Get Your Paint On Week 3

two pictures of the same thing, in different light.  this weeks assignment was to pick four items from around the house that we love the color of and try to match those colors as close as possible by mixing our paints.  the miniature red purse, pink feathers, green piece of wood from our old house, and blue chippy stool were my choices.

in progress

finished piece.

since we could paint any subject matter using our four colors, i wanted to try something really simple this week.  i didn't want a bunch of detail like last week.  i wish i had a more intuitive sense of shadowing and highlighting.  i don't automatically know where to shade and highlight so i get frustrated.  here i was looking at a wine bottle and just had to decided on where the light source could be coming from.  these are odd colors and not at all realistic so it was tougher for me. 

week 4 is all about composition.  we have a list of about 10 elements of composition and we are to pick one or two of them when focusing on our choice of painting.  i just saw a photo of a one room church in the Andes mountains in Peru that i want to try painting so i will be back to show you when that's finished.  the photo is in an online magazine and i cannot figure out how to lift the image to show you here so i will try making a link to it so you can see the original photo i base my painting off of if ya want....

making pasta with huge shavings of parmigiano reggiano,

xoxoxxxo

jennette



Raclette and Champagne

all photos by Erianne Berg

a few weeks ago i had the crafty aunties and friends over for a night of feasting on raclette, drinking champagne and a sleepover.

we had fun!

my erin (erianne)was sitting back taking photos and i thought you might like to see.  my house looks really cluttered to me in these photos but you get to see more here than i've been able to show you up til now.

here you can see the raclette grill that Natasha brought over.  the grill has 8 individual trays to use for grilling so it's great for a little party around the table! 

we are all wearing my old grubby t-shirts because the raclette cheese smell is so strong when it melts we didn't want our good clothes to stink forever more!

i need a haircut soooo bad!  it's so long i can tie it in a knot at the back.  the ends are just fried!

it was so lovely to have the ladies over for a relaxing night of feasting and drinks.  we drank really great champagne and even used the raclette grill to melt chocolate over strawberries on french bread.....sooooooo good!

here you can see some of the raclette toppings and the pile of raclette cheese ready to go.  if you haven't tried raclette and you ever have the chance, Go For It!  it's fantastic and such a lovely way to share a meal with friends.

putting new suspenders on old overalls,

xoxoxoooxx

jennette



Vintage Silk Kimono Jacket

this is a beautiful and delicate vintage silk kimono i picked up at a vintage clothing store in Tucson last spring.

it is old silk with silk embroidery

the workmanship is gorgeous and amazing

there is so much fine detail and i see something new every time i admire it.

if it weren't so delicate i would definitely wear it

i have it draped over an old mirror frame to hold it up and out

i love the waves and water depiction

the sleeve trim is just incredible

right now the kimono is living leaned up against these mirrors on a ledge by my front door

i need to find a different place for it to live because my front door is all glass and the light that shines through this south facing door is not good for the silk.

on a quest for another space large enough (fat chance),

xoxoxxxo

jennette



Bird Art

this is a painting August did several months ago for me.  he calls himself a "bird nerd."  he went to cascade bird banding camp last summer and attends Bird Watch at The Burke Museum once a month.  he has over 180 birds marked off his life list!

one view of Jasper's palm cockatoo, kiwi and bunny painting

another view.  he was supposed to use wild colors.  he came up with the cow kiwi and the spiral palm cockatoo.

these are paper mache on a wire structure.  his art teacher found the stick and attached it to the base for him.  Jasper loves his art class!

working on my own Get Your Paint On week 3 painting,
xoxooxxx
jennette

Get Your Paint On Week 2

a glass of red wine helps the painting along

background good to go

got my brushes ready

"Suddenly at Twilight"

this weeks assignment for my Get Your Paint On class was to be inspired by an artist(s) we like and to try to emulate a part of their style in our painting.  i am inspired by Amanda Blake who is a painter in Portland,OR., that i love. emulating her night time sky seems to be what i had the most success with.  i also used her ability to do faces as the inspiration for this little guy.  The rest of my painting and subject matter was inspired by this drawing that August did of Jasper when Gus was 10 and Jasper was 2.  Gus called it "Jasper Demon!":

the original Jasper Demon

just a few days later i already see several things i could have done to make this painting more "right."  i should have done a gray wash, especially over the tent, to give it a less bright and more night time look.  and i could have gradually darkened the ground as it goes back to make it look like it is receding.  also i have no sense of proportion so the demon's wings are just about as big as his body!  i wish i would have allowed more time to fill in the foreground with more movement.  i suppose i could still go do more of that but now we are on to week three, which is all about color.  I need to pick four objects from around my house that i love the color of and then try to match those colors as closely as possible by mixing my paints and then use those four colors in a painting of my choice.  deciding what to paint is the hard part.  i want to try something bigger, with less detail, for this next one.  i will let ya know how it goes.  in the mean time....... you could go get YOUR paint on!

attaching medals to my military jacket,

xoxox

jennette

Medals

i found these vintage swim medals at Second Saturdays for $1 each!

as soon as i saw them i knew exactly what i could use them for.  i was thinking about my revamped military jacket.  i was thinking about the millions of little drawers i have here stuffed full of cool little treasures.  and i started to think about what i could replace those medals with before attaching them to the coat.

here are a few of the items i had in mind:

a tiny scope.  see below:

gotta have a scope for outdoor adventures!

and a little tiny harmonica!  can't leave home without one!

an old sterling silver and red glass watch fob.  cuz it's cool.

and for the 4th one i wanted the arm and hand, because don't you always need an extra hand?!  but in the end i went with the key.  because keys can be helpful too.

here i am in all my glory with my cool "McGiver" medals.  clearly, i am ready for an adventure of the epic sort.

bring it on!

paying bills,

xoxox

jennette



You Are Your Own Muse

I'm taking another workshop!

You Are Your Own Muse!

it's about "telling the story of my life, stepping into my beauty and my identity, and telling the story of my history." 

 HolyScaryFaceMyDemonsScary!

i will be exploring my visual voice through self-portraiture.

the ultra fabulous Vivienne McMaster, who is offering this course, is a Vancouver based photographer and mentor/teacher.  She has other photograpy and self-discovery workshops so check out her site if this intrigues you at all. 

setting a scene for a photo shoot,
xoxo
Jennette



Guess Who

I and Love and You.

Happy Valentine's Day my sunburned Man in Mexico!

I'm thrilled that we are evolving, learning, and discovering together. 

When times get tough, the tough get growin'!

Here's to our 17th year!

I love you!

xoxox

J