Tea Time

Tea Time
7x5 oil on canvas SOLD


Artist Note

This one is one I painted
way back in 2011.
I liked it then and I like it now.

Still cleaning up my
home studio
I have had such a lot
to do and so
have not painted.

I miss it.
And so yesterday
I started a new one,
but it is slow going
between making
decisions
like...if I should
save an item or let it go.

Brushes for example...

Now why 

did I hang on to them?

Anyone else a

 mega

studio clutter-er ?

Make me feel better 

if you would share.

Have a great weekend.

Red Teapot and Van Gogh

Tea With Van Gogh
6x8" oil on canvas panel  SOLD

Artist Note.
Good to be back painting after
being hit with a nasty virus.
I am still coughing and living
in a whirl of
tissues and nose blowing.
From now on it is fist bumps
for greetings
instead of handshakes.

A good friend came back from a
trip to Europe with a gift of two
tablecloths  - both with images of
Vincent van Gogh's work.
This one had his gorgeous"Irises" painting.
see detail below.

I have set up a couple of 

still life displays using 

the tablecloths as the background.

They are rich and exciting.

I decided to use the red teapot

to see if I could balance out

the power of the colors 

in the cloth.

The next one has fruit

in a clay bowl.

You can just see a tiny bit of it

at the right side

I started this before
Mr.blanky blankVirus
decided to form an
intimate relationship
with me and
managed to complete it today.
Yea - on the recovery road!

Tea for Two - Valentine

Tea For Two

6x8in  oil on canvas panel  $135. SOLD

Artist Note.

Continuing with the theme
of 

Valentines Day.

Red is the color which
comes to mind
when I think of love .
What better than getting
my red teapot out  to paint.
Two cups of course for
love shared, and I
did start off with
two cupcakes, but they didn't
fit into the composition.
What...yum, munch, a shame!

My Red Teapot - Day 4

My Red Teapot

7x9in watercolor on moleskin paper  SOLD

Artist Note

Remember in my last post 

saying painting only 

one item is so much easier...

Well...this is almost one item with 

the pot and cup linked together.

My regular followers know

how many times I have painted this 

much loved teapot.

Started from memory

in ER during the final hour when I knew

all would be okay.

On a serious note.

I am passing this info on in case 

it can be helpful.

I spent 9 hours in the ER with my 

hubby yesterday. 

A very serious allergy reaction to a 

med he had been taking 15 years.

Enalapril.

We are all familiar with a reaction to 

something immediate - like a bee sting

or food, but I was unaware that you 

can also have a gradual 

build up leading to a very severe one.

He has had a dry cough for a couple of 

years and that was apparently 

a symptom all was not well.

The ER doctor 

recognized the culprit was 

Enapril for blood pressure, 

causing the Angioedema

He started the standard treatment

to WHICH my hubby DID NOT RESPOND

 We had some heart thumping moments

of fear and dread.

The clever (young) doctor remembered 

reading something and went and 

researched on the 

computer and found it.

Fresh Frozen plasma 

has started to be used as a successful treatment.

Keep that part in mind if  you 

or someone you know

is ever in a similar predicament...

especially in a small town hospital 

where they do not see a lot of

angioedema.

One pouch of drip drip and the swelling 

started to respond and after the second 

bag he could feel he wasn't 

suffocating to death

The drugs in the 

category ACE inhibitors.

are used for:

blood pressure

coronary artery disease,

diabetes,

mellitus,

chronic renal disease and 

recurrent stroke

if interested -read details HERE

Praising God for answered prayers.

Our grateful thanks to 

Paul and Lindy Bridgers 

who came over and prayed for 

my husband and the 

MVRHospital's Doctor Kinkel.

Tea for the Holidays /Workshop Wrap-up

Tea for the Holidays

6x8in oil on canvas panel  $125. SOLD

I love my red teapot, and for this holiday season

it seems appropriate to paint it with the 

pine cones and berries.

Artist Note.

I didn't manage to finish this demo until the workshop

was over, but they did get to see the main steps involved.

It was an exciting workshop with accomplished artists.

I think the main change I saw in their work from before

to after - was a stronger use of color and not over-stroking

the paint. That came about as they learned the different 

ways to use the knife and brush. 

Over-stroking the paint can lead to 

a frown from Julie!

As well as regular canvas I also provided sheets of the 

Fredrick black primed canvas sheets to try. 

They really seemed to enjoy working on that particular surface.

The landscapes were worked out first with value thumbnails

They did fracture more than you can tell, but

"tidied up" to their own personal interpretation. It was the

second fracturing workshop for three of them.

Here are some of their workshop paintings. Unfortunately

some of the photos I took had showed too much glare and 

I apologize to the artists for missing some out.

(Click to enlarge)

Tea Pot, Pine Cones and Workshop Images

Tea Pot and Pine Cones

6x8in oil on linen $125. SOLD

I love this tea pot!


Artist Note.

I only teach small classes of 6 because I find I can
be of more help to the individual artist and
still keep my energy up.
The six in this group were all talented artists with
open minds. A wonderful group energy existed
almost from the very start.

Here are some of the paintings they finished
during the workshop. All went home exhausted
because they had finished several paintings in three
days, and the first day was all exercises...getting
used to the handy tool, brush and knife work!
None of them painted like this before the workshop,
but I have a feeling that some of the things they
learned will pop up in future paintings.
At least I hope so.

