And the Winner Is....

You've caught me in an incredibly indecisive mood, ladies! I cannot decide who wins the Sweetheart Love in a Small Container Giveaway!

So, that being said, ALL 3 of you- Joanne, Chris and Carol, have won! 

Contact me at my email, bronsonhillarts@gmail.com, with information on where to send your prizes and if you prefer grapes or flowers, bud vases or candle holders! But, first to contact me gets first choice!

Thank you so much for participating in the giveaway. It's been wonderful reading about your love for your sweethearts and for life, too.

Have a fantastic Valentine's Day, ladies!

IF Forward

Koi
6x9 Water Color Paint, Acrylic Interference Paint & Water Soluble Pencil on 140# Watercolor Paper
©2012 BEDeuel/Bronson Hill Arts

The Illustration Friday topic this week is "Forward". This painting depicts so many moves forward it couldn't not be used for this week.

Late last year, I was "refreshing" the decor in my house; changing wall hangings, curtains, table dressings, knicknacks, etc. One of the things I had in mind for my bath was to find a round wallhanging of Koi to offset the larger, rectangular print I already had. Do you think I could find a Koi image that would work? No. Of course not. Next year, I'll be tripping over them in every store into which I walk. That's how it always works for me. You, too, probably!

In the meantime, though, I guess that means it's time to learn how to paint Koi. So here is the first step. Painting fish. Not really my area of interest, but, it's time to go, as the cliche says, outside my comfort zone. Moving forward.

Unfortunately, the second indication of moving forward doesn't translate with the image you're viewing here.

A while ago, a beautiful, dear friend of mine was cleaning out her overstock of painting supplies and was good enough to send me some acrylic interference paints. I'd never even heard of them, much less used them. The paints add gloss and sparkle over an image. The picture becomes almost reflective. Sadly, you'll just have to take my word for it, that it looks fantastic on this piece. A gold interference paint on the fish, red violet on the lily pads, and blue over the water.

A new media was incorporated over a familar one. Now I just need to figure how to get a  photographic shot that shows it!

And, lastly, the movement forward has nothing to do with me: it's just the Koi moving, well, forward!

Waiting for the Zen? Here it is: like Koi, we have to keep moving forward, my friends, or else, what's the point? You can stand still, but the view can become stagnant. You can look backwards and enjoy the memory, but you can't live your life with your head buried in the past. Yep. Forward is good.

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A reminder! Leave me a comment describing what you love about your sweetheart by tomorrow night! The best love song, if you will, wins! And, again, if you don't have a sweetheart, just let us know what you know love about Life!

The winner gets their choice of a handpainted bud vase or hurricane-style candle holder! See my previous post for the pictures of the bud vases!

Giveaway Time: Some Romance in a Small Container

These are small (about 2 1/2 " high) handpainted glass bud vases that I had a lot of fun making yesterday.

The thought hit me today that Valentine's Day is only a couple of weeks away. These really would make a lovely holder for a small, lovingly selected flower for your sweetheart!

Tomorrow I want to try to do some small hurricane glasses. Are you thinking a favorite scented candle, too?

I'd like to give one of these to one of my Fellow Fans of Life. Drop me a note that tells me what makes your loved one so wonderful by Sunday night, January 29th.

I'll start: the love of my life, my husband, has a heart as true as can be true. He's sincere in everything he does, be it work or love, family or friends!

I'm excited to hear what you have to say about your sweetheart! Let's have as much fun with this as I did in making these pieces!

Giveaway: Celebration Time!

It's time for a GIVEAWAY! Friends & Fellow Fans of Life, as promised last week, BHA is introducing a new and fun personalized item which I'd love to share with all of you!

I few weeks ago, my friend and fellow artisan, Stephanie, of Crystal Allure Jewelry, asked me to design a custom gift tag for her niece, Nicole, for her upcoming 5th birthday. Stephanie had seen specialized gift tags at various places, but nothing handmade & personalized. Always in creative mode, she said, "How about...?"

So a handmade, personalized gift tag was born:

But before it was colored (Nicole loves pink & princesses), I kept a copy of the sketch with the thought that future tags can be custom colored in addition to custom lettered.

And what about a boy? Thus, an all-boy themed tag was added to keep our "princess" company.

Any theme should be able to be designed. Color combinations can be selected. Sizes between 2x3 to 3.5 x 5.5 can be specified.

