Sacrifices

 ACEO Title: "Waiting for Daddy" 

Today as I knelt in church I couldn't help but think of all the Men and Women who have given their lives for
this country. May all them and all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in Peace.

My thoughts were automatically taken to those who currently serve or who have served this country and the sacrifices they make.  Not to mention their families, husbands, wives, children, mothers and fathers.  So my prayers of thanksgiving and protection are for those people as well.

Have a wonderful Memorial Day and remember it's not just about the cookout.

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The watercolor ACEO pictured to the left is available on Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/listing/66688731/watercolor-aceo-original-wating-for?ref=shop_home_active_15

Apple of My Eye

small format art on Etsy....search SFA to find awesome small art (under 14 inches) ...

Paint Party Friday

It's sure been warm here. We've got spring for the first days of winter here on the East Coast and I'm really enjoying it.....well enough of the weather report. Today's post for Paint Party Friday is a butterfly watercolor ACEO. I love butterflies. There is a bush next to my parent's which always has a ton of butterflies on it.

Recently I've gotten in to card making. I was thinking one day that it might be fun to combine my art with my card making and so my Art on a Card was born. It's an original ACEO in plastic adhered to a handmade card.  So it's a Greeting & Gift in One!!!!   The ACEO slides easily out of the plastic. The card is blank inside. I have 4 so far in my shop. More to come.

For more Paint Party Features visit:  http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/ 

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Link to this card on my etsy shop: 


http://www.etsy.com/listing/72640673/art-on-a-card-watercolor-aceo-original

OOO Baby It's Cold Outside!

What happened to summer? I know it's not politically correct to wish for global warming but today I could use just a bit.

Summer is my favorite time of year. Maybe it's because I was born in summer. Or maybe it's just because I'm an informal kind of girl and summer is all about informal, flip flops and shorts....but whatever the reason, I just wish I could have summer year round. How about you?

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The watercolor ACEO shown above is available in my ArtfulPurpose shop on Etsy. Here's the link:
Beach Walk

Paint Party Friday

Well last week I missed the PPF. I had things painted just didn't get to blog about it. Well this one I painted while I was in Ocean City, Md for Mother's Day weekend. It was so beautiful that morning I couldn't resist. It's an ACEO. The nice thing about painting an ACEO (2.5 x 3.5 inches) is that you can easily carry your painting supplies and paper along with you.

It's available in my Etsy shop ArtfulPurpose:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/74258865/watercolor-aceo-original-sunrise

The ACEO Challenge

This is the first time I have participated....the theme is May flowers. Here's my entry. It's called Fresh Picked.
It's available in my Etsy shop, ArtfulPurpose....click here to go to the link.

Paint Party Friday

Another fabulous Paint Party Friday. Today's PPF post is an ACEO. It is watercolor.

It's making me a little crazy because I see something wrong that needs to be corrected. If I get time today I may try to change it. But for right now, it will have to stay this way. It's already in my Etsy shop. Oh my. Well can you see it? Take a guess. Saturday I'll post a comment to tell you what's making me nuts and we can compare notes.

Anyway on to another subject. I was watching the news this morning at the devastation in the south. It breaks my heart to see the damage and the loss of life. Keep those affected by the storms in your prayers. They are most certainly on my mind and in my prayers. I hope none of you are affected by them.


Check out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com
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The link to the Lily in my Etsy shop:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/72642103/watercolor-aceo-original-water-lily

cRaZy Dreams

What's with me? Lately I have had the craziest dreams. I used to have crazy dreams but then they went away or I couldn't remember them. Well the other night I had a crazy one and last night, here we go again.

I somehow got a new pet. A chicken. Now it wasn't a cute little chick like the one in my ACEO. NO it was a full grown chicken! Big and YELLOW. And it was running around my house. Then I noticed a few spots on the carpet. So I put the chicken in a diaper. She was having a grand ole time.

