"snowy night"

SNOWY NIGHT

© Heather Hingst Bennett

12" x 12", acrylic, mixed media on stretched canvas

HELLO! I hope you all have had a very HAPPY HOLIDAY! I have been busy with a little bit of this and that and can't stay long today.

I just wanted to let you know that I've been thinking of my blog friends and I hope to "see" a lot more of you soon!

cheers!

happy halloween

Here's a little colored pencil illustration I started today. I'm running out of time, so I'll have to finish it later.

Have a Happy and Safe Halloween.

study :: the model

Here is the "model" for this week. I have a nice vintage hat collection that has been sitting in a box in our basement. I really love this hat. I wish it fit me because I would totally wear it!

I have been drawing this hat for a few hours a day since Thursday. Sometimes I concentrate just on one area, such as the bow. Everyday I have made a full drawing of the hat. Tomorrow I'm going to place it in it's still life setting, draw it some more and get ready to paint it.

I'm excited to see how my painting will turn out.

taking a step back

I've decided I need to take a step back and draw. DRAW...DRAW...DRAW! My new plan is to pick a subject for the week and draw it again and again and again and then paint it! So, I'll be doing one painting a week.

I'll probably post my drawings at the end of my drawing period and then post the painting when I'm finished.

Now what should be my first "model"?

no. 011

NUMBER 11 is a gift. I'll show it to you soon!!

it's that pail again

NO. 10

© 2010 Heather Hingst Bennett

6" x 6" oil on canvas panel

Yes, it’s that pail again. This time in oils. I actually painted this the other day when I had my oils out. I wanted to paint some flowers today that I bought at the farmer’s market, but by the time I got to my studio I was exhausted.

We worked on the house all day and right now I have 2 8′ x 10′ rugs outside drying and hoping it doesn’t rain.

the big reveal...my studio

Welcome to my studio!!

Here it is! Of course, I'm not completely done yet and I'm sure it will change over time, but here is how it looks right now. My studio is at the top of the stairway in our home.

To the right will be the computer station with no computer at the moment.

The next corner area is a work table.

The corner opposite it is where I have my easel

and across from that are some storage cupboards.

I've also included a picture of where I set up the still life for my paintings.

"No. 009"

© 2010 Heather Hingst Bennett

6" x 6" oil on canvas panel

Today's daily painting is done in oils. I have not used oils in quite a while and stumbled around quite a bit. Spilled both my medium and cleaner and did a lot of swearing. Fortunately, I'm pretty familiar with this pail by now, so I did end up with a painting. Not a very good painting, but a painting. So, I'm simply going to name it NUMBER 9.

"polka-dots and pumpkin" SOLD

POLKA-DOTS AND PUMPKIN
© Heather Hingst Bennett
6" x 6" acrylic on canvas panel

I had lots of fun painting this today. The dots are a bit of a challenge.

Have a great weekend!

"pink stripe pail"

PINK STRIPE PAIL

© Heather Hingst Bennett

6″ x 6″ acrylic on canvas panel

Click here to bid on eBay.

I had so much fun painting this pail I had to do it again today. I'm a sucker for anything pink and pink stripes are too much fun for me!

Sorry, still no photos of the studio. I was super lazy today. 

"pale"

PALE

© 2010 Heather Hingst Bennett

6" x 6" acrylic on canvas panel

Click here to bid. Starting at $9.99.

A much different color palette today. I found this pail in the dollar section at Target and fell in love with it.

I moved the last of my stuff in my studio today. Maybe I'll have pictures tomorrow!

Thanks for stopping by!!

"bird's eye view" - sold

BIRDS EYE VIEW

© Heather Hingst Bennett

6" x 6" acrylic on canvas board

Still working on the studio, but I will be doing my first painting in it tomorrow!

"one" - SOLD

ONE

© Heather Hingst Bennett

6" x 6" acrylic on canvas panel

Just time for "one" today!

I've been busy moving into my new studio. I spent the day deciding where my easel should go and where the computer should go. I had to try every angle and every corner, but I think I found just the right place for both. Next I'll be going through my storage cabinets and getting them ready to move upstairs. AND I just noticed that I'm missing my "Keep Calm Carry On" poster. So, I'm trying to "Keep Calm" and find it!

Thanks for stopping by today!

