Happy New Year!

 I can't believe how fast this year has flown by!
These are the last sketches for 2012.  I have been so blessed this year to get  to share, paint, create, teach and mentor this past 12 months and I have loved every minute of it. Thank you to each person who has encouraged me, taken classes, bought my art work, or by being my friend.
We were blessed this year because all our family stayed well!  I was blessed to get in 5 books this year. One will be coming out in September 2013.
Hopefully we will all have a great 2013 with lots of good health for us and our families, love, laughter and more new friendships, and not to forget lots of new Paintings!
Thanks to each of you who follow my silly blog, and take the time to mention it to me! It has been a lot of fun for me.  I mainly do it for a record of what I have painted for the  year. It is an awesome record, because I have it printed into a book each year. Every year, they get thicker! So after today, I will be making another new blog book! for 2012! a year that went by way too fast!
Happy New Year to you all!

Thanks to Debi Watson for letting me use her photo to sketch.

Collages of Sketch Books

 This is not all of the sketches, but just wanted to show a small selection of them! Would be nearly impossible to put all of them on here.  Even to put 75 of regular size would be too much!
The first one has the last one in the middle, and the 2nd one is just some more.
If you are an artist and don't keep a sketchbook I recommend that you start! I have done them for a very long time, but never with just pen and ink.
I have always relied on my pencils and erasers.I would draw with pencil, and then go over it with ink.  I took a sketchbook workshop from Don Getz years ago, and he told me to throw my pencil away, but I just couldn't. I just didn't have the confidence to do that!  After seeing what Brenda Swenson and Cathy Johnson and many other artists were doing on face book, I decided I would try it. The first few were very hard for me...to start the ink, knowing it was THERE! But if the line was wrong, I just kept on anyway, and they didn't turn out so bad.The hardest part other than putting down the first mark, is finding something to sketch.  I sketched mainly in the house and all my photos were out in my art room.  So I had to hunt something. I took photos off TV, and went through photos from trips, etc.  I have several that I didn't even photograph. I counted 208, and that wasn't all of them.  75 days, and I missed 6 for some reason.  I recommend you not start with major holidays falling in those days! Jan.1 would be a great time!  I plan on keeping on in my sketchbooks! Let me know if you are starting one! I would love to know.  The bottom photo is the 4 books I used. The first one was about half full, and the 2nd and 3rd were new. The last one has about 20 or so in it. If you ever find one like the red one below with the textured beige paper, I recommend you get it! It is wonderful to draw on! and the paint looks pretty on that color. The one in the middle is one of those 'Visual Journals' with Bristol paper. Very slick and is easy to paint.The one on top is one of Judi Betts sketchbooks. I like them a lot too!

HAPPY SKETCHING!

75 Days!

on October 14, 2012 I decided to try the sketch book challenge by Brenda Swenson.  You sketch with pen and ink only. no pencil or eraser, for 75 days!I wondered if I could co it, but decided to try. I love sketchbooks, and have a bunch that I have done over the years, but always in pencil.
The last day was today! I made it. I did miss 6 days but filled up 3 large sketchbooks.  I am proud of the sketches! I had to think through them before I could make my mark. I am posting the very first one, and the last one, and then I am going to photo them all, and posts some of them.
Thanks to all of you who encouraged me with your remarks as I posted them!!

 The First Day
 Ruidoso Church was done before I got my good ink..(Noodler's ink) and it ran as I painted it. I don't really mind it, but didn't want all of them runny!

The Sketchbooks are the 3 that I filled, and drew in the 4th one. I had to start a new one on Dec. 19th.
I counted most of them, (leaving some out due to how bad they were!) and had 208.
I have so many sketch books, and these will be put up with the rest, and hopefully I will continue. So far,
I don't tear out the pages. They stay in the book!
The spiral book is one of the  visual journals. It has nice paper. The one in the middle was ok. It is pretty thick. The little red one, was a gift from my daughter and it had beige textured rough paper. It was awesome to draw on, better than the slick, but was so hard to paint. It just absorbed all the paint, and would bleed through. They still turned out nice though.

