The Comfort of Cards

The past few days I have been working hard on a custom order of over 100 cards with my painting of the chickadee on them. I'm very touched by the order as it came from a friend who needed them for a special family mailing.

So I feel like I've been a card manufacturer this week more than anything else. It's been oddly comforting work. I've mentioned before that I ran my own wholesale card company full-time for about 7 years. I still have some of my inventory downstairs. Running a card company was wonderful in many ways but in the end I painted less and less as the administrative side of of my business grew.  Doing this order brought me back to the things I loved about my card business. First of all, I adore paper. I've printed the cards this week on actual watercolour paper and it's been a pleasure handling it. When I did my big card runs, I relied on a commercial printer. This week, I cut the paper myself with a Fiscars paper trimmer I bought years ago at Costco, printed it on my Epson R1900, scored it with a Cutterpede Straight Edge Trimmer (a nifty tool I just purchased) and folded it with a bone folder. I didn't have my bone folder until late yesterday so I folded some of my first samples out of the printer with the end of a wooden spoon! (It worked.) I learned through trial and error to use the bone folder on the back of cards when I am folding them just in case there are burnishing marks on the paper which happen every now and then. (I've just read about teflon folders and may order one for future projects as they apparently don't leave any marks at all.)

I used to make jokes when my girls were little that they would show up at school knowing not only how to count to ten but to twelve--because they were always around me when I was counting out dozens of cards to send to my retail customers. I find the task of repetitive counting, sorting and packaging to be very soothing. It allows time for thinking.

One thing I've thought about this week:  I sit on the floor a lot! With many of the flat surfaces covered with equipment (computer, printer, etc.), I put my paper trimmer on the floor and have cut the paper there. It's funny, I've often done crafts on the floor in the past. (When I paint, however, I do sit at a table!) I can remember when Emma and Chloé were babies, I'd be down on the floor or playground surface playing with them and look over and notice that other parents were sitting on benches or standing and talking together. I'm sure that says something odd about me.

This week has made me think that I may introduce more cards to my shop, both from my previous inventory as well cards created from my newest work. I think the chickadee card could work very well as a holiday card.

Progress and a Feather

I decided to reward myself for the progress I've made in cleaning my studio. I allowed myself a little painting time. I did another study of the little sparrow feather.  This time I used Saunders Waterford watercolour paper and embossed a rectangular area for my painting using Arounna's cool trick (her February 8th post). I used a mat opening as my shape.  I think I'll be doing this again.

5½ x 7½ inches - Saunders Waterford 140 lb. paper

Pink Heart Giveaway (Closed)

I am so excited about my Pink Heart print.  I have just added it to my Etsy shop.  I wasn't sure if my first attempt was a fluke, but I now have been able to print several times successfully on the handmade Saint-Armand watercolour paper.  It takes time and care feeding it through the printer because of its thickness and the deckle edges but the results are absolutely amazing.   I cannot stop staring at these prints. They really look like original watercolours.

Because it is handmade paper, it means that each print is a slightly different, one-of-a-kind work of art.  I wish you could feel the paper.  It is thick, soft, luxurious and has a beautiful grain.  There are four deckle edges.  It is exquisite paper and is made right here in Montreal by the Saint-Armand paper mill.  Do I sound excited?

I have painted on Saint-Armand paper before, but it wasn't until this past weekend that I thought of trying to print on it.

Anyone who has followed my blog for a while knows that I have had an up and down relationship with my printer.  Well today I am a happy woman and I wanted to share the love by giving away one Pink Heart print (the exact one in the top photo).  It measures approximately 6 3/4 x 4 3/4 inches.  I will initial it on the front and then sign and date it on the back.

All you need to do is to leave a comment on this blog post.  I will close comments at 1:00 p.m. EST on Wednesday, January 18, 2012.  I will announce the winner on Wednesday evening.  Thanks so much to everyone for all of your ongoing support. It means so much to me.

I am not responding to each comment the way I normally do as it will be easier for me to do the draw if my comments aren't mixing up the numerical order. I just want everyone to know that I am reading them all and appreciate them so much!

