Meet Cynthia May DoLolly

I haven't given her make-up (paint) yet, but here's Mrs. DoLolly's debut...

I really enjoy playing with this clay. I think I'd like to do it more often. I could maybe even make my own clay bowls and paint them? I don't know, but I do know I enjoy it. How do you like her name? Mrs. DoLolly is the matriarch of the DoLolly family. She will have many sons and daughters. Perhaps that's why she has a double chin? Ha!

Tomorrow she'll get a make-over, complete with arms, legs, and make-up. Then she'll get her Tea-stained skirt. Well, we can't have her running around without a skirt on, can we? She'd get a reputation!! I may have her holding something. A stuffed heart? Clay Bible? Cross? Puppy? I don't know yet. We'll see what she's in the mood for when I'm done.

The Weekend Artist / Artful Spaces

Hello my dear blog readers! I hope your November is off to a fantastic start? If not, may it improve by infinity by the time you finish reading. ;-)

I have a little update for you today. Remember THIS entry I posted where I whined about how bad I wanted to buy The Weekend Artist? Well, a couple of months ago the artist of that book commented underneath that entry. Cool, right? I thought so! If you're too busy or lazy to go check it out, here's what he says, "Hello there! I actually am Gerard Smith, author of the Weekend Artist, and someone told me about your blog at work today. Thank you so much for your interest. I have been told that the book will be published by F+W Media in the USA next April or May, but you can get it on the UK Amazon site. Their site is:www.fwpublications.comThere are also a couple of projects on YouTube that were taken from a pilot I filmed about 3 years ago. Just search under 'Art Shop Guy' on YouTube and they should come up.All the best with your art. I love the dreamy quality of your work and how motivated you are.Reading your comments really has made my day!Gerard Smith"

Soooo....being the YouTube junkie that I am....



Be sure to scroll all the way down to the bottom of my blog to turn off the music before watching any videos. I really enjoyed that first episode. I'll watch the rest when I have a chance. I haven't watched my class videos yet for the Cloth & Clay Doll Workshop, so all in due time. ;-) I did go ahead and subscribe since, like I said, I AM a YT Junkie! I should say YT Artist Junkie. I'd love to make my own videos some day, but that's another thing to learn......adding to my numerous list of "To-Do's".

So anyway, today Gerard stopped by the ole blog again with an updated that I'm pretty darn excited about....

"G'day, its Gerard Smith again. Just thought I'd let you know that my book is now listed on US Amazon. For some strange reason the name has changed to Artful Spaces, but as far as I know the content is still the same. Here's the link: http://www.amazon.com/Artful-Spaces-DIY-Wall-Home/dp/1600614590/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1225744027&sr=8-1 Hope you and your art are going well!Gerard Smith"

Woohoo! Guess what I'll be purchasing! And did you see that price? $16.49!! Even I can afford that! Yep, yep!

Thanks for stopping by and letting me know, Gerard! I'm honored that the author himself would grace my blog with his presence. ;-) Seems like a cool guy......go buy his book!

I've been quite busy the past few days and have not had a chance to finish my Blue Haired Birdy Girl. The Doll workshop started on the 1st, as well, which puts me.....what.....2 or 3 days behind assuming everyone else started on the 1st. I doubt it, though. I think I could make the doll in a few days and the workshop is up for a month. If I had a day job I wouldn't be that confident.

A WIP and Play Time

I worked on that WIP from yesterday's post today. I decided to take Katie's suggestion of blue hair. I love the hair! I think from now on my girls will have CRAZY hair like this. Who says only old ladies and goth princess' have blue hair?

....and here is the result of some play time with Water Soluble Oil Pastels:

Okay, so it's not stunningly gorgeous, but it was fun. It was my first time using WSO Pastels. I enjoyed playing with them. I highly recommend you pick some up. I got them at an office supply store per Suzi Blu's suggestion to use them on our Mixed Media pieces for her class. SOOOOO fun! They look like crayons, but act more like watercolor pencils. You can use them wet or dry. You can also smudge them just like regular oil pastels. The brand name that I got is Portfolio. They're in a green package and cost about $10. If any of you happen to go buy them and use them I'd love to see what you create! Link to your image in my comments! I plan to use them in the background of the Blue Girl Birdie Love painting.

