Hope

"Hope is the thing with feathers

That perches in the soul

And sings the tune without the words

And never stops at all."

                                          ---Emily Dickinson

This is my painting

for this weeks

Paint Party Friday

http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

HOPE

I like quotes and seem to add them to many of my pieces.

Below is what she looked like before the quote was added.

What do you think?

Words or no words?

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Two Finished Paintings

I promised I would show you my finished still life and ink pouring.

They have not been critiqued by my watercolor instructor yet,

so I'm sure there will be more changes made.

Here is the still life.

(I need more practice LOL)

AND...

here is my finished ink pouring.

(Sorry I forgot to take a photo of it

before I added watercolor.)

The Ink Pouring Process....

There were several different colors of ink

 randomly poured onto wet watercolor paper.

Then it was covered with saran wrap that was scrunched up.

Then a piece of plexi glass was put on top of that,

with books on top of that for weight.

Then you let it dry, and you never know what you will get.

I did watercolor painting in the negative, on top of the dried ink,

 for all but the red dragonfly.

It was painted in the positive.

Where I had scrunched up saran wrap on the wet ink,

there were designs,

and one thing I saw in the designs was the dragonfly,

so I painted it in. 

Then I saw leaves scattered throughout

 so I painted around them, bringing them out.

It's a different technique,

but I like doing it.

The burgandy red was the only ink

that didn't spread around much while drying.

But that's okay. 

Like I said, you never know what you will get.

That's what makees it fun!

Try something new!
Don't forget to visit Paint Party Friday
to see more wonderful art
by all the dozens of PPF bloggers...
or even better yet,
JOIN US!

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

PPF Christmas Angel

Happy PPF!

This is my mixed media Christmas angel.

I love doing my angels on hymnal pages,

book pages, or watercolor paper.

I usually add acrylics, and also quotes

that I print out on paper.

I use stencils quite often in the background.

She is a full size watercolor sheet.

I named it,

To Live in this World...

From Mary Olivers quote,

"To live in this world,

you must be able to do three things:

 to love what is mortal

to hold it against your bones

knowing your own life depends on it

and

when the time comes

 to let it go,

 to let it go."

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

PPF Hummer

                                                        A flash of harmless lightning,

mist of rainbow dyes,

The burnished sunbeams brightening

From flower to flower he flies.

                                    - John Banister Tabb

And the humming-bird that hung

Like a jewel up among

The tilted honeysuckle horns

 They mesmerized and swung

In the palpitating air,

 Drowsed with odors strange and rare.

And, with whispered laughter, slipped away

And let him hanging there.

                           - James Whitcomb Riley

Happy Paint Party Friday everyone!

Visit http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

for more creativity in painting.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne



Spirit, Strength, Feminity of Woman

Spirit, Strength, Feminity of Woman

(16 in. by 20 in.)

is my submission for Week 30 at

 Paint Party Friday

I love the use of stencils for background designs.

 Real lace was used as a stencil for her veil.

I didn't paint her to look realistic,

but I was happy how she turned out.

Most of my mixed media pieces have a quote

or words added to them. 

Is feminity a word?

Not sure about that one.

Contrast is also important.

Here the brick(ish) and wrought iron background,

vs. the lace veil and rose.

Hope you visit PPF because now

there are more than 60 blog participants

showing some very creative art pieces.

You can click on the PPF logo in my sidebar or

click on

http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

"Imagine Peace" painted and dyed fabric

For Paint Party Friday

I am sharing

Imagine Peace.

It is hand dyed fabric and also

 painted with oil pastels

and watercolor crayons.

I also used paper fabric, beads

and free motion quilting.

The face was painted on a piece of muslin

with watercolor crayons.

Here it is pinned to my design board.

Below is a close up of the face.

I sewed leaf beads around part of her forehead.

The next picture shows detail at the bottom.

I stenciled the words on with oil pastels.

The little butterfly on the 'A' is just stamped on.

I stenciled/stamped/painted on some flowers here and there,

and some tiny blue birds in the canopy of the tree.

The stars are stenciled and then I used metallic thread on top

to bring them out a bit more.

The tree goddess roots and canopy

form the peace symbol,

as shown in the first picture above.

This fiber art piece will be entered in a show

in September for the Fiber Art Society

that I belong to.

The show is

"Much Made from Small Pieces" A World View.

This piece measures 24 inches by 34 inches.

To see more PPF art

click on the PPF logo in my sidebar.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne



Paint Party Friday at last

I have missed PPF for awhile

because of life events mostly.

But also I have not been able to

upload my photos at times,

or even comment on some of your posts.

So, I just layed back for awhile,

didn't post anything much,

and decided not to get stressed out

over this.

Here is my PPF painting for this week.

This painting is actually half of the original size.

I had flowers at the bottom of the whole sheet

and they came out terrible.

