Christmas Gifts, Oh Boy!

These are photos of my cats and dog enjoying their Christmas gifts!

This is Pudden enjoying some of her catnip toys.

This is Jubie. Out of all the toys she got, this one appears to be her favorite!

This is Shadow (AKA Cubbies) chewing his huge bone that he gets every Christmas.


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Watercolor Lamb Painting

This painting is dedicated to Carmen, a little lamb who was rescued by animal place - a farm animal rescue. Her leg was in very bad condition and had to be amputaded leaving her with the need for a prosthetic leg. She is doing so well adjusting to her new life but because she is still growing she will need a new prosthetic leg periodically until she is fully grown.

I will be donating 20% of the proceeds from this painting to animal place to help Carmen in her recovery as well as all the animals at the animal place shelter. To buy this painting click the link here
If you would like to read about Carmen's story or donate to her cause you can visit animal place's website here  I hope everyone has a wonderful and happy holiday!!!

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Earthy Winter Treasury

This is a treasury showcasing some beautiful earth toned items to make you feel cozy in the cold of winter. View this treasury on Etsy here

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The King of the Birds - The Wren

In European folklore it is said that the birds held a contest to see who could fly the highest. Whom ever won would be considered "The King of the Birds". The Eagle being a very cocky bird thought since he was obviously the most powerful flyer he would win for sure. But the wren being so cunning hid under the eagle's wing. When the eagle beat out the other birds and from exhaustion could go no higher the wren flew out and high up above the eagle making him "The King of the Birds". So because of that story I titled this little wren painting "Royal Wren". The original painting is for sale on my etsy shop. http://www.etsy.com/shop/ThimbleSparrow?ref=si_shop

A smile for the day!

Whenever I watch this youtube video I can't help but smile.

Video of a Sparrow Painting

My absolute favorite bird is the house sparrow. We have many of them in our garden and they visit us everyday when we throw them bread or fill the bird feeder. They're so small and delicate yet their personalities are bigger then life. They always seem to make me laugh. I painted this little sparrow with much love and the original is in my personal collection. A print is available on my etsy website. Watch and enjoy!

Progression painting of mushrooms

This is a progession of me painting a couple of mushrooms in watercolor on arches cold pressed 140lb paper.

                                                            I start with the drawing.

Here I added a grey wash for depth.

I begin putting on raw umber and burnt umber over the mushroom top.

I finished the mushroom top and added a raw umber wash to the underside of the mushroom.

Here I finished the underside with some burnt umber and grey to indicate depth.

I'm putting a deeper grey wash with light touches of raw umber and burnt umber. I used long line strokes to give the stem a gnarley look.

I used the same methods as above to complete the smaller mushroom.

The last step was adding some ground. I once again used raw and burnt umber with just a touch of grey to pull everything together.

Here is the finished painting!


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Snow White Etsy Treasury

This is a winter seasonal treasury I made yesterday. To view any of these beautiful items visit this treasury on etsy here http://www.etsy.com/treasury/MTYxNjQyMzd8MTQyOTkwNDgzMw/snow-white?ref=pr_treasury

Watercolor Red Fox

Here is a watercolor painting of a sweet little fox I painted a few nights ago. It took me about 2 hours to do. The original is for sale on my etsy shop and 15% will be going to EFA's (Etsy For Animals) charity of the month.

Watercolor Squirrel

I have many little squirrels that live in my garden and I snapped a shot of one of them in this pose. I just couldn't get the thought out of my mind of her holding a little umbrella made out of a leaf to block the sun from her eyes.

Watercolor Feathers

I think feathers are just so beautiful. I love how every one is so unique and different.