream....can't remember what it was about, but he was there. I couldn't see his face, but he was next to me and I could see his arm. It was thick, tan and the hair stood up. I recognized it immediately and touched it...ran my hands up and down it. I remember when I woke up that I felt so comforted just being able to touch him again.

Over the weekend, I asked God to give me a dream like that where I could hold Annie and touch her. He did. Again, I don't remember what the rest of the dream was about but I remember holding her tight and thinking that I wanted it to last forever. When I woke up, I felt grateful that God gave me the dream, but I was missing her just as much.

Missing My Girl....

This painting of my Annie was done by Jane, a friend from an art website. She captured her so beautifully.

I've never had a cat like Annie before. I've had ones that are very special, but nothing to compare with the depth of our bond all these years. She was always conscious of what I was doing. She could appear to be in a sound sleep, but if I moved or left the room, there she was, following me wherever I would go. She would anticipate my moods, comfort me when I was sad, stay by my side and care for me when I was sick. It's like she knew exactly what I was thinking all the time.

One of her many nicknames was My Girl. I'd be lying on the couch and she'd be on top of me like in the picture below, sound asleep and I'd say, "I love my Girl" and she would immediately start purring. She knew just what I was saying.

Today has been a hard day because I've been home working at my computer and her space seems so empty. As her cancer progressed, it seemed like she wanted to be even closer to me. She would come out of her box and sit in front of my keyboard, making it impossible for me to type. I'd just hold her and she'd purr so loud. I'm convinced that she knew she was dying and like me, was treasuring every moment. It was such a gift to me to have her do this. How much I wish she were here stopping me from writing this post.

Moses and Nort

Most of the time Moses, Annie's son, is a real sweetie. But, he seems to have multiple personality disorder. When he gets agitated, he starts to snort, gets fresh and growls. This behavior has earned his alter ego the nickname "Nort the Snort."

As I've been grieving my Annie, Moses has been some comfort, but yesterday when he was all love and purrs and all of a sudden, without warning, there was Nort, fresh and hissing! I know he misses her too but it's not a real comfort when he does that and it seems to be happening more lately.

So with all this going on with Mo, my DH, Gil, said if I wanted to get a kitten, it would be ok with him. Of course my Annie can never be replaced and I don't want to rush into getting a new kitten, but we are going to start looking and we'll get one when the time is right. There is a place where Gil delivers to that has several cats and often has kittens that Gil has said are really nice. So he's going to see if any of the girls are pregnant. I want a female when the time comes. We'll see.

Not getting any easier...

It's been 3 days since my Annie has been gone and it doesn't seem to get much easier. I keep looking for her, expecting her to be there and she's not. It's hard to get used to, especially at night.

This picture is of her in her beloved box, where she always sat when I was on the computer. I've filled the space up with books now because it's just too painful seeing it empty.

Moses, her son, was very depressed yesterday. Luke has been trying so hard to comfort me. It's really amazing how they know what's going on and miss her too.

One of these days I'm going to give a real try at painting her. The only one I've tried is the little sketch below. Once she got sick, I just couldn't do it. Someday soon, I'm going to try.

My Annie is gone....

My beautiful Annie is gone. Her cancer of the jaw finally grew to the point that she was beginning to suffer and I couldn't let her go through that. I had asked her to let me know when it was time and that's exactly what she did. Yesterday morning I just knew.

She was in her box that is next to my computer. She's had it for over 12 years and never wanted a new one. It's got duct tape all around it holding it together. She looks so sweet in it so I thought it would be good to bury her in it. I have a cat carrier that you can open from the top and side, so I picked up the box with her in it and put her in the carrier. She hates going to the vet and usually meows all the way there. This time she was pretty quiet. Once I got there, all signed in and paid, I sat down with her to wait. I opened the top and pet her in her box and talked her and told her how much I love her. She sat there purring away and she never has purred in the vet's office before. Once we got in the room, she was so good and so brave. She didn't fight it one bit and I just held her and kissed her and talked to her while they gave her the drug. It was very peaceful and I'm so greatful for that.

Gil had dug the hole on Sunday because I told him I knew it was getting close. I buried her in our yard and will get some plants this week to plant around her grave.

Now if I could just stop crying. I miss her so much. Last night was so hard. For 18 years she's slept on my chest every night. I kept waking up, looking for her and she wasn't there. I don't know if I'll ever get used to being without her. I love her so.

More texture experiments...

Here's another one...whole shot and close-up. This one has both the black and gold. The gold is just a little shine to it.

Texture Experiments

I recently got Watercolor - The Spirit of Spontaneity by Karlyn Holman.

She's got some very cool ideas for texture. One is webbing spray. I couldn't find it locally but did find it online. I bought the black, gold and white.