I attempted to fix them, but they still looked awful,

 so off they came.

I liked my trees, so they stayed.

Sometimes if it can't be fixed,

then just cut off or crop out the bad.

Hope you all have a happy PPF.

I will be visiting you, but if you don't see a comment,

it is because blogger won't let me again.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Paint Party Friday-WIP

It's Paint Party Friday!

I have had so much on my plate this week,

that I have not finished a painting.

I think it shows in my painting below

how stressed I've been lately.

I started this one in class,

and have not touched it much since.

So here is my work in progress

(or maybe just finished).

I have never done white flowers,

and it was difficult to say the least.

I am not happy with the background most of all.

I tend to go over and over it sometimes,

and have to keep reminding myself that

once I put a stroke of color down,

to leave it alone.

I am constantly striving to be loose.

Maybe I will try it again this week, all new and fresh,

learning from my mistakes on this one.

Maybe a few glasses of wine would help.

LOL

Would appreciate ANY critique.

It is very helpful.

Your comments have meant a lot to me.

Thanks.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

PPF--week 9

Last week I posted three of my CD cover ideas

that I am doing for a client.

The gospel CD idea, by the client,

was to be an angel on a hymnal page. 

So I painted it, got your wonderful input,

got my instructors input, studied on it,

painted several more pieces, and this week came up with this.

This one is slightly different...

This time I started painting on paper the size of the CD,

4.75 by 4.75 inches.

First I tried making the halo transparent

and the background just a watermark.

It was still too much clutter, so I decided to

just have the hymnal page on her face.

The halo looked best gold, as I tried it just about every color.

I also tried the background almost every color,

but I really like the purple.

I was going to show you every one of my attempts,

but there were a lot of them, and most of them looked terrible.

Another thing I changed was,

I tilted her head.

My instructor noticed right away that she looked too much

like a keyhole before.

So what do you think?

Better?  Worse?  Wasting my time?  :)

I am still working on making the other two covers better also,

but blogger would not let me download those pics tonight.

So maybe next week.

In the meantime, go enjoy the other

Paint Party Friday art works and

don't forget to...

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

PPF--staying loose

I missed Paint Party Friday last week.

I did finally get around to visiting some of the artists

later that weekend.

I am always blown away at the talent out there.

Visit Paint Party Friday by clicking

on the logo in my sidebar.

Here is my submission for this week's party.

I'm still trying to stay loose,

not blend too much,

do something different each time

and have fun.

I'm off at an artist retreat later today.
The entire watercolor class is going,
so it should be fun.
Will share photos next week.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Tree practice--PPF

I love trees of all kinds.

Here in south Texas we have oaks, ebony,
olive, palms, mesquites, and other trees.

Many are twisted by the strong winds here.

Most have interesting bark and lots of character.
Some have small leaves,
and others have larger ones.
Some even have beautiful flowers.

I painted a tree this week for my watercolor class in town.
We are going on a day out artist retreat this month,
and my teacher was teaching us about trees.
I have a very hard time painting trees.
I like to paint loose, and have lots of color
in my paintings,
so here is my first tree.

I put a rope swing hanging from the large branch,

just like I always had when growing up.

I'm not sure about the perspective,

the shadows etc.

I will keep practicing!

This painting is only 8 by 10 inches,

so that is smaller than normal for me.

I used smaller brushes,

and that seemed harder for me also.

So, that's my Paint Party Friday painting,

as it is right now.

Hope you are having a wonderful and creative week.

If you have any tips on painting trees,

I could sure use some critique on this one.

Thanks!

To see more PPF art,

visit http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

or click on the logo in my sidebar.

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Paint Party Friday--Flowers

"Flowers have spoken to me more than I can tell in written words. 

 They are the hieroglyphics of angels,

 loved by all men for the beauty of the character,

though few can decipher even fragments of their meaning."

---Lydia M. Child

Happy Paint Party Friday!

I love flowers!

The flowers here are starting to bloom,

more and more each day.

I decided that a floral painting

would be appropriate

for this week's PPF photo,

since Spring is well under way.

This is how I did it...

First I sketched the vase and flowers loosely.

Then I did an under painting on wet paper,

letting the colors run.

I put certain colors of paint in places where I knew

 flowers and leaves would be,

background and foreground.

That layer had to dry well before going on.

Using three different brushes and mixing colors,

I painted in the foreground flowers and leaves a bit more,

leaving hard and soft edges.

Then that layer dried well.

The next layer was detailing everything just a bit more.

I like to keep things abstract and loose,

with just the illusion of what it is.

After that layer was dry

I put in the centers of just a few flowers.

Lastly, with a liner brush,

I put in some twirly things,

and splashed different colors here and there.

To see more Paint Party Friday art,

go to

http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

or click on the logo in my sidebar.

