Winter Whites

The calendar says it's still winter and groundhog Phil has seen his shadow once again.  Winter has it's own beauty of rich neutral hues of a deep sleep.  The yard is alive with birds, squirrels and an occasional deer and bunny.  Time to prune the roses back.  

These are some tags from my reference photos I'm going to post on Etsy.  They work as tags, bookmarks or a garland for cubicle or home.

Staying Warm. Staying Focused.

B-r-r-r-r.  The Pacific Northwest is getting the big chill this year.  Fighting the urge to hibernate is at the top of my to-do list.  Remembering that spring is only a few weeks away helps.  With spring comes the Farmer's Market and the need for new card designs for my loyal patrons.  In between long winter naps, I've checked off a couple of winter to-do items:
I've combed through my painting idea piles and prioritized the card projects that strike me as ones that will resonate with more than just me.  
I've gotten my new-to-me Epson printer up and running to create archival prints.
I've completed several Christmas designs for next year, since I never seem to get them done in time for Christmas if I wait until the holiday season to start them. 

Well, time to go feed the squirrels and birds.

Super-Size That?

On a recent trip to Dakota Art, I spied some brushes with inordinately long handles.  I wondered, "who paints with those?".   Uh, people doing very large paintings paint with long-handled brushes, that's who. 

With the Allied Arts holiday show set-up complete, my energy has turned to finishing the first in a series of commissioned pieces representing the four seasons.  I'm quite sure this is the biggest painting I've ever done...two panels totalling 48" wide x 24" tall, like a giant jigsaw puzzle until I would step back a couple of feet.  These pine cones were on a huge pine tree in my yard planted by my parents.  Beautiful in the snow.

Now that I'm warmed up, the next one will be even bigger!