This flower canvas can be painted to suit any season or décor. I had painted it before in pinks (you know me) and since I am showing you how to create it now I thought it would be fun to paint it in fall colors.
Category: Art
Living with Art – Painting a Canvas
This was the last week of our living with art classes. For this class we would be painting a canvas using tube acrylics.
A Day at Hoot 2017
This is the first time in probably 10 years that I have not worked in a booth at Heart of Ohio Tole Painting convention (HOOT). For most of those years my husband and I helped Della and Company, AKA Della and Bill Wetterman and last year I shared a booth with my creative friends Amy Mogish and Wendy Young.
I was not going to come, but at the last minute decided to come and spent the day on the trade show floor. I thought you might enjoy seeing pictures of what was happening there:
How to Make Shrinky Dink Earrings
I want to share with you today how to make those sweet earrings that my one student Sara made out of Shrinky Dinks. Many of the techniques are the same that we used in making other Shrinky Dink projects (See previous post here)…..but the secret to making these earring is using a Shrinket cone tool to make the dimensional floret beads. The tool is available from Julie Haymaker Thompson.
Ornament Exchange – a new multi artist book 2017
What happens when you get a bunch of amazing artists together who like to paint Christmas Ornaments? That’s right, you have an ornament exchange and share all the wonderful new designs with your painting friends in a book.
Continue reading “Ornament Exchange – a new multi artist book 2017”
Living with Art – Painting on Wood
This week we painted on wood and I wanted to do something that would be fun for the kids to paint. I bought these fish from St Lawrence River Decoys. The fish are sanded and ready to paint. They also come with the glass eyes. My husband drilled a hole in the bottom of the fish and added the dowel and base.
Living with Art – Painting on Fabric
This week for our living with art class we painted on fabric (find out more here about living with art). As we have been doing the projects I tried to find things that my students can use. For the fabric painting I found this messenger bag from Darice. I thought it would be great for them to carry their art journal and painting supplies in along with the paper mache pencil case.
Living with Art – Shrinky Dinks Jewelry
As I shared previously about my summer art class with my kids I wanted to show them different surfaces and mediums that they could use to create. (See more here – “Living with Art” Classes). This week we created a necklace using Shrinky Dinks and colored pencils.
Summer Lanterns and More…
Not too long ago I shared with you that my art class was making lanterns out of wide mouth quart canning jars. (See post here Living with Art – Painting on Glass) Today I would like to share a pattern with you so that you can make your own lanterns and more.
Living with Art – Painting Paper Mache
For our third week of living with art we painted paper mache. Our first project was a pencil box for them to keep their pencils and other small supplies in. I let them paint whatever they would like using DecoArt Americana acrylics.
Our class is 2 hours and they had a half an hour left so I gave them a second project – a small paper Mache jewelry box.
Living with Art – Painting on Glass
If you have been following along, you know that I have been teaching some kid classes this summer where we are painting on different surfaces and using different mediums. (find out more here). The first week we created an art journal with watercolors that they will be able to work on all summer. (find out more here).
Living with Art – Art Journal
Previously I shared that I would be doing art classes over the summer with some young ladies (find out more here) and also my regular older students. For the first week I planned to started with watercolors and created an art journal that they will be able to draw and paint in all summer.
“Living with Art” Classes
This summer I offered to have some art classes with some young ladies 8-9 years old. They all love art and love to create. Since they are younger, I did not want to weigh them down with drawing or painting classes. I wanted for them to just enjoy “art”, but I also wanted them to see how art is a part of everyday life.
So each week we will be doing art on a different surface and using different products.
The different surfaces we will be painting/creating on are:
- paper
- glass
- canvas
- wood
- fabric
- shrink dinks (plastic)
- paper Mache
- food
And in the process we will be using these mediums:
- watercolors
- colored pencils
- craft acrylics
- tube acrylics
- glass paints
- fabric paints
- food dyes
And we will be making things that we live with, use and give as gifts.
