A new fairy painting

Hi Guys

This week I have been working on this new painting which I decided to make for some neighbours of ours, this lovely couple that live just around the corner have just had a little girl of their own. We don't know them too well but when we had our son Riley they heard about our new addition and brought round lots and lots of frozen home made meals for us which in the end came in very handy as we were so sleep deprived. It was such a lovely thought that I was very touched by as we really didn't know them. So when I heard about their new addition I immidiately wanted to paint them something special for the baby's room.

So here she is I hope they like her :0)

Illustration Friday - Atmosphere

Hi guys,

This is my piece for Illustration Friday this week. I painted it on card using acrylic paints, and charcoal, I'm really enjoying incorporating the use of charcoal in my work at the moment, it's nice to use it again.

I really enjoyed working on this as I just let my mind take over and loosened up a bit which I felt I really needed to do.

Illustration Friday Cocoon, Sunday Sketch and Mixed Media Monday 'Mothers'

UPDATE: Well it seems that this piece also fits this weeks Mixed Media Monday challenge hurrah! I have to say this is currently one of my favourite pieces and I really enjoyed making it!

Hi everyone, well this weekend I combined the two challenges as I had already done the sketch for this painting. Mothers day is next weekend over here and I wanted to do something to celebrate this occasion. This year I have already seen a family member and a friend welcome a new baby to their home. I have another friend who is due later in the year as well as another family member expecting his first. It's all go go go! All these new babies reminded me of those early days when you are struggling for any scrap of sleep you can get, and can sometimes feel overwhelmed. But there are also those precious moments in the wee hours when you hold your little one all wrapped up in a cosy cocoon of blankets and feel very content. New borns often remind me of little grubs when they are tightly wrapped in the cocoon with just their little head poking out heheheh. I sometimes miss those moments and almost feel like doing it again....almost heheh I like my sleep too much now! ;0) So happy mothers day to all those mothers out there!!

Mixed Media Monday 'Look what I found' and Illustration Friday 'Detective'

Hi everyone well we just got back from a lovely long weekend down the coast camping, the boys loved it the weather was wonderful and it was so nice to get away. When we got back yesterday I saw the prompts for this week on Mixed media Monday and Illustration Friday and thought this piece fit both!

This is a picture of my 3 year old Riley who had a ball on the beach, looking through rock pools building ships out of sand with his grandparents and digging holes. This piece was inspired from a classic photo that my mum took of him as he was busy 'looking for clues' in the water. That's what he called searching for shells and things, sooo funny and sooo cute I love this picture.

I also included a scan of the paper before I painted over it. I bought a stack of patterned paper so cut out and stuck heaps of it on then painted my version of Riley on top. I like the patterned paper as it seems to give my paintings more depth and makes them interesting when you realise that there is a background. We are still recovering from our trip today and I'm working my way through that mountain of washing that seems to appear after you have been camping. I also made more more pendants today and started my own facebook fan page, not sure how to put a link on my side bar here just yet but I'm working on it. So watch this space! :0)

Illustration Friday - Dip (My new Koi fish painting)

Hi everyone, well I finished my painting just in time for Illustration Friday. When I saw the word I thought this painting fit right in. My beautiful Koi fish dips and dives in and out of the water.

This is a mixed media piece on canvas, I sketched the fish out then stuck it onto the canvas. Then I glued tissue paper down for the back ground and painted over everything. The flowers were some pretty glittery stickers that I found in a shop and I think they balance the koi fish well. I'm very happy with how this turned out and will be listing it in my etsy shop. I also think it'll make a good pendant too, so watch this space!

Final painting of Native American Lady

As promised here she is all finished, I think I'm quite happy with her. I decided to paint some flowers in the back ground and I added alot more detail on her necklace etc. I think I might put her in my shop if I can bear to part with her.

I shall be varnishing her with a spray satin varnish tomorrow!

