 Kitty Angel Ornaments
 Road to Know-Where
 Mixed Media Blue Bird
I’m working on getting the web site updated and will have all the classes posted soon. We’ve been planning classes for the rest of the year and hope you can join us. A little holiday sprinkled with some other favorite designs + lots of imagination.
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Join us for one of our 2017 summer workshops with Liz at Artful Endeavors. We’ll explore our creativity with acrylics and watercolors.
Be sure to register at least 2 wks prior to class.
We need at least 4 participants to hold the class.
| * Some of you have requested a class to paint the Road to Know-where. The class has been rescheduled to Saturday, Aug 12. Register by July 26. * The classes are updated on the web site so let’s do some summer painting. * Note that we are starting another paint your own from your photo of a beach sunset starting next week on Wed am. We’ll explode our painting with color.Our Wed evening class has requested to paint their own landscape. Bring that photo inspiration and let’s paint.Watch for an upcoming portrait class a little later! Start looking for the photo to use. Don’t have one of your family you want to paint? We’ll find you a family member. Maybe a self portrait…Fri Aug 18 is our next Paint Your Cat for Purr Partners. I’ll have more information on that soon. Can’t travel to Artful Endeavors? Join me on Creative Workshops on one of my online classes.  Summer Romance * It’s time to sign up for our summer seminars if you haven’t done so already. Mark your calendar that I’ll be out of town June 19-23. It’s beach time! I’m on Face Book at Artful Endeavors. You don’t even have to be on Face Book to follow me. |
SDP Conference 2017 was an inspiring treat. Learning, seeing painting friends from all over the country, eating delicious foods, and being greeted by the ocean every morning and evening.
No teaching for me this trip. I was a “regular person” as someone said.
I took 3 colored pencil classes since I don’t usually get to use colored pencils and have a lot to learn about them. 3 different teachers with 3 different focuses. Just what I wanted. Of course I had to do the cats with Mark Menendez and Lorinda Hull but then also the blue heron with my friend Janelle Johnson. Mark is coming to our chapter next year and it was exciting to experience what a great teacher he is. Looking forward to class with him again. Lorinda’s cat was beautiful and she had a different touch with her colored pencils that was good to try. I didn’t know I could create that solid a background with colored pencils. Janelle is always a wealth of information and I always learn so much in one of her classes, this time with colored pencil and pastels for the background. Loved the effect. Great classes.
Mark’s Ginger Cat
Janelle’s Blue Heron design
Lorinda’s Mr Kitty
in progress
And then Maggie and I took a class with Sharon Hamilton in color glazing. She had the underpainting completed for us so that we could just start focusing on the glazing. And they were looking wonderful using this technique used by the old masters. Sharon is amazing.
Sharon’s glazing
in progress
Maggie, Sharon, and Liz
I have my samples at the studio if you would like to stop by and see them.
And then there was visiting with painting friends that I know, those I know from Face Book, and new friends I now know. Socializing was rampant. I had opportunities to catch up with current friends and it was fun to meet Face Book friends in person for a change.
Friends from the SC Foothills Chapter
Liz and Judy Westegarrd-Jenkins
All the painters and vendors at the trade show gave me new ideas after viewing their paintings and products. Did I mention that I’m inspired. And what fun to add a face to someone I’ve been doing business with for years. They really do exist in real life! So now I have new wood products, stamps, and stencils to use for designing, restocked brushes, re-found products, and lots of ideas to explore.
And I know what is currently happening at the society. Come by and I’ll bring you up to date.
SDP General Meeting
And then there was the eating, wonderful meals… During the days we had small quick meals before or between classes but then at night we enjoyed ourselves. One of my friends from Fla recommended Aunt Catfish’s and it was so wonderfully deliciously good. If you get an opportunity to be close to Daytona Beach be sure to go to Aunt Catfish’s. Sea food including catfish, hot bar, and salad bar with everything delicious. And on the river.
Maggie at Bubba Gump’s
So now I’m back, inspired, and ready to create. Come join me soon.
Liz
I’m traveling to the Society of Decorative Painters conference this week! And I’m eagerly looking forward to seeing friends that I haven’t see in too long and learning from the classes I’ll take. I have my colored pencils packed and my acrylic supplies. My classes will be with Mark Menendez, Janelle Johnson, and Lorinda Hull for colored pencil, and Sharon Hamilton for acrylic. It will be fun to do something our of my usual area of expertise.
I’ll try to post photos from the conference so watch our Artful Endeavors Face Book page.
I just got congratulated for making the cover of the summer Decorative Painter Journal. I haven’t see it yet so it will be a surprise to me.
On Creative Workshops!My Summer Romance is at Creative Workshops now and available for some relaxing summer painting. It’s time to add a little romance to our paintings with this fun feminine design. We’ll exercise our shading techniques to create shiny pearls and a gracefully flowing hat brim. Then we’ll set all of our items down on a surface to give the effect of just waiting to be picked up. Join us in painting this quiet summer moment. Theory and Techniques included: Light Source, Side Loading, Shading and
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Pink Hydrangeas Packet AvailableYou’ve asked for a packet for my Pink Hydrangeas design in acrylic. It will be available when I return from conference. Watch the blog and Face Book for information on ordering. Packets will be sent in email form.
