And still more owls....and other stuff

My newest venture.....
I was reading a post about Direct Sales companies and ran across the name Origami Owl. Of course with my current fascination with owls I just had to take a peak. And immediately I fell in LOVE. These are custom made necklaces. And why did I fall in love you ask.....if you know me...you know that I love things that mean something to someone. Take for instance paintings....a painting can mean so much to someone and mean something totally different to someone else. The right painting for you will speak to you. The same with these lockets. You can add and customize these lockets to fit YOU!!
Here are just a few examples:

Something like this is absolutely stunning for that survivor in your life or if you want to remember a loved one who battled cancer. And of course they have different ribbon colors for different meanings. AND just added an autism charm!

I love this one too. Just simple and so cute. For mine I added several charms...an artist palette, a pearl (to represent heritage), a cross, Danie's birth stone and a butterfly in remembrance of my grandmother. I also added the Faith circle in the back. I. LOVE. IT! It is so me. And the greatest thing is I can change it up anytime I want. The locket is a magnet and easy to open and change things around. 

And the greatest thing....I just got signed up on the waiting list to join this wonderful company. It started in 2010 with the dreams of a 14 year old girl. And now...they are accepting Independent Demonstrators. If you have ever thought about joining a Direct Sales company...now is the time. With so little demonstrators around it is a great time to join and start building your customer base and recruits. Please take a look around the website and tell me what you think...Origami Owl. I don't have a website yet but if your interested in a necklace PLEASE let me know and when I am all signed up...I will let you know. And if you think this might be something you would like to do....let me know that too and I can get you signed up on the waiting list. We could build our businesses together :)

And on to other things going on around here....you know I have to show you even more owl paintings...

My latest - Best Friends! It sold within 30 minutes of posting on facebook! wowow! So off I go making another one that is swirling around in my head. I am really excited that these owls are taking off like they are. Again....a painting will speak to you so I am glad that they have meaning for others. It makes being an artist that much more special. Don't forget if you would like one that is already gone...just ask...I will do custom orders :)

Thirty One - is going well. We are just about done with the May Special - an All in One Organizer for $5 if you purchase $31 in products. We have until May 30th to get all these orders in so if you are in need of anything please let me know. I was a little slow this month with everything going on and didn't meet my personal goals but that is okay. There is always next month! And don't forget that we have until the 30th to sign you up as a demonstrator for $99 and when you sell $1000 in 30 days you will receive a $99 rebate back! GREAT deal!!!!

and off we go to our final week of school. I can't believe that I am done with school with my kids. Shawn has his last final tomorrow and then nothing but graduation practice. Which reminds me I need to get his clothes ironed and ready to go. I do believe I will cry like a big ole baby! But I am happy for my baby that he is getting ready to embark into his own life. I think I have done a pretty good job with him and he has become a wonderful young man.

I promise plenty of pictures of graduation to come :) Stay tuned.

Meet...the Owl Family

Mother Owls - 16x20 - $40.00 (still available

I would like to introduce you to my new Owl Family. These have been so much fun to make and have really been a great hit. I will custom make these just for YOU. So please....don't hesitate to give me a buzz if your interested in one. So far all have sold with the exception of two of them. I will note below the picture if it has not sold. 

This for me, has been a fun venture in painting. Not only is it messy but I can express myself however I would like and it totally go with the painting. And it takes several of the things I love and rolls them into one. 1. Painting 

2. Scrapbooking 

3. Journaling/Doodling

I mean really....how much fun is that!!!!

LOVE owls - 16x20 - SOLD

Dream Owls - 16x20 - SOLD

Sweetness Owls - 16x20 - SOLD

I DO Owls - 16x20 - SOLD

Family of Owls - 16x20 - SOLD

Sorry the above one is sideways. I couldn't get it to turn for me :( but this is one of my favorites because it was made for a dad and his 3 children. I just love the grouping of the family!

