Landscape 2: An Irish Cottage

An Irish Cottage
11x14" watercolor on paper

An Irish Cottage zoom

A white stone cottage set against dark rolling hills.  Sheep mowing down the lawn and resting in the tall slanted grass.  I think there might be rain in the forecast.  The family who lives here isn't too worried about rain, though.  In fact, they've come to really love storms.  The boy and the girl sit and watch the clouds roll over the dark hills through their bedroom windows until the shadow covers the little cottage.  The baby cries.  And the dad falls asleep in his chair by the fire.  Or so I imagine it to be.

Did you have a good weekend?  I hope so.  I spent most of mine dreaming, as usual.  This time of a new cottage on an Irish farm.  I live in a place very different from this scenic farm, in a little uneventful but quaint-in-its-own-way town.  There are sheep in barns right outside town who sometimes jump the old fences and stand on the other side to eat the grass.  Literally the grass is sometimes greener over there, I think.  I bet those sheep dream of places this wide open with so much grass they could never fill up!

Other dreams I had this weekend included one about catching baby birds and stuffing them in pillow cases.  I woke up wondering at the purpose but had a strange sense that the birds would be ok.  I don't dream often, but when I do they are always very peculiar.  And usually about birds.

In other news my blog got a facelift (again)!  In an effort to create a simpler way to navigate and a more cohesive brand I've stripped off the unnecessary and hand-lettered the banner.  Let's hope this look sticks. ;)

*This painting is part two of a new twelve part landscape series.  See part one here.

painting swans

It's gone a little something like this the past few weeks...

7:30 a.m.- stumble out of bed, literally running into things on my way to the bathroom
8:00 a.m.- chug coffee or hot tea with caffeine to wake up, say a little something to Seth (if he's still home) who always seems WAY too happy in the morning. pretend to laugh at his jokes.
8:30 a.m. - wake up a second time out of the trance of reading the Bible or writing in my journal or scribbling a note to not forget to buy new candles next time I'm at the store
9:00 a.m. - do the dishes, take out the trash, sweep the floors, switch the laundry
10:00 a.m. - answer emails, start painting swans and trees and houses and portraits, momentarily freak out at the long list of things to do, say a little prayer of thankfulness for having so many things to do
1:00 p.m.- lunch and maybe an afternoon walk, then back to work
5:00 p.m. - is it seriously dinner time?  I just ate 10 minutes ago. this clock must be wrong.
9:00 p.m. - talk on the phone to Seth, who is now at least 100 miles away.  say a prayer asking God to keep him safe and bring him back home to me soon
1:00 a.m. - is it really one o'clock in the morning?  geez, where does the time go?  Seth is going to shake his head at me when he finds out I'd up late again to paint.
2:00 a.m. - maybe I should stop.  The swans won't mind if I stop, will they?  Oh no.  I'm talking to the swans.  time for bed
2:15 a.m. - shower and fall into bed, completely exhausted and satisfied

Ok, it's not always like that- just lately because of all these deadlines.  Sometimes I get to take long walks and coffee breaks and sit-on-the-couch-and-read breaks.  Sometimes I stop painting at 5:00 and make a nice dinner.  Sometimes I sit on the porch for long hours and stare at the birds and squirrels in my front yard and day dream about planting another tree so we can attract more birds and squirrels.

All that to say that work is work- no matter how much I love to paint (and I do), it's still a lot of work.  It's happy work, to be certain, and I wouldn't trade it for any other job.  But it seems that the more you love something, the harder and longer you work at it to make it perfect, you know?  It's completely exhausting and wonderful in the same moment.

The swan painting (above) is a little "teaser" of my larger body of oil paintings to be announced in just a few weeks.  Most of the watercolor work you've already seen, but the oil paintings will be a surprise!  I'm so looking forward to my October show at the gallery and to sharing these new works with you right here, on my blog.  Until then, happy working to you, my friend!

Pet Portrait Winners!

* Custom Pet Portraits now available in 3 sizes in the shop!*

***

I can't tell you how excited I am to announce my pet portrait winners today!  Over the past 3 weeks my email inbox and Facebook page have been plastered with pictures of your completely adorable fuzzy-headed wide-eyed tail-wagging dogs and cats (and a llama and a chicken, but that's beside the point). 

THANK YOU to everyone who took the time to send me images or tag me on Facebook!  I was thrilled with your response and SO MUCH enjoyed the inflow of images I received.  Thanks also for those of you who sent me stories of your pets.  I read every word of every email and am so grateful that you shared!  Your response has made me that much more excited to start this new series of portraits.

After reviewing almost 70 pictures, I'm so happy to announce Katherine Ross as my first winner!  Her cat seriously stole my heart from the first moment I laid eyes on its fuzzy little face.

My second winner is Kelly Bunn with her giant dog Tater Tot.  There were actually 3 dogs like this one entered, so I had to judge based on the how well I could envision the pictures as paintings.  I was looking for quality images that showed most of the body with a close-up detail picture thrown in for good measure.  Kelly's dog definitely caught my attention with all of that creamy fur and those dark eyes.

Thanks so much for entering everyone!  Kelly and Katherine, I will be in touch and will be starting your custom pet portraits very soon.  Congratulations!

the ugly stage

I hope you all had a very spooky and somewhat creepy Halloween!

It was SO nice to have the weekend off!

I did plenty of painting and baking and am really loving the crunchy leaves on the sidewalks around my neighborhood.   I must admit I secretly covet the rainy Sundays inside our warm house. 

How nice it is to have a quiet and comfy place to sit and drink peppermint tea and do nothing at all!  

But today I must do something and so I thought I'd give you an update on a few things.

Do you recall my orphan boy drawing from a few posts ago? 

He received quite a few layers of paint this weekend...

as did my narwhal and rabbit friend.

Which means these paintings have officially entered the ugly stage.

Believe me when I say that all good paintings must first pass through this 

dark and sloppy tunnel before they ever see the light of day.

Patience is essential.

Don't you dare touch it until that ugliness has fully dried.

And only when it has can the next step of adding warmth and life begin.