A while back my husband purchased some carnivorous plants. Only two have survived in this Oklahoma heat. Both are pitcher plants and seem to be doing well. When I went out today one was having dinner.. A Daddy Long Leggs had started its decent to death. Enjoy the photos…
I’ve been working on an image of a fairy for a couple of weeks now. Refining her look and then finally adding wings.. I painted the image on an 11 by 14 canvas..
Painting is different than drawing.. While I’ve been learning to draw with a graphite pencil transferring this into acrylic paint is a little bit of a learning curve… But I think I’m getting the hang of things, plus I can always just paint over the canvas and start over if I don’t like how things turn out. lol..
What new thing have you tried? Maybe you want to learn to cook, to draw, to write? Go ahead and take the steps to learn.. I purchased a book and started reading. You don’t need a class to get started, just start something today.
Today I painted, something I haven’t done in a very long time. I took one of my drawings and transferred that design to canvas. This is something that I have been dreaming and thinking about for a while now and finally today I was able to make the art I wanted.
I started with a blank 11 by 14 canvas and sketched out the image of my girl in charcoal. I outlined her image with burnt umber paint. Then I proceeded to add color to the canvas using an old key card. After I created the background I wanted I proceeded to color in her face using acrylic paint. Then her hair and details were painted.
Finally I used stamps to place Dream Big and went over the words with red and copper paint. I’m letting the painting rest for a little while before I do anything else, but I wanted to share what I have created so far…
Have you made a dream happen lately? If not take the steps to make a dream come true, it is never to late!
So my friends you’ve gone and done it to me now. I’m on a drawing kick.. I’ve been trying to draw something every day. I decided to look around on the web yesterday for images for inspiration and found an image of Hayden Panettiere that I liked. She had her hands on her hips and I thought it was kind of sassy. So taking a little artistic license I used that image as an inspiration to create a drawing.
Hayden was wearing a T-Shirt and shorts in the photo but I decided to have my girl wearing a dress. I’m still working on refining her look. But I want to use an image like this for a couple of projects I have in mind…
I see images differently now. I’m looking at the shadows that the light creates. I’m seeing things that I didn’t see before and I’m learning.
What have you learned lately about the world around you? Have you found a way to incorporate what you see into your art? It is never too late to learn something new. Just decide what it is you want to do, and before you know it you have gone and done what you want to do that is new!
Since I’ve been using the Lee Hammond’s Big Book of Drawing
So I decided to make hand drawn cards for both of these themes. I cut watercolor paper to the proper ATC size of 2.5 by 3.5 inches. Then I set about drawing the eyes using the techniques I’ve learned from the book and another source. http://willowing.ning.com/group/theheartofart Tammy has a free course she offered in October 2010 that taught people how to heal through their art. I found some great tips in her online course. So I combined some of the information from the book and from Tammy’s class to make my first hand drawn eye’s ATC.
I used a Faber-Castel 2B drawing pencil, liquitex, prismacolor colored pencils and Faber-Castell PITT artist pen to finish the eye drawing.
The Peace ATC I used a Steadtler compass to draw a circle then a second circle inside. The I used a Faber-Castel 2B 
drawing pencil to draw the inside lines to complete the peace symbol. Next I pulled out my liquitex colored pencils and started filling in the colors that I thought would look good on the peace symbol and around the outside. I used a small tortillion to blend the colors.
Both of these cards were very easy to make. A lot easier than I thought it would be, since these were both hand drawn cards. I guess I have had so many years of fear bottled up keeping me from drawing that now that I’m letting go of those fears and letting my hands draw it is easier for me.
Don’t let your fears keep you from doing something you have always dreamed of doing. Learn that new thing, go on a trip you have dreamed about for years. It will take some work to make the dream happen, but it will be worth every step you take.
So what are the fears that are keeping you from doing what you have always dreamed of doing?
Recently I have become friends with an online community that has a passion for art journaling. Well over a month ago when I was 
a guest artist on Jonathan Manning’s (AKA Blade) show, I was asked to draw a cat. I was very nervous about drawing a cat, as I had never drawn one before! But the online community gave me the courage to draw a cat that night!
Reflecting back, I have not been a person who drew. Maybe a little when I was a child. When I was in High School I took one semester of Art and while I was in that class I didn’t get a lot of encouragement. I have always been a crafter, someone that would make something out of various items, but not a person who could draw.
So on Saturday I was in the local hobby supply Lee Hammond’s Big Book of Drawing
Last night I started reading the first few pages of the book, where the book teaches how to use graphing and then goes into shading.
