New Work hung at 2nd Helpings Gallery

Hello Friends,  I've been working pretty hard the last couple of weeks.  Finishing some work and started a couple of new works.   And our little painting group, the Double Line Painters of the Blue Ridge, hung a new show at 2nd Helpings Gallery yesterday,

Here are a couple of my pieces that I finished last week.  "Mother Earth Awakens" is the title of the show, hence all the bright, beautiful colors I love.  Flowers and more flowers with a few birds thrown in.  Several pieces are collage, like the one below, but the one above is straight paint work.

Collage is such fun.  If you have never tried it you should.  And we, the DLP, are planning another collage workshop.  Probably in July but it something we just started thinking about yesterday.  Lots can change between now and then.

I'm so..o..o..o.. very happy that spring is almost here, I can barely contain myself.  I see little pink buds and want to take photos that won't quite show the color yet.  But it's still joy.  Can't wait to get out and paint.

Hope you make it to our reception at 2nd Helping on Sat. April 13th.  Would love to visit with you !

Happy Trails
Travel Well

More Stamping

 Hey Friends,  Still having fun making stamps and attempting to use them creatively !  Above are the same fish from the last post.   That's a jelly fish in the top left and the small seahorse in lower right.

 You can barely see it but I've got another fish drawn on the big piece of rubbery pink stuff - at the very top.  And a different fish already cut out at the bottom.  This would be a perfect photo to use those little arrows you see other people put on their blogs.  Anyway, that bit of green you see on the left is tape around an octopus' head.  I was going to use a stencil or mask type cut-out for the Octo instead of making such a huge stamp.  Didn't work so well so I just used masking fluid  to keep the Octo clean while I put washes of ink on the whole ampersand board.  Love this surface too, reminds me of Terra-Skin.

So here is the upper most section of this painting.  I only put a few of the jellyfish strings/tentacle's on the stamp because they are so tiny.  But I like it as is.  I used two sizes of pencil rubber holders for the suction cups on the Octopus along with smudging and a watery brush.   Such fun.  Hope to finish it today !

The Double Line Painters will be meeting at 2nd Helpings tomorrow, Thursday.   So come out and visit with us and have a fabulous lunch in the Cafe.!

Happy Trails
Travel Well

Fun with Collage and Stamps

 Hey Friends,  I've been having fun for days.  I have carved some of my own stamps, above and below.

 Much easier than you would ever think, if you buy a cheap set of little tools for cutting block printing linoleum.  I used to try doing this with a razor blade or an exacto knife.  Much easier with the little wooden handled tools.

 I made this fish painting with my newly carved stamps (two sizes).  It is on Terra-Skin, which I love.  My last post was about Terra-Skin which is made from stones !  And just so ya know, you can't heat Terra Skin it gets all buckled and contorted.  I tried doing a smaller version of the fish painting and I wanted to emboss the fish lips and fin.  You have to use a heat gun to emboss and that's when I found this little peculiarity.  This will work just fine on ordinary watercolor paper or a wet canvas.

 This painting didn't involve the stamps but collage and cut out paper dolls, one of me favorites from childhood.

This painting involved some stamps, collage,,and cut outs again.  Can you see the bubble wrap stamp?
I've so enjoyed this creative weekend and if you can believe it I also did a couple more.  We are hanging a show at Second Helping the first of April.  To be called "Mother Earth Awakens" so I'm trying to be ready.  Got a few more to go !!   And we (the Double Line Painters) have been working on the www some lately too.   We have had some blog classes and DPW store lessons coming up and hoping to learn more about Pinterest.   It just isn't enough to be an artist anymore........you need to be a computer germ also.

Happy Trails
Travel Well

Terra Skin !

Hey Friends,  The Double Line Painters met yesterday for a session of still life painting at Midge's club house on Smith Mountain Lake.  It was great fun and I tried working on some new paper I bought at Cheap Joe's.

I had heard of this new paper at least two years ago and looked and looked for it.  An artist in Canada was raving about it's texture.  Finally Joe had it in stock.

It feels so smooth and thick.  Not like WC paper or Yupo.  My acrylics took longer to dry than usual, I think the paint pretty much sits on top instead of sinking in so that may be why it takes longer to dry.

You can use ANY media and you do not have to use gesso.  I want to try some dry media like pastels !

Such fun.

Happy Trails
Travel Well

Workshop

 Hey Friends,  I have had the FLU !  a bad case too.  Thank the Lord it has not been the stomach flu.

 The Double Line Painters of the Blue Ridge held their first ever workshop last Saturday at 2nd Helpings in Roanoke, Va.  Every one loved their own little project and would like for us to hold more workshops.

Above is my youngest daughter creating her first collage of Lillie, her niece,my gran babe.

 Above is the same little Lillie, creating her master piece of butterflys.  She had glue everywhere !

Above is my niece's masterpiece of MAX her dog.  Look hard and you might see his name at top, cut from zebra print.  This is Tesa and she is very creative.  Her first collage and the best one .  Just my opinion.

Happy Trails 

Travel Well

Blue Bird for the 30 in 30

Hey Friends,  A fat little bluebird seen at my sisters last summer.  He appears to be really stuffed or full of gas ?   Beautiful none the less.   I have not seen one at my feeders yet, but I'm very impatient.  I've read it can take years to finally have one visit your yard.

I'm posting this in my DPW shop and on Leslie Saeta's 30 day challenge.

Happy Trails
Travel Well

Cardinal for 30 in 30

Hey Friends,  A week later I continue with my feathers series !  AND this mini painting looks garish on my monitor !!  Maybe I'll have a chance to photo-shop it later tonight.
Internet service with Comcast still sucks big time so I'll be lucky if this post goes out.  Then I want to put bird in my DPW store and the 30 in 30 challenge.

The weather is supposed to get rough again tonight and the next few days.  We might even get some snow/ice on Friday, which will create a problem for the Double Line Painters collage workshop on Saturday morning !!  We may have to reschedule,  really hoping not.

Happy Trails
Travel Well

30 in 30 Challenge

Hey Friends,  A short post to show the latest hummer for the 30 in 30 challenge.   I KNOW I've not been posting every day but I'll just have to take a beating.   My daughter is very sick still and it's taking a toll.

I see better days ahead.

From the Oil Painters of America blog - "We keep our eyes on the things we can not see:  for the things which we can see are temporal;  the things that are unseen are eternal.
2 Corinthians 4:18

Happy Trails
Travel Well

Hummer No.2 30 in 30

Hey Friends,  A little jewel painted several months ago when it was still warm and green outside.   I surely miss summer, spring, and fall.  In that order, too.

This jewel is painted with acrylics with lots of water, kind of like watercolor, on Masa Rice Paper that is wet and crumpled and stained then left to dry before painting on.   Gives a batiky, textured look to the base.

I used this process for years several years ago.  Don't know why I stopped.

This painting is for the 30 in 30 challenge hosted by Leslie Saeta.   I know I'm supposed to paint a new one today for this challenge but trying to care for my daughter will get in the way at times.  I think that's OK.

It's also listed on my DPW site.  Just click that badge in the right sidebar.

Happy Trails
Travel Well

30 in 30 Woody #7

Hey Friends,  This is the last of the Woodys for now.  I've got plenty of these beauties to paint yet, but we need a break.  He is Woody #7.

Click on the DPW big button on the right sidebar to check out the auctions.  Very reasonable starting bids!

Hope you have been following along on Leslie Saeta's blog for this 30 in 30 challenge.

I need to get on with the paint brushes now.

Happy Trails
Travel Well