Be Still, Child
little girl with red hair hold a black bird in her hand

A couple weeks ago, I started making some new 4×4 inch art. These are 300 dbi prints mounted on chipboard of my paintings. All of these are only $10 each!

To reach the fairy’s house before dark, run

little red fairy house -
this is one of my top sellers in my shop
it sells out quite fast

Heart Be Still
Woman wearing long white dress
hands on her bosom,
looking upwards toward the sky.
Black crow looking at her.

She was the only one
little girl with long red hair holding a black bird in her hand

Snow Bird

 girl wearing white winter coat and black mitten
holding black bird in her hand

Two Lost Souls
girl holding blue bird in her hand

4×4 inch prints mounted on chipboard
These are available now in my etsy shop

It seems like I’ve lost a huge chunk of time here online. I wish I had an interesting story to tell of adventures, but all I can say is I’ve been horribly sick. I’m having a rough Spring, trying to stay healthy. My food allergies get so bad during the warm months, I start reacting to foods I’m not even allergic to, and I’m sick all the time.

So, last Monday night, I ate a soy hot dog, and have been super sick ever since. I’m not allergic to soy, and I’ve eaten soy hot dogs in the past, like a couple weeks ago, even. I have never had a reaction until now, and I have no idea why I reacted so badly to it. I’ve pretty much given up trying to figure it all out.  All I know is, I will never eat another one as long as I live. It was that bad. ugh.

All that counts is I’m better now. I’m going to try to stay healthy, so I don’t do any more disappearing acts over the summer. We’ll see how it goes.

Today is a very special day…

Happy Birthday to my Greg!!
He was reading Homer’s Odyssey to Sweet Pea
when she was a baby.
It’s about another kitty who doesn’t have eyes.
Aw!

The minute I heard my first love story,
I started looking for you, not knowing
how blind that was.

Lovers don’t finally meet somewhere,
they’re in each other all along.

Rumi

It’s true!! It’s true!!
I used to tell my Mom that Greg is perfect,
and she’d say,
“Of course he’s not! No one is perfect!”
And, I would reply, “Yes, he is! He’s perfect for me!” lol
Got her every time!

Sweet Pea went outside for the first time a couple weeks ago. Now she wants to go out ALL the time. It’s not good enough to sit on the back porch anymore. And, when she’s in the yard, that’s not enough either. She keeps trying to get out of the fence! How or how do I make her happy anymore? It doesn’t seem possible unless I open all the doors and let her go free. sigh

Oh, before I go..I have adjusted the prices on my paintings in my Etsy shop, and I have put up a price list for custom paintings. I’ll write more about both of these subjects next time. This is getting a bit long.

She Won’t Let Go

She Won’t Let Go
drawing

She Won’t Let Go
9×12 inches on wrapped canvas
original, acrylic painting by me, Katherine Labbe
$125 + shipping
available in my Etsy shop now

mother & child painting
progress shot

Finished!

Why do cats love boxes so much? Greg had just unpacked the Sleep Number bed when I noticed Sweet Pea had taken residence in the box. Not only that, but she was guarding it, and not letting Emma cat come in. So funny. Lots of hissing and fighting..and I got it on camera. lol I’ll edit it soon.

Emma made up for it the next day, she never left the box, and Sweet Pea had forgotten about it. lol

Song of the day is by Sarah Jaffe..

Two Intangibles

This is a sweet collab that my bestie Wanda gave me.
The painting in the center is my Oh, Sweet Sunday painting.
Doesn’t she do incredible work with her hands?
The best part..she’s letting me keep it!!
A gift from a sweet friend. Aww!!

Oh, Sweet Sunday
Annie and her horse
12×12 inches on wrapped canvas
Someone really needs to buy this painting.
I’ve received several emails about it, but yet, it’s still hanging on my wall.
What’s up with that??

**********

on the easel..wip

I’m tackling the stack of paintings that have been sitting in a pile for months. Another beach scene with the same little girls as in Sand Pails. This time they are a bit sunburned, I think. lol Still a work in progress.

At the Beach and Happy Birthday
on the easel – wip

Some paintings didn’t make the cut. Black paint washed away any hope of me trying anymore. Oh, well. I really don’t care or feel anything towards paintings gone bad. It just didn’t work out as well as I’d hoped. No big deal.

**********

Our little Sweet Pea went outside for the first time on Saturday. She’s been begging to go out, and spends a lot of her time sitting on the back porch, listening to the birds. So, it was time.  We’ll have to watch her like crazy because I’m quite positive she can climb the fence. Not only that, but there are gaps she could slip through by the gate. So, looks like we’ll be busy all summer, watch her roam around the yard. lol

*********

It’s not even 2pm, and I can’t wait to go to bed tonight. haha Greg and I have been renovating our bedroom for about a month and a half. He sanded the floor, stained it, and painted the walls and ceiling. I came in at the end with polyethylene, and gave it 3 coats. A lot of work!!

I’ve been sleeping on the couch, and Greg’s been on the floor of my studio on his air mattress. Not fun at all, but the tough part is over!! Our Sleep Number bed was just delivered, and we’ll be setting it up tonight!! Ahhhh! Can’t wait!! My back has been killing me!!! If I’m not around for a couple days, it might be because I don’t want to get outta bed. lol

© Katherine Labbé
Luke, final shots

And, video of me painting Luke..

Little boy named Luke at the beach

Last week, Judy Shreve asked if I’d be interested in doing a custom painting of her son, Luke. I started working on it last week, but had a bit of a setback over the weekend. We had tornadoes everywhere around us, so I was glued to the tv. There were over 90 tornadoes reported in Kansas. We got a bit freaked out a few times, especially when it was coming straight for us. You’ve probably heard the southeast side of Wichita took a direct hit. It’s not much fun to hear it all going down on tv when you live just a few miles away. Anyway..there were no fatalities, and injuries were minimal. So, it’s all good..except for the people who lost their homes, of course.

Thanks again to everyone who wrote email or called. It really is nice to know we’re loved, and that you care so much about us. <3

This is the reference photo Judy sent me. I’m having trouble with all the shadow on his face in the photo. I painted it in, painted it out. Painted it in..and out. I don’t know how many times I went back and forth on this. He also has a scowl on his face..I’m assuming from the sun. Should I paint his expression or leave it out? I wasn’t sure.

I decided to whip out my artistic license that I keep in a drawer just for occasions like this..and I painted what I thought looked best. No, it doesn’t look exactly like the photo, but for the sake of the painting, I’m not going to make it look like the photo. The shadow on his face doesn’t look good in the painting.

It’s not finished yet. I’m going to lighten his face a little, and fix his shirt where the paint got smudged, and I have to fix *his* left arm..it’s a little too skinny. Greg pointed it out to me last night. I should be able to wrap it up this afternoon.

And now to finish up this post with some photos I’ve taken over the past month or so..

Greg working on his painting in my studio a few weeks ago.

Izzie on the front porch

sweet pea on the back porch

and just relisted this morning in my etsy shop..

Little girl with mask print

Okay, I have to get back to my easel. I’ll be emailing you soon with final shots of the painting, Judy!!

The little girl with pigtails painting is finished. I’ll be listing it in my Etsy shop sometime soon. I have to take better photos of it out on the back porch first. This photo was taken with my little digital camera, so it looks real soft. I’ll take better pictures with my SLR.

 
Sand Pails
just relisted in my Etsy shop
original painting of two little girls wearing baseball caps,
carrying sand pails on the beach
by Katherine Labbé

I’m now painting a commission of a little boy. He has his hands and arms in a similar pose as the little girl above, except he’s holding onto his hat, not sunglasses. I am videotaping the new painting for my Youtube channel. It’s been a long time since I’ve put a video up, so I was excited about doing it. But, I gotta tell you, I’m not getting the best results. I’ve started the painting over twice now, and I still don’t like how it’s turning out.

I don’t know what it is, but when I turn the camera on, I don’t paint like I do if the camera is off. I make stupid brushstrokes, and I know I’m doing it..and say to myself, NO! DON’T DO THAT!! But, I do anyway. I don’t listen to myself, and then I have all these really bad mistakes to fix. Like right now, I have the little boy looking down instead of up.

As I turn the camera on, I feel like there are a million eyes staring at me from behind, and I get nervous. I’m extremely camera shy! lol I’ve only got my back and hands in the view of the lens, but still..I don’t know what comes over me.

With a Cherry On Top
newly revised, just relisted
girl sipping an ice cream soda with a cherry on top
by Katherine Labbé

I completely repainted With a Cherry On Top a couple weeks ago. I wasn’t fond of it the way it was. The background was so dark. I wanted to give the impression she is in a soda shoppe. I have no idea why I painted the background dark blue?? So, now the background looks more like a wall..to me, anyway. This painting has become one of my favorites since I made some changes. I also worked on her hand to make it more realistic. I think I nailed it. If this one doesn’t sell, I really don’t care. I like it on my wall.

**********

edit: I meant to upload this blog post yesterday, but I got distracted. I started the little boy portrait over again yesterday afternoon for the third time. I completely forgot the camera was on this time, and I just painted how I normally paint. I gave myself a good talking to before I turned the camera on, and basically said, enough! Just paint! So, it’s starting to go a little easier now. It’s a good thing because I want to start making regular videos again..maybe like every couple weeks.

First off, how do you like my new blog design!!?? It took me three days to do it, so I hope you like it. :) I was starting to pull my hair out yesterday morning, when suddenly, it all fell into place. I really love it!! It’s been a while since I changed my blog. I was content with the white, but I like these colors better..for now. I may change my mind again. Who knows? I get bored really easy.

Okay, now onward to my art journal. For those who don’t know my background, I am a self-taught artist. I’ve been painting just over 4 years now, full-time. I’ve taken five online classes, but I didn’t go to school for art. Back when I very first started, I taught myself how to paint by painting over pages in magazines. If you really pay attention to the color values on the page, you will learn how to blend colors, and shade. I still do this every so often in my art journal. It’s a great way to warm up. This page took me ten minutes to do, and then I was ready to move on to canvas.

The page got a little wrinkly from the gel medium I used to glue it into my book. But, I didn’t care. I don’t have any rules when it comes to art journals, except for one.. I don’t use expensive paint in my journals. My favorite paint to use is the Dick Blick student brand. It’s pretty cheap to buy, it’s creamy on my brush, and a bottle lasts forever.

I don’t recommend using this paint on paintings, tho. I learned the hard way on this one. Student grade paints should never be used in a painting you expect to stay bright and unchanged over time. The paint fades, and begins to look dull. I had to repaint quite a few paintings using Golden Acrylics once I discovered this was happening. When I first started out, I had no clue what paint to use. Now, I only use Artist grade paint on my paintings, but I still buy the cheap stuff for my journals. I only use my journals for play. If your art journals are masterpieces, you probably want to use the Artist grade paint inside.

I messed up her nose, but who cares?
No one would see this if I didn’t show it here, right?
Most of my art journals are private.
I use them for practice, playing around, and messing up.

Again, I didn’t use Golden paint on these pages.
The paint was there on my easel from my last painting.

And here’s another page. I forgot to take a before photo. This shot was taken quite far into it. The girl on the right had blonde hair, and looked completely different than she ended up looking.

This is the final shot. All done!

So there you have it. It’s really great practice, and fun to do. If you don’t know how to paint, look very carefully at the photo as you’re painting. Try to mix your paint the same colors you see. Paint a lot of magazine pages. I probably spent a full year painting this way before I dared to start painting on my own without the aid of a photo under my brush. This was way before I started painting on canvas. I only had my art journals, and art journals are so much easier than canvas. You can make all the mistakes you want, and not feel intimated.

Happy PPF! I’ll be making my blog rounds later. If you try this painting practice, let me know in the comments, so I can see.

I asked for reference photos a few days ago on FB, and here on my blog. I now have many photos to choose from, which is exciting! I’m getting really bored with the copyright free photos I found on my own.

I’m still taking photo requests. Email me if you’re interested.

I prefer to paint children and women. I do paint men, also, as a third choice. If any photo speaks to me, I will paint it. But, generally, children are my first choice. So, it’s no surprise I picked this little cutey pie with the pigtails and sunglasses to paint first.

This was where I picked up yesterday morning. I had the underpainting just about finished

And, this is what I got done yesterday. Still a work in progress. I’ll get back to work soon, and hopefully have it finished by the time I blog again.

Send me your photos!!

By submitting a photo, you are allowing me to post your photo here, and on other social media sites. And, the painting will be offered for sale when I’m finished. You can have first offer to buy it at a 10% discount, if you like.

The four at the top are mine!! Doesn’t Mary have a great eye? I keep telling her that she was born to do this!! And, by this, I mean, own a gallery, of course.

Sasha Degn’s portrait

I was painting this portrait Sasha when I had to rush off to NH because my mother was dying, a year and a half ago. Since then, I’ve had it hanging on my wall until I receive payment from Sasha. She needed a little time, which I’m happy about now. I asked Greg to take it down the other night because I realized it’s not finished!! Her forehead was still too dark. It was darker than in this photo. I’ve fixed it even more, now..repainted over everything.

I guess I was in such a state of grief after my Mom passed, that I wasn’t thinking straight. I’m glad I caught my mistake before the painting went off to Sasha’s home.

Sasha, if you’re reading this..please email me. I lost your email address when my computer died a couple months ago.

You can see progress shots, and a video of me painting this here.

Happy PPF, everyone! Hope you’re having a good one.

Hey, I’m looking for reference photos!! If you have one that you don’t mind me using, send it to me. And by “using” I mean I will be blogging here about it. Also, I will be sharing the painting on my FB page, Twitter, Flickr, and possibly more networking sites online The painting will be offered for sale when I’m finished. If you’d like first option to buy it, let me know when you send me the photo. Otherwise, it will be up for grabs when I’m finished.

See more of this week’s blog entries here.

She couldn’t believe her eyes
portrait of a young woman

I spent a few hours on Saturday sprucing up this painting, and I dropped the price!!! I know! Crazy, huh? Work more for less money. Who does that??? Now she’s brighter, prettier, and cheaper. How do you like the orange background?? Yeah, much better than boring gray.

How was your weekend? Greg rented a rototiller Saturday morning, and started to plant our garden. That made me very happy. It was so hot here last year, we didn’t get anything out of the garden. It was over 100F every day. So, yay! Veggies!

It’s been in the 80s here, windy, and sunny. We’ve been wearing shorts and sandals for a week now. But, today and for the rest of the week, rain. Hopefully, we won’t get scary storms. We’ll see.

She couldn’t believe her eyes
portrait of a young woman
9×12 on canvas board

I thought it looked so good that I decide to include it in my shipment to the Stagecoach Gallery. So, it’s on the way to the gallery right now, along with the paintings below. They will be shipped from there, if sold online. If they’re sold at the gallery, I will delete the listings from Etsy immediately.