"center stage"

CENTER STAGE

© 2010 Heather Hingst Bennett

6" x 6" acrylic on canvas board

Here we are at day 3! Today our "model", the gorgeous gourde, is center stage on my favorite cake stand. I think the composition on this one needs a little more work. What do you think? There's something I don't like about it being so centered!!

speaking of center stage...

The roller derby was lots of fun! Just a quick picture of my sister in law, Stephanie, in roller derby action. We traveled to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, to see her. It was a fun spur of the moment road trip.

s t u d i o !!

Yes! Tomorrow I will be moving into my studio!

"friends" - SOLD

FRIENDS

© 2010 Heather Hingst Bennett

acrylic on canvas panel

Two friends just catching up on what's been going on.

The colors are so fall in this painting! What has been most challenging about painting these gourdes is the stem. The stem kind of freaks me out!

I have been tinting my canvas a dark purple, can you tell?

I'll be going to my first roller derby event this evening! I'll have to tell you more about it tomorrow. Hope you're having a great weekend!

"pumpkin impostor" - Sold

This was my first still life painting...ever! I think I've made some improvements. What will my paintings look like if I paint one daily for a year? I hope to find out!!

Here is painting number one in my second attempt to paint one painting a day for a year!

PUMPKIN IMPOSTOR

© 2010 Heather Hingst Bennett

6″ x 6″ acrylic on canvas panel

It’s good to be painting these small paintings again. I think this time I will be able to keep up and stay on target to create one painting a day for the next year.

This is one of those super cute gourdes that looks like a white pumpkin. I love white pumpkins, but gourds work very well for these small paintings.

I also just want to thank everyone who has been stopping by and leaving comments. It's amazing how those virtual visits make my day!!

sneak peek

Here's a sneak peek at the commission I've been working on. I had hoped to be finished on Saturday, but spent all day Saturday and Sunday and 1/2 a day today working on it. This is A LOT more involved than the ones I have done in the past. I hope they like it!!

The studio is slowly but surely coming along. My husband worked on the ceiling today.

I'm planning on starting the "daily painting" practice back up on October 1. Which, is just around the corner. I have to admit...I'm kind-of scared. When I quit daily painting this summer I just felt like it wasn't doing anything for me and my painting had actually got worse than when I started. I have more confidence painting something from my imagination. I just have to make it look like I think it looks, but when you have an actual object RIGHT THERE to paint you see it and it might totally be different from what you imagined.

when the paint starts flying...

other projects, like keeping up the house, get put on the back burner.

Since I've been working for the last few weeks on projects with deadlines I have been so focused on the projects that I have forgot that I also need to CLEAN the house!

I'm not a SUPER house keeper anyway and I have always thought I should make a list and break down the projects that need to be done through out the week. Instead of saying I'll do it all on the weekend. There's always something more exciting that comes up on the weekend so then the cleaning still doesn't get done. When I sit down to write out this list I become extremely overwhelmed. So, it has never got done.

Today I felt so grossed out I got smart and did a search online and found a list! It's not exactly what I need, but at least I have a starting point. You can get it to here.

So I have wrote out my morning to noon plan and cleaning chores I'm going to get done starting tomorrow through Friday and 2 larger cleaning projects that I'll work on through the weekend.

I have one more commission to complete then I will hopefully be moving into my studio and starting to daily paint again.

"a wonderful pair"

"A Wonderful Pair"

Here's one of the commissions I have been working on. My sister-in-law asked me to make this for her brother and his wife as a wedding gift. It has their names through out along with their wedding date. I hope they like it! :)

pink!

My husband is adding the finishing touches to the wall that needed repaired and I think by the end of this week the room will be ready to paint and for me to move into.

My FAVORITE colors are pink, orange and green. Since our kitchen is orange, we have a green dining room and Gabriel's room is green, the only color left for my studio is PINK! We're actually going to paint one wall pink the the remainder white.

I switched my header today. It's the little art piece that I completed for the Visual Fusion challenge. I need to deliver it to The Art Mill tomorrow.

The projects I'm going to be working on for the next few weeks are very "fall" in color. Can't wait to show you.

AND daily painting will be starting very soon!!

i want one!

I finished the quilted tote on Thursday. My daughter buzzed by grabbed it and left and I didn't even get any pictures of it until now! (She had her roommate snap a few pictures of her with it in her dorm.) It is so cool and just what she wanted. She can fit her laptop in here along with a notebook or two. There's even an interior cell phone pocket!



