A very special place built by a very special man, my grandfather (dad's dad). This was his oasis from the cares of the world where he could garden, fish, cook, putter, and generally lose himself in the beauty. I spent untold hours here as a young person, and I can still hear him saying "Hey Squeege!" (his affectionate name for me) when he saw me coming around the corner. So thankful for this beautiful place and that is still being enjoyed by his family. It's hard to believe that I did this piece as a gift to my dad for Christmas over 11 years ago...

A little post-Easter, pre-Easter reflecting...

I have been meditating on and mulling over exactly what Good Friday is and means in our lives today. And I cannot escape the fact that the CROSS is the great equalizer. We are all equal at the foot of the cross. We are all sinners. We all deserve to be up on that cross. Jesus knew that about us... He knew how despicable we are, and He willingly went to the cross and took our place. Every. One. Of. Us. All we have to do is acknowledge we need saving and accept His sacrifice freely. That's it... so easy anyone can attain it. The great equalizer. "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that WHOEVER believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16)

 

(As always with my original scripture images, feel free to use this graphic!)

Birthing a (virtual) baby

So, I have been as busy as a bee with "birthing" a new website for a dear friend and fellow fine artist.  She is an amazing person, and I am thrilled that she wanted me to design a website to showcase her art.  She and I worked together in the corporate world MANY moons ago, briefly.  Her beautiful given name is Leonora, but her friends and family call her "Nono" and it was only appropriate that her site be titled "Art by Nono."

When I am designing a site, I become immersed in the process and barely come up for air until everything is JUST as I want it to be.  With this particular site, that meant hours of scanning artwork and getting the right images in the right spots.  She has also written a devotional book, which integrates her artwork interspersed with some of her inspirational writing, that I included on its own page.

I absolutely love the design process and the immersive nature of tweaking and coding and tweaking and coding, in order to get everything to behave just as I want it to. This requires patience with the structures that I must work within, as well as knowledge of how to tweak those structures to get the look and feel that I want.  It is always a challenge, but that is where my design juices and determination come to life.  Launching a new site is always exciting, and it is especially rewarding when the client is so thrilled with the result.

Now that I am up for air, I will be visiting in your neighborhoods!  :)

Art Show

Today is a day of LUXURY!  Why luxury, you ask?  I have the LUXURY of sitting on my couch and having time to visit and catch up with all my blog friends.  I cannot wait to catch up with what all of you have been doing over these past couple of weeks.  I plan to read and read and read...  (HUGE smiling, contented sigh)!

Here are a few photos from our two week art show... a wonderful time for our art association and so much beautiful art.  I am so proud of all the artists. 

The show was held in a wonderful retail space in a local mall that just happened to be empty. The space faced the main thoroughfare of the mall with a large window across the busiest part. The mall was happy to have us filling this space during the holiday season, and we were happy to have such a visible location for our art show.  We had over 70 artists of all kinds from extreme realism to abstract to whimsical and everything in between.  And it is all 2-dimensional art... no sculpture, no jewelry, no crafts... only paintings and drawings on traditional 2-d mediums.

 

We donated 10% of our sales to a local organization, Hand-in-Paw, which is an organization of therapy dogs.  There were a number of these amazing animals at our opening reception, a Schnauzer, a Great Dane, a Pekingese, a Spaniel, and many more. The photos are all from our opening reception, which could hardly have gone better.

 I am very thankful that on the year that I happened to be president, the show turned out this well.  I also did a few commissioned pieces over the holidays, one of them for a friend who was in our wedding 30 years ago, and one of them for someone who picked up my card at this show.  I will wait to post those here until I am sure they have been gifted.  For the the 8th year, I am thanking God for another wonderful year of allowing me to do something I love so much!

It was hard keeping this a secret...

I have been waiting to post this one... such a fun super secret surprise piece. This was commissioned by a groom for his bride as a wedding gift because this was the spot where he proposed to her... under the big oak tree at Augusta National, the home of The Masters golf tournament. Congratulations to the bride and groom who are now Mr. and Mrs.!