Illustration Friday - Subterranean also GPP Street Team 'Grabbing a tissue'

Well I didn't think I'd make this Illustration Friday as I just couldn't make up my mind what I wanted to do but the thing that was always coming to mind when I thought about this word was 'under the surface of the sea'. I love painting mermaids but this one is a bit different as I decided to try painting a picture over two different canvas'. I really enjoyed it and felt that it helped me to simplify things, I didn't need much of a back ground as I just wanted to create the feeling of movement like she was gliding under the water. I used lots more texture than normal with this and I'm getting quite addicted, I used tissue paper and texture paste with acrylic paints and had lots of fun slapping it all on!

I think I might pop this one in my shop!

I also just discovered another challenge site, Michelle Ward's GPP Street Team. This month they're 'grabbing a tissue'. If you would like to find out more about this site click here

'Autumn' the fairy

Hi everyone, here is my new fairy which I'm going to add to my shop. I had so much fun with the mixed media on my last fairy that I had another go, using more tissue paper and patterned paper as well as inktense pencils and paint. I have also bought a varnish that is a spray on instead of a paint on as I was finding that it would smudge some of my mixed media pieces, these photos were taken before the varnish as I wasn't sure how it would turn out but it looks good and is just drying now!!

This week was very lucky and honoured to receive a few blog awards from some lovely people. Thank you so much, it's been a crazy weekend this weekend with lots of family gatherings as well as the inlaws coming to stay so I'm afraid I haven't been able to respond to them properly, I shall get on to that this week!!

The Tooth Fairy..........

I LOVE being a mum. Ok sometimes I might feel like pulling my hair out but it's times like this that I really really enjoy it and I feel very lucky! Rhys who's 6 nearly 7 is my oldest and finally, after lots of waiting (by him) he announced excitedly the other day that he has a wobbly tooth!! He is so pleased with himself and often wobbles it proudly when he thinks we're not looking. So that got me thinking that the tooth fairy is going to need to pay a visit soon!! Hopefully it won't take too long to fall out as he's very impatient heheheh. So what is the going rate for a tooth these days? Does anyone know?

For this piece I used some scrap booking papers and glued them to the canvas, then I painted over it in acrylic paint and used my iridesant paints to bring some sparkle to her dress and shoes. I also used my inktense pencils. I haven't painted over scrap booking paper on a canvas before but I really enjoyed!!! I think I might do some more characters like this, and I'm thinking of putting this little lady in my etsy shop!!! Happy Friday everyone!

Mixed Media Monday - Enchanted

Well it's been quite a while since I participated in Mixed Media Monday. Since my interest in making pendants has grown I haven't kept up up with these weekly challenges as well as I used to. This week though I was already working on this piece which I had originally started for Illustration Fridays 'Propogate', but didn't finish on time and really didn't feel that it was working for that theme. So when I saw the theme for this weeks Mixed Media Monday I was very happy as I felt it fit it perfectly. I'm so glad it did as it made me persevere with a piece that I wasn't very happy with but now I quite like :0)

I've used acrylic paints, some texture paste, butterfly stickers that I actually had decorating my light box and come copper metalic acrylic paint. I also tried using some new crackle medium but it didn't seem to work perhaps my colours weren't different enough for it to show up or it could have been the way that I put it on, I'm going to keep trying with the crackle medium though as I'd like to learn how to use it properly.

Illustration Friday - Adrift

Just a quick one this week as i didn't want to run out of time.

Little Benjamin got more than he bargained for when he hopped on top of this giant balloon. Hope he's not adrift for too much longer as it's looking cold out there!!!

I painted this in acrylic paint, used some crackle medium on the sky as well as pen and my inkense pencils to make him pop out more.

New canvas and Mixed Media Monday piece - Pretty as a picture!

This weeks theme on Mixed Media Monday is "Something New".

I tried a few new things with this piece. I used some Japanese paper which I put in the back ground as well as copper paint, I painted around the sides of the canvas with that which gives it a warm feel. I need to take a photo of that which I'll add later. I also tried to control my use of colour and keep it to just a few colours for this one, and not purple. (I have noticed lately that I tend to use purple alot, it is my favourite colour).

