High Cotton!!!

Another painting in steps! This time, a cotton sign. Grab yourself an 18"x24" gallery wrapped canvas. Paint it with a good coat of raw umber. Then, a coat of white. Let it dry well and then sand and scratch and generally abuse the canvas. Draw on your design and you're ready to paint.
Letters and a red stripe. I did one a while back for a Georgia lady. This one's for TEXAS!
Some shading and highlights...
Paint on that cotton field, a star and a big cotton plant! More distressing, add some white here and there...
Add burnt umber around edges for that good, old, dirty, rusty look...
AND YOU'RE DONE!
This painting is off to Texas to a cotton farming family. YOu gotta LOVE it!!!
This pic is fairly clear. Zoom in for a closer look if you need details.
Later gators,
: ) Ronnie

Not New Orleans!

Blowing off the to do list, Joe and I jumped in the car Thursday afternoon and headed to St Marys for their quirky small town America Mardi Gras celebration. This is not New Orleans!
We had a great time! Enjoy the pics, folks.
The King and Queen of Mardi Gras in St. Marys, dressed in all their royal blue jeaned grandness!

Hot Grannies!
Evil Jester Grand Marshall!
The Beauty Shop Float!
Pedalling Pirate.
The Tractor Brigade that shows up for every parade for any reason.
The General Lee in all its loudness!
Yum! Carnivore Central!
The perfect couple. Argh!
Cap'n Joe in a moment of good behavior.

A few of the dogs attending.

Good Bird!

Laissez les bons temps rouler!
Let the good times roll!
Ronnie

Rare talent in Rhode Island

I challenge you to find a more talented group of women. Arts in RI!
Take a gander at this gift basket (scroll down) they ponied up and gave away to a very lucky winner for Valentine's Day. Not only talented in their craft, but extremely generous as well.
Julie Beck! I have been following and admiring her for a while. Her very "uniquely Julie" house portraits are a must have. Watch the progress of her work on Julie's blog.
Paula McDonough! I adore her nostalgic jewelry design. Look for that signature key! Beautiful.
Carol! She makes gorgeous hand woven scarves and dolls in her seaside studio.
Kim! Swoon worthy!!! Her lampwork beads are each a piece of art. I love Kim's work.
Wendy T! Wendy's beautiful work speaks for itself. Stunning jewelry designs made with all natural materials.
Linda! Funky and very cool purses and jewelry. NO whining cuff links. A purse made from seatbelts. You gotta see it!
Lisa! Exquisitely made handbags and pillows.
If you like the new bright prints, She's got 'em. Follow her daily rant at Lisa's blog.
Go visit a while with these fun and talented ladies from Rhode Island.
Little state, big hearts, VERY BIG ART!

Have a swell day, y'all!
Ronnie - feeling pretty good today, thank you.

Beauty stuck in the eye of the beholder

This is a painting done by my brilliant, thoughtful, three year old grandson. Beautiful? Yes!
I think so. It now hangs proudly in my art workroom. Thank you Cooper.
Today, I have a sore throat and sore skin. My hair is sticking out like a pile of pic up stics dropped on my head.
Could it be the result of the mind body connection....
"I'm too sick to think about any new ideas. I don't feel like myself. sniff.
Yeah, that's it. Self reflection can be uncomfortably revealing sometimes.
Two "Family Faces" victims are waiting to be brought into the world. One I promised to my dear story-telling, ocean-loving grandson and the other for a sister as a commission. A third BIG painting is for a gallery fund raising dinner...the theme being Visual Art and how it relates to Music, due by the end of the month. Blahhhhhh! The most I feel like creating is rice krispies treats.
What do I do? I take Sandy Mastroni's advice and try another medium.
I got out the new box of Sculpy. Thatta Girl!!! This is what happened...."Cat Fish Love" on the far right. On the left, a bunch of what Joe called Donut Flowers. A heart pendant hiding behind a teeny tiny purse. And in the middle a little monster.
The monster is a clear violation of design rights, meaning how dare I take a perfectly brilliant idea conjured in the mind of JunkerJane and screw it over like this??!!?! I guess because I love her monsters and they haunt me every waking moment along with brilliance that falls out of SAndy Mastroni's brain. Look at this.........
I adore this image. And the thought behind it. Good to be odd. Odd to be Good. Brilliant.
Don't you think? How could you not?!
Have a good week y'all,
Ronnie - cough, cough, oh, whoa, cough, whine, moan

Has your Muse drifted off?

I've been hearing a lot of talk lately: My Muse is GONE. I've lost my Mojo. Can't seem to get it together.
Perhaps it's Winter and the lack of sunlight.
Maybe our minds need a bit of a respite.
Relax. Release some of the pressure.

You may be surprised that it all comes back.

:)
Have a good day,
Ronnie

Big Biddy, Sand Hill Cranes,Trip to Town, and Giveaway

I painted another Big Biddy this weekend, celebrating my love of Chicks, Checks, Dots, Red and Yellow! You'll find it in my Etsy shop.

Sand Hill Cranes! They're heading back up North. This could be a good sign for you all up there.
I was doing the morning dishes and heard Joe call, "They're BACK!!" And I could hear them. DRRRRRR Drrrrrrrr Brrr DRRRRR! Hundreds of them flew over the house!
HUndreds and hundreds of trilling cranes. Can you imagine it?! Click the pic for a closer look.
This event thrills me no end! I ran out and took several pictures, but this is the clearest. I am no Shelagh Duffet!

Thursday I headed into Atlanta, Virginia Highlands to be specific. It's a small charming village surrounded by turn of the century houses. This is Highland Woodworking where you can learn everything you want to know about wood.
40% off sale on canvases at Sam Flax, so I was on a mission along with lunch with sisters.
A Valentine display and my reflection.....
This caught my eye as I was about to cross the street.... Painted Windows!
And here's the guy that creates them. I had to talk to him. So, I did! Charming man with elegant long hands and a passion for what he does. He paints these in reverse!! A brain buster to me. Click the pic to see a closer look at these great paintings. Here's his website....HERE!
A Yummy gourmet food shop....bella cucina
And heading out to eat with sisters. Sorry! I put the camera in the car at this point. We had sauteed veggies with Tofu and a luscious baby greens salad. Gawd this is a bunch of boring crap.
Are you there?! I didn't think so....Blahhh.
Oh, and that fabulous Giveaway!? Check here at B's place!
Love to you all,
Ronnie - aka JOe's stove operator living in a small town in Georgia

Hey guys,
I was tagged this week by a bright new talent. She is a sharp little artist living in Australia with a studly husband and TWO real cute kidlettes.

She has a great new blog sharing her life in Australia,
Where it is now Summer!
I know! Booooo! Hisssssss!
(This is for all us in North America and Europe!)

To see Kaili's brilliant paintings, stop by her spanking new Etsy shop also called Billyandbutton!

As for the TAG, it requires that I show you the fourth photo in my fourth photo folder and pass it on to four other bloggers.
I dread what I'm going to find. I'll be back in a minute.


Well, not exactly what I'd hoped for. : (
If it had been the FIFTH folder and the FIFTH picture it would have been the night I went out with George Clooney and we stopped on the way to Burger King to pick up Brad Pitt to discuss my part in the next Oceans 11 sequel and I said, "Nah, throw Julia a bone. She's been busy with the twins and I've got a lot on my plate with the blog and all and keeping Joe in Cheerios."
So, this is what you get. And these were the rules! : )
later gators,
Ronnie

This tag stops here. Enjoy.

billyandbutton