Painting Tiny - Bite Sized 3D Artwork.......

This week I decided I really wanted to paint small and so I went to my basement stash of canvases and ferreted around for a while until I finally found what I was looking for, some of the smallest sized canvases I have on hand, a 6" x 6" and a 4" x 6".   "This piece is "Sunburst Monarch" full of color and happiness.  I think I will make a tile trivet out of this design.......

I also felt like painting a dragonfly so on the 4" x 6" canvas I created "Jeweled Beauty".  Both paintings are created using acrylic mediums so they are 3D, you can actually see and feel the texture on each piece.  I'm finding textured work really has the effect of making you want to reach out and touch it when you walk by.  It is really fun to feel the different levels of textures under your fingers, very tactile.

Aside from painting, I'm dealing with a house that is in a state of flux at the moment (no end in sight either).  Some of you might know that Chris and I are moving to Orlando this year. We closed on our house the week after Thanksgiving and we will be moving away from NY in a little over 4 months so these are the start of some crazy busy days for us.  We're going through all our belongings, trying to throw away what we don't want to move with us , organizing everything and even though we'll have movers when the time comes, we're packing our more precious items ourselves. We're very excited to get started on our new journey and I dearly wish we could leave now but we have to wait a few more months, most likely till the end of May.  At some point when the time gets closer I'll have to pack up my art studio but not quite yet, I will keep painting for many more months, until the last minute basically.  I always find I miss painting when I'm away from it for too long.

Cattail And Dragonfly Painting In 3D & Blog Vacation

The latest piece of art to come off my easel is "Wings Of Glass" , my first 3 D acrylic painting.  I've always loved cattails and of course, dragonflies so I decided to make them the subject of this particular piece.  This painting measure 16" h x 8"w x 1 1/2" d.

The part I loved the most about creating this painting was the 3 D aspect....the cattails, leaves, dragonfly and part of the background, were done with mediums.  The dragonfly is comprised of a (glass effects) medium and the rest of the above mentioned areas are done in stucco.  The final product is a painting that you can see but also feel as well, the texture is really fun to run your hand through.  To see the effects close up, click on the image above to get a better look.

Next on my list for the new year will be more 3D paintings and I got the idea yesterday, while feeding my dogs breakfast ( why then you might ask.....I cannot possibly say) to create a series of multi canvas - 3D - Bonsai paintings.  Cannot wait to get started on one of those in January.  For the time being, I'm taking a bit of a painting break to enjoy the holidays.  Have a great Christmas everyone, see you in the new year

Inspirational Keepsake Greetings

The last couple of weeks I've been working on creating some greeting cards for licensing purposes. I thought it would be fun though to paint them on gallery canvas so that while they could be used and licensed as greeting cards, each actual painting could be a keepsake greeting in its own right. A lasting piece of art to hang on your wall, give as a gift etc....

I will be creating more of these in the future but this week I have the inspiration to work on some seasonal wreath paintings......I have to go where the painting bug takes me so......I think it is time for a spring wreath design. I hope the weather is as warm and wonderful everywhere as it has been this winter in NY......Enjoy the longer days.

Fall Giveaway

Well, I've decided it is fall giveaway time. I was just thinking that it has been what seems like forever since I've hosted a giveaway. I've enjoyed my others so much and it is a great way to thank all of you, my readers, for coming back time and again.

I'll be giving away this dragonfly duck egg with acrylic stand that you see above. I was bitten by the bug to paint it because I really enjoyed painting the large Ostrich egg last year, that you see this one pictured with above. That one also has a dragonfly and leaf theme.

In these photos you can see the side views of the leaves and vines and all the gems that have been added for extra sparkle as well.

The back is signed and dated by me...... You can also tell from this photo that the background is a rich, marbled gold, silver and burnt sienna color.

I couldn't resist getting out some of my other egg pieces that I've painted so that I could photograph them in different groupings. I don't really need much of an excuse to get the camera out and have a little fun.

I will have Chris pick a name out of our kitchen mixing bowl (things remain primitive around here, what can I tell ya) on Tues November 11th. This will give everyone a good amount of time to sign up for the drawing if you are interested. All you have to do to have a chance to win is sign this post, letting me know you would like to be entered into the giveaway. It doesn't matter where you live, how far away you are....feel free to sign up for this, everyone is eligible.

I fell like it has also been a long time since I showed a painting in progress so I'm going to be doing that soon as well. I've started a new faux window which I'm really excited about and I've been taking pictures of it as I paint along, at different stages of completion. I'll be showing some of that painting in upcoming posts.

