Little Squirrel Came to Visit.. A teaching moment in my Backyard.

Well today was a lesson in life or death that I didn’t expect. And one with a very important lesson I never anticipated. This morning I was photographing the crochet hats I make. I thought I would try to sell some on etsy in My Wild Side store.

Part 1:

When I walked out the door on my deck I saw the old black and white cat sitting there. He is always out there someplace so I didn’t think too much of it. I noticed that all the bird baths were empty so I set my photo equipment down and went back into the house and came out to fill up the bird bath I keep on the porch.

Then I set to work photographing the first hat. When I was setting up the second hat something brushed past my leg. I looked down thinking it was the cat but nothing was there. I looked around and that cat was sitting in the bushes at the fence line. So I thought I dropped a hat. I looked down under the table and sitting there looking at me was a little baby squirrel.

I have seen them that small before. But I was concerned that he was a bit overly friendly and not fearful of me at all. He went over to the water. Then came over to me. Sometimes he would jump at me like he was playing with me. Then he would lay down on the deck and rest. We had a grand conversation. I wondered about his mother. This was her second litter this summer. She lived in the tree next to my deck. Sometimes she and her husband would leave me partially eaten walnuts on the deck rails.

I went into the house several times while he was there. I brought out a hand full of bird seed and put it there. He didn’t eat it. He just kept trying to get me to pick him up. I didn’t. He went over to the hose and would crawl in and out of it like he was playing. After a while finally he went over to the hose and started nursing it. That’s when I knew we were in trouble.

I told him to wait right there I would go get something for him to eat. I went in the house and since I haven’t a clue what baby squirrels eat, I thought maybe sugar water would be the safest until I could get him to a vet. When I came out of the house this time he had gone down off the deck and back to the tree. I put the plate down and slipped on my shoes. Instead of coming back to me he had given up on me as a food source and was considering his options. He could see the cat sitting there. He started over to the brush near the cat. The cat saw him. I shouted no . But the cat was being a cat. And by the time I got there it was too late. Bummer.

Part 2: The Lesson

So here is the lesson. In desperate times we search out help. We search out what we need to survive. Finally in the end we come to God. But the trouble is we get impatient. We want to take short cuts because we are afraid and desperate. We have no communication skills mostly because we haven’t been taught them.

I have a feeling that that little squirrel knew that I was a food source because probably in his mother’s squirrel way she had let him know. For two season’s now I had been providing food for that family including the little squirrel's spring sibling. Maybe she said “if you get hungry because we’ re gone too long go to the lady at the wood and flowers” or something like that .

Haven’t you heard your grandparents and sometimes your parents say it.. all nonchalant, like you aren’t going to use it really.. but just in case. They say “go to God”.
So they go to God when things get tough. They have never had a relationship with him. Never learned what he likes or dislikes; they just demand help, like little squirrels jumping at my legs “shouting feed me now “ in squirrel language.

I actually did everything I was capable of and in my power to help that little squirrel. However, the little squirrel being a wild thing had free choice. And because there were certain barriers to our communication such as him, not knowing how to communicate with me and me not being fluent in squrriel. He didnt know that I was not abandoning him. Had he understood that I was coming back and bringing him what he needed, he would have waited. He made the decision to not wait on me to bring him what he need. And then he went looking in the wrong place at the right time and came to the wrong end.

That’s what we do. Many of us have never been taught to wait on God. We have not been taught to understand him, we have not been taught to rest, we have not been taught to trust. And we have not been taught to hear his voice. We go in, demand what we want without having any sort of relationship or friendship with him and then we get impatient for him to act on our behalf. If he doesn’t move when we want him to, we just do it for him. And then we blame him because the desired outcome isn’t what we wanted. We always have really good excuses too. We go to God and get scared and don’t trust and then bam!

God ‘s word says they who wait upon the Lord shall rise up on wings, like eagles … rest in the Lord and wait for him to act, trust in the Lord and lean not on your own understanding… God even knows the little sparrow and what he needs, he knows the lilies of the field.. he dresses them.. and he has said we are more important and more loved than one of these.

In the coming years, maybe even days, some of us are going face some very difficult things. We might be in a position that we don’t have resources for food, companionship, housing, family, medical care. If we do not learn how to trust God when we have these things, we will become prey for those who would devour and enslave us.

Those who do not learn to trust God will become like Esau selling his birthright for a bowl of porridge because he was too weary to make it himself. He made a deal for his own comfort and sold himself in to a life of hardship. For some it will be death.

God loves us and wants us to come to him. He wants us to know him, to have relationship with him, so that when he speaks we can understand. So we know his promises to provide and return and can rest in those promises while we wait. When the waiting time is over, we will know it and be obedient to act because we know his voice.

"Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is.
For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit." Jeremiah 17:7-8 (NIV)
" For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)

Linda L Martin©2009 All electronic and world rights reserved.

Alternative Venues for Artists and Crafts people: Antiques Malls.

Figuring out Pricing and Sizes
for Art in Antiques and Craft Malls.


Ive been an Artist vendor in Antiques malls since 1994. Before that I knew other artists who leased spaces at these malls, painted there on the weekends, and eventually went on to own their own galleries.

Antiques and Crafter malls present a great opportunity for people who want to go into business for themselves mostly because they can start out small see what will sell and have a show case space to market their work.

Most of these malls require a lease and take a percentage. Usually they handle all of the money and collect taxes. Sometimes they require attendance to annual or bi-annual dealer meetings and participation in one or more publicised events per year, usually around Christmas time. Once you have fulfilled your contract obligations you receive a monthly accounting off all you have sold and are responsible for your own promotion and inventory. It can be amazing for someone starting out or someone like me who just likes the freedom.