I really haven't let myself take the time to make "stuff" for us to use and I really had fun doing it! I currently purchased this pattern from Pink Chalk Fabrics, so as soon as I move into my studio I'm going to work on a few tops for myself.

Right now I'm concentrating on the collage projects that I will need to have completed soon! I love being busy!

Progress is being made on the studio and I'm hoping that next weekend I will be moving my stuff into it!

projects

Wow! It has been a while! What have you been up to? I wish my silence has meant that I have been moving into my new studio space, but no. My husband has been working some extra days and has been too exhausted to work on the project. Soon he will be back to his regular schedule and the space will be done. Yeah! I can’t wait!!

Since posting my birthday cake torn collage painting I have received 2 commissions! I have been told they are gifts, so I won’t be able to show you until they have been given.

I can show you a project my daughter and I have been working on. It’s a quilted tote bag. She was telling me that these are very popular on campus this year, so we’ve been working together on a design. I have to admit this is taking me a lot longer that I had planned, but it’s looking awesome!! I can’t wait to show you and I hope to write a tutorial for it in the near future.

laptop sleeve

I had been putting this project off but after looking at a few stores for a laptop bag or sleeve I decided I needed to do this. I just really didn’t like what I was finding in the stores.

So, with a quick search on Google I found this laptop sleeve tutorial. I had to make a few modifications, because I didn’t want to spend any money. So, instead of using fusible fleece and flannel like the tutorial called for I used batting and all cotton fabric.

The tutorial was easy to follow and I really like how my sleeve turned out. I think I finished this in about 4 hours total.

visual fusion project

There's a fun little place in Omaha called The Art Mill. They are currently hosting a challenge called the Visual Fusion Project and I'm going to be participating in it. Each person participating in the challenge has a packet of ephemera, supplies and 3 words for inspiration. You can use the pieces in the packet as you wish, but you must choose at least one word and your piece must be submitted on the 5"x7" canvas board included in the packet.

I thought this would be a fun little challenge. It's due September 15 with an opening reception on September 24.

I wish I would have taken pictures when I was there, but I'll be back and show you what a neat place it really is!

studio

Just a peek at the progress of my studio.

Unfortunately, the plaster has been pulling away from the lath for a few years and since the room is pretty much empty it was time to fix it. It actually looks kind of cool.

It will be time to paint soon and I'm not sure which color to pick.

b-day loot

My husband surprised me with a huge, pink laptop.

My sister-in-law, Kaisha (she actually has better pictures on her blog!!), planned some piggy pampering. I had my first pedicure EVER!

Then we went to Macaroni Grill...yummy!

Here's a picture I snapped of myself at the end of the day.

what 40 looks like...

four oh!

It's my 40th birthday today! I'm really not sure how this happened. Where has the time gone and why do I still feel in many ways like I should be a little more sophisticated...a little more of an adult? Maybe it's a good thing...

For my birthday I thought it would be FUN to make myself a piece of art. So, here is my 40th birthday cake. I used a technique new to me, torn paper collage, for this piece and I'll share more about it soon!

Plans for the day have been a big secret...so I'll have to let you know tomorrow how the day went.

go green

The switching of the rooms has begun!

Gabriel is moving into his sisters room and we are painting it his favorite color green. And by green I mean GREEN! I'm so used to this room being a lovely lavender girls room, I'm having a hard time taking the green, but I do have some funky ideas for decorating his room.

Don't forget to stop by tomorrow when I reveal the project I've been working on!!

another sneak peek

I'm really liking how this is turning out! Sunday I'll show you the whole thing!!

a glimpse

Just a glimpse at what I’ve been working on.

We are starting to get back into a routine around here. No more staying up late. It’s shower time at 8:30 and by 9:30 lights out.

sneak peek

I couldn’t handle it any more…I had to make something. Here’s just a sneak peek at what I’m working on. I hope to have it done by next Sunday. I’ll tell you more about it then!

our vintage plate set

Ten years ago on May 6th my husband and I were married and guess where we honeymooned...Iowa. Yes, how exotic you're saying. Guess what we did...went to thrift shops. We found this wonderful set of plates. They are mid-century modern and SO COOL!

This weekend we were in Seward, Nebraska, yet another exotic hot spot, and found salad plates, cups, and saucers to go with our dinner plate.

Don't they look nice all together at last!

