#artistsforharvey

Thanks so, so much to my great collectors - what an awesome group!  We continue to send prayers, best wishes, and support to our fellow Texans.

#artistsforharvey

Dear Friends,
I've just posted these 3 Port Aransas oil paintings to my Etsy store.  Listed at discounted prices, I will donate 100% to Hurricane Harvey relief if purchased before the end of September.  They are the three remaining oil paintings from a series of work I did following many wonderful trips to Port A.  I look forward to going back!
#doingwhatwecantohelp  #portaransasismyotherhometown

Catchin Rays

12x12, oil on panel

Still Catchin Rays: Trading Spaces

12x12, oil on panel

Catch of the Day

11x14, oil on panel

Gratitude & the Blue-Eyed Santas

Papa Noel

8x8, oil on panel

SOLD

With gratitude, this morning I'm thinking about loyal collectors. It's all about shared passion and friendship and encouragement. It's about the catch-up chats and cups of coffee I'm enjoying as I deliver paintings that have sold locally. It's about connections.  It's soooo NOT about the money.

I'm affectionately thinking of these as the "blue-eyed Santas" as I find I leave that Tiffany-blue ground color peeking through the "whites" more often than not. I've gotten a number of questions about process and supplies and I plan to put together a post about that soon.  Have a great remember-what-you're-grateful-for day!

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like....

Jolly Ole’ Elf

11x14, oil on panel

SOLD

It has been my tradition for some years to create Christmas art – click here and here for just a couple.  I love it and am always sorry I don’t start earlier.  It’s a stretch to keep up the Christmas energy and excitement much past January 1^st.  Well, this year I did it!  How delightfully easy it was to catch the holiday spirit in October!

I saw a Christmas clock last week. It read something like: 42 days, 7 hours, 20 minutes, and 15 seconds. (Jaw drop.) I'm going back to painting... Thanks for looking! 

Happy Halloween! And a peek at what's on the easel...

Don't you find it irritating to be confronted with Christmas before Thanksgiving?  Or at least until well after Halloween?  I know I do.... It's an assault on my senses.  I like Halloween and I really love Thanksgiving. I want to move slowly and appreciate each one!
However, this year I've realized a long held dream of painting Santa portraits during the fall months. I actually started in time!  I'm having such fun and in my studio, it's beginning to look a lot like... well... we'll talk about that later.  So, let this be a sneak peek. More to come - all sizes.  Meanwhile, Happy Halloween!

Zig-Zag: Gifts, Wrapped in Chevron

Zig-Zag

oil on panel, 12x12, $240

I love our culture's current fascination with the time-honored chevron pattern.  Mustaches are hard to understand but give me a good chevron obsession and I totally get it!  (Also curley-que ribbon, which never really goes out of style.)  While painting this gift, I dreamed about a pair of slipper chairs upholstered in a chevron fabric... gray would be lovely.  Or a beautiful chevron patterned brick floor.  I like this little present a lot.  Thanks for looking!

Dontcha Love Teachers?

Many Thanks

oil on panel, 8x10, $140

Teachers are some of my favorite people.  I've had the privilege to work in schools for the past 15 or so years - a non-teacher amongst teachers - and I can attest that they have a unique blend of God-given talents and personally developed skills.  Mixed with cah-razy amounts of energy and courage. 

Speaking of, I took Julie Ford Oliver's Daily Paintworks ArtByte Tutorial on Fracturing a while ago.  Neat.  Then recently, on a trip to Houston, I visited Texas Art Supply and found the handiest little "fracturer."  Made by Princeton, it's called a Wedge.  Highly recommended.  Thanks for looking.

Surprise - A Pretty Package

Surprise!

oil on panel, 9x12
SOLD

I saw this wrapping paper at a friend's house... probably 2 years ago... and loved it. She's that kind of friend you can say, "Oh, I love that. Can I have some?" And home I went with a generous piece.  One great thing about painting paper (rather than the reverse - when you use paper to paint collages or other mixed media pieces) is that when the painting is finished, you still have the paper!  :)  Take care and thanks as always.

Can You Name this House in Twelve Books or Less?

Shelf Life: Chase Residence, Dining Room

9x12, oil on panel

Could you recognize another person's house by seeing just one small portion of one bookcase in one room? From the books in this painting, I not only know who's house I'm in (Grandpa's) - I can feel how it feels to be there (wonderful!) and remember what the shelves around it hold and conjure what delicious smells are coming from the kitchen right around the corner. I just love that.

Hope everyone is having a great May!

Recipes and Friends

These still lives are in a series called Painting Recipes that I've played with for some time. I'm going to post a new one this weekend -- a Mother's Day gift -- so I've been thinking a lot about them. Here we have recipes for homemade lemonade, hot cocoa with marshmallows, Sharkboy's pumpkin pie, and -- well, the title says it all: Is There a Title That Doesn't Include a Tequila Reference?

Truthfully, I've been in a pickle lately. What time I've set aside for painting has been spent on commissions this spring (Yippee!!!) and that doesn't leave me much to "blog" about. Then a dear friend dropped by the studio and gave me some great ideas. She is the Sarah of Hyacinths for the Soul - click here to visit her beautiful blog - and so, of course, she knows a thing or two or twenty about blogging. So inspirational.