Gathering Flowers -Paint Party Friday

I met Marissa at an Office Depot store.  She has been a great help to me since I've known her.  She is a dear young woman.  She will be married soon, so I offered to draw a picture for her.  This is the lineart version--I will be adding color to it very soon.

Above you see the lovely reference photo she sent.   It does my heart good to do something special for this precious young couple. 

Have a great weekend everyone.

There's Hope in a Rose -Paint Party Friday

I have had guests from out of town here all week long, so didn't get to do much drawing.  I'm posting a piece I drew many years ago.  It is one of my favorites.  I'd never drawn anything quite like it before. This faery maiden's heart was badly broken. But the look upon her face, and the rose in her outstretched fingers caused me to believe she found hope and healing.

Hope is beautiful, like a rose. Roses flower throughout the seasons, and astoundingly, I have even found them blooming in January beneath the snow. There is hope in a rose.

Somehow when hope shines impossibly through the cold darkness of hard times, its beauty and fragrance are more precious and lovely than ever before.

Happy Paint Party Friday, dear Friends.

Friend of the Hummingbird -Paint Party Friday

Here is my beautiful little niece Jena, as a fairy--friend of that cute little hummingbird she holds in her lap.  When this drawing is done, there will be lots of hummers flying all around her, landing in her hair and hanging on her wings.

I am sure there is a hummingbird fairy hanging out in my garden.  I have caught the sparkle of her wings out of the corner of my eye.  Her special friend Mr. Soots, is a black chinned hummingbird who is not one bit afraid of people.

Above you see the reference photo I  used for this charming fairy.  Isn't she sweet?  Have a lovely weekend and happy Paint Party Friday!

Blackberry Faery -Paint Party Friday

About seven years ago, a good friend of mine gave me three starts of some thornless blackberry bushes! The fruit is delicious, and without the inevitable scratches and prickles, it is a pleasure to harvest them.  This year they are just dripping with fruit.

The day I took the photo from which this pen and ink evolved, was sunny and hot. I can still hear the bees lazily buzzing in the lavender bush, the fragrance of the berries, and AH, the rich taste of the ripe fruit.

I shared a bite with the Berry Faery, you know. She thought they were tasty, too.

I don't have the original photo, due to a sad loss of data back then.

This will be a bitter sweet weekend--another holiday--July Fourth, without my Beloved.  It is hard to believe he has been gone 18 months already.  Yet, God is good and there is joy to be found.

Have a lovely weekend, dear Friends, Happy Paint Party Friday, and to those of you who are here in the United States, Happy Fourth of July!