Necklace with Purple and White Chevrons (As of December 9, 2014)

This is a necklace I started this morning, but it is still a work in progress. I started with the purple beads incised with a white chevron pattern, and then added the gold metallic beads. I decided to make the second sequence with the same gold beads and incised silver beads, and then added the seed beads in black glass. I think the design is what I want, but I didn't have time to finish stringing the beads. I hope to finish tomorrow.

Necklace with Spheres and Cubes

I made another necklace this morning and the design came together quickly. I combined the wooden cubes with some stone beads and I liked the colors and shapes together. I bought these beads a while ago and am not sure what they are. If there was a label, I can't find it. But I did a little searching on line and think they probably are moss agate, maybe Montana moss agate because of the soft rose color. Anyway, I was happy with combination of the spheres and cubes, but I wanted to accent the black markings in the stones, so I added black seed beads (glass). This is strung on a stretchy cord, so there is no clasp.

Necklace with Jasper, Wood, and Copper

I made this necklace this morning.  The design came together quickly and easily (which is not always the case).  I started with the rectangular jasper rectangular, then added the wood and the copper accents. I like to combine semi-precious stones with wood. This is strung on a stretchy cord, so there is no clasp.

Necklace with Wood and Copper

I started working on this necklace yesterday and finished it today.  Yesterday I created two patterns but the necklace wasnt long enough. So to add length, I created a third component, using some copper beads with a swirl design. Now it is long enough.  This is strung on a stretchy cord so no clasp is needed.

Necklace with Wooden Beads (As of December 5, 2014)

I started working on this necklace today but didn't have time to finish it. So far I have two sequences of bead patterns that I like. I obviously need to add to this to get more length. I couldn't decide how to proceed so I stopped for the day. Of course as soon as I had cleaned up and put things away, I got an idea. But it will have to wait until tomorrow.

Necklace with Chinese Chrysoprase, Turquoise, and Wood

I started this necklace yesterday, worked on it this morning, and finished it off tonight. The green square beads are Chinese chrysoprase and I combined them with small turquoise cubes, wooden beads, and black seed beads. They are strung on a stretchy cord and there is no clasp.

Ivy, Fence, and Snow (Digital Woodcut)

This image began with a photo that I took last week, Thursday morning (Thanksgiving).  It had snowed the day before.  I saw this view when I looked out my window.  I liked the combination of snow, ivy, wooden fence, and yellow shingles, so I took a few pictures.  Tonight I used the best photo to create this image by applying the woodcut effect in Painter.

Necklace with Beads of Pink Paper and Silver

I have been working on this necklace over the past week and I finished it today. I bought the pink beads in October when I was at the Topsfield Fair with my daughter. These are paper beads handmade by women in Uganda by an organization called Child Voice.* I bought two bags full of the paper beads, in every color.  Then my daughter called my attention to a big bag of pink beads, so I decided to buy them as well. This design combines the pink beads in two shapes with silver spheres and plated silver beads with incised designs. I made this necklace as a gift for my daughter and gave it to her tonight.

*If you want to know more about Child Voice, go to this link: childvoiceintl.org.  I will just say here that the beads are made with recycled paper and that Child Voice carries the seal of the Fair Labor Association.

Perky (Digital Woodcut)

Our little dog Josie died a few days ago, on Thanksgiving, so last week I created a digital woodcut from a photo that I had taken of her.  Today I decided to do another digital woodcut, this time for Perky, her playmate and partner in crime, who died several years ago.  I used Painter to simplify the background a bit, and then applied the woodcut effect, using trial and error to get the look I was after. 

Spring in the Mountains (Framed)

This is the third of three paintings that I framed earlier this week. I use acrylics as water media paint for these mountain landscapes. (I call them "mountain daydreams" because I am painting from my imagination and from my memories of the Colorado Rocky Mountains.) Like the other two paintings that I framed this week, this painting is also 9 x 12 inches. Today I delivered all three to Galatea Fine Arts for the "Smaller Works Show," which will be hung tomorrow. If you want to know more about Galatea, go to galateafineart.com

Bittersweet Mountains (Framed)

This is the second of three small paintings that I framed yesterday. All three are done with acrylics used as water media, on watercolor paper. Tomorrow, I plan to take all three framed paintings down to Galatea Fine Arts in Boston for the "Smaller Works" show. The title of this painting is "Bittersweet Mountains" because of the color but also because it is bittersweet to love the Colorado mountains and be so far away.

