Still Painting

Another painting as I explore . I don't know how I feel about it, but it's interesting !

Royal Bird

I was able to paint this morning . I was very discouraged over a piece of bad art but I am learning that the best way to get past it is let it go and just keep painting . I liked this piece .It is very colorful and fairytale like . The princess doesn't have a face because she didn't want one;)

I honestly don't think I would be painting if not for Wyanne's class . I am grateful that I am, wherever it leads .

Pumpkin angel

I painted ! Me , who hated paint !! Thank you Wyanne . I started painting pumpkins and this little Angel just showed up . I sketched her out and painted her . I thought she was a fairy at first but I think she's an angel .

It's a beginning ..

Goals and Goings on

Image by Carla O'connor
I was inspired by Kelly Berkey ,who recently did a Vlog on her blog(wow, that sounds like a Dr suessism) about what she was working on and what her aspirations were. I thought I would share mine. I am very involved in Wyanne's Paint free class . I am discovering some important things about myself . I remember when I signed up for her class that I thought " I don't like paint but I do want to discover my style so Ill just use what she teaches with a different medium " but I have actually painted and am looking forward to painting more. I am starting to see a color palette emerge . I have discovered that I like canvas better than paper to paint on . I also like to paint on larger surfaces . I recently painted on an 11x14 and I felt it was to small .I am feeling less frustration with paint. I really cant put all the things about this I am feeling into words but hopefully eventually it will show in my artwork .I am keeping the things I am painting strictly in the Paint free class to keep the process intact but I am in that class with some incredible ladies . If you want to register for the Oct 25 class , I highly recommend it . It has been worth every penny so far and we are just starting the third week.

I am also working on my drawing skills . I signed up here and I am going to make it a goal to sketch everyday and I am practicing value .

I am also making it a point to study anatomy . My goal is to render the human form in my art and I also love faces . I ordered this book . I think it is important to know anatomy if you are going to draw the human figure .

I am really trying to learn the " Language of art " and get to a place where I have the knowledge to express myself more freely . The land of art is very vast . I am only just beginning to discover it and what it has to offer .

If you would have told me 20 years ago that art would become a passion of mine , I never would have believed it . I feel very small in the land of art . I have so much to learn and I am surprising myself with the things I am drawn too and how little I know . I am studying art history, when I can . I am ashamed to say that I know very little of some of the great artists.

Things I thought I didn't like I am being drawn too. I recently discovered Virginia Cobb and Carla O'connor . They paint in abstraction . I found myself wanting very much to explore that . So really I am at a very exploratory stage . I have no idea yet what my favorite medium is or where I plan to go . It is exciting and scary at the same time . I am like a baby discovering a new world. I am obsessed with learning right now and I think sometimes that's where the frustration comes from I want to run before I can crawl , so to speak . I can see small improvements and thats a good thing .So what about you ? what are your goals and aspirations?

Paint Free

Hi all , I am laying in bed sick . I hate being sick . I really don't feel up to doing anything at the moment so I thought I would Blog . I wanted to share with you how much I am loving Wyanne's new class "Paint Free" . We are only in the second week and I am learning things about myself. I think it is the most active I have been in a class and I love the energy coming from the other classmates and Guess what ? I painted and I actually liked it . I hated painting remember ? I actually put paint on Canvas and enjoyed it !! Wyanne has me excited at the discoveries I am making. If you are looking to find your unique style then you NEED to take the class.

I want to leave you with a little inspiration that I found online :

EVERYBODY KNOWS ...
You can't be all things to all people.
You can't do all things at once.
You can't do all things equally well.
You can't do all things better than everyone else.
Your humanity is showing just like everyone else'
You have to find out who you are, and be that.

You have to decide what comes first, and do that.
You have to discover your strengths, and use them.
You have to learn not to compete with others,
Because no one else is in the contest of "being you."

You will have learned to accept your own uniqueness.
You will have learned to set priorities and make decisions.
You will have learned to live with your limitations.
You will have learned to give yourself the respect that is due,
And you'll be a most vital mortal.

DARE TO BELIEVE ...
That you are a wonderful, unique person.
That you are a once-in-all-history event.
That it's more than a right, it's your duty, to be who you are!

