Merry Christmas

Wishing You A Wonderful

Christmas!

Hope everyone has a great time with your family

and you enjoy some time off,

great food,

and lots of  fun and hugs.

See you next year! 

Craving Creativity - Motivational Monday

Do You Crave It?

I Know I Do!

Creativity!  What Were You Thinking?

Everyone is creative!

I mean it.  Everyone is creative!

I say that because creativity comes in so many different forms.  I'm not talking talent,

 (that's a whole different discussion)

 but creativity is, can be and should be all around us.

Creativity isn't just limited to artists.

(although some artists have it on steroids!) 

We are creative when we pick out our clothes,

when we fix our hair,

decide what to eat for breakfast,

the route we take when we go to work,

the way we landscape our yard,

the way we decorate our homes,

the way we decorate where we work,

how we work,

 

It's all creativity and I believe we crave it.

I believe we are creative beings.

I believe we are creative from the moment we wake up until the moment we go to sleep, and we are creative even then by what we wear to bed and the dreams we have.

There is in each of us, I believe, a desire to be different than everyone else, somehow, some way.

Maybe not purple hair, one blue sock one red sock different,

but something that sets us apart from everyone else.

I believe we need creativity to help each of us fulfill our dreams and our passions.  

I believe if 10 people were given a problem to solve,

there would be 10 different solutions found.

Some may be similar, but there would be some component that is different from every other solution.

That's our individual creativity at work.

We each have colors we love more than others.

Creativity!

We each have a style we love more than others.

Creativity!

We each have books or authors or

 movies we love more than others.

Creativity!

We each have food we love more than others.

Creativity!

How can loving Mac and Cheese be creative you ask?

How do you make your mac and cheese?

Blue box or home made?

Sharp or mild?

 Add other ingredients or no?

Crushed crackers or chips on top or plain?

Baked or nuked?

Salt and pepper or do you add other spices?

Those are all creative choices and solutions.

Think about your most recent problem

and how did you creatively solve it?

(Leave a comment about it)

Where are you most creative?

How do you feel when you use your creativity?

(I'd love to hear about it in the comments)

The purpose for this post today is to help each of us realize that we have creativity we use everyday,

 whether we realize it or not.   

I've heard many people say, "I don't have a creative bone in my body", and that simply isn't true.

You might not be the craft queen,

 but that doesn't mean you aren't creative.

Ever watch someone do something and then think to yourself, "Wonder why they did it like that when they could have done it this way so much easier?"

Yep, That's your creativity bubbling up to the surface.

I believe that is why art is so subjective.

The creativity of the artist is definitely present,

but then the creativity of the viewer comes into play.

I believe 10 people could view the same piece of art

and each would come away with a different viewpoint 

or impression of what they saw.

Their own creativity is sparked by the piece and their brain starts firing questions like:

What is that?

Why did the artist paint, draw or sculpt that?

I wonder what the artist was thinking?

Why did she use that color?

Why does he paint that?

I don't think a flying horse looks like that.

I would have done this to it.

and on and on...

Creativity!

You've got it!

USE IT!

(And now for the obligatory painting, because after all, this is an art blog.)

 ...and now you ask -

Sharon why did you select that painting?

Well, it's not everyday you see a bear wearing a fascinator.

I made that little hat for my daughter's wedding

and I plopped it on this bears head so it didn't lose its shape until the day of the wedding.

Then I loved the bear so much wearing the fascinator,

it called out to me to paint it.  

So to me, this painting ooooozes creativity

maybe more so than any other painting I've ever done.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by!.

If you've enjoyed this post,

please share it with others you think might also enjoy it. 

 

 

 

Fun Unique Things Still Available

Time Is Running Out For FREE Shipping

I've offered FREE shipping on many items

in my Etsy shop that will ship by the end of 2017.

Here's a few of my favorite paintings included in the sale.

Click HERE to view or purchase this painting.

 

 Click HERE to view or purchase this painting.

 

Click HERE to view or purchase this painting.