1. Neener Neener 2. Corn on the Cob 3. She couldn’t believe her eyes

This are original, one-of-a-kind paintings. There will never be another like them. And, the prices are super low. I have a lot of time in these paintings..like A LOT. But, I decided I’d rather have these paintings hanging in someone’s house than sitting in a box in mine. I may change my mind about the prices, so if you like them, buy now.

And this one..Sand Pails was an after thought because it fit in the box. lol It’s one of Mary’s favorites, so I’m happy it’s on the way to her gallery.

And, one last photo because it’s funny..

Has anyone seen Sweet Pea? lol
She was sleeping peacefully in her box this morning.
sooo cute!!!

I don’t even know why I’m blogging. I’ve got nothing to offer, except this cat picture. I don’t even know her name, but she comes to visit me. That’s what I’ve been doing. That’s where I’ve been. Holding a cat. I haven’t been painting. Or fixing up my new studio. Or anything, really. The calendar on the wall says it’s still February, and I’ve been on the couch for days. Sick. I’m beginning to hate Spring and Summer. I know hate is a strong word. That’s why I’m using it. I’ll also use another strong word: ALLERGIES. The grass is a pretty shade of green, and the leaves are coming out. Flowers are blooming, and I am a miserable, head achy, stuffy headed, feverish mess. Yeah. ‘Nough said?

And to think this is just the start. Kill me now!

At least I have a sleeping buddy. Sweet Pea!! She’s going to turn 1 year old on March 27th. aw! I am going to bake a cake, and celebrate. 

When You Were Young
abstract
NFS at this time

I’ve been trying to frame and box up some paintings to ship up to Mary at the Stagecoach Gallery. Not the one above, that’s mine, but some others. I’ve been doing this for a week now, and I haven’t got far. It would take only a few minutes, maybe an hour to pull this together, but I just can’t wrap my head around doing it. I keep telling myself, it’s only five paintings. That’s it! FIVE. And, then I think, maybe tomorrow. Yeah, tomorrow, I’ll feel better. But, I don’t. And, days are bleeding into each other, and I just can’t get it together.

But, forget all that. I’m listening to Bon Iver, and so should you. Sit back with headphones on, put the video on full screen, hit play, and see if you don’t relax and forget all your troubles, too. And, if you like this song, go check out his website. He has the most beautiful videos! Oh, Lovey! I know you will like it.

Paintings on the wall are by L Gail Garrett (left), and George Zupp, aka Chicken George.

This used to be our living room.
Now it’s my new studio!! YAY!!

It’s not all set up. It’s still a frightful mess, but we did all we could for one Sunday. Moved all the living room furniture into the dining room. Whew.  We even started to paint the walls. And, when I say “we”, I mean Greg. I helped, tho. I told him what to do. lol

This is going to be Greg’s table.
I need to bring another one in from the back porch.
And, I’m going to move a bookcase over on that wall for my paint.
It’s stormy and gray outside today.
The photos make it look bright and sunny..it’s just the camera.
It’s actually quite dark in here.
40% chance of tornadoes later today.

That’s Big Red Fred and Emma cat in the corner.
That silly cat loves that silly dog.
She is never far from his side.

My photos are crooked, not the house. lol

The room in the background..that’s my original studio, and it’s not moving. I’m just expanding out into the new room. Now I won’t be so cramped. Oh, it’s still a giant mess..don’t be looking at that, now. lol

This is looking out at my new big room!! I have to be patient until we can work on it again next weekend. In the meantime, I have got to paint something! I don’t think I’ve picked up a brush for 3 weeks now. Yikes. Have a great Tuesday!

I left all these images at 800 pixels, so go ahead and click on them to enlarge if you like.

Contrary to popular belief, it’s not completely flat here.
There are small mountains hills in Kansas. lol

see? there are hills everywhere!
Flint Hills

Very friendly geese at Chase State Park

 Is there any doubt why I think it’s beautiful here?

So, I’ve been away, and I’ve totally neglected everything this week..so, what I was supposed to do has been pushed to next week. Sorry about that, but I just needed a break.

I took over 400 photos. I joked with Greg that I was going to upload every one of them to my blog. lol Okay, so I won’t add every single one, but I’ll probably do another post or two with more photos. Can’t help myself.

]]> http://www.mizkatie.com/road-trip-to-the-hills/feed/ 0 http://www.mizkatie.com/oh-hello/ http://www.mizkatie.com/oh-hello/#comments Fri, 17 Feb 2012 15:35:14 +0000 mizkatie http://www.mizkatie.com/?p=3669

4×4 inches on canvas board
Oh! Hello! Is available in my Etsy shop.

I’ve been in a painting slump this week. I haven’t painted since last weekend! That’s kinda weird for me, but I’ve learned to just go with the flow. I’m coming up on my 4 year painting anniversary, so I’m used to the highs and lows now. I did a lot of busy work in my Etsy shop instead. Lots of photo taking, and listing. All stuff I fall back on when I’m not in the painting mood.

5×7 on canvas board
Teacher Teacher is available in my Etsy shop

I’ve got a book calling my name later today, Cat’s Eye by Margret Atwood, so I’m gonna be sacked out on the couch. This is a re-read for me, since it was so good the first time around. I started reading it late last night, and read ’til I just couldn’t keep my eyes open a minute more.

5×7 on canvas board
Little girl with long red hair, and an orange polka dot dress.
Jinger is available in my etsy shop 

I hope you all have a great Friday, and weekend. Happy PPF! I’m looking forward to visiting everyone today to see what you’ve been up to this week.

Be sure to check back in during the week next week. I’m going to do a blog post with photos of my homemade light box. Sharon asked if I would in the comments the other day. I just need to take photos..so sometime next week I’ll have it posted.

Thom Yorke from Radiohead
original painting by me, Miz Katie
Available in my Etsy shop

 I rearranged my studio yesterday, and moved my light box. It’s been sitting over in the corner, not being used. I was about to take it down, and cram it into the only closet this old house has, which is here in my studio.

But, as soon as I was having thoughts of doing that, I realized it was cold outside, and dark. How will I photograph anymore at night? What will I do on cloudy, dreary days? And, then I thought of this painting of Thom Yorke from Radiohead, and how awful the pictures looked in my Etsy listing, and how I’ve thought for months now that I need to retake these photos..and well, it led to me find a new place for the light box, and these new photos of my Thom Yorke painting is the outcome. New, lovely photographs. And bottom line, the light box stays. I need it. Isn’t it funny how one thought will lead to another and another until you get it all figured out. I can’t believe I thought I’d never use my light box again.

Thom Yorke from Radiohead
original painting by me, Miz Katie
Available in my Etsy shop 

 Thom Yorke from Radiohead
original painting by me, Miz Katie
Available in my Etsy shop

And, another band I’ve been listening to today besides Radiohead..
Plants and Animals.
Check them out!

 Wire wrapped Sterling Silver Earrings

Sterling Silver Earrings

 gold filled earrings with coral sphere

Pink Tourmaline

lapis lazuli

]]> http://www.mizkatie.com/earrings-for-her-by-the-agteam/feed/ 5 http://www.mizkatie.com/new-paintings-of-cute-little-girls-with-their-eyes-closed/ http://www.mizkatie.com/new-paintings-of-cute-little-girls-with-their-eyes-closed/#comments Thu, 09 Feb 2012 14:42:09 +0000 mizkatie http://www.mizkatie.com/?p=3622

Hello!
Meet 1. Maggie, 2. Amelie 3. Petunia 4. Harriet 5. Myra 6. Delora

These are priced at only $25. They are 4×6 inches, and a lot of work goes into each one. Starting with a layer of molding paste, drying time, some are sanded, then pencil, and building up from there with paint, ink, pastels, and whatever else I needed to get the job done. I almost hate to sell them so cheap, but I like to keep my prices affordable.

You need a new, cute little addition to your walls, yes?

I’ve been super busy this week. I got an email request for a custom painting Sunday, just before the Superbowl game. So, I dropped everything to get it done, and in the mail yesterday morning. Whew! I think that’s the fastest I’ve ever completed a painting, including mailing it. Three days. Yikes! lol It’s a fabulous painting, too. It’s the best painting I’ve done this year. I think it will forever be one of my favorites. I’ll show you sometime next week. Have a great Thursday!

Gearing up for a Superbowl party. I absolutely love the Superbowl. Ohh, yes!! I’ve watched it every year for the past oh ten or so years. I love football!!

wichita, ks

Okay, forget that..I like the food and drink. Go Pats!! I mean, Giants!! No, Pats!! Eh, I don’t really care. But, if Dallas was playing, I’d be excited.

wichita, ks

Got the jello shots made this morning! I’m going to make egg rolls from a recipe Misty gave us in class last week, minus the mushrooms cuz I don’t like them. ew! slugs! lol I made the recipe once last week, and it was sooo good. So, gotta try it again. I’m not sure what else I’m gonna make yet. Still planning the menu.

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And, because what’s a blog post without a video? Next week I’ll have one of my own painting videos edited, but for now, enjoy one of my favorite songs, Cotton, by John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats. Have a great weekend! See you on Monday!

This song is for the rats
Who hurled themselves into the ocean
When they saw that the explosives in the cargo hold
Were just about to blow

This song is for the soil
That’s toxic clear down to the bedrock
Where no thing of consequence can grow
Drop your seeds there, let them go
Let them go

Let them all go

this song is for the people
who tell their family that they’re sorry
for things they can’t and won’t
feel sorry for.

and once there was a desk
and now it’s in a storage locker somewhere
and this song is for the stickpins and the cottons
i left in the top drawer.
let ‘em all go..let ‘em all go.

i wanna sing one for the cars
that are right now headed silent down the highway
and it’s dark and there is nobody driving
and something has got to give

i saw you standing by the roadside
you didn’t know that I was watching
well, now
you know
Let it all go

Let ‘em all go
Let it all go

journal page

Page from my art journal.
I’ve been working on abstract paintings, and I really love it.
I mean, I love the process. I’m not so good at the painting part, yet.
I need more practice.

I also painted 3 seascapes tonight. One after the other. And, I like them all. Even the one I completely destroyed, and had to start again.

This page isn’t finished. Not sure what I’m going to do with it. But, it doesn’t feel complete yet. Got some playing left to do.

charcoal pencil sketch
art journal page

i love my back porch

Crazy! It was 70F on February 1st. My back porch was warm and sunny. Tonight, a thunderstorm has been hanging overhead for about an hour, and will be sticking around all day tomorrow. Looking forward to that, as I always do. I love stormy days, and we haven’t had many this winter. Sunny and warm it’s been. I was kinda looking forward to a snow storm or two, but nah. Not this year, I guess. There’s a blizzard just slightly north of us, but we’re gonna get lots of rain.

Big Red Fred

70F, and the big red dog was panting, and begging to come inside. Fred can’t take the heat or the cold. He is very fussy about the temperature, and wants it controlled. Not too cold. Not too hot.

Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.
~Lao Tzu

Lana Del Rey was on Letterman tonight, and I was watching. I don’t care what the critics say about her. I think they’re all wrong! I love her style and voice.

Happy PPF everyone! It’s late, and I gotta get to bed. Be sure to click on the big “Miz Katie” at the top of the page, and look back at other posts. I’ve been updating quite a bit this week.

peanut butter cookies

Wordless Wedmesday

The heat is OFF.
The windows are OPEN.
It is such a beautiful day!

I started the day off with music, watching this video for the umpteenth time.

Oh, hey..if you like this song, Travel as Equals, by Joseph Arthur, head over to his site and download his new double album for free!! It don’t get no better than that!

Greg and Sweet Pea kitty, who was born without eyes.
Greg didn’t want me to take his picture cuz he had bed hair.
i took it anyway.
I’m glad I did.

After kissing Greg goodbye, I started playing in my art journal. We’re working on abstract today in Misty’s class. So sooo much fun. I can’t tell you how much I love this class. And no, I’m not making any monetary gain for writing about her class every day. lol

Isn’t this ugly?
Yeah.
I know.
And, I LOVE it!!
lol

Sometimes, it is pure bliss to let yourself play without being concerned with the outcome, especially when you’re a working artist. Sometimes, I don’t want to make something good enough to sell. Sometimes, I just want to make mud on a page in my art journal, and call it good enough. I made purplish slush, and I don’t even like the color purple. lol

Cherish your vision; Cherish your ideals; Cherish the music that stirs in your heart, the beauty that forms in your mind, the loveliness that drapes your purest thoughts. If you remain true to them, your world will at last be built.
~James Allen

camera setup

I’ve been painting with the camera rolling lately. I want to get back into making youtube videos. So, yesterday I filmed for 3 or 4 hours. Hopefully, I get something to show out of it.

Oh, this has turned into one of those long blog posts again. lol I’ve really been enjoying blogging lately, and I think I’ve found my rhythm here.

I’m going to leave you with a really cool album to stream by Dylan Connor. Click and listen.

It is so crazy warm here this year. I saw these motorcycles out on 50 a couple weeks ago.

old dirt road

Greg took this photo of me at the river by our apartment in WV a few years ago.

pretty blue sky

cows

Wordless Wednesday - the site seems to be down this morning, but I’m going to post my photos anyway.

little girl with black hair and pink polka dot hat hugging a chicken
original painting
She won’t let go
9×12 on wrapped canvas
sides painted black

She won’t let go is available in my etsy shop now.

toast made out of homemade Italian bread, plain pasta, tea, and decaf have been my only food for the past week and a half. please, be careful of the flu this year. i didn’t see it coming, and it has knocked me flat on my backside. 

i am worn out, and moving in slow motion. if i owe you something, an email, a phone call, it will be a couple days. whoever called me at midnight the other night, just to hear my voice, i don’t know who you are, private number. so, call back in a couple days. a week would be better, for me. it’s always nice to hear from you, but i’m feeling rather quiet, and anti-social at the moment.

hopefully, tomorrow will be a better day. 

Wordless Wednesday

Just before Christmas this painting sold in my Etsy shop. The buyer, Windy, sent me a link to her blog, so I got to see the painting hanging on her wall. It’s happily living in its new home in Hawaii..and I’m freaking  (ahem) only slightly jealous. lol Gah! Hawaii!!! sigh.

I’ve got to say, this is the most exciting thing to happen to an artist. Usually, when a painting sells, and I begin to package it for shipment, I am silently saying goodbye to it. I am quite sure, I am never going to see it again. Sometimes, it’s hard, but because I’m a working artist, I am okay with letting my work go out into the world. I never begin a painting thinking it is mine, unless it truly is for me. Right from the start, it’s as if I’m working for someone else. It’s just a mindset that I have to have, otherwise, I’d never be able to sell anything. All my paintings would be too precious to sell, which is not how I feel. Still, sometimes it’s a little sad. So, to get an email with a link, so I can see where the painting is..well, that’s just the greatest!! Thank you, Windy!!

Go check out Windy’s blog post, and you too may be jealous of where my painting is living.

Sleep is the best meditation.
The Dalai Lama

Your eyes are not lying to you. Sweet Pea is now bigger than Lola, and is outgrowing the dog’s bed. lol Teenage Mutant kitten!! She isn’t a year old until the end of March!

