A Departure of Sorts

Cynthia Powell, over at Digital Montage Studio blog, has published a new tutorial and issued a challenge. It's called Grungy Abstract Painting, and it's really fun. I made this piece and played with the final blending mode and came up with these two.

Another Marilyn

Found this gorgeous photo and just had to use it.

Happy Birthday, Marilyn

52 Starlets--Marilyn

These are a couple of pieces made for older challenges. Marilyn is certainly iconic in the world of film--sweetly innocent; fiercely sexy; vulnerable and lost...a woman of charm and contradiction. We all love and miss her presence in the world still.

I hope to have a new piece for this challenge soon.

Take a Word-Wings

Wings--one of my favorite symbols--spirits soaring, flying away, flights of fancy, wings of imagination--there are so many meanings.

This piece was made with a geisha image and a stencil from Dover, and a beautiful background piece by Peggy Gatto. The calligraphy was googled--the top figures are the symbol of "Wings of Birds or Insects" and the bottom symbol is "to Fly."

I changed the way that comments are added to my blog. Hopefully, you will be able to leave your thoughtful comments, even if I still can't post any. I miss heraring from you as well as being able to tell you all how wonderful your art is! I hope I can even post this image for the challenge.

PLEASE Blogger, FIX THIS!!!

4 by 4 Friday--little arch

Little Arch with Ravens

The raven is from Terri Kahrs, the arch is from Jeanette at Soartful. The rest was done with watercolor and grunge PS brushes.

Some more work for Yahoo Group

For Digitalnuts Yahoo Group

Photo digitally altered

Some new pieces made for my Yahoo Groups

the weekly challenge theme was "a river runs through it."

Three Muses Challenge- Blue

Happy Birthday to the Three Muses Blog!!! You guys are such a great inspiration--Fabulous challenges--inspiring and supportive comments and just plain NICE! I wish you as many more years of this as you keep enjoying what you do!

Here's my blue piece--one of those organic ones--it just kind of grew itself. Thanks to Kamina and Rolling Blue for the background textures, to, I think, Marie's freebies for the lovely lady and Google for the butterfly.

Inspiration Avenue--Purple and Green

Wisteria Days

Image from Digitalnuts Challenges, texture from Shadowhouse Creations, gradients and brushes added, filters and blending modes applied.

52 Starlets--Clara Bow

i new challenge! I love new Challenges. this one is from MissouriDaze, honoting the great women of the cinema. this is the second week and the starlet is Clara Bow.

Take a Word-Zetti

This is SO not what I am good at..., but here she is--a melancholy Zetti (is that even possible?) with wings.

Thanks to Mizjadeadams for the border and inspiration. The rest is all mine, cutting, pasting, filtering, some brush work and coloring.

SPA-Storks

What a great theme! So specific, but look at all the very different renditions of the bird!

The storks are an illustration by Edward Lear. I found it on a wonderful site called Resuable Art.com. It's full of old illustrations and pictures, all in the public domain. Go visit--you'll be amazed at the treasures to be found!
The background was made with a googled postcard image, a texture piece from UR_2 and a watercolor texture from Joyce's Photo Album at T4L. The rest is blending and brushes.

Thanks for visiting!

soartful challenge-Steampunk

I loved the background that Jeanette provided this week. steampunk fascinates me, but I'm still not sure I get it. I did find a fabulous source for steampunk bits. It's the Sum of all Crafts blog and you should visit.
I used some bits from Temari09 at T4L, and from Cecilia Swatton's Spoonpunk kit, as well as some brushes. The steampunk gentleman is a bit from an older piece of mine.

Three Muses Challenge- Eggs

sometimes simple says it all...

Credits to Graphics Fairy for my very best favorite image of eggs and also for the robin and to Elizabeth Golden at Last Door Down the Hall for the background texture--would you believe it's the floor of a parking garage.

Collage Obsession--Swans

A piece I made a while ago and have used for note cards for Christmas presents.
The swan and the ripples in the water are brushes, The branches are part of the background texture from Rubyblossom, and there is another texture overlay piece that I found somewhere but didn't note it at the time.

Take a Word-Oriental

Sumi-e

Sumi-e is a style of painting that is characteristically Asian, and has been practiced for well over a thousand years. Literally ink painting, it is an art form that strives to distill the essence of an object or scene in the fewest possible strokes. A few carefully placed broad strokes that fade off abruptly, a few thin lines and a dot, and a bird is clearly called into being on the paper.

I have always wanted to be able to do this type of painting, and come back to it again and again, but alas, my aspiration far outstrips my talent with a brush.

This was done entirely with Photoshop brushes, from Noir Cat and Coreaux found on Deviant Art and Brusheezy, on a rice paper texture layer from T4L.

SPA-Dada

I don't quite know what Dada is? While I was googling it I found Marcel Duchamp and his work. It inspired this. Is it Dada? Who knows...

The figure is a brush I made from a photo, and the lightbulb was googled. The background was made with bits from Elizabeth Golden and textures by Taka Tuka and shaire productions at T4L.

Some Digi Journal Pages

Alphabet Inspired-Q is for Queen

Queen Elizabeth II

Image from Google, background from texture layers by Jerry Jones at Shadowhouse Creations.

Three Muses Challenge- Altered Mona

Mona's on vacation in the wild wild west!

thanks to Leonardo, Google images and Art-e-zine for the elements; and to H_Roach, Taka Tuka and Greentea at Textures for Layers Flickr group for the background textures. The frame is from HZ designs.

Take a Word-Chocolate

Hershey's label and child image from Google Images, Overlay from Shadowhouse, chocolate embellishments from Trine Secher at Nothing But Freebies.

SPA-April Showers bring May Flowers

Ah, Spring...soft showers (read monsoon like downpours) still bring May Flowers.

Thanks to Dover, Digitalyardsale and Google images. I made the stamp from an old children's book illustration.

soartful challenge-Spanish Alley

Credits to Google images, Shadowhouse Creations and Encounter_Laura at T4L

4 by 4 Friday--open theme

Credits to Cottage Arts, Shadowhouse and Google Images

just noodling around with brushes

I downloaded some new brush sets from Brusheezy this morning and was noodling around, seeing what they could do. I came up with this. The brush sets are Abstractions and Pinkstorm's Watercolor Set1. I used a texture layer from Shadowhouse as a base.

Three Muses Challenge- Stripes

Don't ask...

Image from e-vint, background textures from Shadowhouse and Songbird Avenue. Lots of blending modes applied.

Take a Word--Exposed

Art exposes the soul--of the artist--of the subject--of the viewer.

Photo, a Zigfeld girl, background by rubyblossom

Soartful on Sunday

It took me a while, but here's my tribute to Maude Fealy, an exquisitely beautiful woman. I have quite a collection of images of her and use them often.
The quote is by David Carradine, and I think it just perfectly sums up the work that actors do.
Background made with bits from PinkOrchid and Playingwithbrushes, and the arches are from Marie's Freebies.

SPA-Wedding

Here's a newly married couple, posing for their formal wedding portrait. Can't you just see it on the New York Times Society Page!

The photo is a freebie from Elizabeth Golden at Last Door Down the Hall. Background made with bits from Parreerica, Kamina and DanSnyder at Textures for Layers Flickr Group. The embellishments are from Trine Secher. You should visit her site, Nothing But Freebies--there are some wonderful goodies to be had there.