New Canvas Painting - Untitled - Inspired by Donna Downey Canvas Create series

Donna Downey is very inspirational and I just love her Canvas Create series. 

One class per month for a whole year.  Woo Hoo!

Below is Donna's piece for the May - Canvas Create class

Below are photos of my version for the May Canvas Create class.

I used similar colors and started with a black canvas.

I used black acrylic paint as my base as

I didn't have black gesso on hand.

I wasn't sure I would like the black base

so didn't want to buy more supplies until I tried it out.

I was very happy with the final piece and like working over a black background. 
The black definitely gives dimension and depth to your paint.
These classes are helping me develop my own style. 

Hugs,  Erin

Update: Art Journal Cover- Your Living Canvas Workshop

Here are the final photos of my Art Journal cover,

to be used for the Your Living Canvas Workshop by Christy Tomlinson.

We started week 2 yesterday and I just love this class!!! 

It is so motivating for me and makes me itch to sit at my table

 and paint/play/create.

Close up of the heart....might have to redo this as you can't read it very well.

The front cover

The back cover

Close up of my writing on the back, it says:

Cherish all the moments
My story has a beginning, a middle and an end...
The part that shape us are all the moments of happy and sad.

Hugs, Erin

New Painting - 8x10 Canvas Panel- Happy Growth

New Art - 8x10 Canvas Panel- Happy Growth, originally uploaded by frenchieredhead.

Funny Friday - When do Boys become Men?

Boys Become Men
clipped by Tutku Serenity

 

I thought this was sweet.  Happy Friday all!

Hugs,  Erin

Art Journal Cover - Your Living Canvas Workshop

The new online class, Your Living Canvas Workshop by Christy Tomlinson is FABULOUS....I could hardly wait until I got home on Monday evening to start watching the videos and reading the class instructions.  Our first assignment is to complete our journaling which are questions that make us think about things that have shaped us (challenges, accomplishments, etc).  They are the things that make us who we are today.  I had finally started my answers to the questions but couldn't wait to watch the videos.  The first video was Christy showing us how she created her Art Journal cover that we will use during the workshop.

I started with a Daler-Rowney wirebound sketchbook, found here.  It is only 65lb paper so I will be applying gesso to adhere 2 pages together.  This will give me enough paper thickness for the mixed media supplies I will be using on my pages.

Here's photos of where I started and where I ended up on Tuesday night.

The cover of this journal was not smooth so I started with scraps of patterned scrapbook paper, applied with Mod Podge.

Then I applied various Americana DecoArt paints, purchased from Christy's shop as the base for the front cover (above) and back over (below).
I then used a stamp with black ink and bubble wrap
to create some texture/dimension over the DecoArt paints.

I dabbed paint over the heart stencil

(from Walmart - can't find a link for you online).

I used some Golden fluid acrylic paint in

Quinacridone Magenta (love, love, love this color) to create circle/spirals

 and then dabbed my thumb in some DecoArt paint

and pressed it in the middle of the circle. 

And here's a photo of my fingers after swirling the Magenta paint (which is a permanent paint - like ink) on the Journal. You can see the green and purple paint from smearing the DecoArt paint on the edges with my fingers.

The Journal didn't feel quite finished so I used my FAVORITE PEN
to doodle around the edges, around the circles and the heart.
Note: the Permaball Pilot pen has been discontinued by Pilot

 so you can only buy in Christy's shop.

 

Then my youngest child (T2-Teenager 2, who is 14 and very artistic)

thought I should add some orange paint and some rectangle shapes.

So I did.

But the orange paint over the stencils didn't come out with clean edges

so I doodled around the rectangles and the stars with my favorite pen.



And then because you can't stop until you get a FEELING
that a painting/journal page/craft piece is DONE,
I added some white with a Painters pen in various areas.



as you can see above and below...both hands were messy by the end of the evening

So it was after 10 pm by the time I got to this point and

I couldn't decide what else it needed ... so I decided to stop.

I am still thinking about a title for this Art Journal.

Hopefully I will have some time tonight to

finish the cover and start Page 1 of the journal.

Hope you are having a good week!

