Owl Painting and Gourd Art ~

Hello everyone,
I want to share a new painting I just finished a week ago (and sold already!) and also a piece of gourd art I'm working on. It's almost done - I just have to finish the butterflies and spray with a protective coating. I hope everyone is enjoying these last days of summer. August flew by for me! I can't believe it's almost September - but I am looking forward to fall...mild days and crisp, cool nights, pumpkins, the changing of the leaves, sweaters, mums and that indescribable feeling in the air!

I thought it would be fun to share the gourd painting process with you, start to finish. Here's what I started with...a plain hardshell gourd. First it was scrubbed clean, then I cut off the top and cleaned and finished the inside.

 

 

Next, a base coat of ivory paint and black rim, butterflies sketched in... 

 

 

A second rim of orange added...

 

 

Begin painting the butterflies...

 

 

Finished...there are four butterflies around the gourd. This will eventually be going in my Etsy shop.

 

 

 

Have a wonderful week, everyone. I've not been able to post as often lately as I've been so busy with work and art projects. I appreciate each and every one of my followers, though! Thanks so much to those who visit and those who leave comments.  

 

 

Until next time,

Cindy

 

 

Linking to: Seasonal Sundays at The Tablescaper

                                   Make It Pretty Monday at The Dedicated House

                        What's It Wednesday at Ivy and Elephants

                           Show and Tell Friday at My Romantic Home



 

 



Gourd-eous Gourds for Fall ~

I've been a gourd artist for approximately 12 years. I'd never even heard of them prior to that, except for the small, decorative ones to display in the fall. But, one day I picked up an instruction book at a local craft store about painting on hardshell gourds ~ and I was hooked! I call them "nature's canvas" and I love the organic feel of them in my hands as I work on them.  I'm starting to experiment with different styles and methods of painting them now, but here's a few pictures of some of the fun gourds I've painted for Halloween and Autumn.

Birdhouse gourd with sunflowers

...and, this is a bowl I made as a gift for a friend.

For anyone who isn't familiar with gourds, this is what they look like, fresh off the vine. The hardest part is cleaning them, as they're covered with dirt and dark mold, which must be scrubbed off completely prior to painting and decorating. I used to love going to the gourd farm and climbing through the piles and piles of gourds, looking for the perfect ones for my creations. I must admit that today, I'd rather buy them already cleaned!

Here's one cleaned and ready to go!

Ghost on pumpkin - this is one of my most popular gourds!

Until next time, have a wonderful weekend!