Bird Song Paint Like Me! class

Well, due to overwhelming demand for a shorter, less 'serious' Paint Like Me class, I've added this canvas "Bird Song" to the class schedule.  This canvas will be taught on Tuesday evening, June 11  from 6 to 8 pm
in the art classroom at The Perfect Pair. The cost of this class is 50 dollars and includes all materials and the canvas (18 x 18 ) and 2 hours with Moi!

Students will still get to create a high end looking masterpiece using unusual products.  Such as (one of my favorites...MICA FLAKES!, shown below )

This canvas can be customized to be butterflies or dragonflies instead of the bird.

Again, you do not need ANY ARTISTIC ABILITY to excel in this class.


For our Tuesday evening classes, students MAY bring beer or wine  and snacks of their choice.  We will provide the cups, plates and ice. Yes, you will have to prove that you are 21!!!

All materials for this class are included in the price.

Students must bring a hairdryer to class.
The cost of the class is for you only, no guests or children will be allowed, NO EXCEPTIONS.

Call "The Perfect Pair" to sign up for this class at  217-672-8822
The Perfect Pair is located at 266 N State Route 121  in Warrensburg, IL.

Stay tuned! I will be adding other Tuesday night canvases!
You can also book a private party for you and 11 of your closest friends!

Circus Style

I love hot pink and red together. I really need to get some new sofas in my living room, and while it is pretty low on my list of priorities right now, a girl can dream! I would LOVE  to purchase a pair of   hot pink velvet sofas  like this one!  (this one is from firstdibs, so probably a one of a kind).  Being the owner of 3 male  dogs, I love that the bottom portion of this sofa is unupholstered...(hope that's not oversharing, but boy dogs suck.) 
In my dream with the hot pink sofas, I also have black and white striped curtains and a gigantic marquis letter that really lights up! 

I also love chandeliers in a family room...I am loving this one by Ikea. The only problem I have with Ikea lighting,is usually the bulbs are teeny tiny.  My FAVORITE exploding flower chandelier has one tiny fluourescent bulb in it. Totally useless for lighting the room.  It's really more of 'ceiling sculpture'. But that's ok with me. That's what lamps are for!

Rounding out the scene is a funky watercolor   by C Galla Fine Art on etsy.   I love that painting, it's whimsical but still has a little tension to it. 

And of course in my dream, I have a new  non leaky puppy named Jinx.  

Happy Monday! 

Kitchen 'AFTER'!!!

I finally got my kitchen all put back together and I am LOVING the results.  It's so bright and happy in there, it *almost* makes me want to cook!

The uppers are SW Antique White and the lowers are SW Jet Stream, but I had them darken the color up, so I'm not really sure exactly what color they are now.  You  might notice the ceiling is painted a pale blue too.  I really like how painting the soffit and the cabinet the same color really raised the ceiling.
Remember the 'sad before'?  It was all so chopped up and busy.....

I also got a  super cute new rug ( which my dog is blending right into in the 'after' photo..)  that is made out of recycled plastic water bottles. I love it, it's so easy to clean. The only 'caution' I would add is to not apply aerosol sun screen while standing on this plastic rug, unless you want to slip and fall and break your elbow.

~xo E

paint like me

I am super excited to announce that beginning on July 13, a dream of mine will come to fruition...I will begin teaching canvas classes for people who think they have some,little, or no artistic ability. If you just want to create some great art, these are the classes for you.

The Perfect Pair Antiques and Salon, In Warrensburg, IL has a huge new class room where I will be teaching. 

I am going to be doing things a little differently from the typical learn to paint school or party.
First of all, student will create L A R G E canvases...24x30 in most cases. And not only that, we will be painting on the thick 2" gallery wrapped canvases. That's the kind you see in a gallery and what distinguishes a professional from a hobbyist.

The old adage of 'the end result is only as good as your basecoat' applies here too. So we are starting with hefty, high end canvases to work with.