"The Big Oak at Augusta National"
- 10" x 13" graphite

Thanksgiving is now less than two weeks away

How did this happen?  Time does march on.  With Thanksgiving in mind, I realize that I am thankful for so much -- I have SO MUCH for which I am thankful -- and yet I don't have EVERYTHING.   God continually shows me how much I need Him.  We are in the midst of one of the worst droughts in history where I live.  The lake that is our main source of water is so dry that people can walk across it.  We are at 54 days with no rain.  NO rain.  And the forecast for the next 10 days shows 0% chance of rain.

The conditions are so bad right where I live that the Water Works has issued a 400% fine on any who go over the allotted water amount for the month.  400%!  And that is the same whether you are a family of one or a family of ten.  We are a family of five adults and one fur baby.  But, we usually hover around the "fine-worthy" amount in our usage. So, we are finding creative ways to conserve even more than we normally do.  Yet, we are still praying, "Lord, please send the rain."  And, this continues to remind me that I am not in charge. 

As always with my scripture graphics, feel free to download and use this one!

Despite the recent election and the divide that we see in our country, we can be content in the circumstance and know that He is still God. So many feel that four years with our president-elect will doom our nation.  But, just as many felt that way four and eight years ago. And, here we are still plugging along. At the end of the day God calls us not to criticize those who don't vote or believe as we do. Rather, He calls us to love. Unconditionally.  Wholeheartedly. Even when it's hard. EVERY person has value to God. Including President Obama and including President-elect Trump. I pray that we can all get past this hate and division... and can find the contentment that He promises.

So much of life is beyond our control.  And so many of us are control freaks (anybody else, or is it just me and the people in my family?) When we have circumstances in our lives that are disappointing or challenging, they could be God's way of reminding us that no matter how much we try to control the variables in our lives, He is still ultimately in control.  And, I am at peace with that (well, most of the time.)  I try, with Paul the apostle, to be content in whatever circumstance I find myself.  And every time I go into my kitchen to get a glass of water, I am reminded of that.

"Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." - Philippians 4:11-13

Just sent off the latest commissioned piece...

I just shipped out my latest commissioned piece -- the one I mentioned that the groom is giving to his bride for a wedding present.  I can't wait to share it with you, as it was such fun!  But since it is a super secret surprise, it will have to wait until after the lovely bride has laid eyes on it...

I wanted to give you a little peek into my drawing room and table. I have a few commissioned pieces that I could share since I last posted about them on this blog, but here is one that was a pleasure to do.  It is on our local historical register and the current owners purchased the home in the 1970s.  This house turned 100 years old in 2015.

I thought I would share the process for this one.  It is pretty much how I work on all my commissioned pieces.  Here is the original photo that I was sent by the person who commissioned the drawing.

Original photo:

This is the first step (below) in how I work, lightly laying in the beginning sketch.  This is really the crucial point of the drawing and sometimes the longest step, as I must get the perspective right, the house straight, all the angles relating to the horizon correctly, etc.  There is a lot of sketching and erasing happening in this step! ;)

Once I am satisfied that the house looks correct from all angles (and doesn't look like it's falling over to one side or the other) and is proportionally correct (the porch isn't too large for the house, the steps are proportional to the door, the windows aren't too large or small, etc.) I can begin to fill in details.  This is where the fun takes over. 

 

Filling in details is about texture, shading, and all the architectural nuances that make a house a house... the boards on the wall next to the windows, the stonework on the porch, the little architectural details under the eaves, etc. When filling in, I work as much as possible from left to right and top to bottom, as the graphite will smear while I am working (right-handed) and rubbing back and forth over the areas.  I also use a piece of parchment to cover areas that I have already filled in, so that they are protected from my (very active) hand and arm.

 

Some of the most challenging details about some houses are the windows, especially if the surrounding trim and wood is white, as the ones on either side of the front door here.  It is difficult to get the panes all uniform and straight lines without distorting the white trim around them because the white part is the negative space.  It's much easier if the trim is darker than the panes.

I loved doing this house because there were so many different textures and features. It is really amazing to me how much this makes me appreciate what architects do.  To think this beautiful thing was designed and built in 1915 and is still so beautifully standing and giving shelter to this family today just amazes me.