 

 

Click HERE to view or purchase this painting.

 

Click HERE to see my whole Etsy shop.

There's only a few days left to place an order 

and then have time to get it shipped.

I'll do my best to get your item out immediately.

 

 

Did You See That Supermoon?

When The Moon Hits Your Eye,

Like a Big Pizza Pie...

That's pretty much what happened December 3.

Hope you saw it.

A supermoon could be seen

 and there was no equipment needed. 

No telescope,

no binoculars,

just a clear sky and boom...

it was fabulous.

 

This was taken out in our field early in the morning.

 According to earthsky.org A supermoon is a new or full moon closely coinciding with perigee – the moon’s closest point to Earth in its monthly orbit.

Click HERE to see the full article

 with some pretty cool pictures. 

I took this in a little different place. 

 I used it for my inspiration.  

Here's a fun time lapse video of me painting 

my supermoon.
Boy I'm fast!  hehe

 Here's my finished painting.

Click HERE to grab it in my Etsy shop.

This one just flowed off my brush

and was so much fun to paint.  

Click HERE to hop into my Etsy shop and browse around.

Click HERE to browse around my website for my online beginning painting course. 

Motivation Monday - Everything Has A Season

Everything Has a Season

I've probably written about this before,

but this morning as I was taking a walk,

it hit me again.

I have a long lane that has hills and this morning

as I came up over one of those hills I saw an interesting sight.

Part of my drive way was covered in leaves.

The bradford pear trees lost their leaves overnite.

It's funny how the trees get their leaves in the spring at different times and they loose them at different times.

My Japanese maple held onto its leaves until my husband cleaned out that bed and then just like on cue, the next morning its beautiful red leaves were all over the black mulch.

Yesterday the bradford pears were the last tree in the yard to have leaves,

and now,

not so much...

 

This morning the trees taught me

 that everything has a season.

 

Everything.

 

Even art.

 

Sometimes seasons pass us up,

but they almost always come back around again.

If we're lucky.

 

Somedays I can't paint a lick,

and other days it just flows off my brush.

 

Somedays I have no desire to paint,

and other days I can't wait to get out in my studio.

 

As a young mother, I had a creative itch

that needed to be scratched.

But I also had a family

 that needed to be provided for. 

I worked at my job as creatively as possible,

and I raised my children as creatively as possible.

Along the way I learned some painting skills,

improved my sewing skills,

gained some organizational skills 

and I tried using them as often as possible.

However, when I got sick and I still had
"learn to paint" on my bucket list, I really got the lead out and worked at it.

You might not have time to learn something this year,

but keep it on your list,

in your head

in your heart,

and there will be time to learn something new.

You will find the time.

We are never to old to learn something.

 

If "Learn How To Paint" is on your bucket list,

I have the perfect course for you.

Click HERE to learn about Painting With Acrylics 101.

It's an online beginning painting course

that teaches you from the ground up the art concepts you'll need as you learn to paint.

 

Now I'm off to the studio to paint something using last nights super moon as reference.

 

This was the super moon about 7 a.m. this morning.

I hope you saw it where you are.

Gotta love the show nature provides for us all the time.

 

Still looking for an interesting gift this Christmas?

Click HERE to browse my Etsy shop.

Not only will you find my art, but I also have listed

vintage linens and dolls and glassware, painted home decor, etc.

 

Thanks for stopping by today.

I really appreciate it and I always love your comments.

 

Have a great one! 

 

 

 

Product Trial and Review

Trying Colored Gesso

What is gesso and why should you use it?

Gesso is basically a primer for your canvas.

When you paint on canvas, the paint can sink into your canvas, and sort of get lost, or it can skip over small parts of it and small little dots of white will show through.  When you're in the middle painting, you might not notice because you are absorbed in the work, and then, boom, you start to see them after the paint dries.

For years gesso was only white and then a few years back suppliers started making black gesso, and now it is available in colors.

Just like paint, you can buy a student grade or artist grade gesso.  Just like paint, the artists grade will have more pigment and will cost more. 