Sizes that sell well:Size and price.. When you first go in to the perspective mall, walk around and see what other people are selling that is similar to yours and try to keep your prices at or near theirs. Of course if they are selling original Art for $5 or $10 dollars then that would be a problem. Of course I am assuming that both you as the perspective seller and the person selling have credible talent that will develop a following that will have their needs met by your creations.

There are sizes that usually sell well at a reasonable price for you to make money in this venue.
These are standard sizes:
2.5 by 3.5 inches ( Art trading card size) frames to 4 by 6 with a matt
4 x 6 inches frames to 5 x7 inches with a matt
5x7 inches. Frames to 8 by 10 with a matt
8 by 10 inches or 9 by 12 inches frames to 11 by 14 with a matt

Other sizes are with canvas or board you can rarely get a good price for larger paintings in this type of venue because everyone is looking for something inexpensive and hopefully cheap.
These are standard sizes for larger works: ( in inches)
11 by 14
16 by 20
18 by 24
24 by 30
30 by 36
Please keep in mind these sizes are expensive to frame but you can find used frames generally in these sizes then paint to fit the frame. I would keep these sizes to canvas or board because matting and framing a watercolor under glass in these larger sizes is really expensive.
There are also gallery wrapped canvases you can buy now that don’t need framing. You simply paint around the edges. These are great for keeping it simple.

If you want to matt your work for easy framing. You can sometimes find inexpensive matts at Wal-Mart to fit standard size frames. You can also find matts sometimes at places like the Dollar Tree ( if you have those where you are) at 2 matts for a dollar . If Matting is too expensive and makes too much over head then you can use these alternatives. Try to always get acid free matts and coverings. These will prevent a world of problems in the long term and protect the value of the painting

Make matts from
1. poster board ( white , black or other neutral colors ( you cant always get acid free poster board)
2. Watercolor paper : this makes a nice heavy alternative matt and you can paint it using inexpensive acrylic paint that you find at Wal-Mart or a craft store. ( almost all watercolor paper sold today is acid free)
*****
Inventory:
You should keep an inventory of unframed but matted and backed art to sell in sizes 5 by 7 and 8 by 10. Some People love to look through little boxes or bins to see what inside. Its like a treasure hunt for them

An easy way to protect them is to use acid free Page protectors. You can get a package of them from Wal-Mart or Staples for a reasonable sum of money . A page protector will cover an 8” by 10 “easily. You can use clear packing tape to tape it closed. Along with the matted work of art you can also slip a piece of cardboard the same size as the matted art to keep it from bending when people look at it. You can slip your business card in side and a price tag taped to the front or back with seller id and everything. There is also shrink film you can get from an art supply store for larger works. The idea is to keep the elements off the painting so it doesn’t discolor it or allow humidity or oil from hands from devaluing the work.

Framed work:
Variety is the ticket and something unique that people won’t find anywhere else is the best way to go. I'm a great one to try to find great frames in odd places.

Sometimes dollar stores like Dollar Tree has tons of small frames. You can find them as small as 1” by 2” and up to 9 by 12. Sometimes they even come with matts for a dollar.
You want to have a selection of frames that can hang on the wall, as well as table top frames. The more unique the better. Remember to scour yard sales and flea markets for frames too.

Tips on frames:

* check the front and make sure there are not chips nicks or scratches. Unless the frame is old barn wood or from an old boat plank they won’t buy it if it looks damaged. That goes for chips in frame glass as well. It won’t sell if its broken.

* it’s better to get wood frames when possible .. there are lots of frames that you pay good money for that fall apart or you can’t put a wire on the back of because they are either hard plastic or they are pressed sawdust. It’s hard to put a good hanger on the back of one of these as they tend to break the frame.

* The preferred method of hanging a painting is using wire. That means putting screw-eyes on either side of the back of the frame and stringing wire between them. When done correctly the painting will always hang level ( sometimes even if the room isn’t) Always put little stick-on acrylic tabs to protect the walls on frame back bottom corners when they are made of metal or are over 8 by 10 in size.

When you get some money ahead, I would take a class at the local craft frame store to get some tips on things that will improve the professionalism of your display. This training is a legitimate business expense. Sometimes the way a painting is framed will sell it when no one is buying from other people.

Display to sell:

One of the things I have noticed is that these venues have a lot of repeat business. Sometimes they are just killing time, sometimes they are very serious buyers, and sometimes they are on a mission. You want to target the serious buyers and the trinket hunters. When I was selling a good deal these are things I learned:

1. Redo your entire space every week to 10 days. Its an old antique dealers trick I learned from a church friend in the antique buiness. It makes it look like you have completely new inventory.

2. Change out a quarter of your store space once a month. If something hasn’t sold in 6 months bag it up and store it away or put them in a different venue. But take a good look at them first, if they are really nice and no one Is buying then maybe you aren’t drawing the right market. If you have a huge following on FB, don’t forget to get a fan page together and a blog. Promote those items online and make special events happen even if the Mall isn’t having any. Its not what you are doing, but what you are seen to be doing that draws attention to your work. Social networking is really important these days because people now seem to buy because of relationship not just because of the quality or popularity of the work. Good work will sell its self, but you have to get the people there to see it first.

Sometimes putting an item away for 18 months and bringing them back with a completely different mix of items will sell them. I have one painting that I sold one or two prints from and could never sell the painting. Its an awesome painting. That painting keeps increasing in value and everyone who sees it raves about it. That’s the painting I need to keep until the right buyer comes. Every once in a while I will exhibit it. But I’m quite happy to have it in my living room until that time. You cant afford to have a lot of inventory like that. Don’t keep trying to ride a dead horse. If it isn’t selling, even if it is the best work you have every done, try changing subject matter to something else. Keep in mind too that the puppies that sold last month may not sell this month because you might have saturated your market. Its important to keep generating new clients as well as keeping the ones you have.