Visit Annas place , it's inspiring.

Fab Fabric

Danita is teaching her first online class !! You can register here . I love that you get a kit of supplies on registration, it makes it easy!! Congrats to Danita , I think she is great! I also love this Love Note pillow Tutorial by Alisa Burke. I can see so many ways to use this idea.For the bride and groom, you could make pillows of their vows , or how about pillows with letters from those who are no longer with us or some of your children's first "love notes" to you or you to them :) A great idea for Valentines day .

Stuck .

I am feeling stuck . Stuck , you know that place where frustration takes over and you want to pitch your art supplies ! It's like wanting to speak in a language you haven't yet learned to speak . I struggle to draw . I feel comfortable using pencil but as soon as I try to move beyond that medium frustration sets in . I have been trying to sketch with charcoal to get something down on paper to use my beautiful pastels but when i hold charcoal it just feels unnatural to me , different than graphite.I love the look of loose lines but I seem to have trouble producing them . I just need some direction .Sometimes I feel lost. What do you do in times like these ?

Stretching to sketch Week 1

The Sketches are up for Week 1 at Kelley Berkey Designs . This is my sketch . Go check out the others they are amazing. I hope you will join in the challenge:)

Strike a Pose...

Kelly Berkey posted about wanting to draw the human form . She set up her camera to catch still shots of herself during her ballet workout. I loved some of the poses. Kelly has a beautiful dancers body and I think she is capable of holding some beautiful poses. Alot of us don't have access to live models to draw from . So Kelly is going to start a weekly challenge . She will post a pose and we can all draw from it . I think this is a fantastic opportunity for us to learn together . I hope you will visit kelly here and participate in the challenge . We can all inspire each other .

Pastel play ..

I was inspired to make this piece by this post . The text says "Strength, between the Tears and the Truth " .I am just playing with some pastels . I don't have many but I plan to remedy that;)

Hope you are having a creative weekend.

Silly Sunday Winner!!

Here are your random numbers:

13 

Timestamp: 2010-09-05 12:07:26 UTC

( Excluding any double comments)

send your email to : jlyne@frontiernet.net

Anne Marie - Toronto said...

I do love to be silly and boy, do I ever need it right now!!! I just ordered Carla's book, but this seems right up my alley. What a generous giveaway! I haven't blogged about it yet, but I will either this evening or in the next couple of days. Thanks for the opportunity!

Congratulations Anne Marie !!!

Carla Sonheim and my silly giveaway ..

I went to Borders Tuesday and picked up this book . I took the last copy they had that day . I've been seeing some of my fellow bloggers doing the exercises . I thought it looked like fun .

I have to say that I did a little research on Carla Sonheim and I could really relate to her . Did you know she took her first art class at the age of 30 ? I listened to her blogcast interview here .

I really like her and I am looking forward to her silly 2 class. I want you to join me . I really thought more people would want to play with Carla . So , all you have to do for a chance to win is just leave a comment under the silly Sunday giveaway post (below) . Thats all . Just say you want to win , Thats it ! I will be drawing a name on Sunday .

Silly Sunday Giveaway ..

I have been wanting to do a giveaway for awhile .I decided to give away 30 days of silliness! I saw this class by Carla Sonheim and I knew this was it! For 30 days you get a daily dose of silliness sent to you in an email from Carla that will include a link to a downloadable pdf inviting you to loosen up and play . We can all use a little silliness in our lives . All you have to do for a chance to win is blog about Carla's Class and my giveaway and then leave me a comment. Lets get silly together! I will draw the winner next Sunday, September 5th.

Good Luck !

(if you don't have a blog you can still enter just leave me a comment letting me know.)

Tonights play..

Actually I didn't feel like playing tonight but I did it anyway . I decided to try a technique that Jane Royal from Painted heart Studio was kind enough to post a step by step on . I love the texture from the tissue paper . I went a little crazy, but oh well . I will definitely try this again . Jane , thank you and I love your work .

And Guess what ? Tomorrow I am going to do my first ever Giveaway . I have been wanting to do something for awhile but this just seemed right , so come by tomorrow for details!

Are You an Artist?