My Angel

She doesn't have wax on her yet, but here is my finished Angel Girl:

It's not my best attempt, but hey....it was fun and I like her anyway. I love using that Golden brand Gold Metallic paint. It's so perfect for things like this.

Here's a close-up:

I'm really tired of working on this cheap-ass wood. I wish I had got the Birch or just stuck with canvas. Even if it was those cheap Walmart canvases. For one thing it's harder to draw because the pencil wants to follow the grooves and cracks in the wood. It's not smooth wood like Birch. For another thing, I don't particularly love my girls to have cracks in their face....even if it does give them character. lol

I'm working on another girl already. I've drawn her, but no shading or color yet. I've also still got to draw the tree and birds. She'll be holding a bird up to a tree so she can be with her partner that's already waiting on her in a limb above. ;-)

Can you see her? It's hard to see when there's only pencil, I know. I think I'll give her pink hair. Or maybe purple or blue? Who knows, but it'll be a bit funkier than the other girls. Or maybe just black? I haven't tried a black-haired girl. Nah.....I'm going with funky colors. lol And maybe an oddball tree, too?? Don't know yet, but we'll see what my muse tells me. Wanna see my muse?

Here she is....

Hehe.....gotta have a sense of humor.

Bye all!

Skiesart Sharon & Shopping at JoAnn's Fabric

I thought it was about time I featured my close, personal friend, Sharon. You'll be amazed at her beautiful artwork. I certainly was! Check it out: http://www.skiesart.com/. I think my favorite paintings of hers are the last two oil paintings she has listed. She's also decided to take Suzi's Les Petite Dolls class AND the Cloth & Clay Dolls class. It should prove to be even more fun having a friend in the classes with me! :-)



In other art related news, I ventured off to JoAnn's Fabric to get the supplies for the Cloth & Clay Dolls class that starts next week. Big surprise....they didn't have Creative Paperclay or even basic pottery tools. I wish they'd open a Michael's closer than Sanford. So anyway, I have to get those online. The cheapest I've found it is http://www.jerrysartarama.com/, but they sure think a lot of their shipping. They charge regular shipping, which is whatever UPS or USPS charges, plus a $7.95 charge for their part unless you get the most basic shipping, which is still 11:95. I may check out the other places and go into the check-out to see what their S/H charges are before buying. I don't mean to sound cheap, but the supplies list for these classes can sometimes be pretty long. I'm trying to do my due diligence before getting the more expensive items. lol

Suzi Blu Wood Burning & My Photos on Imagekind

I know I've mentioned Suzi Blu several times on here since I'm taking her Les Petite Dolls workshop, but I thought I'd post a video of hers. These videos are how I discovered her and her classes. Here she is doing some wood burning on YouTube. It is NOT from the class as those have to be paid for before viewing. If you'd like to take the class go to http://www.suziblu.ning.com/ OK, on to the video:

There's also a new widget on this blog. If you look over to the right you'll see the Imagekind Widget that will take you to my gallery. There you can purchase my art and photography. I only have one up right now, but soon it will be filled to the brim with goodies to customize and purchase. You can get anything from greeting cards to prints to canvases. They'll even add a frame and border for the right price. I then get a percentage of what is sold. I put up Joel's favorite photo of mine first. Go check it out! Go! Run! Buy! Hehe

PS. If you're ever going to watch a video on this blog you'll have to go to the very bottom of the page first to turn off my tunes. That way you'll be able to listen to one thing at a time rather than the video with the music playing over the top of it. ;-)

Finished Autumn Owl Girl

I finished the Autumn Girl I posted as a WIP a few days ago. She's just waiting on a layer of Beeswax now. Here she is:

And here's a closer look:

For the background there is a first layer of a deep yellow wash. I used yellow with a tiny bit of red and brown to make it warm looking. Then I painted leaves onto watercolor paper with colored pencil and acrylic paints, cut them out, and Mod Podged them onto the painting. Then I used acrylic paint again with stamps for the next layer. Then I antiqued the edges and random areas with Walnut Ink. Oh, and I painted the outside edges dark brown so it wouldn't need to be framed. Joel wanted me to wait to give her Beeswax because he wants to watch how it goes on. Her "diamond" necklace is an acrylic gem. It really sparkles, but it doesn't show that in the photo. Thanks for visiting! :-)