Oh hey, August...

There's Always Room at the Top...for a Hug!
12x12, acrylic on canvas
©the enchanted easel

not only are you one month closer to Fall and all things PUMPKIN SPICE (ridiculously happy about that, btw)....you are also MY BIRTHDAY MONTH! Shout out to all the Leos (and Virgos) out there celebrating as well! 💝🎂🍎🌟

Throughout the month of AUGUST ONLY,  I am offering a FREE 6x6 PRINT of a painting I did back in 2014 to commemorate one of my all time favorite characters from childhood (and now too)...HELLO KITTY!! She turned 40 back in 2014. Can we talk about how old that makes me feel?? I digress...back to the FREE PRINT. 

You will receive a FREE 6x6 PRINT of this painting with ANY PRINT PURCHASE in my Etsy shop....all August long. No coupon. No code. And, BONUS-I'm still offering FREE DOMESTIC SHIPPING on EVERYTHING in my shop for the remainder of the Summer. WIN WIN!! 

Happy Birthday, August babies!! 🎈🎉🎂🎊

PS-THE ORIGINAL PAINTING IS AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE. CONTACT ME IF INTERESTED. 

FEBRUARY'S FEATURED PRINT IS....

the lucky one
6x6, acrylic on canvas
©the enchanted easel 

this ADORABLE little monkey! 

although 2017 is the year of the rooster, i couldn't help but want to make this cutie the featured print for February. she's happy and in love with her lucky mandarin orange. who needs chocolate anyway on Valentine's Day...;)

20% off all February long!! enter coupon code: LUCKY2017 at checkout!!

a sweet little duet....

autumn serenade
6x6, mixed media on canvas panel
©the enchanted easel 2016

between a cute little bird and a wide eyed baby bear...an "autumn serenade".

this is the second (but it sure won't be the last) piece i created this summer when i was trying my hand at mixed media. can i just tell you what a total blast it was creating this piece?! so much fun and a bit out of the box for me as i am a SUPER DUPER AWESOME planner. seriously. it's one of my finer traits....i think so, anyway. ;) this little creation was kind of spontaneous....kind of....

i knew i wanted to do a bear with an autumn color scheme. the rest just kind of happened the more i kept adding different layers, different supplies...and, being my absolute own worst critic well, i'm rather pleased with the way it turned out. i mean, c'mon..look at the face on the baby bear...you just gotta love him. :)

PRINTS available here. ORIGINAL PAINTING is FOR SALE. contact me here if interested. 

also, here's a link to sweet ophelia...a colorful owl done in this same mixed media style.

perhaps 2017 will bring about some more of these little *experiments*....

NEW KOKESHI PRINT!!

sakura kokeshi

12x12, acrylic on canvas

©the enchanted easel 2016

had a few requests for PRINTS of my most recent commission since posting her last week (she is kinda cute...). she in NOW AVAILABLE in my etsy shop. 

if you'd like something custom created for your little one, please email me and i will surely do my best to accommodate you.

kokeshi commission!

kokeshi commission
12x12, acrylic on canvas
©the enchanted easel 2016

a few weeks ago i had a commission request for a little kokeshi from the sweetest lady via etsy. obsessed with all things japanese/kawaii since birth, well she didn't have to ask me twice. ;) her response to the finished painting made the rest of my year..."That is the cutest thing I have ever seen!! Thank you so much - I am so excited about it. It is perfect colors, perfect sweet girl. Our grandma was Japanese so it means a lot to us to have something to remind us of her!"

{PRINTS AVAILABLE NEXT WEEK!!}

my first mixed media *experiment*....

ophelia's nocturne
6x6 mixed media on canvas panel
©the enchanted easel 2016

this summer i wanted to try my hand at some small mixed media pieces. i decided to start with a theme of sorts as far as a color palette went....i chose just a few to start with...red, orange, teal and brown. from there two little creatures were born. ophelia here is the first.

mixed media was kind of new for me. i have so many art supplies laying around my home that instead of looking at all of them, well i wanted to try to actually USE them. my paintings/commissions are acrylic on stretched canvas so i never really get to play with my oil pastels or my inks (OMG-can we say "obsessed" now?!) or my tons of scrapbook papers and supplies, etc.

one day i sat down in between commissions and said "what the heck...let's give it a shot!" and so i did...and had a blast doing so. i used everything from paper to water soluble graphite pencils to palette knives to my fingers for this piece. even got some old sheet music from my keyboard ("ophelia" from tori amos to be exact-hence the name of this little owl) and went to town with that. a total blast this was-from start to finish.

