a couple more...

What can I say?  I'm in the mood to paint.

This is one that I finally finished.  It's copied from a photo I took a couple years ago when we visited Washington D.C.  It's my favorite picture from the whole trip.

For some reason, I became a ranting perfectionist over this one and after about 6 hours of intense work I put it aside.  I was annoyed that it wasn't turning out to my taste so I kind of forgot about it. 

Then one day, I picked up a couple a fan brushes at the store and decided to try and finish it.  The brushes make all the difference!  Next to filberts, fan brushes are my new favorite!

This next one I whipped up this afternoon.  I started out having no idea what I was going to do.  I get that way sometimes.  No ideas, but I just want to paint.  Here's what I came up with.

Believe it or not, this is my first attempt at a landscape.  Well, truthfully, it's not the first attempt.  However, the original took place when I was about twelve and was immediately buried in my closet for reasons that I will not go in to for the sake of my vanity.  Let's just say, that it is not worthy to be called a landscape and therefore does not count. :)

Most people, when they find out that I paint, they automatically think landscapes.  I guess most people do paint a lot of landscapes.  Not this girl.  Quite frankly, they terrify me.  I only attempted this one because I didn't know what else to do.  It's not as easy as Bob Ross makes it look, trust me!  It may be for some people, but I'm just not that great at figuring out lighting and shading.  If I am working from an existing picture, that's one thing, but doing something off the top of my head is another.  Hopefully, I'll get better with practice.

But, for a first try, I like it.  Especially considering that I whizzed through it.  I could have done better if I'd slowed down, but patience is not one of my better qualities...

One thing I did learn: Don't spend forever on a backdrop if you're only going to cover it up with a ginormous tree!





what happens when I can't sleep

What do you do when you can't sleep?  Read a book, watch TV, pace back and forth trying to remind yourself how exhausted you are? 

I've done all of the above, and more.  However, lately I've just stuck to tossing and turning, because getting up and doing something never seems to make going to sleep any easier.

This is what happened to me last night.  It had been a hard day, and aside from the 20 minute nap I managed to squeeze in yesterday afternoon, there was absolutely no reason why I shouldn't go to sleep. 

Of course, no reason except for one teeny tiny little thing.

My brain wouldn't shut-up.

I kept telling myself how tired I was, but my brain has a mind of it's own.  One brilliant idea after another started popping into my head.  This started a heated argument between my common sense and my brain.

"You know, you really need to get up and write this stuff down so you won't forget it."

"No, I need to go to sleep!"

"But these are really great ideas.  It would be a shame not to remember them in the morning."

"I have an impeccable memory, thank you very much!  Well, sometimes..."

This went on for about 2 hours.

Then, something dreadful happened - something that was absolutely detrimental to my earnest desire for sleep.  My brain began to taunt me.

"Well, you probably couldn't do that anyway.  You know, you've never tried it and it would be a shame start something like that only to throw it away."

That was it. I ripped the covers off, donned my robe and slippers and went into the cold sewing room.  I turned on the lights and once I could actually see, I pulled out a blank canvas and started sketching furiously.  Ten minutes later I was setting up my easel, selecting brushes and making a mess with paints.

Then, I turned on Ol' Blue Eyes and set to work.  (It always helps to have good music!)

It was late, and I decided that I was going to paint as fast and a furiously as I could until I was finished and then I was going to bed. 

I was in the mood for happy colors, so I toned down some crimson and bright yellow and slapped it on.

I ended up finger painting most of it.  Who says finger painting is just for kindergartners?

I just love happy colors!

So, 2 1/2 hours after I started, this is what I had come up with.  There's a bit of a glare in the picture.  The skin tone is actually a little bit darker than what you see here.

And guess what?  I actually like it!  I didn't think I would.  I've never done a painting off the top of my head before, I've always copied photos.  Also, I've never done a person before.  I've drawn them (it's not fun...) but adding color is not as easy as it sounds.

So, after proving to myself that I could indeed render my idea onto a canvas and like it, I went to bed.  Of course, it took me another hour to go to sleep, but at least I went to sleep, right?

  

time flies...

Three months.  Yes, it has been three months.  I would love to offer an excuse, but really, I've just been lazy.  That and the fact that I managed to forget that I even had a blog.  Oops!  Anyway, I'm back now.  I'm not promising that I'll post regularly (although, I like to imagine that I shall), but I am back.

It would be impossible for me to fill in a three month blank, so I'll abbreviate:
-  As of July, I have officially emerged from "teenagehood".  I made it!  It was a long, tumultuous, and hormonal journey, but I am a survivor. 
-  My days as a nanny came to an end at the beginning of August.  I am grateful for the experience.  It certainly gave me the opportunity to learn some things about myself, some of which I would have liked to have done without!  But, as I said, I'm grateful for the opportunity.  However, I don't think I'll be doing it again.  You really miss out on a lot when you're on the other side of the county 10 hours a day.
-  Piano lessons are now in session.  It's nice to be back on my normal schedule again.
-  With my nanny job, I wasn't able to get to the art studio all summer.  However, I was able to complete one painting at home:



Would you believe that the hardest part was the mane?  I couldn't believe it!  I thought that would be the easy part!  I'm still not completely happy with it.  The hairs aren't as crisp as I would like them to be, but I was able to capture the general effect.  If you don't stand to close it doesn't look quite as fuzzy.
I also recently finished the one that I started in the shop back in the spring:

