SPRING SENSATIONS ART SHOW AT 2ND HELPINGS GALLERY

Hey Friends, a reminder to let you know the Double Line Painters will be hanging the art show called SPRING SENSATIONS at 2nd Helpings Gallery on Williamson Rd. tomorrow, Tues. the 4th.

The reception will be Sat. the 8th from 1pm to 3pm.   

We will all be there and set up with our plein air gear to paint.  We hope you will be able to stop in and say Hi.  Maybe you can find an interesting gift for Mothers Day or Fathers Day.

Read the note above, maybe you will be the lucky person to win the cards.

Happy Trails

THE SHOW IS UP !! in ABINGDON at the ARTS DEPOT

Hey Friends,  We're all excited Judy and Mary Anne got all our beautiful paintings hung this morning in Abingdon..  Thanks a bunch ladies.

I'll start my blogging of the work I made for this show about Life along Rt. 11

Above is "A Gift to the Giver"  16x20  Oil on canvas.

This one is titled "An Offering to the Future" 18x24 Oil on Canvas.

We do hope some of our friends will make to Abingdon for this wonderful show and the fun we'll have chatting!

See you Thursday 6 until 8 pm

Happy Trails

Travel Safely

30 Day Challenge - Day 3 and Starts

Hey Friends, Here is my floral for Day 3.  This has both of Nic's handmade birds and is 8x8 Oil.

You will find it in my Etsy shop HERE.

And it's nice when I can remember to take a few photos of my starts.  Or let you know I hate the texture of canvas so I usually put a layer of paste or heavy acrylics down before I start painting.

These two are 24" sq. and I finished them today.!! YaY.

Love it when an idea just falls into place and I don't struggle for hours on one stupid little element.  If I don't watch out Karma will bite me tomorrow.

Now if I can just get a decent photo for the web, I'll be happy.

My sister gave me a camera, a very nice Nikon.  All I have to do is learn how to use it.

Thank you little sister.

Happy Trails

ORIGINAL RAVEN PAINTING "The NOSE"

Hey Friends,  A bit of whimsey coming up.  This is my fourteenth painting of Raven's.  I think his title should be "The NOSE".  His beak looks more like a nose, don't ya think?

He is available HERE.

Another reminder every day until Sat. the 10th.  Please come say HI! to me and my Friends, the Double Line Painters of the Blue Ridge at South Peak.  The hill top village across from Tanglewood.  We will be there in the afternoon, I will need to get the exact time.

Happy Trails

Zebra and Her Baby

 

Hey Friends,  Here is another I found.  This is a reproduction of an original that sold years ago.

 

Can you tell this frame is a butterfly?

Click HERE for Ebay.

 

This is a plein air piece that I almost finished while still there at Craig's Creek.  To the left, a friend was painting the actual Creek.  A young man had just passed through with 3-4 beautiful little fish he had caught in the creek.  Some form of trout, I believe he said.

Click HERE for ebay.

 

Happy Trails

What are Eggs Symbolic of ?

 

Hey Friends,  Did you already know that eggs are symbolic of fertility and/or family or offspring or siblings?  This painting has 2 eggs.  Could represent you and your sibling or your Mom & Dad and more.  Click Here for the Ebay auction.

 

Yesterday I delivered this Dragonfly to the Little Gallery at Smith Mountain Lake, here in the Bedford/Moneta area of Virginia.  Beautiful gallery in a beautiful setting, well worth the drive.

Click Here for their website.

 

Please Click Here for the Double Line Painters Blog.  We have several local events going on the first week of December.  I would love to see some of my friends there.

 

HAPPY TRAILS

Some New Work on Ebay and Painted Papers Workshop at Sedalia Center

 

Hey Friends,  Listed these little jewels in Ebay the other day.  Please check them out by Clicking Here for Ebay

 

 

And Here for the above.

 

And go to our website for the Double Line Painters to find out more about the workshop coming up on August 23rd.

And go to the website for the Sedalia Center where the workshop is being held.

 

Happy Trails

Plein Aire Painting on the James River Overlook

 

Hey Friends,  Have you heard the expression " The One That Got Away "?  Well here is one that got away !!   Accidently got away, but I got a photo before it slipped back into the wild.

 

Here's the story.  You know how women have to take everything but the kitchen sink on every trip?  We had the car pretty well packed for the return trip but then had to figure out how to protect an oil painting from rattling around and smearing itself all over my car.  So one gal had a brilliant idea that required tape that she had to fish out of one bag and that bag had this painting laying on top.  (Acrylic so it was dry)  The brilliant gal laid the painting on top of the car.  Just like I've done 100 times with a drink, except this time, when I stopped, no liquid poured down the windshield.

 

I hope some art loving hiker found it and stuffed it in his back pack and signs it when he gets home.

 

We had a wonderful day.  And it doesn't bother me one bit that this is the ONE that got away.

My friend is far more important than the painting and I don't want her to feel bad, at all.