PRINTS are available here and the ORIGINAL painting is also AVAILABLE. contact me here if interested. hope you love her as much as i do...owls just say "fall" and "halloween" to me. one of my favorite times of the year!

"sweet serenity"....

"sweet serenity"
9x12 acrylic on canvas
©the enchanted easel 2016

the name of this little beauty.

inspired by pantone's "GORGOIS" (as my FAVORITE make up artist, Mally Roncal would say-please, that's a whole different blog post....LOVE that woman...i digress!) palette of 2016, featuring the colors, rose quartz and serenity (hence her name)...and my favorite, lilac grey (ironic, considering i am not a big lover of anything purple).

i'm kind of loving little miss serenity right now and i will be featuring her on some great products in my Society 6 shop a little later in the week. until then....

PRINTS are available in my etsy shop and...the ORIGINAL PAINTING IS FOR SALE. contact me here or message me here if interested.

{below are some parts of the painting...}

HaPpY SpRiNg!!!

new season. new week. new SALE! 

10 STRAIGHT DAYS...EVERYTHING IN MY SHOP...HALF OFF!!!

{so, click on over and help me clean up my studio a bit...}

the making of "the lucky one"...step by step!

another peek into my step by step creative process....this one for the painting entitled, "the lucky one". done to commentate 2016's year of the monkey, this little cutie was lots of fun to paint.

for a look at the album and explanation of the step by step process, take a click over to my Facebook page and maybe give it a "like" if you already haven't...and would be so kind. :)

the ORIGINAL painting is FOR SALE! contact me if interested. or send me a message through my Facebook page. PRINTS available here.

 speaking of PRINTS, i'm in the middle of opening up a S6 (Society 6) shop which will feature my paintings on cool products from tote bags to tapestries, clocks to (duvet) covers. i'll post the link as soon as i get around to finishing setting up shop.  meanwhile, click on over to the S6 homepage and check out some other really wonderful artists. always awesome to see hard working, talented people have their masterpieces transformed onto products we can buy for ourselves to give away as gifts. 

FINALLY....

got around to curating my first little treasury on etsy late last night (yay me!)....inspired by one of my favorite flowers (and recent paintings), the delicate and graceful snowdrop.

click on over and take a look at the exquisite handmade items i found in my search. they are simply stunning in their own right.

silence of the snowdrops
8x10 acrylic oncanvas
©the enchanted easel 2016

the other inspiration for this lovely treasury, my painting entitled "silence of the snowdrops". prints here and other goodies here.

the making of "silence of the snowdrops"...step by step!

i thought it would be interetsing and fun to take a look into the creative process of my paintings...from thumbnail to sketch to paint palette(s) to the finsihed piece. i know i absolutely geek out looking at other artists WIPs so i thought i'd create a new album after each painting of the step by step process i use (and have used for YEARS) and share it with everyone. i work traditonally...pencil, paper, paint, canvas. i have much respect for the digital artists of the world yet for me, the passion and love will ALWAYS be in the traditonal tube of paint. old school...and proud. 

for a look at the full album and step by step instructions, please click on over to my Facebook page...and perhaps give it a "like", if you would be so kind! :)

PRINTS of this beauty here. ORIGINAL PAINTING is AVAILABLE. contact me, if interested. 

Fine Art America.....

does it again! another beautiful (tote) bag!

i have yet to find another vendor who does as FABULOUS of a job as FAA. in my on line travels, i have seen many vendors/POD (print on demand) companies that offer tote bags but with the image only sitting as a small rectangle/square in the center of the bag therefore leaving the rest of the bag as just bare canvas. what i love most about FAA's bags is that the image/painting encompasses the whole entire bag. they offer 3 different sizes~13x13, 16x16 and 18x18. the bag above is 16x16. it's the perfect mid size bag for me to cart around my pencils and 9x12 and 11x14 sketchbooks. in the pic below, the mermaid is the 13x13 size and the fire goddess is 18x18. i have several of these bags and they are gorgeous...every single one of them. good quality canvas and excellent printing quality. clear and precise and the color is spot on.

so, click on over to my shop at FAA and get one for your little girl or even for yourself. oh, and don't let my horrendous photography skills scare you away. i'm just a painter. :)

Gung Hay Fat Choy!!!

