Another DesignStyleGuide Giveaway

Our second DSG (Design Style Guide) giveaway is here.  Watch the video for details. 

You can read the original post here

Take advantage of this wonderful opportunity, and tell your friends!!! 

Good Luck

Featuring Georgina Soojian

Technorati Tags: floral,design,wreaths,arrangement,floral design,floral arrangements,georgina soojian,designstyleguide,home decor,floral wreaths,silk flowers,planters,cross,planter

I want to share with you a talented artist who designs wreaths and floral arrangements.  Her name is Georgina Soojian, or Georgy for short.  Her shop name is Wreathmic Creations. 

All of Georgy’s creations are her own original designs, some of them being one of a kind that cannot be duplicated.  wreathmiccreations are handmade in her smoke free and pet free shop.

This one is called Celtic Cross.

 

Georgy Soojian lives in a small suburban town in Northern New Jersey.  Her family has been vacationing in Cape May, New Jersey for the last 15 years.  Cape May is a beautiful Victorian Era seashore vacationing spot that is famous for it’s Victorian homes that have been turned into Bed and Breakfasts.  Georgy loves visiting these beautiful homes, with their gorgeous flower gardens and learning about the people who once lived there.  It is from memories of her past vacations in New Jersey and nature that Georgy gets her inspiration for her beautiful designs.

This beauty is called  Cardinal Swirl Wreath

Georgy started making floral wreaths as gifts for friends about 15 years ago.  She is a self-taught floral designer, and a couple years ago she took an online Floral Designing course and got her Certificate.  

Georgy spends most of her time gardening and watching the birds that come to her feeders and of course, making her beautiful floral creations.

Visit her etsy shop

You can visit her website at www.wreathmiccreations.com

You can find her listings on Design Style Guide here.

Summer Geranium Planter

A faux silk geranium plant on a charming metal bicycle planter.

A Look At My Flower Garden

I took these pictures last Friday, and it’s taken me this long to finally post them.  Thought you’d like to see my flower garden with the painted rocks and tiny bird bath.  This is the prettiest little bird bath I’ve ever seen, can you see the lily pads?  Thank you honey!  I can’t figure out how to make the pictures bigger yet, so sorry it’s so small.

Here’s another shot of my garden.  Oops, I have to still remove that brick in back.  Funny how I didn’t notice it until now.  Out on my deck I have this beautiful Hibiscus plant.  It looks like a little tree.  I am hoping I can bring it in the house for the winter.  I’ll have to do some research since this is the first one I’ve ever bought…I just couldn’t resist it. 

This is my flower basket that’s suppose to attract hummingbirds.  (Hoping and praying)  I guess it’s called Fuchsia.  That’s what the tag says and when I googled the word, this is the same flower I came up with.  I also have a little Fuchsia in my side garden right in

Technorati Tags: flower,fuchsia,hibiscus,birdbath,bird bath,garden,flower garden,dog,tandem,bicycle built for two,rocks,painted rocks

front of the birdbath. 

Thought I’d throw in a shot of Paul and I on our tandem.  Running beside us is Dusty, our almost 2 year old dog.  He loves going for runs with the bike!  We’ve had a tandem for 16 years now, and love going riding on it. 

Well, that’s it for now.  I am hoping to do some painting tonight, yikes – it’s already 4:22.  What’s for supper?  Who knows! 

Visit my etsy shop for my paintings, pendants and magnets.  Also, stop by my website, sign my guest book and say hi.  And don’t forget to smile : )

Another Rock for My Garden

I started this one last weekend, and finally got to put the final touches on today.  I’m not sure if it will go in my side garden or in the back.  I don’t know if this will be the last one or not, only time will tell.  : )

 

Technorati Tags: rock,rock painting,painting,bird,bluebird,blue,acrylic,garden,wildlife,mama bird,rock garden,brenda Thour,wwao,outside painting

June WWAO Art Exhibition

Every month a member of World Wide Women Artists Online (WWAO) host a themed art exhibit.  This month is ‘The Secret Life Of Trees’, hosted by Amanda Makepeace

This is just one of the beautiful pieces in the show.  Please click on the link and take a look at all the other beauties.  Yes, I do have a painting included called ‘Nature’s Trail’  If you click on each thumbnail, you can see a bigger pic and more info on it. 

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The Secret Life of Trees

WWAO June Exhibition 2009

In nature, nothing is perfect and everything is perfect. Trees can be contorted, bent in weird ways, and they're still beautiful. ~Alice Walker

Click on an image to enlarge.

Distant Brilliance by Alexis Baranek

Technorati Tags: wwao,june exhibit,art exhibit,amanda makepeace,Alexis Baranek,Diane Clandy,Karen Casey-Smith,Nora Blansett,Janine Maves,Brenda Thour,Jordanka Yartez,Schar Freeman,Tami Booher,Cheryl McDonald,Cathy O. Lewis,Laura Dawson,Jean Levert Hood,Lynne Reichhart,Pippit Carlington

 
About WWAO

©2009 Amanda Makepeace. All Rights Reserved.

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You can also go to Amanda’s Blog and leave a comment for her.  Hosting a show is alot of work, but satisfying work.  Let her know how much we appreciate all she has done.

 

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Another rock for my garden

Technorati Tags: bird,rock,painting,rock painting,chickadee,black capped chickadee,acrylic,paint,garden

You’ve seen my cardinal and tree frog rocks that I painted for my flower garden.  Well, last night I did a black capped chickadee, and here it is.

I still have to give it a couple more coats of modge podge, I don’t know how well that will work, but until I find something else, and being it’s just for me, that’s what I’m using.

