Monday, March 31, 2014
Saturday, March 29, 2014
Friday, March 28, 2014
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Monday, March 24, 2014
Sunday, March 23, 2014
Pink
More pink flesh tones. This seems to work as well as the previous post. Maybe I better change my rule.
Pillow
I broke my own rule about pink flesh tones. To me, pink hardly ever looks right, but when paired with certain shades of blue, it looks OK. This is not a pillow but a paper collage on a picture of a pillow in the background. I liked this so much that I framed it in a simple, distressed, white frame which really makes the picture pop. No point in photographing it in the frame because of the glare of the glass. This is one of my favourites.
Saturday, March 22, 2014
A Painting By Kelly Anne Powers - A Surprise For Me
Below is a painting I spotted on a Facebook art group of which I am a member. Something about it really appealed to me so I shared it on my personal Facebook page. It received quite a few "likes". My sister saw it on my Facebook and realized how much I liked it. She contacted the artist, purchased the painting and surprised me with it today when we met for my birthday celebratory lunch.
Here is a link to the artist's post about this painting on her blog. And here is a link to Kelly Anne Powers' Home Page.
Here is a link to the artist's post about this painting on her blog. And here is a link to Kelly Anne Powers' Home Page.
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Lipstick Smeared
Too bad her lipstick smeared. I was using a new kind of ink. Guess I will have to be more careful next time.
Sunday, March 16, 2014
Beginning of a Large Painting
Today I started a painting on a large canvas which is quite a change from the small scale on which I usually work. I think I have to stop now and see how I feel about it tomorrow with fresh eyes. If I can get the colour and textures of the headdress and background right, I think I am going to like this.
Friday, March 14, 2014
One Hundred Faces - #17
From this week's Home Hardware flyer. There weren't that many possibilities from this week's flyer, however, I altered the photo of the stainless steel colander, which makes for a great hat, don't ya think?
Thursday, March 13, 2014
One of A Kind Cards
Here are a couple of cards I made for two lovely girls. The star card is for 9 year old C---- as a thank you for the bracelet and matching ring she created for me on her special little loom. Since she offered me the choice of very bright colours for my bracelet and ring, I think she will like the bright colours in the card.
The flower card is for her younger 3 year old sister, A--, who I wouldn't want to feel left out. I cut out a quick template for the petals and then traced around it with a heavy permanent marker. I liked the result so much that I used the template again for a St Patrick's Day card for a friend.
After the second use of the template, there was a lot of bleeding from the marker. I don't know why but I like that as well. The only reason I am calling it a St Patrick's Day card is because of the green colours. Other than that, it isn't what you would normally associate with St Patrick's Day.
The flower card is for her younger 3 year old sister, A--, who I wouldn't want to feel left out. I cut out a quick template for the petals and then traced around it with a heavy permanent marker. I liked the result so much that I used the template again for a St Patrick's Day card for a friend.
After the second use of the template, there was a lot of bleeding from the marker. I don't know why but I like that as well. The only reason I am calling it a St Patrick's Day card is because of the green colours. Other than that, it isn't what you would normally associate with St Patrick's Day.
Wednesday, March 12, 2014
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Sunday, March 9, 2014
One Hundred Faces - #12 (Snake Charmer)
We finally made the drive to our nearest Michael's arts and crafts store which is about a half hours' drive from the rural area where we live. "We" is my husband and me. I got to purchase my 5-pack of 16"x20" canvas boards plus a pad of paper that is suitable for oil and acrylic paints. We also threw in a few liquid soaps that were on sale really cheap. The total bill was $61.00. Yikes. Thank God I have lots of paints and brushes and all the other materials needed for my upcoming projects. Painting can be very expensive. I would have preferred to buy the 14"x18" canvas but that is an odd size for framing so I went for the larger size.