"the lucky one"
6x6 acrylic on canvas
©the enchanted easel 2016

here's to 2016 and the year of the monkey! this is beautiful little Mei Lin. she comes to bring good fortune with her lucky mandarin orange. 

PRINTS (AND OTHER GOODIES) FOR SALE THROUGH THE SHOP LINKS HERE...also, the ORIGINAL PAINTING is AVAILABLE. message me here if interested.

"the lucky one" is sized at 6x6, acrylic on canvas. what a lovely little addition she would make to your home, bringing good fortune and happiness along with her.

{hey, i was working on her when my man Peyton won the SB yesterday so she is lucky for sure! :)}

first painting of 2016...done!

silence of the snowdrops
8x10 acrylic on canvas
©the enchanted easel 2016

winter, my favorite season. meet Eyra...."silence of the snowdrops".

this is my most favorite painting i have ever done. i am a winter lover through and through and nothing will ever change that. snow, icicles, cold air, snowdrops....i love all of it. tried a softer color palette for this piece to (hopefully) convey that frosty feel that winter brings and i also tried a bit of a new technique (which i am currently obsessing over)...

MULTIPLE coats of gesso on an already pre-primed canvas. i. am. smitten. i wanted something smoother, something that didn't *eat* the paint like the very lightly pre-primed canvas did. i tossed around painting on wood but then didn't want to have to go down the road of heavy shipping rates being that the wood is considerably heavier than canvas. plus, i love canvas....painted on it since i was a little girl when i got my hands on my first paintbrush so i kind of have a sentimental attachment to it (big surprise, what am i NOT sentimentally attached to?!). anyhoo...i have found that 6 coats (yes, 6) got me the texture (or lack of) that i was seeking. applied in alternate directions (one app-vertical, next app-horizontal...and so forth) with LIGHT sanding in between...paint applied like a dream. time to start buying gesso in buckets...:)

beautiful little Eyra is for sale as a PRINT here  with other novelties featuring this lovely here.

see, winter can be beautiful...:)

*ORIGNAL PAINTING IS FOR SALE. EMAIL ME HERE IF INTERESTED.

SNOW, multitasking...and SUPER BOWL BOUND!!!

crazy couple of weeks (hence the lack of blogging-*hangs head in shame*) but i've been busy and that's a very good thing!

another good thing? i FINALLY got my SNOW!!! over 30"....not too shabby! 

and what's the greatest thing that's happened to me in the last 2 weeks? wait for it, wait for it....PEYTON MANNING IS SUPER BOWL BOUND!!! (should have just done a whole separate post for this one....LOVE THIS MAN) i cried like a baby. EVERYONE who knows me personally knows how much respect and love i have for this man...and have (loyally) for almost TWO DECADES. never wavered once. knowing this may be his last rodeo, well i want him to go out BIG! no one is more deserving. prayers and fingers crossed for a SB WIN on 2/7/16....although this man will ALWAYS be a WINNER to me! love you, Peyton Manning.

2016's first week....

so sometime this winter, i'd really love to see some snow...until then, i'll have to paint myself a beautiful winter muse. and that's exactly what i've been working on....

  

farewell 2015....

www.etsy.com/shop/theenchantedeasel

thanks for a very productive year and an even bigger THANK YOU to everyone who purchased my art, as i am constantly humbled each and every time. 

looking forward to new paintings, drawings and just a super creative 2016! oh, and if i could get SNOW in there....;)

MANY BLESSINGS TO ALL FOR A VERY HAPPY AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR!

DECEMBER DISCOUNT DAYS...DAY 25!

MERRY MERRY CHRISTMAS from the mayor of Peppermint Bark Park!!!

{a little flashback friday....the Christmas edition}

DECEMBER DISCOUNT DAYS...DAY 24!

Merry Christmas Eve from this little fire starter! 30% off Serafina all day long!

DECEMBER DISCOUNT DAYS...DAY 23!

2 days til the DECEMBER DISCOUNT DAYS come to an end. which means 2 days left til Christmas! how the heck did that happen?! wow! talk about time flying by like Santa and his reindeer....geez. 

on that note, my tribute (for a lack of a better word) to my favorite musical maven, Tori Amos is today's FEATURED PRINT. it was inspired by one of my favorite songs of her entitled "ribbons undone" (same title as the print). Love Tori. Love red hair. Love bows. Love ribbons...(you get the point). 

side note~this piece is also for sale as a COMPACT MIRROR and the ORIGINAL is also available. contact me if interested.

and now the song that inspired the painting...enjoy, friends!