They all loved the handy tool I make...once they
got the hang of it. I admit to quite a few groans at first
but the enthusiasm grew quite loud as the days went on.

I did not get to photograph them all, but here are
a few of the pieces. Only the exercises were
the same for everyone. Afterwards, they were
encouraged to choose subject matter which
held an attraction.

 The next workshop starts on Wednesday.
Now I know how to teach it, I am excited.
It was a real high seeing the enthusiasm in
the group and hope the next one goes as well..

With Lemon, Please. On the Shelf #4

On the Shelf #4
Tea with Lemon Please.

6x8in  oil on canvas   $125.  SOLD

This is an older painting which has gone thru a revival!

Artist Note.

Here is the original painting.

I placed the teapot on the shelf over at the other end to see how it looked
and then I changed the painting.
First, I lightly sanded the surface and then I rubbed a mixture of 1/2 linseed
oil and 1/2 Gamsol, wiping off any residue. I used this as a medium for the
new layer of paint. Fat over lean rule!

When I placed the teapot on the shelf, my viewpoint changed.  I cut into
the table and created more of the dark area so the spoon would go off the edge.
I eliminated the lemon at the back because the shelf was not as deep as the
table I had set up the original items on.
I made the striped area more intense in color/value as I did the teapot.
I am not into deciding which one I prefer because I paint for the
sheer enjoyment and challenge of it. At the time I liked the original one
and I now like this one.
And if anyone is interested... I found it is hard to use the fracturing technique
over an old painting!

I want to thank Lauren Nelson for advising and sending directions
for me to place a "search box" on my blog. Check out her blog.
Cute title - PerPetuity. She works with rescuing animals too..Kind heart.
She is confident it will make it easier for people to find old information
on the fracturing technique.
She also advised me to take off that difficult word verification  
which had to be entered after leaving a comment.

I do appreciate everyone who has suffered through the verification process
and still commented on my blog. I hope this new way will make it quicker
as I love hearing from everyone. Ta!

Red Teapot - On the Shelf #3

On the Shelf #3

6x8in  oil on canvas panel  $125. SOLD

A few of my favorite items on the new shelf in my studio.

Artist Note.

I have overhead light for the still life set-ups on the shelf. I can change it
to suit my preference, but for now I am exploring using it this way.
My previous two set-ups have shown the top of the shelf
and I felt like a change.

When I am looking at the shelf straight on like this, there is only a thin
line of light to define the top of it. The trick is to indicate how deep it is
by overlapping some items. The same principle is used in landscapes.
Starting at the bottom moving up...
The angle of the sunflower shows volume in space next to
the flat drop of the leaf.  (I was tempted to overlap the flower but resisted)
The top part of the leaf, the curve of the stalk, plus the little spice
container added another level in front of the pot. Same with the bud
in front of the bowl.
The matted print set behind everything, completes
the illusion of depth to the shelf.

Seeing Red

Seeing Red

8x6in oil on canvas board  $125. SOLD


A cuppa tea out in the garden is one of the delights of summer.

Artist Note.

I have painted this red teapot many times and really enjoy it.
Red is my favorite color because it is so cheerful, but I find
it can be difficult to modulate.
I used orange to lighten and a yellow green to take the garish
look away. To darken, I moved into Quinacridone Magenta
with a little transparent oxide brown. Some green was added
to permanent red  as a transition color from shadow to light.

I do hope the blog is fully functioning again and the image
comes through.

The Perfect Couple

The Perfect Couple

6x6in oil on canvas panel   SOLD

Red is very hard to photograph and I had to work hard at this one
because my first efforts were way too bright.
 I did learn a something though... never paint a red teapot on a day when company
is due to arrive!

Lemon With Your Tea?

Lemon With Your Tea?

6x8in  oil on canvas board.   100.

I managed to get out to see some art at a show in our convention center today and enjoyed myself.
I saw modernism, impressionism, realism, abstract and contemporary work.  Photography was in quite a few booths too. Competition for the shoppers dollar has to be jewelry. There were easily more booths selling different types of jewelry than anything else.

It was fun talking to the artists and catching up on art gossip because between teaching and the daily painting I have become quite a recluse.

Artist Notes:

Following through with another set up influenced by yesterdays painting. I really am going to enjoy painting the new mug. It has a lovely shape and the red interior and matching spoon is great fun.
Red is very hard to photograph as it jumps out like a neon sign even though I had used green and transparent brown oxide to calm it down.
I am playing around with a stripe pattern just for my own interest to see how far I can push it..

Earl Grey for a Friend

Earl Grey for a Friend.

6x6in oil on canvas board 85.

I have an English friend who loves to pop in for a "quick cuppa" and Earl Grey is her tea of choice.
I can't stand it myself, but I always keep it in for her. She loves the red pot so she gets that and I use a brown one for my herbal tea.


Artist note:

For some reason I could not get "it" to work today. Happens to all artists and I learned when I was doing illustration... you just have to keep going.
I painted this in several different ways and each time when I looked at the image on the computer I saw another glaring error. The computer screen is a marvelous way to spot some of the things your eyes do not see while painting.  Finally this was given the OK.
This one was done using the knife and brush. The thin string for the tea bag was lifted out with a thin rubber tip.