She's a Dreamer

Hi everyone!   I hope you all enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving.   I took some time off from my studio but I was itching to get back to painting.   I found a beautiful photo on Pinterest that inspired me to create this lovely lady.

In case you haven't noticed, I love gypsies, hippies and all free spirits so they're a favorite subject for me.  I even tell my kids that I was a gypsy in a past life, lol.

The majority of the background is a thin book text wrapping paper along with scraps of patterned papers.  Then as usual, I sketched out my focal image.

She came together nicely.  I kinda wonder if I should have left her color like this.  What do you think? Do you like this better than the darker/colorful hair in the finished piece?

No gypsy would be complete without beautiful jewelry.  So next I added tons of gold trim, bangles and necklaces.

With her done, I added warm tones to the background and beautiful flowers.  I was really loving the piece at this point but I really wanted to add a sentiment.

I found the perfect quote:

She's a Dreamer, a doer, a thinker.  She sees possibility Everywhere and in Everything.

So what do you think?!  I love her and I hope you do too!!

Here is a closer look at the background and the flowers.  You can see the book text wrapping paper and beautiful zentanglish stamped flowers/flourishes behind the painted flowers.

Close up look at her ;D

This canvas is 16x12".  I'll be adding it to my Etsy shop, LittleHoneyBeeStudio tomorrow.  Thank you so much for stopping by, I hope you've enjoyed your visit!  Until next time!!

Update!  Original available for purchase HERE

Creative Blog Hop

Happy Monday Everyone!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and are staying warm.  Today I'm participating in a Creative Blog Hop! The hop was started to inspire those that take part, to meet new people and experience different styles of art along the way.  

I was invited to participate in this hop by my good friend Carrie Avery.  Please take the time to visit her blog, show her some love and enjoy her beautiful work.  Carrie is an amazing woman and I'm truly honored to call a friend.  She is the mastermind and owner of Paper Wings Production.   She has a beautiful vintage style with a french flair.  Her passion for creating and share her techniques shines through her work.  So if you're not familiar with Carrie or Paper Wings Production, you need to get familiar!!  Okay let's get to it!

What am I working on right now?

I'm working on new mixed media canvases.  This is what's on my table right now.  I'm thinking she's going to be a bohemian fairy but you never know.  The process may take me to a different place so we'll just have to wait and see what happens.

How does my work differ from others in my genre?

I'm not sure how much my work differs from other artist.  I just try and stay true to myself.  I base everything on my moods and life experiences.  So each piece is a part of my present, past or hopes for the future.  They all have hidden meanings to me and I hope that others will find personal connections to them as well.

Why do I create?

I create because I have to, it's who I am.  I've been creating as long as I can remember and I look at everything through wondrous eyes.  I find inspiration everywhere and wonder about what could be.  I simply love the creative process.

How does my creative process work?

My creative process is flexible.  Sometimes I start with a concept sketch in my art journal and other times I start with a background.  It just depends on how I'm feeling.  I don't focus on a process or technique, I just start and continue moving forward until I feel like it's done.  I enjoy the process of just doing, letting that flow state take over.  To me, that's the beauty of creating.

To keep up with me, visit my Facebook page, I post there on a regular basis and share works in progress along with things that inspire me.  If you're interested in seeing my current product line, visit my Etsy shop: LittleHoneyBeeStudio.

Thank you so much for visiting me today!  Have a beautiful day, hugs to you all!!!

Blessed - Mixed Media Collage

Hello sweet bloggie friends!  I'm back today with a new mixed media collage.  I'm giving my beautiful girls a bit of a rest so I created this cute little scene.

This is a 12x24", 1.5" deep canvas.  I covered the entire piece with newspaper print wrapping paper from Target's dollar section.  Then I added fluid acrylics to create the sky and grass.

I dug into the scraps of papers that I've hoarding saving for the houses.

I added fluid acrylics and Faber-Castell Big Brush markers to create depth.

I doodled windows, doors and trims.  I also stamped here and there.

I kept thinking "it takes a village" when I was working on this piece.  That's why I created a whole neighborhood but then I stamped "Blessed" and it changed directions a bit.  Now each of the houses represents a blessing like: love, family and happiness.

So there you have it, a row of blessed little houses. Thank you so much for spending a piece of your day with me.  Have a blessed day!!

Hugs, N.

Cupcake Cutie - Burlap Canvas

Happy Monday!!  I hope you all have a fun and safe Halloween.  We had a great time.  I always love dressing up.  This year I was a gypsy, check it out:

I found the shirt and skirt at Goodwill.  The skirt was white but I dyed it with spray inks.  Everything else came from my closet, lol.  That's all jewelry that I actually wear just not all at the same time, lol.

