Hi painting friends!  We have some exciting events coming up here in the editorial office – two popular artists are coming in for photo shoots for their new books.  First up is decorative painter Donna Dewberry, inventor of the One-Stroke painting technique and well known for her weekly TV shows on PBS and her appearances on the Home Shopping Network. Donna is loved and admired around the world because she has shown how fun and easy it is to paint, even if you can’t draw a straight line.

The following week, Dorothy Dent is coming in for her photo shoot. Dorothy is best known for her country landscapes and paintings of nostalgic rural scenes, old barns, little country churches, grist mills and so much more. She paints mainly in oils and acrylics and has the ability to create gorgeous light-filled landscapes. In fact, one of her most recent books, Painting Landscapes Filled with Light, shows you how to do just that!

While these artists are here, we will be interviewing them about their painting techniques and we’ll post photos of both Donna and Dorothy in action during their photo shoots. If you have any questions you’d like to ask them, please post a comment or reply to this blog and we’ll be sure to post their answers in our upcoming blogs during the month of April.  Stay tuned! 

Hi Painting + More friends. Each week we'll be posting a new project that you can download for free. This week's project, Daisies on Blue Vase, features glass painting. Click here to access this week's project.  

March means the arrival of spring—and National Craft Month. The Painting + More group would like to celebrate with a “show-it-off” week (or two). We’d like you to post photos of your favorite painting or “more” projects in the group gallery. Then be sure to check out your fellow group members’ photos and comment on your favorites. It’s a great opportunity to see what other painters and crafters are working on and you may find inspiration for your next project. Are you working on any special projects or attending any special functions for National Craft Month? Let us know about them. We’d love to hear all about it.

Jackie

Hi, painting friends!  Actually, I should say “painting & more” friends, because we painters are often into so much more these days – crafts and creative activities that lure us away from our brushes and paints, sometimes just out of curiosity and other times out of a need to create something entirely different.

One of my newest guilty little pleasures is my attraction to crystals and beads, especially those made by Swarovski. I haven’t found a suitable way to incorporate them into my painting yet (with the exception of a handpainted greeting card embellished with a few crystals that I sent to a beloved friend over the holidays) but I do love seeing them used by crafters and jewelry artists, even quilters!

When I was cruising through the crafts & hobbies section of Amazon.com I found a new book called “Creating Crystal Jewelry with Swarovski” by Laura McCabe, published by Creative Publishing International.  It’s fresh out as of February 2008, and shows you how to create necklaces, bracelets and rings using simple techniques and many different colors and shapes of Swarovski’s cut crystal beads. Check it out and let us know what you think.

Just when I thought we had seen the last of winter, we got buried under a foot of snow! But I’m still ready to think about spring and paint a few blooms to celebrate the new season.

I was clicking around on the Internet looking for nice spring painting projects when I ran across this Blooming Daisy Canvas. I like this project for a number of reasons. The painting wraps around the canvas, covering all sides so there’s no need for a frame. The background is mottled on, creating interesting texture and lots of color variations, and there is a lot of texture in the painting. The texture comes from the specific brand of paint used in the project — Plaid’s new FolkArt High Definition Acrylic Paint. I haven’t tried these paints yet. The product description says it can be used on canvas, wood, tin, metal and paper-maché and that it dries to a semi-gloss sheen. I’d be interested to see how apparent the sheen is and if the paint looks plastic-like when it dries. Have any of you used this paint yet? If so, I’d love to hear your thoughts.

I think a fun variation on this project would be painting colorful gerber daisies instead of plain white blooms—a light yellow background with vivid orange and magenta flowers and maybe even some purple blooms.

Jackie