Bright Love Owls - 16x20 - $40 (still available)

Painting truly makes me happy. From the minute my paint brush hits the canvas, I know that I can let my creativity out and enjoy the final product. It makes me smile, so big, when I know that something I painted touches someone else. That it has meaning for them. Totally makes my day!

Stay tuned for more Owls. I'm not done yet. The sky is the limit with these babies!

Owls and more Owls

Well for those that know me....you know I jump from one project to the next.
What is new on my list at the moment - Owl Paintings.
It started off with one little painting and has now bloomed into about 9 completed paintings. I LOVE THEM! I think they have become my new favorite painting.

And a huge THANK YOU to everyone that has bought one so far. Because of your support I was able to send off my booth registration fees for Paulding Meadows this year. I wasn't sure if I would be able to go but yep.....the application has been mailed so be looking for me come September with my paintings (and hopefully lots of new owls!).

It's hard to believe we are working on mid May already. Kayla's birthday was this past Monday. She turned 22! Kinda hard to believe I have a child that is 22. Little Danie went to the dr that day also and has yet another bad ear infection. That poor baby just can't get a head. Oh and she only has 8 teeth trying to come in at the same time. OUCH. But she is a trooper and among all this pain and such she has learned a new word - Ball. She is just too cute.

Thought I would give you an update to my Project 52 this year. I just finished book 17 today. I am pretty much right on target. Was hoping to be a head but with all my other projects...reading has taken a back seat. If your interested in what I am reading just take a peak at the Library tab above. I have a long list of books in my kindle waiting on me so I am sure this list will grow and grow.

And on the health front.....I am finally OFF the potassium (for now). IT just would not stay up. The lowest it should be is 3.5 and even on 4 a day it was 3.4. They wanted to move me to 6 a day but I just can't do that so we changed my blood pressure meds again. I hate changing them but I just couldn't do the added medication. So far so good. The last few days has been around 107/73. Not to bad for me. We will see. I started working out again. P90X and some treadmill. Lets hope I can drop these last pesky 15lbs I want to get rid of.

Everyone have a great day. Pictures of the owls to come soon so stay tuned in case you haven't seen them already on Facebook.

Love in February Canvas with USArtQuest

I have been painting now for about 3 years. There is not one part of the painting process that I do not love. Abstract art draws me in. And you can take it anywhere....breathe it....throw all your emotions into that paintbrush and paint.

Today I would love to share with you my "Love in February" acrylic painting. And I will show you how you can recreate this painting too.

The first step is finding those perfect colors for your background. And paint away! I am not shy with my paint so I really layer it on and add a few colors into the mix for some added punch. And the perfect brushes - I used the 3/4 brush for this part of the project

While the paint is still wet - I took the Texture Tool and drug it thru the paint in several different areas. This will pull some of the natural background color. Set aside and let dry.

For an added touch I used the 3/4 brush and some Perfect Pigments in Mars Black and painted around the edges of the canvas. It is okay if you paint a little over the front. This gives it an antique/aged look.

Now take some 101 Heavy Artist's Cement and a Palette Knife and mix together the Cement along with some Perfect Pigments in Wheat. Take the palette knife and the cement mix and add faux bricks on the canvas. Set aside to dry.

Now taking some black paint and the 1/2" Snap brush...add the vines and leaves. Before the leaves get dry, I mixed together some PPA and Prills and painted on several of the leaves for some added dimension.

New Art work

I finally got my newest painting hanging up in the computer room. Whatcha think?

This is considered Mixed Media. I used book pages, paint, wood lettering, Mod Podge and Black markers. I really love how it turned out and it matches the wall perfectly. Each canvas is 18x20. I will sell these for $80.00 and can put any word you would like on the painting.

Here is a closer up of the letters. Sorry it is blurry but its raining here and my natural light is pretty much gone :( so not a very good day for picture taking.

