Bev's Peacock -Paint Party Friday

This is a peacock commissioned by a dear friend of mine, hence the title, Bev's Peacock. I finished this colored pencil drawing a couple of weeks ago, and brought it to her just a few days ago.  I am delighted to say that she loved it.

Above you see my reference picture.  This is a beautiful table cloth hand embroidered by Bev's Mom, our beloved Grandma Gladys.  It is a privilege to be a part of the family, and to partner with Grandma to give dear Bev--my adopted older sister--something she loves so much.

 

Here is a peek into my sketchbook from long ago.  I created this abstract graphite drawing when I was just 18 years old. 

Have a lovely day and Happy Paint Party Friday!

Sisters -Guest Heart Thursday

Here is another graphite drawing from my sketchbook.  Of course, there are hearts around the neckline of one of these sisters.  I thought this to be perfect for today's Guest Heart Thursday.

Above you see my lovely models--and yes, they are sisters! 

Have a lovely day and Happy Guest Heart Thursday! For more heart art, photography and altogether fabulous heart stuff from around the world, visit Clytie at Random Hearts for Guest Heart Thursday.

Marry Me -Paint Party Friday

This was a wedding gift for a dear friend of mine.  I am SO happy for Janet and her dear love Wayne.  The best is yet to come.  I've been married for over 30 years.  My husband and I have had such a great adventure--and the adventure continues. 

Above you see my reference photo.  What fun to work with these two.  They are such precious young people. 

The graphite drawing above is from my sketchbook some years back.  I was inspired by a postcard of a girl who's father was a photographer in the early 1900's.  He took many pictures of his family, and put them onto postcards.  My favorite photos are of his little girl.  She had such an amazing camera presence.  This is one of the rare pictures of her as a grown woman.  Sadly, in WW2, all of the negatives and information about the photographer and who he might have been were destroyed.  I just love this girl's face. 

Have a lovely day and Happy Paint Party Friday!

Heather's Pearls -Paint Party Friday

It was a surprise when I ended up with a redhead wearing pink pearls.  Sometimes my artwork has a mind of its own.  In this case, that's exactly what happened.

And here is my lovely model Heather!  She has such a beautiful profile.  I'm so grateful to this wonderful young woman and her friends.  Their ideas and friendship inspire me to be a better artist and photographer.

Here is yet another doodle from my sketchbook.  It is called The point of Her Sword.

Above you see my beautiful and expressive young friend Rena.  Eventually the sword in the drawing will be adorned by the reflection of her face.  I haven't quite figured out how to do it yet! 

Have a lovely day and Happy Paint Party Friday!

Surprise! -Guest Heart Thursday

I have posted this colored pencil drawing before.  It is one of my earlier pieces of artwork and has hearts hidden throughout.  Since Fall is only a month or two away, I thought this drawing would be perfect for this weeks Guest Heart Thursday.

Though the cat seems like she's going to have this whimsical fairy for dinner, in actuality, the kitty is totally delighted to have awakened her friend from a nap on those lovely leaves.  Later they will hunt spiders together.  

I know, I know--I have a GREAT imagination.

Have a great rest of the week everyone!

For more heart art, photography and altogether fabulous heart stuff from around the world, visit Clytie at Random Hearts for Guest Heart Thursday.

Violet Fae -Paint Party Friday

Another sleepless night resulted in this purple-eyed beauty and her spray of violets.  I love violets--they grow wild in the forests of my childhood.  We would find tiny purple blooms growing through the thick green mosses under the ferns along the banks of the creek.

The yellow ones growing in a bright carpet beneath the firs were called Johnny Jump-Ups, the white variety, in my vivid child's imagination, were magical footsteps of the moon, left behind as she tripped her way from shadow to shadow through the woods.  

Have a lovely day and Happy Paint Party Friday!

Tide of Hearts -Guest Heart Thursday

I've been on a mermaid kick lately, can you tell?  I thought it would be fun to show the ocean with foam made of hearts--a tide of hearts.  It might be that I miss the ocean.

Have a lovely day, and Happy Guest Heart Thursday!

For more heart art, photography and altogether fabulous heart stuff from around the world, visit Clytie at Random Hearts for Guest Heart Thursday.

Under the Sea

Here is a look at a painting I was commissioned to do recently.  Her hair turned out better than I thought it would, and I was totally surprised at how nice the rock work looked!

This little mermaid was fun to do--I used watercolors for most of this painting.  For her skin, though--I did something a little different. I used a bit of coffee and cream--from my coffee cup--and added a tiny dab of crimson.  The skin tone turned out perfectly--though the scanner didn't do justice to the smooth look of the painting in real life.

Have a wonderful weekend friends--Ah, isn't summer marvelous? 

Daughter of the Sea -Paint Party Friday

I am delighted to post this little mermaid as a part of Paint Party Friday. This is one I've been working to finish for a friend of mine, for several months.  This was done in colored pencil.  I also did two others, one in watercolor and another in mixed media.  This one is my favorite!

 
Above you see a picture of Denise--the sweet girl, who's face was my inspiration for the mermaid. 

With last night's tremendous sky show of lightning and thunder boomers which shook the house from 11 p.m.- 4:30 a.m., I felt restless and couldn't sleep--so I did a bit of doodling.

She's a tree dryad, you see...

And here is my lovely model Rena--she is such an inspiration to me!  Have a lovely day and Happy Paint Party Friday!