Shades of Gray, Blue, and Green

Me on TDIPT

I have to confess that I forgot how short this month was! On Wednesday, I realized I only had until Saturday to have my items ready for TDIPT's March update! So, I've been on a painting binge for the last three days.

Later tonight, and for sure tomorrow on the 1st, the artists of TDIPT will update their pages for March 1st. I've focused on completing two paintings for the update (my poor family has had to fend for themselves these last few days).


The first painting I finished for the update is a silhouette in many shades of gray. I loved painting Queen Charlotte in her fancy gown....doesn't it look like a fancy cake? The fun of painting Charlotte was trying to see how many different shades of gray I could blend in order to give depth to the painting.
She was a challenge, but fun!

You can read more about the "real" Queen Charlotte by clicking her name above. And to see my painted interpretation of her, just click on her photo, or follow the link below the photo.

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In my last post I mentioned that I had ordered some new products for "mixed media" art. They arrived, and I used one of the products for the background of this painting.
The product by Golden is called Fiber Paste and when mixed with paint (or not) and applied to the surface of your painting, it leaves a papery textured feel and look to the canvas. I used it as "wall texture" for this painting of Isabella. Then, I used some of my hand cut stencils and stenciled the "wall"! You can see more of her on my TDIPT page by clicking her photo.

*When you visit TDIPT's website HERE, please be sure to sign-up for a birthday celebration and be entered to win a gift!


Whew, now this week should be a little less hectic, and no more marathon painting sessions!

So, What's New in Your Library?

This past week I treated myself by purchasing two new books. They both arrived this week, and I'm still thumbing through the pages. I bought them for inspiration and research and to learn something new!

I usually find and reserve books that our library system has available to find inspirations for my painted silhouettes. But now I have my very own book! Not only does it have several illustrations of silhouettes, it has the history of the art as well as the profile artists who snipped or painted them.




Silhouettes: A History and Dictionary of Artists by Mrs. E. Nevill Jackson


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This was recommended to me and I'm glad I purchased it. I'm already getting ideas for art and have even purchased some of the products that this book recommends so I can give some of these techniques a try. Funny how one purchase leads to another!

So, if the postal fairies wing my new supplies to me this weekend, I'll be getting my hands wet with paint, (and other mediums!).

Acrylic Revolution by Nancy Reyner

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On my nightstand for bedtime reading I have A Deaf Artist in Early America: The World of John Brewster Jr. by Harlan Lane
Yes, it reads like a History book, but it is really very interesting, and of course, I love John Brewster's portraits.

I also recently discovered the author, Elizabeth Aston. Well, I've actually had her first book in this series for several years and never opened it!
Ms. Aston has written a series of books that continue the stories of Jane Austen's characters; Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett. According to Ms. Aston, they have children and her books follow their lives.
So, after finishing the first book: Mr. Darcy's Daughters, I'm now reading the second book in the series: The Exploits & Adventures of Miss Althea Darcy.



So.....What is new in your library? What are you reading?

.....oops, if you enlarge that last photo you can see some paint I didn't get off of the table from my last project! Well, if the supplies arrive that won't be the only paint on the table!

Wishing a Happy Birthday to........

my friend Lana of Honeysuckle Lane's Simple Joys.






Today is Lana's 40-something birthday...she is younger than me, so I can mention the word "40" ☺!
Please stop by to wish her Happy Birthday greetings. Lana's Blog

New Offerings~

The Primitive Gathering is updated. Here are some photos of my offerings.
....and the link to visit!


Pear Tree on PG

Hives and Horse Pills

(Not his best side, but you can see more of him on the 15th)

Sorry for the blog neglect this week, not only of my own, but for not getting around to visit other's blog to see what everyone is up to. (I was given antibiotics for the sinus infection, and well, let's just say the cure may have been worse than the illness. I'm almost done with the horse pills, and the red hives are almost gone...seriously! and I'm feeling a lot better now.)

This week:

* Boise is hosting the Special Olympics. Unfortunately, we haven't been able to go to any events. Our family signed up to volunteer to be a "meet and greet" host family when the athletes arrived at the airport, but we weren't able to do it with sicknesses and all. (not sure they would have appreciated getting sick before they competed in their events!) But it looks like so much fun for everyone who was able to go:

Special Olympics Idaho

* The nice girls over at Today's Primitive Home featured one of my silhouettes on their website. I didn't realize how much the Meadowcrofts resembled one another until they wrote about it! Their site is so much fun to read, and they share some really great primitive and folk art finds and the artists who make them.

Today's Primitive Home

* I also managed to finish a few things for The Primitive Gathering's update on the 15th. The site has been on a mini vacation for the last two months, and I didn't want to miss the first update of the year just because a sinus infection!

In my craft closet, aka: the closet you open very carefully and then stand back in case something falls on your feet! Do you have one of those?
This time some pretty white/cream wool fell out, (thank goodness it was soft!), and I thought I'd try a little needle felting on muslin to make something for spring. Here are a few peeks at my offerings that will be updated on the 15th (well, late the night before).

I also painted something furry with long ears and accented it with a painted lace border.

The Primitive Gathering

(I'll post a link to my page on PG, when it is updated this weekend)

Happy Valentine's Day tomorrow, have a great weekend~

Poppets, Portraits and Playthings~

Poppets, Portraits and Playthings of the Past

.....will be updated on this weekend, Feb. 7th and 8th. Lana and I are doing a small update this weekend with hopes of a larger Spring update in a few weeks. Our joke is that we both always seem to have too many irons in the fire and we can always hear a "Pssssssst" sound when we add another thing to our "to do" lists. So, since we've both been sick with sinus infections and busy with other "irons", we will have a small update this weekend and hopefully put out a few of those irons in time for a larger update closer to Spring.

Thank you to those who have inquired and please email if you would like to be updated via email by one of us:


Lana~ lanamanis@gmail.com


Suzanne~ suzanne.peartreeprimitives@gmail.com

Another Giveaway.....

Lorraine of PieCake Primitives is having a giveaway. Click on the link below to visit her blog and sign up before Feb. 21st for a chance to win this sweet star handmade by Lorraine.

PieCake Primitives Giveaway

A Founding Father and Flowers

You can never be certain what might appear on my website or online selling webpages each month. ('Cause I never am!). And this month the only "common thread" in my offerings is that I used paint! ☺

This past month we were under a blanket of snow, and I felt the "need for spring". So, I painted some forget-me-nots on journals. And because it is a month for presidential birthdays, I tried my hand at drawing and painting George Washington and Abe Lincoln in silhouette.


Here are is a link to my TDIPT page if you'd like to visit, and to view more photos of Mr. Washington, Mr. Lincoln and the flower journals.

Me on TDIPT

While you are there, please visit all the other artist's pages and offerings!