My Little Chickadee

It was a pretty quiet weekend--lots of homework being done in our house.  I took advantage of the quiet time to paint.  I haven't painted many birds before.  I did a painting of a snow bunting earlier this year but I wasn't happy with it.  I decided to try again and I'm glad I did.

The chickadee is one of my favourite visitors to our backyard.  It is a polite, delicate and joyful bird.  I find the sight and sound of it to be uplifting.

I did this painting on a paper I've never used before.  It's actually paper that is mounted on a thick board (Crescent Watercolour Board).  I normally paint on textured cold press paper but this paper is hot press and therefore has a very smooth surface.

Maybe it was the new paper. Maybe it was because I am constantly inspired by the gorgeous bird paintings of Geninne and some of her beautiful 'birdieness' has rubbed off on me. :) Whatever the reason, I think it turned out!

I just might have to give that snow bunting painting another try.

Maple Leaves

It just wouldn't be Canadian of me to ignore maple leaves as part of my autumn leaf series. (For those of you who don't know, the maple leaf is Canada's national symbol and appears on our flag.)

I had to go outside of my yard to find maple leaves.  Our garden is too narrow for a tree of that size.  Maple trees at maturity can range from 30 to 145 feet in height! On my walk with Meeko yesterday, I picked up several maple leaves of different colours.  I think that one of the most distinctive and beautiful aspects of maples trees is that their autumn display can include an array of colours:  red, orange, yellow and green.  Even one leaf can contain more than one colour.  I really enjoyed painting these leaves and I don't think you need to be Canadian to appreciate their beauty (plus they do grow elsewhere!). Maple trees can also be appreciated by anyone with a sweet tooth as they are the source of, what else could it be, maple syrup!

There is even a national song (although not our anthem) celebrating the maple leaf. The lyrics have been modernized over time.  Here is an excerpt from the most recent version which has been sung by both Anne Murray and Michael Bublé at public events:

O, land of blue unending skies,

Mountains strong and sparkling snow,

A scent of freedom in the wind,

O'er the emerald fields below.

To thee we brought our hopes, our dreams,

For thee we stand together,

Our land of peace, where proudly flies,

The Maple Leaf forever.

Chorus:

Long may it wave, and grace our own,

Blue skies and stormy weather,

Within my heart, above my home,

The Maple Leaf forever!

O, Maple Leaf around the world,

You speak as you rise high above,

Of courage, peace and quiet strength,

Of the Canada that I love.

The Maple Leaf Forever

Paint them before they fall

It has been rainy and very windy here this weekend.  The leaves are falling in huge numbers.  Last night I plucked a leaf from my Schubert chokecherry tree and painted it in my loft.  I love painting natural things, especially when holding them in my hand.  You gain a special intimacy with the object as you are painting it.

This is a tree I enjoy very much as it does things in a different way.  The leaves start out a fresh springy green and by June or so they darken to red.  When my youngest daughter was about four, I remember her looking at the tree and asking me in June "Is it already autumn, Mama?".   In the fall, the leaves darken to a deep wine colour.  The birds love this tree.  In midsummer, they eat the little chokecherries on it.  It's also where I hang a couple of my birdfeeders.

I have used beautiful Saint-Armand watercolour paper made in Montreal for this painting. I just love the four deckle edges.  I am a paper lover whether in books or art.  I would be a very unhappy person in a paperless world.

My Paintings

In past months, I have been painting more regularly.  Flowers, more often than not, tend to be my inspiration.

Tulip and Snowdrop paintings (both on 140 lb. Arches paper)

I like to paint small formats but occasionally will paint a larger painting like the 11½ x 15 inch painting below.  Some people wouldn't consider this to be large, but it is for me!

Wildflowers on 300 lb. Arches paper

The painting below is smaller.  The paper measures 7 3/4 x 5 3/4 inches.  Just because the format is smaller, don't assume that I painted it quickly!  I am a slowpoke painter. I work slowly and love detail. The Paris Flower Market painting took ages--both because there is so much detail in the flowers and the 300 lb. paper seemed to be eating my paint!   I'm not certain that it is finished yet.

Paris Flower Market on 300 lb. Arches paper