Seasonal Paint Colors

BACKGROUNDS
Summer: Bittersweet Chocolate
Bittersweet Chocolate/Dark Hauser Green Mix
Fall: Bittersweet Chocolate/Raw Sienna Mix
Winter: Khaki Tan/White Mix


SUMMER:
Hauser Dark tipped with Yellow Light/White
Lavender tipped with White
Royal Fuschia/White



FALL:
Brilliant Red tipped with Yellow Light
Raw Sienna "
Hauser Dark Green "
Raw Sienna tipped with True Ochre


WINTER:
Khaki Tan tipped with White
Paynes Grey tipped with White
Winter Blue

Lookin' Up

Sometimes when just "roving" your camera "up" you see a good shot. I love this one.... Taken at East Lake 8/09. Quite an array

of different pine tree shapes,sizes, growths, etc.

After icy fog I would have to say waterfalls are my next favorite

nature experience I NEVER tire of seeing and photographing. This is one of my newest and a favorite with the big "ball" of moss hanging from the tree limb on the left. The smell here is musty, the air is cool and there are cold spots that are so wonderfully refreshing, and the views are breathtakingly gorgeous. This set of falls is outside of Sisters, OR and my favorites. In the fall the array of mushrooms are a

sight in themselves but I learned last year not only do mushrooms like to hide but underneath one also finds SNAKES.........I can still feel that scared weak feeling in my stomach and legs....

Enjoy the view.

Santa Dominoe Necklace

I just received notification from Irene Mueller that my Santa dominoe necklace is scheduled to appear in the December 2009 issue of Painting.

I will have kits for sale which will include everything you need but the pliers to paint one for yourself. The painting instructions will be in the magazine and the beading instructions will be included in the kit and are super easy. (Beginner level)

Guess I had better start getting the kits together.

Hummingbird

Needless to say, it took me a while of sitting and many clicks before I got this shot. Doggone these little "buggers" are FAST...and when their wings are fluttering at 210 mph you just get a blur.

Finally this one stopped to rest just long enough for me to get in focus and snap this ever so perfect shot....although I wish it were a bit lighter so I could distinguish colors...but the "tweek" of their bill is what I found interesting ...I never knew it was shaped down and up.... hmmmmmmmmm.

Preserving Leaves (HOW TO)

I hate to think about summer leaving and fall arriving but I love winter also so I am always in a win win situation unless the temperature rises above my comfort level of 80.

But anyway. I love preserving the gorgeous fall leaves to use in my art be it painting, or some other "form".

Here is how I preserve the leaves so that they remain colorful, soft and supple.

1 part glycerine / 2 parts water. Place the mixture in a flat pan and totally submerge the leaves in a single layer in the liquid. You will need to "weight down" the leaves to keep them submerged. This year I am going to try some screen to see how that works rather than something heavy. If you use a heavy item
I would suggest after a couple of days to turn your leaf over then weight again for the remainder of the time. This way both sides of the leaf will get "treatment". I remove mine in about 4 days but no longer than 6. If at 6 days they are not supple enough I would suggest increasing your glycerine to equal parts. . If they soak too long they will absorb too much of the glycerine and weep. Depending on where you live you may find temperature etc. plays a part in the soaking time so you may need to experiment with "time" as well as "solution strength".

After they have soaked I gently press between 2 sheets of absorbant paper towel and put into a telephone book to press them flat... Make sure that they are straight, no edges folded under, etc. I only use one leaf per page and about 15 pages between leaves and leave mine for about a day or so .. or until I want to "use" them. However; you can paint on them immediately if you so desired.

Glycerine can be purchased in the "drug store section" of most stores like Wal Mart, Target, etc. and is relatively inexpensive.

Hope yours turn out as beautiful as mine have in past years.

Prim Pin / Altered Art

I am hooked on designing altered art jewelry pieces. It is a nice change from painting, gets me over little slumps we all seem to encounter, I get to think "outside the box" which is fantastic and I am liking the finished product which is good for the ego.

This pin was made for a very dear friend of mine in Ca. She received it today and was delighted, so that was a "pump" also. She is the queen of Prim in her designs so to have her be excited makes me feel I am on the right track.

With the "hook" that I use for the items; one can easily purchase or make additional components and change out the beads, bottle cap photos etc. which make the pieces even more desireable.

Tonight I shall be creating some additional pieces to sell now that I have a thumbs up from my friend Nat.