Each week we will be doing a different project and I will be sharing with you what we are doing. I would love for you to be following along and creating with us and/or teaching someone else the joy of creating.
When I teach kids I have three rules:
- There are no rules – you can paint anything you want
- It is OK to copy – and learn from others
- Everyone’s work is good
I love teaching kids. They are always so happy with what they do, so each week they will be painting their own designs. I might give some suggestions but find that they have great ideas themselves.
I know not all of us feel that confident so I will also be creating some step by step projects throughout the summer that relate to the projects we are doing and I will do them as separate posts.
I do have another class of older student that I taught drawing and painting to last year. They will be doing the same projects, but I might be giving them a few extra things.
In this class I want my students to just enjoy creating. I hope that they will be able to see art in the things around them. But most of all I hope to give them a foundation and confidence to enjoy art for the rest of their lives.
I hope you will join us for this artful journey this summer.
Happy Creating,
Jane
Play Date & Stencils
It is always fun to have a creative playdate with friends. Not too long ago I got together with my girlfriends Glenda and Deb. We had no plan…which I always love. We started playing with flowers which led us to talking about ideas for backgrounds. Soon we had the stencils out. Just using a few stencils in our projects brought them from pretty to gorgeous in a very short time.
Froggy Pins Fun-raiser
“Isn’t it funny how you can start something and it just keeps growing. That is what happened for me with these frog pins.
One year my chapter was having a pin exchange and I came up with the idea to make these frog pins. I called them my Jump 4 Joy frogs, because my frogs were so happy that they wanted to jump for joy. As I thought about them I thought it would be fun to give them names. Fun names like “Cute Carol”, “Awesome Al”, “Sweet Sarah”, etc. Every one loved them and selected them because of their names. Continue reading “Froggy Pins Fun-raiser”
Inspired Guidelines for Success
Earlier this year I spent some time in Palm Springs, CA. It was fun to ride around and check out the homes of some of the stars that were there when Palm Springs was in its heyday. One of the big entertainers was Liberace. He had four homes there and also bought one for his mother….good son.
Spring Glitter Houses
For those of you who are tired of seeing more glitter houses, forgive me….but I have been getting a number of requests for some spring houses and want to try to keep everyone happy… so here are three new designs for spring:
Time to Paint Easter Eggs
Hello Spring “Nest” Canvas
Spring is my favorite season of the year. I love how the days get warmer and longer. There is something magical about seeing everything starting to bud and bloom. You can tell by my painting palette that these are also some of my favorite colors….the soft pastels, and vibrant clear colors of spring. I also love the smells of the season from the smell of the earth thawing and coming to life, to the sweet smell of the blossoms. And then there are the birds….I love seeing them make their nest, lay their eggs, and then their little families learning to fly.
Designing Challenges
Do you ever find that you have an idea in your head and when you start working on it you are just so disappointed you feel like giving up….throwing it in the trash, never to try to do something similar again. This can also happen when you are trying to paint someone else’s design.
Valentine Wine Glasses
Sometimes it doesn’t take a lot to make an occasion special….and we all appreciate when someone makes the effort for us. This design is super quick and can be put on wine glasses like I am showing you. Think about all the other valentine gifts you could make using this design… it could also be put on coffee mugs, an ornament, votive candle holder, a glass jar holding cookies or even on a card.
Music Glitter House
I hope that you are not getting tired of my glitter house posts. I have been teasing you with this Music Glitter House and feel that it could be nice for winter.
Snowflake Lanterns
Now that all of the holiday decorations are down things can seem a little bare. Why not add a little sparkle to your home with these snowflake lanterns. They are easy, inexpensive, can be made quickly and can be used indoors and out. You can use the same technique on mugs, wineglasses or anything glass.
Being More Creative
Many times I seem to get into creative slumps. This year I found two things that helped me be more creative.
