Learning to Paint

A while back I talked about deciding to paint my own artwork. Yes I know it was a long while ago, but the point of the story is I finished it.
My Dad is an amazing artist (painting, sculptures, drawings, you name it he can do it) so I had a bit of help from him. He walked me through what kind of paint to choose for the style of painting I wanted. We decided on oil paints.

Then he showed me how to work with the paint the brush strokes. With lots of reminders to brush lightly and not to over brush.

With the base of the blue down, we had to take a break to let it cure (dry). Though oil paints never completely dry they do need time to cure before you continue adding colors over other colors.

And this is where I stalled out for a year. Minnesota has so few nice months that I didn't want to be stuck indoors painting during the summer. Then with my photography business I didn't get back to the painting this fall either. But Minnesota winters are always a great time to paint.
So back to it I went. Dad walked me through how to added and blend the colors I wanted to finish the background.

At this point I had to let it cure again before I could add the final piece. It takes a couple of weeks to get a decent enough skim over the paint to not blend with the new paints. A couple of weeks turned to a couple of months but finally I was ready to add the finishing touches.

I mapped out where I wanted the birds to go and traced around my birds with a pencil. Then I filled in the pencil with a dark grey (almost black). The black wire I free handed on to the canvas with a thin brush. After that I was done. I can't believe I finished and that it turned out how I wanted it to!

Now I just have to wait till it cures enough to put on my wall. It will go in the living room to round out my gallery wall, more on that later.

~ Cassi

Check out the links page to see where I am linking up this week.

Pin It

Inspire me

I am completely inspired by some of the designs I see out on the web. I mean just look at the three I show there. Each so different and yet inviting and personal.

The Nesting Place

The Nester is so great at her picture groupings and causal cozy feeling to her rooms. If you are not a follower of her blog you should be. What I learned from this picture and the rest of her blog is I need more dimension and textures to my space. I have accomplished that in the pillows and curtains but I need to apply it to my walls also. By adding the small shelf and dish she managed to achieve that depth. The dish and chalkboard also add more textures to the space. I also love how the black of the chalkboard and the coffee table play off each other, it just draws your eye in. I also love the corner couch to me it just screams "come read a book here".

The Design Diva

The Design Diva, isn't a blog but it does have some ideas that are easy to follow. There is also a list of design books on the site if you are looking for a inspirational read. What I love here is the over sized picture, the bird catches my eye. Ok one thing you should know is I love birds in decor, please don't go buy me a real bird! I reality their squawking, messy cages and not sure what to do with them does not interest me at all. Sorry to all pet bird owners, you will find my two cat house probably just as nerve racking as I find live birds. Ok, back to the room. I also love the red tables, they are highly functional and the color is great! The walls here are great but not an option I am considering for my space.

VNBonsai

This website seems to be more of a gallery of ideas. I really like the vintage feel of this room. Again this room has the "come read a book" calling.  The pops of color from the coffee table and the cabinet are so appealing. I would love the window bench and bookshelves but I also want that in my office space, and I think twice in one house might be too much. Thoughts on that? The furniture placement in this one is what I hope to have once I get new furniture.

Living Room, Familly Room, Sitting Room

Whatever you may call that room in your house that everyone uses. We call ours the living room, it is where we doing the majority of our living. At this time we only have one living room, so it holds the couch, chair, ottoman, TV, tables, toys, etc... everything for our daily lives. Once the basement is done and we have a new living room the TV couch. chair  and ottoman will be moved to the basement. This space will then become the sitting room.

I am so excited about that. But until that time comes I still want to love this room when I sit in it. There are few things in this room that I love. Starting with the curtains, I love the two layers gauzy blue and chocolate brown silk.

My next favorite about this room is the pictures on the wall, I love the mix of pictures. My favorite print is the Lady Shalott. The big tree picture brings the colors of the room together and lends its self towards the natural elements I want to bring in.

I also love the bookshelf, I designed it and my Father-in-Law built it. Now on to what I am not fond of... The color of the walls is not my favorite. I will admit this is the color I chose and it is growing on me. I feel I should keep it, it is bright and I think it is welcoming. I am also not please with the way the pictures are laid out. They need something just not sure what. My other goal is to replace the sconces. I like that these fade into the wall so the pictures are the main focus, but the other part of me says some visually appealing ones would be nice to. Furniture wise I am looking at getting two dark brown leather chairs and then a couch in beige. The pillows will stay from this set to the next. Any ideas, thoughts, on ways I could make some changes, to make this room more inviting would be great!