She’s Finished!

I finally finished my Amish painting for fall, and now I think I can complete my calendar!  I may just name this one “Pumpkin Time”,  I’m not sure still.  I hope you like her.  I wanted to get so much into this painting and yet not take away from the central figure, the cute, little amish girl with the impish grin. I had actually wanted to make her hair as orange as the pumpkin, but that didn’t happen and maybe I’m glad that it didn’t now. I can really feel that fall breeze just by looking at the stray hairs blowing around her face.  This painting actually makes me want to go for a pumpkin ride about now!

Can you believe this all started from a photo of my daughter? Sometimes I can’t believe it myself!  Also, I’m sorry these paintings take so long sometimes, but even though I “say”…and even “wish” that I could paint a painting a day, it just never happens.  It has to feel right and it just gets done a little at a time as I have other things that come up. It can be frustrating sometimes. You don’t know how I wish that I had that studio somewhere far away and had no chores or anything else to do but paint…but I don’t see that happening anytime soon!

But here she is and I will see if this calendar I’m putting together can be finished now.  I will let you know when its ready, hopefully within a week .  I will also try and have that collage painting done in a week, too.  I’ll be pushing for it!

Pumpkin Time!

“Pumpkin Time” greeting card

Two Amish Projects -Next Phase

Well, here are the two art projects I am working on (from the previous post) which are now in the second phase.  I say second phase, because I know I am almost done, but there is just a few more steps I have to complete before they are both completed (the final phase).

You can see in the amish picture with Kelsey holding the pumpkin, it is  slowly getting closer to completion. I’ve got the mums down, placed in the background, the cornstalks are a little more defined, the sky is there now, all blue, with the feeling of autumn in the air.  The pumpkin patch was a little bit of a challenge, but I think it finally worked (I was ready to give up!). I just kept adding colors, lights and darks, trying to look at pumpkin patches all over the internet and just kept going. Now I just have to add the background behind the corn…I am thinking part of a house to the right with all fall foliage to the left to bring out all the colors.

Then I have to think what will be in the foreground next to Kelsey’s back. Will it be some tall, pale grasses? I’m not sure yet.  Then it’s down to all the final tiny details…the extra pieces of hair blowing around her face, shadows and the like.  I just can’t wait to finish this painting!

The other folk art project has a little more added here, too.  I am still trying to think of where I am going to place everything I want to place in this painting. I know the amish quilts will be in the foreground next to the cow and there will also be a white fence along the bottom.  The sign is painted in here, and I want it to read “No Sunday Sales”. The sunset is more intense now. The covered bridge is more detailed.  I want a white barn with a silo on the top of the hill, and yet still, I have to find where the buggy will be in all this! Oh yes, and some cows painted in the background somewhere. Oh my gosh…that sounds like a lot!

But anyway, I thought I would share this and hopefully next week, they will both be completed. Enjoy!

Kelsey’s Amish Painting, next phase

Folk Art Painting-Next Phase

Two More Amish Projects, Moving Right Along!

So I have two works of amish art that I am currently working on.  One is something I have never tried before, so I really can’t wait to see how this will turn out.  It is a sort of folk art piece done with pastels. It resembles a collage of sorts, and the items I am painting are things I see the most of when visiting Pennsylvania. It almost looks like, or I hope it will look like a poster you would see advertising Pennsylvania.  I am actually  a little farther ahead of the photo you see here, but I will post the finished piece when I am done.

The reason the other painting is being painted  is because when I recently visited Pebbles and Lace in Strasburg (the shop that is selling my amish pieces), the owner, Becky was told (by my daughter, Kelsey, who visited)  that I use family members as models a lot of the time. They both realized I never used Kelsey as a model. SOOOOOoooooo….I hadn’t started an autumn painting, and found a cute picture of Kelsey when she was in pre-k with the cutest grin. I figured I would try to use her.  The way she’s sitting I could envision the whole painting.  She will be holding a pumpkin out in a field of pumpkins…muted in the background.  There will be brightly colored, fall trees and maybe a muted white barn in the background…maybe some leaves in the foreground.  And there you have it.  I had wanted her hair to be more strawberry blonde, and I added her freckles in too. I actually have seen amish with freckles and reddish hair! We will see how it goes. She’s happy now. (wink,wink) I will put up some other pictures very soon!

The folk art collage painting

Kelsey’s picture and the first stages of the painting

She’s coming along….:)

I Made It On Amish Country News!

I have been waiting to put this post up, but I am so excited as today a pastel picture I painted is on the cover of “Amish Country News”, a monthly visitors guide publication for Lancaster, Pa . (They have 450,000 copies printed annually, and seven issues are distributed to over 300 locations, by subscription and in person, in Lancaster and surrounding counties.)
I approached the publication in June and asked if they took artwork, mentioning I do amish paintings. The publisher said they have artwork once a year for their cover, but it is for an advertisement for a local Chicken Pie business and if I wanted to submit something he would consider it and gave a deadline for the 4th of September. As soon as I sent it, the publisher brought it over to Zook’s Chicken Pies to show the owner, and they thought it was great! So today was the day it came out and it is out there until November 6th.
The funny part of all this is that I found a picture of my small nephew(Evan) eating a yummy piece of pizza at a party. I just loved his expression so much, I used his face for this painting. I added a straw hat, a chicken pie, fall colors for the background, etc….and this is how it came out. An Amish Evan! Maybe he will sell more chicken pies!
They also put another pic of mine in the issue at the bottom of the Zook’s PPie article and a half-page bio/profile for me and contact info. I’m still shaking! The publication can be seen here:
http://www.amishnews.com

My Nephew Evan, who became Amish overnight in a painting

An Amish Evan

Another picture they used in the same publication

God Never Gives Us, A Picture From My Past

Hello, everyone! I am in the process of doing more pastel pictures,but in the meantime, I dug up this colored pencil picture I had done several years ago. It has a Fall look to it, and I just love the quote, so I thought I would just post it. If anything, the quote is much needed today with all the horrible news lately, don’t you think! Enjoy!

God Never Gives Us

Happy Fall Y’all!

Just some fall paintings I wanted to share again!  Enjoy!

Two more Scarecrows…and a Santa

Here are two more scarecrows to continue the Friendly Scarecrow series.  I really like the one where he is jumping in the leaves!

I had sent my online art portfolio to Porterfield’s Fine Art and the president of the company sent me back some encouraging words within 10 minutes of sending it to them.  He suggested I try acrylics for more color saturation as art licensing companies look for saturated color. He said he could not use my art this point in time. but it was “Awfully good”.  I’ll take it!  Usually you get nothing back but a rejection letter.  This was nice.

He did like my scarecrow and my santa holding a present, which explains the reason for all the scarecrows.  The more the better!  Hope you like them.

 

 

3 Finished Pictures

Well, here i am again, and this time I have 3 pictures I have finished and hopefully ready for the portfolio.

The Piggy Pudding picture makes me feel like I still have to add something, whether it is pockets on the apron or corner pieces of pines and berries.  I may still have to add to this one.  But the other 2 I am sure are finished.  I hope you like them…it took me quite awhile…watercolor!!!!   Enjoy!

 

Friendly Scarecrow, Numbers 2 and 3

I have already posted Friendly Scarecrow No. 1 awhile back.  I am trying to do a series of 4 pictures because that is what the art licensing companies look for.  Now, I just have one more to go.  But for now, here is 2 and 3.  And yes, it has been kind of time-consuming, but worth it.  Hope you like these guys!

 

 

Scarecrow Pastel Drawing

Another pastel picture for Autumn.  I could picture this one as a flag, of course!  Enjoy!

Scarecrow Pastel Painting