Brass Jug on Red - SOLD

Brass Jug on Red
Oil on Cotton Canvas Panel, 6" x 6"
SOLD at $20 plus $10 shipping.

I love my little brass jug, and I'll keep painting it until I feel like I've really conquered the brass look. This comes close, I think. But I'll do it repeatedly until it really looks brassy. Any suggestions?

Meadow - SOLD

Meadow
Oil on Stretched Canvas, 16" x 20"
SOLD at $125, includes shipping (to continental US)

 Another paint along with Johannes, resulting in this painting, which, yes, we are allowed to sell.
His demo painting was in pastels, but since I haven't been working in pastels, I chose oils. I'm pretty happy with this one. We have another session on Saturday, looking forward to it.

Brass Jug with Strawberries - SOLD

Brass Water Jug with Strawberries
Oil on Linen Panel, 5" x 7"
SOLD

This one comes with a lovely little story. My dear cousin from Georgia, we'll just call her Bev, saw my excitement over my happy finds from the thrift store (egg smoosher, etc) and sent me a big box of wonderful treasures, all with precious little notes attached, telling about the items. This brass water jug she got from another cousin (HH) for her 17th birthday, and it's from India, where everyone used to carry them around. It has a great shape and a nice sheen. It's the first time I've tried anything brass; metal is a challenge...what color is brass?

Here are my new treasures! Thanks, Bev!
You'll be seeing some of these in future paintings!

Mango with Strawberry and Marble Vase - SOLD

Mango, Strawberry and Marble Vase

Oil on Linen Panel, 8" x 8"

SOLD.

Here is the little pink marble vase/pencil holder that I found at the thrift store the other day (along with my egg smoosher and some cake pans.) I thought it might be hard to paint the marble, but I think it looks marble-ish, yes? I'm pretty happy with this one, two afternoons in the doing.

Green Pear - SOLD

Green Pear
Oil on Linen Panel, 7" x 5"
SOLD

A simple green pear today. Nothing fancy.

Lemon with Hand Thrown Pot - SOLD

Lemon with Hand Thrown Pot
Oil on Linen Panel, 5" x 7"
sold at $20 plus $10 shipping.

Happy treasure hunting at one of the local Thrift Shops, called 2nd Avenue, on Friday afternoon netted me a egg salad egg-smoosher ( an old timey tool with square slotted openings in a round bottom), a neat little cotton tablecloth, a marble pencil holder, and this little hand thrown pot, all for under $20, yay! Here's the pot, posing with a lemon.

Red D'anjou Pears - SOLD

Red D'anjou Pears
Oil on Linen Panel, 5" x 7"
sold at $25 plus $10 shipping.

Pears seem easy, since they have such fun colors in them. and such great shapes.
I'm quite happy with this guy.

Red Onion with Garlic Bulb - SOLD

Red Onion with Garlic Bulb
Oil on Linen Panel, 6" x 6"
SOLD at $20 plus $10 shipping

I'm pretty happy with this little guy.

Red Onion - SOLD

Red Onion
Oil on Linen Panel, 6" x 6"
sold at $20 plus $10 shipping.

I wanted to try this one with a neutral background. I think it goes with the color of the onion, but makes everything very cool. I may try it with a warm tone tomorrow.

Apple with Random Leaves - SOLD

Apple with Random Leaves
Oil on Linen Panel, 6" x 6"
SOLD at $20 plus $10 shipping.

I was originally pairing this single apple with a raggedy feather that I found on a sidewalk and saved, but running an errand this morning, and waiting for my housemate, I noticed some bushes with nice leaves, so.... here you go.

Garlic Bulbs - SOLD

Garlic Bulbs
Oil on Linen Panel, 6" x 6"
sold at $20 plus $10 shipping.

The painting went better today, since I treated the canvas, before I started, with solvent. It made the application a bit less sticky. Tomorrow I'll try Gesso. I also shone a couple of lights on my still life to make it a bit more dramatic, and I think it brought out the blues.

Still Life with Garlic - SOLD

Still Life with Garlic
Oil on Linen Panel, 6" x 6"
SOLD at $20 plus $10 shipping.

