Appalachian Sunset VIII

18x18 acrylic on canvas

Same scene, just a few moments earlier :)

#547

Appalachian Sunset VII

24x30 acrylic on canvas

Got a lot bigger than those little studies, didnt it? I had forgotten how much paint gets used up on these big canvases, too....

#546

Nautilus and Crystal Ball

8x8 acrylic on panel

Wow, had so much fun with this one! Waaaayyy too many colors, Im surely, but they all layered and glazed together quite nicely :) My first time trying the large marble in front with something else, you know refracted through it, clearly with everything reversed.... happy!

#545

Marble Shots II

8x8 acrylic on panel

Revisiting the suspensions idea, with lots and lots of shinies... went more dramatic with this one, too. Really dont know how Id paint marbles without Phthalo Turquois :)

#544

Summerlight

18x18 acrylic on stretched canvas

Not sure if we will make it the whole way through.... my laptop has most definately taken a turn for the wonkier. Keeping my fingers crossed! Other than that... had a lot of fun with this one. And it does look better in person... my camera has issues with yellow :-/

Technology- cant live with it, cant live without it!

#543

White Tulips

6x12 acrylic on cradled panel

Im actually really wanting to keep this one to put above Babys crib... not entirely sure why, but couldnt you see it somewhere like that? *smile* But Im going to be good and take it to the Festival along with every other freaking thing in this apartment (sorry, started with the inventory list and packing things up today, and its a teensy bit overwhelming) ... after that, well, we shall see :)

#542

Evening Moon

sketchbook

So caught up in bigger pieces that I seem to just have time for these sketchbook pieces as dailies... not a bad thing. I think I came a good way with this one and the whole subtle-color-and-value thing, you know? And it feels nice to be able to finish something up really quick when youre tangled up in the bigger pieces :)

#541

Moonlight River

9x12 acrylic on cradled panel

Busy-busy-busy! And, right now, really sleepy. Not the greatest time for it, but if baby needs sleep, then baby needs sleep, right? Muahahah! Irrefutable logic based entirely on doing what I feel like doing! (it does seem that way sometimes, doesnt it? kinda crazy...)

#540

Evening Star

11x14 acrylic on panel

Pure summertime evening, here :D Used my imagination a bit, yes, trying to get those twilight colors... but the rose is one I'm grateful I found- have you ever seen one so gorgeously disheveled? Wish I could have really done it justice...

#539

Cloudy Morning

sketchbook

There! Same view, TOTALLY different atmospheric effects. Funny how the sky being a little bit green was easier than trying to figure out the exact right orange for going around the sun. I dunno. Gonna do something different tomorrow, something more familiar... maybe roses. Or those peonies Ive been leaving alone for way too long now because Im a little scared of them :) We shall see...

#538

Appalachian Sunset VI

sketchbook

Listening to Sixteen Tons by Tennessee Ernie Ford, of all things. And zooming in pretty majorly on the same sunset... maybe ought to give it a rest tomorrow :)
#537

Appalachian Sunset V

sketchbook

Still trying to get a grip on those colors-augh! Just focused on a vertical slice of the sky for this one... used phthalo blue, paynes grey, dioxine purple, and some white in the clouds. Very pretty color but not... quite... right....
#536

Moonlight Pond

6x6 acrylic on panel

Discovered that Phthalo Blue and Permanent Violet Dark make the most beautiful purples ever... needed a lot of toning down in this case, yes, and its a purple that mixes well with Burnt Umber, Jenkins Green, and Graphite (awesome!), which REALLY amazed me....

#535

Red Plums and Stripes

6x6 acrylic on panel

Doing another patterned background, like with Blood Oranges and Polka Dots... I like that. I also seem to like this red and turquoise combination- just noticed, honest :) It is a nice complementary colors thing, isnt it? Doesnt hurt that the alizarin crimson works so well with the cadmium red! I always like it when my colors get along...

#534

Gold and Glass II

6x6 acrylic on panel

Followed through with my rasberry tea idea! It might have looked more red in an opaque teacup, but you know how it is, you get a new Shiny Thing and you just have to feature it for a little while :)

#533

Appalachian Sunset IV

sketchbook

Im baaa-aaaack! It was a beautiful weekend in North Georgia, happy 50th anniversary to my wonderful grandparents, and the cabin had the most beautiful view out over the mountains at sunset.... you can tell Im a bit taken with it :) So tricky, though! Its the subtlety of the colors- if anything is off you feel it immediately, you know, and I guess the way I paint or something I tend to exagerrate colors and contrasts.... works great in most cases, not so much with a subject requiring this much delicacy. But Im getting better!