The Last day! December 28th, 2012  -  75 Days of Sketching with Pen and Ink.

Snowed In

I couldn't have all these Christmas paintings with out having a tractor!
I love to hear them coming and going in the driveway by the house.
 For some reason, it is a comforting sound. I will miss it if we ever leave the farm!
There is nothing like a John Deere!  I have spent many hours riding on one with
Ken after we got married.

Art Colony Gift Exchange

I am in a group of artists called 'Art Colony' and we drew names again this year. Each year it is kept secret who it is from, until you get your gift in the mail.  This year, I was lucky enough to get a beautiful painted egg by Mary Jansen, from Chicago. She is a pastor's wife, and she has a prayer on the egg for me. It is very special and I am in awe at all the detail, and how tiny the designs are. She also sent a tiny necklace that she made with 2 red robins.
I put the little red package on the tree limb! It looked so pretty, but was excited to finally get to open it!
you can go to www.artcolony.blogspot.com and see all the exchanges there, and how much fun we had! Mary's address is: http://marymjansen.blogspot.com/
if you want to see her beautiful work.

The Wisemen

This is only a couple of years old. It is a larger painting than the snow kids.It is also done in a different manner, even though it is watercolor.

Happy Birthday Jesus!

I named this one 'Birthday Party' for obvious reasons!

I pray that each will be blessed this special day, and remember the real

Reason for the Season... to celebrate the birth of Jesus, not just for 

getting/giving gifts, or eating a lot of yummy food.'

Merry Christmas to each of You, and May your 2013 

be healthy and blessed, and

full of love and laughter.

Christmas Eve Delivery

Taking Gifts to Kids who need them!

The Choir Program

This is another one of my favorites. It is also older.

Jesus, the Best Gift

Jesus is the Best Gift of all!

Feliz Navidad

This Painting is older too.I did it for our hired farm hand and his family.

Joy to the World

Joy to the World, the Lord is come, Let Earth receive her King!

Christmas Day is nearly here!

Snow Balls for Sale

Snow Balls for Sale is also an older painting. She has a kitty to help her with her sales!

The Musicians

 Another one of my favorites!
The little band on the corner playing music for all to hear!

 

The Taxi

This was done for West Bend Taxi Company back in 2004. This one was such fun too!

Freedom of Religion

This is an older painting too, but we need to be reminded that through sacrifices of many men, women and their families we can stand up and talk about Jesus.  Those who don't believe in Him,  can still talk about what they do believe in. We are very blessed to be living in America where Americans care enough to go to war to keep these freedoms.

I removed the last post

I felt so bad this morning when this post came out with the school bus. I schedule these a week or two in advance.I would never have posted them after yesterday. I am so saddened by the school shooting, and am sorry that you all got this post after yesterday's horrible attack on those precious children. I have decided to remove them out of respect to the families and town. May God Bless the families and community of Newtown, Connecticut.

Shall I Play for You?

I did this a few years ago. This is one of my favorites, maybe because of the sheep. Plus, I love the song about the drummer boy.

The Dog Groomer

I had this idea after taking Pablo to be groomed.

 Seeing him on the table while she was working on him.

I went to the back, and she had an old bath tub that her

helper was bathing another dog in. They were so cute!

He needs to go again- Before Christmas.

My Wish List

By now the kids have their lists all made, and ready to go see Santa, if they haven't already.
I remember so well when Kenley and Keri were little, we would get the Christmas Toy Sears Catalog, and they would go through and circle what they wanted. I had them to number their first choice, 2nd, etc. By the time Christmas got here, everything was marked and marked out! They would change their minds so many times! BUT...they had such fun pouring over those catalogs! Kind of like I do the art catalogs!!
Now that I am looking at the image, I could have named this 'Kenley and Keri!' I might still change the name!

My Christmas Studio

Love those colors!!

Christmas Stop

A fun day shopping, waiting on a cab to take her home!

Coming Home for Christmas!

This was Keri's card in 2010. 

 She is crazy about her little dog-T-Bone. 

He is such a spoiled little dog, but so cute! He really

does like to stand up on the steering wheel and drive. 