On the first day of November a post that I shared to my timeline from the year before showed up as a memory in my Facebook news feed. It was a challenge to make time for art every day even if only for a few minutes. It tugged at my heart and I mentioned the challenge to my husband who encouraged me to do it. I reluctantly posted on Facebook the challenge and asked if anyone wanted to join me. To be accountable I then posted updates on my Jane Allen Creates Facebook page.
Glass Glitter Houses
Last year I did a post on creating glitter houses which turned out to be very popular. Many of my friends and family were inspired to create their own houses or have me teach them.
This year I am up to my eyeballs in glitter. 🙂 Our family made glitter houses after thanksgiving dinner, I am teaching two full classes at a local shop, and I have made houses to sell in the shop which after a week are almost sold out.
Happy Thanksgiving from our House to Yours
I love the colors of fall and how the season encourages us to reflect on our blessings. So today I want to thank you for taking the time to read my blog. I hope my sharing of ideas, both decorating, creating and recipes are a blessing and encouragement to you and your family and friends. Every time I get a comment or a new follower I am encouraged to keep sharing….and when someone tells me they tried a recipe or project and liked it I am over the moon. Thank you!
Today I thought I would share a few glimpses of my fall décor before I dive into decorating for Christmas.
These two decorate my patio and front door. The hose lady is a Shara Reiner design and the scarecrow is by Maxine Thomas.
Continue reading “Happy Thanksgiving from our House to Yours”
Sculpted Owl
A few weeks ago I took a 3 day seminar with Wendy Young, from Olde Moon Lane Primitives (http://www.oldemoonlane.com/). I learned so much from her and she got my creative juices going. I encourage you to take a class from her or buy a pattern from her (they are also loaded with so much good information).
Shrinky Dink Jewels
A few years ago I was looking for something new to do with my grand niece Sheena when we went to visit her in San Francisco. I am not even sure where the idea came from but I decided to take some shrinky dinks along to play with. We made a lot of projects but mostly jewelry, and we made many trips to the craft store to get more supplies. 😊
HOOT – A Painting Convention
I am sorry that I have not been posting for a while. I put a lot of pressure on myself the last three and a half months, working on a book, and preparing to have a booth at Heart of Ohio Tole Painters Convention (HOOT).
I did the book with my friend Amy Mogish. Not only did I design and paint the pieces for the book, but my husband and I did the photography for the book and I did the desktop publishing. It was a wonderful learning experience and I enjoyed the process. On top of that I coordinated a Multi-author book.
Using the Gifts You are Given
I don’t know about you but sometimes it is easy to get discouraged with our art (or whatever your gift is). It is easy to look at what others are doing and think what we are doing is not the right thing or our art doesn’t measure up; or, even worse, have others tell us what we are doing isn’t good enough, or that we should be doing something else. Continue reading “Using the Gifts You are Given”
Spring Houses
When I was out shopping at Micheals I saw these cute houses. I immediately had an idea of what I would like to paint on them. When I got home I keep thinking about the cute flower cut outs they had and how they would make fun rooves on the houses. So back to Michaels and then I started working on my updated idea. If you don’t have a Michaels available to you, the houses could be cut from 2×4’s and the roof could be made out of scrape book paper glued to a heavier paper and cut out.
My Best Posts so far…
One of the blogs that I follow is Jennifer Rizzo and she is looking for monthly contributors for recipes, crafting and home decorating. To find out more about the contest go to her blog post Jennifer Rizzo Contributor Call-Out
To enter you have to do a post showing your three best posts. Since I do all three, I will show my three best post for each.
Turning canvases into table top art
It is fun to take smaller canvases and turn them into a tabletop canvas by adding feet or a pedestal, a finial and/or other elements. I thought I would show you how I took the donut canvases in the Painted Donuts post and turn them into tabletop canvases.
Painting Donuts
Normally I paint from a pattern or sketch from photo references, but sometimes it is fun to set up a still life and paint from it….so why not paint donuts.
