Saturday, April 26, 2008

New Girl!


Good Day everyone! I just wanted to thank you all again for coming by and especially for your kind and supportive comments. You all have stirred up warms fuzzies inside my heart! I feel more hopeful, like I can do it. That I can be an artist that creates art that others would like enough to buy! That’s big for me, so THANK YOU!! Warm hugs for you all!

This is my new girl above, like her? I just don’t know what I was thinking but this is what came out. I think of her as being spiritual thus the halo. I had one heck of a time with her face. I couldn’t use my colored pencils for some reason (I’m learning here!) and so I pulled out the charcoal, no go, then the marker but that was too harsh so here came the charcoal again. Finally I got her to where I liked her. I will have her up on my Etsy shop soon! Think I should??

Soon I will be getting a cd on how to blend faces from Suzi Blu. I can’t wait till it comes out. In the mean time I’ll be relying on a new book on acrylics I ordered the other day, I’ll get it tomorrow, yeah!



This is just a background right now. I don’t know what I want to do with it yet. But I love it where it is now finally. I struggled with this as I experimented with different techniques with water bottles, paper towels, and plastic wrap in hand. I finally pulled my brayer out and it solved the problem and made it complete. I couldn’t even tell you how many layers I put on there!

Thursday, April 24, 2008

Read All About It!


I have been featured in Divine Comforts website! It’s a short article where I’ve been interviewed. I’ve mentioned this before. Well, now the article is out! Go take a look and learn a little more about me :)


I also wanted to thank all of you for your incredible support and faith in me. I don’t feel deserving but am so appreciative! You all have blown me away! Thank you!

Luv,
dinah

ps: don't forget to visit my Etsy shop he was talking about!

Monday, April 21, 2008

Midnight Creations ~ this is what i do when i can't sleep!


I tried my hand again with the now “primitive flower II”. The first one for Illustration Friday had a blemish on the top left. I just made it on a whim, experimenting with the walnut ink I had just got using a journal page that wasn’t fully prepped. But I loved it so much I had to show it even though it was imperfect. I don’t like this as well, spontaneity has it’s virtues! Forcing, planning too much doesn’t seem to work for me.


Now here is a spontaneous piece, I sat thinking of trying another “primitive” but it turned into a fig, yes, that is supposed to be a fig! lol It is one of my favorite fruits! My grandmother had two fig trees when I was growing up. we would climb into it’s low twisted branches and just stuff ourselves with delicious figs! I call the painting “childhood sweetness” because that’s what it was, sweet tasting and a sweet a memory!


I have new art journal pages on my flikr if you want to take a look I would love for you too. And don’t forget to stop by my store at Esty!

Friday, April 18, 2008

Inspire Me Thursday ~ Scrap Yard

I’ve wanted to make something out of all the scraps I have left over from other projects. Now I got the chance! This is my version of recycling my art scraps as well as showing a recycled home and world. Even the sun has been recycled!

Scrap Yard

I used paper, charcoal, acrylic, water color in this piece. I feel like I used more but no.

Because of the sun I couldn’t get the color right. There is more shading over the lawn than you can see here. I need a shaded spot out back. I’ll have to create one as there are no trees. I’m working on taking better pictures, give me some time to get it together. I’m trying :D Oh, and if you have some good advice I would love the help!

ps: take a look at my inspiration friday pic below!

Illistration Friday ~ Primitive Flower

I spayed my prepped journal pages with the walnut ink I recently bought to see what would happen. Then later that day I came back to it and drew this, what I am calling ‘Primitive Flower’. When flowers where beginning to spring up they where very simple, hardly looking like a flower at all.



I used walnut ink, gel pen, permanent marker, water color, charcoal, and acrylic to make this very simple painting. I can hardly believe I used so many things! I hope you like it :)

Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Help! I've Been Tagged!

Yeah! I’ve been tagged by Alyssa Elza for this ‘6 weird quirks/habits’ game. Thank you Alyssa for tagging me :D sorry it took so long to post this since I just found out about it today! Here are my strange facts!

1. I can’t function properly without my cup of coffee with hazelnut creamer every morning, even if I don’t wake till noon!
2. I can’t stand to ware shoes in my home so I take them off at the door. I just think about all the nasties I could have possibly picked up.
3. I nearly always feel like I have a fever.
4. I fight sleep most every night and end up working on some art to relax or read a book.
5. I can’t take a bath without sliding under and getting my hair wet no matter how clean I already am.
6. almost every time I sit, I sit on my left leg like my mother.

