Day 19 Sunset With Palm Tree Silhouette

Every time I paint something, no matter what it is, I learn something new. One thing I learned, is that I have no concept of proportions. I kind of already knew that, but I wonder how to learn such a thing. My sun is way too big, for what I actually wanted to paint on this picture. Two, I love my fan brush for clouds and painting on the glass cabochons. It does not leave streaks and makes nice clouds. However, this is the second time I have tried using it for palm tree leaves, and forget it, it just does not come out right. A thin, but not too thin, script liner works much better. The third thing I have learned, is that there is probably no way I can replicate any of my pieces exactly again. I guess that is why artists make prints of their paintings. So far, all my painted pieces are one of a kind. I do love how I got the orange to look like it is shining through the leaves of the palm tree.  Oh, and for some reason I thought it was a good idea to leave one whole branch off.  I wanted to get the whole sun, or most of it.  Now I am not sure that was a good idea.My dolphin is a bit fat, and could actually be a whale, lol! Caitlin joined in today, and painted a rendition of her beanie bear at Dolphin Springs. In a couple of weeks, this one will be listed in my Etsy store, with all my other unique paintings.   The blue grapes, yes I know grapes are not blue, is on a practice plate, that I keep for reference.  If you follow this blog, then you know the last time I made grapes they looked like a cluster of grapes in the shape of a pear.  Since I was waiting for Caitlin to finish, I decided to practice grapes.  These are much better, just the wrong color.

Day 18: Painted Glass Cabochons

This is my first attempt to paint on these round glass cabochons. This is very painstaking work, and took me several hours to complete the five you see. There are several shots from different sides. I must give some advice. I find for painting on any glass, if you want a sold background, use a fan brush. It goes on smooth and leaves no streaks. Let the paint dry completely before trying to paint another layer, or other images. Here are the ones I did. One more tip, they look a lot different after they dry, all paintings, so wait and take pictures once they have dried. I am not sure if I want to attempt to make pendants of these, or sell them like this, and let more experienced wire wrappers use them to make some lovely pendants or bracelets even. 1- The heart and rosebud. I love this one. Only thing is my green was not dark enough, so the leaves look funky. I tried to darken it up with a touch of black, but I definitely need a darker green. I will definitely paint more of these. 2- Hearts on Fire, or that is what I wanted. It is hard to paint flames in such a small space. I do like it. 3- Man in the Moon, with butterfly friend. I do think this is adorable, and really want to try a larger version. 4- Today for our homeschool coop class, we began learning about Native Americans of Florida, their history and culture. We started with the Seminoles. Seminole women loved bright and colorful, geometric type beads, clothes, baskets and other paintings. I made the geometric one in honor of that lesson. I really like that one too. 5- Last but not least, my first attempt at giraffe spots. Needs some work, but I bet it would look awesome as a pendant. What do you think?

Day 17 Pear Shape Jade Wire Weaved and Wrapped Pendant

Today is day 17of the 30 Days of Creativity Challenge. This is my first real wire wrapped piece, that was not a real simple, basic wrap. This incorporates weaving and wrapping together. I really like the wire weave, it is interesting to do, and I just thoroughly enjoyed learning this. Now, don't misunderstand. I have been learning wire wrapping for several years now. I just never liked any of them enough to attempt to sell them. This one I love. The stone is a pear shaped lovely soft green Jade. I used two different colors of craft wire to weave and wrap. There is silver and mauve colors. I don't know if it shows in the images or not. The bail is large, with a 1/2 inch opening, to accommodate any kind of neck chain, wire, omega, whatever you wanted to put this pendant on. The whole piece measures just about 2 1/2 inches in length. This will be available to purchase in my Etsy store.

Day 16 of 30 Days of Creativity: Green Chrome Diopside Cocktail Ring

Today, for day 16, I returned to my original love, creating fabulous jewelry with faceted gemstones and traditional type settings. I placed this beautiful Kelly green Chrome Diopside into a cocktail style setting. This is a petite ring, size 6, and the stone is 6mmx4mm or appx half a carat. Chrome Diopside is a completely natural gemstone, and is found only in Siberia. Some people refer to it as a Siberian Emerald. It is not an emerald, but sure looks like a fine quality one indeed. Some Chrome is so intensely dark, it can look black. As you can see this one is a beauty. I have one other Chrome Diopside piece listed in my Etsy store. The mines are supposedly beginning to dry up, so get yours why you can. If you are a May baby, this would make a lovely alternative birthstone choice.