Golden Retriever - Final

Golden Retriever
12x12
Oil
Available on Etsy

I've finished this puppy off and have posted him in my etsy store! I'm happy to finally have gotten an original painting up there! More to come soon I hope!

Fancy Pants

Fancy Pants
Procreate on iPad
Available on etsy!

Here's another iPad painting. This one makes me happy. I had so much fun with him and I think I may paint him, or a version of him, HUGE, with oils. Huge for how I've been working anyway. I've also noticed that I need to change the dimensions I'm iPad painting at. I'd rather not have to crop off so much to get him into a 5x7 matt.

It's almost the weekend and I'm gearing up to do a lot of painting and to enjoy our new grill! The irony of this is that literally while I'm typing this post, the beautiful sun has been replaced with a black sky and the beginnings of what is sure to be a downpour. Darn it! Well, I'll still be able to paint! The grill, on the other hand, may have to wait until Sunday (though I'm holding out some hope for tomorrow).

Happy Friday!!!

Draft Horse - Work in Progress

I simply love horses! They take my breath away. Growing up I had a horse and was forced to find it a good home when I moved to Boston after graduating from college. One of life's many tough choices. I ache to own one again, in the mean time, I'll paint them!

This is of a horse I saw during a visit to Kentucky Horse Park.

Portrait of Marie

When I was putting my etsy store together last week, I remembered that I have a new portrait to share (it's representing human portraiture on etsy)!

Marie
12x12
Oil

Golden Retriever - Work in Progress

I was able to work on the Golden some more this weekend. Above is the second photo I took (the first one I posted last week).

I think he's done. I'm going to stare at it for a while longer to see if there are any other tweaks I want to make. If not, I just need to sign it, paint the edges, and get the wire on the back for hanging.

I had some issues with the wire last time, I can't be the only one, or maybe I am. I switched over to using Ampersand Gessobord painting panels. I prefer them because they're a bit deeper and I don't need to prime them as they come ready to paint on. The downside is that I have to put wire on the back.

I don't know how anyone gets the eye hooks into the wood frame on these panels, it takes someone stronger than I, that's for sure! Or, maybe there's a drill involved. If I did that as a first step then I could clamp the painting panel into a vice grip...hmmm, maybe next time I'll give that a shot. In the mean time, I came up with a pretty good solution, I used a staple gun to staple the wire in place on each side then doubled it back on itself and wrapped itself, same as you'd do with the eye hooks.

I'm pleased with the results and I don't think the wire's going anywhere, so maybe I'll leave the drill on the shelf.

I've Opened an Etsy Shop!

http://www.etsy.com/shop/darlenetwitchell?ref=pr_shop_more

I've had artwork piling up around me for a while now, always with the idea of selling it but haven't found the venue which suited me. A few years back I looked into a few, including etsy, and for whatever reason brushed them aside.

Last week etsy was mentioned to me by a friend of mine from high school who has an etsy shop, and again by my sister. I took that as a sign that I should at least check it out again. So I did, and found that it does seem to suit my needs at this point. I'm not really sure why they didn't back then, or if I just didn't realize that it might work out well for me.

In any case. I've finally opened up my etsy shop where I will be selling originals, prints, and portraits. I have yet to finish sorting out the originals which I'll be selling and I have a few more prints to get online. For the most part though, the shelves are full and the shop is open for business! Stop by and have a look! Throw me a few hearts! And if there are any experienced Etsians out there who'd like to pass on your wealth of knowledge, I'd love to hear it!

Also check out my friend's shop! She sells wonderful, handpainted glassware! My all time favorite being her changing faces glasses! And her mugs with the cherry trees and Chinese lettering! And her dandelion dishes! And...ok, I like it all! She also has a blog over here and writes books. Phweww! She must have a lot more energy than I do...

Around here I'm usually pretty quiet, I post my artwork, say a few words, and that's about it. In person, I'm quite the opposite. As I took a look at the preview of this quite lengthy post, I think I may have blown my cover, just a hair ;)

Golden Retriever - Work in Progress

I haven't posted a work in progress in a while as I've been side-tracked with life and, ahem, my iPad. Here's the first stage of a Golden Retriever which I started working on this past weekend.

I'm a Featured iPad Artist!

Check it out! I'm a featured iPad artist on Just iPhone Art!

This actually happened a couple of weeks ago but I had company and then have been so busy I haven't had a chance to post this until now. So exciting! :)