3AM..Sweet Pea woke me up at 3AM today!! In case you’re keeping track, like I do. lol Four hours sleep. Thump. Head|desk.

I’m over on The Altered Page today answering the question “If you could take a class from one artist from anytime in history, including the present, who would it be and why?”  Go check out my answer!

Her Name is Grace

Sleeping Beauty
SOLD!!

Long Way From Home

Blue Song Bird

I woke up at 4am. Or, I should say, Sweet Pea woke me at 4am. lol I had this new series on my mind, so I jumped up, and into the studio. I haven’t stopped, except to eat breakfast.

I haven’t felt this excited about a series in a long time. I am doing these on cardboard with inexpensive paint, so I can sell them cheaper than my portraits.

I need to take these outside to get better photos, but this will give you an idea. So, get ready! I’m going to start listing them in my Etsy shop this afternoon.

and i like them!

These glasses were a looong time coming. I was quoted a price over $600 for new glasses when I lived in WV, a few years ago. They told me that my right eye was changing rapidly, and the glasses probably wouldn’t last me a year. And, my eyeglasses are crazy hard to make because my prescription is so difficult, that’s why the high price. But, there was no way I could afford that much money, and Blue Cross would only pay for the doctor visit, not the glasses. So, I got contacts instead, and waited on getting new glasses. Well, the contacts ran out long ago..before we moved back here, actually, and I’ve been been walking around bumping into things for about four years now.

Recently, my sight got worse, and I found it hard to function. I couldn’t see. I’m blind in my left eye, anyway. I’ve never had any depth perception. My right eye has an astigmatism. I can see the computer screen fine, but anything nearer or farther away was nothing but a blur. I was afraid to drive. I couldn’t read a book, the newspaper or a menu. I couldn’t work on small art pieces. I had bought some cheap reading glasses, but it wasn’t cutting it anymore. It was frustrating. So, I got my eyes tested again, and got my prescription.

Then I started saving up money because I figured it was going to cost $600 or $700, right? And, then I found JustEyewear, and even with line-less bifocals it only cost me $120!! I got protective covering, and all that stuff..and I am thrilled with the glasses. The order took a lot longer than it said it would on the website..like over a month. But, I don’t care. I can SEE!! And, Blue Cross paid the doctor visit, except for $25, so my entire bill ended up $145.00..that’s it!!

So, if you’re looking for affordable glasses, check them out. I am really happy with them, and will go back soon to buy another pair.

Happy New Year!

Greg is still on vacation, and that always throws me off from blogging, painting, and everything. We saw the new year in together, watching Kathy Griffin and Anderson Cooper on CNN. OMGosh..hilarious!! Some people were complaining on Twitter that she undressed, down to her bra and panties, and their kids were watching. But hey..it’s Kathy Griffin..what do you expect?? She’s not a school teacher. heh. Put your kids to bed, and let the adults enjoy the fun. Greg and I were rolling around on the couch, howling. So freaking funny!!

We went out into the country, and shot some photos of cows. And, I thought about the changes I want to make this year. I don’t do resolutions. I am too flaky, and it’s never done me any good in the past. So, I avoid even trying.

Her Name is Grace
sold!
thank you!

All I know is I’m working on a new series right now on cardboard..and it will be a lot like the $10 art series or the Plain Jane Series, although the price will be higher, but not as high as my portraits. I’m aiming for 100 new ones, if I don’t run out of cardboard. lol I don’t want to work on any serious paintings right now, unless I get a custom order, which I’m kinda hoping won’t happen. I know that’s not a good thing to say for business, but..

She Doesn’t Want Any Pity

Honestly, for now, I just want to play, loosen up, and not take everything so seriously. And, since Christmas is over, my chance of getting a commission right now is probably slim to none.

Hipster

I don’t believe that every painting has to be better than the one before. I’m sure I’ll tire of my fun, playful series again, and go back to more serious paintings..but for the beginning of 2012, I’m going to pull out my crayons, inexpensive paint, and play!!

Conan O’Brien original portrait painting

So, I’m doing the end of the year tidying up thing, like most artists do. Finishing paintings that somehow got pushed aside for other more important paintings, and listing the paintings that have been sitting in a pile for a year (or more). Lots of new stuff in my shop!!

This year I started working much smarter. I no longer take so much time on a painting, and I finish what I start, for the most part. Last year, I had over 35 paintings unfinished at the end of December. !!! I’m still new at this, and at that time, I had no idea what I was doing. I don’t think I could grasp the concept of ‘start a painting and keep painting until it’s finished’. lol  It took me about 6 months into 2011 to finish that giant mess that I started in 2010. It was not joyful in the least.

Once a painting has been sitting around in a pile, neglected/rejected, I don’t want to finish it. It was a horrible way to start out a new year..finishing old projects that I no longer had the energy or desire to do. So, this year I only have 3 to finish, but I have quite a few to get listed.

Conan O’Brien original portrait painting

Which leads me to this Conan O’Brien painting. It’s been more than a year since I finished painting it. It’s been sitting that long because I just couldn’t put a price tag on it. I once told my friend, Mary, I would never sell it because of all the time I put into it. It took me over a month to complete this painting. It was a hard lesson for me to learn. Now I paint much smarter, and it doesn’t take me nearly as long to finish a portrait.

Conan O’Brien original portrait painting

Well, enough time has passed now. The memory of how long this painting took me is starting to fade. A little. I have finally offered it for sale.

Conan O’Brien original portrait painting

Oh, my! The weather has been so gorgeous here. Today it will be 60F, and I’ll be spending some time out on the back porch with my book. Love love this weather!!

Little girl with black hair, wearing white jacket, and paisley skirt holding a snow bird in her hand. Original painting.

9×12 on wrapped canvas
staples in back
sides are painted black

Snow Bird is for sale now in my Etsy shop.

]]> http://www.mizkatie.com/snow-bird/feed/ 0 http://www.mizkatie.com/merry-christmas/ http://www.mizkatie.com/merry-christmas/#comments Sun, 25 Dec 2011 15:43:16 +0000 mizkatie http://www.mizkatie.com/?p=2972

Merry Christmas!
May this be a magical time for you and your family.

I had some old postcards lying around, and decided to use them for the Paper Stories Series I started a couple months ago. These will be available soon in my shop, still working on them.

I caught Sweet Pea napping like this the other day.
So cute!  

Santa and the Scared Kid is now in my Etsy shop.

I have word constipation. I keep trying to write entries, but eh..the words aren’t flowing for me. So, back to painting I go.

And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow, stood puzzling and puzzling: “How could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store? What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more!”

- Dr. Seuss, How The Ginch Stole Christmas

My Sweet Bird of Youth painting sold yesterday afternoon!! I’m so happy!! She’s off to her new home this morning, and will be living in NY now. YAY!

I’ll be painting another like this, maybe this weekend, so if you were saving up for it..keep saving!! :)

If a painting isn’t in your budget right now,
8″x10″ prints are available in my Etsy shop.

I have to specify that’s 8×10 inches not 8×10 feet. Someone asked me last week if my 4″ x 4″ art was 4 feet x 4 feet..um, no. I couldn’t afford to make art that big for only 10 bucks. Sorry.

Santa and the scared kid..I’ve had an image in my head for the past couple weeks, and I couldn’t shake it. Me, as a kid, scared when placed on Santa’s lap. And, since I couldn’t stop thinking about it, I painted this over the weekend.

The little girl doesn’t really look like I did, except for the red hair. One of these days, I’m going to get brave and look at the old slides that I got from my Mom. There may be a photo of me and Santa in one of those boxes. I have been avoiding looking at old photos since she died last year. Some day, maybe..

She Has Been Waiting
Free shipping within the USA
and reduced International shipping..
if you saw this earlier on FB,
I had the International shipping waaay wrong.
I was thinking it was canvas,
not canvas board, which is lighter.
It’s fixed now.

It’s really been too quiet around my blog lately. I’ve been working on a commission for the past week. I think I’m finished with it now, so I’ll have more time to write here, visit other blogs, and answer emails. Everything gets put aside when I get a commission. It gets my full and complete attention until it’s finished. Since I can’t show the painting because the buyer requested it remain private, I thought I’d share the paintings I recently relisted on Etsy.

If you’d like to make a reasonable offer on the Snow Kept Falling painting above, please comment or email me. I have received many convos on Etsy about this painting, but sadly, it just sits in my shop. I’d rather have it go to a nice home, rather than sit in a dark drawer, and never see the light of day. So, feel free to make an offer.

Sand Pails

I considered not relisting this painting of the  little girls on the beach when the listing expired on Etsy. I know it’s out of season, at least here in the USA. But, I decided that it might help you remember that warmer days are possible, and will come around again. You can have the reminder daily if you purchase this painting for your home.

Gold Earrings

Snow photography by Irene Suchocki

The star of Bethlehem 

 Where we love is home

Hand thrown stoneware bowl

To see more of this treasury that I made for the FABulous AGTeam, click here!

Greg and I went house hunting out in the country last week. This guy could have been our new neighbor, but neither of us were crazy about the location. The pony was cute, but what a dump..the entire street was run down, and looked like a landfill. I’ve never been there before, and I don’t want to ever go back. lol It was just a little creepy. I took more photos, but didn’t have my SLR with me..didn’t get good shots, in other words. Aw, well..it’s not like it was anything to look at, anyway. lol

Santa Claus prints are available

 Other than that, I’ve been busy in my Etsy shop, listing, selling, and relisting. The original Santa Claus is no longer available. I sent it to my sil, Sandy, because she kept telling me how much she liked it.

My favorite part of this painting is how his glasses are magnifying his face. I still have no idea how I pulled that off. Painting is magical. If I had to do that again, I probably couldn’t.

This one is called Snowing Again. The original has been sold; however, prints are available.

The original painting, Wandering, has also been sold, but prints are available.

Young girl wearing mauve coat, and black mittens.
Holding black bird in her hand.
Original 9×12 painting on wrapped canvas.
Available NOW!!
Sweet Bird of Youth
I was inspired by the song by Nat King Cole when I named this one.

Young girl wearing navy blue short sleeve dress, holding a black bird in her hand.
9×12 Original painting
on wrapped canvas
staples in back, not sides.
Sides have been painted black.
Ready to hang or frame.
 Available NOW!!
On a Cold Winter Day

FREE shipping within the USA.
Reduced International shipping.
Guaranteed to be there for Christmas in the USA,
if you order soon.
I ship as soon as payment has been received.

To Reach A Fairy’s House Before Dark, Run
sold out!
thank you!

He Closed His Eyes

3 balloons

shh! Your life is beautiful.

Sweet Pea and I have been hanging out on the back porch. It’s good for her to get some fresh air, and get away from the kitchen. I think she’s gained 5 pounds over the holiday. I found out she loves coconut cream pie, and stuffing. And, this morning Greg made biscuits, and she gobbled part of mine down mighty quick. lol

I haven’t painted in a couple weeks. I’ve been sick with the flu, and Greg has been home for a week on vacation. So, I took the past week off to spend with him, and it was so relaxing. I don’t want to go back to work. lol But, I must. Tomorrow is a new day, and I’ll be all alone. I guess it’s time to hit the easel and start painting again. sigh. Still not feeling 100% well, but I’m better than I was two weeks ago.

Oh, how tall she is!!

There were geese flying by, and lots of black birds migrating..she was very interested in the sound.

It was funny..I was talking to my stepdad on the phone a few days ago, and he said, “She still can’t see, huh?” heehee Nope, she still can’t see. I don’t think she’s going to grow eyes anytime soon. I thought it was sweet of him to ask, tho. :)

She Couldn’t Believe Her Eyes
portrait of Tami Snow

She Couldn’t Believe Her Eyes
portrait of Tami Snow

This is an older painting that I just relisted this morning. The background used to be orange on this portrait, but I changed it to white. I keep looking at it thinking I need to change it back to orange. The whole thing pops more when it’s orange. hm..

My energy level has been very low lately, and I took the weekend off from AEDM. Day 14! Almost half way there! Hopefully, I ‘ll have something new to show tomorrow. I’m trying to resist the urge to go curl up on the couch with Sweet Pea and watch Netflix movies. She’s out there right now, and I swear she’s beckoning me.

Listen to internet radio with AS Rebecca Parsons on Blog Talk Radio

Do you listen to this radio show?
I was disappointed that Traci Bunkers wasn’t able to be there last night,
but Rebecca talked about social media, which was really interesting too.

fly
Miz Katie original painting 
girl with arms outstretched, getting ready to fly
prints are available also

I don’t know how long I’m going to offer this painting for sale. It’s one of my favorites. So, if it doesn’t sale fast at this low price, I may delete the listing, and keep it for myself. So, if you want it, you should buy it before I change my mind about listing it.

It’s day 11 of AEDM. Oh, yeah..11.11.11. How cool.
And, happy PPF, too.

I started reading I’d Rather Be in the Studio! last week. I can only say positive things about it so far. I’ve had it lying around the house for about 6 months, and haven’t had time to read it yet. I’m taking lots of notes because I’m sure I’ll forget a lot. It’s jam packed with good information.

I’ve been editing this video of Sweet Pea for two days now. Have I told you how much I hate editing video lately? lol It just isn’t something I enjoy at all, but I make myself do it. How else will you be able to see my amazing cat in action? I’d invite you over to visit, but my house is a mess right now. lol

I didn’t give it much thought, and put it against the wall in my studio. Well, she hardly ever used it. I was cleaning the other day, and decided I was going to chuck this thing..it is in the way. I put it out in the middle of the floor, and this is what happened..

I guess we have to keep the thing now. lol

work in progress
Shipwrecked

I have an awful critic who lives in my head. I hate her. Whenever I’m doing fun, whimsical paintings she thinks I should be doing more serious portraits. And, when I’m doing portraits, she says why are your paintings so stuffy? Why aren’t you doing something fun, whimsical, more carefree? I just can’t win! I can never satifsy that stupid annoying voice in my head that is never happy with what I’m doing.

This is coming from someone who has been studying Buddhism for years. Live in the moment!! Yeah. Sure. I really have to start applying what I learned to my art and work.

 AEDM day 10

That quote over in my sidebar..

“I do this not for you. I do it so I can shut up the gnawing, dimwitted critics in my brain who tell me I am nothing.” — Natalie Goldberg

Yeah, that is me, except I don’t think my critic ever shuts up.

Do you have a mean critic in your head talking nonstop? Tell me about her/him in the comments below.

]]> http://www.mizkatie.com/two-girls-in-a-boat-finished-painting/feed/ 4 http://www.mizkatie.com/morning-coffee-original-painting/ http://www.mizkatie.com/morning-coffee-original-painting/#comments Tue, 08 Nov 2011 16:21:20 +0000 mizkatie http://www.mizkatie.com/?p=2648
Morning Coffee
original painting
5×7 on canvas board

Morning Coffee

I need my coffee this morning! I was woken abruptly by a cat named Sweet Pea running FAST over the top of my face, and down my body WITH HER CLAWS OUT the entire time. She needed traction, I guess. Needless to say, I hurt. I have scratches. And, I was angry. It’s not the first time this has happened, and it probably won’t be the last. Not a great way to wake up on a Tuesday.