3. Have a huge piece art that draws attention and might be outrageously priced. Maybe a banner or poster one month, then a painting a couple of months later. Keep the patrons guessing.. it’s the drawing card that gets their attention. What ever you use try to look at what your neighbor vendors have and use something so different than what they have that people will be attracted to your space first. You may not sell your show case focus art in this venue, but if people like it, they will buy your smaller art. The big one pays for itself through the sales of the little ones.

4. Make your booth an adventure in discovery. The longer you can keep people in your space the more likely they are to buy something. The more of an adventure they find there the more likely they are to return for the thing that impressed them the most. Before the economy started going bad.. I could sell to 1 in 10 people that saw my work for the first time. 1 in 50 were repeat buyers. 1 in 100 would buy consistently and over a period of about 18 months would spend $500 or more dollars. That is a larger than average rate for most retail. I found out later that one framing shop in town attributed about 5% of their overall business to framing my little paintings that people bought. Remember also that an adventure does not mean it’s cluttered and too busy. If people can’t see it they won’t buy it.

Pricing
Remember that an Antiques or Crafter Mall is on the same level as A Regional Art Show. The difference is that you have people coming to see your work everyday rather than just for a festival or event of one or two days.

In pricing their are rules:
::A painting is only as valuable as the price people are willing to pay.
::You can lower your price, but you can’t raise it once you put it in a venue.

So before you get in too deep study to see what other people in the mall are pricing the same type of things you want to sell . So that means look around and see what other people are selling things for. For instance if you are seeing original watercolor that is 8" by 10", then look at the quality.

Don’t be tempted to under price your work simply because another dealer is putting low prices on theirs. Their reasoning might be that they can’t sell it after two years, so they mark it down. It might be reasonable to put a $85 price on a 8 by 10 watercolor study, and even more reasonable to put a $200 price on a watercolor that has a lot of detail in it. But it might not be reasonable to put a $1,000 on the same painting, unless say, the Prince of Wales painted it. It would be just as foolish to put only $20 on the same painting because that wouldn’t cover your expenses and over head, not to mention your time.

In order to stay in business you need to make a profit. Any profit you make should go to investing back into the business until it stands on its own. Out of that profit you pay yourself, make improvements, buy new equipment, replace things.

Another thing to keep in mind is that an original painting should always be worth 5 to 10 times the price of a reproduction or print of that same or similar item. So when you are pricing things price them in relationship with both other items you are selling in your space and make them competitive with those around you.

Be sure you know the difference between a serious art seller and someone who hasn’t a clue. In this business you are going to be bringing people in from the outside so they need to see you are serious.

An amateur and high school students sells a 16” by 20” painting on canvas for under $50. An artist who knows the value of their work, someone just starting out, would sell the same painting for $400 to $600. An established artist with regional recognition would sell it for $800 to $3,000. A person with national recognition might sell the same painting for $5,000 and up, A person with world wide recognition would sell it for $10,000 and up. Remember though, the higher the price the fewer buyers there are that can afford to buy it.

It might be right to think at $10,000 you only have to sell 4 or 5 paintings a year but the thruth is you sill have to eat , pay the rent and buy art supplies while you are waiting to make the sale.

There are several layers of pricing I use:

Quick STUDY PRICING: these are simple paintings done quickly like loose watercolors usually in smaller sizes
My quick studies fall into this category. Its also the highest selling group.
You may want to start a little lower in price than mine are at first to build up your business.
I price watercolors like this: ( add 10% for acrylic and 20% for oils, for drawings I drop 1/5 of the price)
size:
2.5" by 3.5" at $12.50 to $25.00 ( depending on the details)
4” by 6” is $20.00
5” by 7” is $30
8 by 10 is $45( I don’t usually paint quick studies in this size)

STANDARD SQUARE INCH PRICING: Work priced by the square inch and are usually actual paintings or drawings that have all the elements of a master work of art.. including a background, foreground interaction of subject with its surroundings, such as shadows, highlights, reflections etc, and sometimes even direct interaction with the viewer. If additional elements and subjects are added to the same painting then 30% of the base price is added for each element added.

Matting and framing are not added to the cost of the painting and would usually be the responsibility of the buyer if the work were a commission. I use this rule of thumb for framing. The cost of the frame should not be more than 1/5 the total cost of the painting.
***
SQUARE INCH Pricing (..no frame and no matt..) just the painting .
This is a real painting.. meaning not a study, it has a background, a fore ground and 1 subject that interacts with either the viewer or its surroundings , shadows, reflections, highlights etc etc:
Drawings: $1 a square inch (graphite or ink or watercolors on lighter weight paper)
Watercolors or colored drawings: $1.50 a square inch ( must be on heavy paper to last)
Acrylic or Gauche paintings: $2.00 per square inch ( on heavy paper 300lb or more)
Acrylic or Gauche paintings: $3.00 per square inch ( on canvas or board)
Oil on gessoed paper: $3.00 per square inch
Oil Paintings: depending on the skill and experience of the artist $3.50 to $5.00 per square inch( canvas or board)
***
MINIATURE PRICING
Miniature pricing is the exact opposite of standard pricing. The smaller and the more detail the more price it commands. And the pricing includes the frame as it is also considered part of the work of art. A true Miniature may not be framed larger than 5” by 5”
Example: 2.5” by 3.5” priced at $25.00; 2.25” by 3.25” will be priced at $50; 2.00 by 3.00 will be $75. For every quarter of an inch you go down add $25.00 then add the cost of framing.