 

Happy Trails

Travel Lightly

"Milk Bottle"

Hey Friends,  This week is spring break so the GranBabes are NOT in school !  You know that means I'm pretty busy.  Between my precious babes and my plein aire painting group I can't get much else done.  Thankfully you can post in your blog and save for later.  That's what I did except for this paragraph.  Had to do this when I posted the blog in case everything changed.  It hasn't, Yay !1

So now I'll connect this to Ebay so you know where to CLICK  Thanks for stopping by.
Happy Trails
Travel Well
PS - A favorite thing I like about Masa Rice Paper is the raggedy edges you can get.

"The Crazy People at the Top of the Hill No. 1"

Hey Friends,  I put a good bit of texture with a sandy gel and an orange bag on the surface, first of all and let that dry.  Then back in with one of my favorite cheap brushes from Cheap Joes.  I think they are called "Golden Fleece" brushes.  I've had mine for years and its taken a lot of abuse.
I really enjoy abstracting the landscape a bit.
This is a new addition to the ebay auctions.  Click Here to Look.

 On another subject, I went to walk a bit at Green Hill Park on the Roanoke River, here in Salem, after making my mail run.  I knew it was time for the Mertensia (Va.Blue Bells) and wild phlox to be blooming.  Mertensia is the prettiest flower to have ever lived.  The shades of blue and pink together on one plant is an artist dream.  I could never do them justice with my little camera OR my brush and paint.  It's is one of those creations you must see in person.

Anyway when they are in bloom that's all I want to paint.  Over and over.  But I've got other paintings that need to be done.  I've got to get something started to finish at 2nd Helpings Gallery in Roanoke tomorrow.  Our group of fab artists, "the Double Line Painters" will be painting from 11 til 1pm or whenever the crowd dies down.  And the 27th of April, we will be at the "Blue Ridge Winery" in the Eagle Rock area.  Again painting for your entertainment and displaying our work for your perusal and purchase.  Hope you can come chat with us for a while.

Happy Trails
Travel Well

"Fan Dancer" and "Friendship"

Hey Friends,  Here are some new additions to Ebay.  I took some photos years ago at a local "Colors" festival.  This was the cutest little girl dancing with fans.  And that's pretty much all I remember of the event.  I guess that's why we take photos, huh?  Click Here

And this cutie pa tutie is like a page from the past.  Hopefully you can see and read the little sentiment.  Would be a great gift for almost anyone.  Not my usual work but I like it.  Click Here.
Happy Trails
Travel Well

More Plein Aire and a Bunny

Hey Friends,  Here is my latest addition to Ebay.  Why was the bunny hiding behind the vase?  I don't remember.  Actually it was a flower pot.  And the bunny belonged to my sister, years ago.  I've always wanted a bunny since.  Click here for the ebay auction.

 And as promised here is the second piece I did yesterday.  This one is an 8x10 canvas panel, that I stained with a burnt sienna beforehand.

 Still sitting in the same spot, see the tree dead ahead with the daffodils in yesterdays painting?

 And this is the first stage, the start, as Brian Buckrell says.  This start is always pretty ugly.  But wait! - it gets worse.

Here at this stage it looks like an abandoned train car, right?  But you keep at it and at it and if no one interferes, you might wind up with something that isn't too shabby.  Look up at the end result.  This shed is really old and in the queerest place.  Almost in the middle of the stream that runs over the road.  My guess is with construction and various trees falling over the years, the stream was in a different place.  This shed is probably full of snakes now.  Yuck.
Haven't decided what to do with this painting yet.  And I'm just too tired to tell you about our trip to the Blue Ridge Winery.  I think I walked for at least a mile taking photos.  174 of them.  I've got a lot of fodder for paintings.  Just need to find the time now.
Happy Trails
Travel Well

What Do You Think?

Hey Friends,  I'm asking for opinions.  I know we all have differing opinions and most of the time I don't trust mine so I thought why not ask you guys.  A couple weeks ago I posted an old painting of a cliff I saw in Michigan on Lake Michigan.  A well known, I would say well respected, painter left a comment for me.  He said something like "Strong work & beautiful painting".   I was thrilled and totally surprised by his taking the time to comment.  I always liked the piece but it never sold so I thought I was wrong in thinking it was good.  I do know how to ramble, huh?
Anyway, I finished these 2 and can't decide if they are any good.  I must confess they look better on my monitor.  They look brighter.  Usually I say "They look better in real life".  Not this time.

Both are from the same little stretch of the Roanoke River in South Salem area of the new Greenway.  I want to make a much bigger one and I'm hoping you guys can tell me what needs to be fixed before going bigger.  In the 2nd piece I'm standing on a cliff looking down on the river and man fishing.  I'm going to keep these for a while at least until I get the bigger one finished.
I hope you leave comments and I thank you in advance.

Happy Trails
Travel Well

No School Again and the Polar Bears are Happy

Hey Friends,  I put some of my polar bears happily wearing scarves and some swinging in Ebay auctions.  Click here to see this guy.

What I really wanted to tell you is, it kept snowing today.  My first post about Pax the Blizzard, my yardstick was at 12"  then when it quit again this afternoon it was about 17" !!! Wow !  We may never get off this hill.  Nobody could shovel that much snow.

Look at my Subaru........It's buried..  I don't wanna shovel any of it.  It's supposed to warm up to the 40's and 50's by first of the week.  Maybe that will be enough to melt it.  But I need to go to the Post Office and work at least one day.  I hope everyone will forgive me for not getting out.
On the bright side, I had a most enjoyable day painting.  I finished 5 small ones.
Happy Trails
Happy Shoveling

Polar Bear No. 10

 

Hey Friends,  It is snowing here in SW Virginia....I mean SNOWING !!  Some of the TV stations say we will have 9 to 12 ".  I haven't seen that much snow in years, maybe decades.

 

So it made me think of polar bears.  My polar bears specifically.  So here we go with my bears.  There is bound to be other people out there in cyber space that likes polar bears too.  I couldn't be the only one, right?

 

I've got about ten mini-paintings in these precious little silver frames that I'm putting up for auction in Ebay, starting at a penny.  So this would be a great time to buy up some Christmas, Birthday presents.

Just click here and start bidding !

 

Happy Trails

Happy Shoveling

Ebay Store re-opened

Hey Friends,  Several years ago I opened a store on Ebay.   I have recently learned from a generous gift from Jack White (he is a Famous artist and author) that I was indeed to impatient.  It takes forever and a bazillion days to have any success on Ebay.  He created a fictional character to paint pictures to auction on the giant.  And he had good success after about a year. !!  A whole year !!

So I'm giving it another go.  First time I only lasted about a month or so.  And was totally ignorant about the words to list, etc.  Hopefully, I have learned from Mr. White (I mean, I hope he's not pulling my leg).

I'm sure I've mentioned sometime in the past that I have a boatload of paintings in my studio to do SOMEthing with.  So this might be a good way to get going.  I'm starting each piece at $.01.
Yes, that's the advice I've been given, so ONE penny it is.

Another thing I'm doing with some of this overstock is sanding and re-gessoing to paint MORE.  I shall be participating in Leslie Saeta's challenge  again this January.  That's 30 paintings in 30 days.

I'm hoping I can list these in my DPW shop and connect to Ebay just like I did for my Etsy shop.
Won't that make my life a bit easier?

So Click here if you want to see what my Ebay listing looks like.  (Fingers are crossed)
Happy Trails
Travel Well

After the Dishes are Done

Hey Friends,  Just added this to my Etsy store.  It is a giclee on canvas and embellished with crackle paste and string gel.  This is on a wrapped 10" x 8" canvas and it is varnished. 
This treatment sort of gives it a framed/matted look.  You can see some extreme close ups in Etsy.
This would make a sweet gift for any female on your list.
Happy Trails
Travel Well

Can You Stop the Rain ?!

 Hey Friends,  Another little piece of inspiration.   Wouldn't it be cute if we humans could look up into the trees and see little purple umbrellas here and there?  We would know the little birds were doing OK.  Maybe I'm reverting to childhood.

This was painted on the piano papers again, all free hand with acrylics.  I love to make the little paperdoll chains into any creature-the little blue birds there at the bottom.  And this one has my finger prints all over it too.  If I thought it was possible at all, I'd catch a bird and make foot prints with it, before setting it free.  Wouldn't that be the coolest thing I've done yet.
I went to an apple orchard today with my sister and of course I got a bunch of pictures.  Soon I can paint from them and munch on apples whilst I work..
Here is the link to my Etsy shop

Happy Trails
Travel Well

the Best Things in Life are Free

 Hey Friends,  This piece started with the printed paper from my GranBabes piano practice book.

 Thought a few process shots might be fun.  The paper has been gelled to the thick canvas and starting with the blue acrylics.

 The stamp I carved myself and I added the vine  so it could be green.

 Here I have finished with the stamp and painted in the utility wire with the blackbirds resting.  I don't know if you can tell but I really like the finger prints I made all over the piece.  Kinda like certain brush strokes but made with the fingers.

And I have found quite a few feathers this year and I like them a lot so I use them every chance I get.  And here are the edges of the piece.  Did you notice how stained and worn my table is?  I like to put paint right on the table instead of the palette, especially when working with a tiny brush and very small strokes.   I shall put this in my Etsy Shop.
Happy Trails
Travel Well

Deep Breathing

 Hey Friends,  The companion to the last post, "Tight Rope Walking".  These titles sound almost depressing or worrisome.  But they are straight from my Gran Babes piano practice book.

After gluing the paper on the canvas and painting the flamingo, I spread the acrylic gel on with a palette knife and while wet, swirl one of those cake frosting things with comb-like teeth.  Sure you know what I'm talking about, everyone has a couple in their drawer.  Ha.
This is going to my Etsy shop-Click Here.

And go to the DLP blog to see all about our reception last night in Lynchburg.

Happy Trails
Travel Well