That is where I got the idea!

The Gardener

This is an older snow kid too! This was for Keri. I did this the year Ken built Keri her green house.

 She definitely is a farmers daughter! Loves to grow things, and loves her little green house.

Ken and Suzy

I have done two paintings of us! Sketcher the cat is in this one. 

Ken cuts mats, and is always holding it up, and looking through them for fun!

Keri and Tid Bit

I painted this in 2003 for Keri.  

Her little Tid-bit is gone now, but she is in several paintings. 

She was a sweet little dog!

The New Bike

Excited little boy to be getting  his new bike early!

Santa is getting very busy now!

California Surfer

This was done for an art friend from California.  She is an awesome artist, and 

this was fun to do for her.  She paints in a different manner.  

She paints in squares, that is why the painting on the easel here has the squares.

Best Friends

This was just a fun painting to do ...

Best friends shopping and having such a good time!

The Piano Player

I did this last year for our neighbor who plays the piano at our church. 

Her music is always so beautiful, and she is such a sweet person! 

This was so much fun to do for Shari as a thank you!

The Hix Family

Last year my cousin ask me to do her family. 

 Her husband was a seabee, and in Afghanistan,and is 

now retired from the Navy,

so meet the 'Hix' Family

The Deputy

I did this Snow man 'The Deputy' a few years ago. 

 If  I remember correctly, this little snowman lives somewhere in Virginia. 

Wolfforth TX Family

Another Snow Family for 2012.

The Couple

This is another new Christmas snow family.  The couple has plans for their wedding in May.

The Reese Family

This is the Reese Family.  They love to go camping and love their dogs! This was fun to do.

For all my Art Friends!

I thought of all my art friends as I painted this! Thought of how much we help each other! It is so great to be able to ask any of you for advice, your opinion, and you always give yourself freely! so...this is us working together! What fun it is!

Tree farm

When I was a kid I remember going and picking out a tree,but the problem was my Mother would wait until Christmas Eve to get one.  We always begged to get it sooner but they were cheaper the day before!  Now we just go to the closet and get it out. Times sure have changed.

The Campers

This is a new Snow Person for 2012.. The Camper!  I get ideas from the strangest things! I was putting up some old photos in my art room, when I found a photo of an old camper in Ruidoso. It was just the back of it, and this painting just came to mind! I had to do it as soon as I could! They are such fun. I love Watercolors and how they look on the paper! Christmas is coming fast!

Christmas Painting Steps

 I use 140lb cp arches or Kilimanjaro watercolor paper.

 

        

This is what I do from start to finish on my snow families:

1. Drawing in a permanent sketch book-11x14 or bigger
2. After drawing, outline it w/ a sharpie, and photo copy it. (So I wont tear it out of book)
3. Photocopy
4. Using a light box and a 2h pencil, I transfer my drawing
5. Using Manganese Blue, perm. Rose, and some ultramarine blue and turq. I shadow the whole painting..This is called disappearing purple. Learned this from Judy Tremaines book. I drop in colors into the shadow to give it some interest.
6. After it is dry, I start adding color.
7. You just keep painting until you get it dark enough. I try to use enough paint for it to work the first time.
8. For the sky, you have to mix your blues and pinks, and get the color/darkness you want. I normally paint it last but is ok to do it first if you want. You have to be careful around all the edges.
9. When finished, I take white gouache and make icicles, etc. then take an old toothbrush and put white on it, and then using your thumb flip the snow onto it.
10. Let dry. If you are ok w/ it. Then you photo it.
11. Take it outside in the shade…NEXT to where the sun is. Make sure your flash is off.  Lay it flat on the ground, or table whatever. I use the patio, stand over it as much as possible and take your photo. I always take several so I will have a good one in the bunch. Usually I have a blurry one.
12. Now you are ready to put it on your computer, crop it, enhance, etc. if need be. I always have to do the auto correct.  It brightens it up. Plus I use the eraser tool to make the lights bright, etc.
13. Now you are ready to make your card!

You will need some sort of print shop, unless you know how to make them in Word.