Hope I made you giggle ;)


I am tagging: Suzi Blu, Paulette Insall, Danita, Darlene, moonwillow, and Letha.

And here are the rules:
1. Link to the person that tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Creative Cruse

Yesterday I spent a wonderful day painting with my son again. I think he is the key to my inspiration now that I think about it. I’ve finish most of my pieces when working along side him! I had a piece I had been working on for a couple of days I manage to finish with him.



Then a new experiment for me, a collage, a simple one but a collage just the same. They are both up on etsy now!



I was interviewed for a feature on Melissa's website. You can find her on etsy as divinecomforts. I am so excited. I feel like a real artist all the more. Should I not say that out loud? It was fun, I can’t wait to see his blog.

In excitement I rushed out today to have note cards made and grabbed a few art supplies. I was so lucky to find things I wanted, no needed for a third of the price I would pay online after you add the shipping! I went to a different craft store today. I can see I will have to meet my needs between the two.

dinah

Thursday, April 10, 2008

My Shop is Open!

Suzi Blu, what am I going to do with you?? Well, she light a fire under my @&# this morning! Inspired and scolded a bit I changed my day. Instead of staying home I ran out to kinko’s and had note cards made of a couple of my art journal pages. They turned out so beautiful! I am so excited!!




I went to three other stores to get things I needed for the cards and another project I’m working on! This one will be a surprise ;) I was inspired by Linda Woods & Karen Dinino’s book “Visual Chronicles”. They are the ones who gave me my great idea!



Please stop by my esty shop and take a gander at what I made. I would love to hear from y’all!

wow, just like that. In one day, my life changed. I’m an artist today, yesterday I was just playing with paint!

~ I'M NO LONGER SELLING ~

Thursday, April 03, 2008

Creation Frenzy

I’ve been creating like a mad woman today. Participating in two art thingies. First I made four letters for Milliande's “A-Z Art Journal Lettering Collaboration”! this morning. I was frenzied with creativity. Whoo hoo! Then I tried to do a digital collage for Inspire Me Thursday but nothing seemed to work. So I got out the painting that I was angry at. The one that made me stop creating all together! And I covered it with gesso! Now I have a painting I’m proud of! I know it could be a lot better, I have a lot to learn but it’s the best I can do at this point. It is the best I’ve done so far! It’s more like a journal page than a real painting but what the h*!!, art is suppose to be freeing and fun and that’s what I had! I’m even thinking of scanning it and putting it on etsy. Wonder if anyone would like it. maybe not but I’m at least getting better. Yep,this is better ;)



My son didn’t have base ball practice today so we were headed for an empty afternoon where I would be sure to hear, “m o m, I’m b o r e d!” all afternoon. So I had made my mind up that I would have him paint with me. he pulls up a chair to my antique school desk and we create. Never did he say he was bored!



He informed me that his painting was good enough to sell! :) any takers?? He knows I’m going to try to make a little through etsy, that’s my goal. So he decided he would pitch in and help bring in money for the family! Ain’t that sweet?

Inspire Me Thursday ~ Peace

This is my first entry for Inspire Me Thursday! And it is the first painting that I’ve done I really like. I like it so much I’m thinking of having it scanned and putting it up on etsy! You never know, anything could happen! :D

I had so much fun as I painted this with my son by my side till I finished. I had only gesso white staring at me when we went up stairs to paint. It’s the one time he is not bored.

I feel that a big part of having peace is knowing how to listen that’s why I have that woman listening.

I used acrylic paints, sharpie, stamps, stencil, page from a book, magazine cut outs, and ink, oh and some gel litter stuff got smudged on it leaving a little glitter.

Wednesday, April 02, 2008

I've Got My Mojo Back!

I don’t know what happened or how it happened but it happened! I got my mojo back! The ever inspiring art guru, Suziblu on youtube had us paint a flower in her art journal class. A flower, I can paint a flower. So I did. I filmed it the weekend before last and posted my humble piece youtube. It put me back into the game. I don’t know how but I was set free!



I also had received the most inspiring painting by Paulette Insall, ‘follow’ and all the goodies she sent with it have been an inspiration. I wish I could paint like her. Her backgrounds are amazing. She has classes for backgrounds, I hope to take it this fall.



Because of a mini flood in my living room where I have my computer I had to pull everything out of the desk amour and the book shelves and corners and so on. I ended up with a lot of junk that I just through out. I was left with a beautiful creative soulful place. Insall’s painting found a new home on top of my amour where it will be seen and safe from 9 year olds. I sit back and just stare at it. It makes me want to be a painter.