ORIGINAL PLEIN AIR PAINTING

Hey Friends,  We had such glorious weather here in the little town of Salem, Va. today.   On my way to the post office, I stopped for a bit at the corner of Mill Lane and River Road to paint this beautiful little spot.

Of course this photo doesn't show much, my arm is not long enough!  I enjoyed this time immensely.

It is up for auction on EBAY -Click there. Will engage on 24th.

And I get to do it again tomorrow in the Sedalia Area of Va.

And then on Friday, I'll be packing up the works again to take to the Salem Civic Center.  The annual Home Builders Show is this weekend.  It is supposed to be a wet weekend, so it will be a good time to come peruse all the vendors.

Thanks for stopping in.

Happy Trails

ORIGINAL MIXED MEDIA DAISY PAINTINGS

 

Hey Friends,  I've had a busy and pretty day so far.  The Double Line Painters met at 2nd Helpings Gallery on their patio to finish our Color Wheel Chair for the Bedford Artisan Trail auction.

 

 

For the DLP Blog - CLICK HERE

 

 

And before I forget, the Daisys above, along with a few more are for auction in Ebay.

CLICK HERE

 

Thanks for taking your time to stop in.

 

Happy Trails

ORIGINAL PLEIN AIR START AND THE GRAND FINALE

 

Hey Friends,  Here is the end result.  Below is what I started with.  Sometimes Mother Nature does not make this painters life easy.  Below was just the beginning but even then there wasn't much to work with in the sky.  I repainted that sky 3 times.  Still not sure if that's the best I can do.

CLICK HERE FOR EBAY

This is a rather large one @ 11"x 17" on Terra Skin.  A new development in artist paper that I really like the texture of.  It is made from crushed stone, so you would think it's OK to use oils on.

 

Thank you for stopping in.  Hope you return tomorrow.

 

Happy Trails

ORIGINAL PLEIN AIRE PAINTING IN SALEM, VIRGINIA

 

Hey Friends,  I was ready because I caught the weather report last night.  Today, Tuesday the 20th of Jan. the temps. went up into the 50's.  The sun was glorious, nice breeze most of the time.  Once, twice it was a full gale.

I went out past Dixie Caverns and turned onto an old familiar road (can't remember name) that goes past the new regional jail.  After the RR tracks is a tiny white church on the left.  Pulled in there to paint this beautiful barn and silo across the road with the mountains in background.

Had to include the white streams airplanes make just as they were.  I'm pretty sure anybody else would tell me that is a design NO NO.    But I have a license that says I can do anything I want with paint.

CLICK HERE for EBAY

 

Went on around to the end of that road and started this one.  It will be finished tonight, I hope.

This is acrylic on Terra Skin.  This new paper is made from stone.  Amazing stuff.  Feels wonderful.

Artists should give it a try.  I found mine at Cheap Joes.

 

Glad you could stop in.

Happy Trails

ORIGINAL PAINTING OF "MYSTERY TREES"

 

Hey Friends,  Another "start" is finished.  This is the view behind the Home Place Restaurant on Rt.311-headed towards Catawba.  Beautiful piece of land.  These trees really caught my attention.  I did not do them justice.  I was finishing this painting from a photo and I'm sure the colors were incorrect.  I need to go back before they change colors

 

It is supposed to be in the upper 50's tomorrow (Tues) so that sounds like the place to go!

 

I was painting this start on the spot with my friends from Texas and they did not think the trees were Mesquite but were not sure.  So they remain a mystery.

 

This is for auction on EBAY- CLICK HERE

 

Happy Trails

Plein Aire Waterside

 

Hey Friends,  Another painting done at Brookside Park next to the Golf Club.  On Williamson Road here in Roanoke, Va.  In this very spot is where all the little kiddies like to play.  They really like to turn over the rocks and find a craw daddy.  The girls let out such piercing squeals and the boys come running. Fun !  Click HERE for ebay.

 

When I was cleaning out the studio, I found lots of frames and forgotten stuff such as this little Angel.  I like it in the Hummingbird frame.

Click Here for Ebay.

 

In case anyone wants to know,  It's been very dreary here in the Blue Ridge all day.  We haven't gotten any snow, thankfully. 

