Sunbonnet Sue & Overall Sam

I know I should have cropped the picture a little closer, but how about a little credit for my quilt holder / painting holder / whatever project holder.  You never see him in the pictures of my paintings, but he's usually behind them... literally. 😉

Surprise!! I made a quilt.  No... I am not a quilter, but I did make a quilt. I saw the description of a six-week class that promised completing a project. Since I'm still trying to figure out exactly who I am as a retired person, thought I'd give that a try. 

Both of my grandmothers made quilts, and I loved the stories behind them... who wore the dress that this scrap came from... what shirt  got ripped so it got cut up and used for this square... who helped stitch this one together...

I see quilts on other blogs that are simply works of art, the way they put colors,values, and geometric shapes together to create their stories. Fascinating.

My imagination was flipping through intricate quilt patterns of small pieces of fabric sewn in perfect alignment.  My common sense was reminding me that I was pretty close to a beginner.                          I chose to do an applique pattern of Sunbonnet Sue and Overall Sam because it reminded me of a quilt my mother had that she called her Dutch doll quilt.

There were a lot of fond memories that came to the surface as I chose fabric scraps to use.  The navy background was from the my son's first set of big-boy sheets. The top Sue's dress came from scraps of Raggedy Ann dresses I made for my daughter and me 25 years ago.  The bottom Sue's dress came from the Raggedy that I made 30 years ago and eventually used for a painting 6 years ago.  The white backgrounds are from a sheet that came from my mother's linen closet and had "Powell" written in black magic marker across the edge; probably one of my brothers took it to camp or college 40 years ago. The middle Sam is wearing a hat and shoes from one of Ron's work shirts that got a rip in it.   The pockets of a pair of Ron's former dress pants became the shirt of that Sam.  The top Sam is wearing overalls that were once a pair of his shorts. And on and on... All of the other pieces came from the fabric scraps I inherited when I cleaned our my mother's stash.  She'd never throw a perfectly good piece of fabric away.  You just never knew when it might be the exact thing you'd need. 

Each lady in my class had a story... "Already gave mine to my grandson..." "From the blocks my grandmother made..."  "For my granddaughter..."  Precious, precious, precious!  What a pleasure to meet, get to know, and work alongside these ladies.

I said above that I had made a quilt but that I was not a quilter.  Many of these ladies were quilters. They knew the quilting lingo... had the tools... knew the tricks... and... Oh, my goodness!  They could sew straight lines that perfectly intersected other straight lines.  They were quilters.

That could be the end of this quilt's story, but oh, no. That was the history part.  Now about the process... sigh... It has a happy ending... but like every good story, there's a twist.

SCENE 1

The process started like it should. I chose my pattern and learned about how to use a product called Wonder-Under to keep the pieces from fraying. I gathered my fabrics, selected those that I thought would go together, cut, ironed on the Wonder-Under, and tried to attach the dolls to the background.  Hmmm... I thought it was supposed to stick. It didn't.  I gave up and tried to use some Stitch Witchery. Ugh. That didn't work too well on the paper backing.  Well, old fashioned pins were okay, but it was hard with the paper.  Anyway... it worked. Next came putting the blocks together then adding the batting and backing. I used a tight zigzag around every little papery-feeling piece (Let me just give huge respect to quilters who manage to sew on those huge projects!  OMG! I'm glad mine wasn't any bigger!) 

SCENE 2

When I headed back to the next class I was ready to do some stitching in the ditch on all the seams (Do not enlarge my photo and look closely.  I more or less did stitch in the ditch, beside the ditch, close to the ditch, make the corners look like they meet stitching.)  As I was happily sewing at the machines with my quilter friends... the mood changed...

ME: I know y'all like it, but I am not a fan of the Wonder Under.

FRIEND 1: Why?

ME: I hate how it makes it feel all papery and crunchy."

FRIEND 2: What do you mean?

FRIEND 1: Didn't you take the backing off?

FRIEND 2: You know, to make it stick?

ME: What? Mine didn't stick?

FRIEND 1: You have to peel off the back.

FRIEND 2: I wondered what that crinkly sound was.

ME: What are you talking about? I had to use pins to keep it on.

FRIEND 1: Let me show you on a little piece how it works.

FRIEND 2: Can we help you rip the whole thing out?

ME: ... wanting to put the quilt over my head and cry right then and there but am determined to learn how to do the binding and leave as fast as I can before I break down and sob in front of everyone.