Purple Ridge (Framed)

Today I finally got started framing some of the small mountain landscapes that I painted recently. This is the first of three that I framed today. These are my submissions for the "smaller works show" at Galatea Fine Arts in Boston. I am planning to drop them off on Sunday. (If you want to know more about Galatea Fine Arts, the website is : galateafineart.com)

Our Little Dog at Porter Mill Studio

This image began as a photo of our little dog, "working security" at our studio at Porter Mill. (I believe I took this photo at open studios in June, but I might be mistaken about the date.)  I used Painter to create this digital woodcut from the photo. Sweet memory of a sweet dog. 

Thankful for Flowers

On a very busy day, we decided to make a mad dash through Costco. And it was crazy, a combination of pre-Thanksgiving shopping rush and pre-snow storm hysteria. We were almost to the check-out line when I saw the display of Thanksgiving flowers. Of course, I stopped to take some pictures. Tonight I cropped this image out of the best photo, and added some color overlay and posterizing effect in Painter.

November Path (Posterized Photo)

Last Sunday we took a late afternoon walk at Bradley Palmer State Park in Topsfield, MA.  I liked the light and the road and the trees, so I took some pictures.  Tonight I edited the photo with iPhoto and then used Painter to add a posterized effect. 

Purple Ridge (Acrylic Water Media)

This is the painting I have been working on for the last few days. This morning I used some dark purple to correct the line of the mountains. I also used a dark purple wash to add some darker areas for balance. Now this is done.

Purple Ridge (As of November 23, 2014)

Here is the painting that I started yesterday, a landscape done with acrylics on watercolor paper. It is small (9 x 12 inches). This morning I added some very pale blue to the sky, and some very pale purple to the bottom of the painting. I am not going to do too much more to this, but there are a couple of things that I want to fix. I hope to finish this tomorrow.

Purple Ridge (As of November 22, 2014)

Over the last three weeks, I have painted five of these small mountain landscapes. I am going to submit two or three for a show, and it is coming right up. I know, it's time to start framing. But this morning, I decided to try to fit in just one more. This is a work in progress, with acrylic paint used as water media, on watercolor paper.

Pencil Drawing of High School Friend

This is a pencil drawing of a friend from high school.  I drew this portrait when I was a high school senior, back in the sixties.  (We were learning to draw portraits in my high school art class, and I had fun drawing portraits of my friends.) A lot of my high school friends are now reconnecting through Facebook, and that's how I  found out my friend's parents had this drawing framed and still have it on the wall in their home.  My friend sent me a photo of it. It was fun to see my drawing after all this time and my friend said it would be okay to share it here. 

Bittersweet Mountains (Acrylic Water Media)

Here is the painting that I have been working on all week. This is small landscape painted with acrylics used with water, on watercolor paper. The subject matter is the Colorado Rocky Mountains, painted from my imagination and memories of my home state. This morning I added a little bit of purple shadow in the lower third of the painting, and also balanced the light areas across the top of the mountain in the foreground. Now I am ready to say this is finished.

Bittersweet Mountains (As of November 19, 2014)

I have been working on this painting for several days. This is a small landscape painted with acrylics on paper, painted from imagination and memories of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. Yesterday I decided to add more contrast, so this morning I added a wash in the main color (red-orange or bittersweet) to the bottom third of the painting, following the lines that were already there. Next step is just to add a little bit more purple shadow to the same area and this will be done.

Bittersweet Mountains (As of November 18, 2014)

Here is the painting I have been working on, a small mountain landscape painted with acrylic paint (used with water on watercolor paper). This is painting from my imagination, but is also based on my memories of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. I was short on time this morning, but I added some areas of light to the top of the mountain in the foreground. I like it better, but I still want to see more contrast. I am hoping I can finish this tomorrow.

Bittersweet Mountains (As of November 17, 2014)

This is the painting I have been working on this week. I am using acrylics as water media paint on paper. Today I added a wash in bittersweet (the main color). Now I am happy with the color, but I want to add a few lighter areas for contrast.