This, after what she did yesterday. She was in my arms, purring, and all of a sudden she let out a yowl…jumped up, scratched and bit my face, and then jumped off me. Oh, she’s a real “sweet” pea, alright. I keep saying she needs a name change because sweet she ain’t. She’s really the most mean spirited cat I’ve ever had. Don’t let the “she doesn’t have eyes” part fool you for a second.

She can be snugly like this one minute, then..look out! She has bitten me in the face more times than I can count..for no reason. I’m not bugging her or playing. She’s cuddling and purring, and then she snaps!!! She’s freaking psycho. I don’t like it. I don’t like it at all. And just because she was born without eyes doesn’t mean I have to like everything about her.

Available in my etsy shop now
Morning Coffee

 So, I got up early. Like 5am early. I probably could have gone back to sleep because I was up quite late, and I’m tired. But, it would have been too much work to get back to sleep, and I thought I would probably sleep late if I did that. So, I’ll switch back over to being a morning person for a while. ha.

Seriously, I can’t decide if I’m a night person or morning. Either one, doesn’t matter. I like being both, and I keep switching back and forth. I used to think I should pick a schedule and stick with it. But, I have finally come to the conclusion that in the big scheme of things, it matters not. I am an artist. Not a 9 to 5er. I work at home, so if I’m in my studio at 5am or midnight, who cares? I’m getting the work done. It doesn’t matter what time it is. I’ve been beating myself up over stuff like this for too long. Truth is, I rather like having a different work schedule every day. Sure is better than being stuck in a boring 9 to 5 routine. Been there, done that. Hated it. I’m my own boss now, and it’s about time I act like it. Yes!!!

Anyway..I digress. Morning Coffee is painting I did a few months back, but I decided to spruce it up a bit yesterday before putting it in my Etsy shop. It had words on it, but I like the plain black background better.

Day 8 of Art Every Day Month. Woo!

Are you a morning or night person? Do you have a messed up sleep schedule like I do? Let me know in the comments.

well, hello up there
girl wearing white dress, looking up at a bird in a tree
original painting

Hey You Didn’t Say it Back
Was on the front page of Etsy today.
Woo HOO!!

I think this is the 4th time this year that one of my paintings made it to the front page. I am so grateful.

Pretty Please 
little girl with her hands clasped together.
Wishing, hoping for..something.

Day 6 of AEDM. Starting where I left off yesterday. It was really starting to fill in. I had the skin tone going in the direction I wanted, but the eyes were bugging me. Didn’t really like them, and the more I looked at them, the more I knew they had to go. Funny because when I look at the photos, I like the eyes. Just needed a little tweaking. But, no..I blocked them out, and started over.

She looks evil, doesn’t she? I left her eyes like this for quite some time, just so I could laugh at the demon look. lol

This is the finished painting..

closeup of her face

Pretty Please is available in my Etsy shop now.

If you like this post, please share it on FB, Twitter, or with a friend. I really appreciate getting word out about my art. Thank you!!

Pretty Please

This is a sketch of a little girl with her hands clasped together, wishing, hoping for..something. I don’t enjoy drawing at all. I get some contour lines down, and I’m out. The magic happens with the paint, for me. I learned how to contour draw when I took a class with Jane DesRosier. She has another class called Portraits and Papers going on right now. She teaches how to contour draw in this class, also. I highly recommend Jane’s classes. She’s a great teacher, and a sweet person.

Pretty Please

Getting the under painting worked out. Amy said yesterday in the comments that she doesn’t like doing the undercoat, but I love it. It’s the foundation for all the layers that come next. Little specks of the undercoating show through to make the painting come alive.

Pretty Please

I’m going to stop here today. I will show the rest of the process tomorrow. This is day 4 of AEDM. I had to take a blogging break yesterday. I tried several times to come up with a blog post, but just didn’t have anything to say or show. Some days I feel so quiet, especially in the fall and winter months.

Just lowered the price on Heart Flowers and relisted it in my Etsy shop. 
Edit: this painting has been destroyed, and no longer for sale.
I lowered the price, and nobody bought it.
Honestly,
I didn’t like this painting, so it had to go.
I will reuse the canvas for a painting I do like.
:)

.

And, I’m going to leave you with this adorable cat. I am so in love with Maru, and now you will be, too

a blurry look at my studio wall

Whenever I turn on my camera, I test to see if I have memory card in it by snapping a photo. If the shutter goes off, I know the card is in it. I get some interesting pictures of my studio this way.

Relisted in my Etsy shop:

Sound of the wind

It’s the first day of AEDM! If you haven’t signed up yet, head on over to Leah’s site.

I started painting this yesterday. I feel like doing something whimsical and fun right now. I haven’t titled this one yet. Right now I’m calling it 2 girls in a boat, but I’m sure I’ll come up with something better than that as time goes on.

This is the start of a series, I think. I’m not sure how many I’ll do, but I feel it would be a shame to only do one. I’m working out the story of these two girls in my head as I’m painting.

****************************************

But, how I am to get any work done with this going on at my feet…

This goes on all the time under my desk. Sweet Pea steals Lola’s doggy bed as soon as Lola goes outside to go potty, and she won’t give it back. So, Lola stands with her back toward Sweet Pea, and growls and shakes all over like an angry little girl. Sweet Pea really doesn’t care. She lounges, stretches, and gives herself a long bath at her leisure. Lola gets soo impatient, and starts jumping up in my legs, whining. She can’t stand it!! Not only has Sweet Pea taken over her bed, but she’s taken over the entire household since she came to live with us in June.

Sweet Pea kitten was born without eyes, but she sure acts like she can see. Check out Sweet Pea’s Youtube Channel to see her in action, and subscribe!!!

****************************************

Just relisted in my etsy shop this morning..

Tattooed Angel 
9×12 on canvas board

And, in case you didn’t listen yet..

Misty Mawn’s interview

I was over on Seth’s blog yesterday with my favorite technique and tool, which is prepping the canvas with my palette knife and light molding paste before I paint on it. So, I figured it’s a good time to show you how I prepare my canvas or canvas board, whichever I’m using at the time.

Light Molding Paste

When I first started painting two and a half years ago, I had no idea exactly what I was doing. I bought a box of canvas, and primed each one with gesso, and I was on my way. Well, I quickly learned, I don’t like painting on canvas, and almost gave up on it completely. It isn’t a smooth surface at all. Even expensive canvas has little holes in it. Those little holes are hard to fill in with paint. Have you ever seen a painting on canvas up close?

This is an example. I painted Jack White without using anything on the canvas, except gesso as the primer. See all those little holes peeking through? I don’t mind the look so much after the painting is finished, but working on it wasn’t much fun, for me. When I’m painting a portrait, I like a smoother surface to paint on. This painting took me an extra long time because I kept trying to fill in the holes, until I finally gave up. lol Funny now, looking back. At the time, I was frustrated.

So, I thought to fix the problem, I would layer on thicker coats of gesso, and more of it!! Lots of coats of gesso!! Only thing is it didn’t solve my problem. There were still holes in the canvas. For a while, I solved my problem by covering the canvas with watercolor paper. It made it much smoother, but then, I had lines to deal with. Gah!

Are you Kidding Me? is an example of using watercolor paper on the canvas board.  See all the lines from the edges of the paper? Don’t get me wrong, I like it. For me, it was better than painting on holes. lol But, I don’t want every painting to look like this.

Light Molding Paste

Finally I figured out MOLDING PASTE is the answer. I’ve tried both regular molding paste and light molding paste. I prefer the light better. It is creamier, and less heavy. Spreads on the canvas more like butter or frosting. Regular molding paste is more like the consistency of peanut butter. Thick, less creamy.

I spread it on fairly thick, and then go over it to smooth it out, as much as possible. As I’m smoothing it, I am scrapping off the excess molding paste. It ends up being a much thinner coat than when I first layer it on. The picture above shows how I left this canvas to dry. Don’t worry too much about the lines. It used to take me forever to put the paste on because I tried to get it seamless, but it’s just easier not worry so much about it, and fix it later with some sand paper.

I let mine dry for two or three hours. It will feel cold, but dry to the touch. Then I spritz the canvas with a little water, and start lightly sanding. You can let it dry overnight, but it’s harder to sand when it’s super dry. It takes less elbow grease if you don’t let it set up completely. You want to sand with a light hand, if it’s not completely dry. Don’t sand if it hasn’t dried to the touch. If you get molding paste on your fingers when you touch the surface, it’s not dry enough. Drying times will vary depending on humidity and seasons. If it’s cold in your house, you’ll probably need more drying time.

You can purchase similar sanding blocks on Amazon. I tried to find them on Dick Blick, but didn’t come up with anything in the search. I think I bought mine locally at Harbor Freight, but I’m not sure.

Little Brown Fox on canvas board

You don’t have to sand. It really depends on the look you’re going for. If I’m doing a fun, loose painting, I just want to get going. So I start painting over the lumps, lines, and bumps. Little Brown Fox is a good example of me not wanting to sand. I really like the lines and bumps sometimes. Depends on what I’m trying to achieve.

This portrait of Sasha was done on canvas. Because it was a more serious painting, I didn’t want lumps and bumps on it. So, I sanded it before I started painting. See how smooth it is? No lines from paper underneath it, and no little holes poking through.

Light Molding PasteDramatically reduces the weight traditional molding paste would add, while increasing flexibility. Holds peaks, and dries to an opaque, matte finish, making it a wonderful additive to acrylic paint. Makes an excellent ground for watercolor-like techniques.

If you want to try this technique, I would appreciate you buying through the buy button here or any of the links above. Dick Blick throws me a couple pennies, if people buy through my site. Every little bit helps me to continue painting, and doing what I love. Thanks so much. I appreciate it.

It is already late enough

Why are they making such a big deal out of the snowstorm in the northeast? It’s really not as unusual as they’re saying. It’s the end of October. It’s not too early to snow. I grew up in the mountains of NH. It has snowed in September before. It’s also snowed in May. It’s really not that big of a deal that it’s snowing in October..which is also the reason I don’t live there anymore. It snows ALL the time. The media sure likes to blow things up.

It is already late enough is ironically the title of the painting I listed on Etsy a couple days ago. I didn’t name it after the storm, tho, really! She looks like she’s been waiting for someone for far too long, and this is the look on her face when she comes face-to-face with whomever she’s been waiting on. The girl ain’t all that happy, k? lol That’s just my impression. You might see something totally different when you look at the painting. If so, let me know in the comments. I’d love to read what you have to say.

Make a Wish

I took Eva’s advice, and named this one Make a Wish. It’s 9×12 on watercolor paper. Ready to be matted and framed. The prices on these new paintings are dirt cheap for the size and time involved in them. Get them now before I change my mind, and increase the prices.

close up of the dandelions

Pretty Please

Original 9×12 on watercolor paper. Little girl looking hopeful with her hands clasped together. Black background. I’m not sure what it is she’s wishing for, but I sure hope it comes true for her.

close up of her face and hands

Have you heard of Art Every Day Month? I’ve done this challenge since Leah started it, and I just signed up to do it again this year. Last year I took it very seriously. I religiously painted, and posted photos every single day. I got a lot of paintings done, and then I crashed for the entire month of December from sheer exhaustion. lol I’m not going to do that again this year.

My energy level is pretty low to begin with right now. I am feeling slow and sluggish. Fall is here, and I’m hibernating like a bear. I’ve been working my fingers to be the bone all summer, and I need to slow down.

But, this AEDM..you really don’t have to do art and post every single day. I took it to an extreme. Leah doesn’t care if you only do one painting the entire month. She don’t care = I don’t care. lol So, I’m in..and by joining, it will probably keep me a little more accountable than I have been this month. So, it’s all good.

So, go sign up, and join in the fun. We’ll do it together, k?

 Pretty Please
little girl wringing her hands.
makes you wonder what she’s wishing for, huh?

dandelions – not sure of the title yet

Happy Paint Party Friday everyone!! Also, a shoutout to Artists in Blogland, which I just found today. It’s another weekly challenge/blog where you can drop your link, and find other artists sharing their art. I’m finding lots of new friends by joining in these groups. It’s a lot of fun.

I think I’m finally getting back to some sort of normalcy. I started painting last night after taking about 3 weeks off. I ended up staying awake until almost 3am. Alone in my little world. I love painting when it’s quiet, and everyone is asleep.

Starting to feel a bit more human now. I hate feeling all off balance when I’m not painting. I’m not back 100% yet, but I’m working on it.

I’ll let you know when I have these two paintings listed in my Etsy shop. It will probably be in a couple days. I’m still tweaking them a bit.

This pretty glass ornament was a gift from Mary from the Stagecoach Gallery where I have some of my paintings. I was so surprised when I opened the box and saw this beauty. Greg hung it in the kitchen window, so I can see it whenever I’m at the sink. The colors change as the light outside dims and brightens. I LOVE it!!

Okay, I’m off to finish up my paintings, and maybe start another one. Hope you’re having a great Friday.

I like masks. I don’t really know how to explain that little obsession. Can you like something and not have to justify liking it? I think so! Masks are mysterious. Can you imagine going to a masquerade ball back in the day? That’s what I think about when I paint these. And, superheros wear masks..that’s good enough for me! lol

When my Mom died last summer, I found my very first Halloween mask in an old trunk up in her attic. I brought it home to Kansas with me, and it hangs on the door to the closet in my studio. You can see it in some of the photos I’ve taken of Sweet Pea..when she’s sitting on the back of my chair.

I was a little hobo, and I think I was two years old from the look of the pictures they took. Ah, good times, yes! I had on a little gray pea coat, and red sneakers..and my hobo mask. lol

The Mask She Wears
9×12 on wrapped canvas

I have painted this painting several times over the past couple years. These paintings are rather personal to me, and I’ve never completely revealed why. I don’t think I can explain it in words. You won’t understand unless you know the entire back story, and the people involved..and to explain that all out in a blog post is next to impossible. It is a looong loong story. So, I’ll just say these paintings are personal. lol

I painted the first one just a couple weeks after my mother passed away. And, that is another clue to the mystery behind the paintings, but again..too deep to explain.

Not what She Seems has been sold. There are prints available still, tho.

She Was Her Own Illusion was loosely done.
I love her eyes and red hair.
There is a close of her eyes in my Etsy listing.

Getting the final coats of sealant.

Available now in my Etsy shop

Feel free to share this post by clicking below. I greatly appreciate getting word out about my art. Thanks!!

Nostalgic DayDreams

Bridesmaid Clutch

Kaleidoscope Star Urchin ornament

colorful bunting print

Work of the talented AGTeam on Etsy

Sweet Pea woke me up at 5:30 this morning. She was a lonely kitten looking for a warm place to snuggle down. She came to the right place when she found me.

