WVFA Animal Farm or Art or Something Like That....lol

 It's been a regular farm around here, with all the comings and goings and new critters, planting, and already harvesting, art shows, and poster designs to create and the list goes on! I managed to squeeze some time to paint this little lamb above, for the Wallowa Valley Festival of Arts. It was touch and go, and I missed the original deadline due to all the goings on, but I managed to beat the extended deadline by a couple of days, whew! It's painted in acrylics, still my medium of choice. I'm dabbling in oils, but I love acrylics, probably because there are no chemicals. No matter, this piece is waiting to find out if it's been juried into the show.

This piece was extra fun to create! I used my mixed media technique of slathering texturing compound on my base board, and then I tried to sculpt using the joint compound and that was a no go. So I sanded that down and brought out my trusty Creative Paperclay to hand sculpt bass reliefs of the horses heads. Using a base paint, I smooshed that around the piece, then sealed and then meticulously added layers of metallic colors, wiping here and there to add dimension and interest. I was actually surprised at how it turned out, and happy as well. Soooo, now the wait to find out if either of my pieces has been accepted. I guess I could go sneak a peek, huh?! Hold on, I'll go look.... aaaah, still in round one of the jury process so I will keep you posted. Well, off I go to my Simply Sheryl's blog to post about my latest gardening ventures. Have a great week!

Popping Poppies

It's time to brighten up the home with pops of color, and this set of paintings does that. Hand painted on 8" x 8" x 1.5" gallery wrap canvases, and come ready to hang. You can find them at the PFATT Marketplace.

Autumn Serenity In Acrylics

I've always been afraid of attempting landscapes, so this is my first one in acrylics. Years ago I attempted a few in watercolor, but at the time I didn't have the eye or confidence to just go for it like I do now. It was a fun venture, but today we are going to try oils. I've never used oil paints. Well okay, we did have paint by number sets when we children, but I'm not sure that counts. This piece is available for purchase.

 $175.00 + SH Calculated by location

Apples Anyone?

It always feels so good to be back painting again! I see that this is just a tad washed out, but you get the idea. Iphone and home lighting don't always make for the best photos, but here it is. I started this painting 3-4 years ago, but it sat around here due to not being here full time. Well off Nature Guy goes for a trip to California so I decide to pull out the paints. I stumbled across this while trying to find my easel and a canvas. If you saw the "studio" you would understand why it was such a treasure hunt...lol. We are still trying to get all moved in, but Nature Guy says we have until we die to get it done, so....

Sunny Flowers or Sunflowers for Spring

I don't know about where you are, but in these parts it feels more like Spring that the dead of Winter. Our temps have been in the 40's and even dipping into the low 50's so we are enjoying the weather. My Rosemary is trying to over take the garden bed so I need to find a way to use it in my cooking.

What does that have to do with this painting, well, nothing, but hey I feel like being wordy, sort of....lol. I've listed this textured art piece in my etsy shop so go there for more information.

MothersDreamRtworks

Pumpkins and Pears and Moons, Oh My!

A little piece of Autumn inspiration for your home or office. Available on ebay now: Mother's Dream Artworks

PFATT Marketplace Offerings for August

 Marcus Moon

SOLD!

 Northwood Pines Santa

Pumpkin, Pear, Moon Folk Art Painting

So here I am four days after the new month launch trying to get things sorted out. Not only am I waaaay behind on posting this, it appears that I boo booed and sent the wrong link or didn't get the link changed when I created my page for this month. So what you see is Marcus Moon, which is on his way to his new home, an oil can JOL, that really should be the painting above, and the Santa. These are my three offerings on the PFATT Marketplace this month, and we are working on changing the painting photo. If you are interested in the painting let me know.

Whew, all this running around trying to take care of two homes 600 miles apart, church responsibilities, family and art makes for a whirlwind life, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

If you are interested in the two pieces left that you see above, stop by PFATT Marketplace

Two 8"by 8" Impressionist paintings on gallery wrap canvas. See them here: Mother's Dream Artworks on ebay

Butterfly Dreams

 

I really scored at a yard sale a couple of months ago. I found several hand crocheted vintage doilies, including this amazing butterfly designed one. This painting was done a bit differently in that I didn't layer the color, I just squeezed out color here and there on the piece and sort of moved around with my hands until I got what I wanted. I used shades of melon, and lemon yellow, turquoise and blue to create this fun and colorful theme. Abstract art is so refreshing and fun! This can be found at MothersDreamRtworks

Dreaming of Sunsets Mixed Media Abstract Painting

When I started this painting I was thinking of lime green for a fresh and spring like brightness, but this has evolved into something totally unexpected and fun! I just didn't like the direction it was taking, so I put it on the easel and would walk by and think, "Hmmm, orange, it needs orange..."

As you can see from the "before" painting, it was rather bland and needed some umph! I tried orange, and then turquoise and before you know it I was brushing color here and there. I really had fun and love the end result. True to Pantone color trends, this piece should fit in with any modern home decor color theme. It comes framed and ready to hang. You can find it at my etsy shop : MothersDreamRtworks

Metallic Magic Abstract Mixed Media Painting

Fun times are always to be had when I work on these paintings. The detail part, where I slather joint compound on my base, and then play away with shapes and stamps, vintage buttons and doilies, and even bubble wrap is no more fun than adding layers of color and sealer until I get the right look. Each painting is so different in color because it's so enjoyable to try different combinations. This painting is up for your consideration at my MothersDreamRtworks shop.