Today I read a post that sat like a rock in my gut . It brought up alot of feelings and thoughts . The post I read, was from someone who attended her local art fair and was struck by the lack of "real" art. Which led me to wonder what real art is ? At what point can you call yourself an artist? The post talked about the journey of an artist to overcome self doubt and failure only to have no guarantee of making" real" art . So what keeps a person striving to create ? What measures your success as an artist? Her belief was that art is also about communication . I agree with this but even if you as an artist can communicate your idea onto a canvas there is no guarantee how your viewer will perceive it. Our perception of our world differs . What we perceive as art differs. I asked my 15 year old what her definition of an artist is . She responded with total confidence that she herself was an artist. I responded " but you don't draw " she replied "I am an artist because of my love of music and I write songs and we all are artists inside". She said this with such belief in herself. So at what point do we begin to doubt our abilities ? Do we need an art degree or do we need to sell our art to become a "real " artist? What is" it" ? I signed up for my very first art class here at home . I will be going once a week starting next week to learn some of the fundamentals . I am doing this so that I can progress in my artistic ability . I am a beginner who only started to draw for the first time ever this year . When I create I really do work to the best of my ability with the knowledge that I have . Is that not enough ?

So leave me a comment . I want to hear your opinion on this .

The Secret lives of Princesses and a sketch ..

My sketch for tonight .

This evening as I was sketching the Ups truck came and I was expecting a few supplies that I bought on ebay. I went downstairs to get the package and on top was a Barnes and Nobel box.I thought that was odd since I have a nook and hadn't ordered a real book in a little while . I opened the box to find a gift from my mom and her partner .An early Birthday Present!! I was surprised ! I am usually hard to surprise because I buy my own gifts and have even been known to order my own birthday cake .

You want to know what it was? it was this . Just look at the illustrations. The book is even more beautiful in person .It is a treasure trove of inspiration ! I love the illustrator. Anyway , I thought I would share .

My sketch for tonight..

A sketch ..

I have been trying to spend a least a few hours sketching every night. I loved doing this one because as I have said before I could sit and just shade and shade. This sketch was actually inspired by a photo of someone I know .I actually like it:)

a place to call your own

"I wanted a place where I could wake up and look out a window and see the mountainside across the clove, a place that felt like a secret tree house, a place all my own." - Sandy Foster

Oh , how I can relate . You have to read the Fosters article here . I really loved the story and it reminded me how a dream can happen even on a limited budget. I loved the photo of her in those pink wellies , I think it shows her spunk .Her blog is here . I am so in love with this little cottage. My husband and I are working on getting our house on the market . We have 5.5 acres near our present home . We are wanting to pair down our lives some without a mortgage so that we can both do more things we love. When I saw this cottage an idea was born . I have seen many little cottages I like and used to save pictures on my computer . I have a perfect little spot in the woods for a cottage on our other land . Wouldn't it be a wonderful place to read and draw ? I love solitude . What about you ? Wouldn't you love a little space of your own ?

Do what you love .

image courtesy of Kat Ostrow
"You could be doing other things,but do those things that you want to do "

Last night I sat at a table painting a background for a class I was taking online. I was slapping acrylic paint onto the watercolor paper when I realized , I am not enjoying this . I stopped . I thought, why are you doing what you do not enjoy ? I asked myself "What do you enjoy "? The answer came easily , I enjoy sketching in graphite . I love the shading process. I pulled out my pencils and did a sketch using my pencils . No , it wasn't great but as I was sketching I enjoyed it . I took out a few conte crayons added a little color , smudged with my fingers and still I felt joy in the process. As you know from previous postings I have taken and am taking online art classes with a variety of teachers . I always learn something . Most concentrate on mixed media techniques and wet media . Sometimes wet medias frustrate me . I, like alot of others, seem to be searching for a niche . A little place in the art world . A place where we can find our own style . As I processed all of this last night , I thought about why I create art . I thought about what I want to express and what would make me feel like an artist .The Answer - To create something that I am pleased with . If I were creating or forcing a process for someone else, I don't think I would want to create. Then a sentence that I have heard from many artists over and over entered my mind "it's about process not product" . I get it ! when I was told this the first time , I thought yeah right , whatever, but for the first time I understand this.