Hugs, Erin



On-Line Art Class - Your Living Canvas Workshop (starts tomorrow)

I am a huge fan of Christy Tomlinson's art, techniques, style and of course her Scarlet Lime online shop for fabulous Mixed Media supplies.

Christy Tomlinson (taken from her blog page)

I am so excited that FINALLY the Your Living Canvas Workshop by Christy Tomlinson and Art McCraken starts tomorrow.  Note that if sign up for this workshop you will be connected with hundreds of other artists already signed up and sharing pre-workshop thoughts and art via an invite-only Facebook group (awesome!!).

Your Living Canvas Workshop (image take from Christy's blog)

Information about the workshop, taken directly from her blog:


"In this six week course we will help you discover that through art, techniques, journaling and soul searching exercises... that will help you create your canvas by design not by default.


Each week we will talk about specific ways to create your canvas. We will focus on those things that will help you creating  a canvas that has purpose.. one that you are passionate about and one that at the end of the day you can be proud of. THIS will be your living canvas.


 ALSO each week you will not only be taught a fun new art technique that is not taught in any of my other workshops, BUT we will also take what we have learned from that week's exercise and put it into either an art journal, on canvas or another project. EACH week will have it's own separate art techniques and projects. SO LOTS AND LOTS Of art :) " 

So anyone interested, you can sign up right now and join us starting TOMORROW May 21, 2012.  Go here....

Mixed Media Canvas - Hearts Grow with Love

I think I have found my ultimate passion. 

Mixed media allows me to paint, craft, journal and create in my own style.

Below is my newest art creation,

a mixed media piece on a 12x12 Canvas Board

flowers were hand drawn with my new FAVORITE permaball pilot pen

from the Scarlet Lime mixed media shop,

texture was added with acrylic paint using stencils and bubble wrap on the background

heart shaped flowers, birds and leaves were handcut from scrapbook paper (as the base)

each heart and leaf was covered with acrylic paint

various stencils were used to create pattern and texture over the hearts

the hearts were then outlined with the permaball pilot pen

and some more close-ups of details

Remember to enjoy your family, friends and passions.  Life is too short to dwell on the challenges...

Go enjoy your Friday and your weekend.

Hugs,  Erin

Wordless Wednesday - Yellow Iris's

Hugs,  Erin

Funny Friday - Interesting Facts

WARNING:  This was sent to me by a friend...if you don't like odd humor or are easily offended. 

Stop reading now...

If you yelled for 8 years, 7 months and 6 days you would have produced enough sound energy to heat one cup of coffee.  (Hardly seems worth it.)

If you farted consistently for 6 years and 9 months, enough gas is produced to create the energy of an atomic bomb.  (Now that's more like it!)

The human heart creates enough pressure when it pumps out to the body to squirt blood 30 feet.(O.M.G.!)

A pig's orgasm lasts 30 minutes.  (O.M.G.!!!)

A cockroach will live nine days without its head before it starves to death. (Creepy)

(I'm still not over the pig.)

Banging your head against a wall uses 150 calories an hour.  (Don't try this at home; maybe at work.)

The male praying mantis cannot copulate while its head is attached to its body. The female initiates sex by ripping the male's head off.  (Honey, I'm home . What the...?)

The flea can jump 350 times its body length. It's like a human jumping the length of a football field.

(30 minutes. Lucky pig! Can you imagine?)

The catfish has over 27,000 taste buds.  (What could be so tasty on the bottom of a pond?)

Some lions mate over 50 times a day.  (I still can't believe that pig ...quality over quantity.)

Butterflies taste with their feet.  (Something I always wanted to know.)

The strongest muscle in the body is the tongue.  ( Hmmmmmm .......)

Right-handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people.  (If you're ambidextrous, do you split the difference?)

Elephants are the only animals that cannot jump.

(Okay, so that would be a good thing.)

A cat's urine glows under a black light.  (I wonder how much the government paid to figure that out.)

An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain.  (I know some people like that.)

Starfish have no brains.  (I know some people like that, too.)

Polar bears are left-handed.  (If they switch, they'll live a lot longer.)

Humans and dolphins are the only species that have sex for pleasure.  (What about that pig? Do the dolphins know about the pig?)