#532

Appalachian Sunset III

sketchbook

#531

Appalachian Sunset II

sketchbook

#530

Appalachian Sunset I

sketchbook

#529

Teabag

5x7 acrylic on panel

I have to admit.... I was curious. Could a teabag not suspended in tea be interesting? What do you think?

Oh, and youre not going to be seeing me again till Monday- Ill be hiding out in the mountains of North Georgia for the weekend. Hopefully coming back with some beautiful landscape ideas!

#528

Rose of Sharon

6x6 acrylic on panel

More summertime.... and a bumblebee, of all the things I didnt expect to surface in my daily paintings... like trying to paint a hummindbird or something, impossible, with the motion and the strange sense of suspension, this plump little body hovering above a beautiful flower, unexpected and dreamy, you know?

#527

Waterlilies II

6x6 acrylic on panel

Definately a summertime picture, yes? Pretty pink reflections and all :)

#526

Blue Mug and Milk

5x7 acrylic on panel

Presenting the newest member of the household models :) Yay, pretty shiny blue cup! And milk, which apparently has the most fascinating little bubbles along the edges of the cup....

#525

Gold and Glass

8x8 acrylic on crandled hardboard panel

This one was an absolute bear, but I loved painting it. Doesnt make a whole lot of sense, I know, but still.... I mean, a glass teacup, what was I thinking, yeah, but the color possibilities are just so awesome! I actually painted this all the way through without the teabag, and it looked lovely but desperately needed SOMEthing to catch your eye or provide some additional contrast, or something.... shouldve taken a picture. Its always interesting watchiong how pieces evolve, isnt it?

#524

Magnolia Blossom II

sketchbook

Trying something different.... I want to try a HUGE magnolia blossom piece, and I was talking to my mother about the other small one today, she made me realize the black background could be really harsh on that scale.... our next thought was a nice brown background, but with how much I love the brown undersides on the leaves.... so our next thought was blue, and I really think Im liking that on this sketch. Well see where it goes :)

#523

Three Olives

sketchbook

Actually wanted to try an olives shot yesterday.... but I was much more confident in my ability to work with cherries. I have a monstrous time with greens, for some reason. Any other artists out there have one color that gives them trouble like that? You can imagine it makes foilage quite entertaining :) But these little guys were a lot of fun to do.... used Green Gold and Chromium Oxide Green as the greens, if anyone is curious. Bunch of other colors too- I love using lots and lots of colors and using various combinations of them to make sure it all comes out unified!

#522

Cherry Shot I

5x7 acrylic on panel

Yay, shot glasses! As to the fruit instead of the alcohol.... well, inevitable, I can have booze again in October, at least :) And if Im not mistaken, this is my first time painting cherries- I can see why other daily painters find them so terribly irresistable!


#521

Lemon and Tea

5x7 acrylic on panel
collection of Andre Follot

And we are back to my favorite teacup.... again! Its funny to me, that I dont ever get tired of the whole coffee and tea thing, but it always seems like such a beautiful setup, you know, so full of possibility... though I think I ought to try and do some iced tea soon :)
#520

Sunset on the Water

6x6 acrylic on panel

collection of Breedlove Publications

Still very much in summertime mode, arent we? Only makes sense.... mid nineties today, not a cloud in the sky :) So I referenced back to some wonderful pictures from the last time we went to the beach, the sun setting over the sound.... Heres a question- have you ever kind of rediscovered a color? Like I usually... no, I never use Ultramarine Violet, but I stumbled across it in the bin doing some sketches earlier, and it was just perfect for this piece, you know? Happy!
#519

Magnolia Blossom

6x6 acrylic on panel

collection of Breedlove Publications

The perfect painting for the first of June! Love how the light came out on this one, with the translucency of the petals and the light shining on the leaves... and the wonderful shape the whole of it makes :) Anywho, its been a beautiful day, and I hope its been wonderful for all of you.... Monday-ness notwithstanding.
#518

Tiger Nautilus

sketchbook

And something I havent painted for a while :) Fun, as always- the stripeys are awesome, but then the pearl one has the most wonderful colors and sheen.... not sure which is my favorite.

#517

Red Plums

sketchbook

Something Ive never painted before.... always scared off by the pale areas, never sure quite how to make them look real, and make sure they dont fool with the highlights, you know? Not as bad as I had feared :)

#516

Dancing with the Sun

9x12 acrylic on panel

Ok, another one of those not-a-daily pieces, and soooo much fun. All that space around the rose really kind of sets it off, doesnt it? Duh, the whole *sky* thing... reckon generous amounts of blue background is likely to set off any natural object like this :) Taking cues from nature and that sort of thing.

