Katherine Middleton Portrait

Duchess

 I hope you immediately recognize this portrait as the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton.  My goal was to capture her likeness and keep a loose feel to the painting with mostly soft edges.   This was done from a freeze frame from a video I found.     There is a bit of shine on this photo here, but I'm happy to reveal that it won First Place in Oils at the recent Quincy Artfest.

Yarn Shop Through the Looking Glass

Yarn Shop Through the Looking Glass

Occasionally my husband and I wander through local estate sales. We usually come away with books or DVDs and he is always on the hunt for unusual tools.   Last year I found this solid wood embroidery hoop.     Its sturdy, large size triggered the idea that it could be used as a frame for a piece of painting canvas.   I mounted the canvas and trimmed off the excess and there it sat.    I toyed with the idea of doing some kind of round abstract painting just for fun.   I started making circular marks in southwestern colors. I doodled on it a bit.   I finally decided that whatever it was, I wanted it to relate to fiber art.   Thus, here it is; the interior scene of a yarn shop - a porthole view.