NIBBLEFEST NFAC JUN Art for 99 cents

Nibblefest Art Contest just started for this month. Every month on the 20th for 7 days you can find really great art bargains on EBAY. The starting price for bidding is 99 cents. I usually participate and this month the theme is Under The Sea, so here are my two entries. Search EBAY.com for NFAC to find lots more entries!

Mixed Media, Collage with Rice Paper and Watercolor Paint 8.5 x 11 inches,

Two Starfish Under the Sea, 8x10, Acrylic on Canvas Board

NFAC February 2017 - Begin Again.

Where have I been? My last post was August 20, 2016, about a week before I fell and broke my hip. Since then I have not painted or made any new art, but I am healing well, using a cane to walk, and basically trying to get back to "normal" activities.  I started crocheting again a couple of weeks ago, and maybe I will make more art soon. In the meantime, I have been selling on Ebay and have started to get back into the swing of things by joining the latest NFAC NibbleFest Art Contest, so here are my entries for this month. It's a wide open theme, covering all of the topics that were used in 2016.

These are paintings I did during a watercolor art class that I took at the Senior Center for a couple of years. They are for sale on Ebay, starting bid of 99 cents for one week. Search EBAY for NFAC to see lots more great Art Bargains.

Each of these come with a FREE mat so they are ready to frame.

Fruit and Vase, Ebay 99 cents Auction

Enchanted Forest, Watercolor: Ebay Listing

Abstract Fruit and Vines: For Sale on Ebay

29 Faces in Feb 2013: DAY 2

"BIG LIPS" ACEO

For Sale on ETSY: https://www.etsy.com/listing/122426746/aceo-watercolor-and-pen-big-lips

Abstract, Colorful, and sorta kinda wild!  I love painting these little cards, and using watercolor and pen and lots of bright colors.  Day 2 of 29 Faces.  More to follow.  I need challenges and contests to keep me inspired, I guess.  And it's fun.  ACEOs and ATCs are so much fun to paint, and so much less stressful than a larger work. I have painted almost 300 now. Some I traded (ATC) and some I sold (ACEO), but they are all originals, one of a kind, not prints.  I may make prints eventually, but for now, not.

ACEO refers to the size - 2½” x 3½” - also called an ATC or artist’s trading card. Signed by artist. Complete contact info on back - comes in a protective sleeve.

Abstract Painting En Plein Aire

Yesterday the Anza Valley Artists painted En Plein Air at Sylvia's house.  When I try to paint outside, the acrylics always dry so fast that I can't seem to create anything.  So it ends up as an abstract, impressionistic something or other.  Here's what happened during the 2 hour session this time.  I wound up using lots of vibrant colors from my palette so I wouldn't waste the paint.  Then I didn't like it so I added flowers, roses I think, and bows with Jo Sonja's Iridescent paints using lots and lots of Glaze Medium.  I prefer to use JS medium

I kind of like the painting, but I'm not sure, so I am going to take it to the Temecula Valley Artists group (TVAL) on Tuesday evening for a critique.  It's free and anyone is invited, members or not.  So come on down if you want to get some FREE advice on a particular painting you have done.  There is more information at their web site, http://www.temeculavalleyartleague.org.  This is an active group and if you are a member you can display art in their Gallery in Temecula.  I volunteered to update their website and also became Secretary at the last regular meeting.  I like being involved and networking.  There are classes and events going on there all the time.  Here's the Bows and Blooms, or Ribbons and Roses, I haven't decided on the name yet, or even if it's done.

40 ATC/ACEO cards so far and counting

Well, it's official  I am obsessed.  I love to paint these little guys.  2.5 x 3.5 is a perfect size to try out my new techniques, take a stab at a new subject, or just goof around for fun.  Look at the results so far.  If you are an artist and have painted some of these ACEO or Artist Trading Cards, please contact me if you want to trade.  I am making more every day.  I have very little space in my single wide travel trailer, so I  need to keep the work in a manageable size.  This may be going a little too far, but I have purchased little vinyl sleeves for them and am starting to categorize them by subject. 

I also purchased some masonite cards to paint so they can be sold at the art shows I attend.  I thought people might like something more solid than paper, and I don't want to have to frame them.  I work in acrylics usually, but I am going to paint the masonite cards with water soluble oils.

