A Brand New Year ~~~

I want to wish all my followers, subscribers and occasional visitors all the best in the coming new year and thank you all for your support and interest in my art. A special thanks to those who took the time to post comments. It means a great deal to me.

Truthfully tomorrow is just another Sunday, me thinks but it can represent a fresh start, too. I'm not sure just how much I accomplished in 2016 but it was a much healthier year for me and I think I may have grown up (at least a little) as an artist. Something has shifted in my inner ether. It's hard to articulate. It's just a feeling, an attitude change. I'm excited to see where it leads me...really excited. In the mean time I've been busy painting collage papers and going through old magazines tearing out photos. I'll be posting an update soon. See you in 2017.

'Tis The Season

To all my visitors....

A Touch of Spring

My best friend's birthday is a week before Christmas and I wanted to make her a special card as usual and every year I wrack my brain to come up with something new. This year it was easy. Winter, although just getting started has been unusually brutal so something Spring-like was in order. Flowers but no poinsettias here...uh uh.

This is a new technique I picked up on Youtube. It's fairly simple but I've found it does take a little practice. Lay down a colorful layer of paint and pattern using colors on the darker side. Nothing pastel. When dry seal to protect the layer. I used matte gel medium. Make sure the matte medium is thoroughly dry before adding the last layer. I used white acrylic. Allow to dry for just a minute then scrap away the top coat to reveal the paint underneath. Voila! 

Christmas Cards 2016

I'm actually making some Xmas cards this year. It's been a few years since I made them. Not sure how many, I'll have to check. Anyhoo, this a sampling of my work thus far. Lots of collaging, stenciling, painting, inking, stamping...you name it. This sort of thing does not come natural to me, I'm discovering. I watched numerous videos on Youtube of artists whipping together these amazingly creative gems of art full of energy and fun and almost childlike exuberance. However when I faced the proverbial blank piece of paper I agonized over placement, color, intent...I took the fun right out of it. Not to mention that I'm short on technique when it comes to some of these materials. Sadly, lack of confidence always shows. Still I persevered and things haven't turned out so bad after all.  Merry Christmas!

Just starting out

The aftermath. Yikes

Christmas Bird ~ mixed media

This is my rendition of a Christmas bird. Trust me, it's one of a kind. I tried several ideas out on this little birdie while in the process. For instance, I added quilted fabric to his body. I found an old pillow sham which was sacrificed for the cause. Also I dipped into my vast collection of bird feathers and used those to embellish the breast. I created a makeshift piping bag from a plastic storage bag and piped the branch with modeling paste. I used my waxed paper faux batik technique to make the leaves and the tail and wing feathers. Walnut ink was used to tone the waxed paper rather than India ink and the background was also toned with walnut ink. Hope you like. I like it.