With all of the house finished except the roof, I get to thinking about the landscape.  I have to be sure that the house is covered with parchment during this step because this when my fingers fly.  Shrubs and grasses and trees and flowers are a lot of fun.  As you have probably gathered by now, I really enjoy doing these.  I am thankful that people continue to ask me to do them, and each one is unique and special.  And so we've made our way back to where this post started, the finished product...


 

One thing that I do while I draw is pray for the families who are represented by the homes... those who live there, those who have lived there and have moved on, those who are giving the gift to the ones who live or lived there.  It is a privilege to be able to touch a family in this way. This is just a little taste of my commissioned work, but I also still love to paint and take the opportunity to "play with color" in between my commissioned drawings.

Wednesday blessings,

Spinning Right On Its Axis...

So, has it really been three and a half years since I last posted? It's just hard to believe that, but in some ways it seems even longer. With my children grown but not gone, I am still in a very busy stage of life.  Yet, I miss the blog world, my friends made here, and the writing and photos that go along with storytelling.  So, I am going to make a renewed effort and try to not be hard on myself when I go for (what seems like) ages between posts. I can hardly believe that when I started this blog over eight years ago, I posted every day! Whoa, I don't know how I managed that and everything else. But, realistically I know that I have too many things going on right now to post everyday... but I can post sometimes.

Since that first blog post in May 2008, so much has happened in our lives as well as in the world of technology.  We have a lot of visual "instant gratification" these days through Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and all the other social media sites.  Yet, my writer's heart longs for a space like this to just ramble on about whatever is on my heart... and for something that's not here today and gone tomorrow.  I love being able to look back at the old posts here and see what God was doing in our lives then and how far He has brought us and our families.  I am using the word "our" because as I look back at the comments, I was not doing this alone. I have tried to stay connected to a number of you by popping in every now and then to read your posts and comment (sparsely, I know.) I am thankful that some of you faithful ones are still at this blogging thing!  It just makes my world feel that it is spinning right on its axis to be able to go visit your beautiful blog homes on the web.

I am still doing art along with graphic and web design, all of which keeps me quite busy.  I am currently in the midst of a very interesting commissioned piece of art for a young man who is about to get married... the piece will be a wedding present for his bride as a remembrance of the spot where he proposed to her.  It is such fun getting to be in on secrets like that.  I just rolled out a brand new website last week for a local small business in town.  I also took on the role of president of one of our local art associations this year, which has added to my already long list of tasks.  But, it has also given me the opportunity to become immersed in the local art community, to get to know some local artists whose works I have admired, and to learn many, many things about techniques, materials, shows, etc.

For those of you still connected here, THANK YOU for not giving up on me. I have always felt like our blog community was a bit of a "small town" on the internet, as those of us with common interests found one another early on.  For now, I am jumping back into this blog with both feet!  There is so much loveliness to be shared, and I want to be a part of the sharing.  I hope to see you around this great big world (wide web)!

Birthing Another New Website...

I am in the process of birthing yet another website for another very creative lady. This one had a very good job working away from home, but in recent days has quit that job in order to pursue her "bliss" in the paper and printing business. (I will share more once we launch her site, but the new logo I created for her is below.) I can recall those Victorias that contained features about women pursuing their "bliss" in regard to their careers or work. There is even a book I have, published by Victoria's editors, called The Business of Bliss which tells the stories of a number of women who did this.

This is something that I have also had the opportunity to do. When I graduated from college with a degree Advertising and Graphic Design many moons ago, none of the layout work was done on computers. It was all meticulously hand-done with rub-on lettering or movable typesetting and gum paste. These days, it seems everything is done via computer. It is really an amazing thing to think about. I have had the opportunity to learn all of this amazing technology as it has evolved. It has gotten incredibly sophisticated through these recent years, and the software will do almost anything that you can imagine.

When I began building websites over 10 years ago, it was all very new and primitive. Since I am a very VISUAL designer, the "coding" required to build websites then was very off-putting to me. But the newest software is so friendly to those of us who are visual designers that it is truly a pleasure to be a web designer this current environment. It is almost like completing an unbelievably large painting, (except that it almost feels like you are never really finished.)  There is always a change here or a tweak there that will inevitably have to be made.

In that past few years I have also had the opportunity to learn to incorporate these new and very popular methods of "quick communication" -- now so affectionately known as Social Media -- into the design of these new websites. I have customized backgrounds and logos and color schemes for Blogger and Twitter, and I have become co-administrator on many a Facebook page.

