☆ What's Through Your Window? [inspiration avenue]

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This weeks inspiration avenue prompt, was to look through the window + share what you see...

If I were to take this literally, I would show you a picture of grey clouds, hills hidden by mist and a fence lined with wisteria, ornamental grape vine, ivy + jasmine that is in desperate need of a trim.

So this week, I decided to be a bit abstract again.

Snow ward Bound

I love painting girls (obviously!) but what I am always drawn to + what I absolutely love to paint, is their eyes.

And usually it's there, that the painting becomes... well, I guess it comes alive. Sometimes I will start with the eyes and then the painting unfolds from there. 

They say the eyes are the windows to your soul, and maybe what ever I am feeling, comes through my paintings eyes. (It shouldn't, but it surprises me they are always different.)

So if you looked through the windows of this paintings eyes, I wonder what you would see....

Have a great weekend.

         

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☆ Haunt [illustration friday]

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Have you ever had one of your creative ideas just haunt you?

Almost two years ago, I had an idea for a painting. I loved the idea of a powerful woman, with long black hair, who knew here own inner power. (I think at the time I was trying to claim my own inner power.)

 So my sketch, in my head,  became a yellow eyed, black haired woman, and she was called Raven.

About six months later I felt brave enough to try and paint Raven. But it didn't work. I just couldn't translate the sketch and the image in my head to canvas.

Her yellow eyes looked like crap (so I changed them to green) the feathers didn't look right, her hair didn't move the way I had envisioned, the collaged robe, never felt right. Seriously, I hated her. And I remember there were a few tears of pure frustration.

So I packed the canvas away in a cupboard and there it sits to this day. (One day I will repurpose it I guess...)

Fast forward to a year and a half later.

And 'Raven' was still haunting me, I still wanted to capture her in paint, and I was feeling brave again. And so I started to paint her - very tentatively. 

'RAVEN'
ORIGINAL MIXED MEDIA PAINTING FOR SALE HERE
PRINTS OR POSTCARDS AVAILABLE ALSO

And I through persevering with 'Raven' I learned a few things about myself. 

I learned that a really crappy painting isn't going to send me into a tail spin of self doubt and self loathing any more, which in the past would lead to weeks (or years) of not creating. 

I learned that sometimes you need to have a bit more experience to fully translate a spark of an idea. And that is ok.

And I learned that sometimes you need to put an idea away for a while, and let the spark grow and mature a little more.

She has become one of my favourite paintings of 2012!

So have you had an idea that has ignited you, that has haunted you? Are you still letting it grow? Or have you attempted to capture the spark? I would love to hear your stories.

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☆ Work In Progress - Yellow Eyed Mermaid

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Some play today in my art journal.

Another yellow eyed mermie.

Do you have something you are working on for fun? Feel free to share the link in the comments below.

P.S Don't forget to enter this months GIVEAWAY. Click here to enter 

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