A Year-End Letter, to You!

Well, it's that time of year - the end of it. A time to take stock, take a deep breath, and gear up for exciting things ahead. I'm looking forward to a lot more painting and teaching in the new year, but first - and speaking of taking stock: these are the final days of the 50% off sale in my Etsy shop.  Please check it out, if you haven't already, and share it with a friend! Thank you.

I'm excited about my upcoming January workshops in Corvallis, Oregon, and San Clemente, California. If you'd love to take a workshop, but live too far away, consider joining my online art mentorship program. With size limited to ten artists, I offer lots of individual attention and guidance on your unique creative journey, whatever your art goals may be!

And if you would like me to bring a painting workshop to your community, I have openings in my 2018 calendar. Email me to discuss ideas!

2017 was a truly amazing year. I was awarded my first artist's residency, taught workshops in many wonderful places, had a fantastic solo show on Whidbey Island, created a new website, and expanded my online mentorship program. Not to mention painting!

2018 will bring the TENTH anniversary of this blog, February 8th. That means I began this art journey ten years ago, with daily painting, selling small works on ebay, becoming a part of the online art blogging community... and on from there. I can't wait to celebrate this milestone with you. Not sure how I'll be doing that yet, but I have ideas, so stay tuned!

I will also begin publishing a quarterly newsletter soon - something I've been intending to do for a LONG time. So, if you want to be included in that new venture, click here and sign up! 

I mentioned my year-end sale earlier in this post. The new year will bring changes - both to the content of my Etsy shop and to my overall pricing structure. It's been quite a while since I've raised my prices, but the time has come. For more information about that, click here. 

Before we say goodbye to 2017, I want to offer a huge, deep, and heartfelt Thank You to all of you - my readers, supporters, followers, collectors, friends, and family. It's your love of art - and of me - that keeps me going. I feel deeply blessed, humbled, and grateful.

Happy New Year!
-Sarah

Blue and Gold, a new Ornament Painting, with a Video!

 "Blue and Gold"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

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The stages of this piece. Isn't it funny how GREEN the gold ornament looked before the rest of the painting got filled in? I admit it, green is my secret weapon for creating the illusion of gold. 

Here's a quick time-lapse video of the underpainting coming together - I love these things! No matter how long you let the camera run, the resulting video is always 30 seconds. So, I have absolutely no idea how long this part took. 😉

I get a LOT of questions about materials - what paint, brushes, etc I use. For this part, the underpainting shown in the video, I'm using a #2 round taklon brush by Connoisseur. The canvas is toned with a mixture of red, yellow, and blue - an orange dulled with its complement. And, as always, the brand is M. Graham. To provide a quick answer to questions about materials, I've compiled a list of products I use on Amazon - you can check that out here!

Pear Power

 

 "Pear Power"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

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This pair of pear paintings were painted with the same limited palette - three tubes of color, plus white (OK, two whites). 

It looks like a lot more, doesn't it?!

You can click on this image for info on the colors I used:

It's Holiday Sale Time!

"Brown Pears"

8 x 8 inches, oil on canvas

$250

Click to buy

There are so many holiday sales, and I'm here to announce yet another one! But, in my humble opinion, if you only visit ONE this year, the Whiteaker Printmakers Holiday Show and Sale is the one to see. I was there last night setting up, and let me tell you, the studio is crammed full of amazing art.