 

Happy Trails Travel Well

Captured a SunSpot at Garst Mill

 

Hey Friends,  This past summer, just a few months ago, and it does seem like years ago.  While my GranBabes were playing in the water, I managed to paint this streak of sunlight hitting the rocks on the edge.  Great Memories.

For auction on EBAY, CLICK HERE

Gum Springs and New Show

 

Hey Friends,  This is one of my plein air works, obviously from the spring.  It is for auction on Ebay.

 

 

I have a few photos to show you from our hanging at the Jefferson Center in Roanoke this morning.

Above are two of my plein air pieces painted this June and a stained glass piece by Bud Shaw, that I really, REALLY want.

 

Here is a piece I titled "Anniversary".  So silly I know.  And the beautiful original violin created by the Double Line Painters, Check out their blog.

 

Here are two more of mine.  A horse on the left and cows on the right.  Patty Powers fiber art hanging in the middle.  This photo doesn't do any of the works justice.  Patty's piece (to me) looks like an undersea world.  You should go to the Jefferson Center and see all the great art work and maybe take in one of their events.  You owe it to yourself.

I do plan to show you more of the art hanging there for the months of December and January.

 

Happy Trails

Travel Carefully

Tire Trough - From the Barns of Bedford Project

 

Hey Friends,  This is available at auction on EBAY.   Don't you wish it was green outside again and we were all out there painting away the hours?  Can't you just hear the birds and feel the sun going in and out of the clouds?

Sweet Dreams

 

Happy Trails

Long Time Getting to Here

 

Hey Friends,  The nasty flu bugs are out already here in Blue Ridge Area of Virginia.  I've had one bout, my grand babes have had crazy temperatures and strip throat.  So watch OUT.

I felt so much better yesterday I drove out to Paint Bank, Va. near West Va. on Rt. 311.

 

This is peak foliage color time for them and it was beautiful.  My dinky little point & shoot doesn't do justice for the colors.  The 2 photos above are the bison on Rt.600.  Been wanting to photograph them for years.

 

This is the view from Potts Mountain close to the "Homeplace" restaurant.  As John Denver said "It sets my senses reeling".  You feel so close to heaven when out there.

You know some paintings are on the way !!  Yay !!

Happy Trails

Short series from July 28th

 

Hey Friends,  Posting in the morning while my Babes are busy watching the Toons.  July 28th here in Salem, Va. was a beautiful day.  The sky changed so often I took my gear to the roof of my studio and painted a small one every half hour.  The one above is titled " 1:30 ".  I'm putting all of them for auction in Ebay.  Click HERE for this one.

 

Here I am on the roof. 

 

Here is the view looking north.  Odd how the sky changed so much.  Looking at the painting you would think it was going to burst out with lightning but the sky wasn't so dark.  But it was.

Honest.

And it was pretty ominous several times.

Thanks for stopping by.

Happy Trails

Fun in the Mountains

 

Hey Friends, Yesterday I delivered plein aire paintings to 2nd Helpings Gallery on Williamson Rd. which is close to DT Roanoke right off of Rt.460.  Pictured above.

 

After helping the DLP group work on our Barns of Bedford guitar (I'll show you tomorrow) I raced up to Mill Mountain to see what the beautiful sky looked like.  I sat on the curb close to the overlook and painted the above 5x7.

 

Then I raced home to get into shorts and an icy drink, then raced over to Greenhill Park in Salem, Va. on the Roanoke River to see what I could practice on.  The river is seriously low.  We will be calling it the Roanoke Creek soon.  Lots of rocks to include in paintings.

 

For the locals, aren't you surprised at how low the water is?  I knocked out 2- 9"x 12" panels and then hauled it all back up to the car.  Those rocks are hard on your knees !

 

When I got back to the car, the sky was so pretty I had to sit on the bumper and do another !

A 12" sq. panel of the treeline and beautiful clouds.  Most days I paint outside it is because of the sky.  I may not always put the sky in but that's what pulls me out there.  I would like to do a grand vista.  A large wide open valley with a big sky.  Some day soon.