A good little pet. She even talked. She told me she couldn't call me Momma because she already had a chicken Momma. My nickname is Momma Jo so I'm guessing I must have had that on my mind. Not sure why the chicken although my brother did made grilled chicken last night on the grill at my parents and I went over there for dinner. Maybe I was having pangs of guilt. The dream ended when I didn't have another diaper and I was trying to get my husband to go to the store to buy a box of diapers......how crazy is that? Tell me your crazy dreams!

Paint Party Friday

This week's PPF ACEO is a watercolor....inspired by my wish for summer! LOL I call it Welcome Summer!

This week we had the taste of summer. One day of 80 degree weather...alas it didn't stay. The next day it was like 50.........burrr....but I'm thankful we don't have snow like some of my facebook friends!

Check out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com
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The link to my butterfly ACEO in my Etsy shop: http://www.etsy.com/listing/72640673/watercolor-aceo-original-butterfly

Paint Party Friday

Boy the weather was nice Thursday after a bout of rainy days, it was a welcomed sight! All this rain will bring beautiful flowers which reminds me of this little ACEO I painted recently.

It's available in myArtfulPurpose etsy shop: Click Here

This is going to be a fun Friday for me. I'm taking my grandson to the Train Museum in Baltimore. I've never been but I have heard some awesome reviews of it. They even have train rides there. Hopefully we will be able to get on one.

Check out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com

Paint Party Friday

Well Dad is out of the hospital. He seems to be better but his breathing is a little irregular. I guess it will take time to get back to normal.  He had his follow up doctor's appointment today and came out with flying colors. Now he goes to the heart specialist in 3 weeks for a follow up too.  Just thought I'd update everyone but enough about that....now to painting.

Here is a little Spring Lamb.....it's a watercolor ACEO. Easter's coming when the Lamb of God gave His life to save us. Hallelujah!!!!

The ACEO is available in my Etsy shop CLICK HERE

Check out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com

Paint Party Friday

So I decided to put up 2 this week. Both are ACEO's. I like both of them and couldn't decide. I went to Michael's Craft Store yesterday. Big mistake. I always end up spending tooooo much money there.  I was poking around and saw some water soluable crayon pastels...who knew. And of course the moment I got home I had to play with them  and here's what I ended up with. It's the water soluable pastels & ink. It's what I call "happy art".  I needed some happy art today.

I also bought a set of new soft pastel pencils. A little pricey but I had a 40% off coupon. These are much thinner than the old ones I have so they are easier to work smaller. It's the Archangel Raphael.  He's one of the 7 archangels. Healing powers are attributed to Raphael. In the book of Tobit he was sent by the Lord to heal Tobit of his blindness.  He is considered the patron saint of medical workers and travellers.

Check out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/
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I just listed these in my Etsy shop-ArtfulPurpose (where art turns into charity). Here's the links:
Daisy: http://www.etsy.com/listing/70751402/mixed-media-aceo-original-daisy

Angel: http://www.etsy.com/listing/70751182/pastel-aceo-original-archangel-raphael

Sunday Sketches

Well as luck would have it, I was scurrying to do a Sunday Sketch and I was having a time getting started. First off I had the kids for the first half of the week and then the last half I've had a stomach virus while trying to get my porcelain together for Saturday's Craft Show.  It's been kind of a crazy time for me.

What to do? What do do? I followed the girls (my 2 cats) around. They'd lay down in cute poses and they I'd get them 1/2 sketched and they moved. Good grief. I gave up. Then I remembered I have bunches of travel photos I've taken over the years with the intention of doing some sort of art with them.  I was looking at my last cruise which was to Bermuda and I had taken a photo of this clock tower. Now I'm not crazy about painting & drawing buildings because of their stiffness but for some reason the lines always speak to me and I have to photograph them. So I thought what the heck, I'll do an ACEO sketch of it.  Looking at it scanned, I think I need to use a straight edge for some of those lines but I'm pressed for time so here it is.

One of these days I hope to return to Bermuda and shop in the little shops just below this clock tower.

