New Pieces at C'est Moi

So the winter doldrums have kicked in and you need a piece of art to brighten up your place?  I just delivered these beauties to C'est Moi in Brentwood.  Visit or call them and they'll be happy to ship to!

Be Happy When I Grow Up

8"x8" mixed media/ acrylic on canvas

$52

Butterfly Love in Blue & Gold

36"x36" acrylic on canvas

$518

Close up of Butterfly Love

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Thanks for stopping by today!

Inside my Heart

Come over to StencilGirl Talk and see how this piece came together with lots of layers! See you there!

Fun with Seth Apter & StencilGirl

Welcome to the StencilGirl blog hop featuring Seth Apter's newly released stencils.  

I love incorporating stencils subtly into my art for an extra layer of texture and interest.  I started with a canvas I had already prepared with collaged papers and paint - it was waiting for inspiration.  I immediately saw Seth's stencils in this to finish my vision.  In my mind they were just "enough" to add that final touch but still allow the background I created to shine through.

I sketched out my girl reaching for the sky.

I used Golden Fluid acrylic Titan buff and Titanium White with Seth Apter's Techo Insiders Star Stencils and Seth Apter's Urban Outsiders Stencil.

I used some Burnt Umber on the abstract ground and background with Seth's Techo Insiders Tag stencil and the Urban Outsider's stencil again.

I finished up with the details on the piece.

And this is how she turned out.

I may add a word or phrase later or just leave her like this.  I hope you enjoyed. Be sure to keep hopping along with all the artists listed below.  Also if you leave a comment, you will be entered for a giveaway!

Blog Hop Order

StencilGirl Talk

Seth Apter

Mary Beth Shaw

Mary C. Nasser

Carolyn Dube

Gwen Lafleur

Kirsten Reed you are here

Janet Joehlin

Maria McGuire

GIVEAWAY

$25 StencilGirl Gift Certificate to one lucky winner!

All comments left on the hop list participants posts will be entered. 

One comment per blog. 

Comments close on July 24th @ 11:59PM Central.

Creating Owls

Come visit me on StencilGirl Talk all day today where I show you how to create this textured owl.  

It will be a hoot! (okay I couldn't help myself) 

Hope to see you there!

Feeling a little Loose

Been painting visions of spring lately and that usually includes some florals.  I usually love my florals that are loose in nature and just come together very organically. Here is progression of one recent piece.

I created a background of vintage ledger sheets, maps, wallpaper and molding paste using StencilGirl's Art Nouveau stencil by Lizzy Mayne.

I then drew out my floral and began loosely painting in and around, adding in more charcoal and pen as I went until I was finished.

Here are some close ups.

Here is the final piece.

If you would like to hop over to my Facebook Page or Instagram and say hello I'd love to see you!

Evolution of a City

Today I will take you on a tour of my city...Nashville.

Well, sort of.  I will show you how my cityscape painting of Nashville came to be through progression photos!

Here is where I began with my 24x48 canvas.

And this is where I ended.

Hope you enjoyed the tour!

This painting will debut at my next show, Centennial Holiday Show, November 22-23. Hope to see you there.

If you enjoyed this post, be sure to check my past posts and some of my free tutorials on my blog page above or at  Kirsten Reed Designs or just follow me on Bloglovin' and get them delivered to your inbox!

Back to basics...angel

Have you ever just thought about how fun and free it felt to be a kid?  I remember one of my favorite things to do was finger painting.  I loved the way it felt to have paint on my fingers and I loved seeing my finger "prints" inside the paint.

The other day I was working in my studio and I had this lovely collaged canvas with vintage papers and some stamps on it.  I knew I wanted to paint an angel but I really did not want her to be "stiff".  I wanted her to look and feel organic.

So I decided to use only my fingers to apply the paint.  Here is her transformation.

Next time you feel stuck in the same routine, challenge yourself to tackle your project in a new way!  Let me know about it!

I like 'em Sunny Side Up...

I really love flowers.  I love gardening and growing things.  I love looking out my studio window and seeing blooms.  One of my favorite flowers, besides tulips and peonies, are daisies.  Just simple white daisies.  I know, they are cheap, but there is something so sweet and innocent about them.

I was thinking about them the other day as I started this canvas in my studio and although I didn't quite create a daisy, I was inspired by the simplicity of the white and yellow blooms.

I wanted a simple painting but with a lot of texture.  The entire bottom half of this painting is collage of book paper.

I kept my palette simple ~ blue, gray, brown and yellow.  I used Golden molding paste to create flowers that popped off the canvas. It is important not to use "light" molding paste for this kind of piece or joint compound (which is water soluble and will dissolve with paint on top).  I used a  charcoal pencil for definition.

Can you see the texture?

My flowers kind of look like flying eggs, sunny side up.  I think it works any way ~ a little funky, fun and elegant!

Be sure to check out all my free tutorials on my blog page above marked ART TUTORIALS,
or visit me on my website at Kirsten Reed Designs.

You can also follow me on Bloglovin' and get them delivered to your inbox!

Here are the supplies I used for this piece:

Golden Molding Paste

Charcoal stick

Golden Fluid Acrylic Paints

Liquitex Basic Acrylic Paints

Slow & Steady

My sweet friend Kim and I affectionately call ourselves the Turtles.  We have run several races together and well, to use the word "race" and "Kirsten and Kim" in the same sentence is quite comical!

We are SLLLLOOOOWWWW! Crazy slow.

In fact, my husband often jokes that I could walk faster than I run.  And little known fact, I do walk very fast...no matter where I go.  I think I have just one speed.  And if you call that speed 'walking' ~ it's fast.  If you call the speed 'running' ~ it's slow.

I have known Kim for about 20 years.  Over the past several, we have given each other little turtle things ~ turtle earrings, bracelets, etc.  One year she got socks with turtles on them and we wore them during the Nashville Half-Marathon....and some lady asked if we were turtles.

I excitedly said, "Why, yes, we are!!"  She then asked me, "What's the phrase?"  I looked at her a little confused and said, "Turtle Power!"  It was the only thing I could think of.  She immediately dismissed me and said, "you're not a real turtle!"  

I kid you not!  We laughed at least another three miles about her elitist little "secret turtle club"!!

Kim and I met while working together at Sandestin Resort in Florida many moons ago and I am so blessed to still call her friend.  Lucky girl she still gets to live there, so on her birthday this year, I made her a little sea turtle to represent our slow running and our steady friendship!

I even wrote underneath the final canvas, as I often do, little messages to her.  This one says "slow and steady wins the race".

So in honor of my friend who happily "races" with me at my pace....Turtle power!