Bittersweet Mountains (As of November 16, 2014)

Here is the mountain landscape that I started yesterday. I am painting from imagination and memory, but the subject is the Colorado Rocky Mountains. This is 9 x 12, acrylic paint used as water media on watercolor paper. Today I added some pale pink to the sky, darker purple to the mountain in the background, and a purple wash to the mountain in the foreground. The purple is to add depth, but I am planning that the final color will remain bittersweet (a red-orange).

Bittersweet Mountains (As of November 15, 2014)

I started another painting today, another small mountain landscape done with acrylics and water. This one is also 9 x 12. With these "Mountain Daydreams" I work from my imagination and from memories of the Rocky Mountains in my home state. This is a work in progress. I am already painted three small small landscapes and hoping to have five or six done by next week. My plan is to submit the best three for an upcoming art show. I call this painting "Bittersweet Mountains" because of the red-orange color, but also because it is hard to love the mountains and be so far away.

Storm Coming Over Pink Mountains (Acrylic Water Media)

This is the painting I have been working on this week, and I finally finished it this morning. I added another layer of white to the purple line of clouds. Then I added another layer of pink to the mountains and finally got the color to look the way I wanted it to. I did a little bit of detail work with some lines, and then it was done. This mountain landscape is done with acrylic paint used with water on watercolor paper (9 x 12 inches). This is part of a series of paintings I call "Mountain Daydreams" because they are painting from my imagination and memories of the Colorado Rocky Mountains.

Storm Coming Over Pink Mountains (As of November 13, 2014)

Here is the small mountain landscape I have been working on.  This is acrylic used as water media paint on watercolor paper.  I am using my imagination and drawing from my memories of  the Colorado Rocky Mountains.  This morning, I straightened out the line of the storm front; I really want that diagonal to be right, but I also want the line of clouds in the storm front to look natural.  I also added another layer of pink wash to the mountains.  I am pretty happy with this now, but I still want to lighten some dark areas, so I will say "to be continued".

Storm Coming Over Pink Mountains (As of November 12, 2014)

Here is the small landscape that I started a few days ago. I am using acrylics on paper to paint mountain scenes based on my imagination and my memories of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. (I call them "Mountain Daydreams".) Today I added a pale lavender wash to the clouds and a fuchsia wash to the mountains. I also did a little more work on the sky. This is not quite finished, but almost there.

Dad in WWII England (Digitally Modified Snapshot)

This image of my dad began with a snapshot that from my mother's old photo album. My parents met because of World War II; my father was born in Brooklyn but was stationed in Pueblo, Colorado, where he met my mother at a USO dance. They were married a few months later, shortly before he was sent overseas. While he was away, she kept a photo album of pictures taken back home in Pueblo as well as photos my dad sent back from overseas. Sometimes there are notes on the pages or on the backs of the photos. In this case, just the year is written on the back (1944) but from some of the other photos, I can tell that this was taken in an army camp somewhere in England, possibly close to a village because other photos show a pub and a telephone booth. (Was it accessible by bike?) No doubt one of his army buddies took this picture. I liked it so this morning I scanned it into my computer. The snapshot was in pretty good shape, although it was small. The biggest problem was that my dad was tilting just a bit, so I used iPhoto to fix that and then added color in Painter, using color overlays and digital pastel. Since I was inventing the colors, I made sure that my dad had blue skies overhead.

Storm Coming Over Pink Mountains (As of November 10, 2014)

This morning I worked on this painting for a while.  This is a small landscape painted with acrylics used as water media paint, and the subject is the Colorado mountains, from my memory and imagination.  Today I worked on the sky, especially the line of purple clouds.  Then I added some purple to the mountains for depth, but I plan for the final color to be pink.  To be continued. . .

Storm Coming Over Pink Mountains (As of November 9, 2014)

I started this painting today, using acrylics as water media paint on paper. I am painting this landscape from imagination, drawing from memories of the Rocky Mountains in my home state of Colorado. This is a small painting (9 x 12 inches). I started this painting with the line of the bright pink mountains. The decision to add the long diagonal in the sky was influenced by a shadow falling on the paper. I liked the shape the shadow made, and It made me think of the sharp line of an approaching storm front. I got a lot done today, but this is still a work in progress.