Now I just need to finish up selling some items on ebay, buy a few more Thirty-One baskets for storage and get a few picture frames that are all the same for the top of the computer desk. And then the final addition to the room will be my sewing cabinet that my dad is making me! Now at some point or another I will have to reorganize my fabrics but I think that will be a spring time job.

And of course you know we can't complete the day with out a wonderful picture of Danie aka Butterbean and her favorite Papa. Both sporting their new overalls! Two peas in a pod I say!

Fun, Fun Projects

I am so excited to finally be able to share this with you. I made this altered frame using an acrylic frame from ClearScraps. First I painted the acrylic on the backside and then distressed it with sandpaper. Once that was complete then I painted the edges with brown paint. the fun then begins.....start layering your frame with papers and embellishments. I even used some Prima packaging that I had been saving for a while as a frame border behind the pictures. I used some K&C diecuts and a few other embellishments that I had laying around. Tied the acrylic together with ribbon and wala....a cute frame to show of our granddaughter.

Just a few pictures of each one of the sides....

Isn't she a cutie :) I entered this into the ClearScraps craft contest. I was very happy to end up in second :)

Over the weekend I decided to have a somewhat crafty day. I painted up this picture below....and added some red fabric on some of the flowers as an added dimension. It's fun and different that is for sure.

And to finish off the weekend I drew these dolphins for a coworker. I decided to add some paint to the drawing. That was a first. I've used ink and pencil, charcoal and pencil, colored pencil and pencil but never paint. I kinda like the effect!

Well, here's hoping you have a wonderful week planned....

Magistical Memories Thursday

So have I mentioned how much I love playing around with Mixed Media Art. You can seriously play all day long and add all kinds of elements to these canvas projects. I have stucco paint, acrylics, patterned paper, rub ons, ink, stamps, journaling pen, stickers and chipboard all rolled into one on this puppy.

Can you see the chipboard on this one. I have my birdie sitting on top of it. I sprayed the chipboard with Smooch Spritz and then adhered it to the canvas using Helmar Adhesives. Perfect little touch I do believe.

The finished project. I think this would be perfect for any art room don'tcha think!

So what do you do....

(Blog post written while waiting Friday afternoon...lol)

So what do you do when you are waiting and waiting...and excited and waiting some more????

Well I can tell you what I do...I create. It helps pass the time.

We've been sitting here at the house today just waiting for 5:30 to get here so that Kayla can call the hospital to see if they have a room for her. Lord knows I didn't sleep last night because all I could think about was a few quilts I was trying to design up (insert....confusion since I suck at math and can't figure out sizes for nothing) and about waking up and knowing that today my life will change once again....a grandmother.

I piddled with this and that.....did a few chores around the house. Loaded up and went out to eat for lunch and then headed to the quilt store where I finally found the border for a quilt I was stuck on and then bought the fabric for the center squares on the quilt I am making baby Danie. I hope to get some time this next week to at least finish the purple and gold one and maybe start on the Quilt-A-long one. Although another thing I kept thinking about last night was the quilted purse my mom wants for Christmas. I might need to work on that. And then again it is only February Becky...you have plenty of time...right?

So as the day progressed...and after watching a sneak peak video for the She Art Workshop...I had the urge to paint. So I pulled out 1 of the last 3 canvases that I have and started working on this. Not excactly what I had in mind but I think it turned out pretty neat. Different.

I just know I am going to love learning more in this class...I can't wait...it starts on the 28th and even more fun is a new online friend that I have made, Julie of Sew Jewely, is going to be taking it too. Its more fun I think when you have someone to bounce ideas off of, etc.

And then Thursday night I sat watching American Idol and Grey's Anatomy and made Beaded Bookmarks. I made 7 of them and did put them up in my etsy store. I haven't had anything in there in a while. Here is the link in case you want to check out the rest of them.... BOOKMARKS.

