Finished Painting - You are only as old as you feel.

Hello All,

I can't tell you how much I have enjoyed getting by teeth stuck into a portrait these last few weeks! It has been a challenge but I have loved it and it is always exciting to see them appearing in front of you as they take shape. Here is the final piece:

I wanted to keep the background quite simple but fun. When I came across the photograph I loved how despite initial appearances she is clearly young at heart, wearing her boppers. I hope I have managed to express this. I do believe it's true what they say... that you are only as old as you feel!

Bye for now xxx

Portrait Progress

Hello All,

Over the last few weeks I have been working on my new portrait and really enjoying it. It's been great getting back into painting a portrait and although its challenging I love seeing it take shape. I have taken some shots as I have been going along so you can see the progression. Here it is so far!

I am now on to the background which I am going to keep quite simple with a little texture and coloured with pigment powders. I hope you like her so far, I will post a final picture when it is finished.

Bye for now!

 xxx

You are only as old as you feel

Hello All,

It's funny how I go through different phases with my art work. I swing between abstract and portraits depending on my mood. I am not complaining, far from it. I love the way my art can be so varied and diverse, there is no rule that says I must stick to a certain medium or style. It's one of the things I love most about art, anything goes and the possibilities are endless.

I have been in an abstract mood for a while now but lately have the sudden urge to paint a portrait. I prepped a canvas and it was left sitting there for a week while I tried to decide what exactly I had in mind. I started looking at photos, books and magazines to try and get some inspiration and came across a photo of an elderly lady sitting in a crowd. In every way she is a stereotypical lady with a scarf, handbag and old brown coat but she is wearing deely boppers. She is fantastic and I love that despite appearances she is clearly young at heart. I decided I have to paint her. I started her yesterday after some initial sketches:

  I am really looking forward to seeing how she turns out. I have in my mind her sitting at the front with an abstract background perhaps containing some text but definitely with some texture. I am going to use really vivid happy colours. I want the feeling that you are only as old as you feel to come through.

I will keep you posted on my progress.

Bye for now xxx

February Art Journaling

Hello All,

Well here we are in February, my least favorite month! I am not one for cold and really dislike snow. It really makes me feel like hibernating until the spring. But one good thing about hiding indoors is that I have more time to journal and I thought I would show you some of the pages I have done this month so far.

I have been playing around with leaving white space in a few of these, something I am not very good at cause I usually just want to fill the whole page with vivid colour, but I do like how these turned out. 

I feel as though I have coming out of an abstract phase and going into portraits again. I do swing from one to the other. I think I may try a mixed media portrait on canvas next... Anyway I hope you enjoy these.

Bye for now xxx

Creative play

Hello All,

Today I thought I would share a process that I sometimes like to do when I am feeling uninspired. Sometimes I go through a lull and my motivation to create just isn't there. This is when I turn to what I call creative play. I delve into my art supplies and just pick some things that catch my eye..not too much or it is easy to get overwhelmed. On this last occasion I chose spray inks, modeling paste and some stencils, glass bead texture gel, iridescent medium, some ecoline watercolour inks, a few stamps and an ink pad, a few old book pages, and four tubes of craft acrylic.

I then prep some A3 plain paper with some gesso and get to work. Using only what I have picked I just let go and do whatever comes to mind. I don't think too much about it, simply just letting myself play with the colours and mediums and see what happens. Here's what came from this process at the weekend:

Sometimes I really like how they turn out and may add to them to create a finished piece. Other times I just stash them or cut them up and use them in other projects. What is important is that it gets the creative juices flowing again and straight away I feel more inspired. It is very therapeutic to just relax and play with the materials and even if I don't like the results I have spent a happy afternoon anyway.

I definitely recommend it if you have lost your motivation!

Bye for now! xxx 

Finished Painting and Creative Play

Hello All,

I haven't had the time or inspiration to do a lot lately and I think cold evenings mean I end up curling up under a blanket rather than doing any art. Today however I am not at work, the kids are at school and it is freezing outside. The perfect day for some creative play.  So I just got a piece of A3 paper and a selection of art materials, set myself up with some music and a cuppa and just let myself play with the materials, not thinking too much about it:

So far so good and it felt good to be creating. I also wanted to share my latest painting which is now finished:

I am really pleased with this one, I love all the metallic colours combined with the subtle pinks. 

well back to another cuppa, maybe a biscuit and some more creative play before the it's time to pick up the kids.

Bye for now xxx

New painting

Hi All,

I have tried to start the new year as I mean to go on with the start of a new mixed media abstract painting.

I started with the texture with modelling paste and glass bead texture gel both free hand and through various stencils. I then started adding colour to the smooth areas using pigment powders. I decided to use a box canvas and I am enjoying the texture spreading around the sides.

My aim is to ensure that I put aside time every week for painting and hopefully get some of them exhibited somewhere. fingers crossed.

Bye for now xxx