Just so you know established Miniature artists get about $100 to $300 for a 2.5 by 3.5 original watercolor or oil painting so you can imagine what the price would be if it was 1” by ½ “ plus the framing
***
I hope this information helps some of you just starting out. Please feel free to post questions or email me at contact@llmartin.com


All rights to this or anypart of this blog are strickly reserved by the artist. Please do not use without permission.LindaLMartin,Artist Copyright©2009

Updates on Teens Opposing Poverty Painting

I have been having so much fun planning out and painting "The Orchard". I must admit it is going a little slower than I expected, but I am hopeful to have it finished by September 1.

Two of the newest elements that turned out really very good is the middle pony licking his lips and the brilliant orange tabby sitting up in the shade tree.

You can see the entire progression of the painting from layout to current by going to "The Orchard"

Several people have inquired as to how they can comission a painting for their church or ogranization. Simply email me at contact@llmartin.com. Write " comission a painting" in the subject line.

Real Miniature Pet Art by Linda L.Martin

I've actually been working in the Miniature Art format on and off for about 7 years. I started in 2002 painting landscapes in small format of about 4" by 3" before ACEO ( 2.5 x3.5 inches) or Art Trading Card(ATC) sizes became so popular. The smallest I have ever painted and sold is about 1/4" by 1/2 inch. They were little watercolor horses. The smallest oil paintings were about 1" by 2 " landscapes.

These are two from a series of goldfish and canaries I did in the winter of 2007. The largest was 8 by 10 inches. The smallest gold fish was about 1/4Th the size of these. They are matted with painted watercolor paper up to a ATC size so they will fit into a regulation sized sports card PH balanced PVC sleeve.

I have so many paintings right now that I have to number them to keep track of them all. I just got the partially finished inventory back from my assistant this week. So far we have documented 1600 plus paintings not including what has been sold over the last three years.

Anyway a group of us artists on Facebook were discussing mini painting a few weeks ago and I just found these today so I thought I would share them with everyone. Yes, they are available at $20 a piece. I think they will be rematted before I list them .. perhaps on etsy.

~~~

About the Paintings.

Goldfish #3106 Price: $20.00 US

Watercolor

by Linda L. Martin

22-12/16" by 1-1/4"

2007

Canary #3085 Price $20.00 US

Watercolor

by Linda L. Martin

1-3/4" by 1-1/2"

2007

~~~

For more information email me at contact@llmartin.com or Artistllmartin@yahoo.com

Going To Cape Hatteras and OBX this Summer?

I just had to share this with you! My childhood memories of OBX and some great merchandise from one of my favorite paintings of Hatteras Light.

One of my fondest memories of child hood was camping at the beach. One year, in the 1960’s we traveled all the way down to Cape Hatteras. I will never forget running on the beach at twilight with our dogs. My sister’s dog Toquin loved to run. He would run so far that we couldn’t see him anymore. I was afraid he wouldn’t come back. But dad said “watch he will come back”. That silly dog would return every time. He had a blast. He loved to run! I remember campfires and sing-a-longs, Staying up late when it was cool and sleeping when it was really hot. We were really crowded together on the weekends and stayed so long that we actually had tent neighbors we got to know quite well.

When a friend from down near the Outer Banks approached me about painting a series of Light houses in 2004, I was thrilled to do it.
Let Your Light Shine! These are wonderful designs based on a series of Hatteras Light that I painted in 2004 from photographs my friend had taken. I hope you enjoy these and share them with your friends.
And, hey, if you forgot to bring a souvenir back from your OBX visit,for your favorite aunt; Well consider ordering through my store hosted by cafepress. You can get there by clicking this link:

LLMartin's Let your Light Shine!
or

See the rest of my art at:

www.LLMartin.com

Dont forget to check out the Gift Shop!

Thanks for Stopping by!

LLMartin House Cat Annie Products

Need some Gift Ideas?? Fill an Annie Toe Bag for under $100.00

Look at this wonderful house cat Annie.

I painted this watercolor in 2007 as a gift for a friend. Now Annie is the quintasential house cat that any house cat lover can relate too.

Annie has her own full line of products. Annie is ready to adorn your dresser with this wonderful little gift box, your arm with her Annie tote bag, your head with this wonderful annie cap in three colors to choose from and of corse a wonderful tee shirt that you can wear proudly. My favorite is the Annie Journal where you can write down your own cat stories or just your special private thoughts.

There are 36 products in the LLMartin's House Cat Annie store. You can mix them and match them for a wonderful birthday surprize or just a great gift grabbag for your special cat loving friend.

Shown Here:

Annie Totebag: $16.86

Annie Keepsake box $19.49
Annie Woman's Tee Shirt $19.49

Annie's Journal $12.29
Annie Round Ornament:$7.79

You can see all the LLMartin Designs on her website http://www.llmartin.com/ Just check out the Gift Shop link on the first page.

Follow me in Facebook: Linda L.Martin

or on Twitter: LindaLMartin

Need a pet portrait? Write me at contact@llmartin.com

Cafe Press and Merchandizing LLMartin.com

I feel like I have been planted in front of this computer for days. It amazes me how many designs can come from one painting. And I am sure that within the limits of the programs available to me to manipulate the images I might not have found them all yet.

