FLYING BIRDS ON MY WEBSITE & HUNGRY BIRDS & SQUIRRELS

     Well, I've been working every extra minute on my lyndabco.com website and finally!! finished.  I did all of the text and color changes, but my friend helped me with the new look.  For my navigation bar, she used my bird art and, as you're clicking on a link to view my work, it looks like the bird is flying.  I LOVE it!! 
     Birds, birds, birds, I love birds!  Well, maybe not doves and sparrows so much at my feeders.  Doves do such big poop and sparrows come in gangs, chase everybody off of the feeders, eat everything and move on to their next attack on feeders.  I know they're hungry, but they are aggressive and chase off the wonderful little chickadees, titmice, gold finches and other native birds.  I do feel guilty about my attitude, but that is how I feel.
     While I was on the computer, I had to keep getting up and chase squirrels off of the feeders.  Charlie will start barking so I'll come out.  This mama squirrel's earlier two juveniles are here and she's very pregnant again.  Doesn't she know there would be more food for her if she would just stop producing babies???  Squirrels are so pretty at this time of year and I love seeing them way out in my yard.  Their winter coats are very orangey and gray/brown. 
     I rarely see black squirrels and when I do, they're all in one location.  Not far from here, I was working in a home close to a woody area and there were lots of black squirrels.  That's so interesting!  Maybe the gray squirrels and the black squirrels are territorial and that's why I don't see them together.  A couple of months ago, I was driving down my street and saw a black something moving on the ground and I got closer and realized it was a black squirrel.  It carried it's tail low, not high like the gray squirrels.  It made me wonder if someone had it as a pet or the black squirrels are moving in.
     Thanksgiving was so nice and Christmas is almost here.  Soon, the holidays will be over with one more year behind us.  I hope you and I have a good new year and dare I hope for peace in the world!

STAINING & PAINTING BLUE FURNITURE FOR DIANA'S NEW HOME

Remember the New Orleans style house I posted a while back?  Well, Diana has finally moved in and is still getting settled.

She found this unfinished dining room table and asked if I could match her antique chairs.

That's always a challenge, but thank goodness I got very, very close to her chair stain color.

Diana LOVES the color blue and has touches of blue all around her home.

She asked me to paint and distress her table top in a blue color that she chose.

This table had a built in leaf that just folds into the table.  I think that is such a great idea! She'll never lose it and it won't take up room in a closet like mine does.  A neighbor told us that furniture used to be built that way/with a connected leaf.

I stenciled a little fleur de lis and scrollie on the leaf with metallic gold paint and rubbed the edges with the same paint.

It looks so pretty in her dining room under her gold crown chandelier.

This chest was an older brown stained piece of furniture and the nightstand was white.  Diana chose the blues and asked me to paint and lightly distress them to match for her guest bedroom.  (They are the same color!)

I've really loved working in this beautiful home and am very proud of the different projects she and the builder asked me to do.

Thank you Diana!!  I loved working with you!

CHARLIE & THE TOAD FROGS

Visit My Nature Blog ~~ BIRDS & DAFFODILS

YOU CAN PAINT ARTWORK ON CANVAS FABRIC, TOO

This chair was white.  I painted and distressed it.  Got the canvas fabric from JoAnn's and painted the artwork on it with craft paints and used scotchguard to protect the fabric.  Then, I covered the seat of this chair.  You can do it, too.  You could paint stripes, a banana, a rainbow, handprints, etc.  It's fun!!

Also, I built (with help) and painted this table/desk a french grey/distressed.  It's for sale at The French Farmhouse.

PAINTING MY FRIEND'S SCULPTURE WITH BRONZE METALLIC PAINT

My friend has been studying sculpture and wanted to make a bust of his father as a gift to give to his mother.

This one is the first model and it was made out of plaster or some kind of sculpture material.

He had the final bust bronzed as his gift to his mother.  But, this one he asked me to paint with metallic bonze paint and paint a light patina on it.

If you have a small bust or something that you wish was bronze, just paint it with these metallic paints.  Any paint store will have them.

I think my friend did a great job on this bust and I bet his mother was very happy!!

TOGETHER FOREVER...PROTESTANT HUSBAND & CATHOLIC WIFE

The Graves of a Catholic woman and her Protestant husband, Holland, 1888

HAND PAINTED HARLEQUIN PATTERN ~ TREE & FLOWERS HAND PAINTED ARTWORK ON GARAGE WALL

HAND PAINTED HARLEQUIN PATTERN ~ TREE & FLOWERS HAND PAINTED ARTWORK ON GARAGE WALL 

This week my client asked me to come by and help her with colors for her patio/entertainment area.  I've worked for her for several years and was glad to see some of my work from the past.

I didn't paint this wonderful red chest, but I did paint the harlequin pattern on the wall behind it.  This is the dining room and I painted below the chair rail and faux painted above.  The faux painting had been painted over, but my client said she would always keep the harlequin because she loved it.  She loved country french, so I put a little red fleur de lis as an accent.  

Back then I painted the wall a base coat of off white, drew and painted the harlequin pattern, painted it and then aged it with a light antiquing glaze.  

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LINK TO MY TUTORIAL:

TUTORIAL: DRAWING & PAINTING HARLEQUIN PATTERN

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Near her patio the door going into the garage was already red.  I rubbed the green on it and painted ivy at the top.  I had painted an atrium door and red wood trim around her windows the same way, but they have been painted over.  This will be painted over some day, too.  

So glad I got to see it again.

I painted this crepe myrtle tree and pots of flowers next to the door.  From the pool and patio area it still looks nice, but a little bit faded.  This artwork has been there for several years and I think it's held up very well.  It wouldn't take too long to freshen and touch up the colors.  Maybe I'll get to do that one of these days.  Or, maybe it will be painted over.

Glad I have lots of pictures.