A Little Bit Bigger Digital Still Life (Final)

In October, I worked on this little digital still life which I started drawing on my iPhone with the Brushes app, and then worked on using the Painter program on my desktop.  On October 23, I posted what I thought was the final version.  But I soon realized that to use the image on my Zazzle products, I needed to add more of a margin around the vase and still life.  So a week later (October 30), I opened the image in Painter and added pixels to the right and left side of the canvas, and then filled in the extra space with the background colors. I think the image looks better, and it will certainly be easier to use.

Branch with Golden Berries (in Porter Mill Gallery)

This is my oil bar painting, hanging in the gallery at Porter Mill as part of the "Small Works" art show. The artwork in this show must be no larger than one foot in any dimension, and this little painting is only 8 x 10 inches. Last night at the opening, I took a photo because I liked the way this painting looks on the wall. The whole "Small Works" show is online now, and if you want to attend a "virtual opening", follow this link: www.portermill.com/p/store.html

Blue Mountain Range (Acrylic Water Media Painting)

This is the painting I have been working on, a small landscape painted with acrylics on paper. Although I am working from my imagination, I am influenced by memories of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, my home state. This morning I added some more white and ice blue to the bottom third of the painting and put some touches of the same color into the dark mountains. Now I am ready to say that this one is finished.

Blue Mountain Range (As of November 5, 2014)

I started this painting a few days ago, and here is my mountain landscape as it looks now. This small painting is done with acrylic paint used with water, on paper. These are the Colorado mountains painted from memory and imagination. Yesterday I used a purple wash on the bottom third of the painting, but by this morning, I wanted to make it lighter so I applied a couple of layers of white paint and then washed it off. That was better, so then I worked a little bit on the sky, changing the shapes of some clouds and added a bit of pink. By late afternoon, I decided to change the color of the lower third of the painting again, and this time I applied a pale blue wash. I liked that color much better. This one is heading toward the finish line, but I am not ready to say it is done.

Blue Mountain Range (As of November 4, 2014)

This is the painting I started yesterday, a small landscape done with acrylic paint on paper. I am using the acrylic paint with water. This is one of my "mountain daydreams", painted from my imagination and memories of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. This morning I added a purple wash to the lower part of the painting, and a very pale purple to the sky. This is a work in progress. . . .

Blue Mountain Range (As of November 3, 2014)

This morning I started a new painting. This landscape is small (9 x 12 inches) and is done with acrylics used as water media, on paper. I am working from my imagination and memories of the Rocky Mountains of my home state of Colorado. This is a work in progress. To be continued. . . .

Mom in 1940 (Rescued Snapshot)

This morning I looked through some photos that my aunt sent me last year, taken from an album that my mother kept when she was a young woman.  This is before she met my dad and it is fun to see pictures of her boyfriends and see what she wore (she loved hats, who knew?) and find out about all the trips she took (mostly by greyhound bus).  But the one I liked best was a black and white snapshot of her, wearing a hat, and looking pensive.  The photo is labeled "M & M Restaurant - 1940" but I have no idea where this restaurant was or who took this picture. But I do know that she was 25 or 26 at the time. The snapshot needed some work because it was out of focus, off-center, and had some stray ink marks on it. So I decided to see what I could do with it.  I scanned it into the computer and straightened the image and did some light retouching in iPhoto.  Then I opened it in Painter and did some very careful hand drawing with digital pastel to remove an ink mark right above one eye.  I also fixed some stray strands of hair. (My mother was very particular about how she looked in photos.)  Then I used color overlays and digital pastel to add some color. I did some selective posterizing and then did a final crop to get this composition.  I am posting this today as a way of celebrating her birthday because she was born on November 2. 

Road and Wall at Appleton Farms (Digitally Modified)

This image began with a photo that I took last week during a visit to Appleton Farms in Ipswich, MA. I loved the stone wall and the road, so I took a picture. This is a hard-working area of the farm, behind the dairy barn, so the original photo included some things I didn't really want: a bale of wire, a line of white plastic sticks (markers for fencing), and a row of parked cars in the background, near the visitors' center. Tonight I used a combination of cut-and-paste and digital pastel to get rid of everything I didn't want, as well as to add some foliage to the tree in the foreground. Then I added a light posterizing effect. That's a lot of work for this little photo, but I think this might be a good scene to paint..

