Masquerade

Look who's ready for the masquerade ball! I love fairies, don't you? The Fair Folk are a fun subject to paint.

I adore this design! The fairy is winsome, her hair is wild, and her mask is lovely. What's not to like? Again, I was hoping to keep this one and enjoy it all autumn, but alas, this pumpkin was bought toot sweet (that's pumpkin-painter talk for "pretty darn quick") and went home with a farmers market shopper. I'm sure they'll be very happy together. Maybe I'll paint myself another one...

I decided to decorate the fairy's mask with red and orange fall leaves and white birch twigs. I thought the colors stood out nicely in front of her dark hair. I used metallic gold paint for her wings and mask which took quite a few coats to get good coverage and shine, but I think it was worth the extra painting and drying-between-coats time.

Today is the day after Halloween and I am planning on buying a few more pumpkins today so I can do some more fall theme designs for my portfolio. I can't imagine that I'll sell any, but I'll be happy to gift my family and friends with autumn/thanksgiving painted pumpkins for their yards or dinner tables.

Also stay tuned for a step-by-step tutorial on where I get my inspiration, how I paint my designs, what products I use, etc...

Yes, another witch

Trick-or-Treat! Just put the candy in the cauldron! This little cutie witch in purple with flowers on her hat was a big hit and was bought the morning after I painted her.

I like her black cat with the green wings a lot. Thank goodness cats don't really have wings! They get into enough mischief as it is. Can you imagine what destruction would ensue if they could fly?

The Autumn Fairy

I was looking for inspiration for paintings when I came across simplifies version of this fairy on a cross stitch pattern website. I loved her poofy dress, her soulful look , and the spotty mushroom and I knew I must bring her to life myself.

Since the cross stitch pattern was all black and white, I got to choose the colors for everything. I knew I wanted to do her wings like fall leaves, all in fiery colors, so I made her dress gold to coordinate with that palette. I did change the shape of her wings to look more leafy too. The pattern wings were more like your typical butterfly wing.

I love the way she turned out and I secretly hoped that she would not get bought so I could keep her all Fall! I actually ended up giving her to my best friend as a Halloween gift so I can go visit this pumpkin fairy all season long at my friend's house.

Hello Kitty - the dark side

How adorable is Hello Kitty as a little devil? I bought some Hello Kitty stickers that had her dressed in different Halloween costumes and I thought this picture was perfect for a small pumpkin. Hello Kitty pumpkin found a happy home with a little girl and her Mom who are both Hello Kitty collectors. Nice.

Which Witch?

I'm beginning to think that 2009 will be remembered as my year of the witch! I can't help it, I love painting them! This lovely magical girl looks a little like Angelina Jolie, don't you think?

Once again, thanks to the inspiration of Molly Harrison and her wicca art.

A very happy customer went home with this special (and large! must have weighed 12 lbs at least!) pumpkin at the We Love Long Beach pancake breakfast last Saturday morning. The We Love Long Beach folks are nice enough to let me show up and face paint at their community events, and it's a lot of fun for me to connect with families in my own home town. I grew up in Long Beach Ca and I think it's still one of the most beautiful coastal cities in southern. California.

I have more witches in store for 2009, keep your eye out for future blog posts and pics.

My pumpkins for sale at the Farmers Market Long Beach!

I am excited to say that I have a booth all October long at the Local Harvest Farmers Market on Wednesdays. It is held in the Long Beach Marine Stadium parking lot from 3 pm to 7 pm.

I am doing face painting as well as selling pumpkins, so if you are local to Long Beach, California please come on down and say hello! Shop for fresh local produce and baked goods while you're at the market, and of course take a look at my painted pumpkins. Maybe you'll decide to take one home for Halloween!

The faces shown here were painted by myself and my business partner Lara Johnson. If you'd like to see more pictures of my face painting and or/henna art please go to our website http://www.oasisarts.net/

Enchanting

This lovely witch is an homage to one of my favorite fantasy artists Molly Harrison. I have her "pagan" calendar and I love her style! She also paints mermaids, fairies, dragons, cats, and many other fantastical beings. Thanks for all the inspiration, Molly.

I like the way the colors on this all work together. I like the way her hat pops up out of the frame. I like the way her hair turned out: I added both low lights and highlights to the basic hair color which gave it a lot of dimension. I also tried a new technique on the moon: I painted the white circle first, and once that was dry I put a wash of watered down paint on top in both a light blue and a grey. The pink background is also done with a watered down color wash. I wanted the background to kind of recede so I tried to do a very soft color behind the subject.

All in all, I'm very happy with the way this witch turned out. Now if only I could get my hair color to be that pretty and dimensional...