Enjoy the Sunday Sketch and for more awesome art visit http://bluechairdiary.blogspot.com/

Paint Party Friday

So now I have 2 blog posts to write every Friday...my usual Friday Feature...below and also something new Paint Party Friday. I almost forgot about it. But better late than never! LOL

Here's my first Paint Party Friday post!  It is a pastel ACEO. I love to do pastels but find it more difficult smaller for some reason so I don't do as many of them as ACEO's. But I was very pleased with the way this one turned out. I love lemons and that old saying "when life gives you lemons, make lemonade". I try to do that as much as possible sometimes I am not so successful.

This little piece for some reason when I look at it makes me smile. I hope it does the same for you.
It's available in my etsy shop - Artful Purpose (where art turns to charity) listing: http://www.etsy.com/listing/66688127/pastel-aceo-flowers-and-lemons-original

For checking out some awesome Paint Party Friday art visit this link: http://paintpartyfriday.blogspot.com/

Sunday Sketches

My Sunday Sketch is actually an ink doodle on an ACEO card. I call it, "Cable's Out".  My cable TV was out for a couple of days. Not much to do. So I started doodling on a piece of paper and then thought, "Wait, I should just do an ACEO doodle" and I did. And here it is.


Visit BlueChairDiary Blog for some awesome other Sunday Sketches: http://bluechairdiary.blogspot.com/    Please keep Sophia's father & Sophia in your prayers!

Sunday Sketches

This week's Sunday Sketch is of St. Philomena. It's a watercolor ACEO.

I've been doing a series of saints to help benefit the Little Sisters of the Poor as you know if you are one of my usual readers.  I don't know why I keep doing watercolor portraits. It's not easy. I need to do another medium but for some reason I feel an attraction to watercolor. It's not like I can't do acrylic or oil. But anyway...I ramble.

A little bit about this card and the symbolism of it. St. Philomena was an early church martyr. You can tell that by the red she is wearing.  The palm is an early church symbol of Christianity - relates back to the waving of the Palms when Jesus was going to Jerusalem. The ring of flowers around her head tells us that she was a virgin. Notice the two arrows. It is tradition that a King wanted to marry her. She wanted to dedicate her life to Jesus and wanted no part of it. So she was thrown in the water with an anchor around her neck. But God freed the anchor and she survived. So the King had her showered with arrows which pierced her but she was healed of that. He did it again and again she survived. In the end, the King decapitated her and she died. So the 2 arrows represent the 2 times she was shot with arrows.  St. Philomena is considered the patroness of the Rosary.

Hope that gives you a little insight into St. Philomena! :) My father's sister was named Philomena. Now I understand why my Grandmom named my aunt after her. She was faith-filled, virtuous and not to mention a tough cookie!

This card is available in my Etsy shop. 100% of the sale of this card goes to Little Sisters of the Poor St. Martins Home in Baltimore.  Here's the link to the listing: http://www.etsy.com/listing/68362934/watercolor-aceo-original-st-philomena


Oh and just in case you want to help out the Little Sisters here's their link. They still are working on trying to find $25 million!   http://littlesistersofthepoorbaltimore.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=63&Itemid=56

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Visit BlueChairDiary Blog for some awesome other Sunday Sketches: http://bluechairdiary.blogspot.com/

God is soooo good!

Today I sold another ACEO for the Little Sisters of the Poor. This one is of St. Katharine Drexel.  Her Feast Day is right around the corner, March 3. She was born in 1858 and became a sister at the age of 33. She died the year I was born in 1955 at the age of 96.

She's sort of a neighbor to me. I'm in the Baltimore Area she was in Philadelphia.

St. Katharine was devoted to the African and Native Americans. She founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament for Black and Native American peoples. Mother Drexel took part in opening the first mission school for Indians, in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  In 1915 she also founded Xavier University in New Orleans,  first Catholic university in the United States for African Americans.  

When she died there were more than 500 Sisters teaching in 63 schools throughout the country. Saint Katharine was beatified by Pope John Paul II on November 20, 1988 and II canonized her on October 1, 2000. At that time she was only the second recognized American-born saint.