The second one was done with black and gold, the rest are just black. Each one has one wash and the last one has some water splatters as well. I'm going to add some more color and texture techniques and see what happens.

A quick little sketch while waiting for a larger painting to dry...
Thou shalt not fiddle!

I've been playing with color, layering and texture today. This is a tiny 4"x6" I did while testing colors for the larger ones I'm working on. Kind of liked it!

Playing with the color has lifted my spirits and distracted me today as I've been watching my Annie. She's still holding her own, but getting slower and sleeping more. It's really hard when I think I've made the decision and then she rallies again. When she sleeps on my chest and purrs away, I just can't do it. I'm still praying that God just takes her when it's time.

My girl had a good day yesterday. It's really amazing to me how she perked up and I'm really glad I didn't rush to a decision on Sunday. I worked from home yesterday and she spent much of the day in her box. This box is about 12 years old and is held together with duct tape. I've tried to give her new ones, but she loves this one. It sits on the filing cabinet next to my computer and she loves being in it when I'm working....she just wants to be near me.

This morning I woke up to Annie having a burst of energy. The life was back in her eyes and she ate a good breakfast. So we have another day. Praise God.

Today is a hard day. My Annie is declining fast. The tumor is growing and the life is going out of her eyes. My dear husband, Gil, has been so patient with me as Annie and I have spent these last months together. I don't want to make the decision too soon, but I don't want her to suffer either. Today I know that I have to get on with it and it's hard to even say those words. I'm grateful that it's Sunday and the vet is closed. It gives me an excuse for one more day.

My muse is gone and has been for almost a month. I pulled a muscle behind my knee yesterday so I stayed home from church today to rest. I really needed the distraction so I don't drive Annie nuts watching her, so I decided to get my brushes wet and play a bit. Here's the results. You decide.

Bob's Florida Workshop

Last month I went to a fabulous workshop on painting portraits in watercolor conducted by Bob Hague and organized by Amelia Jordan. A group of online friends, several meeting in person for the first time, met in Florida and spent 2 incredible days together learning, laughing and wetting our brushes. Bob is a gifted teacher and I'm amazed at how much I learned in such a short time. He taught us how to do noses, mouths and eyes, then he put it all together in a duotone study and followed that with color studies. It was just the best time! Thanks so much Bob & Amelia! Here's a link to the Wet Canvas post about the workshop if you want to see more. Bob's Florida Workshop Here's another link to my PBase Gallery where I have my workshop pics posted in case the WC one isn't working. March Madness.

Here's Bob in action doing his study. Watching him demonstrate this in person taught me so much about values and how to determine them.


Here's my yet unfinished value study followed by a close-up of the eye.




This is a little card I did for Amelia.

This dandelion clock was done from Ann Blockley's book, Watercolour Textures, using her composition and colors. Lots of salt and splatters! I really love this book and am learning so much from studying her work and trying her techniques. Her father, John Blockley, was a fantastic artist as well and I was able to find a couple of his out of print books on eBay.

Playing with texture and lifting.

Another landscape, playing with color and water. This is 1/4 sheet. Getting bigger!

I've got a wonderful book by Ann Blockley, Watercolour Textures, and I've been experimenting. The first one is from the book using her composition and colors. The second one is from my imagination. Such fun playing with salt and splattering water and paint!

GIANTS WIN THE SUPERBOWL!!!!!!

I love doing little landscapes, exploring how colors blend, seeing what works with what. My next step is to get brave and do a really large one!

This first little landscape was done using a painting by Nusret Topuzoglu as a reference. He graciously gave me permission to use it. Just love his work! Check out his site.

I love fall. It's my favorite season and once September comes, I start to crave the crisp air of autumn nights, the smell of leaves, apple cider and donuts. These are a couple of paintings I did last year. The trio of leaves were done by applying paint to the leaves and pressing them on the paper then dropping in more color or water. The next one was done using spray bottles, spraying on paint and water. I have a book by Tom Lynch with some neat techniques using the spray bottles.

This is my first attempt at painting Annie followed by the reference pic. I'm not very good at critters. This was done with no sketch, just going at it. I'll try her again, but emotionally now, it's just to hard to think about it.

My Annie

This is my Annie. She's 18 years old and has cancer of the jaw. It's really hard because I just love her so and I know she'll be gone soon. Right now, I'm treasuring every moment. Every night she sleeps on my chest and has since she was a kitten. When she sleeps, she often keeps one eye open, just so she knows what I'm up to! Below are her son and his father.





Here's Moses (son) on the left and Lukey (father) on the right.

These are some flowers doodles. I tend towards looser painting and love playing with colors to see how they blend together.