This one was a bit of a beast.  Of course, I only worked on it for a couple of hours at a time, one day a week.  So, everytime I came back to it I would always find something that needed to be fixed.  I finally had to just throw the brushes down and decide once and for all that I was done.  Now that it's been sprayed down with a finishing coat and there's nothing more I can do, I'm really pleased with how it turned out.  I started another one in the shop last week.  I'm looking forward to posting pictures of it!
-  I have been officially introduced to Contra Dancing.  I love it!!!!  It's so easy and loads of fun!  It's even more fun when you get a partner who actually knows what he's doing!  I'm hoping to get some pictures next time.
-  Fair season is under way.  We spent a very long weekend here in Cleveland at the Foothills Fair.  It was the busiest event we've ever had.  This of course is good for business, but very bad for stamina.  Sunday, I think we were all working on auto pilot.  When we finally got home, I was so tired that I just collapsed on the couch.  Dragging myself up the stairs and getting ready for bed was out of the question.  I think we are finally starting to catch up on sleep and the aches and pains are beginning to lessen.  By the time we are fully recovered, it'll be time to get at it again.  This past weekend was the first of a 6 week run.  One down, 5 to go!  Here's a couple of pictures that Sarah took when she had a few minutes free:

 My big brother, Jimmy.

 Me taking a break from the chaos. :)

Every day we managed to miscalculate how many boxes of potatoes we would need.  This was after one of Mom's mad dashes to the store.  Thankfully, Grammy and Uncle Gene dropped by just in time to help us wash approximately 150 potatoes!

-  A lady from our church had a small booth set up across from us.  She was selling crocheted hats.  At one point she brought over a huge bag full of yarn that she didn't want and just gave it to me.  I love it when people do that!  There were all kinds of cute yarns in there.

 So far, the only things I've managed to create with them are a couple of dishcloths, but I'm trying to find some cute crochet patterns.

Anyway, these are just the highlights of what's been going on around here while I've been away from the blogging world.  Stay tuned!

confessions of a paint brush-aholic

Never ever ever EVER go with me to an art supply store unless you are fully prepared to stay for an infinitely indefinite length of time.  If there could possibly be a heaven on earth, it comes in the form of Hobby Lobby and Joann's.  As the automatic doors slide open, you enter a new world.  A world of new possibilities, new ideas, and lots of really cool stuff.

Fabric of every color, texture, and price tag jumps out and grabs me by the eyes crying, "Look at me!!! I'm GORGEOUS!!!!  I'd make a perfect bag or I could even be used for that skirt pattern you've had stashed away for a year now.  I'd even look good just sitting on the sewing room fabric shelf waiting for you to make up your mind!"  Let me tell you, it takes a lot of willpower to resist reasoning like that.

Yarn.  I like the dull colors the best.  I have no idea why.  Typically bold colors catch my attention, but when it comes to yarn, the more drab it is the more likely I am to fall in love with it.  Big fluffy skeins also captivate me.  They call out to me to take them off the cold, hard shelves and lovingly squeeze them and rub them against my cheek.  Unfortunately, I already have baskets and drawers full of yarn of varying colors and sizes that I can't seem to find the time to sit down and put to any use.

The scrap booking paper aisle has always fascinated me.   Not that I'm a scrapbooker - I haven't the patience for it, I just love paper.  Designs, themes, textures, colors...I never get tired of looking at them.  You can mix and match, add cute stickers, stamps, etc.  Endless possibilities.

Graphite pencils, charcoal, erasers (I love erasers!), oil pastels, calligraphy pens, ink, blank painting canvases, sketch pads - I love them all.  However, all of these pale in comparison to the occupants of my very favorite aisle in every art store.  And that would be...wait for it....

PAINT BRUSHES!!!!!!!

Those wonderful little creations made of wood - sometimes plastic - and varying kinds of bristles.  Little skinny ones, medium sized ones, big papa bear fluffy ones that remind you of your mother's makeup brushes.  Script liners, filberts, squares, rounds, fans...I could just stand there and stare at them all day. 

There is a certain excitement about having just the right brush for the job that needs to be done.  The task is finding it.  And then you have to decide if you REALLY need the size 4 filbert or should you get the size 3 square instead since you only have enough money left for one and you need both.  You decide that in a pinch you could use either one to get the job done, but filberts are you favorite.  However, the filbert also happens to be more expensive.  Of course, you could put back one of the tubes of paint you were planning to purchase and get both brushes.  Then comes the process of deciding which color you could do without until you can scrounge up some more money.  You then try to remember which tubes you have at home and how depleted their contents are.  You draw a blank and are afraid to choose and get home only to find that you made the wrong choice.  Turning from your basket again to the lovely brushes on the shelf, you sigh and decide to get the cheaper square.  Your hand reaches out to take it, but your eyes are still on the filbert that you really want.  You put the square back and take the filbert from the shelf.  Turning it over and over in your hand you try to objectively decide which brush would work better...

You get the point...I love brushes.  If I had the money I buy one, maybe two, of each.  Filberts, I would probably buy three or four in each size.  They just have such a delightful way of pushing the thick oil paint around on a canvas.  They're so sleek and soft and pretty...okay, I'll stop now.

So there you have it.  I've made my confession.  I love my paint brushes.  I love to shop for paint brushes.  I love just standing in the store LOOKING at paint brushes.  There is only one thing that would make the whole experience even better - shopping with someone who gets just as excited over paint brushes as I do!!!!