Finally Internet Service!!!

'Golden Pear' 8x10 pastel

I am headed back to Atlanta after a wonderful and exciting trip to the West. I was in Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks for the last week and in places had no internet at all. In a way it was nice but I do miss posting to the blog and I have so much to share. I have taken over 5000 photos and I can't wait to get home and get caught up so I can paint!

Storm over the Marsh 8x10 pastel

'Storm over the Marsh' 8x10 pastel

Today's painting is another marsh scene from Creighton Island Georgia. There was a tropical storm in the area when I was staying on the island so most of my paintings have a stormy, gray feel to them.

Birch Forest 5x7

'Birch Forest' 5x7 pastel

I finally had time to paint on my trip today. We are settled into Moulton Ranch Cabins in Wyoming and it was the perfect day for plein air painting. I started early and managed to paint 12 small plein air studies. It was so much fun. The views from the cabins are spectacular and I can't wait to get back outside tomorrow and paint some more.

Back to the Farm 11x14 pastel

'Back to the Farm' 11x14 pastel

Today's painting is a scene from the mountains of North Carolina. I love finding old barns that look like they are a part of the landscape. I am now at Moulton Ranch Cabins here in Jackson Wyoming and we are surrounded by great old barns. Later tonight we will take a walk and get some photos in the late afternoon light. This place is simply amazing!!!

Creighton Island Marsh

'After the Storm' 5x7 pastel

A 5x7 study of the marsh at Creighton Island Georgia after a storm had blown through. I am almost out of battery on my laptop so I will post longer tomorrow. Still in beautiful Grand Teton National Park and need to get back outside and enjoy the view!

Sanford Farm Nantucket Painting

'On Sanford Farm' 11x14 pastel

Today's painting is a view from Sanford Farm on Nantucket Island. I loved all the colors in the grasses with just the right touch of yellow in the flowers. I have taken so many wildflower photos on my trip that I will not know where to begin! I have limited internet here in Grand Teton National Park but I will try my best to keep up the posting!

South Carolina Lowcountry Painting

'Boardwalk View' 11x14 pastel

This is a view from a nature trail on Edisto Island in South Carolina. I love to paint the marshes and that is about the only type of landscape that we aren't going to see on this trip out west. I am looking forward to painting some of the mountain meadows!

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Tiny Nest ACEO Painting

'Tiny Nest' 2.5x3.5 pastel

Today's painting is just a mini pastel painting measuring just 2.5 x 3.5 . I painted it on black toned paper and used a linear approach. Nests are so much fun to paint.

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Price: $35 USD
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Maine Wildflowers

'Summer in Maine' 11x14

I love the wildflowers in Maine. These I found on a hike in Acadia National Park. I am now in Ouray, Colorado which is one of my favorite places. Tomorrow we take a jeep tour up to Yankee Boy Basin to see the wildflowers up there. It will be interesting to compare them to what we just saw in Crested Butte. I can't wait! If you'd like to read about my western adventure click on the link to my trip blog at the top of the page.

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Birthday Cake! pastel painting

'Chocolate Cake' 5x7 pastel

Since it is my birthday, today's painting is a piece of chocolate cake. I had a wonderful birthday in Crested Butte Colorado. It was a gorgeous day and we spent the day taking photos of the mountains and the wildflowers. I was in heaven. Now I can't wait to paint. Maybe tomorrow when we get to Ouray.

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Price: $45 USD
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Poppy Field 9x12 pastel

'Mountain Poppies' 9x12 pastel

Today's painting is a poppy field I painted before I left on my trip. It is from a photo I took in the North Carolina Mountains. I cannot wait to paint some of the scenes I am seeing here in Colorado. The wildflowers are just breathtaking!

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Price: $150 USD
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The Flowers are Amazing in Crested Butte

We are in Crested Butte Colorado for the Wildflower Festival and it is just gorgeous here! We went on a wildflower hike but it took us an hour to walk to the trail because we kept stopping for photos, These poppies were amazing. I took so many photos today and I am not done yet. I plan on going back out for the magic hour!

Moonlight Marsh Painting 11x14

'Moonlight Marsh' 11x14 pastel

This is a scene from Kiawah Island. I have painted this same scenes at various times of day and I really enjoyed doing this nocturne version. What a wonderful place to paint!

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Trip Photo of the Day

No Vacancy!

I thought it would be fun to share my favorite photo from each day of my trip. I'm not doing any painting yet but taking lots of photos. This is my favorite from yesterday. We stopped at a Holiday Inn in Colby Missouri and every single letter on the Holiday Inn sign was occupied by a nest. The birds were everywhere. It was so fun to watch them fly in and out of their letters!

Morning Softness Pastel Landscape

'Morning Softness' 8x10 pastel

Today's painting is a landscape based on some photos I took of the marsh area on the South Carolina Coast. I like the soft morning light in this one. I am writing tonight from Colby, Kansas surrounded by wheat fields. We are almost to Colorado after driving all day. It was a hot drive...at one point the car thermometer registered 106! I'll be posting some photos on the travelblog. See link at top of page.