Two nights ago, I dug out the electric blanket that I bought back in August. I’m so glad I think ahead. I got it super cheap because who’s thinking of needing to be warm when it’s over a hundred degrees outside everyday, and the electric bill is over $400 from using the a/c. Well, me..that’s who. lol I just had a feeling that October was coming, even though I couldn’t see the faintest hint of it back then.

I can never go back to sleep once I’m awake. Besides that, Lola was dancing around and needed to go potty. lol

Come Home -
Depressed man with bunny ears sitting alone on Valentine’s Day

Come Home

No one knows why Bill was sitting alone at a table on Valentine’s Day, wearing large black and pink bunny ears, and a white suit. Not a soul dared to approach him to find out why he had such a long, sad expression on his face. The bartender didn’t even offer him a refreshment. The flower held in Bill’s left hand was beginning to wilt. Everyone, all at once, made a grab for their drink. Taking a long, hard swallow, they pretended not to notice the lonely, pitiful man sitting at table 7.

As soon as I woke up, I had an ear worm going round and round in my head. Napoleon Dynamite!! Love that movie!! I guess this is just a reminder that I should watch it again. It’s been a while.

April

I worked with a girl named April when I worked as an Administrative Assistant when we lived in WV. The girl I painted reminds me of April, so that’s how I titled this painting.

angry rabbit

So, the story on this..Greg got mad at me one day. He was in a cranky mood, and he yelled at me. Then he went upstairs and sulked. I mean, he watched tv. I went into my studio and painted Angry Rabbit..putting a spin on his angry looking yelling face. lol I took it upstairs to show him, told him..”YOU are an angry rabbit!!” We both had a good laugh over it, and his bad mood was gone.

Little Brown Fox

This guy could tell you things. I say “could” because it looks like his lips are sealed up tight, and you can try, but you may never find out his real story.

Looks Ridiculous

Her hat is a creation that will never go out of style; it will just look ridiculous year after year. ~Fred Allen

It Was a Good Party and boy is she tired. She fell asleep without taking off her black masquerade mask. I think this is my favorite in the 5×7 series so far.

She Can Drink All Afternoon a bit tipsy, but she can still hop from bar to bar. If you were her friend, you could go along, too.

Two Sisters

I don’t know what it’s like to have a sister, but I have always wanted one. A bit late in my life to be wishing for that. Maybe the next time around. At least I can paint and dream about what it’s like, eh?

A little red.
A little orange.
I brought it home with me.
Photos from our hike last weekend.

]]> http://www.mizkatie.com/a-little-red-a-little-orange/feed/ 0 http://www.mizkatie.com/on-the-easel-paint-party-friday/ http://www.mizkatie.com/on-the-easel-paint-party-friday/#comments Sat, 15 Oct 2011 16:29:55 +0000 mizkatie http://www.mizkatie.com/?p=2140

I can’t believe it’s the end of the week, already. Time for Paint Party Friday, which I missed yesterday. If you’re a painter, go leave your link on the blog, and visit other artists. It’s a happening little group over there.

So, what’s going on with me is, I’ve got six paintings going at the same time right now. The one on the left is from last week. It changed a lot. Her shoulder wasn’t working for me, so I filled it in with her hair, instead. You can’t really tell from this photo because it looks black, but her hair is actually brown.

Kinda funny story on the painting of the woman smoking. I used to smoke cigarettes years ago, but I haven’t smoked in a long time now. But, get this..my new painting is making me dream I’m smoking. I wake up, and my lungs hurt. I start coughing, and I even feel all guilty. Then I realize..hey, I didn’t really smoke. I just had a nightmare that I did. LOL It’s a horrible habit. It was sooo difficult to quit..like really hard. I had to try several times, over and over, before it really stuck. And, now, I guess I’m gonna have to quit again in my dreams. sigh. lol

The woman with the hands is from last week, too. I am a little frustrated with her. I am letting her sit for a while, until I know where I’m going with it.

I feel like I’m in a bit of a rut. I haven’t wanted to paint all week. I got 6 new tubes of Golden Heavy Body paint, which are on SALE right now. I was excited about that! Could NOT wait for it to be delivered. But..I’ve had it for a couple days now, and still haven’t used any yet. Slumped into a rut is what I call it.

What do you do when you get into ruts? Do you force yourself to keep working? Do you just relax, and go do something else for a while? Do you look at others’ work to get inspired? Tell me your secret! I need some help here cuz my mojo is gone. sigh. I have been feeling incredibly burnt out and exhausted.

This is a tutorial of how I prepare my paintings for shipment. It might vary slightly from painting to painting, but you will get the idea.

Recently, a customer was concerned about the shipping aspect of buying a painting from me. He asked, would make it from Kansas to California safely? I completely understand, and assured him that I do everything possible to make sure my paintings make it to their destination safely. I ship worldwide, and so far, knock on wood, I haven’t had a problem. He must have trusted me because he went ahead and purchased the painting. And, it did arrive without a problem. But looking back, I wish I had a post like this one written to point him to, so he could see how I pack a painting for shipment. Then I remembered, I had taken shots of the process when I sold Lay Your weary Head to Rest (No 1) a few months ago. Aha!

The first thing I do is wrap my painting with wax paper, as shown in the photo above. This is important to keep the painting protected from the wrapping paper, which comes next. You don’t want to just throw your painting in a box. You worked hard on it. You want it to look pretty when it gets to its new home.

What I found to be a relatively inexpensive way to wrap the painting is newsprint on a roll. It’s fabulous stuff! I’ve gotten several nice compliments about my packaging. People love to open gifts, even if they already know what it is. And, if you’re buying for someone else, you don’t need to wrap it. I’ve already done it for you.

This next part varies from painting to painting. It all depends on what I have on hand to add as a little extra thank you. I always include my business card, so the customer can find me again online.

This painting got an extra little painting tucked under the ribbon. I usually try to stick something extra in the box when I sell a painting, even if it’s just a little thank you note. I would love to include an extra little painting every time, but I don’t always have some on hand.

Once I sent a painted heart-shaped rock as a little extra in an order going to Australia. Greg finds LOTS of heart rocks while hiking. I have jars and jars full of them. I usually paint them white, pink or red. I have them all over the house. So, since I was shipping overseas, I thought it might be a sweet gesture to include one with her order. I told her she now owns a little piece of Kansas, along with her new paintings.

It really takes quite a long time to prepare the painting. But, it’s okay. I’d rather have the painting get there safely, and without a problem. I generally set aside an hour to do this. It probably takes less than that, but I really don’t rush it. I take my time, and make it look pretty.

The next step is the bubble wrap. I go once around the painting, and tape it up. Then, it’s ready to go into the box.

I ship my paintings using USPS Priority Mail in a flat rate box. And always, always spend the few dollars extra for insurance. It is worth the expense. If the original painting is damaged, lost or stolen in transit, the buyer will get his or her money back, and perhaps you can discuss painting it again. Otherwise, if the postal service messes up, and you didn’t buy insurance, you’re facing a very unhappy customer. I would feel obligated to either refund the money or paint another painting, and that would not only be expensive, but time I could be doing something else. So much time and love go into an original. It is not worth the risk. So, buy insurance, and save your butt, and all that hard work from being a waste.

After I fold the tabs in and seal one end of the box, I stand the painting up inside, in the middle. Then, I stuff both sides around the painting with torn off pieces of the Newsprint Roll I talked about earlier..the same stuff that I wrapped the painting in. This way, the painting doesn’t move while in transit. That’s the trick of packing anything you ship..secure it tightly within the box with padding. If the box gets tossed around while it’s en route (IT WILL!!), the painting won’t move around in the box, and get damaged.

When I’m finished packing the sides, I also add some crumpled up paper to the top before I seal it shut. I always add tape to both sides of the closed lids to ensure it is sealed down tightly. I’ve had problems before with the tops popping open while it was waiting to be taken to the post office. So, I am extra cautious. I don’t want my painting to fall out of the box.

I hope this how-to ship a painting tutorial has helped you. I like to help other artists out when I can. I’d love to do more of these how-to posts. If you have any questions leave a comment below.

If you have any suggestions or would like to know how I do other things art related, comment below or email me privately. mizkatie228@gmail.com

THESE DAYS
whatever you have to say, leave
the roots on, let them
dangle

And the dirt

Just to make clear
where they came from
-Charles Olsen

From my FB page the other day: Huge response about my new painting last night. This is the direction I’m going to be taking my art. New palette, new style, new size (bigger!). I feel like it’s time for my art to grow up a bit, and not look so childlike. I’ll still throw in some colorful, kid-like art from time to time, don’t worry. I just feel myself pulling away from it right now.

I will be working on this new, darker series all winter. There are more like her in my head, banging on the bars to get out. lol They’ve been locked up for quite some time, so they’re all a bit restless.

If you haven’t “liked” my FB page yet, you can find it here. I am trying to remember to update it more often. If you’d like to be friends on FB, you’ll find me here. My friends are the first to get the news of what I’m painting.

Sweet Pea is waiting for me at the easel.

If you’d like to order a custom portrait of someone you love, I am taking orders now for the holiday season. I need at least 4 weeks to work on the painting. So, order now. You can take a look at other portraits I’ve painted, and get more details here. You can email me at mizkatie228@gmail.com

I have opened up comments again, in case you haven’t noticed.

Feel free to share this post by clicking below. I greatly appreciate getting word out about my art. Thanks!!

It Was a Cold Winter Day
girl with black bird in her hand
original painting
9×12 on wrapped canvas
staples in back, sides painted black

I’ll be listing this one in the next couple days in my Etsy shop. If you want first option to buy it, contact me. mizkatie228@gmail.com It will be $125.00, plus $13.50 shipping.

Available now, without a wait..

she was the only one - girl with bird in hand original painting

She Was the Only One

Your Turn to Fly

Her Inner Critic is working overtime

Honeysuckle

She never understood him at all

her socks never match

the boy who never laughed

sold!

sold!

There’s Always Tomorrow

sold!

Prints are available.

If you’d like to order a custom portrait of someone you love, I am taking orders now for the holiday season. I prefer about 4 weeks to work on the painting, so I don’t have to rush. So, order now. You can take a look at other portraits I’ve painted, and get more details here. You can email me at mizkatie228@gmail.com

**********

I apologize if you’ve come here in the past couple weeks, and my site has been down. I changed hosts a couple months ago because of the problems I was having, and now..it seems I am faced with the same problems. My site is down more than it’s up, and I think it’s ridiculous!! If it continues to happen, I will change hosts, once again. Unfortunately, I have paid this new company for two years, which I seriously regret now. But, I’m sure my credit card company will get my money back for me. Hear that, ipage.com..I’m fed up!! Get your act together or else…I have another host company that will gladly take my money, and give me what I’m paying for…a site that stays up and running.

ps: I’m going to turn commenting back on, and see how it goes. Hopefully, I won’t be dealing a hundred spam comments a day like I used to.

Feel free to share this post by clicking below. I greatly appreciate getting word out about my art. Thanks!!

Lay Your Weary Head to Rest no 3

This is the third time I’ve painted Lay Your Weary Head to Rest. The first time was over a year ago. The second time was a month or so ago when I was asked to re-paint it for a custom order. I decided to go ahead and paint it again, in case anyone else is interested in owning an original in this series.

Lay Your Weary Head to Rest is a 9×12 original mixed media painting on wrapped canvas. The sides are painted black. It can be hung out of the box or it can be framed. I leave that up to the buyer to decide. It is available in my Etsy shop now.

Catching up on the photos I took last month of Sweet Pea.

In case you’re just tuning in..Sweet Pea is a kitten who was born without eyes. Greg and I adopted her in June. She just turned six months old on Sept 27th.

Sweet Pea looooves packing peanuts. This is what the dining room floor looks like on a daily basis.

We forget all the time that she doesn’t have eyes. After watching this video, you will see why. lol

Hanging out with me in the kitchen during my cleaning spell last week.

In the dining room with her little moose. aw!

sleeping in Lola’s doggie bed

]]> http://www.mizkatie.com/sweet-pea-photos-and-video/feed/ 0 http://www.mizkatie.com/10-art-series-161-170/ http://www.mizkatie.com/10-art-series-161-170/#comments Thu, 29 Sep 2011 15:49:21 +0000 mizkatie http://www.mizkatie.com/?p=1721 Went Home to Put on Lipstick

Sold!

Sold!

Sold!

Sold!

Sold!

Sold!

Hopeful Heart

At her best when she’s wearing her mask

Boy, She’s Mad

Feel free to share this post by clicking below. I greatly appreciate getting word out about my art. Thanks!!

a good wife
he really
does make.

(so glad i said yes.)

Katie Lynn posted this picture of her daughter on FB the other day. It was Bella’s first day of preschool. The minute I saw it, I knew I had to paint it. So, I asked Katie’s permission, and she said yes!

It’s still a work in progress.
More photos to come soon.

girl wearing black dress holding black bird in her hand
original painting

She Was The Only One
(who could save him)

This is the seventh time I’ve painted this painting, and each time it comes out slightly different. This wintry vision I have in my head comes from a vivid memory I have of my Mom, and how she would tell me to stand outside in the snow with a tiny piece of bread on my hand. She said if I was quiet and still enough, a bird would land on me, and I would get to feed him. aw! How I wanted that to happen!!

9×12 on wrapped canvas
sides painted black
staples in back, not sides
heavily layered
surface has a gritty, textured feel
available in my etsy shop now

Feel free to share this post by clicking below. I greatly appreciate getting word out about my art. Thanks!!

click to enlarge..
you gotta see this one BIG.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

9×12 on canvas board
Framed is black
If you would prefer your own frame,
I will reduce the price

$175
available in my etsy shop now

If you’d like to order a custom portrait of someone you love, I am taking orders now for the holiday season. I need at least 4 weeks to work on the painting. So, order now. You can take a look at other portraits I’ve painted, and get more details here.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

available in my Etsy shop

]]> http://www.mizkatie.com/coronado-heights-lindsburg-ks/feed/ 0 http://www.mizkatie.com/more-10-art/ http://www.mizkatie.com/more-10-art/#comments Tue, 13 Sep 2011 14:27:33 +0000 mizkatie http://www.mizkatie.com/?p=1552

If you haven’t checked out my $10 art series yet, you should. All of these have been listed. Some have been sold. Hurry! You deserve to treat yourself to some original art today!!

most beautiful thing in the room -
heart rock he placed into my hand,
without speaking a word,
on a Monday morning.
from that second on
i knew it was going to be a very good day.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! Spread the word!

she used to be our town mascot.
well, that’s what i liked to call her, anyway.
i fed her corn [almost] daily.
she slept under our front porch.
she’d crawl out in the early morning
feathers all ruffled
until she had a chance to shake the sleep off.

she trusted us enough to lay her eggs
beside the garage last year.
we were sad when they didn’t hatch.
11 rotten eggs lying in the hot sun.
oh.

the neighbors complained about her
loud squawking.
she bothered their non-stop barking dogs.
yeah, riiiight.
so, one day she didn’t come around
not that day or the next.
and, “maybe i’ll see her tomorrow”
turned into never again.
i miss her.
and, the damn dogs continue to bark.

