Long Time Gone

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I've really missed my blogging friends!  I've cleared out a lot in my house, and now am in the Limbo that is unique to a House For Sale.  I've struggled with all the different hats I've had to wear prepping everything, and I'm still not done, but well on my way - one more yard sale and one more POP UP sale (keep your eyes peeled and check the blog posts, because I will be taking sales via text message as well as in person!) to go.

It had been so long since I've done a Daily Painting... there was this fear... could I still paint?  I thought I'd forgotten HOW.  And what?  What subject?  I returned to my comfort zone.  Hadn't done a coffee or tea break in a long long time.  I love painting different textures, and here the graham crackers contrasted with the smooth liquid and the hard porcelain... and I had a BLAST doing it.  And whites are always so interesting.  So join me in 'Tak(ing) A Break", relax and enjoy.  And thanks for being there.

The God Squad, 6x4 Inches, Oil by Kelley MacDonald

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Times are trying now... for a lot of people.  Here's a conference of sweet angels ready to jump in to help.  Do you know someone who is in need of a fleet of angels?  This tiny painting will sit nicely on a nightstand and is only a whisper away.  I love layering the diaphinous robes and wings, the cute but powerful wings.  Angelic assistance is on the way....

Frenchies, 6x6 Inches, Oil

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French Bulldogs, or 'Frenchies', are just so darned adorable.  Similar to pugs in that they have a smaller snout, they have bat-like stand-up ears, no tail, and sturdy little legs.  They are very sweet, as a breed.  They come in lots of colors - fawn, brindle, white with black or brindle markings, etc.

Anyway, these two were from the Dog Show I go to in December...

I want to thank everyone for the wonderful birthday wishes!  I am a birthday celebrater - getting older is an option I want!  I took in a matinee, had my favorite dinner,  and enjoyed the evening with my older son, Paco and the cats, (husband is traveling).  Pretty great!

Three More Jellies, 6x6 In Original Oil Painting by Kelley MacDonald

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Look familiar?  A very nice customer asked for a donut painting, and liked the 'Three Jellies".. so I got 3 more jelly donuts and here it is.  I have to admit I like the stack of three. These were just luciously full. Every batch of donuts comes out a little different (yeah, I would notice that) and some are darker, some powderier, some fuller, etc.  This was also the subject of the commission I lost due to tardiness, and I hope someday to meet THAT customer and make her her own!

OK, in this post I made up TWO words.  

And heads up - I will be doing some fun giveaway the first week of December, AND have a couple of announcements!  It's all good!

And did you see Carolyn Finnell's portrait of my little Paco?  TDF!  Yup.  I bought it!

Happy, 5x7, Oil

Pomeranians always look happy, and this little guy, who I met during the Scottsdale Gallery Walk a while ago, was no exception. He acted like a 'big dog', in that he was calm, and had a big presence. I let my brushstrokes emphasize his gregarious nature. He was quite a lot of fun to paint!


The previous post of the horse & buggy were from Quebec City!!!! Congrats to those who guessed it!

White Peonies, 6x8, Oil

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*note... I accidently priced my small paintings $25 less than 
my last event - $50 each at Art In The Barn, North River Festival! this weekend only!*

When I was a young and very foolish woman I actively disliked Peonies.  I had my husband dig up (I'm shuddering just thinking of this) vast beds of them around our first house because they had ants all over their flowers.  Years later when I learned how wonderful gardening is and flowers in general I repented - and then begged for Peonies all around the yard.  I know now the ants help eat the sticky stuff off the petals so they can open.  I have 4 beautiful varieties in the yard, now, these being the simplest, just white - with, occasionally, a streak of magenta along the edge of a petal. 

Sublime.