One of the projects was to practice blending a sphere. I didn’t have the suggested pencil so I used a charcoal pencil – soft and I didn’t have the Tortillion for blending so I used a paper towel wrapped around a paint brush.
While this is my first attempt at drawing, I think I did pretty good!
My word of enCOURAGEment to you; go ahead pick up the paint brush, colored pencils, sewing needle, etc and create. It is never too late to learn something new. If you have the desire to learn you will find a way to succeed. If I can find drawing courage you can find the courage you need for anything you want to try.
What new artistic endeavor will you try? Please feel free to share with me.
Aspire to be Amazing!
Linda
The challenge for this ATC was to have a White Background. So really this was an open theme and any art could be used on the card.
The weather in Oklahoma is turning nice. The sun is out and it is getting warmer. When that happens it makes me think back to when I was a kid and mom would have us hang the laundry out on the clothes line to dry. I loved how the clothes would smell when we took the clothes down. It also saved money to dry the clothes outside! lol
Thinking about the good old days made me want to create that same feeling on my ATC.
Watch the following video to see how the card was made.
What does this sunny weather remind you of from your youth? If you could do something that you used to do as a kid what would that activity be that you would do today?
Thanks for stopping by my site.
Aspire to be Amazing!
Linda
Tuesday, April 5th 7:00 p.m. Central http://www.ustream.tv/channel/lindaisrael
Spend an hour with Linda, chat & watch as she shows you how to use metal tape to make wearable art Jewelry Metal Tag.
She will use: Metal Tape, stamps, alcohol ink and a few other supplies. Come join the show, laugh and learn with Linda.
One Hundred and One Legends of Flowers
by Elizabeth Todd Nash
The Christopher Publishing House, Boston, USA 1927
I chose this story to remind us that the cold winter is only a season and that season will end. Soon we will be enjoying a beautiful Spring.
There was an old Indian chief who lived all alone in the Northland. He was very, very old, could hunt no more. He was bent over and his hair was as white as snow and hung like long icicles almost to his shoulders, but his eyes were still bright and glowed, and his voice strong, almost a roar. As he was alone in his hut – a beautiful Indian maiden appeared – her eyes were large and soft, her hair jet black, very long and heavy, in it she wore a wreath of pink blossoms.
Her dress was of sweet grasses. She carried a bunch of pussy willows in her arms, her moccasins were made of flowers and the air became soft and fragrant. The cold wind which had been roaring about the hut went off into the forest. The old chief said “Who are you and whence came you?” She answered “I am the Spring Monitiou and I come from far away in the Southland where the flowers bloom all the time, where the skies are blue, the grass green and the birds and butterflies know no winter, the air is always soft and sweet. I like not your cold weather.” “I am the Winter Monitiou,” the old man said. “I love the Northland, the diamond icicles, the frozen torrents, the soft white snow, the great silence, unless I speak.” “But you have had your reign, you are old, you must rest while I rule in your place” the maiden said.
“No-No-o-o-o No-oo-oo-No” roared the old man. “I will not go. I rule this Northland, with my breath I chill rivers and streams so they lie still. The trees sleep.”
“But when I blow gently” the maiden replied, “the water runs, the trees and flowers wake up.”
“I have the power to shake my white locks and the earth becomes hard as a rock and snow covers the land, and all green things die.”
“When I shake my black locks,” the ma
iden laughingly said, “the raindrops glisten, the earth becomes soft, the seeds stir, then the sunlight comes and warms the flowers as they waken, the birds and flowers sing “spring is here – Spring is here.” As she murmured the refrain softly the old chief Winter became more and more drowsy, his head drooped upon his breast, his strength failed, he could no longer send out his icy breath. He began to grow smaller and smaller as the sun became warmer and warmer, the snow melted from around the hut and the pine trees. Finally his white hair turned into water and he sank upon the ground. His robe turned into leaves and covered him.
The maiden turned to say “Farewell” but he was gone, then she took the flowers from her hair and laid them upon the ground under the green leaves and said “These flowers I will leave to tell the earth children that Father Winter has gone and Spring has come.”
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/lindaisrael
Tired of having junk mail & magazines lying around?
Wish you knew what to do with all those paper sacks from the grocery store?
Spend an hour with Linda and she will show you how to make a handmade Journal using those, and other “useless” items found in your home.
Come hang out with Linda and laugh while you learn.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011 7:00 p.m. Central Time US
The video of the show:
