Jack-O-Happy

 

Jack-O-Happy  8x8 oil

Purchase info here.

Last fall I turned off the lights in my studio and positioned my plein air easel near the open door for just enough light to see what I was doing.  I lit a candle in this happy little glass pumpkin and dropped a handful of candy.  Custom framed in an antique gold (not shiny) frame.  Ready to hang with your other fall decor!  If you're considering a purchase, please email me for a picture of it in the frame.  Happy Fall, everyone!

Tootsies -SOLD

 

Tootsies   oil 6x6 inches

Purchase info here.

Leftover Halloween candy gladly posed for a portrait.  I dropped a big handful onto the table surface and with some minor adjustments, proceeded slowly.  In a complicated scene like this the trick is to slow way down and enjoy yourself.  The only ones I really love to eat are the fruity ones.  But as soon as I pop one in my mouth a little voice in my head says "bettter be careful, you could lose a crown."  Must be my dentist.  I painted more of them than I ate.  

Corny Pumpkins -a still life painting in oil

oil 6x6 inches magnify/purchase info Candy Corn is a lot of fun to paint. Painted loosely, those sweet little triangles can add charm and conjure up some happy Fall feelings. I'm especially happy with the unfinished look across the bottom. That's something I try for but don't always get. If you bid on "Perky Pumpkin" but were outbid, this one is "buy now". You can snatch it up for a bit less than the final sale price of "Perky Pumpkin." It needs about 4 days to dry before I can ship.

Spooky Little Pumpkin -a Halloween oil painting

oil 6x6 inches magnify/purchase All TREAT, no trick! BIDDING STARTS AT JUST $1 FOR THIS LITTLE PAINTING! Wouldn't it look great as part of your Halloween decor next year? Happy Halloween!

Bazooka

oil 6x6 inches click for purchase information and zoom Somehow I ended up with this lone piece of bubblegum, and saved it for painting. It brought back memories. Mom would take us to a little barber shop behind Walker's Market in Santa Ana where my little brother would get a haircut. They always gave us a piece of bubblegum. I tried different background colors, but funny how only this bubble gum color seemed right. I had some fun with thicker paint on this one.

Chocolate Hearts -sold

oil 8x6 inches
click here to bid

My last chocolate painting for now. What a nicely designed box. The bits of gold and dark silver shining here and there made it even more interesting.

Peanut Butter Kisses -sold

oil 6x6 inches
click here for purchase information and magnifier

Maybe I shouldn't admit that this is one of my favorite late night snacks. Who needs Reeses? I guess I'm painting a chocoholic series. This painting is available at Vander Molen Fine Art, Arcadia, CA

Strawberry Kisses -sold

oil 6x6 inches
click here to bid

If there were a twelve step program for chocoholism I would not go willingly. Here we have chocolate dipped strawberries without the dipping. Just peel'n'eat. I enjoy these throughout our long strawberry season. Two kisses per strawberry. See this and the other entries on the new DPW Challenge by clicking here.
Happy Valentine's Day!

Valentine Wishes -sold

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches

click here to bid

The pink and brown continues with the addition of lace. I knew it would be difficult and it was. Simplifying the lace didn't seem to be an option because it's the fine details that make lace pretty in the first place. So I tried to stay loose and approximate. The initial drawing on canvas (just truffles and lace) seemed to lack something. Right away I knew all the round shapes needed contrasting straights, so I added the card. Perhaps the whites are a bit too yellow, but it kinda gives it a vintage look that I like.

Three Truffles-sold

oil on canvas panel 4x6 inches

click here to bid

It's a wonder these lasted long enough for me to paint them. The red one is gone now. My warm spotlight reduced it to a soft creamy luscious blob, so I had to eat it.

Candy, Caramel, Apple -sold

oil on canvas panel 4x6 inches
click here to bid
Similar to yesterday's, but with caramels added...my husband's idea. They were hard to pull off. Maybe his best idea was to eat the caramels.

Candy, Apple SOLD

oil on canvas panel 4x6 inches

This was my first painting on canvas this small. It was lots of fun, especially the candy corn coming in and out of shadow. The apple is a braeburn and it really was this bright red.

I have good news! The Tustin Art Walk and Plein Air Contest was a great event. Very well organized, and the visitors were plenty, nice and friendly. I sold a few paintings which is always helpful! The best news is I received a Third Place award for my painting "Warm Inside"!!! This is my first time competing with other plein air painters (35). On top of that, the painting was purchased on the spot! With the week of rain and all the excitement I neglected to take a good photo of the painting. (Go to my post on Oct. 20th to see the lousy photo!) I really enjoyed painting outside and hope to do much more of it in the future.

Just Glass

oil on canvas panel 8x8 inches
Third Place in Oil, AAIE Fall Juried Show, Sept. 2010
click here to bid
I'm just having a great time with these little glass trinkets! Some larger glass objects lent some size and shape variation to this composition. I capitalized on the colored light coming through into shadows, and of course the backlight coming forward between objects. The highlights are a blast because there are so many! There's a lot to look at in this painting. I hope you like it.

"FAKE"

oil on canvas panel 6x6 inches
click here to bid
These little glass gems sit in a crystal dish in my living room. Sounds fancy, but I'm really not a fancy person. I just like the sparkle...so do toddling grandkids, until they find out they're FAKE and they can't eat them. Real "eye candy."

Chocolate Bunny -sold

oil on linen panel 8x6 inches
click here to bid
Easter has come and gone, but we have lingering candy. The bunny is so cute, and I thought painting chocolate, cellophane and ribbon for the first time might be a fun challenge. It was lots of fun!