I also used silver and brown to make her skin tone, which happened purely by accident as I thought it was white, but I really like the glow it's given her skin!

I also used some Japanese paper for the dress and went over with with some diamond glaze which seems to really lift the colours.

I think I'll be putting this canvas in my new etsy shop which I opened only yesterday so that is something new too!!!!

'Letting Go'

I did this painting the other day, just chilling out listening to a bit of Norah Jones 'Come Away With Me', I used to listen to this album when I was pregnant with my first little man. The thought behind this painting is about letting go of the past and embracing the future. Not being scared of what's ahead and accepting that you deserve to be happy.

I painted this on MDF which I'm quite enjoying as a change to canvas. I used my texture paste and scraped some patterns into that using a tooth pic (as you can see in some close up shots). I used my inktense pencils and acrylic paints as well as my irridescant paints.

Just another experiment that I enjoyed doing, hopefully I can turn this into a nice pendant. I also got another delivery yesterday of more glass that's a bit bigger than usual I'm planning on using these for broaches. So watch this space.......:0)

Mixed Media Monday-Playing Cards

Well when I thought of this weeks theme the Queen of Hearts immediatly came to mind. So I decided to do an ATC which is the size of a playing card. I used my acrylic paints, inktense pencils, iridescant paints and some ink for this one. I found it a bit of a challenge to paint that small but I quite like the result it's something different from what I'm used to doing and I'd like to do more ATC's.

Illustration Friday - Fast

Well I think this piece has been created in record time. I woke up this morning and saw this weeks prompt and just sat at my work table and played with all sorts of materials. I used oil painting paper, some of the hand pressed paper with the petals in it, acrylic paints, coloured pencil, glitter and some stars. This is what appeared!!

The thought behind this piece is that this poor girl has slept through her alarm yet again and has to get moving fast or she will be late for work!!! Hope she makes it!

Illustration Friday - Germs

When Dr Hehir peered inside the patient's mouth it became obvious that this was no normal sore throat, her whole mouth was full of germs having a wonderful time!!!

New journal page - 'inspired by summer'

This is a new page in my journal. Today I experimented with textured paper and newspaper for my background. I had lots of fun gluing and painting. It had me working in a different way from what I normally would and I felt also freed me up alot. Anyway here it is.....

Illustration Friday - Strong

Hi everyone this week's prompt on Illustration Friday is 'Strong'. I had completed this picture which I'm making into a card yesterday, it's for my hubby as it's Fathers Day here tomorrow. I thought this would fit nicely with the theme. My hubby's bond is very strong with our two young boys and hope that this continues to grow through the years. Happy Fathers day Rick!!!!

xxxxx

Illustration Friday - Caution

Tilly the tight rope walker had been performing her act for a number of years but each night she would take that first step on to the wire with great caution. Then she would perform the most amazing tricks, somersaulting through the air and landing back on the wire, it was amazing!

Flower lady - Canvas

(I also thought I would submit this to Mixed Media Monday as the theme is 'together'. I think my flower lady is longing for a partner but for the moment her best friend would have to be the butterfly).

Today I had great fun experimenting on this new canvas. I bought some Decor Crackle Medium, which is, if you haven't used it before this medium that you apply on top of your back ground colour then you paint over the top of that when it's dry and when your second layer of paint dries it creates a crackle effect. I think that my first colour in the back ground wasn't enough of a contrast though and I'm still working out how best to use this new material but this is my first try. I also bought some butterfly stickers from the craft store and thought I'd see how they looked on my painting. I have been inspired by many of my blog friends that have used these effects in their work so thought I would give it a go today. Does anyone know if a gloss varnish will work ok on top of the crackly effect?

I think I might try and take a photo of this canvas too as it didn't scan very well as it is slightly bigger than A4. It seems much brighter in real life and not as crisp in the scan.