Now that you've smiled at least once, enjoy your Friday as tomorrow is the weekend!!
(and God love that pig!)

Hugs,  Erin

Sketchbook - Melanie

Just a bit of sketching at bedtime...

Hugs, Erin

She Art Inspired - Mixed Media Canvas

Here is my newest mixed media painting.....

modeling paste was used for texture,

see grass close up below

crackle paint was used over drywall tape (like a stencil), 

to add texture on the door

acrylic paint, markers and paint pens were used to add layers of texture

 house was hand cut using scrapbook papers

applied a thin wash of acrylic paint to the scrapbook paper,

to change the overall color

markers and a white paint pen for dimension and outlining

another close-up of the texture (below)

the girl was hand cut from scrapbook papers with the same process as the house

(Note:  this girl was inspired by the art of many talented women

who have taken Christi Tomlinson's online

 She Art Workshop or the She Art Workshop No. 2 )

just another close-up

I'm feeling really inspired these days and can't wait to start the upcoming 6 week online workshop, Your Living Canvas, by Christie Tomlinson.

More on that coming soon.

Hugs,  Erin

Wordless Wednesday - Iris's



Iris's outside my place of work......lovely!



Mixed Media Canvas - Sample In Progress



Mixed Media Canvas - Sample In Progress, originally uploaded by frenchieredhead.





Mixed Media Art - Sneak Peek 3

Mixed Media Art - Sneak Peek 3, originally uploaded by frenchieredhead.

Creating my own images from scrapbook paper

Mixed Media Art - Sneak Peek 2

Mixed Media Art - Sneak Peek 2, originally uploaded by frenchieredhead.

Creating my own images from scrapbook paper

Mixed Media Art- Sneak Peek of 1

Mixed Media Art- Sneak Peek of 1, originally uploaded by frenchieredhead.

Creating my own images from scrapbook paper

Funny Friday - Why Men are Never Depressed...

WHY MEN ARE NEVER DEPRESSED

Men Are Just Happier People --

What do you expect from such simple creatures?

Your last name stays put.

The garage is all yours.

Wedding plans take care of themselves.

Chocolate is just another snack...

You can be President.

You can never be pregnant.

You can wear a white T-shirt to a water park.

You can wear NO shirt to a water park.

Car mechanics tell you the truth.

The world is your urinal.

You never have to drive to another gas station restroom because this one is just too icky.

You don't have to stop and think of which way to turn a nut on a bolt.

Same work, more pay.

Wrinkles add character.

Wedding dress $5000. Tux rental-$100.

People never stare at your chest when you're talking to them.

New shoes don't cut, blister, or mangle your feet.
One mood all the time.

Phone conversations are over in 30 seconds flat.

You know stuff about tanks.

A five-day vacation requires only one suitcase.

You can open all your own jars.

You get extra credit for the slightest act of thoughtfulness.

If someone forgets to invite you,

He or she can still be your friend.

Your underwear is $8.95 for a three-pack.

Three pairs of shoes are more than enough..

You almost never have strap problems in public.

You are unable to see wrinkles in your clothes..

Everything on your face stays its original color.

The same hairstyle lasts for years, even decades.

You only have to shave your face and neck.

You can play with toys all your life.

One wallet and one pair of shoes -- one color for all seasons.

You can wear shorts no matter how your legs look.

You can 'do' your nails with a pocket knife.

You have freedom of choice concerning growing a mustache.

You can do Christmas shopping for 25 relatives

On December 24 in 25 minutes.

TGIF... Enjoy your weekend and your loved ones.  Hug and kiss those you love and make sure they know how much you love them.  We are all very blessed, even when life challenges us to our breaking point. 

Big Hug to everyone,  Erin

Art Journal - My Kite

Just a little sketch I did and then colored with watercolor crayons.

Hugs,  Erin

Art Journal - Hibiscus Luna Pink Swirl

My version of a Hibiscus flower, inspired by the photo below (found online).

Well it has been a busy few weeks between work and home life.  My focus has been on family and meeting my work deadlines.  Hope my rough patch is passed and I can do some blogging again.

Hope everyone is happy and healthy.  Hugs,  Erin