I must say it has been lots of fun. I have 11 of them up. That is to say it is recommended that we have 50 pages of 50 products with our designs. So that is basically 50 design themes. What a challenge. However I have plenty to work with, as my assistant

Today after about 4 days of wonderful soaking ran I choose to work on one of my Blue Ponies. This one is called Runnin’ Blue. Runnin’ Blue was originally exhibited on line as a sand pony in the Crazy Horse Collection. There are actually two of these sand ponies. But Runnin’ Blue is my favorite, so of course I picked him to use as the basis of the designs first.

The more I thought about Runnin' Blue the more I thought about the ponies I had been around in my twenties. These are hard working ponies, who spent hours patiently teaching young children how to respect horses and care for them while having fun. Then on their day off instead of complacent slow plodding animals they stand for a moment before the gate. The take off once that halter is removed. Its their version of the weekend. They Stretch, roll, race, eat and anything they want to do, they do it. Freedom! That moment when every pony was out there just doing what ponies do and enjoying it. As we all know a little freedom never hurt anyone.

Check out the new Runnin' Blue designs at : http://www.cafepress.com/RunninBlue
Or checkout the entire collection so far at www.LLMartin.com and click the gift shop link.

Update on "THE ORCHARD" Painting for Teens Opposing Poverty

This is a close up of the apple truck. I have to say I thought it turned out really cool. You can see more details of the progress of "The Orchard" the painting for Teens Opposing Poverty at "The Orchard" on my http://www.llmartin.com/ website.

Also dont forget to check out Teens Opposing Poverty at http://www.teensopposingpoverty.org/

We are what we speak..it seems like truth but sometimes it isnt.

This is what a twitter I follow posted this morning: "As intercessors, He has called us Not to wonder about the future, but to create the future." Francis Frangipane

As an artist I create my interpretation of the world around me; as a prophetic artist I create the world as I see it with my heart and sometimes what it could be. I was inspired once to write fiction. In fiction, I took what I knew about the world and wrote it the way I wanted it to turn out. The problem is always cause and effect. You want the world to be beautiful, and kind, and nurturing. But most of the time we speak things that are the opposite. And we take those murmurings and turn them into a reality that we call truth.

Many years ago I was covering the Preakness Stakes. I personally was there for one reason: to report a history making race. From start to finish I wrote one of my best racing stories. It just so happened that there was a huge power outage that day. The press booth, crowded with international reporters, was an oven. The elevators were not working. The only way out was down 5 stories of stairs, with no emergency lights. Tempers were flaring everywhere except the infield. (They had generators and ice and tents for the VIPs)

I made my way perilously down the stairs with out a flashlight and back to the barns. I ended up watching the race on a monitor with the guys from ESPN. Now how cool was that!And I took down first person quotes as the trainers and owners brought their horses back to their stalls after the race. It was a record breaking day with crowds. I never would have made it back to the barns had I not been there when the race finished. Grant it it, wasn't the best of days; however, I choose not to mummer. I chose to do and say all that was necessary to make it a good experience and a good story.

As it turned out, I was the only writer there that day that wrote a positive story about the experience. It was a memorable day. I probably wouldn't choose to go through again, but It was still a positive experience even with the hardships.

I think we complain and mummer too much sometimes. While we are looking at how bad things are, we forget that we still have control over making things better than they seem. We can only do that by our attitude and by what we say. As an intercessor I should indeed be speaking Life and hope and peace and encouragement and nurturing into every event and every thing that is around me. Especially in these days of confusion and uncertainty. I choose to create rather than kill, I choose to make life rather, than kill dreams. I choose to give hope, rather than bring despaired. I choose to keep my eyes on God, rather than on circumstances I can do nothing about.

In 1998 our family took its last vacation together. My father had been to the doctor and there was a lot of worry because we didn't know yet what kind of cancer he had. My dad wanted to show the youngest girls his childhood home and the girls wanted to visit Chincoteague. Talk about storms.. The entire time we were at the shore a huge Hurricane was baring down on the east coast of Virginia. After a few days at Chincoteague we were heading down across the bay bridge toward Virginia Beach to see Dad's sister. We stopped at one of the rest stops in the middle of the bay. The tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. And it was made worse by the fact that surrounding us was boiling ocean and driving rain and the gusts were 40mph an hour.

Dad asked one of the bridge keepers " so does the water ever get high enough to flood the tunnels." I think dad was hoping the man would say no. But the guy said yes. The water of the bay was about 15 feet from the bottom of the bridge and yes the water goes up over the bridge and right down into the tunnels because of the storm surge. He said but don't worry if the wind gusts get up to 50 mph they will close the bridge. The next question dad asked scared him and he rushed us all right out to the car. It seems that if you are at the rest stop in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay during 50mph winds or higher they make you stay at the rest stop until the storm passes. Dad wasn't relishing the idea of having his whole family washed out to sea because we were stranded at the rest stop or drowned in a tunnel.

The storm chased us all the way to Virginia Beach and the next day to York Town were we were very close to being washed into the York River at one point. As we headed to Williamsburg our whole family was in misery. We were snapping at each other, the tension was terrible. My sister was driving and we wanted to go on the Williamsburg Parkway but we kept turning down wrong roads.
Finally out of a clear blue sky my dad said something totally inane, really sarcastic and extremely funny. It was vintage dad. I don't even remember what he said. Just that the shock of hearing my dad be my dad stopped everyone cold. Where there was pandemonium and noise you could almost hear a pin drop. Suddenly and simultaneously the entire family burst into laughter.

For the first time that whole trip, because my dad was the leader, he set the tone, he was strong, he was powerful he was dad and he wasn't going to let a hurricane, cancer, or being lost in traffic mess up his good time, or ours.