#515

Blood Oranges and Polka Dots

5x7 acrylic on panel

collection of Hilda Guillen

Wow, a little bit different today, huh? LOTS of fun with those crazy oranges and reds, and the reflected light from the white shelf, and the way the thin parts of the slices let so mugh light through.... and I officially love polka dots! At least on paintings... I still abhor them on, say, me. *shudder* Adorable on other people, but me and prints just dont get along in that capacity. Where was I? Yeah, I dont know either :) *hugs*

#514

Tulip and Window

5x7 acrylic on panel

collection of Linda H Grote

Happy, happy, happy! A little more complex a setup than I usually do... but I took my time and really tried to feel the sunlight :)

#513

White and Gold V

6x6 acrylic on panel

collection of Jodi Daume

More of the revisiting old subjects.... this time oh so cleverly combined with my ongoing-tea-and-coff-cups-obsession. Or maybe not so cleverly. Hm... a distraction is in order. Look! Pretty sparkly thingie!

#512

Coffee and Stripes

5x5 acrylic on panel

collection of Janine ODonnell

Fun background, huh? Yay! Got some pretty papers at AC Moore the other day- super cheap, and it really adds interest, I think. Hope. Whatever, Oh, and hahaha, I got the idea from last night worked out a bit, didnt I? Proud of myself- I deserve a cookie! Or a bowl of ice cream....
#511

Coffee Study

sketchbook

Just being lazy, playing with colors and the idea of positioning a spoon in the composition... never been able to get it quite right with an actually setup, you know? So I guess this is more of an imaginary thing... though if I got it set up right thered be an amazing cast highlight on the side of the coffee cup, wouldnt there? Ooh, should really try to set this composition up for real... again. Hmmm...

#510

Dandelion Study

sketchbook

Boy, it was the right idea to try this in the sketchbook before trying it for real- those little dandelion poufs are crazy hard to paint!

#509

Sky Study II

sketchbook

Just a replay of yesterday... hey, I told you I liked the idea! Happy summer and incipient Memorial Day Weekend, everybody!

#508

Sky Study I

sketchbook

Deciding Im rather too caught up in tv.... not only do I think it is horrible that the Sarah Connor Chronicles are being cancelled :( but I actually can say that the Bones season finale was the worst thing ever ever EVER. Pooh. In other news- sunshine and blue skies and pretty clouds, and trying to get better at handling paint when theres no way to put in too much detail or spend too much time. I likey :)

#507

Summer Daisy

5x5 acrylic on panel

Just wanting to do something simple and pretty and summery, you know? Unusual colors, for me, but I like how it turned out :)

#506

Rice Bowl II

5x5 acrylic on panel

collection of Michael Snow

Tried this subject, in a similar composition, ages and ages ago.... wanted to try again, to see what would be different. Ive definitely gotten better at the shinies, and the glow behind the rice bowl itself was an unexpected and pleasant surprise. Nothing else of note- happy Tuesday!

Tea for Two

5x5 acrylic on panel

collection of Michael Snow

Kind of a weird angle, on this one, but I like the way it came out- makes the most of the shadows this way. Just my ongoing tea obsession, I suppose.... now Im off to drink my cup for the evening!

#504

Prom night Sketch II

from the sketchbook

And more of the same :D

#503

Prom Night Sketch I

from the sketchbook

Baby sister went to prom.... she looked absolutely beautiful, and staggeringly grown up. I snuck some pictures while she was getting ready :)

#502

Twilight

12x12 acrylic on panel

No, silly, not the book. Or the movie. No sparkly vampires in this painting :D Another one of my teacups, on a linen cloth at the edge of the table.... playing more with that color combination from the Morning Coffee piece a few days ago... started that same day, actually. See the gold tone in the shadow under the saucer? Thats something new for me... yay, new tricks and observations! Obviously not a true daily here, but worth sharing nonetheless :)
#501

Yellow Roses

5x5 acrylic on panel

Nice idea for a semi-anniversary post, no? Cant believe this is my 500th post.... using yesterdays sunshine for it, too. Looks like rain for the next week or so. smileys anyway!
#500

Midnight Espresso

5x5 acrylic on panel
collection of Michael Snow

Fun, hm? Less color than the other one, but its the same scheme, just more subdued. And the sparklies- never discount the sparklies :D What is it with Paynes Grey that I find so terribly fascinating, I wonder?

#499

Tulips Sketch

#498