Then I thought about other artists who's work I am drawn to and why . One that came to mind was Kat Ostrow . I remember the first time I saw her work online . I loved her work and as I think about why , I know that alot of it is the freedom and impulse I see in her work . I love all the lines . I wrote her once and she was so kind . I expressed to her how frustrated I was and how I wished to find my own style . I remember that she told me that if I could ever just let go and draw from a reaction to what I see I would probably find what I was searching for . Smart Lady Huh? I hope you will visit her to see more of her work and I love the way she shares process on her blog. Last night I also googled other artists who worked in a style I was drawn to . I was led here . I found her because of one of her portrait images . Again , I thought, "what is it I am drawn to in her work?" . It was about the softness , the lines . I also emailed her and got a very kind email from her that was very helpful . I want to say how wonderful I think it is when an artist will actually reach out and answer your questions . I know it takes time and I am very grateful . So based on this I have decided that I am going to spend more time exploring semi dry mediums and doing what I enjoy. Maybe if I take the time to listen I will find what I am looking for . What about you ? Are you enjoying what you are doing ?

p.s I am heading to Dick Blick to indulge myself a little (maybe alot) ;)

healing and friendship

Sometimes as I am visiting the blog world I will hear the same message over and over . Little snippets in different places but all with the same message. A message that I feel I am meant to hear. This time the message that I see repeating itself is about healing and friendship. I think I have mentioned it before but I am happy to see some new art classes embracing healing as part of the class. For alot of us when we create we are met with resistance inside ourselves . Lots of negative voices saying all kinds of unkind things. The one thing I am learning is that in order to really create authentically and to be creative at our best we need to learn to let go . To let go of expectation and judgement . For me ,this is always hard, but I really do think that it is the key to finding my own unique style . I believe that slowing down and losing myself in the process and not the outcome is the way to heal . I know that I have struggled this year with things outside of art . I have seen my fellow bloggers struggling . We all want and need support to heal . We want to be "OK".Which leads me to the next part. Friendship. If you have friendships who support you and share your love of art , count your blessings. I am going to be very honest here and say that I find it very hard to find loving nurturing friends where I live. I am not saying they don't exist. I would love to have some girlfriends who could share my love of art supplies and who I could just sit together with and create. This is why I rely heavily on my online support system and friendships. What about you ? Recently, as I was cruising the Internet I found this post . It is about finding a tribe of people who support you. I hope you will find time to read it . I think as artist we should show support for one another . I appreciate those of you who support and inspire me . I consider you part of my tribe. I also want to Be a support . I really love seeing the work of all my creative friends out there. I believe that if we support each other and share there is wonderful healing power in that . Art heals right?

I also want to bring your attention again to Juliette Crane . I love her new post on" how art heals and the beauty of friendship ". I hope you will have a chance to visit her.

How are you healing and connecting?

Lets Face it !

As I have mentioned before I love online classes and especially those involving faces. I have never taken a class with Jodi Ohl but I would love to . You could win this class. Go check it out here for a chance to win !

Back to school?

I am so excited about the classes I am seeing online. If you have never taken an online class, you should! I love workshops. No hassle and you work at your own pace . I really believe that being creative is something that we all were born to do and it is so healing and good for your soul . For some reason when we start to be creative in the form of artwork we are met with our fears .Right away they make theirselves known . We compare ourselves , judge ourselves , ridicule . I love that alot of the new classes and teachers are focusing on these issues as well . I know for me , judging only hinders my ability to be creative and it takes the fun away. I wonder why Art isn't a bigger part of our lives?
I love this post by Juliette Crane where she talks about courage. She says that creativity is a "constant discovery and unraveling of ourselves".Her blog is wonderful and worth a visit . She is also having a giveaway . So check her out!
Now onto Classes...
World of Whimsy 2 , Tamara is such a wonderful teacher and her views are so healing. I am currently taking this class . She is also going to be offering a FREE course called" The heart of art" you can learn about it here . I think it is so loving of her to offer it .
Mixed Media Faces is a class with Monica Zuniga . I just signed up for it . Monica is another very loving teacher that focuses on creating without judgement . I have taken many many classes with her and I can't say enough about her.
Painting Free with Wyanne , I am so excited to see Wyanne offering this class. She is awesome! notice again that this class focuses on freeing yourself up:)
Towers and Turrets, I was so excited when I saw this Promo . I love the name and I have been wanting to take a class with Sharon for awhile.
So what do you think? Are you ready to go back to school?