$100 & $10 S&H via PayPal

Chocolate Lentils, 6x6 Oil

My Mom's favorite candies were chocolate lentils.  Last week for our Challege meet-up, my friend Jeanne MacFarland, a fabulous painter, brought these lentils as a treat.  There are only a few left, and I put them in one of my Mom's candy dishes.  Haven't painted glass in a while, and was feeling a little rusty!  Plus there were etched flowers - what was I thinking????  Oh, it was fun and you know I love a challenge.  My favorite part is the sparkle of light on the 'base stand' - I have no idea what the right name is for that!

Thanks, too, to all of you wonderful friends who voted for me in the DailyPainters.com contest.  The voting continues till June 18 (can you believe it?).  I will keep you posted!

Little Quince, 6x8, Oil

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Our first home had a huge quince shrub in the front yard, and it was the first time I'd ever been aware of the beautiful, delicate flowers, which have huge thorns and a bit of an oriental look to them.  When we moved to Rhode Island I wanted another quince bush, but couldn't decide on coral or white flowers, so we got both.  Every Spring now I brave the thorny branches to get cuttings of the flowers, which grow on the inside of the shrub, on the old wood.  

$100 & $10 S&H via PayPal

Izzy, 8x8, Oil

With Paco at my daughter's this weekend, I had a chance to re-connect with Isabelle, our first cat in this series of pets.  She's very sweet in real life, although I painted her with a grouchy look on her face.  This is how she looks when Paco's around because he never gives her a moment's peace - he will harass her in her littlerbox, eat her food, jump on top of her if she tries to walk across the room.  We've almost had him a year, and she remembers how it was BP (before Paco).  She's a sweetie, and I love her 'highlights' - when we got her as a kitten she was pure black with a pumpkin colored triangle on her face.  As she grew - more 'sparkles' appeared in her hind area - her front legs are still all black.  She's a  doll!

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Jack Is Beautiful! 6x8, Oil

I have a commission to paint Jack Daniel's, Coke and lime... and so I set it up, sketched it in, poured in the whiskey, and.... couldn't pour in the Coke - the color of the whiskey was so beautiful.  This is from someone who can hardly stand the smell of it!  I refrained from adding the Coke for this one painting, just because the liquid in the bottom of the Waterford Crystal glass was like a golden jewel. 

 First I was saying "AUGHHH!  Crazy woman - how on earth can this be painted!"  Then the OTHER voice in my head showed up saying "Oh, calm down.  Anything can be painted.  What do you SEE?"  And my breathing slowed and I just concentrated on exactly what I saw, without over-thinking or actually even drawing all those 'cuts' in the glass.  And the liquid in that bottle was so FUN to paint!

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Ranunculus, Oil, 6x12

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Today I felt like painting flowers.  It's Spring, and sunny out - and I'm yearning for my own flowers in my garden.  I'm working on my edges, and on the values here, shockingly the easiest part of this painting was the glass vase!  Thank you guys for all your comments - it is so great to hear from you!

York Patties, Spring Colors, 6x6, Oil

Small confession to make... I bought a bag of these the day after VALENTINE's Day to paint.  Somehow the pile of them just went down and down.  I'd like to say visitors to my studio kept nibbling on them... but that would be untrue.  So!  On to a new bag!  And I have to say, colored foil is challenging!  Now... let's have more of that Spring weather, huh?  One day of rain and I'm not happy!

Swedish Grace, Celadon, 6x6, Oil

Some of you may remember that my favorite coffee cup cracked last summer, and it was a Swedish Grace pattern in cobalt blue by Rorstrand - no longer available in the U.S.  I really missed it, and since I couldn't fly to Sweden to get another I was resigned to living without.  Last week, for my birthday, my sweet husband hunted for and found a store in San Francisco that had odds and ends of Swedish Grace.  He bought me a celadon cup and saucer set, as well as a coffee mug.  The mug has yet to arrive, but here is the cup and saucer, along with Anna's (I just realized) Swedish Ginger Cookies.  Boy, for an Irish/French woman I sure like things Swedish, eh?

