August 24, 2013 – Taking a break…

.. to visit the garden and pick roses. Seems it’s been months since there have been this many roses to pick. Joe has been giving them lots of water and the days have been getting just a bit shorter, so they are growing like crazy. Hardly anything makes me feel more content than deadheading and picking roses then coming inside to put them in vases around the house. A slice of heaven for me. Painting is behind them, calling me back!

August 23, 2013 – Waterlily *almost* finished with the pads

I wanted to have all the lily pads painted by the end of the day today, giving myself the weekend for the reflection and the lily. Not too far to go, and I’m staring to do stupid stuff to the painting. Time for bed. Here’s where it is:

Here’s the upper right corner – kind of its own world. The ladies in m Friday group really liked the rolled lily pad. It was vexing to paint. Glad they liked it. Still picking it apart myself… those voices!

August 21, 2013 – Waterlily painting is finally making progress

After undertaking a re-labeling project with all the inventory of giclee prints (which is considerable) late last week and the Tiburon Art Festival this past weekend (wonderful to see all who came out!) I didn’t get much time to paint. I’m back at it now. Here’s where it is:

I really like how the upper left corner is taking shape:

And prayers are still welcome there is a ton of detail to paint still. I started a bit on the waterlily reflection – all the white spots are water drops not yet painted – and that’s only one petal!

August 20, 2013 – Tuesday Group

Holly’s Hawaiian fish is really coming along. Just beautiful!

Marilee is painting her granddaughter in a bucket – I’m so amazed by how much Marilee can paint in one 4-hour session!

Funny, upside down perspective on Shannon’s rose and raindrop piece. I’m so in love with this painting!

Win is doing another piece based on color-mixing squares – this time with intention that a shape emerge. Will be fun to watch that happen!

Susie is having fun painting rope – some of it unwound. And her painting is showing how much she’s enjoying it too!

Paulette started a new rose piece today. Such a touch to the first washes.

I loved today! We had a Shannon’s daughter Genevieve and Paulette’s granddaughter Colette, both 10 and both attend French-speaking schools. We had sweet voices speaking French to each other, with a few of us chiming in. I had to pinch myself that this was really happening. Made me so happy!

August 16, 2013 – Friday Group

Adrienne finished up her piece of her grandson Oliver in his wind-up, adding to her adorable grandkids gallery.

Susie back from her vacation in France. She visited the Sennelier store on the Quai in Paris (amazing place!) and is adding to her color inventory with the new-not-available-yet-in-the-US colors.

Mickey finished her rose! And wasted no time diving into another with a “fuzzy” background!

Sondra putting in the shapes that make the rose in this piece. So lovely. She was plagued at first with the relentless voice editorializing as she started with the first few. It’s amazing how hard that voice is on us – and no one is immune.

Pam put a few touches on her red rose and is now painting an outrageous hibiscus flower. This is just the start of the sky and surroundings.

August 13, 2013 – Making headway in the water

A side-view showing underwater stems. The ripples and reflections are tricky – no matter how much I’ve painted them before.

The full image and a zoom in to see all the water drops on my computer. I love this image!

August 13, 2013 – Tuesday Group

Marilee finished the sunflower. Love how this came out! And started on on of her granddaughter as a little girl in a bucket!

Libby’s got a wild one here – colored glass balls and cut glass vases, in a collage of three different views.
Already off to a fabulous start.

Paulette finished her waterlily and it’s beautiful. She thinks she tortured it. None of the rest of us see that at all. We are so close to our work sometimes it’s hard to see the beauty of it. I get this ALL the time. I compare it to looking at my face with a magnifying mirror seeing all its flaws. Time and distance helps!

Paulette’s granddaughter Colette from Oregon joined us today. Happy to have you come paint and play with us!

Win darkened the background around these wisteria blossoms – makes them pop. Beautiful. She says it’s done now.

Susie starting in on one of buoys hanging on a fence in Inverness. She was inspired by my friend Kate Peper’s painting of the same subject she saw at the Marin County Fair this year. Cool.

August 9, 2013 – Started a new one – a HUGE waterlily

The paper is 40″x40″. My hope is to paint it in time to be framed and display at the Sausalito Art Festival at the end of the month. Prayers that I can are gladly received!

August 9, 2013 – Friday Group

Pam finished the rose today. Pam, it’s just stunning.


Sondra’s piece – she worked on the flowers in the shadows. So delicate.

August 7, 2013 – Roses from Paris in Fairfax

When Bo and I were on our morning walk we saw that our neighbor Adrienne who is a florist was tossing a bunch of roses because they weren’t fresh enough. I realized they were the same *exact* variety that I saw and then painted from a flower stall in Paris! Fun!