SCENE 3

Filled with disappointment, I listened to an audio book and did the last part of the binding by hand. 

My quilt was finished.  It was cute. But I wasn't really proud of it because I felt so stupid for doing it wrong.

SCENE 4

I spent some time holding my new little grandson.  He had this little toy that crinkled and jingled and rattled depending on where you held onto it. Hmmmmm...

I ordered some "dog toy replacements" that came Amazon Prime delivered the next day. I had some blue scraps in the stash that hadn't been used yet.  I had plenty of the backing left.  And, now I knew (sort of) what I was doing.  One more Sunbonnet Sue and one more Overall Sam.  She has squeakers sewn inside her bonnet and dress.  He has rattlers sewn inside his hat and overalls.  

The blanket crinkles, one pillow squeaks, the other pillow rattles.

Perfect!!  

One might even think I planned it that way!

I'm proud of it.

Watching the Dogwood Snow

See that beautiful dogwood? When we were building our house, the builder asked if we wanted him to take down the scraggly little tree beside the back porch.  He said it had gotten scuffed up during the building and might not make survive anyway.  When that first spring came and it burst in to big white blossoms, we were so surprised and so glad we'd kept it.  It is pretty scrappy.  Every year wonder if it will last through one more winter. (That's been since 2001!)

This is another in the front near the mailbox.

And we pass these when we go for a walk toward our neighbor's house.

Today was windy, and the petals fell like giant snowflakes.

The 10th painting I did after three months of lessons was of some blossoms from this very tree. (April 2007)

I painted some of her blossoms again for my 300th painting.
(May 2015)

It was a good day to spend on the back porch watching the dogwood snow.... and wonder if our dogwood friend will be here to put on her show next spring.

Once Upon a Farm...

Once upon a farm there was a feeling of contentment.  

• The blue sky was clear.
• The leaves were beginning to appear on the trees. 
• The yellow button dandelions were turning into white puffs and blowing away in the wind. 
• The pigs had plenty of mud for rolling around in their pen.  
• The grass was green and filled with enough bugs and seeds to keep the chickens busy.  
• The red hen was teaching her fluffy little chicks everything they needed to know. 
• And, the rooster with his coat of many colors was keeping an eye on them all.

It was a good, good day... once upon a farm.

One of the things I love about painting a commissioned piece is that I'm nearly always stretched to the limit of my skills. I don't know if I'd push myself of choose to paint challenging pieces if I always just got to choose what to work on next.
This one started out with a simple question, "Can you paint this rooster in larger size?"  Sure!  He was already on a 16"x 16" canvas, so the new version would be huge.  He is proudly standing front and center of this new painting... but instead of 2 feet tall, he's 2 two inches tall!  
How did that happen? 
It happened through a series of e-mails and questions... "Could you put a barn in the painting? We love this one, but could you make it red? Could you add a few hens with the rooster, and maybe some chicks? Could you  put some dandelions in the grass?  One more thing... could there be some pigs?"
Oh, this process makes me smile!
Yes... Sure... No problem... I can do that... Okay... Absolutely... Wait, pigs?
Ha ha ha ha
And so.... that is how the 2 foot rooster became a 2 inch rooster!

Thank you Mandi for giving me the setting and all the characters to put this story on canvas.

Original Oil Painting on 18"x 24" Wrapped Canvas

[SOLD]

Harmony

My friend Sandra asked me if I'd be willing to do a painting that would commemorate or celebrate her daughter's wedding.  Of course, I said that I'd love to.  I told her to send me a few images that we might choose from. 
Ok... the truth... 
I imagined she'd want a picture of some of the wedding flowers... or a slice of the cake... or their rings... or... or... I don't know... some little sweet wedding token thing... but... noooooo.... 
The photos came and they were the whole bride and groom!!!
Ohhhhhh... dear... deep breath... I can do this... 
     How in the world can I pull this off?!... 
It's just colors and shapes... just values and textures... 
     It's humans with arms and hands and faces!... 
I'm not afraid of a challenge... 
     How did I get into this?!... 
It is such a beautiful image... 
     A solid white wedding dress, for Pete's sake!... 
I can't wait to begin... 

Do you know how many times I've eagerly agreed to do something then realized with a sick feeling that I couldn't imagine how I could actually accomplish it? Well,I'll tell you... A lot! 
But... I guess that's how we get better, and it is oh, so satisfying when it does come together in the end!