The best part about painting donuts is having to buy a “collection” of fresh donuts to sketch and then eat them. 😀 Since my husband was more than willing to help and anxious to get started, I took pictures. I stacked them and also took pictures singularly from the top, side and at an angle. After photographing many donuts I decided on these three.
Decorating for the New Year
Once Christmas was over my home looked a little bare, but how to decorate? Should I do snowies, a touch of spring or something creative. You will see that I did a little of all three. And since I design and also enjoy painting other people’s designs you will find a lot of Art in my decorating.
And since I am posting this in the middle of a huge snow storm I am glad that I did not over due the snowies. This is a picture of my living room/dining room. I went with a lot of green here, especially on the mantel but you can see I have a little snow fairy.
Clothespin Snowies
I was moving some things around in my basement when I found the starts to these clothes pin snow people and thought you might enjoy creating them. You will need a few clothes pins, toothpicks, doll stands, some twigs for arms, butterfly stickers for wings, paint, glitter, glue, ribbon and tulle and any other embellishments you would like. If you don’t have them already, you can get most of these supplies at your local craft store.
Making a Birthday Canvas
Our family was celebrating my nieces 50th birthday on New Year’s day. I wanted to do something special for her so I decided to make a mixed media Birthday canvas. I had a general idea of what I wanted to do and was able to find the needed supplies at my local crafts store. I started with a 5x7x2 wooden canvas (you could use a regular canvas), I wanted to put her age on the canvas, her initial, a crown, and possibly feet on the project so she could sit it on a table.
Making Glitter Houses
I posted a picture on Facebook of me and a young friend making glitter houses, a number of people seemed interested in how they were made so I thought I would show you. You are probably thinking this is too close to Christmas is she crazy…..but this could really be a fun project/ memory with your children, grandchildren or a special friend over vacation break. In fact in would be fun to do every year and watch how their art changes as they grow. When they leave home they will have their own Christmas village, much more valuable than any they could buy.
Christmas House Tour 2015
This year I am linking my Christmas house tour to Jennifer Rizzo’s Holiday House walk 2015 link party. Please stop over to her blog to see other wonderful holiday homes by clicking on the image below or by clicking Here.
For those of you who don’t know me, I am a decorative painter. I will paint something and then make a pattern and instructions so that others can paint my designs. I also enjoy painting other people’s designs. If you are interested in learning to paint, decorative painting is a great way to start. You can contact the Society of Decorative Painters to find a teacher or a chapter in your local area or you can contact a local painting shop to see if they offer classes . Also today there are many online classes that you can take and learn at your own pace.
Playing with Glitter
My friend Amy Mogish (visit her blog at http://classicamyjoanne.com/) and I went to a glitter class with Miss Mustard Seed aka Marian Parsons. We used MMS’s German Glass Glitter which has an extra sparkle, you can find it on her web site. It was such a fun relaxing class and the process is pretty simple:
- Place white glue were you want glitter.
- Sprinkle on glue with glitter.
- Shake off excess glitter.
- Repeat.
It is amazing how many things you can glitter in 2 hours. I had painted a small house and put clear glitter all over it, plus letters for two banners, snowflakes and pine cones. These few projects added a lot of glitz to my holiday decorating.
Marian had given me some old music pages which I wanted to put my one set of letters on. Since the paper was fragile I glue it to some heavier banners that I bought at Michaels. I then glued the letters to them.
Advent Tree of Service
Last year I had read on Jeanne Oliver’s blog that her family had a service advent tree. Instead of receiving a little gift or treat to count down the days until Christmas, they did an act of service for someone each day. I love the idea and thought I would try it this year. You could use any tree and attach stars on it each day but I thought I would make one.
I found these wonderful kraft stars at Michaels. I did not want to completely paint them, but I wanted a little bling so I flyspecked them with two shades of gold metallic paint. I used DecoArt Metallics – Emperor’s Gold and Splendid Gold.
