Quick and Easy Bird Tutorial

Back in 2000 I was crazy about One-stroke painting, and during my OSCI certification with Donna Dewberry, she gave us some good advice. She told us no matter how good we learned to paint flowers - that we should always know how to paint the basics - Fruit and Birds ... and practice your lettering!

Fast forward to 2012 ... I haven't painted strictly One-stroke in a very long time...but Donna Dewberry's prediction has come to fruition over and over again over the past 12 years. Customers always request fruit ... some type of bird ... and personalization!

The pictorial tutorial below is a Quick and Easy method for painting a cardinal. Luckily for me my customer did not want a realistic bird...they wanted a whimsical floral design with a cardinal...and they wanted the mailbox cover to be personalized.

I Think I'm Done ... 24x48 Canvas

I rarely paint for myself - and one of the things I said I would do this year was to paint just for me. This canvas will be hanging in my bedroom - I wanted it to be "soothing" ... something that would make me smile everyday. :)

I think I'm finished ... I added flowers - but wanted to keep it simple ... I may or may not add more leaves ... but at this point - except for painting the edge of the canvas - I think I'm done.

Canvas in Progress

I finally got a chance to get back to my canvas after being sidelined with a sciatic nerve in my back. I'm still getting used to working with such a large canvas - but I love the look ... and can't wait for it to be finished so I can hang it in my bedroom.

Large Canvas In Progress

When I was married, my ex never wanted me to hang anything on the walls - ANYTHING. Now for most people that is a WTF ... but for an artist - it's agony.LOL Let's just say I went with the "pick your battles" scenario for a long time ... and now ... I find myself hating the site of white walls.

Since I rent, I can't paint them ... so FINALLY I will cover them - with my own art. I have painted boxes and chairs ... ATCs and mini canvas ... and finally I feel as if I'm ready to tackle large canvases again.

This one, which is in progress now, is going to hang in my bedroom.It will be interesting to see how she comes out ... I'm just painting with the flow on this one.

Good Things Ahead

Hello Everyone!

I am loving the time off I've taken for Christmas ... just relaxing with my son ... and doing absolutely NOTHING. For the past 3.5 months I'd been burning the candle at both ends, painting for my local Small Business Expo's ... and how tiring it was!

As much as I gained from the experiences, it left me so drained!!! The last Expo was Dec 15th ... and I was happy to finally REST and concentrate on the holidays.

Now that Christmas is in it's last hours .. I've already started thinking about what to paint next - large canvases! The past couple of weeks I've painted some 6x6 and 8x8 canvas, but I'm itching to paint a larger piece...so I'm breaking out my large canvases and I'm excited to see what comes of it.

Below are some pieces that I've done over the past couple of weeks ... all in this blog are listed on my Etsy site (just click the button here on the blog).

Violet by K.Thomas 8x8 Canvas Board



I Love Me by K.Thomas 6x6 Canvas

Have A Wonderful Christmas Season!

I want to wish all my followers and fellow bloggers a wonderful Christmas! I can't believe how quickly the year has flown by....Christmas is 24 days away! From my house to yours, I wish you the best of seasons- Merry Christmas...and I will be back in full swing for 2012!!!

There For By The Grace of God this Thanksgiving ....

Hello There!

I've been a bad blogger ... I've been taking care of many things in my life ... I had a good first show at the SBA Expo last month ... and I'm preparing for a Christmas Expo on December 15th .. lots of good things ... then real life began creeping in ...

It's like a series of minor incidents with my son had been building up to this point. I had a scare with him with a football injury...he had cat-scans checking for head damage. His migraines had also flared up ... and my worry quotient had already been high ... many things I had been doing were falling by the wayside because it seemed my son began having all these health issues.

... but one single event brought everything home for me last Saturday.

My thirteen year old was with my ex, and because of inattention on the part of my ex- they were involved in an accident totaling my ex's car .... and only by the grace of God, my ex and my son walked away without a scratch.

"Mom, I've been in an accident"

I still get chills remembering the sound of my son;s voice. He is calm like me, going cold under pressure ... but I just needed to see his face ... hug him close .. it was the longest 15 minute drive of my life.

When people say a certain event puts everything else into perspective - believe it. This did, the painting, the shows, the design teams, the swaps ... all fall by the wayside.

The car was indeed totaled, and the police told me had the truck - yes TRUCK - been going any faster, they would both be dead. Here it was the week before Thanksgiving, and God saw fit to leave my only child on this earth ... he and his father were alive.

THAT is what I am thankful for, what I am grateful for ... why I feel blessed. I have my son.