I had a dickens of a time with my painting today, using a new surface, which absorbed the paint the second I put it down. Tomorrow I'll treat the linen before I paint on it. Despite the struggle, I'm pretty happy with this one.

Two Lemons - SOLD

Lemons Revised, Darkened the Table, Added some warmth to the lemons. Better.

Two Lemons
Oil on Linen Panel, 5" x 7"
sold at $20 plus $10 shipping.

Just a couple of lemons this afternoon.
Revised a little on Thursday, added some warmth, and softened the edges in the lemons, and darkened the table top. It had too much white in it. Now I'm happier with it.

D'Anjou Pear with Blueberries - SOLD

D'Anjou Pear with Blueberries
Oil on Linen Panel, 7" x 5"
SOLD at $20 plus $10 shipping

I found a nice wooden box, and tried to set the pear up, but it would not stand. The blueberry is actually balancing the pear. I think I made the blueberries a bit too bright, I'll probably tone them down. (And did, this is how the piece looks now.) Didn't the wood come out nicely?

Kiku Apples - SOLD

Kiku Apples
Oil on Linen Panel, 5" x 7"
Click Here to Place an eBay bid.
Bids start at $20.00, and the auction runs three days. SOLD.

I decided that I needed to rethink my painting. Really consider what is selling for me, what isn't.
Seems to me that (besides sale stuff at really cheap) the best sellers for me are the palette knife paintings, so I wondered if I could tackle a small painting, using a brush as though it were a palette knife, slowly adding color and value shifts. For this one I used very small brushes, so it took awhile, even though it's small. Don't the Kiku apples look real-ish?

I must admit that I've forgotten how to do eBay, it's been so long. Thinking that the listing is pretty impersonal and sparse. It'll get better, promise.Have to get back into the swing of things.

Sea and Skyscape - SOLD

Sea and Skyscape
Oil on Stretched Canvas, 11" x 14"
SOLD at $35.00 plus $10 shipping.

I liked the challenge photo on Daily Paintworks, so decided to give it a try.
It's been submitted to the challenges page, and you can see all the entries here:

Placid Sunset - SOLD

Placid Sunset
Oil on Gallery Wrapped Canvas, 12" x 12" x 1.5"
SOLD.

Side View Detail below:

This one is gallery wrapped, with the painting extending around the sides, top and bottom, so it needs no frame. It is loosely based on the work of Marko Karoly the Elder (1793 - 1860) whose landscapes I admire. Didn't the sky turn out nicely?

The shipping cost is a little higher because of the added weight of the wood base.

Waterfalls on Black - SOLD

In anticipation of an advanced (four hour) class at Michael's on Saturday, I have attempted to paint waterfalls on black canvas. I've copied them from one of the other Grumbacher teachers,  Gregory Grant, from Florida. His work is here:

Lovely, isn't it?

So, here are my sample paintings, one in oils, and one in acrylics:

Oils on Black Canvas Panel, 9" x 12"
SOLD at $10 plus $10 shipping.

Acrylics on Black Canvas Panel, 9" x 12"
SOLD at $10 plus $10 shipping.

Pears on Blue - SOLD

Pears on Blue
Acrylic on Canvas Panel, 9" x 12"
SOLD at $10 plus $10 shipping.

This coming week at Michaels, we have a still life, so I thought something really simple, like some pears.  Complex enough to avoid boredom, but simple enough to be doable.

Marsh with Clouds - SOLD

Marsh with Clouds
Oil on Canvas Panel, 9" x 12"
SOLD at $15 plus $10 shipping.

Close Up Detail of Texture Below:

Last week I gave a freebie class in painting at Michael's. I can't say that it was a great success, since it was intended as a sample for folks who might want to sign up for a class, and turned into a sort of community free event instead. I even had a 5 year old in there, and other kids.

Anyway, using up the canvas here on which I instructed a color wheel in acrylics, no need to save it.
This one is done with a palette knife, one of my favorite techniques for obtaining subtle color mixes. Hence, all the texture. Hope you are all enjoying your "snow day" (those of you in Jonas territory.)