Seussical Charley

Our baby girl due in February is having a Dr. Seuss themed room so we thought it would be fun to create Dr. Seuss letters for her wall.

I found some great letters for $6.99 each at Michael's. They have holes at the back so they can each hang on the wall without showing the nail/hook.

First my wife, children and friend painted the letters a solid colour.

 Next, I painted different Dr. Seuss characters on each letter. I did 4 letters one night and 3 the next. It probably took around 6 hours total.

 I'm very happy with how they turned out. We may add a glossy finish to the letters to protect them.

They will look great in Charley's room with the Dr. Seuss painting I did in 2011.

Firetruck

My son Quinn (age 5) loves firetrucks. His Minecraft poster was recently destroyed so I thought we could make a little piece of art for his wall. I did a quick painting of a firetruck and had him help with the fire and road. We did this painting (2' x 3') in an hour. Not bad and it'll look cute on his wall.

Firetruck by Quinn (5) and Stacey

Face Art

I haven't really had the time or energy to paint. I've doodled. That felt good to just scribble and relax.



But it's been hard. I've felt really busy with kids, work, busy schedules now that they're in hockey, drama, Beavers and Brownies...it's hard to find the time. Or more specifically, the energy and inspiration to paint when they go to bed. I need to though. I know that. I just don't know how I can do it yet.

I did have some fun painting their faces recently. I bought a face paint kit from Michael's called Snazaroo. It is awesome as it's just like painting with regular paints and it comes off easily.

I experimented with some of their designs first.



I painted scratches and bruises on Jackson so he could be a beat up version of Thor.



Riley was a zombie Prom Queen. I tried out a couple of designs.

This one would have been better with the teeth being shorter or going into darkness so there was depth. Next time.



Riley wanted brains showing through her forehead. I'm happy with how this one turned out.



Painting faces is fun and it's really made me realize how much I miss painting.

I need to find that energy and time.

In memory of Jeffrey.

I have wanted to paint but haven't been able to find the time or energy with starting a new job, being active outdoors in the summer weather, etc. I decided one night to just do a little painting and get it done within a few hours. I went with a more abstract type of concept although that's not really a strength of mine. I wanted to make a painting for our neighbour before today, the year anniversary of her son's death. Jeffrey passed away suddenly last summer from Muscular Dystrophy.

I wanted to incorporate some things into one painting but wasn't sure how so I went with a more abstract type painting. I put a bit of the funky pattern from his baseball cap on the side, a vase of sunflowers (a gift someone had given to the family) and the white balloons that were released at his funeral. I played around a bit with this painting and experimented with making the flowers bleed onto the hat.

I wrapped it up and gave it to my neighbour, Eva. I knew she wouldn't want to see it in my presence. She hasn't opened it yet but I hope when she does, she will appreciate it.

First attempt at stained glass.

I signed up for a stained glass workshop and had a great time learning how to cut and grind glass and then soldering it all together. I had no idea how stained glass was made prior to taking this workshop.

I made a gift for my mom--a bluebird of happiness.



The project involved glass chips in my fingers and a small burn from grabbing the soldering iron holder rather than the handle. But I made it out alive and I'm happy with my first piece.

Hanging in the window.

This week.

I continued the momentum of painting on the weekend into the week. Our two older kids are with their grandparents and cousins this week so it has been easy with just Quinn. He goes to bed easily and earlier than the older two so I've had more time to focus on painting. Two nights this week I worked on my huge 2' x 3' canvas. It's slowly getting there. I hope to sell this piece when it's finished.

A little teaser...

2 Moms to Be

We celebrated our friends Colleen and Meredith's baby shower this weekend. As part of their gift, I painted a small canvas for them.



The background represents the Pride colours. They met at Toronto Pride so I thought it would be nice to incorporate that into the painting. Besides, what is cheerier than rainbow colours?

2 Moms. Acrylic on canvas.


Good luck to the new moms-to-be! I can't wait to meet your new little boy or girl!