Repost! Since my site crashed and burned on July 17th, I’ve decided it’s too much work to go through and retrieve every entry from Google reader. Instead, I’m going to pick some of my favorites, and repost them. Original entry was posted August 8th, 2010.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

Putting the final touches on Al Pacino.

Scarface

Original painting and prints available.

If you’d like to order a custom portrait of someone you love, I am taking orders now for the holiday season. I need at least 4 weeks to work on the painting. So, order now. You can take a look at other portraits I’ve painted, and get more details here.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

STOP!

..because I need this message today.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

I found some pictures of this guy online on imgfave, and I had no idea who he was..had to google his name. Radiohead, duh!

I only know one of their songs, Creep. Well, two now since I looked them up on YT. Street Spirit is pretty good.

I know people either love or hate them. I really don’t care about all that. I just wanted to paint him.

original painting
available in my etsy shop now

Watch me paint him..

If you’d like to order a custom portrait of someone you love, I am taking orders now for the holiday season. I need at least 4 weeks to work on the painting. So, order now. You can take a look at other portraits I’ve painted, and get more details here.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

Sale pending
on hold for customer
For those of you who were interested in this one,
I will be listing another one like it soon.

commissioned painting
Sold!

I was contacted by a guy last week, and asked if I would repaint a painting I did last year. I guess he was browsing through my sold paintings on Etsy, and found it there. I was thrilled, and said absolutely!! This is the finished result.

The original was called Lay Your Weary Head to Rest, and I can’t think of a better title for it than that. So, this is number two. I have painted another one like it, which I will be offering very soon. I’ve got the photos almost ready.

There are prints of the original painting in my Etsy shop. I’m not going to offer prints of this one unless someone asks me. The paintings are so similar, I don’t see a need.

****************

I probably shouldn’t say this, since I had 3 people unfriend me on FB when I wrote it in my status update yesterday. BUT..I just can’t help it, and what do I care? They weren’t my friends to begin with if they don’t understand why I am sooo excited and rejoicing!! I sold 17 paintings over the holiday weekend!!! SEVENTEEN!!! Wow! I am stunned, and very happy.

I am so grateful. Thank you!

Business has been really picking up in my Etsy shop over the past few months. My sales have been pretty steady. I suggest if you want an original painting in my shop, buy it! Otherwise, next time you go look for it, it may not be there. Of course, you can always write me and ask me to re-paint it. :)

****************

If you’d like to order a custom portrait of someone you love, I am taking orders now for the holiday season. I need at least 4 weeks to work on the painting. So, order now. You can take a look at other portraits I’ve painted, and get more details here.

If you want to read my blog through a reader, click here to subscribe.

The second I saw Sasha’s photo on flickr, I knew I had to paint her. I love everything about the photo..the sunglasses, her expression, skin tones, black hair..everything was so perfect. When a photo is that good, the painting is hard to mess up. Everything flowed so easily, and despite everything going on at the time (my mom was dying, and my brother and I rushed to NH to be with her when she passed away), I was having fun when I worked on it.

Time lapsed video of me painting Sasha Degn..

If you’d like to order a custom portrait of someone you love, I am taking orders now for the holiday season. I need at least 4 weeks to work on the painting. So, don’t delay!! Order now. You can take a look at other portraits I’ve painted, and get more details here.

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2 egg whites, room temperature
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 c. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
6 oz. little chocolate bits

cat, pumpkins, points
get the green balls into the pumpkins
win points!!

now you know
how i spend my time
when i’m not painting…

Happy Labor Day to those in the USA.

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With a Cherry on Top
12″x9″ on canvas board
acrylic paint
ready to frame

available in my etsy shop now

Watch me paint it..

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Seeker: “Teach me the way to liberation.”
Zen master: “Who binds you?”
Seeker: “No one binds me.”
Zen master: “Then why seek liberation?””

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spinach for breakfast

veggies for dinner

When we eat together, when we set out to do so deliberately, life is better, no matter what your circumstances.
~ Thomas Keller

I am so excited for tomorrow to get here. We have been having temperatures in the 100s since the middle of May. It’s been a loooong hot summer. I love summer; don’t get me wrong, but I have been finding myself longing for cooler temperatures lately.

Tomorrow I get my wish. It’s only going to be 70 something. ahhh! It will be like a breath of fresh air. I am going to shut off the AC, and enjoy! Maybe the bill won’t be $400 this month, like it was last month. sigh. I hope you’re looking forward to fall as much as I am.

The quote is by Andre Jordan.
I wish I knew whom to credit for the photo.

I think she’s missing.

i found them! hidden away inside a pocket of my laptop bag. of course! we reunite after 2+ long years. me and my jewels.

Mike Dirnt in an old issue of Rollingstone Magazine. I saw this, and knew I had to paint it. The original is not for sale at the time. However, these are..

These 4″x5″ reproductions were made using prints of the original painting. I mounted the print on chipboard, and hand painted over each one. I think it makes the print more like an original, and makes the colors pop. It’s sealed with gel gloss.

available in my etsy shop

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I found that I could say things with color and shape that I couldn’t say another way – things I had no words for.

~Georgia O’Keeffe

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

2 TBSP butter or margarine
1/3 c packed brown sugar
1 TBSP water
1 8 ounce can pineapple slices, drained
4 maraschino cherries
1 1/3 c flour
2/3 c sugar
2 tsp baking powder
2/3 c milk (i used soy)
1/4 c butter or margarine
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla

Melt 2 TBSP butter/margarine in a 9×1 1/2 inch round baking pan. Stir in brown sugar and water. Arrange pineapple and cherries in the pan. Set pan aside.

In a medium mixing bowl stir together flour, sugar, and baking powder. Add milk, 1/4 c butter/margarine, egg, and vanilla. Mix with mixer.

Bake at 350 for 30 to 35 mins. Cool for 5 mins, invert onto a plate. Serve warm.

Recipe is from the Better Homes and Gardens New Cook Book

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She is getting soooo big, and she’s suppose to be only half grown. Yikes!

sweet pea is packing herself up. aw!

]]> http://www.mizkatie.com/hard-pillow/feed/ 0 http://www.mizkatie.com/modern-lisa/ http://www.mizkatie.com/modern-lisa/#comments Wed, 31 Aug 2011 14:09:37 +0000 mizkatie http://www.mizkatie.com/?p=1389

No, not Mona Lisa.
Modern Lisa!

Watch me paint her..

I wrapped both buildings around the sides of the canvas.

Modern Lisa is on 9″x12″ wrapped canvas.

It can be purchased in my Etsy shop.

Here’s another version of Josh Woodward’s song, Mona Lisa.

If you want to read my blog through a reader, click here to subscribe.

over 100F
again again again again again again
still still still still
august break day 30.
when this challenge ends tomorrow,
i will still be posting photos.

Not What She Seems
girl peering over the top of a masquerade mask

original was sold
Prints are available

Plus,
you can find this on
mugs, mouse pads, cards,
and other merchandise
in my Zazzle store.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

I have had this painting on my easel for over a month now. It’s time to get it, and some others, finished.

Whenever I watch this video, it sure puts things into perspective for me..quit yapping about it and get it done already! Sheesh!!

day 29
august break

trying to make up for flaking on the August Break challenge.
oops!
i forgot!

I have closed down the comments on my blog for now. I’m getting too much spam, and I don’t feel like dealing with it. If you need to get in touch with me, my email is in the sidebar, and you can always find me on FaceBook.

The Promise
Girl wearing sage dress with black bird in her hand

This is the sixth time I’ve painted this painting, and each time it comes out slightly different. This wintry vision I have in my head comes from a vivid memory I have of my Mom, and how she would tell me to stand outside in the snow with a tiny piece of bread on my hand. She said if I was quiet and still enough, a bird would land on me, and I would get to feed him. aw! How I wanted that to happen!!

This one I named The Promise because that’s what it was..according to my Mom, if you promised to stand still, a bird will land in your hand. I was always a hyper little kid, and it never happened to me. So, I have to re-create the scene in my mind, and on the canvas for to come true.

getting the final coats of sealant

The Promise
9×12 on wrapped canvas
available in my Etsy shop now

This painting has been sold.

Now that some time has passed since I’ve seen the painting, I can see things I would change. But, I worked on it for about a month, so it was time to finish it up and let it go. I could have tweaked it for many more weeks, like I do some of my other paintings. If it was still here, I would be tweaking it until it drove me crazy. It would never be good enough. Very few of my paintings are really finished when I’m done painting. I always see things I would change or do differently once I’ve put the brushes down. This one is no exception, and it doesn’t surprise me at all.

I wish I had a better photo to work from. Not that the photo isn’t nice, I love the photo. But, if I could really see details of her eyes, I could have made them much more realistic. But, in the photo, all I can see is black dots..which is what I painted. I can’t paint what I can’t see. My memory isn’t that good to remember what her eyes look like. I know she had brown eyes, but I don’t remember details. I haven’t seen her for so long.

If you want to see other entries about this painting, you will find the first one here, and the other here.

If you’d like to order a custom portrait of someone you love, I am taking orders now for the holiday season. I need at least 4 to 8 weeks to work on the painting. So, order now. You can take a look at other portraits I’ve painted, and get more details here.

Little girl wearing a red hoodie with her arms crossed and a look on her face that reads, ‘are you kidding me?’

original painting & prints are available

watch me paint!

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

The palest ink is better than the best memory.
- Chinese Proverb

When I first read it, I thought, huh? I quickly went on to something else, but then I thought..wait a second. Let me read that again. It was as if a light bulb had been turned on bright. Laaaaaaa!! Epiphany!! And, I read it again. And again, again. Several times a day, I read it.

That one little sentence has become hugely important to me. It screamed ..document, write it down, take more pictures, blog, do more, and do it now (before it’s too late). If these things aren’t done, it’s almost like it never happened. Not only that, but when you’re gone from this planet it leaves a piece of you behind, always. Or, at least until they go through your crap, haul everything to the curb and let the city take it away.

Not only that, but listen, it’s becoming more evident that my memory ain’t what it used to be. I went to write the date down the other day, and I wrote 2005!! It made me remember having a tiff with Greg one time because he forgot something that was important to me. I don’t know what it was now because I have forgotten (lol), but at the time I was upset. He yelled back at me, “At least I know what year it is!!” To which I quickly forgot how mad I was, and burst out laughing because honestly, you don’t know how many times I’ve had to ask him what year it is. No joke. On a bad day, I call it having early signs of dementia. On a good day, I call it having Artist Brain Fog. Greg calls it The Crazy. No matter. We both get a good laugh out of it.

shh! your life is beautiful, version II.

The truth, though? I blame it on the drugs I did last week. Er, I mean, in the 80s, of course. lol It feels like it was just days ago, but man, time is flying by. Next week I’ll be trying to figure out all the buttons on my wheelchair, and hope my reverse and parking skills are better than when I drove a car.  I’ll be sitting around remembering the good ole days, when I used to be able to type out blog entries and paint.

So, in the meantime, I have started to write more. You will probably notice a difference here on my blog in the coming days because I’d like for this to become a practice. I’ve abandoned words in the past few years, and I miss them. Finding them again is like seeing an old friend. Hello, words! ah. I’ve also started to art journal again. This is huge for me. I usually keep myself separated from art..as if it’s happening outside of me, not inside. I’ve been clenched in a tightness that’s been choking me for some time. And, the other night, while I was stooped over my journal, I felt a release. Whoosh! The tension in my neck and shoulders relaxed, and when I was finished the pages, I slept. I slept for HOURS. And, I’ve been sleeping well ever since. I’m usually an insomniac, but this past week, that has changed for me. I would like this to also continue.

One little sentence did all this! It’s really weird, and I don’t believe it myself.

Greg brought me home a box of chocolates yesterday. Six dark chocolate scrumptious little morsels. I’m in love!! This morning there was a knock on the door, and FedEx delivered the new electric toothbrush I ordered. Good thing. I’m probably going to need it with all this sugar on my teeth. You know what else I’ve been eating lately? Toast. And, I’ve been drinking a lot of tea. I’ve been looking for some comfort food, and this has been what I’ve been going to time and again. There’s something about the warmth and simplicity of it that I need right now.

The palest ink is better than the best memory.
- Chinese Proverb

Write it down. You’re never going to remember this day a week from now. And, maybe nothing specular happened like it did to me. Maybe you didn’t eat chocolate and toast, get a new toothbrush or write 2005 instead of 2010, but hey..you lived it. It is important.

Repost! Since my site crashed and burned on July 17th, I’ve decided it’s too much work to go through and retrieve every entry from Google reader. Instead, I’m going to pick some of my favorites, and repost them. Original entry was posted December 18th, 2010.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

Search deep within,
concealed caves hold answers
to the moon’s question,
“you are who?”
Jessie Vitale

Give me a sign
Girl dressed in red wearing a black masquerade mask.

Watch me paint it..

I’ve been painting on canvas for almost two years now, and this painting is what it has been all about. This painting is what I consider my absolute best, and it’s made all the sweat, frustration and tears worth it. It’s made all the hours I’ve spent on a bad painting practically melt away from my memory. And, I’m convinced that if I hadn’t spent all that time on those paintings, this painting never could have happened.

~words were written December 23, 2010. I think I have painted better paintings since then, but this painting will always be a reminder to me..don’t give up! Keep painting!

Give me a sign original painting is available in my Etsy shop, along with prints.

i love summer, but i am looking forward to a change of season.

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

Yoga Under the Sun
mixed media painting

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

What might my life be
like were I to give in
to the rhythms of my own
ragged dance? — Susan Hanson

the photos in this entry are from my art journal

My dance is a bit wild and unruly lately. I think the tune playing in the back of my mind may be something jazzy, fast, and at times, loud. And, truthfully, I’m not all that fond of jazz music. I prefer acoustic guitar and soft lullabies. But, inside my head is such a mess. I am cranky. I don’t want to be interrupted. No, I don’t want to watch tv or read a book. I don’t want to look at facebook status updates or make one myself. I don’t want to do anything, except be enclosed in my own little world, dancing my fast, little spiral dance.

I’m having far too many visions of paintings yet to be. Finished art journal pages, not yet started. My thoughts are all a flurry, and unfortunately, everything is standing in my way. At 6 o’clock at night, I wander out to the kitchen because Lola is antsy, hungry, needs to go out. That’s when I remember I started bread in the machine. When? Hours have passed. I forgot the dough. And, I have forgotten to eat today, so I grab a bag of chips, restart the bread machine, so the dough mixes one more time, and head back to my studio. That buys me a little more time. I don’t want to deal with making bread right now. There are so many things left unfinished. So much more to do before I’m able to call it a day and quit.

I reach out for something tangible, to get me out from inside the madness. I want to feel something real, as opposed to seeing the imaginary. I go to the stack of paintings started, but not finished. I thumb through, glancing at them, and turn and walk away. All my interest holds right now is starting something new because the inspiration is coming at me so quickly. I don’t want to lose the potential that I see in my mind’s eye, and if I don’t act on it, it will fade away. I know this for a fact. It has happened so many times before.