I remember saying. " Gee, Dad I wish you had said that about 4 days ago." And from that moment on we got along, we laughed, we joked. Before we drove home we took the little ones to the Mall in Williamsburg. And we toured Williamsburg Pottery. What could have been the most horrid family vacation ever, turned into one of the best.

Here is a truth we can all hold on to: in the mist of the storm, life threatening troubles, stresses of the unthinkable, one person, speaking life into a situation, can change everything.

A Little practice Time: Apple Trees

I spent a little time the last few days working on my apple trees. The result was a few little blooming apple trees with small farm animals. I have currently posted a couple of them on eBay for sale. The first is are two palamino ponies standing infront of the apple tree. The second is two little pigs in front of an apple tree. Enjoy them.!! They can be purchased on eBay.

Rembermber these Little paingings are standard ACEO 2.5 by 3.5 inches and they are Highly collectible minatures.

These were practice for The Orchard painting I am currently working on.

Update On The Orchard

Check out the latest work on The Orchard. I am still working on the background. This is the painting that will be going to Teens Opposing Poverty when its finished. Click here To find out more about Teens Opposing Poverty and how you can help this wonderful cause.

The Orchard: A Painting for Teens Opposing Poverty

The Orchard is a unique modern day interpretation of the story of Jesus and the Children in Luke 18:16 "But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God." The painting is set is an apple orchard, very similar to those found in the Northern Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, especially around Warren, Fredrick and Clark Counties who are famous for their apple orchards. Currently a work in progress, The Orchard is a 24" by 30" painted with acrylic polymer on canvas by artist Linda L. Martin. This painting is destined for Teens Opposing Poverty. (more info to come on this very worthy organization) The artist is known primarily for her horse and companion animal portraits and her paintings of Virginia Country Life.

Photo by Mary Tayne
stage 1: The background is nearly complete

Follow the development of the painting here, with updates on http://www.llmartin.com/ ,
Linda L.Martin Affordable Animal Portraits and Art on Facebook and follow LindaLMartin on Twitter. Pass the word along to all your friends!!

Question of the Week:What does your favorite color say about you?

I belong to a group in Facebook called: Christian Blog and Podcast. Each week the blog owner, JoJo poses a question for discussion about communication.

This week is telling something about each other by the color we choose to represent our selves i.e. our favorite color.

I had to think about it a while, because as an artist I dont just deal with simple color, I deal with color pallets. I do have some that I favor over others. Winter earth tones for examble are usually a mixture of colors we could consider neutral. lots of ochers, siennias and umbers, cobalts, pthao's ultramarine with a variety of whites. When it snows things perk up a bit. And we move to a lot of violets, blues and whites. Occasionally after a snow storm there is a sunset so brilliant in pinks, oranges and golds that you cant imagine any chemist making that color combination. Another way to perk up the drab monotonous tones is such a wonder to me at times. God colors the birds to give a bright spot in the darkness: Gold finches , Cardnials, Purple finches and a variety of Woodpeckers with spots of yellow or red.

So having said all of this I truely think it hard for me to choose simply one color. But as near as I can tell it would be Fuchisa. Fuchisa is that color half way between Red, and a mixture of White and Purple.. that is both warm and cool. It is too dark for pink, too pink for red, too red for purple and too cold with its touch of blue to be warm. When I think of it in terms of color theory it is a accent color. Like little red birds dancing about a winter picture. It compliments greens in the summer and spring by dotting it randomly about a painting you can create the illusion of birds and life thorughout a predominatly green landscape painting. You can use it as dots on the inner part of animimal eyes or people eyes to give them an illusion of life.

Also since it is a mixture of all colors it is the sum of its part. Red the blood of Jesus Shed for our sins, Blue life giving water that washes away our sins, and the word that transforms our minds into his, mixed together they make purple wich is wisdom and royalty, handed down through spiritual knowledge of who Jesus is and why he loves us and how it should help us view the world. White is a mixture of all colors, the relationship between us and each other and God himself. It is the White that tempers the red and the touch of blue to make the color seem more gentle, yet inviting and brighter.

I think what my favorite color says about me is that I am a complicated mixture of all of my parts. One person sees me and thinks I am one way, usually because that they see something familure to them, and another person will see me another way and think something different for exactly the same reason. Fuchsia is fun, bold, vibrant,it irritates the senses of some, is taken for grant-it by many, it is often rejected because it seems to over power or seems out of place. Many times its importance is over looked entirely until its gone. Then no one really knows what is missing unless it is added later by someone who understands its signifigance and places it appropraitly.

I do not think that I would paint a whole painting in Fuchsia but with out a little touch of it here and there the vibrance and sparkle of a work of art would be missing. Like an artistic dej vu. You know everything looks right but until its applied there is no life.

A Fuchsia person is ofter avoided, overlooked, seen to be intimidating and wanting control but really they just want to give love and be loved. When you realize your possition in Christ, believing him, loveing him and understanding that all these things are strengths for your assignment; then you are willing to wait on him and yield to his ways, his voice. When you learn to rest and not to move until he tells you to he will use this bold beauty to minister to the needs of others, to be his voice on so many levels and bask in the love he created you in. It can be and is a very very amazing journey.

LLMartin Affordable Pet Portraits and Animal Art On Facebook

Affordable Animal Portraits are now on Facebook.

You can now search me on Facebook. Just look for Linda L. Martin. I also have a page on Facebook. If you love pets especially cats and dogs please become a fan of my page: Linda L.Martin Affordable Animal Portraits and Art
Also dont forget to check out the Retrospective of Horse paintings and other features of my website : http://www.llmartin.com/

My current special is:

a 5" by 7" watercolor single animal pet portrait for $29.95 (plus $3.50 for S&H )

For other great deals check out my auctions on Ebay. Just search LLMartin on ebay and current auctions as well as My online ebay Store will come up.