I have used white gesso for years, and I have toned canvas with a mixture of student grade burnt sienna and white paint, or burnt sienna, ultramarine blue and white if I wanted a gray canvas.

I recently was ordering some different paints to try from Jerry's Artarama and came across several colors of colored gesso.  I decided to give them a try so I ordered two colors, terracotta and gray.  I couldn't wait to try them out when they arrived.

This short video shows how I applied it to a 5" x 7" stretched canvas and to a  1/4" thick poplar board using a #12 bristle brush.

There are several theories about gessoing your canvas.  One is, it smooths out your canvas to accept the paint better.  I agree with that.  But it is interesting that on canvas it does give a smooth surface to paint on but on the very smooth board I used, it gave it a little tooth.  (It must be magic.)  It gives the paint on the board something to hang on to.  Just an interesting observation.

Most canvases today say they are primed with 3 coats of gesso, but since I seldom, if ever, buy really expensive canvas I still feel the need to gesso the surface.  If you stretch your own canvas, then you will definitely need several coats of gesso.

Which brings me to another point, how many coats do I need?

Good question.  Most artists believe you need 2 and you need to make sure the first coat is dry and then sand it, and make sure there is no dust and then do another coat and then sand again.  I do know of one artist who advocates 6 coats of gesso.  I tried that several years ago but for one thing it took forever to get a canvas ready to paint and for the other, it seemed to me like there was too much build up.  I didn't like the finished product as much.

I've also read where you can gesso an item that you wouldn't normally paint on and it will accept the paint.  I haven't tried that, but you know I'm gonna.  

One last thought about using colored gesso.  It does affect how the paint looks on the canvas.  It can either warm or cool your canvas and therefore your painting.  Since most paintings will have variations of warm and cool it probably wouldn't make a ton of difference which color you use.  But if you're going for a primarily cool look, you probably won't want to use a warm gesso, like terracotta and vice versa.  I know!  One more thing to consider when painting.  Well, what's one more thing? 

 Or you can stick with white.

So, as you see in the video, I have 4 supports ready to paint on so I guess I need to get to work.

I'll be reviewing the paints I purchased in the near future.

I hope this was helpful.  If so, share it with your buds.

 

Click HERE to visit my Etsy shop for a mix of my art and some interesting vintage home decor such as glassware, linens and even dolls.  If I find something interesting it might show up there.

If you liked this post, click HERE to see the tab on 10 minute free art lessons on all sorts of topics. 

If you don't receive this blog in your inbox, (what's up with that), scroll back up to the top right hand side and put your email address in the box that says, subscribe to my blog.

I know, not very original, but it does the trick.

Finally, click HERE if you'd like to look over my online beginning painting course, an individual class on painting iris, or a free class on painting daisies.  

Thank you for stopping by my studio today.

Now get out there and create something!  

2017 - Gratitude

Gratitude

My word for 2017 has been gratitude.

I have tried to reflect throughout the year on

gratitude.

What it means.

What it looks like. 

How it feels.

Gratitude in all things!

 

Not some things,

Not just the good things,

But in ALL things.

 

Life throws us curve balls,

and it is often hard to be grateful,

but cultivating a grateful heart is doable.

 

I have learned to be grateful I am not healthy.

Why?

How?

 

The why is easier.

When I was really sick and couldn't walk outside,

I could sit in my dining room and look out the window

and look at the trees,

the birds at my feeder,

the flowers.

And it seemed as if I saw every little part of those things.

The beaks, the feet, the feathers, the eyes of the birds.

The many shades of green in the leaves on the different trees.

All the shades of pinks and purples, and reds in the flowers.

For that, I was truly grateful.

 I prayed that if I ever got better, I wouldn't lose that.

And over the years as I have gotten better,

I have not lost that gift.

 

The HOW is more difficult,

because I'm not really sure how it happened.

But,

I do know I had to work at it every day.

It didn't happen every day,

It didn't happen all at once,

But as I worked at pushing out the sorrow

I allowed room for gratitude to creep in.