Most of the products that I will be teaching, will be products you've probably never used before. Things like Venetian Plaster, Wax, Leafs and Foils, Crackle paste, tiny glass beads, mica flakes  and so on.
To have the best results, we will be using only the best products.

You do not have to have ANY artistic ability...just a desire to create. I will take you step by step through each process as I show you how to use trowels, combs, and at times just our fingers.

The cost of each class is 195.00 per student and all you need to bring to class is yourself, dressed in your fabulous paint clothes, and whatever snacks and drinks you would want. We will provide the ice, cups and plates. (There will also be snacks available at an adjoining business, Board Knight, the game shop on the premises.)
If you want to take both classes, there is a 25 $ discount for both.

Ok so here are the 2 classes being currently offered.

1.  "Trees"

This class will employ the use of metallic paints, foils, Lusterstone and crackle paste.  Students will learn how to paint simple and elegant trees with a flat brush and a ruler. Finger-painting will be involved.

This canvas has beautiful underlying texture and lots of shimmering, rich colors. 

Detail of the texture.





2. "Abstract Chevron"

This class will create a gradient chevron design in neutral colors with Venetian Plaster, Lusterstone, Silver and GoldLeaf, Mica Flakes and tiny glass beads. 

Class schedule is as follows :

Trees...Saturday, July 13  from 10 am to 1 pm

Abstract Chevron....Saturday, July 13 from 2 to 5 pm

Please email me at chicpaint@gmail.com  if you want to be included in either class ( or if you're a fan on facebook, contact me there.  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Punch-Sizzle-LLC/48273974042?ref=hl

A deposit of 75.00 is required to hold your spot.  No guests or children will be allowed in class. 

Favorite color for the garden :Acid Yellow

I'm in the mood for a party! We have had the grossest late Winter/early Spring ...YUCK! I just want sunshine and cocktails,baby!    I am getting ready for a Graduation party, and I am in the process of foof'ing up the back patio. Today I found YARD FLAMINGOS on sale for 7 bucks for TWO! (at Rural King). Woo hoo! I've had my eye on them for a long time.

   I think a garden should be an extension of the home it's attached to...so naturally I would have to funky/retro garden.  My garden is pretty shady, so I like to use YELLOW and WHITE to bring spots of color to an otherwise mostly green space. I am really loving Acid Yellow this year. How fun are these vintage chairs available at The Perfect Pair Antiques and Salon ( in Warrensburg, IL) . I bet you thought you knew what liquid sunshine was? Wrong! It's hot yellow paint.

 I am crazy about this hot yellow door! It makes me rethink my jade green door. Hmm....

How about this yellow trellis? Even something plain and simple becomes fab when painted a jazzy color! 

I can't wait to pick out something in my garden to paint bright yellow! I like 'Yellow Flash' by Behr (shown below, darkest color.) (original source unknown) 

New counter top LOVE and kitchen remodeling progress

My oldest daughter is graduating in May and there WILL be a party!  In between teaching her various self defense techniques and crying in my tea wondering where the time has gone....I have been 'remodeling' my kitchen.

Ah...my kitchen. The smallest 4x6 patch of real estate in town.  My house was built in 1954, when people didn't live in their kitchens ( I guess...) and it is T I N Y.  Sometime in the 80s some wise homeowner knocked out a wall and at least created the illusion of space....Anyway....none of that is important except to say that I was HATING my kitchen and something really had to change. 

I knew I had to repaint my cabinets, they were looking a little worse for the wear and they were super dark (blech!)  so I decided to paint the uppers off white and the lowers powder blue. Since my cabinets would now be light, my counter top would have to be dark!   

Fearing nothing, I started applying a Lusterstone finish right over the existing counter top.( I am a trained applicator of the following products, so I won't be giving ALL my secrets away).  I just sponged and swirled and trowelled 3 shades : Ebony, Moonstone Gray and Snowflake White. I wanted the finish to have some movement, but not be spongy looking. I ended up with this Lava looking color. Sweet!!!

