Love Bees

Another late post, but I am catching up!

This is a flower pot that I painted for my boyfriend's mother for Mother's Day.

She likes bees, well they actually keep bees.

I painted a cute pair of love bees sitting on a flower.

She really liked it!

I am very happy with how it turned out.

I feel that I really nailed the shading on this one!

famILY

A late post, but I am trying to get back into posting regularly on my blog again!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day.

I surprised my Mom with a canvas painting of herself and us kids as angels.

It is very different than the style of painting I usually do, as it is more on the abstract side.

She loved it! She said she really liked the colors and the meaning.

I put a lot of thought into the layout of this painting, and I think that she knew it when she looked at it.

Utensil Holder

We have never had a cute utensil holder.

Working at a pottery studio, I decided it was time to paint us one.

I decided to use a color palette of browns and teals.

I made a large heart and placed inside of it all types of items you would find in a kitchen.

After all, the kitchen is the heart of the home.

Thanks for looking!

Superman, Unzipped

If you have seen some of my blog posts in the past, you will know my younger brother LOVES Superman.

His birthday was last weekend, so of course I made his something in Superman theme.

He had asked me about painting him a cup.

Originally, I wanted to make the Superman logo look like it was ripping out of skin,

but I didn't like the way my sketches were turning out.

I ended up decided to make the logo look like it was being unzipped.

He was really happy with it!

Thanks for looking!

Coffee Coozie

I work with a friend who just recently picked her college.

She had been having a hard time deciding, really weighing her choices.

I felt that she did a great job with this big decision, so I made her coffee coozie and added in a special note to show her I was proud of her!

Boot Warmers

My boyfriend's sister's birthday was last month.

While browsing threw different boot warmer patterns, I came across one that had a bow on it -

they instantly made me think of her.

I made them for her as a belated birthday gift.

I crocheted them in Loops & Threads  Impeccable Glitter yarn.

They are an ivory color with gold glitter in them.

The pattern I used can be found at

http://loopsoflavender.blogspot.com/2012/12/bow-boot-cuffs.html

Thanks for looking!

Ruby Red Slippers

What makes you think of the Wizard of Oz more then ruby red slippers?

Well that is exactly what inspired this ornament.

The black and white in the background are like the tights.

You can't tell as much in this picture, but the red paint on the shoes is actually metallic so it shimmers.

Thanks for looking!

Because Brothers can be Superheroes too

My younger brother LOVES Superman!

I racked my brain this past Christmas trying to figure out what I could make him in that theme.

I decided to try my first canvas painting!

I love how it turned out and he was pretty excited about it!

He goes by Skip, so I tied the "S" in Superman to the "S" in Skip.

He made me feel awesome when he told me it looked like a store bought canvas!

(He wasn't sure if that was a compliment or not - but I quickly informed him that it was a huge compliment!)

On the back, one of the things I put was "Because brothers can be superheroes too".

Thanks for looking!

Houndstooth Infinity Scarf

My boyfriend's Mom likes houndstooth, so I searched the internet for inspiraration for houndstooth patterns. (I wasn't even sure if you could crochet houndstooth!)

This is the pattern that I came across:

http://elkstudiohandcraftedcrochetdesigns.com/2013/01/23/excited-about-crochet-patterns/

The pattern was easy to follow, and as you can see, turned out beautifully!

I love it so much that I want to make one for myself as well.

I wasn't selfish with this one though, it did make it to it's intended recipient on Christmas and she loved it.

Thanks for looking!

Snowmen Family

A friend of mine asked me to paint an ornament for her, illustrating her family as snowmen.

I started out by finding everyone's favorite color.

I then painted the snowmen, making sure everyone was "accurate in size".

I accented one with a stocking cap, one with a bow and scarf, one with a top hat and bow tie, and one with ear muffs and a scarf.

I wrote the names of each person on their accessories as well.

There is also a heart to the side, that I put the year in.

Thanks for looking!