Art, LIke Life, Is a Journey, Not a Destination

After sending out my combo newsletter (belly dance and crafting) to 913 people, I got one response this morning from a  lovely lady who wants to get back into "art" and my reply seemed to cover a lot of ground, so I have reprinted it here for you all.

Dear Penny,

I enjoyed reading your blog today, which I received as a result of taking belly dancing classes a few years prior.  I loved art in high school (I am now 55) and my mother disposed of all my art work from then after I moved out.   My husband bought me a sketch pad several years ago that I've never touched.  It's not that I haven't wanted to use it as I am inspired to the point where I think "I can draw or paint that" but it just stays in my head.  While my kids were growing up I would always doodle.  There was a restaurant we would go to where you could color or draw on the tablecloth and they would want to save the doodles.  I guess my main question is, what paint supplies would you suggest a beginner invest in to start with?  Thank you for your time and insight.

Kathy

Hi, Kathy,

Thanks for your email.  I know what you mean about lacking confidence.  For me, what happens is, the more I paint, the better I get and the more confidence I build up.  Like any skill in life that you want to excel in, you have to practice, practice, practice. 

What medium do you want to start with?  Watercolor?  Acrylics?  Oils?  I have just purchased a set of water soluble oils that I can't wait to try.  Usually I paint with acrylics and I prefer the Jo Sonja brand because I was trained as a tole painter, and that's one of the best paints I have found for all surfaces.  I paint on wood, metal, glass, paper, canvas, furniture, walls, etc.  If it doesn't move, I am likely to decorate it. 

I have not tried watercolor, so I can't say what to use in that category.  But I do use a variety of mediums with my acrylics.  I like Liquitex and Golden Brands for art projects and usually purchase the glaze medium, flow medium, retarder (slow drier) in the brand I am using at the time.  I even like the cheap craft paints for some things.  It all depends on what I am doing.  Lately I have started doing mixed media using dimensional paints, gels and additives that make the paint thicker and give it texture on the canvas. 

Brushes seem to be addictive.  I have to have ALL the specialty brushes, and everyone says to buy the best ones you can afford because you will paint better with a good brush.  My favorite type of brush is an angle in various sizes, because I can float color for shading and highlighting, and I can do lots of tole techniques with it.  But I also have fan brushes, rounds, flats, brights, daggers, scruffies, mops, scripts, and comb brushes.  I can use them all for either acrylics or water soluble oils, but not for watercolor.  You need to keep those brushes separate, or so I have been told. 

I'm sure I have just confused you because you wanted to know what to use as a beginner to get into "art."  Well, my other addiction is books.  I love painting books, and recently found 30 of the Walter Foster series at a thrift shop.  I suggest you find a book on the type of painting you want to start with and purchase the items they list in the front that are necessary for that medium.  Or, watch the TV shows on Create TV.  I watch Bob Ross, Susan Scheewe, Donna Dewberry and Jerry Yarnell.  I love videos.  I learn from each and every one of them. 

In fact, Bob Ross is going to be on in a few minutes, so I am getting my tea, settling down in front of the boob tube, and am ready to soak up more painting info.

Good luck to you!  Most of all, have fun!  Life, like art, is a journey.  It's not a destination.

Penny


Penny Stewart, 951 763 2068
Visit my Blog: Painting for Fun and Profit, Becoming An Artist
http://penny-stewart.blogspot.com
See my Store: http://www.pennybiz.etsy.com

Expanding My Horizons

I usually paint more realistically and try to capture the essence of the photo I am using, or follow the directions in the Walter Foster book to learn a new technique, but this painting is a real departure for me. I call it "Expanding My Horizons" but it could also be called "Palette Scrapings" because that's what it is. I hate to throw away paint. And I had painted sunflowers and had all this lovely paint left that was about to harden up. Acrylics are like that. With water colors you just rewet and paint some more.

So I took a palette knife and some paint and a little canvas and this is what happened.

 Some people say it looks like a forest fire reflecting on a lake. Others think it's a sunset or sunrise.  I have no idea.  I just painted it and I had fun.  And I listed it at etsy.com so maybe it can be a profit thing too.  I like doing these abstracts because it is very freeing and working with the palette knife is very different.  But I like it.  Of course, I like it ALL.