The Winter Move

A note to all my friends, customers, and patrons,
After much thought I have decided to take a break from exhibiting my work at The Shoppes of Culpeper. After January 31st we will have moved all of my Art out. The reason is purely an economical move to take a rest from the rigors of managing a space so far from home and also to look for a new gallery space closer to home. I do hope to return to The Shoppes in a few months and will announce it here. In the mean time If you are reading this and want to see my work It will be there At the Shoppes of Culpeper until January 29th, 2009. Most items offered are are reduced in price up to %30. including 9 x 10 prints and blank note cards. Thank you so much for your patronage and support.

My Friend's Home Made Soap in my gallery space

This is our special dispay for my friend's hand made Plain Jane Soap.

Another view of the Space at the Shoppes of Culpeper

The Another view of my Gallery Space at the Shoppes of Culpeper in Culpeper, Va

Christmas and Greeting Cards at the Shoppes of Culpeper

You can order note cards when available through my websight gift shop on www.LLMartin.com

Grandma's 1960's Card Tree

What a great setting for the Little Altered Art decorations, My grandmother's Christmas Card Tree.

My Little Christmas Tree at the Shoppes of Culpeper

This year I tried my hand at Altered Art Ornaments. Here my little tree is decorated with Cardinals with theme collages on the back.

Christmas Time At the Shopps Of Culpeper

This is the first you see when you enter my gallery space at the Shoppes of Culpeper. I have a number of paintings, reproductions and various complimentary collectibles.
See more at www.LLMartin.com

Another Part of the Mural

Here is the fox going to ground. I actually loved this part of the mural the best. I loved putting together those brambles and of course my signature ferns, which I usually paint in my wildlife or woodland paintings.

Wall Mural:The View from the Front Door Entry Hall.

The space was so narrow that you couldnt quite get a good streight on view of the project when finished. I was actually standing in the door way of the office when I shot this angle. Another intersting note about this Mural is that The Client and her Friend both learned how to paint sky and mountains just for the purpose of working on this project. They both helped paint an those elements. Each person was assigned a section and I blended the bits together. It worked wonderfully. I have to admit it did increase the time on the project by weeks because of the stopping and starting due to the classes. I think, however, that it was worth it.

One last note. This mural is signed in two places. One at the bottem right as usual. And one near the horses incase for some reason they might have to move the mural , if they loose the signature near the edge there will still be a signature on the Mural where ever it is installed.

It was quite a fun project. I really enjoyed the people I was working with as well as the opportunity to paint on the wall and to paint really large.

For more of Linda's work check out her website at: www.LLMartin.com

The Dogs on the Mural

Here are the family dogs. I was a little nervous about the boxer because she is a brindle and such a sweetheart. The last day of painting she posed for me. It was really awsome. I got some cute photo's of her with the light streaming through the window. Notice the blue tractor in the back. We tried to get the colors as close as possible in every aspect however keeping in mind that it was all fantasy.

More of the Mural

The Fox Hunting Party. These ponies actually were portraits of the the family equines. The Bay horse, while not belonging to the family, is fox hunted frequently by the client.

What I did for my summer Vacation: Painting a Mural

This is the view from the kitchen/den of the finished project. The Mural was about 8 ft wide and at the tallest section it was about 6 feet tall. There was a chair rail about 3 ft above the floor.

Wall Mural is of a fantasy Fox Hunt with the Client and her children. The family dogs were also included. And even the father was in the picture in the background.

For more about Artist Linda L.Martin see her website at www.llmartin.com

One of my favorites from the Mini Murals to Go!

I got the idea for this little Mini Mural to Go from the garden shed in my back yard. There was a weird sort of opening that looked about the right size for a small animal that had been cut in one side of the shed. So I just let my imagination run wild! I showed it to my landlord's husband as i was working on it and he laughed at my wide use use of artistic liscense. Then he told me that one of the children was a farmer and had just taken some of the chickens they raised to the 4-H show. Funny art imitating life telepathicly(?) Ok that is a stretch. Anyway the painting turned out really cool. Its on masonite in acrylic polymer with a semi gloss polymer finish that glares a little too much for me to photo graph it streight on. It has holes drilled in the top for easy hanging. It can also be framed. The largest of these Mini Murals To Go is 6' by 3'. This one is about 18" by 12". I say about because we had the guy at Lowes cut the board for us. Amazing the way they do that. Then my trusty assistant, Mary, primes the surface and drills the holes( not necessarily in that order) and I plan it, draw it and paint it. I have one I am working on now that is 4' by 2' of a Dairy landscape over near Brandy Station, Virginia.

We had hoped to have it finished by our July 19th event but I stopped being super human at about 25 years old. Anyway I will post that one too when Its ready.

If you are in the area please stop in at the Country Shoppes of Culpeper located at 10046 James Monroe Hwy on 29 south of Culpeper,Va If you need better directions, google maps works nicely. Email me at contact@llmartin if you are going to be in the area and let me know how you liked the work.

www.llmartin.com

Also Available at the Country Shoppes of Culpeper Fine Art Reproductions by LLMartin

There are a variety of reproductions of artist Linda Martin's originals, priced for collectors, in wide price ranges starting at $3.oo for Art Trading Cards. Included on display are framed and ready to frame prints of watercolors and other works on Canvas and paper and graphite drawings of a variety of popular pets. Currently we are limited in size to 8.5 by 11 as the largest print we can offer.
New this year LLMartin Artistic services is offering Blank note cards. Each package contains 8 blank cards of the image of an original work of art by the artist and 8 envelops. Currently we are offering them for an introductory price of $12.49 a set. We also hope to sell them through our on line Gift store. Watch this space to see when they will be available.

www.llmartin.com

Paintings on Display At The Country Shoppes of Culpeper by LLMartin

Here are two views of our Center Display. There is a variety of Original Art work for Sale in the LLMartin Artistic Services Space Ranging in Prices from $45 for original Drawings to $2500.00 for a Highly Collectible Equine Painting. Artist Linda Martin also has offers affordable commissioned paintings in small formats that start at $10.00 or 2.5" to 3.5" and range to $125.00 for a 9 ' by 12" Watercolor.

