Meet .....La Ballerine Rose....my latest Paper Doll Project for Paint Party Friday.....

Hi Everyone.....

I am creating these paper dolls as they pop into my head and want you to meet my latest .....
Meet La Ballerine Rose

This is a pretty in pink ballerina that trained in all of the finest dance schools in Paris...her dreams came true when she got herself into one of the most famous Parisian Ballets....She will make you believe in dreams again.....

I thought it would be fitting to keep her all in pink....(one of my favorite colours) and make her live in Paris...of all places....( virtual Paris happens in my Studio every day)

She is my submission to Paint Party Friday this week....I hope you enjoy her company!!!  and her dancing....

I am working on a whole new collection of paper dolls for my book that will be Published next year....so pop back often!!! To see my current collection you can head here....
Happy Creating Everyone....and pop back Saturday to share a Sweet Saturday link with us!!!

Hugs
Diana

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The Sock Monkeys came to life over night!!!!

You saw my designs yesterday.....and then magically overnight....I awoke to such a clatter....I got out of my bed to see what was the matter....and what to my wandering eyes did appear....a bucket full of sock monkeys!!! Oh dear!!!!

I just can't stop creating these paper dolls...I am fascinated with paper art these days....you can check out my current collection of paper art dolls here....

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I felt like Monkey'n around today.....

Hi Everyone....I love love love sock monkeys....and I have created all sorts of art based around these sweet little sock friends...so today I am showing you my latest sock monkey piece....these are designs that I will be turning into paper dolls ....so be sure to pop back tomorrow so you can see these guys jump off the page and come to life....

Have you ever had a sock monkey or made one.....?
I think every kid ( and adult) should have a sock monkey friend....they are so cute and super easy to make....

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Sketching some produce....Care for a Pear?

Hi Everyone....I am in awe at all of the amazing stuff at the local markets...and pears have always been neat to me...so I created a little homage to the Pear.....I created the piece above with three....at first I was going to do two and call it.... "a Pair of Pairs" but three just looked better...so this is called "Three's better than a pear"....

Did you know that Italy is the second largest grower of pears? and the United States is third? who knew...but I will only eat the ones grown locally....

I also had no idea that a pear had 6 grams of fiber....now that is a good source of fiber for a mere 100 calories...who knew!!!

They are very good for you...so today I am heading to pick up more pears....we grow 5 types here and they are yummy......

This little sketch is my Sunday Sketch submission .....

Happy Sunday!!!

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Sweet Saturdays - Week 25 - Come join in the fun.... and check out my owl paper dolls.....

Hi Everyone!!! and welcome to week # 025 of Sweet Saturdays.....Sweet Saturdays is all about blogging about something sweet in your lives...it could be art, illustrations, food, a recipe or a sweet photo....or a sweet find in your favorite shop...so create your blog post and pop back and share your link with all of us....

So welcome and we look forward to seeing your posts.....
Happy Sweet Saturday!!!!



and now for my Sweet Saturday submission.....yesterday you all popped by to see and read about my Owl Story....and yesterday I promised I would show you my owl piece as paper dolls...so here they are....I love the way these turned out....I will use these around the house....for some fun...unexpected art....they would also be neat in a shadow box with some real branches.....

These Wise Guys are in my Etsy Shop!!!
Happy Sweet Saturday....and thank you for popping in!!!

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Paint Party Friday.....whooooooooo whoooooooo......

As many of you know I love so many things.....and owls are one of the animals that have always touched my heart....once when I was growing up my Dad and I found an injured owl on the side of the road near an escarpment so we took it home and fed it and waited till it's wing got all better....it was amazing...it sat in our garage on my dad's anvil and we bought it all kinds of raw treats....we fed it liver and it was one happy camper.....it turned its head whenever we opened the door....it was an amazing experience...one that I will never forget...We fed it and cared for the little guy till he was ready for flight and then we let him go.....he was amazing...beautiful...and a reminder that we all need to respect wildlife all around us.....

so to the Owls out there....here is a little piece I created.....it is my submission to Paint Party Friday this week.....

Tomorrow this design will be turned into an owl paper doll...so pop back for Sweet Saturdays right here at my blog and share some of your sweet art, sweet photos, anything that you find sweet....

Today we bid Summer Good Bye....and Autumn kissed it good bye too...with some red leaves and hints of colours changing ( I think Autumn wore some red lipstick!!!)

I love this time of year...and can't wait to visit all the Fairs, pick apples, see a big pumpkin patch, and enjoy the colours.....

Happy Creating Everyone!!!!

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Created some edible art....this was so good!!!!

I love lemon piccata chicken and I love Greek style lemon chicken....so I decided to merge the two and create my own version of two dishes in one...and it was so so good!!!!

I took one chicken and butterflied it.....then spiced it up with salt, pepper and Greek Oregano. In my large Al Clad pan I browned my chicken on both sides....then added lemon zest and the juice of one whole lemon to the chicken....I also added the slices of lemon to the dish ....more Greek Oregano and placed the lid on it....and baked it in the oven for an hour and 15 minutes ....I had the oven at 375 for the first 45 minutes and then decreased the temperature to 350 for the remaining time....I also added my potatoes in another dish...these I tossed with some oil, lemon zest , salt, pepper and more Greek Oregano....and baked them in the oven with the chicken....

once the chicken was done...to rest it I placed it over the roasted potatoes...so some of the yummy juices would make the potatoes even happier while I took the juices from the chicken pan and removed the fat from the top and then simmered it down with some white wine and capers....and it was the sauce I used to serve the chicken and potatoes....