Dreaming Of Venice, Oil, 12x6 inches

I'll come clean... I've never been to Venice.. YET.  It's on my own personal list of Places I Need To Go. Monet loved it for it's light, so I can't imagine not falling in love with it myself.  My son Conor has been, however, and he shared his photos with me.  I don't normally paint from photos.  But I was so inspired by some bloggers I saw this morning I thought I'd give it a try!

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Cairn III, 6x6, Oil

Feeling mellow today, as I am starting a new Yoga class, I played with all my little rocks at the studio, and made this little cairn.  I just love painting stones.  

Soup For Lunch, 8x6, Oil

I thought you might like to see the process of this one... I love tomato and rice soup!

First, the photo, below....

The initial sketch and block-in.

Some background, and a little modeling on the can...

Modeling on the bowl and spoon,

The cloth beneath and some rough details,

Almost done...

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AND my new Delivery System is in place (hurrah!), so if you'd like these posts to actually ARRIVE in your inbox, and they are not showing up, please re-enter your email address in the box at the top right column of my blog and I will happily send them to you!  Thanks so much for all the support!

Dreaming Of Harry Winston, 6x6 Acrylic

Well, it's that time again, when my Challenge Group posts their monthly interpretations of a theme or idea.  This month the theme was "Dream".  First of all, I'm completely lost when it comes to 'making stuff up' about a painting, and this is why I never thought of myself as a creative person for many years.  I started this and was really going places with it, till my loving husband told me I needed to make it 'sparkle' more.  OK.... I darkened the background, changed the color, changed it back, repainted the 'steps' on the inside of the stone, changed the shape of the diamond, gave it double claws like a 'real' HW, and then declared it completely dead.  If you check the Challenge Blog you'll see I did a Mermaid's Dream.  Just thought you'd get a chuckle out of this.  No, it's not something I own.  I just love sparkles, and.. let's be honest, in real life they're pretty sparkly!

As an aside, I've been paying more attention to my Studio Blog, and, well, Paco's Blog is featuring him and my MARTINI!

This one is NFS (not for sale)

Wild Strawberry Wedgewood Coffee Cup, 6x6 Oil

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This little china cup has always been a favorite.  I liked painting the cloth underneath, and the cloth underneath THAT.  No more cups or drinks this week, I think.  I'm a little exhausted by elipses (the way a circle flattens out as you view it from the side)!  So we'll see what I come up with.  It'll be fun (well, for me, anyway!) I sure!  Let's get through March weather with a smile on our faces!

Last Light Over The Sakonnet, 6x8, Acrylic

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This is a little painting of one of my many sunset views, overlooking the Sakonnet River.  The land mass is Aquidneck Island, which is home to Portsmouth, Middletown and Newport, RI.  I have always loved to paint these sunsets, but since the Fall I'd not been able to bring myself to.  A rejection of these paintings, which I said would not bother me, apparently did, more than I realized.  But now I'm able to put it behind me and move forward, and love this every changing view again.

And because you are so wonderful to me I'm going to share a photo from our Challenge Group's Meetup last week - with NO NAMES attached (because I value my life) - trust me these were fabulous 'grandma's'  - and the strudel was TDF.

Penguin Snow Globe, 6x6, Oil

Penguin Snow Globe, 6x6

$100 + $10 S&H via Paypal

I had a painting of the last (really!) rose from the garden, but at the last minute decided not to post it because I really think I need to work on 'roses'. The vase was OK, but the flower was not as rich in color as in real life, and I could see a real struggle with the petals.

THIS little guy, however, just sprang onto the board. I must really like painting little toys and such, you know? Anyway, just wondering... do you guys think I talk too much in my posts, and include information/subjects that are too personal? I'm thinking of applying (again!) to the Daily Painters.com. And I think my work ranks high enough to get in this time, but you never know what they'll reject you for. Just give me your honest opinion in the Comments section. I definitely can take it. And maybe I should reserve the more personal stuff for my 'Studio' blog, no?