Sandra sent me a half a dozen photos to choose from.  I sent back my feedback on each one so that she could make the final choice. I explained the positives and negatives about turning each one into a painting.  I tried to be neutral, but I'm pretty sure I didn't fool her.  I think she knew which one I was rooting for. 
These were my comments about this image:

• +They just look so peaceful.  I love the stories that each of these photos tells, but somehow this one feels like it's about the "marriage" not just the "wedding."  I love it.
• +They aren't centered.  I love that.
• + Her bouquet makes and appearance, but it's not trying to steal the show.
• +They seem so relaxed. A kiss on the forehead, eyes closed, arms draped (not posed).
• + The background is a medium value so her dress and his suit both would show up.
• + The background is natural. Nature is always good. Nothing in the background would demand the attention of the eye.
• - Yes, the veil is gorgeous.  Is it bad that I'd want to paint it going down instead of straight out.  I just think the tone of the whole piece is so calm. **The wind had blown it straight out behind her.
• - I see that the train of the dress is cut off in the photo, but I could fix that.

Because Sandra is also an artist, (Although she uses fabrics instead of paint - you must visit her blog and see her quilts.) I asked her if she wanted to follow along with my progress.  It's really the first time I've ever sent pictures of every little step of the process. I made her promise to trust me even while the painting was deep in the ugly stages.  She did.  It was fun.

I asked Sandra if she'd give her thoughts on the finished painting. This was the response written to the beautiful bride, her daughter.

This painting captures the way I see your relationship: a contentment, an equality, an ease of being in each others' arms that's born of partnership, love. and care for each other....and for a fluffy feline! May loads of love, happiness and contentment be in your lives for always. 

I love the thoughts.
I love the story told by this image.
I'm so glad she trusted me to put it on canvas.

Original Oil Painting on 16"x 16" Wrapped Canvas
[SOLD]

R.J.'s Dinosaur Mural

"Mom, we were wondering if you'd do a painting for us... Something to go over his bed... Maybe something with dinosaurs...?  It's a big blank wall."

I am on it!

It's a DREAMI (DRop Everything And Make It!) project!

One day everything is as normal as ever then... Surprise! ...all sorts of amazing happens!

Click HERE if you want to read the precious story of the arrival of our grandson.

Original Acrylic Paintings on 24"x 8", 24"x 12", 24"x 24", 24"x 12", 24"x 8"

[GIFT]

Watering Yellow Roses

There's a story on this canvas!  I just know there's a story... 
I wonder what it is...

• What's her name?
• Where does the path lead?
• Why are the roses in pots?
• Who helps her with the flowers?
• Is that a special dress?

There are lots of ideas bouncing around in my head. Maybe there's more than one story on this canvas.

Sometimes the colors, shapes, and ideas flow and the painting appears without much effort. Other times... not so much.

This painting had a mind of its own... 

I did the trees and sky one way then changed the color and the shape.

I did the path one way then changed the direction and the width.

I did the grass smooth and formal then changed to add wildflowers and texture.

I did the watering can yellow then changed it to blue.

I did the shoes yellow then changed them to purple.

I did the face one way then another then another then another... then another...

... sigh...

I should have listened to the painting better from the beginning.  
The painting knew its story all along. 

This is the fourth painting for the bedrooms of Welcome Home Retreat. 

It's for the Yellow Rose of Texas Room. 

Click below to see each of the other three.

Bluebonnet Room

Pink Primrose Room

Indian Paintbrush Room

Original Oil Painting on 16"x 20" Wrapped Canvas

[SOLD]

Springtime in My Kitchen

My kitchen is filled with springtime!  

There are some dreamy things to love about springtime.  

Flowers on the island just say happy, Happy, HAPPY! 

And, the smell.... mmmmm.... 

Those hyacinths! 

Trays of little seedlings cover the table.

And, there are more in flower pots on the floor!

Yeah... I totally planted more than I could ever need.

But, I love watching them grow!

The counter top has a place for the day's eggs.
Beautiful weather makes my six little hens happy!
What fun it is to share their eggs!

I know planting a seed tray should be an outside job, but it was freezing on Sunday.  We built maybe the last fire of the year in the fireplace, and I was ready to play with some dirt.   
You can imagine my little dog's disappointment.  She stands right below me when I cook, chop, slice, pour, stir.  This had all the look of cooking with not a single good treat falling to the floor.

My Birthday Card - Art by a New Artist

This is the best, Best, BEST piece of art that I have to show you today!

Rey K. Javic (a.k.a. An Icelandic Rooster)

Isn't he absolutely fabulous!

