painting inspiration…

Project 365 Photos: #68

I finally got around to painting on the big hot pink canvas I prepared last year! The sunshine and blossoms we’re starting to enjoy inspired me and got my creative juices flowing again. I’m having fun experimenting with some new oil paints that can be cleaned up with water–who knew?

Photo 356…

India Ink

 

Project 365:

Do you remember blowing India ink with a straw to make pictures of trees in grade school? This is my special “go-to” tree at Crescent Beach, and at this time of the year, denuded of all foliage, it brings to mind my childhood art projects. I’ve been thinking about doing some India ink art work on top of water coloured paper for some time now. Perhaps the universe is sending me a cosmic reminder me to pull out my art supplies!

french bistro chair…

I just finished another painting and I thought I’d share it with you. It’s a departure from what I normally paint, but it was so much fun to do! I love french bistro chairs. I actually love lots of different chairs, but they’re a little pricey, so I guess I’ll just have to paint more of them to satisfy my obsession.

French Bistro Chair

lulie wallace love…

Lulie Wallace is my latest art crush! I discovered her paintings on the pages of House of Fifty‘s summer issue. There’s just something about the colors, the whimsical stylized florals, and the backgrounds that really speak to me. I’d love to see her paintings in person. Maybe I’ll get to Charleston, South Carolina one of these happy days.

Lulie Wallace

Lulie Wallace

Lulie Wallace

Lulie Wallace

summer sale…

I’m having a huge summer sale and everything is 50% off!!!

art from the heart…

Hi everyone!! I’ve missed blogging and it’s definitely time to get back into the swing of things. Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and you’re happily ensconced in this new year. I know it’s  a stupid question that we feel compelled to ask everyone we run into throughout January, but can you believe it’s 2012?! I feel like it was just yesteryear when we were all freaked out about Y2K!!!

I have been up to something wonderful lately–at least I think it is. I’m back into painting and I’ve been going crazy with colours. Perhaps it’s the grey weather, but I’m looking for bright colours wherever I can find them. So here are a couple of my latest creations.

This painting is based on a photograph that I took of my son, Sam, at White Rock beach a few years ago. It’s 11″x14″ acrylic on canvas.

Closeup

This is a painting based on a photograph of my house (the purple Victorian) that I shot a few years ago. I was inspired to paint it by the frigid temperatures and snow we got this week!! I LOVE snow. It’s 24″x24″ acrylic on canvas.

Closeup

I’m still thinking of painting the windows on the right side in the orange colour, rather than the red and blue. Is that a good idea, or not? Let me know what you think.

i'm back…

Well…that was a long break from blogging! It was completely unintended, but the summer around here just has a way of sneaking up and stealing me! So let me sum it up for you: rain, bored kids, lazy dogs, messy house, no groceries left, entertaining kids, melting popsicles, birthday parties, BBQs, endless sleepovers, considering installing permanent beds for neighbourhood kids, sunburns, teenagers sitting around patio fire ’til wee hours, bikes and skate boards piled up on lawns, sunscreen stains on car seats, sunscreen smears on windows, dry grass, endless eating, dirty floors, wet laundry…sigh.

I did manage to escape the mayhem for a week of bliss at a painting workshop with my art crush, Mike Svob. I have admired and drooled over his paintings for years.

What a treat to watch and learn from someone who’s paintings fetch thousands of dollars!!!

I’ve taken other painting classes, and quite often artists are stingy with sharing information, but Mike was awesome. He gave us really solid advice and practical tools to use in our own practices, and I can’t wait to create more pictures!

Ta dah!

it's a colourful life…

Before I started my home decor business, I used to spend hours in my kitchen, painting canvases. I would lose myself in the sheer joy of creating art. As can happen in life, I stopped making time for my “hobby” and started focusing on my business. That was three years ago, and since then, I haven’t touched my box of paints. All that changed today! I dusted of my brushes and headed to my friend’s art studio for a day of creativity.

Patty Ripley is a talented artist with years of experience and a collection of works that takes my breath away. I’m always delighted when she completes a new painting! Her natural ability to mix colours is unmatched in my opinion, and I jumped at the chance when she offered to tutor me in colour mixing.

It’s so good to play again! Patty and I are meeting regularly for creativity days of painting and photography!

paint & canvas…

Painting is dear to my heart and I love seeing work by talented artists. One of my favorite Westcoast artists is Krista Eaton. She creates vibrant lush florals that just about jump off the wall. These photos can’t do justice to the actual paintings, which are peppered throughout Ocean Park village cafes and retail stores. One of these days I’m going to splurge on one of Krista’s beautiful creations!

courtesy of http://www.kristaeaton.com

courtesy of http://www.kristaeaton.com

courtesy of http://www.kristaeaton.com

I’m also a big fan of Bobbie Burgers, a Vancouver artist who creates stunning florals on huge canvases. The photo below is one of her gallery installations. Her artwork is on display at art galleries throughout Canada and the U.S.A. She’s a regular at Bau-Xi Gallery in Vancouver.

courtesy of http://www.bobbieburgers.com

courtesy of http://www.bobbyburgers.com

courtesy of http://www.bobbyburgers.com

fieldtrip bliss…

Today Kim (Remember her? My back-stabbing-Haiti-relief-pink-toy-car-auction-out-bidding assistant?) and I jumped into the Volvo and raced into Vancouver for an injection of fun! We started off by looking for signs of the Olympics coming to town. The award for most inspired display goes to the Vancouver Art Gallery, which is wrapped, from head to toe, in the most beautiful floral mural (handpainted by artist, Michael Lin on metal).

Michael Lin mural (handpainted on metal) photograph by Trevor Mills and Rachel Topham

Michael Lin's VAG installation Photo by Rachel Topham

The highlight of the morning was our visit to The Cross–a magical mecca of pretty decor in Yaletown. Wow! You might wonder why I am promoting a competitor, but I really believe in “the more the merrier”. If one business does well, we all do. So here are a few of the things that caught my eye.

Next, we hit one of my favorite little flower shops near Granville Island, called Fran’s Flowers on 1st Ave. Yes…I indulged and the result is sitting happily in a big vase on the kitchen table.

Then Sandra Bullock called and invited us to meet her in Paris, so we got on a jet and whisked off for the rest of the day…tres magnifique! Er…make that…we popped into the Salade de Fruits cafe on 6th Ave. It’s the next best thing to being at a wonderful little French cafe. Oooh la la. If you go, and I highly recommend you do, make sure to take cash–they don’t accept anything else.

The huge serving of mussels were swimming in a buttery broth with wine, shallots and green onions…yum. The frites with fresh aioli were decadent

What a great day!