You can check out more of her prices and terms of sale on her website: www.llmartin.com under pet portraits or landscape commissions.

Views From The Country Shoppes of Culpeper July 19th event

Among other things offered at the Country Shoppes of Culpeper, the Space occupied by LLMartin Artistic Services has original paintings, Such as Mini Murals to Go , note cards from originial paintings and Fine art reproductions of original work. This grouping is of the non partisan Vote series celebrating the rights of all US citizens to participate in the political process.

The Country Shoppes of Culpeper are located about 5 minutes South of Culpeper, Virigina on Rt. 29

www.llmartin.com

Whew!!! Im Glad for a Breather!

This month has been a real whirlwind! We had to move out of Fox Den Antiques and into The Country Shoppes of Culpeper. The Economy has been a real challenge.

Thankfully, I have a grant for some of what I am doing or I never would have survived this long. I do see that I need another grant and/or some very large commissions to take me trough the rest of this year and next year. Nothing is certain in this world and especially in this economy. Nothing expect the knowledge that God is faithful.

Several Months ago when faced with the challenges and uncertainty of moving from Warrenton to Remington I remember crying out to God for Mercy because at times the stress was unbearable. There were so many people pulling at me, so many people making decisions about my life and I had no control. And God comforted me with his Spirit. He said in his still small voice speaking to my intuition, "I will remove every obstacle in your path so that it will be as though the obstacle was never there".

I stood on that promise each time Some disaster struck to prevent me from moving forward with the process. I am still standing on that promise. God Challenged me again this month with :" Watch how I will provide for you!" Each wonderful promise he gives me I cling to like a spiritual adornment spoken like his words of love for me. I look forward to the day when I can paint those worship paintings, too.

But for this month I've lost track of how many paintings I had to accomplish. An 8 foot by 6 foot mural which I hope to finish tomorrow morning and provide pictures here. The lighting isn't very good for photography there. Hopefully later this week I will have posted the pictures of the mural.

The lion painting is waiting for approval and hopefully will also be shipped by the end of the week. We had a lot of delays trying to complete it because I had to move three times in the last three months ( my home, my studio, and my public gallery venue) and because its an oil painting it took each layer twice as long to dry because of the humidity. We had a tremendous number of rainy days and storms up until last week.

Its one of the reasons I try to allow 6 to nine months for oils. I don't like to use all those fancy driers or new fangled water base oil paints simply because no one knows how long they last or if the drying will be uneven and cause the entire painting to separate from the canvas. Some people have no problems with them. I've seen some real nightmares too ,when work by other artists was totally destroyed several months after the painting was delivered. I painted him the old fashioned and slower way.

If you would like to see the Lion : go to www.llmartin.com and scroll down to the works in progress link under the international counter. All of the stages from the approved drawing to the nearly finish product are there.

Where Have I been?

Well Well how time does fly. Ive been painting. Ive been negotiating. Ive been printing stuff.. and Ive been printing stuff... did I mention Ive been printing stuff? and yes Ive been working on finishing the up grading of the website..which I was suppose to have finished Back in February. Now its important that I finish the Upgrade before July 1, because all sorts of changes are about to happen.
I hired a wonderful assistant 6 weeks ago. She is amazing. she knows all sorts of stuff and is game for nearly anything with in reason. Its really motavational to work with some one that driven and creative. She is also about as nuts as I am, in a good way of course. I wont go into details but I will say to her credit she has an excellent sense of adventure when problem solving a delemmia. Its a very good trait! She is an absolute treasure and I am very lucky to have her.

Having said that She and I are rushing to get the new space ready before July 1. I will be opening my new dealer venue at The Country Shoppes at Culpeper as soon as we can get the instilation infrastructure in place and move the Art work in. Ive got about 3000 paintings in several locationsin storage, now I gotta sell them. My assistant is just as motivated as I am about getting the work out where it can be seen.

Our first Publicised event will be July 19th in Culpeper. She and I are looking into at least one event a month from September until Christmas. In additon to Original Art we will also be offering for sale Greeting Card Gift sets and Open Edition Fine Art Reproductions from Original Paintings . You will be able to see both in the WWW.LLMartin.COM web site Gift Shop in a few days. Watch this space to see when the updating is complete.

In addtion to all this work I am also still painting a couple of nights a week during the Lakeland Outpouring. Im very busy right now so I havent had time to list the new paintings. But one painting I made into an ACEO/ ARt Trading Card and offered it on Ebay this past week. It didnt sell but I got 78 hits. I put a breif history of the Outpouring and the meaning of the symbolism on the card. Interesting that no one emailed me. Too busy I suppse. Stil....

I also have some digital images from my studio. It will be a (pardon the pun) work in progress for quite a while. Especially since I am activly creating art while trying to organize it. To look at my desk you might think that organization is the least of my priorities. I will put up some of those pictures too ... and very soon.

hahaha.
well until next time... (waves) God give you more of Himself In Blessings, Knowledge, And Peace.