More...

1. My daughter , the Bride

2. Bride and groom

3.Groom and his father at chessboard in castle

4. Groom

5. Bride in mirror

Some of my favorites...

I have more to share from my daughters wedding but blogger will only let me do a few at a time. 1. Bride and her father

2. Bride and Groom at the castle

3. Groom , Father of Groom , Father of Bride, Groomsmen

4. Bride with her Maid of honor and girls

Wedding and World of Whimsy!

Whew, I can breathe!!! Today is the first day I have had a moment of solitude. The wedding was beautiful . I don't have any pictures yet because the photographer is still working on them . She took ALOT! The bride was beautiful , though I may be biased since I am her mother. We decided at the last minute to move the wedding inside the castle . I am so glad we did because it was brutally hot. The groom cried ,which only made it more beautiful . I feel so lucky to have him as a son- in -law. I will share pictures as soon as I receive some.

I have missed art . I have been dealing with wedding details for so long. I thought I deserved a new workshop. So I decided to take World of Whimsy 2 ! I love Tam , as a teacher , and this class will focus also on healing which I could use right now. The class started today . If you would like to register you can do it here .

I have missed all of my online art friends . I have been checking in but I hope to be able to comment more now. I have also been reading alot . Soon we will be getting our house ready to sell . I am very conflicted about this. I love my house but we also have land near our house with a beautiful view . We are planning to sell and then build there. We plan to downsize and are hoping to be mortgage free . Thats our goal . So please keep me in your prayers . Change is not always easy . I am looking forward to connecting with all of you again :) Hope you are having a wonderful summer and being creative!

All about Change

My life is all about change right now. My oldest daughter graduated in June and is getting married July 17th . I can't believe the wedding is so close.I know I have talked about it before but it's hard when your firstborn is leaving the nest. Plus this year has been financially hard. My husband is self employed , he has a vinyl siding business and he does home improvement work.Things have been very slow and with all the extra expenses of a wedding .It has been difficult. We are considering putting our house on the market, because it is much more than we need and building a smaller home. We have other land that is close to our home so it wouldn't be a total relocation.

On top of all that change , Our first cat died last week . He was missing last weekend and on Monday he showed up on our porch with no visible injuries but was bleeding from his mouth and was barely alive. I will spare you the other awful details but it was sooooo hard. We had to put him to sleep. The Amazing thing was that a few days after my cousin posted on facebook that she needed to get rid of her cat .It looks almost identical to the cat we lost. So we decided to take him . We just got him yesterday and we are in an adjustment period . I have two other cats and 2 little dogs . They aren't too thrilled with our new pet.

So this is where I have been . I am just feeling a little lost. I miss my creativity . I need some security in my life . How do you handle change?

A girl can dream ,Right?

I was browsing the internet and I saw this http://www.adventuresinitaly.net/f10mawn.html . A week in Italy with Misty Mawn . I mean Art and Italy ,what's not to love? I have never really traveled anywhere alone, but I would love to do this. I had the privilege of taking a class online with Misty and it was Amazing! So maybe I will allow myself to dream even bigger and check into this . Go Ahead, lets dream of creating art in italy with Misty Mawn.

Faces In Technicolor..

You know how I love workshops right? I do!! Sharon is giving away a spot to her faces in Technicolor workshop. I have been feeling down lately because so much has been going on . My daughter graduates tomorrow and then is getting married July 17th. I am proud of her but she will be my first to leave the nest ,so my feelings have been mixed. I haven't had a chance to do anything artsy. Today I sketched for the first time in a while and it felt really good. Art grounds me somehow, so a new workshop may be exactly what I need. It starts June 18th .Check it out for a chance to win a spot.

Where I have been..

Wow! I know I haven't posted in a while. So much has been going on that I haven't been doing alot artistically. We had my oldest daughters wedding shower last weekend.We had around 18 people here at our home .It turned out nice. Now, on to graduation. The same daughter Graduates June 4th and then we will be in complete wedding mode as she is getting married July 17th .I have been having some mixed feeling. I am happy for her but my first will be leaving the nest:( .