My hubby is always such a good sport!

Here's my youngest :D

One of my older sons :D

Last but not least, one of my cute grand babies!

Okay, now back to some art!  I thought the other cupcake canvas needed a friend, lol.

I used molding paste again mixed with iridescent paint and sprinkled with glitter for the frosting.  The beautiful sequenced flower is from my stash.

  

I wanted this canvas to coordinate with the other cupcake canvas so I used the same K&Company Diecut pack.

I used Dylusions inks and acrylic paints for the background.  I'm loving these little cupcakes.  I think I'll make at least one more before this weekend's show in Robstown.  Stay tuned....

I've entered this little cutie in the DL.ART Thankful Thursday: Anything Goes November Linky Party.  Available for purchase here: LittleHoneyBeeStudio

Thank you for stopping by!  Have a beautiful day!!

Sweet! Burlap Canvas

I've got a super SWEET little canvas to share with you today!  This is a 6x6, 1.5" deep burlap canvas.

This is the first burlap canvas that I've worked on and it was not as easy as I thought it would be.  Your definitely better off with loose mediums like spray inks, gelatos, watercolors or gouache.  I started by adding gesso and fluid acrylics.

Since the fibers are so loose I changed to gouache and molding paste for the cupcake.  The gouache covers the burlap much better than fluid acrylic.  In keeping with a highly textured piece, I opted for molding paste for the frosting.  I simply mixed my color right in before applying to the canvas.

Since painting/drawing on the burlap proved to be a bit difficult for me, I decided to go with collage.  I'm using butterflies that I purchased on Etsy from Reneaboutiques.  (Great shop, you should totally check it out!)  Sweet is from a K&Company diecut set.

I topped off the cupcake with a heart button from my stash and sprinkles of Shattered Mica Iced Enamels.  I got the shattered mica from Paper Wings Productions.  They have a lot of great mixed media productions to choose from, check them out too.

Thank you for stopping by, have a beautiful day!!!

Available for purchase here: Sweet Mixed Media Burlap Canvas

Let Go - Mixed Media Canvas

Hello lovelies!  Hope you all had a fantastic weekend.  Today I have a super quick post for you.  I just wanted to share a canvas I completed last night.  This one is a little different than my usual work (well at least I think so, lol).

I thought I'd give my lovely ladies a break so I did a tree instead.  This was looking pretty good but I thought it needed more.

So I gave it leaves but it still needed more to me.  I thought the green needed to be broken up so I added these sweet little flowers.

This canvas is loaded with texture.  I used a 6x6 stencil with Golden's Fine Pumice Gel.  It works just like molding paste.  It actually dries very smooth.

This beautiful tree feels so strong and grounded to me so I wanted the sentiment to reflect that.   So this is what I chose:  Accept what is, let go of what was, and have faith in what will be.  It definitely takes strength to let go and faith doesn't it...

So what do you think?  Do you like the flowers or did you prefer the simplicity of branches.  I'd love to hear your thoughts.  Well friends, that's it for today.  This beauty will hit my Etsy shop, LittleHoneyBeeStudio, very soon so keep an eye out for that.

Thanks for stopping by and enjoy the rest of you day!!

Hope - Dia De Los Muertos Art

Happy Friday everyone!  I hope you all are enjoying a great start to the weekend.  Today I have another Dia De Los Muertos inspired canvas to share with you.

Meet Hope, she's the latest addition to my Dia De Los Muertos art series.

I named her Hope because this is my hope for you:  Whenever you find yourself doubting how far you can go,  just remember how far you have come.

Hope started out as a sketch in my art journal.

I worked on her whenever I had to sit and wait on my son.  Once I was done, I knew she HAD to go on a canvas.

I made a copy of my sketch to help me transfer my image onto the canvas.  I didn't wanna have to sketch her all over again.

Once I had her transferred I began adding the base colors.

She started out kinda blonde but that changed fast although I'm thinking I should make a blonde haired blue eyed girl for you guys.  Let me know if you'd like to see that ;D.

With her pretty much done, I moved onto the background.  At this point I had no idea what I was gonna do.  Thankfully Pinterest is full of inspiration!  I found a photo of a gypsy that inspired the background.

I added drapes stenciled with tiny flowers subtly blending into the folds.

I have to admit, I'm EXTREMELY happy with the way she turned out.  I think she is absolutely GORGEOUS.

Here's a nice close up of her face.

I'll be adding her to my Etsy shop, LittleHoneyBeeStudio sometime today.  Thanks so much for stopping by, enjoy your weekend!!!

If you're interested in purchasing Hope, click HERE.