This is glorious when it happens. All these ideas, can’t work fast enough, busy busy, no time to rest. Wonderful, and yet, so frustrating. I realize my hands can not work fast enough to keep up with my thoughts.  I know I can’t work fast enough to get it all out of my head and somewhere else. It’s not as simple as making notes tho. I can’t just write down an idea, maybe some other time, not right now. Words don’t belong where my head is at right now. I have to execute the ideas, otherwise I will forget the meaning, the emotion, the momentum behind it.

Once it is somewhere else, on a canvas, on an art journal page..it can rest. I know this. It can rest, and I will be very quickly and feverishly onto the next thing.

Here’s to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. They’re not fond of rules & do not respect the status quo. You can disagree with them, glorify or vilify them. But you can’t ignore them because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while many see them as crazy, we see genius because the ones who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do. ~ Jack Kerouac

Repost! Since my site crashed and burned on July 17th, I’ve decided it’s too much work to go through and retrieve every entry from Google reader. Instead, I’m going to pick some of my favorites, and repost them. Original entry was posted on January 8th, 2011.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

little girl bath day.
uh oh.
lola always runs to get greg
to protect her whenever i call her for her bath.
please!
help!!
save me!!
please! let me up, quick!!
uh! too late!
plop!
and then i get the look.
oh, how could you do this to me??!!

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

You say,
You want to get over.
What are you gonna do?
Watch the world go by
In a corner of the room?

I know,
None of my business.
But there’s something I need to say,
If you could see you
The way I see you
You’d start flying on your own.

Step aside and . . .

Let your love show
let your light shine
It’s a short ride
Down the long road.
When the rains come
And the winds blow
Let your light shine
Wherever you go.

keb mo

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

Forgot to buy TP – original painting on paper no 152
Sold!
Thank you!!

sold!
thank you!

Lets Pretend – original painting on paper no 154

Sold!
Thank you!

Keeps Coming Here – original painting on paper no 155
Sold!
Thank you!!

Too Late – original painting on paper no 156
sold!
Thank you!

Filed His Emotions Away – original painting on paper no 157

She Misses Him – original painting on paper no 158

Three AM comes early – original painting on paper no 159
Sold!
Thank you!

Cheap, affordable original art!!

All of these are original paintings on paper for $10 each. Give yourself a little treat today. You deserve it!

If you’d like to get an idea of how it looks matted and framed, check out Allison Tyler’s blog post. She bought the 1st one in the Plain Jane $10.00 art series. Scroll down to the bottom of the entry.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

This is a painting I did last year, but just got around to list it on Etsy.

11″ W x 8.5″ L
on birch plywood

available in my etsy shop now

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

summer loving

gone fishin’

keeps the flies away, he said.

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

That being said, I took great pleasure in painting him. He ain’t hard on the eyes. lol

Jack White
original
9×12 on wrapped canvas
portrait painting
by Miz Katie

finished piece

This Jack White painting is available in my Etsy shop.
Prints are also for sale.

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

If you missed She Was Born Without Eyes post, Greg and I adopted a 3 month old kitten who was born without eyes in June.

I’m going to begin reading Homer’s Odyssey again today. I say “again” because I started reading it several weeks ago, but Greg stole the book from me. So, I started reading Blackbird, a memoir by Jennifer Lauck, instead. What a haunting story. I had to rush to order the sequel as soon as I finished it yesterday. This was a real page turner. I read the second half of it in 4 hours, only getting up to refresh my coffee. So, today I have Homer’s Odyssey back in my little hands, so it will keep me busy until I get Still Waters in the mail.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

“It’s your turn to fly,” she whispers softly to the bird.

9×12
original
one-of-kind
sides of canvas are painted black
staples on back, not sides
ready to frame or hang as is

available in my etsy shop

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

these photos haven’t been manipulated in phototshop. this happened after several tornadoes blew through kansas a couple years ago. my house was spared, but so many people lost their homes that day.

i wish i could describe the eerie feeling i had as i walked around taking these photos. it was very still, no sound, no birds, no cars on the road, nothing. it was almost like i was on another planet. spooky, yet so beautiful all i could do is stare up at the sky.

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

after

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

If you like this post, click on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

Repost! Since my site crashed and burned on July 17th, I’ve decided it’s too much work to go through and retrieve every entry from Google reader. Instead, I’m going to pick some of my favorites, and repost them. Original entry was posted on Feb. 24th, 2011.

This painting has been bugging me, pretty much since I painted it in 2009. I just wasn’t happy with it, but at the time, I really didn’t envision anything different for it.

The listing expired in my etsy shop the other day, so I decided instead of re-listing it again, it was time to do something about changing it.

So, the things I didn’t like about this painting? For one thing, it’s waaay too dark. My painting palette has been changing over time, and I’m moving away from using a lot of dark red as the predominant color. I’m beginning to realize with red, a little goes a long way. So, the red background looked ugly to me, as did the dark blue sky..and her face..and her dress. lol Honestly, there wasn’t anything I liked about this painting, except maybe the concept of heart-shaped flowers.

So, I got to work..

heart shaped flowers
face lift in progress

I showed a couple progress shots on FB, while I was working on it, which spawned some discussion about painting over original paintings. Some people said nooo, don’t paint over it. It has history. But, I have absolutely no problem with either sprucing up a painting or completely gessoing over it, if I really dislike it. A couple weeks ago, I gessoed over about 15 paintings, and felt no regret whatsoever. Maybe it’s because I’m a full-time working artist, but I don’t usually form an attachment to my work. I start each painting knowing it is not mine, and that hopefully very soon, it will belong to someone else. Yeah, sure it means I’ll no longer have the painting in my possession. But, on the other hand, I will have money to buy more art supplies, and that will allow me to keep doing what I LOVE to do – paint!!

If I do form an attachment while painting, I know not to offer it for sale. I have a few paintings around my house that started out not being mine, but for one reason or another, I’ve kept them. A couple of them I kept just because I don’t have boxes to ship them out in, so they’re hanging on my walls. lol That reminds me..BUY BOXES!! Sell those paintings!!

heart shaped flowers face lift
close up

I’ve never painted over a painting, and wished I hadn’t done it. Well, wait! That’s a slight lie, come to think of it. I did have regrets once, yeah. I gessoed over a painting, and then ended up spraying the gesso off the painting the next day. Then, I spent waaay too much time re-painting it, only to turn around and gesso over it again. lol

heart flowers finished painting

i need to touch up her eyebrows a bit..
didn’t see that until now.

Mesmerized by the wonderful smell of her heart-shaped flowers,
All she could do is stand there and breathe.

oh, how romantic, huh?
heart flowers finished painting

So, what do you think? Was the painting better before or after giving it a little attention? I like the after so much better. It still could use some tweaking, but I have to draw the line sometimes. I can become obsessed with fixing this and that.

If you’d like to own this whimsical, original 9×12 painting, it is available in my etsy shop.

some of these photos are super sized..click to see details

it’s the year of the rabbit and i love painting them.

wander

lust

this is how it looked at night under the desk lamp.
the blue background changes depending on the light.

Original, acrylic painting
8.5″ x 11″ x 0.6″
on chipboard

available in my etsy shop

little girl with a black bird in her hand
original painting by miz katie

Remember the Be Still, Child painting? Well, this is the video of me painting it. All my secrets are revealed. lol Yeah..like how I had to do her face about 3 million times before I liked it, and how I painted her eye in backwards one time. Well, that’s how it goes most of the time. I constantly make mistakes and have to fix them. Now you know, and it doesn’t bother me in the least.

The finishing touches happened off camera because I can’t paint the whole thing sitting off to the side like that. And, if I get in front of the painting, all you’ll see is the back of my head. But, this gives you an idea of how I paint. Enjoy!

Prints of Be Still, Child are available in my Etsy shop.

Right after I mixed up all this paint the other day, I came across an article about why you shouldn’t mix up a lot of paint at one time. lol Isn’t that just the way? You’re tooling around, doing your own thing and someone comes along who thinks they do it better. Well, guess what? I didn’t read the article. Mixing up this much paint works for me because I paint a lot and I’ll use it. I really didn’t need to know why it doesn’t work for someone else, so I skipped it. Sometimes you just gotta do your own thing, y’know? Don’t fix what ain’t broken.

To read a poem in January is as lovely as to go for a walk in June.
Jean-Paul Sartre

January 2011 comes to an end.
Hello, February.

Repost! Since my site crashed and burned on July 17th, I’ve decided it’s too much work to go through and retrieve every entry from Google reader. Instead, I’m going to pick some of my favorites, and repost them. Original entry was posted on Feb. 01, 2011.

This is east of Pratt, KS. Used to be a gas station, but now it’s a garage sale of old rusty junk. Pretty interesting, tho.

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

If you like this post, cick on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

Repost! Since my site crashed and burned on July 17th, I’ve decided it’s too much work to go through and retrieve every entry from Google reader. Instead, I’m going to pick some of my favorites, and repost them. Original entry was posted Feb. 2, 2011. And, no. I don’t know why I have duck lips in this photo. lol

wichita, ks

wichita, ks

saw this in Conway, KSmilo

sam’s shoes

at the lake

Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs that used to be on my site until it crashed last month.

If you like this post, cick on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know about it.

There are two mistakes one can make along the road to truth…
Not going all the way and not starting.”
~Buddha

Okay, so I did it! I finished this painting yesterday. And, after I finished it, I was feeling motivated to clean my studio. Oh, boy. It took me about 6 hours altogether, if you don’t count the sips of coffee breaks, and dinner. I’m still not completely done yet, but I’m liking the extra floor space I have to move around now. I took 3 bags of garbage out of this room. lol How? Why??!! Oh, I don’t want to know.

If you chase two rabbits, both will escape.
- Unknown Author

So, as I was cleaning, I found a lot more unfinished paintings. At last count there were 22, but I’m not sure if that’s right because I think in my cleaning frenzy I added a bunch more. Oh, who knows? I’m terrible with numbers. Can’t keep the damn things in my head. All I know is twenty-two is too many, if you ask me. So, I’m going into Clean Up This Mess Mode. And, since yesterday worked out so well, I’ll post another picture on fb today of the painting I plan to work on until. I will blog about it later, and this will keep me accountable and on track, huh?

NO MORE STARTING NEW PAINTINGS WITHOUT FINISHING THE UNFINISHED PILE.

It’s never too late–in fiction or in life–to revise
- Nancy Thayer

Or perhaps, I need to Recharge By Disconnecting. Good article. Makes me think I need to go back to taking weekends off..at least from the internet. sigh. I’m so addicted, tho.

If you’d like to purchase this original painting it is available now in my Etsy shop. I haven’t decided if I’m going to offer prints on this one or not. I usually don’t on the 12x12s because it’s a strange size for a print, and the prints sit in my Etsy shop without selling. If you want one, email me, and I ‘ll do a listing. Otherwise, there probably won’t be prints on this one. Prints for this size are $25.00.

Repost! Since my site crashed and burned on July 17th, I’ve decided it’s too much work to go through and retrieve every entry from Google reader. Instead, I’m going to pick some of my favorites, and repost them. Original entry was posted Jan 27, 2011.

If you like this post, cick on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know.

Big Red Fred and Greg taking a walk in Charleston, WV

Emma is appalled that Greg is reading Hemingway. Either that or she’s so bored her eyes are glazing over.

Miz Katie
photo credit – Greg Wood

August Break begins today. Since there are no rules to this challenge, I’m going to use this opportunity to post some older photographs. I miss seeing my photographs here after my site crashed a couple weeks ago. This challenge will help me build it back up. There will be a mixture of new and old photos throughout the month of August.

If you like this post, cick on the FB like button and/or tweet!! It only takes a second to let others know.

original acrylic portrait painting
9×12 on canvas board
$500
available in my etsy shop now

there is a back story to this painting, which is kinda comical. however, my site crashed and burned thanks to a really lousy hosting company, and the entry is gone. when i find it again, i’ll repost it.

it’s about sleeping only an hour or so because the smoke alarm kept beeping, and my little dog lola went berserk..running from room to room, losing her bodily fluids and solids everywhere all night long. lol i started painting this the next day after getting very little sleep. never hurts to laugh..but it sure did that day.

i don’t have prints available at this time. however, if you’re interested, let me know and i will offer it for sale in my shop.

Repost! Since my site crashed and burned on July 17th, I’ve decided it’s too much work to go through and retrieve every entry from Google reader. Instead, I’m going to pick some of my favorites, and repost them. Original entry was posted on March 13th, 2011.

Well, this is a little embarrassing. Tami Snow used to be a friend of mine on FaceBook. I didn’t realize we weren’t  friends anymore until a couple days ago when I searched for her to tell her I had finished this portrait. That’s when I found out she’s no longer on my friends list. I had no idea.

Tami Snow portrait painting

I have quite a few FB friends, and it’s hard to keep up with everyone. I do the best I can, but I miss a lot. So, I didn’t know she was gone, and I don’t know how long it’s been. But, thinking about it, the last time I remember communicating with her was last spring.

Aren’t social networks great?
People disappear and you don’t even realize it.
Oh, but we’re all connected and keeping in touch better this way, right?
lol

red haired girl wearing a scarf & a smirk
9″x12″ on canvas board

Well, anyway..before she got sick of me, and decided we are no longer friends, I asked her if I could use the photo above as a reference photo for a painting. She said yes, and I was excited about that, at first. Then, the excitement waned, and this is one of those paintings that has taken months to complete.

Tami Snow finished portrait painting, side view

Now, that might explain why Tami unfriended me, huh? She probably got tired of waiting to see if I ever would finish the painting.

Well, Tami..if you ever search your name on google, and find this entry.. girl, I finished the painting. You’re more than welcome to purchase it from me, if you’d like it. I have no hard feelings about Facebook. I know I’m not everyone’s cup of tea. lol

Original painting is available in my Etsy Shop.
At this time, prints are not available.

Painted for 4 hours this afternoon, but I still don’t have it where I want it. Played with different background colors. Played with her shirt. Tried to paint banana curls in her hair. Didn’t really succeed at any of it. Now I’m tired, and stopping for the day.

See more photos of this painting in progress.

Repost! Since my site crashed and burned on July 17th, I’ve decided it’s too much work to go through and retrieve every entry from Google reader. Instead, I’m going to pick some of my favorites, and repost them. Original entry was posted on Feb 8th, 2011.

Start the YouTube video, and scroll on down. You’ll understand my painting much better. :)

I was a little girl alone in my little world who dreamed of a little home for me. 

I played pretend between the trees,
and fed my house guests bark and leaves,
and laughed in my pretty bed of green.

I had a dream
That I could fly from the highest swing.

I had a dream.

Lyrics and song by Priscilla Ahn

She Dreams With Her Eyes Wide Open
available in my Etsy Shop now.
Sold!
This painting has a new home in Australia.
Thank you!!

this one is near and dear to my heart.
i’m not sure i’m going to sell it.
i’ve made prints available
and other merchandise.

oh, and i have painted a friend for him.
but i think this painting is mine.
sorry.
if i change my mind,
i’ll let you know.