The best part of the day was a visit with my sister and brother-in-law who live a further 10 minutes away from the Michael's store. All in all, a very good day. :)
The best part of the day was a visit with my sister and brother-in-law who live a further 10 minutes away from the Michael's store. All in all, a very good day. :)
Saturday, March 8, 2014
Friday, March 7, 2014
One Hundred Faces - #10
Today I published the 500th post on my blog. I started back in 2007 with the intention of this being a sewing blog, but it morphed into something else. I was going to call it "Cotton Couture." Then I decided better to give it a broader name like "Cotton Picker" because I thought just in case I branch out into other things, the "Couture" part of the name wouldn't fit. I knew textiles would still be the focus in one way or another.
The sewing used to part of my life in my late teens and twenties. I sewed my whole wardrobe back in those days. I couldn't quite get the sewing vibe back in later years. I made a few things but that passion was lost. If I am going to do anything along those lines now, it will be refashioning thrift store finds. I have seen that type of clothing in boutiques. There are certainly a lot of possibilities for creating one of a kind, beautiful outfits.
Interesting to take a peek back at earlier posts to see what I was doing. I can't say I like a lot of the stuff and some of it is downright embarrassing. I will not delete anything because it documents the creative journey and it's there if I want to look back. I don't often look back though.
I still intend to keep my hand in textiles. I love to pick up needle and thread and hand stitch. Especially with music in the background. That is really the only way I "hear" music. I have to be doing something solitary and focused like stitching so the music can saturate my soul.
Speaking of music, I bought myself a piano last summer and have been taking lessons. I am surprised at how much I remember from studying piano as a child.
Lately, it's paper collage. I am learning so much about colour, shape, texture and placement and the goal is to paint larger canvases based on my paper "sketches". I would simply not have seen the possibilities before playing with paper.
Below is another little paper collage I did last night. Maybe she will the subject of one of my paintings. :)
The sewing used to part of my life in my late teens and twenties. I sewed my whole wardrobe back in those days. I couldn't quite get the sewing vibe back in later years. I made a few things but that passion was lost. If I am going to do anything along those lines now, it will be refashioning thrift store finds. I have seen that type of clothing in boutiques. There are certainly a lot of possibilities for creating one of a kind, beautiful outfits.
Interesting to take a peek back at earlier posts to see what I was doing. I can't say I like a lot of the stuff and some of it is downright embarrassing. I will not delete anything because it documents the creative journey and it's there if I want to look back. I don't often look back though.
I still intend to keep my hand in textiles. I love to pick up needle and thread and hand stitch. Especially with music in the background. That is really the only way I "hear" music. I have to be doing something solitary and focused like stitching so the music can saturate my soul.
Speaking of music, I bought myself a piano last summer and have been taking lessons. I am surprised at how much I remember from studying piano as a child.
Lately, it's paper collage. I am learning so much about colour, shape, texture and placement and the goal is to paint larger canvases based on my paper "sketches". I would simply not have seen the possibilities before playing with paper.
Below is another little paper collage I did last night. Maybe she will the subject of one of my paintings. :)
Thursday, March 6, 2014
One Hundred Faces - #9 (Looks Like A Vampire)
I am trying to loosen things up. I even used some paints in this one and ended up with the complexion of a vampire. Not me, that is, the painting. Actually, being holed up this long cold winter, out of the sun rays, I am looking pretty pale myself. :)
Experimenting with collage is a wonderful experience because it really gives me tons of ideas for larger paintings. I don't run the risk of staring at a blank canvas and wondering what I am going to do. I have more ideas than time now.
So here's the vampire-y looking lady I did very quickly, without concentrating too much on it.
Experimenting with collage is a wonderful experience because it really gives me tons of ideas for larger paintings. I don't run the risk of staring at a blank canvas and wondering what I am going to do. I have more ideas than time now.
So here's the vampire-y looking lady I did very quickly, without concentrating too much on it.
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
Avoid Pink
Not a good idea to paint a pink face because other contrasting, surrounding colours only serve to emphasize the pink. I chose some burgundy tones which help somewhat, but I have to remember to avoid pink.
Monday, March 3, 2014
One Hundred Faces - #7 (Oranges and Tiger Tails)
The elements from this paper collage are from a bargain store flyer. I drew the face on an orange and the hair is comprised of tiger tails. All the other bits are from the same flyer as well. The background is the inside of an envelope. Such fun.
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Saturday, March 1, 2014
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