Tips on Trimming Your Christmas Tree
If you haven’t started already, I am sure you will soon be decorating for Christmas. For most of us the focal point in the room is the tree. There is no right or wrong way to decorate a Christmas tree, but I follow some basics steps on every tree I put up. I hope these decorating tips will be helpful to you.
I always sit my tree on a towel, so that it is easy to move around if needed. I begin by fluffing and shaping the tree. If you use a real tree you can skip this step and just turn the best side forward.
A pre-lit tree can be wonderful as long as the lights work. I prefer a tree without lights. If a string of lights goes bad you can easily replace them. It also allows you to change out the color and type of light from season to season.
Festive Fall Pedestal – DIY
I love to display things on pedestals. When I was at Micheal’s (You can see by now that I go there too often) I found the little wooden pedestal and thought it would work with a cake pan on top. You could use any type pan. I wanted something with straight sides so it would be a little easier to cover with scrapbook paper. The pan I used is the 8″ tray available from Della and Company
Say It With Pumpkins – DIY
I found this metal heart at Micheal’s and thought it would be fun to spell out some words with the heart symbolizing “love” or “heart”. For example you could spell out GRATEFUL “heart”, THANKFUL “heart”, FALL “love” or WHO “loves” YOU. I am sure you can also think of other combinations to spell out. So first I had to figure out what I was going to spell out so I would know how many pumpkin blocks I would need. I had my husband cut out 8 sections of 2×4, 4 1/2″ long and sand them with a hand sander. He then drilled a hole in the center top for the stems. I cut tree branches 3″ long for the stems trying to keep them all about the same diameter.
Fall Owl Painting – DIY
As you saw on my fall decorating blog post I have an “owl” thing going this year. I didn’t plan it, it just happen. I guess that means owls are big this year. See Fall house tour – the Beginning and Fall house tour- The rest.
I wanted a painting of an owl, but wanted to keep is simple so I sketched out an owl and sized it to my canvas. I used a square canvas 24″x24″ and painted it Lamp Black (I used DecoArt paints). You could scale it to any size canvas. I then positioned my owl and traced it on. I outlined him in chalk so that you could see him better. I decided I wanted him to sit on a tree branch and have a moon showing through the branches. I cut a circle out of white paper for the moon and laid it in place. Them using a piece of chalk I traced around the moon and freehand the trees and branches.
Chalk Paint and Gold Leaf Pumpkins – DIY
This year I have been seeing a lot of really wonderful looking pumpkins painted with chalk paint so I thought I would give it a try. I went to my local craft store and bought some of the craft pumpkins and some bottles of chalk paint in the colors I thought I would like them. I wanted my pumpkins to be a little funky and glitzy so I also purchase gold leafing and adhesive. I bought as many as I could in white so that the coverage would be easy.
A Beautiful Story
One day I was on Facebook and someone posted a picture of a gift that her mother had painted for her birthday. The tray was one of my designs so I was excited when I saw it. I always love when people paint my designs, but I really love when they take my design and personalize it. Here is the picture that I saw on Facebook.
Welcome Fall Indoors – The Rest
Welcome back, today I will finish my fall tour of the inside of my house by showing you my family room and kitchen. I will also give you a preview of three more fall DIY projects that I will be posting over the next couple of weeks.
Welcome Fall Indoors – The Beginning
I would like to take you on a little fall tour of the inside of our home starting with the living room and dining room. I will also give you a sneak peek of a DIY project I will be sharing with you very soon. The first thing to great you as you enter my front door is this sweet little lady.
Sharing Art – Blessing Others
A little while ago I share a mixed media project that I felt would be a good way to introduce others to art. You can see the blog post here. The beginning of the month some ladies from my painting chapter Penn’s Woods Painters and myself did this project at the Ronald McDonald house in our area. The project was open to patients and family members. These are the happy faces of our helpers.