I then made two simple sides....a Greek Salad my way greens, onions, tomatoes, cucumbers....oil, vinegar , salt , pepper and Greek Oregano....and some kidney beans with oil, vinegar, salt and some sour cream....

This meal was a huge hit....I love these flavors....!!! I will use this for entertaining ....it was that good.....
Tip.....use a good white wine....one that you would like to serve with this meal....it makes a big difference....

So there you go...some food art from my kitchen today....

Thanks for popping by!!!!

Hugs
Diana

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Same Illustration bits...a whole new art piece....the beauty of creating individual layers of art....

Hi Everyone...so here we are with day two of this super fun challenge where I show you that creating your art in layers can be so much fun and you can save time by creating things once and using them over and over.....yesterday you saw a piece I created using a few of these illustrations...today I show you all of the pieces apart and then I show you a piece where I used one base....all of the fun Halloween inspired heads and some fun accessories....see I am all about accessories even in my art......

The cool thing about creating each illustration as a single piece is I will be able to re-use these for various Holidays and art that I create....and I only had to create pieces once....all I do is change the colours, the locations, the sizes and flip them any which way I please......

Now off to work on some more variations of these illustration bits.....

Happy Creating Everyone!!! and thanks for popping by!!!

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Boo! more Halloween inspired work....and creating elements you can use over and over....

Hi Everyone....today I am showing you how you can create a few pieces and re-use them to create multiple art pieces....for example I created these art blocks that are used to create words....I designed two different ones that I will be using all week to create new art pieces....all inspired by Halloween....so pop back and see how this plot unfolds....As an Illustrator it is important to keep pieces as separate entities...this way you could use them for all sorts of applications....it also creates a cohesive line of work if you are into art licensing.....

Happy Creating Everyone....and thank you for popping by today!!!

Hugs
Diana

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Sketch turns into a Paper Doll Pug....

Hi Everyone.....

I just can't stop with these super fun Paper Dolls in the Studio....so here is a sweet little Pug I created.....He was born as an idea in my head....then he came to life with some ink....and colour....and then he met his new friend...scissors and they played around and worked on giving him some freedom from the paper he was born on....now he sits in various rooms around the house and is learning to love each and every day!!!! To see more cool sketches hop over to Sophia's Blue Chair Diary.

Happy Creating!!! and Happy Sunday!!!!

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Sweet Saturdays - Week 24

Hi Everyone!!! and welcome to week # 024 of Sweet Saturdays.....Sweet Saturdays is all about blogging about something sweet in your lives...it could be art, illustrations, food, a recipe or a sweet photo....or a sweet find in your favorite shop...so create your blog post and pop back and share your link with all of us....

So welcome and we look forward to seeing your posts.....
Happy Sweet Saturday!!!!



My Submission.......
This week for sweet Saturday my submission is this cute little cat paper doll....another piece I illustrated and created ....I love paper dolls!!!

Happy Saturday and I hope you all have some Sweet things to share with us this week!!!

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Another Ink and Watercolour Piece for Paint Party Friday.....Vintage Halloween Fan Art.....

I know you're all getting sick of the Vintage Halloween paintings....but I only have a few more to share...so I hope you don't mind this cute little Vintage carver...some fan art I created with ink and watercolour.....I love working on paintings that I can use in all sorts of ways....so this original was also used to create some fun vintage inspired Halloween brooches....These were created on wood and then I burnt the edges...for a little more vintage appeal.....


Wishing you all a wonderful Paint Party Friday this week...and I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with!!!!

Happy Creating!!!!

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A little nod to the past....a few more 1940s Dictionary Pages...

This week I took some time to work on my series of 1940s Dictionary Pages....incorporating some fun sketches of Nature and Love .....

I love the vintage feel of these pieces and so much fun to merge something old with something new....

Happy Creating and thank you for all the sweet visits....you are all an inspiration to me as I work away all alone like a mad scientist in my lab I like to call the Studio!!!

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More of my Paper Dolls....these are moveable fun art pieces.....

Hi Everyone....I have been busy like a bee in my Studio with these fun little paper dolls...I used to make some every month...then totally forgot about making new ones till last week....when I drew up my latest character....gave her three different looks...a Blondie, a Brunnettie and a Reddie....lol....so here they are...all fun and perfect to add to your table centerpiece...or in little unexpected vignettes around the house.....

I even made a set of them with their little pug.....I am addicted to these right now......I added these to my Etsy Shop under my Art Dolls Section.....

Happy Tuesday and Happy Creating Everyone!!!

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Summer ....too much parties and way too much food! Need some focus!

This summer was so much fun...all the swimming and playing and eating.....but I am starting to watch what I do starting today since the pool will be closed soon and that was the only exercise I got while enjoying the warm summer days.....

For some much needed inspiration I doodled up a little bikini....as a reminder to focus on eating well and a reminder to start working out.....I always take the summers off....too many gatherings and parties to enjoy...and with that enjoyment comes a lot of splurges.......I also have to start taking my daily walks by the water....the fall is a perfect time to enjoy the cool fresh air and the ever changing scenery around us.....

Call it my Autumn resolution.....

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A weekend of Remembrance......9 / 11

It doesn't matter how much time goes by...the tragedy that happened on 9/11 still fills my heart with sadness and pain. This weekend I am thinking about all of the families that were directly impacted by those horrific events that changed lives for eternity.....and taking moments of silence to remember them and their families....and pray......I created this special prayer Angel that will always be a reminder to remember......

May you all say some prayers and remain strong......

Here are some photos I have taken over the years....

*Note - we will not be hosting Sweet Saturdays today...in light of the weekend of Remembrance.....

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