If you like what you see here, please consider sharing it on Twitter, Facebook, and other social networking sites. Just click on a button below, it’s really easy.

little red-haired girl wearing big red glasses
sticking tongue out
with bright orange background
portrait painting by miz katie

© Miz Katie

 © Miz Katie

© Miz Katie

Original, one-of-a-kind
9×12 acrylic portrait painting
on canvas board
ready to frame

© Miz Katie

Available in my Etsy shop.
Prints will be available soon.

dead fish #1

dead fish #2

dead fish 3

wordless wednesday

Repost! Since my site crashed and burned on July 17th, I’ve decided it’s too much work to go through and retrieve every entry from Google reader. Instead, I’m going to pick some of my favorites, and repost them. Original entry was posted Feb 19th, 2011

I want to hold the hand inside you
I want to take the breath that’s true

You live your life
You go in shadows

Fade into you
I think it’s strange you never knew

i want to paint so many scenes in this video.
it makes my head swirl.

make sure you click on the links (in red) above.
you will see
random things
from me to you
to end this work week.
have a great weekend.

ps:
i had a dream that i was eating pea soup.
the last time
(8 years ago)
i ate pea soup i
had an allergic reaction
went into shock
and almost died.
but,
in my dream
it sure tasted
good.

This photo is huge. To see the details, click enlarge.

What if everything around you
Isn’t quite as it seems?
What if all the world you think you know
Is an elaborate dream?

And if you look at your reflection
Is it all you want it to be?
What if you could look right
through the cracks?
Would you find yourself
Find yourself afraid to see?

What if all the world’s inside of your head
Just creations of your own?
Your devils and your gods
All the living and the dead
And you’re really all alone?
You can live in this illusion
You can choose to believe
You keep looking but you can’t find the woods
While you’re hiding in the trees
~NIN

Original painting available for purchase
and
8″x10″ print

This painting has been shipped to the Stage Coach Gallery. It’s still available in my Etsy shop, unless someone buys it off the gallery wall first. If you like it, buy it now!

It will be a year on August 25th since my Mom has been gone. I thought today would be a good day to repost this entry because it’s my birthday.

Painting is not for sale.

This painting comes from a vivid memory I have of my Mom, and how she would tell me to stand outside in the snow with a tiny piece of bread on my hand. She said if I was quiet and still enough, a bird would land on me, and I would get to feed him. aw!

Of course, I wanted to do that!! But, I was a hyper little thing, and I could never make myself stand still long enough..so, I had to create a painting. There. Be still and let the bird land in your hand, child. lol

Oh, how I miss her. It’s almost been six months, and every day..every single day. Sigh..no, it is not getting easier. If anything, it’s getting harder. Every passing day marks more time since I’ve been able to talk to her. And, that thought makes me so very sad.

Prints are available in my Miz Katie Etsy shop.

Size: 9″ x 12″

It’s the year of the bunny!! If that doesn’t crank up one’s imagination a notch, I don’t know what will.

Come Home is an original, one-of-a-kind, acrylic painting on wrapped canvas. I created it using 9×12 canvas, layers of acrylic paints, gesso, light molding paste, pencil, gel medium, gel gloss, and varnish.

It’s available for purchase in my Etsy shop.

Over time, I’ve received a lot of email asking if I know how to keep acrylic paints from drying out. Or if there’s any way to get paint to go back into a tube once it’s been squeezed out. Y’know..because we are starving artists and can barely afford to buy paint, we really HATE to waste it, right? And, listen..I am a queen when it comes to saving money, let me tell you! So, I do know the answer! Yes! Well, I only know the answer to the first part of the question..I haven’t really figured out how to get paint back in a tube..yet. If I figure it out, that will have to be another post. lol

cheap paint container

You will need some sort of container with a lid that will snap closed, and be somewhat air tight. What I use came from a Chinese food take-out order. mmm..bean curd veggies. If your Chinese restaurant uses these same kind of plastic dishes, save them!! Not only can you keep your paints from drying out, but you are saving the landfills by recycling. They also come in handy if you take your lunch to work, need to store leftovers in the fridge..or for holding art supplies. I LOVE these things.

If you don’t have one of these containers, any Tupperware or Gladware plastic bin will work, as long as it has a lid. These may actually work better because you can burp them..but I like things that are free best.

cheap sponges

You’ll also need some sponges. The plastic bowls I use take two. These I bought in a giant package at the dollar store. They’re not all that good for cleaning, but work perfect for this.

My sponges are a bit dirty because I’ve used this set up for over a year now. Paint does sometimes get on the sponges, but don’t worry. Just rinse them out.

Now, the trick to keeping your paint from drying is to keep the sponges from drying out. So, make sure the sponges are super slopping wet, and I even add about 1/4 inch of water to the bowl, also. Just be careful if you move your palette around while painting. I’ve been known to slosh water from the bottom all over myself.

waxed paper over the sponges

After you’ve got your sponges good and wet, and have added a bit of water to the bottom of the bowl, cut off a small piece of waxed paper and lay it on top of the sponges.

Squirt some paint on the wax paper, and you’re ready to go! I always leave a little room for mixing because I’m never satisfied with the color right out of the tube or bottle.

I keep several of these containers by my side while painting. And, depending on what I’m painting, the paint inside changes. Like, sometimes I have one set up for all the different shades of white paint I have mixed already in jars. Sometimes, I have one for all different shades of blue. Or maybe just for the dark colors in my painting. So, think ahead a little, and only put down the colors that you will be using for your painting at the time.

Isn’t this an extremely cheap and easy way to keep your paints from drying out? I think so!

Remember, it’s not 100% foolproof. Like, for instance, you *have* to make sure you put the lid on your paints or it can dry out if left overnight..especially in the hot summer months. I sometimes rush out of my studio at night, and forget to do this. I come back in the morning, and my paints have hardened. At which time, I boink myself on the forehead and swear I’ll never do that again. But, I do..and you will, too. Just wet your sponges, get another clean piece of waxed paper, and start over.

When it’s real hot, you may have to spritz the top of the paint now and then with water, as you’re painting. Or use a retarder. The paint will start to gel on top, if you paint for loong hours at a time, like I do. And, if you’re running a fan or space heater in the winter, it will speed that process up.

You also have to keep checking to see if your sponges are wet, and that there is a bit of water in the bottom of the pan. But, other than that..this should save you money, and save you from throwing away your leftover paints. I’ve been able to store paint like this for 2 or 3 weeks before it starts to dry out. I just keep adding more paint to the palette, and replace the waxed paper when it gets too messy. It has saved me a ton of money, and I hope it works well for you, too! Let me know. Send me an email or leave a comment sometime.

video: Tattooed Angel
starring: my greg
isn’t he funny? lol
artist: me
music: Tattoo Angel by Abscondo

 print available

Homemade Dog Biscuits
(previously posted January 2011)

2 cups warm water
1 tsp chicken broth paste or bouillon cube
2 tablespoons dry parsley – (I don’t have any parsley, so I used oregano)
2 tablespoons minced garlic
3 tablespoons honey
1 egg
5-6 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons dry yeast

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 ° F.

I throw all the ingredients into my bread machine. If you don’t have a bread machine, you can mix by hand or perhaps use a KitchenAide mixer.

1. Dissolve chicken broth paste or bouillon in water, pour into bread machine. Add the rest of the ingredients, and start machine on the dough cycle. I don’t run it through the entire dough setting, maybe like ten minutes or so..until it appears to be mixed well. Then turn off the machine.

If dough is sticky, sprinkle flour on a cutting board. Grab a handful of dough and form into a small ball. Roll to 1/4-inch thick. Using a sharp knife, cut into small doggy bite sized pieces. Or, if you have a bone-shaped cookie cutters, use that! Transfer to greased baking sheets, spacing them about 1/4 inch apart. Gather up the scraps, roll out again, and cut additional biscuits.

Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and flip the biscuits over. Bake for an additional 15 minutes, or until lightly browned on both sides. Let cool in the oven overnight. The biscuits will become hard like the milk bone biscuits you buy in the store.

sold!
thank you!!

11″ x 8.5″ on birch plywood
original portrait painting
keep the joy of summer with you year round.
available in my Etsy shop now.

your absence has gone through me
like a thread through a needle.
everything i do is stitched with its color.
~ W.S. Merwin

in your absence painting

Girl with long red hair, sitting with her hands on her face.
I painted this shortly after my mother passed away last August.

original
just relisted in my etsy shop
prints are also available

Watch me paint this painting:

sweet pea

sweet pea was born without eyes, but she still spins around in circles like a silly kitten

old dirt road

heart rock

her friends call her bunny
5×7 original portrait
girl wearing pink bunny ears
Sold!
Thank you!!

Her hat is a creation that will never go out of style;
it will just look ridiculous year after year.
~Fred Allen

5×7 on canvas board
$35.00

Available in my Etsy shop now.

original figurative
acrylic painting

red, lime, and orange sand pails
blue sky
sandy beach

Sand Pails
9″x12″
original
acrylic painting
on canvas board
available in my Etsy shop now

I’m still trying to figure out who took our picture.

my gram

I haven’t seen my grandmother for a little over 12 years now, except in old pictures. She passed away June 25, 1999. It seems like yesterday, and so very long ago at the same time. I have missed her terribly over these years. My grandmother was my mentor. Someone I looked up to, loved and respected. She was the foundation of our family. A hard working New England woman who had nine children of her own, and one step-daughter. She also adopted her great granddaughter when she was in her late sixties/early seventies, and raised her as her own until she passed away.

She got by on very little money. Okay, she was poor, but that didn’t seem important to her. Family was important to her. She was always trying to get us together for cookouts and reunions in the summertime. I remember I’d groan at the thought sometimes. Oh, not another cookout..I’m too busy..got too much stuff to do. But oh how lucky I was to have a grandmother who cared about us like she did. What I wouldn’t give to have an afternoon like that again.

So, when my aunt Jeanne asked me to paint Gram, I jumped at the chance. It is such an honor for me to paint someone I admire and love so very much.

I didn’t realize until I started painting her how emotional it was going to be. I had to keep taking breaks because the tears were flowing so fast down my cheeks. I haven’t seen her in such a long time. Staring at her face for hours was breaking my heart. And the more I painted, the more it seemed like she was coming alive on the canvas.

Meow! This is Sweet Pea.

If you’re a friend of mine on Fb, you probably know that Greg and I adopted a kitten a couple weeks ago. She’s now 3 months old, and she was born without eyes. But, don’t let that fool you. She does everything a cat with eyes does, plus A LOT more.

me and sweet pea

I’ve put off writing this entry because it’s hard to come up with words about her. She is amazing..Greg and I keep looking at each other and saying that. She’s soooo amazing. I showed her where her cat box was twice. I didn’t have to, tho. She knew where it was after one time. No accidents for this little girl. She scales the room once, and she knows where she is. She learned the house in just one day. The stairs took a couple days, but really all I had to do is lay her front paws on the first step, and she was fine. Coming down was a little trickier, but after a couple tumbles and falls, she got it the hang of it. Now she goes up and down by herself without any help what-so-ever.

She uses my tabletop easel like it’s her personal gym. lol She climbs all the way to the top. Oh, here..see for yourself..

I have a new studio assistant. I’ll never be lonely again. lol

sweet pea
kitten born without eyes

I have taken a lot of video, which I need to edit. But, stay tuned, so you can see her in action.

]]> http://www.mizkatie.com/she-was-born-without-eyes/feed/ 0 http://www.mizkatie.com/new-or-relisted-in-my-etsy-shop-by-miz-katie/ http://www.mizkatie.com/new-or-relisted-in-my-etsy-shop-by-miz-katie/#comments Fri, 08 Jul 2011 10:54:47 +0000 mizkatie http://www.mizkatie.com/?p=607 child wearing a Masquerade Mask Print 

Morning Walk -
original acrylic painting woman walking her dog

 Original Nude
Mixed media acrylic painting 9×12 canvas  

Polka Dot Girl and Her Bunny -
4×4 wall art on chipboard

 The Mask She Wears -
Original Masquerade Mask Portrait Painting

Determined -
original painting on paper no 140

Smart Cookie -
original painting on paper no 141

Proud of Himself -
original painting on paper no 142

Autumn Leaves -
original painting on paper no 143
Sold!
Thank you!

Team Player -
original painting on paper no 144

Strange Dream -
original painting on paper no 145

he was a good boy no146
SOLD!
THANK YOU!!
print is available

Pleased As Punch -
original painting on paper no 147

Afternoon Walk -
original painting on paper no 148

Little Lost Soul -
original painting on paper no 149

Little Fairy -
original painting on paper no 150

on the easel today

girls with hats and tongues

I relisted this painting over the weekend. And in case you noticed, yes..I raised the price. The thought of letting it go that cheap made me sick to my stomach. I have sooo much time in this painting. sigh. It is still priced way too low.

You can watch me paint this..

Music by Kray Van Kirk
Chase the Morning
You can find the lyrics here.

free painting giveaway

Winner of this giveaway is Fern Polsky-Hilyard. I will be having another giveaway when my FB page has 100 “likes”. If you’d like to be entered in the giveaway, go to my FB page, and click the Like button at the top of the page. I’ll be announcing the next painting soon. Hurry!!

I’m in The Pulse!! Check out this entry.

2 little girls holding sand pails on the beach painting

Old time summertime fun.

I’ll have it listed in my Etsy shop sometime next week.
Contact me fast if you want first option to buy it.

heart flowers finished painting

Original figurative painting
on 9×12 on wrapped canvas
Just relisted, and available in my etsy shop.

Let Me Fly away
and
She Dreams with Her Eyes Wide Open

have been sold,
and shipped to Australia!
(thank you so much!! yay!!)

I know some were saving their pennies for these pieces.
I have a new girl with a bird in her hand painting that I’ll be listing on Etsy this week. Stay tuned. I won’t be re-painting the second painting, sorry.

the mask she wears
original acrylic portrait painting by Miz Katie
9″x12″ on wrapped canvas
sides are painted black
available in my etsy shop now

Purple Dress Pink Tie – original painting on paper no 131

From Where She Came – original painting on paper no 132

The Whistler – original painting on paper no 133

She has Many Secrets – original painting on paper no 134

She Doesn’t Want Any Pity – original painting on paper no 135

Cloud Love – original painting on paper no 136

Oh, Sheesh – original painting on paper no 137

At Peace – original painting on paper no 138

Hipster – original painting on paper no 139

Determined – original painting on paper no 140

available in my Etsy shop now

Little Brown Fox
original
mixed media painting
5×7 painting

We make our own world.
What are you missing because you’re so sure
that everything is just so?

What grace are you leaving on the side of the road
because you are rushing to the next proof of how bad things are
and how you can’t possibly succeed because [fill in the blank]?

Stop.

You have the power to rewrite your story.

Tammy Vitale