Yarn Christmas Ball

I think it is neat when I find things to paint the whole round ornaments as,

instead of just part of it...

so when the idea of something knitting/crocheting came up,

I just knew that I had to paint a yarn ball!

It turned out very fun!

I think it is visually appealing when the whole glass ornament ball is used for the painting.

Thanks for looking!

P is for Panda, or Paige

I hand-painted Christmas ornaments for all of my coworkers this season.

One of my coworkers, Paige, she loves pandas!

So, of course I would paint a panda on her ornament!

I made it extra special by putting a "P" on it's foot for "Paige"!

Thanks for looking!

Caricature Ornament

I had a special request from a gentleman to paint a portrait of his girlfriend, himself, and two daughters on an ornament for Christmas.

I had never tried anything like this before, but was willing to give it a try!

He was willing to go with more of a caricature portrait, so this is what I came up with:

They loved it!

I am happy with how it turned out and they were too!

They though it was neat to see themselves in somewhat of a cartoon form.

Thanks for looking!

Ribbon Angel

This Christmas, while making ornaments, I wanted to make something special in remembrance of my Papa to hang on the Christmas tree.

My Papa passed away from lung cancer several years ago.

I painted an angel made from a lung cancer ribbon onto a glass ornament.

I made one for myself and also for my mother and sister.

They were very touched by the gesture.

I am happy with the way they turned out and am glad that we now have something special to hang on the tree in remembrance of Papa.

Thanks for looking!

Heartfelt Request

This set of ornaments was a custom request, a gentleman wanted them as a Christmas gift for his wife.

He wanted them to mark their first apartment, their home, and their wedding date.

I thought that it was a very special request, and one that was very heartfelt.

This has to be my favorite order yet.

He was very thankful for me completing his request and happy with the outcome.

Thanks for looking!

Braided Seed Bead Necklace

Seed beads, when used creatively, can make beautiful jewelry.

Here is a necklace that I made as a Christmas gift.

I strung three strands each of white seed beads, silver/grey, and clear.

I took these strands and braided them together, making a slightly chunky necklace.

I then took a silver chain and hooked it onto each end.

The necklace was long enough that I didn't even have to attach a clasp!

Thank you for looking!

Penguin Ornament

Penguins are cute anytime of year, but they are perfect for winter!

Here is a cute penguin painted onto a glass ornament ball:

I think the ornaments are cuter when you are able to make them the face or the whole body of something, so for this one it's just the penguin face.

It worked out perfectly on the round ornament ball!

Thanks for looking!

Bella's Halloween/Fall Bandana

I'm a little late on posting this, but I made Bella (my dog) a Halloween/Fall bandana.

I found a couple of different ideas on Pinterest and kind of combined a couple of them and tweaked them to my liking to suit Bella and how I wanted the bandana to work and look.

The bandana is very simple and does not tie around her neck, it actually slides unto her collar.

It is wonderful because she does not pay in any mind at all.

I did do a seam all the way around so that it would be machine-washable.

I didn't want it to just be plain polka dots, so I added a cut out a pumpkin design from felt and hand-stitched it on!

Bella has gotten lots of compliments on her bandana on our walks outside!

The main idea site off of Pinterest that I used for inspiration was: 

http://www.craftycritique.com/2011/06/tutorial-slide-on-dog-collar-bandana.html?m=1

Christmas martini anyone?

I was drawing some fun sketches of holiday drinks when I thought about giving them a try on the ornaments that I have been painting.

Here is one of them, a Christmas martini:

I drew my image on, painting a silver background around it.

I then painted in the details of the Christmas martini.

Last, I added red and white polka dots.

It turned out to be quite a festive ornament!

Sock Monkey Ornament

Sock monkeys are cute and make great decorations for anytime of year...

so why not have one on your tree, as a Christmas ornament?!

Here is one that I have hand-painted with acrylics on a glass ball ornament:

I think it turned out adorable!

I kept with the traditional sock monkey colors so that it would be easily recognizable, but you could also change up the color scheme to personalize it.