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Price: $125 USD
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Sunflower Fields 11x14 pastel

'Summer Sunshine' 11x14 pastel

Are we in Kansas yet????? No we are still in Missouri but we are going to try our best to make it through Kansas tomorrow so we can get to Colorado. To read more about today's adventure-filled drive visit my travelpod blog. (link at the top of this page)

Today's painting is a sunflower field that I did as a demo recently at High Country Art & Antiques. I love to paint sunflowers and if we see any on tomorrow's drive we are stopping for photos!

California Dogface Butterfly Pastel Painting

' Summer Delight' 6x8 pastel

I finished packing and running errands and had time to paint today! Here is today's painting...a California Dogface Butterfly enjoying the Queen Anne's Lace. It is 6x9 on Uart with an alcohol wash underpainting. We are hitting the road early in the morning for the first leg of our trip. We hope to make it to St. Louis, MO or somewhere near. It all depends on how many stops we make! I hope to make a post to the travel blog tonight or in the morning so have a look at the link above the post if you want to travel along with us!

Sanibel Sea Shell Painting

'Sanibel Sea Shells' 11x14 pastel

I am sharing one of my older paintings but one that I have always liked. It just needs to find the right home! As you might imagine I have been running around today trying to finish up last minute packing for the trip. I now need to take some clothes out of my bag because Jayne and I went to Bass Pro Shop today and I found some shirts that were on sale that I couldn't pass up! I have one more day to finish up and then we head west on Tuesday!

The Buzzing of Bees ...Pastel 8x10

'The Buzzing of Bees' 8x10 pastel

This painting is a field of Late Summer Queen Anne's Lace when they are past their prime and forming fruits...which look like little bird nests. I found this field when we stopped for gas somewhere in Indiana a couple of years ago. I remember that it was loaded with wildflowers and the buzzing of the bees in the field was almost deafening. It was awesome! See if you can spot the hidden bee in this painting.

Marsh Study 5x7

'Marsh Impressions' 5x7 pastel

Another late day! I have a lot of loose ends to tie before I leave for 3 weeks. I put a good dent in all my errands today and should be able to get everything done before we leave on Tuesday. I really want to have some painting time before I leave because even though I will have my pastels and will be doing some plein air....I have a couple of paintings in the works that I'd like to finish. Maybe tomorrow!

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Price: $50 USD
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Nantucket Island Sanford Farm pastel 5x7

'A Summer Walk' 5x7 pastel

Another small Nantucket Island study. When I return from my trip, I am planning on doing some larger painitngs based on these 5x7's. Sanford Farm is a wonderful spot on Nantucket. The perfect place for a walk!

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Golden Meadow Wildflowers and Butterfly Painting

'Golden Meadow' 12 x 24 pastel

What would it be like to lie down in a meadow and look up through the flowers at the blue sky? You might hear the buzzing of insects and perhaps see a butterfly or two. This painting is my vision of what it might be like. It is large at 12x24 but for some reason it seems smaller in the photo! This painting is on Wallis belgian mist paper with a nupastel and alcohol wash underpainting.

Secret Garden...Nantucket Hydrangeas

'Secret Garden' 8x10 pastel

The hydrangeas have been beautiful this year. Even my poor neglected backyard bushes have done well. But the most wonderful hydrangeas were the ones I saw last July on Nantucket Island. They were everywhere! I couldn't walk down the street without snapping photos of the wonderful gardens. I finally had a chance to paint them. This pastel is 8x10 on Uart paper with an alcohol wash underpainting. I also used two of my Terry Ludwig confetti pastels, one was blue and one was purple. I had fun with this!

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Price: $145 USD
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Golden Retriever Puppy Painting

'Golden Dreams' 8x10 pastel

Today I set aside all other chores and just painted. It was such a nice way to spend the day. I painted a 12x24 wildflower scene and this one of my sister's new puppy. I think this one is Hannah but since I couldn't see the collar in the photo it might be Hailey! Whoever it is, she had found a cool spot under a lounge chair and curled up for a nap after a swim in the lake.

Nantucket Island in July SOLD

'Summer in Nantucket' 5x7 pastel

I hope everyone is having a wonderful 4th of July weekend. I just got home from some time on my sister's housebout up in the mountains. What a relaxing time we had with family and friends and her two adorable Golden Retriever puppies! I had no internet access which in a way was actually nice but came home to a pile of email including an invitation to visit a cousin on Nantucket. We have gone there for the past two summers but with my big trip out west this summer, sadly Nantucket will have to wait until next summer. I just love it there and never get tired of painting from the photos I took. This little 5x7 study was done for my class last week. Our focus was on finding ways to resolve a foreground. I'll share the other studies this week.

Birch Forest Pastel 18x24

I am headed up to the lake for the holiday weekend so I am posting early. I am bringing my plein air kit for a test run so I will report back on Sunday or Monday. I hope everyone has a fantastic 4th of July!
This painting is another one of my larger works at 18x24. It is from a scene in Acadia National Park in Maine.

Blue Ridge Georgia Plein Air

'Blue Ridge Plein Air' 5x7 pastel

It's been a long day today. I was out with my sister helping her with her two new puppies. We had to drive out into the country to get them, then bathe them and take them to the vet and finally shop for toys! They are adorable and I am sure I will be painting them.