On The Cover Of Amish News (and other things)

Hello again. Just dropping in to show you a few things I’ve created and to let you know I will be on The September cover of Amish Country News! This is a free tourist guide to amish country Pennsylvania and it is delivered to many shops and businesses in and around the Lancaster County area. I am so delighted, and so…if you are in the area …feel free to pick one up! They also told me they will use me again for next September’s guide as well, so I was VERY happy!

I also wanted to show you some other art pieces/photos I have done and have on my Etsy Shop. Some I have not put up yet, because my computer needs upgrading and is not working the way it should..but I will. Thank you for stopping by and hopefully I will have more for you when I figure out this computer piece! Enjoy!

This will be on the cover of Amish News

Early Morning Run Photo

Amish Kap On Quilts With Quote

“Daydreaming”, Another Amish Pastel Painting Completed

Hello again!  Wow, this took me awhile to complete, but here she is!  The outcome surprises even me whenever a new painting is completed. I must say, I am VERY happy with this one.

This painting took me awhile only because I could not proceed to the last stages until I could decide if I wanted her to be holding flowers or some other object. I felt like it needed more in the painting than just the amish girl to add interest. I don’t know why, as I wanted the girl to actually be my center of interest from the very beginning.

When I looked at the painting as a whole, I realized there was actually more going on than I  first realized.  For example, hinting that the parents are in the front seat by their  silhouettes. The amish girl,  her cap strings blowing in the wind, letting the viewer know that the buggy is in motion. Her calm face and daydreaming eyes, making us wonder what she is thinking as she rides along in the buggy, watching the world around her. Where is she going? What is she seeing?

This was painted to recreate what I would see on our many  family trips to Pennsylvania as we drove along the country…and well-traveled roads. We would always get stuck behind a few buggies, and you could not help but notice the amish children peering out the back. They always seemed so calm and serene, just glancing around from that small rectangular opening, taking everything in. Occasionally, one or two would smile and wave at us,  and I would be ecstatic if they did, but all the while I would wonder what they were thinking. What was their life like?  This is the image,  or the “feeling” I wanted to share with you.  That’s when I realized this painting was enough on its own the way it was.

I hope you like it.  On to the next one…again!  Cheryl

Amish Girl Daydreaming

Cow Painting Completed, Amish Girl Continued

Well , I just wanted to share with you the completed cow pastel painting on velour. I think it came out better than I expected and I really love this velour paper for painting animals, and I can’t wait to try more. The next one I might like to try is a piglet or Llama, we’ll see. I hope you like how it turned out.

I also am farther along on my amish girl daydreaming in the back of a buggy. I am really loving this one. I couldn’t decide between a pale yellow dress, or light rose color, and finally decided on the rose. I really like the way this looks so far. What I really like is the way the silhouettes of the amish parents look in the front of the buggy. It’s just enough to let you know they are present, but don’t overshadow the daydreaming, amish girl.

All in all, I’m very happy and can’t wait to complete this painting. Then I can finish Pink and on to Paul Newman! So exciting! Enjoy!

Cow completed

Amish Girl Continued (sorry a little blurry)

New Paintings Coming Along Continued

Here are two of the paintings I mentioned in the previous post, that are currently being worked on. The cow portrait is almost completed.  It just needs some hairs on his ears, numbers on his ear tag and lots of finishing touches.  I do like the way he came out though. I figured out though that when you get near the end of painting on velour, there may not be a lot of tooth left in the paper to add the finishing touches you want to add…it just won’t take any more pastel.  This was hard as I wanted to add many random, little white hairs coming from his chin and ears and top of his head, which I did where I could.   I have heard you can spray fixative on an overworked painting and continue painting, but I did not want to chance this as I have  never tried this.  In any event, I will post the finished painting soon.

Now, the painting I am really happy about is the daydreaming amish girl in the back of the buggy. I wasn’t too sure how this would turn out, and I was going to originally do this one as a watercolor, but I really like the soft realistic effects with the pastels. I am so  happy I tried this….I really like how it’s going so far. Here you see the 3 stages…the face…the glass in the front of the buggy and the side of the buggy completed…and I can’t wait to do more! So excited.  So please check back, I do have Pink’s face completed too, but it was just too much to put in one post.  Soon! Enjoy!