I added in some mother of pearl mica flakes, mirror chips and some iridescent glitter. (Cause I'm the glitter Queen)
Finally, I applied 2 coats of resin, letting each one dry overnight.
Here's the final look! I am looooooving it!!!!

I painted the walls Sherwin Williams Antique White and added this nifty new valance whipped up by my mom.

My children are wondering when in the heck we are getting the cabinet doors put back on....I have this terrible habit of starting a project and then getting distracted by some life sized  shiny object (like work, or taxes...)   As nothing is as productive as the last minute, I imagine they will be getting hung back up a few hours before the graduation party!



I almost forgot to show y'all....I painted my grandmother's buffet hot pink! After agonizing about what color to paint it, I decided I desperately needed a shot of crazy color, because my walls and floor are going to be all off white.

I chose Sherwin Williams 'Dragon Fruit' and added some fun turquoise knobs. (Some of the original knobs were missing.)   I set up this little breakfast bar, which extends the area of the kitchen. )

I love my kitchen now! Can't wait for the party!

Totems

I do a lot of cabinet jobs. When I am painting or staining doors, I set them out on 2 parallel 2x4s. One day a client commented that my 2x4s looked like some cool art installation,what with all the streaks of various paints and stains on them.  It gave me an idea....
I've been sitting on this idea for a long time, but the perfect situation presented itself last week.
One of my clients has   accepted a transfer to another state (sadly, boo hoo!) . They have a very large, very beautiful home  in a very depressed real estate market. They enlisted my help to get their house in tip top shape for selling.
I noticed they have 2 alcoves on either side of their front door that were obviously designed to house some kind of artwork, but have been sitting empty as long as I've known them. 
"How about just some vertical strips of art for in there", I suggested. "Nothing too elaborate or pricey. Just a little kapow..."
"Where are we going to find that?"
HELLO!!!!!

"I'll make them."
"Well....You go, girl."

(I assure you, these pieces ARE centered within their alcoves.)

I found my local Big Box store has thin maple boards that come in pre- cut lengths, these were perfect for my purposes. Thick enough to screw in a  hook for hanging, but not so heavy to require heavy duty holes in the wall.

Sometimes our homes become kind of 'schizophrenic', especially if there have been a lot of moves in our pasts.  This particular client has moved many many times from a ranch in Texas to a more stately home in the deep South...to the flat lands of Illinois.  I wanted to tie in all of her things which range from Tuscan to Texas Ranch...  and have them work together, so I just pulled colors from the adjoining rooms. I used only stripes of color and texture to create a truly 'transitional' piece of work.

Two years ago,I had the opportunity to change their built in book cases from a HIDEOUS yellow (SW Harvester. Sorry SW, that color is gross)  to a distressed and textured 'salvaged' look.  This built in faces the front door. The counter top sections were plain off white Formica. (egads!) I applied a crackled copper finish to those areas, so I knew I wanted to use the same copper plaster in the paintings.

Because I was working with Maple, I wanted to use the grain of the wood for some of my stripes. I started out by just painting on bands of gel stains in different colors.  After that was dry, I taped off areas for some heavy duty crackle paste. I added in copper plaster and areas of copper and silver foils and a tiny bit of a teal metallic. (I won't give away all my tricks!) 
Lastly I taped off some stripes and applied tiny gold beads and bronze mica flakes.  I have to have texture in my work. I could never sell something flat, I would just feel so WRONG.

Now that the pieces are installed, the client has ordered 3 more. HUGE ones for the stairwell wall.
Yay! (Here they are on the studio floor, in progress.)

UPDATE!!!! Here are the 3 additional 'Totems' installed !

**I wanted to share some other work I have done in this home.
These 3 armoirs were a pickled oak finish before I got hold of them.  Using Modello stencil stickers and four different colors of gel stains,  I created a faux, inlaid wood look which took a million years but looks like a million bucks. I am really proud of this project, it has to be one of my favorite furniture transformations.The clients were so happy too they overpaid me.

Here's an upclose of the completed door fronts.