And, doesn't he look like he knows it!

I so want to make him be a book character so that he can talk to us! 

We don't have a book, but I bet we can make him a character...

Let's see... 

I'll name him Rey... short for  Rey K. Javic.  He'd have gone out just before the sun had shown itself.  I'll put him at the top of the haystack to look around (perhaps a bit haughtily)... to survey his domain.  He'd grin for sure... (Wait... can chickens grin?) His grin would be kind of pompous, knowing he'd be the one to break the morning silence with his crow.  I think he'd love that.  First I'll have him strike a pose because he is quite handsome. He'll bask in the glory of his own handsome-ness for just a moment... or two... a moment too long... because a someone else will be up early...It will be a weasel... no two... wait... it will be a whole "passel of weasels!"This might not end up being a good morning for Rey...

I'm not much of a made-up story writer, but I see a possibility here!  Hmmm... but only if the "passel of weasels" get some really good lines of their own.  Of course, someone will need to learn a lesson... probably that cocky Rooster Rey.

Where did that all come from?
Well...
Occasionally I come across a blog that I thoroughly enjoy.  It may be the writer's topic that draws me in, but it's always her voice that keeps me reading.  Every so often I will go aaaalllllll the way back to the beginning of that blog and read it straight through from the beginning to the present. 
Blogs are written in present tense, like journals... in the now.
I think there's something magical about that present-tense voice.  It transports the reader back in time... to read along until the past (which feels like the present) becomes the real present.

So...

With that long and convoluted explanation, that is how I met this rooster. (And, my goodness, he is gorgeous!)  I saw his photo and kept clicking back to look again.  Finally I contacted his owner, my new blog friend Amy, and asked if I might use his photo as a reference for a painting.

I don't know much about this particular guy.

I know he's from a breed called Icelandic Chickens.

If he was gentle and behaved, I bet he fathered lots of little chickies.

If he was kind of a jerk, I bet he made some fine dumplings.

As for the story character... you see, Amy wrote another post about some unsavory characters that did not make life pleasant on their beautiful farm for a time.  She said they were weasels, a passel of weasels. She said that someone should write a story with that title.  Sooooo.... if you're reading, Amy, I'd love to learn the fate of these guys!  

Dolly, Dominique, Sylvia, Red Red, Fancy, Other Red

What would my happy little hens think if I brought this beautiful Rey the Rooster home!

Original Oil Painting on 16"x16" Wrapped Canvas.
[SOLD]

Indian Paintbrush and Butterflies Triptych

I've been wanting to do another triptych for a while, and this seemed to be the perfect opportunity.

The Indian paintbrush is a pretty little flower... although it's not very showy on its own.  Even though it's a little scraggly and spiky so that you're not sure whether it's a pretty weed or a pitiful flower, I wanted it to be the main character, the most beautiful, the focus of the piece.   The butterflies think Indian paintbrush flowers are gorgeous.  They're fluttering around to help us as we celebrate the beauty of the Indian paintbrush.

This is the third of four painting for the bedrooms of Welcome Home Retreat. 
The first was for the Bluebonnet Room.
The second was for the Primrose Room.
Actually there's another.  A while back I did this one for the tiny private room, the Wisteria Room.


Original Oil Painting Triptych on 8"x 10", 10"x 10", 8"x 10"
[SOLD]

Pink Primroses on the Porch

My instructions for this painting were short and open ended, "It needs to be a painting about pink primroses, and it needs to be big." 

Okay then... Let me think... 
What does a primrose look like? It's a really small flower...  A field of primroses would look like a bunch of pink blobs or sprinkles on a green background...
How can I make the primroses tell a story, be the star of the painting, and still be normal size? I need a background that will be important but not steal the show.
How about a white-ish house... with a white-ish door... and a white-ish rail... on a white-ish porch... beside white-ish lattice and white-ish steps...
Oh, and green plant leaves to fill space and cover up all the places where I couldn't make the edges of the steps look right... I mean... to add a complementary color and organic texture to the background.

This is the second painting that I did for one of the bedrooms of Welcome Home Retreat.   It's for the Primrose Room, of course. You can see the one for the Bluebonnet Room here. 

These pretty pink primroses are singing, "Come up these steps!  There's a friendly face just inside the door and a porch swing just outside the edges of the canvas.  Sit down and enjoy. Don't be in a hurry."

I do love a good porch.

I do have a good porch.
It wraps around.

If you come, we'll have to make a choice.... 
The rocking chairs in the front corner?
The swing in the other corner?
Or the gliders in the back?