Almost done!

The beginnings of the face

The background is the front of the buggy, looking through the front glass. See the figures of the backs of the mom and dad in the front?

The buggy side and front window piece…you can see it all coming together, can’t you?:)

 

Hannah and Jacob, The Buggy Ride

Well, I finally finished it! But this was so worth it.  I must admit, I was happy the way it turned out. But then of course, I had to get picky and start touching and retouching, trying to capture all the right shading and highlights… until I just  had to tell myself to stop.  It doesn’t have to look perfect…that’s what makes it art.  I wanted to capture two angelic faces, full of curiosity of the world…from a different perspective. Not from the usual perspective of looking at the back of a buggy and seeing the children peer out at the world, but be in the buggy with them and feel that curiosity with them as they peer “out”. Almost like we are sitting beside them on this journey.  That’s what I wanted to achieve with this painting, and I think I did that…and so it is done.

I also think the colors seem to make it look like it should be inside a storybook of some kind. I could picture this in a book. But anyway, I thought I would finally share this one and now I can create some cards and prints and share them on Etsy, and ship some to Pebbles and Lace in Strasburg, PA!  I hope you like the painting…until the next one…hmmmm.

Hannah And Jacob, The Buggy Ride

Amish Children…Inside Looking Out Continued

Here are two photos of the painting  I am working on of two Amish Children looking out the back of a buggy. This is taking some time as I can’t seem to find the time I need to work on it, first of all.  Second, I want this to be one of my best, so I want to get everything right.  Only thing is, that takes a lot of research.  Looking up lighting and shadow…trying to figure out what the clothes will be and what color…what will the scene be outside the back window…everything seems to be a small step…but at least it’s a step ahead.

I think I may want to try some landscapes after this and just throw color down and see what happens. Sunset skies and trees, blobs of color here and there…not really being perfect, but suggestions of trees and flowers and wistful clouds. Ahhhhh….

Yes, after this, I will certainly try a landscape.  But for now, I am still working at this and I can’t wait to even see what happens with it…so we will all be surprised!  I will try to have something up again in a few days!  Enjoy!

The faces are somewhat all set…maybe some more color will be added for punch near the end

More color added to the inside of the buggy and hat and girl’s cap drawn out roughly

Amish Children… Inside Looking Out

Just stopping by and writing quickly about a new pastel project that I am so excited about. I really don’t have a name for this one yet, but I’m sure I will think of something.

When we visit and are driving the back roads of Amish country in Lancaster, Pa., I notice so many times the little children inside the Amish buggies looking out the back window. I often wonder what they think about, the sights they see all around them.  To see all the busy people rushing this way and that, and they quietly sit and take it all in.

I have wanted so many times to capture that moment, to paint a picture of them looking out the back window or something.  I even drew out a few sketches, but nothing really stirred me.  I think it was because I was trying to capture the view from my point of view…myself looking at the back of the buggy. It wasn’t until I came across this photo I had taken at a  family wedding we attended and my little  (grand?) niece and nephew were staring out a big picture window looking at the wedding party.  I had captured it and always loved the way they were all dressed up and their cute profiles were perfect. I  thought it would make for a great pastel picture one day of two children waiting for their father to come in from working outside (and I could still do that one too), but I then decided it would be perfect for my buggy picture I had always wanted to create.  The view would be from “inside” the back of the buggy with them instead…a whole different perspective!

So, I have sketched it all out and taped it down and ready to go!  I am painting this on grey pastel paper, which I never do, but I thought it would give the colors an extra glow and help with shadows from inside the buggy. I’m a little fearful to start…but here goes. I will keep you posted.

Started the sketch on tracing paper, you can see my nephews profile to the left in the photo.

Lightly sketched out on grey Canson paper. I may need to put a hat on the little boy, which is why you see the line above his ear…for the brim.