NEW WORK! On a Warm Day.....

Well I have been sticking to my commitment to paint every day and I am proud to show two new pieces I have finished this week:

"Summer Sunday" and"The Church in the Swamp"

I am already at work on another new piece that is in a new style for me but again filled with texture! I just can't seem to go flat....
well off to prepare a quick lunch and get back to the paint palette!! 
Have a fabulous Sunday....

Tina and the "gang" xoxo

Playing with Mixed Media!

I love playing with materials and textures and so this past week I toyed around with a few ideas I had and this painting is the culmination of ideas.
I used humble cardboard to make the small garden shed and hive and covered both with layers of molding paste and paint before attaching them to the canvas with soft gel. 

             The photo is a copy of a vintage picture from a friend's family archive ( his name was Henri)

 

 I went a little crazy with texture but then I was never was what one would call subdued when it came to art!

 

I have so many ideas and only so many hours to work with and I fell way behind when I had the accident with my hand. 

Well I am off to visit blogs and then work on something new but I do hope everyone is having a fabulous Sunday filled with blessed peace and happiness.....

Tina xo

Hopefully Clear Sailing Ahead!

Well just when I thought life was headed on an even keel......nope....on June 28 I fell down a flight of steps and mangled up my left (dominant) hand. Yep and to top it off I had a 1/2" x 1/2" x 1/4" piece of wood embedded in the wound that I walked around with for 3 weeks before I realized it and had it surgically removed.
Good grief I will not go into any details but I had a real challenge just doing dishes or dressing, so painting and writing were out of the question! In the last week though I was finally able to get back on the horse and caught up on a couple of commissioned paintings I had waiting in the wings and here they are...finally...

I have tried to keep up with blog posts so I wouldn't lose touch with how everyone was doing and now that I can move my hand again I will be visiting and leaving comments again...yippie!!!

Hope everyone has been having a great summer so far? Talk with you soon!

Love Tina xo

Quick Update

As many of you know Pumpkin finally lost his battle with his illness and left my side on April 20th.

I will always miss him and there is a huge empty place in my heart since that day! Till we meet again little buddy!

Then on May 3rd I had a terrible car accident in which I miraculously was unscathed but the other person involved died at the hospital. It was a horrible experience and I thank the Lord that the memory of that day is fading.

Although the car is drivable the cost to repair the frame and add two new doors is too costly for me so I had to buy another used car that seems so far to be running well (fingers crossed)!
I had always prided myself on my spotless driving record so being involved in a collision that resulted in a death kept me awake nights trying to reconstruct what had happened and was there any way I could have avoided the accident. But like so many things in life no matter how many times I questioned my memory I could not find any answers.

I hope life has been quieter for all of you?

I would be remiss if I didn't mention 2 ladies who lifted me from this dark place.
Many thank yous to Angela @ http://www.freespirithaven.com/2013/05/tips-to-help-you-with-your-chores.html
for the beautiful scriptures you sent to me, it lifted my heart dear friend!

And to Maggie@ http://grandmayellowhair.blogspot.com/
who wrote me a lovely and heartfelt  email that meant a lot to me!

So many wonderful people are on Blogger and I am grateful each day to have met you all, you have become so dear to me!

So here's to a better tomorrow and happier times this summer. I look forward to celebrating some of the good times this year with you all!

Love always
Tina xo

Keeping Hands and Brains Busy....

Sometimes the best medicine for a weary heart is to create something. This week I spent some time working on a little 12" x 12" acrylic and oil paint work that is definitely different from my usual fare.

                                                   MADAME CHOSE
She has an almost "Art Deco" look to me which was nothing I was aiming for but I like it anyway. The title was a remembered expression of my father's who never really learned French in all the years we lived in Quebec, but he knew this expression which is a generic term for any woman, sort of a "Madame Whoever" if you will.
My dad was from Texas and if you think Dr. Phil is full of cute sayings you should have known my dad!
The other thing I worked on was another little textile piece that I have been experimenting on. My only dilemma is how to mount this??? Some pieces I have seen are mounted on canvas which leads me to believe they have glue applied to the back. My only fear is that will stiffen the fabric and give it a "frozen" look which I don't like. Does anyone have experience mounting textile art?? Please feel free to pass on any info you have garnered.

I had planned on mounting an old spoon over the patch of brown velvet on the right side, I thought that would give it a cozy, homey look. The velvet is special to me as it was in an upholstery book filled with many samples of cotton velvet in different colors that my son found in someone's discarded trash when he was just 7 years old. Even then he knew his mom loved anything that could be used to make something pretty and Montreal is a great city for finding discarded treasures!  I really do miss trash days in Montreal!!!
Today though I plan on finishing a little painting in watercolor and gouache that is going to become my header for this blog and my Etsy shop. I have wanted to learn how to make a decent header for awhile now and Etsy has a quick and easy tutorial that even I can understand!

                                       Now for a quick Pumpkin update!
Pumpkin is holding his own for now. He is eating well and still preening his fur and paws but his right eye looks like the pupil is " blown" which is an indication of a stroke or some neurological problem. I spoke with the vet and she was kind enough to level with me and explain that in her opinion Pumpkin probably has generalized cancer and there is really nothing, at his age, that can be done about it so I am spending lots of time with him, holding and rocking him (his favorite thing) and whispering love to him.
Animals are always brave and accepting of life's circumstances, it's we humans who rail against fate and curse the darkness rather light a candle, (well I find myself doing that a lot) I am getting better though which must be the wisdom of age! I do believe that there is beauty in everything life offers us and I am trying very hard to find the beauty in this experience so these precious moments with Pumpkin will leave me changed in a good way!
Have a wonderful Tuesday and on Pumpkin's and my behalf I say thank you again for the prayers and well wishes, they have lightened my burden!

Love Tina xo