And... If you happen to have enlarged and zoomed in... yeah... that's Ron's Harley on the front porch...  Sorry about that... kind of makes one question whether we're rednecks with our vehicles parked on the porch... That's not it's home, he just had it parked there. 

Original Oil Painting on 16"x 20" Wrapped Canvas
[SOLD]

It's extra special when I get to do a
painting for someone I love!

View from My Art Room

This morning I'd been at it a while and needed a fresh look at the mess I was making on the canvas painting I was working on.  
I got up, stretched, walked over to the window, and... Oh goodness... 
My backyard was a busy place...
9 deer, 6 chickens, and 1 cat.
Everyone was just as happy as they could be.  
All the Eaton animal family members get along just fine.

Field of Bluebonnets

Texans love their bluebonnets.  About this time of year photographs of fields covered with them begin to show up on Facebook. People plop their babies in the middle of them to take their pictures.  Couples get their engagement photos with bluebonnets all around.  It's clear why... they're simply, unbelievable beautiful. 

Ok... I have to come clean... deep breath... I have never actually seen bluebonnets growing in a field!  
I know!  I know!
I just haven't ever been in the right place at the right time! (I know my friend Karen is probably gasping in utter disbelief and disappointment.) 

Although when we were in Maine, the lupines were everywhere, and I couldn't take enough pictures of them. (I think bluebonnets and lupines are in the same family. So, does that count?)

I was asked to paint four large paintings, one for each of the main bedrooms of Welcome Home Retreat.  I started with this one because I had the idea for it.  

Not long ago I painted a field of blue flowers and loved the perspective the depth, so I decided to use that as my model.

I didn't have one reference photo to use, so this project was a series of making it up as I went along.  (That is not at all how I usually paint, but I had an idea and a confidence that I could pull it off... or at least a back up plan that I could paint over it if it didn't work.)

First, I kept this other painting where I could see it.  Second, I pulled up so many photos of bluebonnets... fields of bluebonnets... individual bluebonnets... leaves of bluebonnets... 
Because bluebonnets don't have the tall thing-y like the blue flowers in this painting, I wanted to add something in the background to draw attention and add interest.   I tucked a little cabin in the background, added some closer trees to push the treeline farther back.  And, because it is Texas, a couple of longhorns are back there too.  When Sheila suggested an outhouse, I laughed because, of course, I wouldn't do that... but... somehow an outhouse did appear... far away off to the side and back... as an outhouse should be! 

It had to be big... because...
Well, everybody knows...
Everything's bigger in Texas!

The trick to finishing this painting was simply getting enough but not too many bluebonnets.  I think there are about 13 zillion... at least it felt like it.  

I keep thinking that this whole painting was made from trial and error... but honestly... it all worked!  Everything I tried... well... turned out the way I'd hoped!  That doesn't happen very often!  
Nothing really went wrong... wait... ummm... there was one thing that did go terribly, terribly wrong during the process of painting this painting... If you haven't already, you really must read "A Painting Disaster Story."


Thanks to my sister, Sheila, for the opportunity and ideas.
Thanks to my art friend, Nelvia, for the advice along the way.


Original Oil Painting on 24"x 36" Wrapped Canvas
[SOLD]

Pink Daisy II

I celebrated 12 years as a painter last week.
In honor of that, how about 12 things I love about painting:

• I love putting the highlight sparkle in eye of a person or animal.  (As soon as I do, I always say, "Well, hello! I've been waiting for you!")
• I love to paint on a really big canvas.
• I love signing my paintings in the bottom right corner. (Sometimes it has to be bottom left.)
• I love painting with purple and adding turquoise or orange in unexpected places.
• I love using a chisel brush to make straight lines, a palette knife to create texture, and a fluffy brush to soften a background.
• I love when the painting muse appears with a great idea.  (But, sometimes I have to find the next idea on my own. I can't always count on the muse; she has a lousy work ethic.)
• I love to touch a finished painting that was done with a palette knife.
• I love stepping away from what I'm painting then looking back at it with fresh eyes. (That gives the painting fairy a chance to do her magic.)
• I love it when someone wants one of my  paintings for their own wall.
• I love to paint alone.
• I love to paint with creative artist friends. (Thursdays 11:30-3:00)
• I love watching others learn and grow as painters. (Mondays 4:00-7:00)

Look at that proud face!

Original Oil Painting 8"x 10" Wrapped Canvas
[SOLD]