Still working on getting stuff cleared out and ready for my new studio. It's kind of sad not to be painting. I feel a bit lost without it. In the end it will be worth the wait.

I'm a little sad that I probably won't have the walls repaired and painted and the light fixture changed before I move in, but at least I will have a space to call my own...finally. You guys have no idea how long I have waited for this!! I'm sure many of you can relate! :)

Well, back to the mess!

fabric folly

I finished my last "Tiny" quilt on Saturday and now I'm on to my NEXT project...cleaning out and getting ready for my new studio space.

At one time I thought I couldn't HAVE enough fabric and now I'm feeling smothered by it, so I've decided to organize a little stash sale in my etsy shop. It's not all there and I'm gradually adding new items almost daily. So, stop by an see if there is anything that you just can't live without!

keep rolling

The tiny quilts keep coming and I’ve been adding them to my Flickr account. You can now see them in my sidebar. I have decided that the daily tiny quilt project will end the last day of July. I'm going to be doing a little last minute traveling, getting school supplies and working on my new studio space in August.

I'm looking forward to getting my studio set up and getting the paints back out. I have a new technique I'm dyeing to try, but I'll tell you a little about that later.

charmed

I was at the mall today, which really never happens, and saw this charm bracelet AND it was on sale AND it goes with today's "tiny" quilt. I had to have it!

Have a wonderful weekend!

"tiny no. 2"

Oh, my gosh! I made another one.

I woke up this morning wanting to go to Boulder, CO. I love it there!

ANYWAY...about this little quilt...For “Tiny No. 2″ I played with a little grays and red. The batik stripe fabric was made by A Stitch and Dye’s Malka Dubrawsky. It’s fun to add a bit of patterned fabric with all the solids.

This piece measures 6-1/4 x 8-1/4 inches. I’m trying to keep all the pieces 6-1/4 inches wide so they can work together in a group. I’m not finishing the edges…that would take too long and I definitely wouldn’t be able to finish even a tiny quilt like this in a day without getting super burnt out. I have some more alternative ways to hang art quilts coming soon.

I have the pieces I’m going to use for tomorrows quilt all laid out and ready to go. Can’t wait to show you!

a different way to hang

Here is the first of some tiny quilts I’m going to be making (maybe!). In fact I’m going to call this quilt TINY NO. 1. I was trying to come up with a different way to display these little quilts and I thought of the ever present “binder clip”. It looks modern and would look really nice displayed in a group or on a curtain wire with clips (which I must have for my new studio).

This quilt is 6″ x 6″ (approximately) and is made out of my hand dyed fabrics. In fact, it’s made from a quilt I started earlier this year that I hated and decided to cut up.

MAYBE I'll try to make one of these daily until school starts.

The digital paper thing didn't catch on for me very well. Thanks for everyone who got involved.

digital papers

I was a graphic designer for 15+ years, so making computer graphics is something that I have done  A LOT of. But making digital papers for scrap booking and craft purposes is something new to me AND the software I am using to make it is new to me.

Following are the few papers I came up with. Please feel free to right-click and download them and use them in your PERSONAL projects and gifts. Or just download them and let me know what you think of their quality.

Tomorrow I will tell you a little bit about the FREE software I used to make these papers and I'm going to try to come up with a little digital collage illustration using them.

Thank you for your help! :)

any digital scrapbookers out there?

I'm really dragging my feet about getting back into painting and I think I'm going to stop for now and start ALL OVER AGAIN when the kids go back to school. It's just too hectic. My "studio" is in the living room and I just can't deal with it anymore. Today we've had kid after kid after kid come over, which my son loves, but I tend to get a bit stressed. There is a reason my kids are 11 years apart!

I'm counting the days when my daughter moves out to the dorms and I will be invading her room with my art supplies. (Come on August 19th!!)

I've been pacing around, making lists, not quite knowing what to do with myself. Then I thought...I've been wanting to make some digital scrapbook "papers", why don't I give that a try? So, that's what I've been up to. And it has been fun! :)

So, I was wondering if there are any digital scrapbookers out there or paper crafters who use digital "paper stuff" who would like some of the items I'm making...for FREE!

The only catch is...I want to know how they work for you! So, if you're interested, send me your email and I will send you my freebies when I get them finished (probably Thursday evening). I will contact you about a week after you receive the files with a few questions.

Any questions? Post them in the comments or email me! Thanks!