I also managed to get a scrapbook page completed but I can't share that one with you until next week. And of course I had to get me a list going for things to complete next week while I am off. Things like 5 scrapbook pages and an Art Journal entry that I am sooo behind on...sorry Rachel :(

I ordered some button making kits yesterday so that I can try my hand at some button bracelets. I would really like to try handpainting on some of these and see how they turn out. Another project to add to the list

And I wonder why I can't turn my brain off at night.

Okay folks.....well it is Friday afternoon...time to wind it all down and head on out. I promise that my next blog post will be full of cuddly baby pictures.

Project 52 - Book 3

Moving right along.....

Last night I finished my third book for the year. This is one that Kayla has been wanting me to read...

A House of Night Novel - Marked - by PC Cast and Kristin Cast.

It was a very quick read and flowed very well. It is based on high school kids so it was a little younger than I would of liked. But then again I LOVED Twilight but this one didn't have the same feel to it as Twilight. Marked is based around a young 16 year old, Zoey, who has just been marked as a fledgling (Vampire to be) and has to now attend the House of Night School. This particular book seems to be based on about a 4-6 day span on how she dealt with her first few days at the school and on what she will become later on.

I do think I will go ahead and read the next one in the series just because it is a quick, smooth read and see how the series continues. Like I said it is a little younger than I like but I will give it a shot. The next book is titled Betrayed.

Oh and I have a new painting for you. The lighting is poor on this one but I wanted to share it anyway. I based this one off of the She Art Workshop that I just signed up for. It is a lot of mixed media with Modge Podge, scrapbook paper, rubons, pens and stickers. It was a lot of fun to put together and I can't wait to do another one. I thought it would be great to do a series of 6 that are small....like 6x6 or so and spell out CREATE...what do you think?


I'm SO thankful it is Friday. This has been one LONG week and I am glad it is behind us now. Still waiting on Danie to make her appearance. And as I am sitting here....one of these kids has made their way into the living room snoring up a storm....lol. Awwhhhhh to be young.

Happy Tuesday

Dogwood - $50

Well first I wanted to share this painting with you that I just completed last night. I think it turned out pretty well :) Each canvas is 11x14. Now to find a home for it. My carft room is becoming over taken again with paintings.

Yesterday was a pretty productive day. I uploaded and rearranged all my photos that were in a "dump" file on my computer. That took a good solid 2 hours but I was glad to get it done. I would like to start making a book for the Thackston family but I am not sure when I can get started on it. I really do have to many projects going on now as it is and can't figure out how to add one more. Maybe that one will just have to go on the back burner for now. I also sat down and organized all my fabrics into colors. That felt good to do. I didn't realize how much fabric I did have. Not enough to amount to anything but lots of scraps. I found a quilt-a-long I want to do but I will need to buy a jelly roll first. I am a month behind on it already but it looks very cute and would make a great quilt for Danie.

Speaking of Danie. She is going to be a little hard headed I do believe. Kayla has been showing signs of getting ready for labor but after yesterdays doctor visit...no dilation. So Danie is still cooking. I wish she would give us some sign as to when she is coming. The anticipation is going to kill me I think.

I'm working on getting my blog post ready for Thursday. I am a little behind on editing pictures and posting. Stay tuned for more goodness :)

Creative Weekend

Sometimes you just need them.  I started the weekend working on this quilt. I had already cut all the parts and just sewed them together on Saturday. This was a pain in the tush quilt. I had to rip seams so many times and start over. not fun!  I'm hoping that once I get the backing and binding on it that I will like it. Right now...I'm not so sure. But we will see. The quilting part really does make a difference in the appearance.

Sunday, after lots of running aroung, turned into a painting day. I have had this idea for this painting floating in my head for a few days now. It is really challenging getting it from my head to the actual canvas but once I start it really starts to come together. There is still lots to do on this one...and it works my patience when I have to wait for paint to dry but I am hoping it will turn out like the finished project in my head. I used an entire jar of stucco paste...ugh.

                                      

I also finished a page for my art journal but I can't seem to get it loaded straight. Maybe I can work on that and have you a blog post tomorrow too :)