Happy Trails

Travel Well

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

More on Ebay and On the Porch at Ikenberry's

 

Hey Friends, Summertime is flying by for me, how about you?  The pollinator series ended badly didn't it?  The opportunity to take a workshop jumped up quickly and I jumped on it.  It turned out to be a fabulous workshop and a great time so I don't feel to bad about the pollinators.  I will always be working on them and adding to ebay from time to time.

I've added some small plein-aire landscapes to ebay and this large one above titled  "Wisteria Cats".

You can read more about it HERE on ebay.

 

And some great news.  The Double Line Painters will be on the Porch at Ikenberry's on Rt. 220 and this year.   The first show is this Saturday July 12th.  We set up a few display flats and hang some of  our work up and we paint !  The photo above is from last fall when they had hay bales for sale on the porch.  They do a fantastic job of decorating this huge porch and we love to do these mini shows.

So come by this Saturday and peruse the artwork and get a box of peaches.  Last year the peaches were fabulous (to look at and paint) but so delicious too.  Click this link to read about this event and to sign up for the newsletter.

Happy Trails

Travel Well

Pollinator Series # Twenty-Five "Discussion" and Plein Aire Today

 

Hey Friends,  This entertaining little painting is going up for auction on Ebay this evening.  Pollinator series is almost over and so is the month of June !  Yikes, can you believe it.

 

Me, Myself and the DLP's went out into the wild to paint today.  It was a beautiful day and so encouraging.   I might be getting a small grasp on this outdoor painting thing.  I try real hard not to include everything I see.  "Tis difficult.

 

Bonnie took this shot of me.  I would have to go back and look, but don't you think that looks like poison ivy in the foreground??  Bonnie are you itchy tonight?

Happy Trails

Travel Well

"GreenHill No.2"

Hey Friends,  A short post to show you what's up for auction in Ebay.  Click Here......Greenhill has a ton of views waiting to be painted.  I'll never have time to do it justice.  I scan my larger painting on my great but smaller Epson scanner and then knit the sections together in photoshop.  Occasionally the sections will show a line, such as you see above.  If I were any good at photoshop I could probably erase, paint over or blend that line.  But I don't wanna fool with it.  I think you can tell what it looks like.  And the colors are pretty true here.

Don't forget to come say hello at the Art Walk in Bedford tomorrow evening, 5-8 pm.  At the Electric Co. Co-Op Gallery.  The DLP are the featured artists.  Click Here for more info.  And Click Here for even more info.
Happy Trails
Travel Well

Sunset on the Blue Ridge Mountains

Hey Friends,  Another sunset but this time right here at home.  Just down the road as a matter a fact.
Worked from a poor photo and a lot of memory - my favorite way to paint most days.

This painted on a 5x7 canvas panel.  The weather should be warm enough soon for me to get outside and cut some Masonite panels.  I really like to paint on these smooth panels better than canvas.  Yeah, Spring will spring up soon !!
I'm putting this little jewel up for auction in Ebay, Click here for a surprise.
Happy Trails
Travel Well

Foot Bridge at Greenhill Park, Salem, Virginia

Hey Friends,  Came across this little painting yesterday while shuffling through the cold studio.  So I have listed her on ebay.  You can click here to learn more.
My painting group is anxious to get out there and do some painting.  It's been a long winter and we are rusty (some of us anyway).  We will meet next week in a local park and the week after everyone wants to go to DT Roanoke for some new shots of the market area.  So I should have some new fodder for you to see soon.
Yesterday I went to the "Butt Hollow Cemetary" here in the Fort Lewis area, I guess Fort Lewis would fit the description.  Some relatives are buried there and I have a distant cousin coming in to town soon so I wanted to be sure I knew where it was.  I think I'll go back soon and make a painting.  Everyone loves a cemetery painting.
Happy Trails
Travel Well

Glenvar, Virginia Last Fall

 

Hey Friends,  This is an 8x10 done from some photos I took on a beautiful blustery day last fall.  This was a chilly day and I've been waiting and waiting for another such day to roll into this area.  I could have this morning, it was nice, but other chores kept me inside and now it's dark.  Another front has moved in and we may get more snow !

This is the year of the endless winter.

This interpretation of a beautiful day is up for auction in Ebay - Click Here.

 

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