The gift of a Painting

Last year I attended a house warming party for some friends of mine who had just purchased a new house. Instead of bringing a gift, I promised them an original painting, which they were thrilled about. Of course as the story of my life always goes, there were a few road blocks and the painting was delivered 5 months later! YIKES! That is a LONG time...
I am however, very happy with the result and so are my friends! I decided to paint on a birch wood board, using some drawing, wood burning, acrylics and some paper cut outs. Some areas were also enriched with colored pencils and pastels.
Making art as a gift is so different than planning an exhibit; it is liberating in a way because you don't have to worry about maintaining homogeneity, or flow, conceptualizing themes and etc...
It becomes more about the person who is to receive the painting, their taste, personality and the colors in their home. So this was definitely refreshing!

pencil drawing and wood burning

adding wood cut out with decoupage

almost done

painting the birds

 The gift that enriches both the giver and the receiver, is a gift worth giving!

Thanks for reading!

beijos

allypye

Backyard Robin's Nest

Nest with eggs

Waiting

Feeding

If I were a robin, the last place I would want to build my nest would be in a play set, where a 7 and a 3 1/2 year old are accustomed to climbing, jumping, shaking amongst other activities that would make life for newborn birds rather unbearable.

Well, this particular robin mama felt like our backyard play set was the perfect place to have babies, and so she did. Here are some pics of the whole process, taken by my 13 year old who has now developed an interest in nature photography. I must say, it was pretty great to see the way each of our kids reacted to the whole thing. They all developed a true sense of caring for the mama bird, the eggs and later the new born babies. We watched them hatch, feed for the first time, learn to walk, and fly. Living in an urban area does not mean we lack opportunities to see nature at work.

All it takes is to open your eyes wider, and look a little closer!

Thanks for reading!

beijos
allypye