I just thought that I’d mention that this is the first time I am using Windows Live Writer, and it’s pretty easy so far.  Now I just have to post it and that’s it.  : )

Something for the garden

I've been working in my flower beds and getting things all pretty. I decided my garden needed a cardinal, so here he is. (I had a butterfly on flowers painted on this rock, but after the years it wore off, I like this one better.) I did the cardinal this past weekend.

This next one I did just tonight.

Yep, a tree frog. kinda a big tree frog. My hubby bought me a cute little birdbath with lily pads, and when I say little I mean it comes up to my knee only. Since it has lily pads, I thought the garden needed a frog. : ) ...Any guesses what I'll paint on a rock for my garden next???

Oh ya, see those acrylic bottles of paint behind the frog? These are the paints I used during my first year or more of painting. Good and cheap, but things definately needed more than one coat.

Memorial Day

In honor of all the men and women who have served our country, or are now serving, I want to say Thank you, from the depth of my heart. I can't even begin to imagine the sacrifices made, the lives given, and all that was and is endured. To the families who have lost loved ones, those who have or are holding down the fort, my heart goes out to you, God Bless you.

Memorial day is also the day we honor our loved ones who have passed on, even though they have not been in the armed forces. My mother passed away almost 11 years ago, and I miss her so very much. She is buried in the Fort Snelling cemetary because my father served in the Korean War. I thank God each and every day he is still alive and kicking, and at age 79 he is very active and is a driver for the Go Ministries for Living Word Christian Center.

Even though my mother's body is layed to rest at Fort Snelling, I am thankful that I can know that she is rejoicing in heaven with Jesus. I know she is happy, healthy, strong, united with her past loved ones and awaiting the rest of us. No sadness, no sorrow, no tears. My mother was a born again believer. She asked Jesus into her heart years ago, and loved Him dearly. Her love was a testament to her faith.

The Word of God says the only way to heaven is through Jesus Christ. If you confess your sins to Him, and ask Jesus into your heart, if you believe He is the Son of God, and that He died for your sins you can be born again. Simple words, from the heart. No matter what you may have done, He is waiting with open arms for each and every one of us. It is NEVER too late as long as you have breath.

Design Style Guide giveaway #1

The Design Style Guide is beginning a new and exciting project! We are going to be having giveaways approximately every 2 weeks!
Our first giveaway features Karen Faulkner Art.

Click on the link below for more information and to enter.

http://designstyleguide.blogspot.com/2009/05/giveaway-1-featuring-karen-faulkner-art.html

Kid aceo

Three years ago we went to visit some friends in Pennsylvania. His brother has a farm, and this cute little goat was there. I've been wanting to do a painting of him for the longest time now, and finally came across this missing picture. (I had stuck it in the pages of a traveling drawing pad.)This is a baby goat, tiny as can be, about the size of a small dog. Boy could he jump around.

I decided to do an aceo of him yesturday. I sketched him out and started putting in the shadows with colored pencil, using Indigo Blue. I use Prismacolor and Derwent brands. Some are regular colored pencil, and some are watercolor pencil used like colored pencil.

Then I thought, hey, why not take pictures of it as it progresses so I can show you my process. Even though this is only 2.5 x 3.5 inches, it took me 5 hours to complete. Yes, 5 hours. That's because I did a ton of layers to get the color built up the way I wanted it. This is my second painting/drawing, Using this method. (I don't know, what do you call it, painting or drawing?)

Keeping the layers light and kinda spotchy, I added the first layer of cool gray, sienna brown and burnt sienna. I also used a bit of Dark Brown around his nose and top of head and tip of ear.

Here I put down another layer using the same colors, including Terra Cotta and I do believe peach for his back ear. Still keeping it light. Added some of the Dark Brown on the shadows and dark areas of the goat.

My first instinct is to put the color in good and dark, filling up the paper, but then you lose control and don't get the same effect, at all.

Then I took white and went over most of it like in his back half. I also discovered a colorless blender from an artist friend, and it works great. You can blend the colors together without changing the colors. It is just a Prismacolor pencil, the pencil has no pigment.

Then I started putting in more darks (like the first half of his body.) I almost forgot to take the picture between these two stages.

Most of the time I use the Colorless Blender pencil to blend the layers together before I add the next layer, but not always. I added more darks and put in some black. I haven't done his eye yet at this point, except for an outline in Dark Brown, so it looks a bit freaky.

Usually the eye is one of the first things I do, but not in this one.

Here goes another layer of white, gray and colorless blender on the darker areas. Highlighted his ears, tip of tail and lighter part of tail especially. On each layer I go over the whole goat with some color or another.

I set in more browns, blacks, Sienna Brown and Blue Gray. So he keeps getting darker, then lighter, and back and forth. I also started on the eye.

Added a touch of green to his eye. Used the colorless blender in the darker areas, white in the lightest areas, and added more of that orangy color (Burnt Sienna). Besides a little bit of shadow, I haven't touched the background.
Here I put in some green between his back legs so I wouldn't loose that little area. More blending, more browns, burnt sienna, grays. Sometimes I use more black, Dark brown, or even a bit of Blue gray on the dark areas of his legs, tush, tail,
Brought in more Burnt Sienna.
Soon he will be for sale at my Etsy shop.

Toned down the Burnt Sienna and brought in more grays.

Added more darks in his fur.

Here's a shot of it after I started the background. It looks more washed out than the last shot because of the angle that I took the picture.

Here is the final piece. It looks very rich in color in person.