Another Amish Painting In The Works

I’ve been busy getting started on all the paintings I posted in my last post, and now Christmas has taken over my thoughts and time. I haven’t been able to sit at my desk for more than an hour at a time, if that! But I am determined to finish, and that’s why I put some color down on the paper just to get me excited ….to get started!

As I was trying to get those going, another idea for a painting jumped out at me, and so I sketched it. It’s another start. This one I really am excited about, and it’s an amish girl and her brother sitting in a barn (not sure yet) and the boy will be holding a puppy on his lap. It looks like the girl is standing by and watching over the pair, just to make sure they are okay. Not even sure what the title is of yet, but I am sure that will come during painting. I just had to share it, even though you can barely see it. It’s a very rough, light sketch. I hope you can see what I am seeing in this sketch. I cannot wait! Maybe after Christmas I should have more to show you all. Thanks for checking in. Happy Holidays!

New Amish Painting and Finished Amish Garden 2

Well, I finally finished Amish Garden 2! Here it is!

Finished Amish Garden 2

I really enjoyed painting that garden. I added flowers myself …as you can never have enough flowers!

Also, I have many paintings sketched out in my art room/studio.This one I can’t wait to finish painting. It’s a little amish girl looking down at some little animal she’s holding. Is it a duckling? Is it a piglet or kitten? I don’t know myself yet, but I couldn’t wait to start her face, and that’s what helps me decide what color her dress will be, and everything else falls in to place as well. It’s like once the face is there, I can picture the rest of the picture, if that makes sense. So, I will show you more pictures of this as I go along, but I feel this is going to be a nice painting. Please come back to check it out soon! Until next time…

New Amish Painting

Amish Calendar Now on sale At Etsy.com

Hello!  I have finally received my limited supply of calendars and am currently selling them on my Etsy shop. This is somewhat of a test to see is there is any interest out there for a calendar such as this one. If there is an interest I will be ready to create another for next year. Please know there is a limited supply, but if there is need to have more made, I will try my best to get one to you.  It is best to order by December 15th, as I am going on vacation and will not be filling any orders after this date until January 3rd.

***PLEASE NOTE: These are selling pretty well!  Now new replacements are in…which means more can be sold on my Etsy shop!  Thank you again for your support and I hope you are enjoying your calendars!

Here is the link to my amish calendar: calendar

I am still working on art projects in between everything else and will hopefully have something to show you asap!

Thank you for your support and enjoy!

New Amish Painting Continued…

Well, I figured I’d show you how far I’ve gotten on this new Amish pastel painting, and even though it’s come along way…there’s still a lot to go.  I figured it would be kind of cool for you all to see the painting come alive through the different stages. I am very happy with it so far and it’s just how I imagined it in my head.  I still need to add board separations to the barn behind her, some pine needle boughs hanging above her head to the left with snow added to the sill of the barn window and snow flakes on her hair, coat, etc.  I want this to look like a perfect winter painting, as I will use this for my December painting in the calendar I want to create next. Hope you like how it looks so far…back to the drawing board!

The face painted in, and it seems to have a life now. The barn window is positioned and the white, barn wall is started.

The face and hair further detailed. When I get the eyes the way I want them, it’s on it’s way!

She’s holding her firewood and a part of her green dress shows just above her winter coat. That green will also be used in the pine branches I will draw to the upper left, snow covered of course. I still have a lot of detail work to finish…so there’s more to go!

A New Amish Painting In the Works

You can just barely see it…

but…

…here is a very faint sketch of the very first beginnings of a new pastel painting in the works.  I am trying to put a calendar together to hopefully put up for sale on Etsy and at Pebbles and Lace, the shop in Strasburg, PA. soon. I have never created or put together anything like this before,  and so, I am very excited to say the least.

As I was trying to ponder what to paint next, I was realizing I haven’t done any winter paintings at all, at least in the Amish category.  And that’s when I got this image of a cute little girl, standing against a white barn…wearing a red, headscarf and dark, grey winter coat with sprinkling of snow on her shoulders and hair. She may be holding firewood and I think I may have a window cut out behind her for more interest and some pine boughs hanging slightly over head for a slight holiday feeling. Well, when you look at this sketch, you have to really imagine all this, but I am seeing this and I can’t wait.  Now you can watch it come to life too!  I will share the stages of this painting here as much as I can, and when I am almost done,  I will have to name her.

I have other ideas as well and am starting sketches of those as well, but I am really excited about this one.  And then, I must do another boy painting!  It’s so easy to come up with cute ideas for girls…it seems!  Anyway, hope you can make this out and picture it!  Until next time….