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The patient and humble endurance of the cross—whatever nature it may be—is the highest work we have to do.  - St. Katharine Drexel

 

25% of all secular art and 100% of religious art in my shop http://artfulpurpose.etsy.com  go to support Little Sister's of the Poor, St. Martin's Home in Baltimore

Please visit their website and support their capital campaign...they need to raise $25 million within 2 years or they will have to remove the 75 elderly poor they serve from St. Martin's Home..... http://www.littlesistersofthepoorbaltimore.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=63&Itemid=56

Sunday Sketches

So another fine mess you've gotten me into Ollie!  LOL  My friend Marlene gets me into things....good things. First she got me into the Sketchbook Project and now Sunday Sketches. Marlene Hawkins inspires me to good things! Thank you Marlene otherwise known as LazyHawk around the Ebay, Etsy art world.

So look for me to feature a piece of art each week on Sunday! This week's feature is a piece I did for the ACEO Online Magazine competition. The theme was symbols of love. So I thought what to me is a symbol of love and it came to me. There was NO GREATER LOVE that the sacrifice Jesus made for us. That inspired me to do the pictured colored pencil ACEO, entitled, what else "No Greater Love.

Visit BlueChairDiary Blog for some awesome other Sunday Sketches: http://bluechairdiary.blogspot.com/

And while you are at it go visit my friend Marlene: http://marlenes-musings.blogspot.com/
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This ACEO is available in my Etsy shop. Here's the link:  http://www.etsy.com/listing/67794472/colored-pencil-aceo-original-no-greater

Happiness on Hump Day!

Well this has been a wonderful hump day.  For one, I won 3rd Place in the ACEO Online Magazine for my ACEO "Oh My". Angela did an interview with me. Here's the link:  http://www.angelasartarea.com/aom_interviews_jan2011_winners/joann_y_wheeler

I was pretty tickled because it gave me a forum to promote the Little Sisters of the Poor, St. Martin's Home and their Capital Campaign.

Speaking of which, in the last 2 days, I had 2 sales there. One for 3 religious ACEO's and another for 2 framed prints of my religious icons!  Soooo 100% of the sale went to Little Sisters!  I was happy to be able to give them $90 in 2 days. If this keeps up, who know I might help make a dent in that $25 million...well maybe not because that's alot of painting. I did another 4 religious  ACEO's and put them up in my shop:  http://artfulpurpose.etsy.com/   I did one called "The Appearance" (the Blessed Mother), St. John Neumann, Jesus in the Garden & St. Rose of Lima.  Speaking of St. Rose. My favorite quote of her's is "Let all men know graces comes after tribulation."

So as a reminder all religious painting sales are donated 100% to the Little Sisters. Other sales, 25% goes to them. Have a blessed day!

Friday Feature

It's that time again.....boy the week goes by quickly. I'm still featuring people who "favorite" my porcelain.  Today's pick is for my heart plate kitty pictured below.

The last person who favorited it was Stone Cottage Studio ....click her shop name to go to it.   The little rock star to the left is one of her 8x10 prints in her shop. I love her work. it's what I'd call "happy art". It makes me smile.

She is an acrylic artist who sometimes dabbles in watercolors and oils, even an occasional colored pencil drawing. She's offering a Free ACEO with every order and will do custom work.  Many of her prints are available in a variety of sizes and many originals are still available.

She is member of the DAWG Team, Designing Artist Women's Group on etsy as well as Acetsy team- Aceo team.  This is so funny because I didn't recognize the shop name and she's on 2 teams I am. Turns out she's also Backroomtreasures - Judy O'Hara. It's her second shop. You've got to check it out when she's back from vacation. She is quite a talented artist.

Also please check out her wonderful blog:  http://Art-lovers.blogspot.com   She finally finished her quilt. She painted all the blocks and then quilted them together...you gotta see it!

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Here's the link to the Kitty Heart Dish:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/8822511/handpainted-porcelain-cat-heart-plate