October Night on the Hillside

Yesterday I posted a picture of a tree and hillside at Appleton Valley Farms. This is the same photo, but this time all dressed up for October 31st a woodcut effect and some dramatic lighting. Whether you are celebrating Halloween tonight (or Day or the Dead or Dia das Bruxas) or like some of us here north of Boston, just the fact that it will soon be possible to drive anywhere near Salem, MA, without encountering a traffic jam, I wish you happy times and safe travels.

Hillside at Appleton Farms

Here's another photo from last Sunday's trip to Appleton Farms in Ipswich, MA. I took a lot of pictures. I particularly liked this view of this beautiful tree near a hillside. Tonight I cropped the original photo to get this composition. I think this might be nice to paint.

Tree-Lined Road at Appleton Farms

This is from Sunday's excursion to Appleton Farms in Ipswich, MA.  It is very beautiful and I took a lot of pictures.  One of my favorites is this tree-lined road.  Tonight I cropped the original photo to get this image.

Spring in the Mountains (Acrylic Water Media Painting)

Here is the painting I have been working on, a landscape painted from my imagination, but based on my memories of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. This is acrylic paint used as water media paint on paper (in this case 9 x 12 inches). This morning I added more green to the mountains, but made sure I kept some of that soft sage green that I think of as a Colorado color. I thought I was finished, but this afternoon I went back to the painting and made a few small changes, including one of the shapes in the sky that had been bothering me. Now I am willing to say that this is done.

Spring in the Mountains (As of October 27, 2014)

Here is the painting I have been working on. I am using acrylics as water media on paper to paint this small landscape. Although I am working from my imagination, I am drawing on memories of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, where I grew up. This morning I worked on the sky, adding a few more shapes and a bit more color behind the mountains. I like the sky better, but now I think I want to see more color on the mountains. But it's almost there; maybe just one more day.

Spring in the Mountains (As of October 26, 2014)

Here is the small landscape I have been working on. This is acrylic used as water media, on paper. The mountain theme is inspired by memories of the Colorado Rocky Mountains in my home state, but I am working from my imagination. Today I put a green wash over the mountains and fixed a couple of lines. There are one or two details I still want to fix, but I hope to finish this tomorrow.

Spring in the Mountains (As of October 25, 2014)

This morning I worked on this painting again. This is one of my paintings of the mountains, inspired by memories of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, my home state. This is acrylic used as water media paint on paper (9 x 12 inches). Today I added green wash and added some violet red to the mix. I think this is almost done.

Spring in the Mountains (As of October 24, 2014)

This is a painting that I started today. It's small (9 x 12 inches), done with acrylic paint used as water media, on paper. This is part of my "mountain daydreams" series, paintings from my imagination but inspired by memories of the Rocky Mountains in my home state of Colorado.

Little Digital Still Life (Final)

When I posted last night's version of this little digital drawing, I said that it was finished, and I really thought it was. But later I realized that one of the most prominent blossoms had no stem attached and was just floating out there in space. So tonight I opened the image in Painter and fixed the problem with a little bit of line drawn with digital pastel. While I was at it, I checked the rest of the leaves and branches, and cleaned up a few more problems. At the last minute, I decide to crop the image at the bottom for better balance. I think that was a good decision. But now I am calling it. This is done.

Little Digital Still Life

This is the little digital still life that I started over a week ago, sketching on my iPhone with the Brushes app. Since then, I have been using the Painter program on my computer to polish it up. Tonight I made a few changes to the vase, added a little outline to the edge of the table, and cleaned up more leaves and blossoms. I am pretty happy with this little drawing now. (Maybe it will turn up in my store on Zazzle.) In any case, I am ready to say this is done. And it is time to move along. I hope to start painting tomorrow.

Little Digital Still Life (As of October 21, 2014)

I am almost finished with this little digital sketch. I started this still life several days ago, using the Brushes app on my cell phone, and for the past few days, have been using the Painter program on my computer to clean it up. Today I worked on the blossoms, changing some of the shapes and cleaning up some edges. Just a little bit more to go. . . .