I've been accepted into the Wallowa Valley Festival of Arts!

All three of these pieces made it into the art show, yippeeeee! Okay, so I sound a bit giddy, but I am excited about the show. I would have posted this sooner, but wow does life get away from me at times. Gardening has started, the household chores are still there, and work has given me more hours, so with that, and travel and so on, I almost forgot to share. I also see I didn't share the apple painting, so here it is, along with the other two. The Textured abstract has a buyer if it doesn't sell at the show in Oregon.
Well, off to post a recipe on Simply Sheryl's. Stop if you can!

Finished this one, now to get the apples done..

Well, I tried to post this to Facebook, but my server is slower than molasses in January. Yep, I said that, and won't take it back. After sitting here for 30 minutes trying to share one photo, I'm about to call Verizon and tell them their 4G service is a joke. But I won't because I have an apple painting to finish, so off to the cold studio I go, wish me luck!

Trying to get the color right.....

Not sure how you will see these, but I'm trying to get the color right in photos. It's tough, as the light has to be just right, or the shine on these paintings throws things off. I need to do some research. Anyhew..... these are previews. Trying to decide which will be entered into the Wallowa Valley Festival of Arts, and which go online. Let me know what you think!

Pears are done...

I thought I had shared this, but lately our so called 4G connection has been acting up, so downloading photos has been a bear. I finished the pears painting so now the debate on a title has begun. My original thought was "Ready for Market", but we had a lot of time to deliberate while on our way up to Brighton ski resort yesterday. Nature Guy said I should call it " Eight Pears In a Box",  or "Market Fresh", which is a local grocery store slogan. Then he came up with Market Morning. Still thinking about that one. What do you think? I'm planning on entering this one in the Wallowa Valley Festival of Arts, unless I come up with something much better.

Box of Pears - Work in Progress

A box of pears, no, not for canning... a painting...lol. Here's my start, I'm about a third of the way there. I had to stop a couple of times as the floor downstairs is linoleum on pavement, so my feet were freezing! We've had single digit temperatures at night and the heat comes out of the ceiling in the basement, so the floor doesn't get a chance to warm up. I tried to put a rug down, but that wasn't too helpful. So I'm whining and feeling somewhat like a poor artist.... this too shall pass, right? I would move the easel upstairs, but there's really no room. Tomorrow I will try the portable heater and see if it helps with the floor. For now, it's time to go share a new listing at Simply Sheryl's

Monday Madness- Work in Progress

I made a mad dash into the studio to put the first part of a new painting on canvas. It's only about 3 above here so I don't have time to stay and chat, but I had to share, and I wonder if you can guess what this painting will be of? It will be fun to see the guesses. I hope you have a marvelous Monday!

A Breath of Fresh Art on eBay....

Mixed Media with a retro "hippie" feel is what "Flower Power" reminds me of. Add a spark of color to your January decor. For more information stop by my ebay listings  "Flower Power"

Sunflowers and Abstracts...

 Or is that abstracts and sunflowers? A long long time ago, in a land far away..... I started taking commercial art classes. One of the tips the professor gave us as artists was to build a file of favorite photos, so the sunflowers are an attempt at a pastel of sunflowers from a photo I've toted around for years.

I can sure tell the difference in papers I'm using. My textured, colored pastel papers are in Utah so I'm trying something else. The smooth surface isn't quite as fun to work with as the color wants to slide right off the paper. With each layer of sealer spray I've been able to build up some tooth though and the color is sticking better. This was a loose and easy painting, not too detailed as I wanted something fun to play around with and didn't really want to get bogged down in detail.
The abstract is just that, a fun textured painting that will look great framed. It's so nice to be getting some creative time in! Now, back to work.

I'm still around, and here's a painting to prove it!

I was beginning to wonder if my blog would still be here when I checked in again. It's been a long process trying to recover from my physical fall apart, and I'm still on the mend, but thanks to modern medicine and prayer, I'm getting there. Silly me, I found out that I need to pray for myself as well. :-)
Anyhew, back a while ago I started this mixed media painting on a canvas board. I have only been able to work on painting when I'm at the apartment so this has been waiting for the final touches. We are in the middle of a dual move, some stuff going north, some stuff going east, but with me down it has been necessary for me to stay in town to see the doctors and go to PT twice a week. Our move deadline is looming so here I am, trying to pack and not throw my back out again. It takes some thought to get things sorted and organized, which I'm not right now so I'm glad you can't see the place, it's pure pandemonium. Trying to paint in chaos is not a strong point of mine, but I'm learning to change my way of doing things to live in the moment so to speak.
What does all that have to do with the actual finished piece, probably not much....lol. I used acrylics and stamps and various other items to create texture and design. It was rather freeing to play around with the different colors I had chosen for this. Have you tried a new technique or style lately for the fun of it?