The Sketch…so faint you can barely see it!

Amish Watercolor Continued

Hello!  Yes, I am still trying to complete this watercolor and I can’t wait to get it done. It’s at the point now where I kind of know what I want to do, but I don’t want to overdo or underdo…if that makes sense.  So I paint what I can and look up reference material over and over until something hits me.  Do I paint a full background or do I just suggest and mute the background.  Do I just leave it simple and focus on the subject…like this girl’s pretty, little face?  So this is why it takes so much time, besides getting things printed for Etsy, printing things for the shop in Strasburg, Pa (which is going great by the way!),managing the house…etc…etc.. But, I am almost done…I have to be!  I need to start another! Hope you like what you see so far and if you want to leave a note…do you think this should have a background, light background, no background? Let me know what you think.  Thanks and I will post the finished piece soon.

Anna in the Orchard A Watercolor Continued

A New Amish Watercolor

Hello all.  I have been in a slump lately, and not getting much done in the art department.  It comes and goes like this with me sometimes.  There are times I am so creative, I can complete more than 5 items on my drawing board. And then there are times when I fill my day with chores and fixing the house, etc., it seems I am purposely avoiding the drawing board, because the chores are easy and  I know the artwork takes more concentration, and therefore…more difficult. I also have to be in a very creative frame of mind with music playing and …I guess…a sort of flow going.

Anyway, I have watched some amish videos which somehow got the flow going again, thank goodness!  (There are some good ones on amishclothesline.com) When I do this, it’s almost as if my body  knows it has been starving for this creativity and peacefulness…with all the noise and anger going on in the world right now. Then, all of a sudden,  peaceful images start revealing themselves to me again. The love comes back and it’s so strong, I have to get it down on paper somehow.

This is one I am starting because I love going to Lancaster, Pa when the peach harvest is going on. I had wanted to paint a little amish girl harvesting peaches for the longest time.  I could picture the pale color of the bushel basket with the bright colors of the peaches, with the green of the grasses and her  colorful skirt… then add butterflies and a cat or dog…that’s what I am trying to capture with this painting.  I had originally wanted  it to be a pastel painting, but I may do one of those with peaches too, soon. This will be a watercolor.  Like I’ve said before, I never really know how it will turn out in the end, but it usually is good.  Let’s hope for the best! 😉

Amish girl with peaches

Amish Themed Book Marks on Etsy

I just recently tried to pair up my Amish art with inspirational quotes and create something that people could not only admire, but also use everyday.

I created a set of 4 bookmarks made from 4 of my most popular Amish pastel paintings. The paintings, paired along with the most lovely quotes, make a lovely keepsake for yourself, for part of amish themed gift basket, or given as a small gift of appreciation or thanks to someone. The lamination helps to keep the bookmark from fading and other damage so that their beauty will last. The background is a textured and aged wood grain effect to add to the artwork and quote. These pretty bookmarks measure about 2.75 x 8.5. I hope you like them!

(While you’re here, please check out the new beginnings of an Amish watercolor that is in the works in the post after this one. It will be an Amish girl in the peach orchard.)

I hope to create more products in the future with my artwork, I just wish I had so much more time!  I’ll see what I can do!  :)))

Until next time…

Amish Bookmarks by Cheryl McNulty

Amish Homestead Photo, Lancaster PA

Here is a photograph I took the last time we visited Lancaster,PA. It is of a very popular sight in Pennsylvania, as you can see it in many books and postcards sold in the area. So, believe me , I was so happy we stumbled on it this trip so I could take my own photo and see it with my own eyes. It is so very interesting because it seems it’s just house after house, but they are all connected. I would love to meet the family that lives in this house.  I bet there is probably more than 20 people living there!

Anyway, I thought it would be a fun share.  And of course…it is sold on my Etsy shop if you are interested in a print.

Amish Homestead

In The Works, Amish Woman Holding A Pie

I decided I would at least put up something I am working on presently,and this is it. This is literally on the drawing board as we speak. It is a pastel painting I was creating for that Amish Chicken Pie company  in Lancaster (that I made several paintings for last year for their publication in October). They didn’t use me this year unfortunately, but they said they would probably use my paintings again in the future. Needless to say I was a little bummed out and didn’t even want to finish these paintings. I had such high hopes for them, but that won’t stop me from finishing the pieces

. Maybe I could get another publication that could use them, who knows.

But anyway, I had started this one and she will be completed and given a name, but for now she’s an “Amish Woman With A Pie”.  Hope you check back to see the finished piece!

Amish Woman Holding A Pie