 

About 15 years ago, I was given about 30 days to live.

My lungs were failing quickly,

and I was not eligible for the double lung and heart transplant

I had been cleared for.

I had my affairs in order,

Plans had been made...

and then,

my lungs stopped getting worse.

My transplant surgeon said he had never had anyone gain more than 2% of their lung capacity back.

About 9 months later,

I gained 1% back.

Then 2%.

Then another 1%.

For the next 2 and a half years,

 I gradually re-gained about 40% of my lung capacity back,

Enough to come off the oxygen and out of a wheel chair.

Gratitude!

 

I still have rough days and weeks,

but the thing I prayed for,

not to lose the ability to see so many beautiful things,

I got to keep that gift,

and I try to use it in my art,

and in the classes I teach trying to help others see

what most people don't.

 

As another Thanksgiving passes,

I am grateful that I have seen 3 of my children get married,

7 grandchildren have joined our family,

and I am still here enjoying the beauty of life,

even though sometimes it comes in messy packages.

 

Gratitude is often easier to see in the rear view mirror.

Looking back we can see that what we thought were

terrible problems, actually cleared the way

for some pretty great blessings.

 

Trying to be grateful even when things aren't great,

has helped calm my heart through the trials of life.

 

I will continue to be grateful,

even when it rains,

when it's cold,

when I'm sick,

when I haven't seen my kids for a long time,

when a family member struggles,

 

Because somewhere in all of the messiness of life,

there is a lesson to be learned,

a blessing to be had.

 

 

Here's what Thanksgiving looks like with half my family.

My other two children and their families were not able to make it.

I spoke to everyone though

and they are healthy and happy.

How could I not be grateful.

 

GRATITUDE!

 

 

 

Trying Something New

Let's Try Something New!

So, is there something new you want to try?

I've tried painting roses in the past,

with very poor results!

I've been studying them recently,

I've been studying how other people paint them.

I've been doing a lot of looking.

So last week I decided to put a brush in my hand.

I had a beautiful pic of a rose on my phone I grew in my yard,

so I uploaded it to my computer,

 

 And out popped this painting.

I wasn't unhappy with this effort.

All that looking and studying seemed to help!

 Then a day or two later I went to bed

 with painting roses on my mind. 

(I know.  Who does that?)

I went to bed thinking about how many colors I'd used to paint that rose painting.
I'd used my entire palette.

And then I began thinking about how I used all these seemingly unrelated colors to create the rose.

Then I started thinking about another rose painting,

and swirling colors,

and rose petals,

and drifted off to sleep.

(Sleep is good) 

 The next morning,

out popped this.

Then I had to go back to the rose.

This turned out better than I thought,

except for that petal on the right.

I didn't like that one.

So after some looking,

I had to figure out why I didn't like it,

I picked up the brush,

and tweaked.

 It's not signed yet,

but I'm pretty sure it's done!

I think my point is,

we should listen to our inner selves.

We get inspiration from lots of places,

and we should listen to it,

learn from it,

and then go for it.

Last week I gave you several links for fellow artists websites,

and today I'm going to give you a few more.

 .

Cathy Engberg, an online art friend paints some of the greatest paintings of joyful children.

Click HERE to view her artwork. 

Terri Buchholz is another online art friend

who I have admired for her paintings of glass,

but she is currently painting some beautiful faces.

Click HERE to view her artwork. 

Another hilarious and talented artist is Raymond Logan.
I love his art and I subscribe to his blog almost as much for his whit and the way he writes about his art.  
Click HERE to view his art. 

I introduce you to these artists to see some great art,
and to entice you consider purchasing art.
There are lots of artists out there who do some amazing work
and I want you to meet as many of them as possible.

Click HERE to go to my Etsy shop to see my art
as well as some interesting vintage home decor items.

If you have that person on your list who wants to learn to paint, I have you covered there too.
Click HERE to go to my online beginning painting course.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.
Thanks for stopping by today.