The price would start at $5 plus shipping. Size and complexity of the tag  and design will influence the final cost. I'll be more than happy to put together a quote for you. A 3-week time frame should be given for design, execution and shipping.
                           

The tags are printed on pastel-colored cardstock 110# (color would be determined by the design), inked in permanent marker, lettered & decorated with quality scrapbooking stickers.
Tags will be packaged in acid-free cello from Bronson Hill Arts.

The rules for the giveaway are simple:

1. Leave a comment telling us something great about your life today. If you wish, you can leave your message anonymously, but be sure to e-mail your info so you can be entered to win!

2. Get an extra entry if you sign up on BHA's RSS feed.

3. Get another entry if you leave a (nice or neutral) comment on any of our pieces on  Flickr and/or Etsy. You can  access either from the sidebar of this blog. Double/right-click the Flickr Slideshow and/or the Etsy banner.

4. Let me know for what occassion you would want a gift tag. If you're suggestion is drawn, I'd verify your "request" before a design was started.

A winner will be drawn on Monday, the 28th of February.

So, thank you for participating and good luck!

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And, check out Cactus Monday while you're visiting Flickr. Yes, I have a painting posted, but, there is just such cool stuff from everyone!



Sedona Cactus ©2011
 General's Kimberly Watercolor Pencil on 90# Canson Watercolor Paper



Happy Cactus Monday!

A Great Start to 2011!

Congratulations to Heather of Azure Island Designs! Heather's name was drawn at the Crystal Allure Jewelry blog for my giveaway of 6 handpainted postcards. I am very happy that Heather won. And I thank her so much for her interest and support of Bronson Hill Arts.

Stephanie at Crystal Allure has done extensive work for transplant awareness through the years with her jewelry and her organization, Lungs for Life. The design idea used for the postcards was suggested to me by Stephanie: butterflies. The lovely creatures are symbolic for lung transplants, the gift of new life.

As a result of this small collaboration, Stephanie and I have decided to offer a collection of these postcards as notecards. The name of the collection will be Flights of Life. A portion of the money for each set sold will be donated to Lungs for Life Foundation and for transplant awareness programs.

The Flights of Life Collection will be added to along the way, in the hopes that you'll be able to select which cards you get in your order. The notecards will be printed on textured 110 lb. white matte paper and include a matching envelope. As a bonus, an individually-designed, handcrafted package will be included for the first 15 orders received. We'll also include free shipping for those first 25 orders. The cost will be $15.95 per set. If you order 2 or more sets, the cost will drop to $14.50 each with free shipping (even after the first 25 orders!).

The notecards would make a wonderful gift to both someone you like (or even, love) and those who need our help to continue living.

So, again, Heather and everyone: Thank you for participating in the giveaway!

And, thank you, in advance for helping Bronson Hill Arts help others. It's a great way to start 2011!

A Winner Please?

I'm hoping it's because of the holiday rush and not because you don't like me any more, but the giveaway has been a bust.

I will be giving a print to Stephanie of Crystal Allure Handcrafted Jewelry. There have been a lot of pics she's admired so, unless she tells me otherwise, I'll pick one for her. I'm not telling her which one, but I have an idea of which one she might like best!

If you would like another try, Stephanie is offering a different giveaway of a lovely set of handpainted postcards at Crystal Allure Handcrafted Jewelry till December 21st. The cards were inspired by Stephanie's extensive support of transplant awareness. They are enclosed in a pretty handmade envelope as well.



One of the Postcards in the Giveaway



We'll try again in 2011 and hopefully, we'll get a better response at that time.

In the meantime, have a great Winter Solstice celebration, a merry Christmas and, always, a safe but enjoyable New Year Eve!

Only 3 Days Left to Win! Giveaway Deadline is December 15th!

Just a reminder, friends! I know it's a (hopefully, happily) busy time of the year, but I don't want you to miss out on the Giveaway announced last week!

If you leave me a heartfelt note of cheer, you'll be entered in a drawing to win an 8"x10" photo-quality print of any available piece shown on this blog. That includes any of Mike's photo-art pieces, too!


Simply click to leave a comment or contact me at bronsonhillarts [at] gmail [dot] com, write your note and let me know which item you'd like and to what address to send it. 

The winner will be drawn Wednesday night, the 15th, so sign up! 

Don't you just love a free gift?