Tea and Clementine

Hot tea and clementines help take the chill off of a winter day, don't they? And it is always fun to settle in a warm studio and just paint.

I am a little behind in posting. This painting was from several days ago. Thank you for your patience.

I hope you're having a great week! Happy painting!

Still Life with Cherries

Private Collection

In life, these cherries are so plump and pretty (and quite tasty.) Ah, summer...the living is easy!

I hope you're having a great weekend! Stay cool!

Still Life with Temple Bottle and Garlic

Click here to purchase.

It is warm and extremely windy here today. It makes me happy to be painting indoors. I hope you're having a wonderful Sunday!

Happy painting!

Still Life with Handmade Teacup

When painting, I like to listen to Pandora, and usually, I'm a 70's classic rock sort of girl. I do, however, enjoy listening to the classical piano stations, too. Listening to the piano relaxes me and always reminds me of my first piano teacher (and Mom.) One of my favorite songs is Laura Sullivan's "Pachelbel for the Potomac." So beautiful and so talented. 

I hope your week is off to a wonderful beginning! Happy painting!

Slice of Life

One of my favorite aspects of daily painting is having the opportunity to spend time contemplating nature. Even the most simple of objects - like a humble apple - are filled with gorgeous color variations. I am forever in awe of God's creation.

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Vintage Teacup with Red Grapes

I loved the way the light caught the gold edging on this little teacup. It was impossible for me to render, but so fun to try. 

I hope your week is off to a great beginning! Happy painting!

Tenmoku Jar with Artisan Tomato

Painting with snow falling outside = pure bliss. Such beautiful light streaming through my ice-frosted windows today. I could have painted forever. I realize this is not a popular opinion, but I love winter.

I hope you're having a cozy and relaxing Sunday. Stay warm!

Cookie Shot

When it snows, I always make chocolate chip cookies for my husband. They are one of his favorite treats. He works outside in the cold all day and deserves spoiling. He prefers hot chocolate, but I used a little artistic license here.

Have a great day!

Chocolate Cupcake with Strawberry

I painted this yesterday morning, but it was far too windy for photographing it. Sometimes, I think that is for the best. It gives me time to look at it for a bit and make a few tweaks.

I hope your week is off to a great beginning!

Nestled Together

It is a cool, gray day here. The morning light was so soft and pretty. We're expecting another winter storm to move in this evening, so things may change soon. 

I hope you have a wonderful weekend full of snuggling and football or whatever you enjoy most. Stay warm!

Winter Garlic

Last October, I planted a little patch of organic garlic. I'm not much of a gardener, so it is an experiment. Fresh garlic is such a treat, so I'm hoping that it works. With a little luck, it will be ready for harvest in June or July. 

Today, it is 73 degrees and gorgeous outside. Last week, though, it was cold and snowy. Here are a few pics of the ranch for you. We are thankful for the moisture.

I hope you're having a great week! Happy painting!

Study in Blue

Sold

On our recent trip, I found a stash of these vintage canning jars at a shop in Pagosa Springs. I think they will be great to practice painting glass. The light filters through them so prettily, and I love all of the little dents, scratches and imperfections.

I hope you're having a great weekend! Happy painting!

Abiquiu Light: Silver Cup with Mountain Cedar

My husband and I just returned from spending the most wonderful week in New Mexico. We rented a lovely casita on Lake Abiquiu. I painted in the mornings, and we spent the relaxing afternoons exploring. It was the perfect retreat for us. I will be posting more paintings and photos from our trip soon.

I hope you're having a great weekend! Happy painting!

Still Life with Pomegranates

If I had to pick one fruit to paint for the rest of my life, I think it would be pomegranates. So fun!

I hope your week is off to a great beginning!

An Italian Pairing

For a still life painter, fall has to be the best time of year. As I wandered into the produce section, it was all I could do to keep from shouting out loud. Yippee, yippee! Inspiration is easily found among the bountiful array of fruits and veggies. My eye was drawn to the purple of these plums, and I had so much fun painting them.

Recently, I found a great video clip by Brenda Semanick. She discusses drawing ellipses, and a short demo on painting soft grays. If you're interested, you can view it here.

I hope you're having a great week! Happy painting!

Pomegranates

Detail of the pomegranate:

My Sunday afternoon was spent painting pomegranates and watching  listening to the Dallas Cowboys play. And win! I'm a happy girl.

I hope you're having a wonderful weekend!

Day Eleven

Private Collection

The background on this painting is more of a cool brown than black. I hope it looks correct on your monitor, but if not, I wanted to mention the difference. Daily Paintworks has an alternate image feature now, and I think it will be great for adding detail shots.

We have a very special wedding to attend this weekend, so this may be my last post for a few days. I hope you have a great weekend, and I will see you next week.

Happy painting!

Day Eight

Well, the first week of the 30-in-30 challenge flew by. This is going to be a busy week for me, but I will try to post as much as possible. With a little luck, hopefully, I will end up with 7 more paintings. Thank you for your very sweet comments and for your patience with all of these extra posts. I appreciate it.

I hope your week is off to a wonderful beginning! Happy Monday!

Day Seven

We've been enjoying a cool, rainy weekend. It feels like time to make green chile stew and watch a little football. I love this time of year!

Happy Sunday!

Day Six: Apricot Tea

Painting on a quiet, rainy Saturday morning. Perfect.