Daisies

Daisies are my favorite flower....have been ever since I can remember. They represent joy to me. I remember one time Billy came to my apartment in college after we'd been broken up for 6 months. We had decided to give it another go so he had brought me the largest bouquet of daisies I had ever seen in my life as a gift. Joy. 

Anyhoo....fast forward to our first house and of course I planted daisies. They flourished in our yard. Bringing joy to my little yard year after year. Then we moved into our new house 4 years ago. I bought more daisies....but forgot to plant them. So they lived in their pots for 2 years on the side of the house I never go by. No water. No food. Just hung out. Nature taking care of them. I decided to plant these babies this past spring.  Over the past few months I've watched them grow and grow and grow. But never bloom. Total bummer. They have flourished in the ground I prepared for them though so I thought for sure eventually they would burst into blooms. They are literally covering a 5 foot area now from 2 freaking plants! And this week.....this week they finally bloomed!!!

Again, like instagram and the zinnias my brain had to get these pretty flowers onto a canvas. With one rose. I am favoring roses more as a get older. Their colors can be truly amazing.

So what flowers are you drawn to? I sure am having fun painting these whimsical flowers. I just can't help it. The brush and the heart are enjoying it too much to stop. Next up is a giant bike with a basket on front full of daisies. Of course.

Scatter Joy

About a month ago Tammie, a former custom painting client that lives in Louisiana, emailed me saying she'd recently been hired as an elementary principal and wondered if I would be willing to paint her a large painting for her new office. Of course I said YES! We talked back and forth about what to paint...her mascot was kinda cheesy so that was a no. Plus she wanted something that could eventually go back to her home. I suggested a word embedded in a landscape with my funky flowers. She said "Sounds great!" I said, how about "Scatter JOY"? So that every time a little child is in her office they see those words. Every time a parent is in her office they see those words. Every time a teacher is in her office they see those words. Embedded into their brains and hearts. Scatter joy.....I believe in the power of words.

Off I went to paint the idea. I love the composition. Simple and yet has an impact because of the contrast in flower colors and the word. I love these new zinnias that are appearing in my work. Sometimes social media becomes embedded in my brain and I just have to get it out. For some reason zinnias were in my instagram feed over and over and over...so they spilled out and onto my canvas. Love. Cone flowers are a personal favorite of mine as well as daisies. Which BTW are finally blooming in my yard!

 And of course it's framed out in a salvage bead board frame. I did add a coat of flat black and distress it for a more finished look. She should receive the painting today. I can't wait to see it hanging in her office!