I am thankful for being able to pursue my bliss and being able to do that from my home. I do not take lightly the privilege of being with my precious family each day, and I am asking the Lord to keep me busy doing what I love, whether it is drawing someone's home, creating a painting, or designing a website. Since these are hard economic times, I must also be wise about what financial contribution I am making in our family. But for now, I am so thankful to be a "worker at home"...

Titus 2:5 "...to be sensible, pure, workers at home, kind, being subject to their own husbands, so that the word of God will not be dishonored."

November? Really?

I can't believe it was November when I last posted. Since that time we have had Thanksgiving, Christmas, lots of snow (yes, even this far south), and now Spring has officially arrived. I have been painting away, along with building websites and trying to make improvements in our massive yard. I will share a few pictures below of what has been keeping me occupied. That way, at least, you will know I haven't just been goofing off these past few months. :)





I have an art show coming up this weekend and have been getting ready for that in the midst of all else that is going on.





So far this spring in our yard we have planted irises, azaleas, phlox, clematis, yellow jessamine, bronze ajuga, hostas, daylilies, 2 winged euonymous bushes, a lorapetalum, a cleyera, and petunias in pots. We have also transplanted three large crepe myrtles. We also have planted a veggie garden with lettuce, potatoes, cabbages, baby tomato plants, peas, and peppers. So far, everything seems to be doing well, and thankfully we dodged a frost last night by a few degrees. The birdsongs are keeping me quite entertained each morning. I have seen numerous redbirds, robins, and even a bluejay or two in our yard. The gentle harbingers of spring never disappoint.





I am also keeping quite busy with a couple of new websites I am working on ... more to come on that in subsequent days. For now, I am just glad to be back. I would love to know what is going on in your part of the world!

Lots to do....

I haven't had a lot of blogging time lately as I am getting ready for my art show (2 weeks away now.) I did want to post my latest commissioned drawing and a couple of sneaky peeks at what I've been working on.

A painting in progress...






A bit of Disney sketching...


Japan Pavilion at EPCOT



From the "Armor Series"...

I hope all my precious blogging friends are enjoying these first few days of spring!

Blessings,

A quick update ... good news/bad news

First of all, let me say how much I appreciate those of you who have checked in on me to make sure I am all right. Let me ease your mind and tell you right away that I am fine. Life has gotten a little too busy lately for me to really blog as I would like to. And I certainly haven't been around to all of you wonderful blog friends checking in on you as I would like to. Some of this is due to computer woes (bad news), but most of this is due to the fact that I am going to be in an upcoming art show (good news). As an artist who works primarily on commission, that means that I don't have much of an inventory of things to put in a show. I am so thankful that I am receiving commissions regularly, and those works have been shipped off to their new homes. But I need things now to put in the exhibit, and so I have been spending every available minute at the drawing/painting board. I would appreciate your prayers as I get ready for this, as it will be the first time I have ever participated in an art show.

I thought I would share a couple of my newest pieces. The first is a watercolor from a photograph that a dear friend of mine took while doing ministry in a particular area of the hills of Kentucky several years ago. They were providing aid to some people who had lost homes or possessions in a flood. He took a picture of this abandoned barn and graciously allowed me to use it for reference.



The second one is much more whimsical and was done with Prismacolor pencils on matboard, and is called "Great and Small."



Once the show is behind me, I hope to be back to blogging as I would like. Until then, may God bless and watch over you all!

Fruitful Fridays...

More Disney sketching...



More Victoria Magazine inspired artwork... How could any artist not be inspired by the Children's Corner features in these vintage Victorias?
(May 1990 issue.)



White Flowers Series:
Each of these pictures is from a flower featured in Victoria Magazine and has the issue and page number written on the back.

(These are Prismacolor pencil on black matboard.)





(Hollyhock - March 97, p. 85; Rose - March 94, p. 79; Camellia - June 96, p. 44; White Jasmine - January 90, p. 37; Queen Anne's Lace - July 92, p. 45)


Another painting inspired by a photo from Victoria magazine... this is one I worked on a while back.
(March 1990 issue.)