I have also been spending time reading. I have had a Barnes and Nobel nook for awhile and I love it! I found some groups on facebook that lets you lend books to each other. I have found that with the nook I have been reading lots more. I have always loved books and reading but we live in a small town and we are about 35 minutes from bookstores, so the nook has allowed me to have instant access to more books. I really just want to bury my feet in the sand and sit on the beach and just read.

I am still checking in with all of you . Following your blogs.

Hugs,

Jackie

Meet Patience..

If you read the post below this one you will understand exactly how this doll got her name. Her and I struggled every bit of the way, but she taught me so much . She is my very first cloth and clay doll .

Begin Again..

I know I haven't posted in a while .The truth is I have been struggling with myself and art. I took a Cloth and Clay doll class . I was excited to begin. I had never sewn before or worked with clay .I got out the little sewing machine and I taught myself from you tube how to get it going. It wasn't perfect but I thought ok , It's not to bad .I then moved onto clay over the fabric . I worked and worked and worked and I was very unhappy with the result. The face was not attractive at all. I walked out of that room covered in clay looking disheveled and beaten.My husband looked at me standing at the top of the stairs and said"what In the world"? At that moment I said to myself "You are not an Artist" . I told myself I just was not good enough. I whined and swore I was not going to create anymore. Then the clouds parted and the sun came out .... Ok , it didn't, but I was reminded by a very recent post and then another that I am not alone . Trying to embrace your mistakes and be a beginner is not easy. It hard not to compare yourself to others and to live with the awkwardness of learning. It's hard when your inner critic is breathing down your back to keep going . Art seems to bring up all my inner issues. Perfectionism and control do not mix well with art but what are my options ? I can quit or find my way through. Thank you Tracy for reminding me that I am not alone . I will find my way through this .I will just begin again.

Wedding Planning and some Artful Inspiration..

We are in full wedding planning mode.My daughter is getting married July 17th. She also has senior prom AND graduation . We found her wedding gown this week ,picked out the bridesmaids dresses , flower girl dresses and today it's all about the Cake.I have alot of mixed feelings .This will be my first to leave the" nest". I love the man she is marrying but I still think she is so young (19) . My sister is her "Wedding planner". I just really don't know alot about the whole wedding process. I have been married for 23 years and I got married for 25 dollars at the courthouse . So weddings are a little out of my element . Plus I have been accused of having ideas over budget (LOL). Imagine that?? When we all went to Michaels this week to check a few wedding things, I was distracted by art supplies. What do they expect right?

The above photos are of the castle where she is getting married . She is having her wedding outdoors.We visited there again this week too . My sister had to do all these little things there that I really know nothing about.

On another note....

Here are a few things I find inspiring this week.

I fell in love with these prayer boxes as soon as I saw them. Nancye was so sweet to put together a little class on her art doll site .If you want to learn to make these you can!

Also aren't we all looking to find our own voice as artist's ? I have been waiting for this Gut Art class by Mystele.It is all about learning to find who you are as an artist. So if you are interested check it out! I have alot to say on "Finding your own voice" but right now I just don't have the right words to put a voice to mine. I do have faith that we all have our own and with a little searching I think we all have something uniquely creative and authentic to offer.I will do a post on this later.
Another Place I have been finding inspiration lately is Kat Ostrow . There is something about her work that draws me in and ignites this passion in me to find my own way. I love the looseness in her work .It stirs something in myself that I can't get to right now. So go visit her.
I hope you have a wonderful weekend and are able to find lots of inspiration of your own !

A Queen..

Practice for Suzi Blu's Piety &Passion class. I did it on watercolor paper instead of wood for now to practice some of the techniques. Not completely pleased but I am sharing anyway.

Off With Her Head!!

NO! not Alice . Queen Elizabeth. I am taking a class where we are doing a tudor style portrait. In particular a Sketch of Queen Elizabeth for the first Portrait and a 3/4 view at that. Now, while I do love all things vintage and that era facinates me I really don't find Elizabeth all that attractive. Thank goodness this is 2010 or I am sure I would be beheaded .So here is a few sketches . One of Mary Tudor who I find more pleasing . I am going to have to find a way to make elizabeth a little more pleasing . Any Ideas?