Or why don't you join us!

Savor the Day!

Yvonne

Elizabeth Barton plus my musings

'Art and Quilts, cogitations thereon' 

is the name of the blog written by Elizabeth Barton.
http://elizabethbarton.blogspot.com/

She says in one of her posts....

"We need some repetition in our lives, rhythms like the rhythm of the seasons, the daily routines and rhythms of our lives…and we do need to be able to predict what will happen…But again, a little variety and syncopation keeps us interested and alert. “They” used to think that human beings required perfect balance – stasis – to function best, but now it’s realised that being a little off kilter is actually much better for you! Don’t always stand 4 square on 2 feet – try balancing on one leg for a while!"

Being a artist and instructor,

her posts touch on subjects

that are all very interesting.

To check it out
click on the link above and

just go to her archives in her sidebar

to find what interests you.

***

MUSINGS

It has been a wonderful week.

Most of my most recent posts are ones

I wrote beforehand

and then scheduled to be published

on a certain day.

This makes it much easier,

and I don't spend as much time every day

on the computer.

Who wants to be inside

when the weather is so gorgeous,

and the birds are calling.

I have noticed that many out there

have stopped their blogs,

and some don't post very often.

Doing your posts ahead of time

really helps, in my opinion.

But it is most important to enjoy

and experience your everyday

however you can.

***

I spent 6 days with my sister Lanette,

and yes, she did laugh when she saw

her picture on my 'sing' inchie art.  LOL

http://inkspillersattic.blogspot.com/2011/04/sing.html

I hardly ever got on the computer those 6 days.

Went to Corpus with my friend Karen,

and my sister,

and had such a fun time.

Ate lunch at the veggie Tango Tea Room

where they say

"It takes tea to tango."

Will get photos next time!
Learned about the first Friday art walk downtown,
and will be going next month.
I'm excited!

***

I finally got time to try out the

caraway tea bread recipe and

it turned out wonderful!

Here it is cooling on the counter...

I couldn't wait to try it!

It was great just by itself!

The castor sugar makes a big difference.

To try it,

go to my post...
http://inkspillersattic.blogspot.com/2011/03/caraway-tea-and-bread-recipe.html

***

I'm working on another watercolor
for my merit show in August.
I will show my progress tomorrow for
Paint Party Friday.
You can see lots of wonderful art
at Paint Party Friday.
If you are an artist,
why don't you join us.
Just click on the logo in my sidebar.
***
It's that time of year for...
art walks,
Botanical Garden events,
the Sand Fest,
Farmer's Markets!
All great fun!
Hope you visit again for photos of all!

Savor the Day!
Yvonne

Painting Italy

Happy Paint Party Friday!

Thanks for all the sweet comments

on my last PPF painting of two wild horses.

I have never received so many comments

for any post.

My instructor liked them too,

so that made me feel good.

It was wonderful!

Nothing better than other artists

acknowledging and liking your work.

I still have not decided on a name for it...

I am terrible when it comes to giving my art titles.

I wish there was a class on that!!!  LOL

Now on to this week's PPF painting.

For several years,

I've had this photo

(one of several hundred)

from my Italy trip.

I have always wanted to paint it,

so that is what I did this week.

My friend Lana and I stayed in Umbria, central Italy,

known as the 'garden' of Italy.

I saw so many beautiful things.

Everywhere I looked I saw colorful flowers...

in old terra cotta pots...

lining every step of an outdoor stone stairway,

on streets by every door way,

outside windows and doors on balconies,

and more.

The iron scroll work was beautiful too,

up against the colored, aging buildings.
Italy is an artists paradise.

I hope to paint many more

of my photos....
of Italy and otherwise.

Please click on
http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/
or on the logo in my sidebar.
I know you will enjoy seeing all of the
great pieces of unique and beautiful art.

If you are an artist, why don't you join us!
It doesn't matter what level you may be at.
We even like to see unfinished pieces.
This is the third week,
and I have found great art blogs
I may not have found otherwise.

Savor the Day!
Yvonne

Paint Party Friday--a bit early

I will be dyeing fabric all day Friday,

so I thought I would go ahead and post this early.

Paint Party Friday is in it's second week!

To see some wonderful creations visit

 http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/.

Here is my painting for this week.

I have wanted to really loosen up,

so I did a quick sketch of 2 horses and did

a very loose abstract piece.

I love color, as you can tell.

I'm not sure it's finished,

that's why it is still on my foamcore board.

This watercolor measures 18 by 24 inches.

I tried to do what I learned in watercolor class yesterday.

1. I changed brushes (sizes) often while painting.

2. I stood up to paint.

3. Once I put paint down, I left it alone.

4. I stepped back from the painting often.

5. I didn't hurry.

I need to come up with a name for this piece.

Any suggestions???

Savor the Day!

Yvonne