Bloomin' In The Garden

Lots of new things bloomin' in the garden but I have to say, the most exciting picture I've taken recently was this gorgeous dragonfly above. I happened to be outside with the camera and just saw this little guy. I hardly ever see dragonflies never mind get a photograph of one. He landed on my Bearded Iris leaves and I knew I had very little time to get the picture I wanted. First I clicked away and came up with two, horrible and blurry photos, I was in a frantic rush...lots of cursing as well....then, one perfect, close up photo and just in time too because he flew away right after that.

My Perennial Hibiscus are blooming (all the way in the back) and the Black Eyed Susans as well.

I have 4 different varieties of Hibiscus, the lovely and delicate white/pink above.

A very pretty and soft pink that you see in these two photos........

I also have a lovely deep red but it hasn't started blooming yet.

Ah, the beautiful mauve color is one of my favorites. The show stopper of my summer garden has to be the Perennial Hibiscus, I look forward to their blooms each year.

Of course, Black Eyed Susans are such a carefree and wonderful flower....great for bringing in the house. A great staple in every garden.

Last but certainly not least, the Hydrangeas are still going strong and providing lots of happy colors.

What is bloomin' in your garden?????

More Miniatures

In my spare time I've been painting quite a few miniatures to list in my ETSY shop. The above is Hydrangea Wreath.

All these pins are done using an acrylic paint for the background as well as the main subject.

So far I've been painting pins that can double as pendants but I've decided to come out with a dedicated line of pendants. The next ones I paint will have a bail on the top so you can slip a chain through.

Flower Carpet Roses & Dragonfly Egg

Something that just started blooming in my garden are my Flower Carpet Roses. I love, love, love these roses as they are so prolific with blooms all spring, summer and fall but they are also the most disease resistant roses I've ever come across. These particular blooms are salmon colored and I also have pink and red in the garden as well. They are the most beautiful, no fuss roses I've ever come across.

Well, my poor little Dragonfly Egg is no more.......a couple weeks ago, I was packing up my china cabinet for our move up the street. We're having movers but hey, I figured I would treat my china and precious items with a lot more care then they would right?? Well, it didn't really work out that way....this little guy came crashing down on my hardwood floor and smashed in a lot of pieces. Had there been carpeting, the little egg would have been fine but it just couldn't take hitting the hardwood floor like that, from so high up.

I had it listed on ETSY for all of a couple of days, until I broke it and had to take it down. I thought atleast it could appear on my blog and get its day in the sun, since that is the only glory this little egg will receive at this point.

A New Addiction

I've discovered a variation on a favorite surface of mine. I love painting decorative eggs and now I've discovered eggshell jewelry. I cannot tell you how much fun these were to paint. These pins are all handpainted onto goose eggshells. There is a pin attached to the back of each shell so it can be worn that way as a pin or could fit onto a chain or ribbon and be worn as a necklace. The above design is called - Ladybug - no surprise there.

These are called - Pink Roses - I look at each eggshell in size and shape and decide what the subject matter should be. I've done the backgrounds on all these eggs in watercolor, sometimes mixing several colors to get it just right.

Once the watercolor paint is dry, which is pretty quick, I then sketch out my design right onto the eggshell. Purple Hydrangeas above, as well as all the other pins have the main subject painted in acrylics, right on top of the watercolor background.

Once I'm done with the design, my husband Chris sprays them with a protective coating so the design is sealed onto the eggshell pin. It is the same finish he puts on mailboxes so it is extremely durable. The above is - Pink Tulips.

I painted my Dragonfly design on a burnt sienna background. I can do a little bit of erasing if I mess up my drawing , although it does sometimes take some of the watercolor paint off. I can go back easily though and do a quick fix. Some of the designs I thought needed a little something so I added Swarovski crystals to certain ones.

The Ladybug & Hydrangea pin was one of the first that I painted, I think I was hooked after that. It's actually quite different then painting on a whole egg, more difficult because you have a lot less space to work on, you cannot wrap the design around, all you have is a slice of the shell to work with. I actually went out and bought 4 new paint brushes just to do these because I didn't have small enough brushes already at home. I would not have been able to paint these without those tiny brushes.

Well, these are my first 6 and I'm now finished with number 10. I just haven't photographed them yet so, the above is all there is to show for now. I'll be adding the rest soon though....

I have them for sale on my etsy site: http://www.eleganteggart.etsy.com/