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Seminars for 2017Registration is open!Ros Stallcup: July 19-22, 2017 |
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Register now for our 3 day seminar with Mark Polomchak.Mark is back with more watercolor excitement. Plan to join us Aug 26, 27, & 28.  Koi Sunday: Koi |
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Our seminar with Kathie Georgeis scheduled for Nov 13-15, 2017. I’ll post details soon. Kathie has just returned from her Africa painting journey. She’ll have lots of exciting details to share with us.
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Weekly Classes and WorkshopsWe’re adding to our schedules so be sure to check the web site for updates. |
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| Have a nice week and I’ll see you back at the studio next week. Liz |
I am sometimes asked, “What is your favorite painting?” My answer is usually, “The next one.” Actually my favorite part of painting is the process. I do have paintings that I have completed that I especially favor but they are done. It’s pleasing to look at them and share them with others. I like and need praise like all of us and that’s rewarding, but those paintings are completed.
The process is the most exciting part to me, the most absorbing, where time just passes unnoticed. I love getting started on a new painting, figuring out how to begin and in what direction I’ll wander.
turtles, the beginning of an idea
The turtles would be great in this setting.
The best part is that there is no rule about what I have to do with any one painting. Yes, of course I have studied, know about composition, perspective, color harmony, and all the rest of our artistic theory, absorbed it all and take it into consideration. One of my favorite ideas from Candice Olson, HGTV designer, is knowing the rules and knowing when to break them. We do need a good base of knowledge about our art, how is good art structured, know the rules. As these rules are internalized and become the foundation for our art, they are then liberating. We can explore from there.
I love figuring out how to create something new to me, a new idea, a new texture, technique, subject. This is usually done by experimenting. If I try this does it work? If not try something else. If it does, wow, exciting. And there is no end to learning. That’s my favorite painting.
Sunning Turtles
designed by Liz Miller CDA
video class can be found at http://creativeworkshops.me/classes-by-artist.html
Last Friday a group of volunteers from Purr Partners Feline Rescue gathered at Artful Endeavors to paint scarves to sell at Purr Partners events. The proceeds from the sales go toward funding Purr Partners rescues, upkeep, and medical attention for the cats rescued. It was nice to do something to help the cats but we had lots of fun expressing our creativeness. Here are the scarves we batik-ed and painted.
Creativity in progress. We have awesome students at Artful Endeavors.
When Kathie George said the we could do a project with Brushos I had no idea what she was talking about. So I had to investigate.
Brusho Crystal Colours are highly pigmented ink-powders that can be used like watercolors, sprinkled on to a damp surface to burst into color, and many other ways. They are fun to work with and can result in some exciting effects.
Brusho Crystal Colour
And yes, that is a push pen stuck in the top of each lid. It’s a great tip for sprinkling the powders so you don’t have to take the top off of the concentrated powders. Take the push pen out and sprinkle.
Here’s a sample that we painted with Kathie, who is always bringing us some new and exciting product and/or technique.
Kathie’s Sheep A Kathie George design
When I received my Brushos (wow! exciting!) I had to experiment. So, after I had explored YouTube a little ( I was too excited about my own explorations to spend too much time watching others) I tried dampening watercolor paper and sprinkling.
Wow!
Brusho on wet surface
And of course I had to check out each color. Then I sprinkled first and spritzed with water.
Another Wow! Then I made marks in it with my stylus, then tried some salt.
Sprinkle then spritz
And then I tried a combo with specific colors, Red of course. I think this would make a beautiful background for something.
Reds with Brusho
OK, then I had to try something like Kathie’s sheep, but cats!
Brusho cats
OK, interesting. I usually overdo at first. Maybe a little less sprinkling the next time. Now I want to perfect my Brusho cat technique. That means more playing. Hummm… What next. I’ll let you know what I come up with.
I encourage you to try Brushos. There are lots about them on line and on YouTube so check them out and have fun.
Warning: Brushos can become habit forming.
We’re excited that Ros is coming back to teach for us again in 2017.
We’ll be celebrating 20 years of painting with Ros at Artful Endeavors!
Dates are July 19, 20, 21, & 22, 2017
During our seminar last July we collected project ideas for this year’s seminar from last year’s students. Now Ros has our ideas and it is always exciting to see her creations fill out these ideas and become works of art.
| Our seminar schedule for this year has come together with some exciting teachers returning. Plan ahead, mark your calendars, and register soon.
July 19-22: Ros Stallcup. Our all new projects have been chosen and registration is open. Register Now August 26-28: Mark Polomchak. We’ll choose our projects a little later, however, registration is open. Register Now. November 13-15: Kathie George. We’ll have more information later in the year but you know it’s going to be exciting.
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| Upcoming Workshops |
| Feb 3: Batik. 10a-3p. Choose your design and join us for a day of batik.
March 3, 4, & 5: 10a-4p. Portrait Workshop. Join us to learn about painting a portrait. Bring a photo of someone you would like to paint. We’ll work on creating a likeness. More details. March 24: Colored Pencil. Watch for details. Watch for more workshops this winter and spring. Plan to join us. |
