The 2015 Poinsettia Story

The 2015 Poinsettia Story

I have terribly neglected My Christmas Paintbrush page and I have to be remiss if I did not step in and post a why!?

I have been sidetracked in writing my book and most recently, Spring and Summer gardening, one of my other, dear to my heart, passions. (I really should punctuate that with an exclamation point as all of my friends on Facebook and Instagram get updates on my herb and veggie garden at least... every other day.)

My Puny Poinsettia

I was on a journey with the growing things. I felt if I really wanted to understand poinsettias and other leafy creatures in my art realm it was most certainly necessary to help bring them to life through seed and start (impossible for a poinsettia), dedicate time to water and nurture them, and tend to them when the seasons wafted in and away. My only sickly poinsettia is actually a dollar store find and I have managed to almost kill it at least three dozen times. It recently found shelter behind my green grape vine and appears to be thriving at the moment. 

I cooed in delight when I found this tiny plant in the store and set it on my table to enjoy its lovely color and shape that first winter. It had spotted flower centers touched in yellow and dashes of red. The leaves above were lovely, bright scarlet and the under leafy bracts were lovely shades of dark and lighter green. The leaves had a vein to them here and there in even spacing. The stems an odd slight turn and a noteable bow in small increments. The lively plant thing began to fade soon into the holidays and drop a few leaves and I adjusted it to the new life it would live here by removing the fancy paper around the pot and setting it where it would not find a draft. There it went on to live, Plain, plant life. A spent decoration.

Poinsettias are nice houseplants if you do not have a rowdy bunch of kittens or tumbling kids around knocking things about and being occasionally clumsy. The sharp looking leaves and small branches are delicate and destroy easily, dripping a sticky, milky substance upon everything around them if broken. They are reported to be poisonous, but I have never dared to doubt the claim. It looks like poison coming out of the stem, so I mind my creatures and small persons carefully and place the plant out of reach and bump.  During warmer months, this tender plant stays in shady areas in my herb bed, but when chill threatens it comes back inside where it can stay toasty warm. 

Some magical Christmas I shall find the right combination of light to bring out the colors on this plant, but for now I am content to use its shapes and curves as inspiration for my already favorite paintings, namely, the poinsettias I do every Christmas time on the window panes of my clients. During these times this song always sticks in my ear as do the other Carols of the season. 

Browse the archives for now or step over to my site and learn more about this art form and the delight it brings both artist and admirer.

www.holidaywindowpaint.com

Take Pictures Of Your Window Painting Themes

Take Pictures Of Your Window Painting Themes 

Animals and Standard Holiday Fare

Gotta love those Christmas critters! These are the penguins I painted several years ago. Snow play is a popular scene in window painting themes. Whether you are using animals or people, dressing up a window with snow scenes using paint can be a great substitute for the real thing. Here you see three birds in their winter gear enjoying the slopes and taking time out to play and linger for the holidays. The names are the owner's pets. I love the trees in this scene and the look on penguin Montego's face. He certainly looks like he is having a good time. The advantage of this art is it is original. The scene will be removed after the first of the year come January. I am grateful I had a disposable camera with me when I finished the painting or I would not have this image design to share with you now.

Buy a good camera to bring with you. After the painting is finished, snap several shots from angles to the right, left, full center and from far away. If you have a lot of glass left on the window after you have painted, watch the glare from the flash mode with your camera. You will need to step to one side or the other to avoid having the flash wash out the picture. Choose good lighting in the afternoon for the best quality images.

Get close ups of the details so that you may mark this down in your drawing and image journal. Note which details to keep and which to repeat again. Although this particular image will not be painted again unless I repeat in similar fashion, it can be used as inspiration for future window paintings.

Snow playing penguins - window painting

Santa Claus Paintings

Santa is another great image to alter and paint doing things other than over seeing the toy shop or making the rounds on Christmas Eve. I have him in all sorts of situations. Below the scene shows him having his hair cut by the local North Pole barber elf. I think the elf is doing a fine job of it. The little guy is perched carefully on a ladder and doing his best to trim Santa up for the big night. Santa has to look right and I think he is happy with his barber. What do you think? I think I am again glad I had a good camera with me to preserve this image!

Santa At the North Pole Barber Shop(1)

Santa At the North Pole Barber Shop (2) closeup

Getting the details saved from this scene took a bit of editing so I could look a bit closer at the whole image. With the smirk on Santas face and the elf, I can repeat this one with more details at a later date. Preserve as much of your art as you can. It is temporary and will be disappearing after the New Year. This is something you must get used to if you want to paint for the holidays. 

For more information, supplies and materials see:

So, You Want To Paint Holiday Windows on Squidoo. or visit www.holidaywindowpaint.com to buy the beginner's tutorial, The Essential Window Painting Guide.

What animal or character would you like to paint for the holidays? 

The Essential Window Painting Guide

A journey into the experiences that brought me to this point can be found in The Essential Window Painting Guide.

The Essential Window Painting Guide

I originally wanted to sell this from a popular publishing site, but the process for formatting has gotten too crazy for me to finish before the season and it was not as easy as they make it out to be. I am an ARTIST, not a programmer. I am still learning about this. Currently the book is available as a PDF. To get your copy visit the site: www.holidaywindowpaint.com 

I am still trying to work all the kinks out of this process so if it doesn't work immediately, email me at info@mariaburgess.com and I will jump right on the issue.

I am exploring different areas on my own with the book sales. I am in territory no one can really help me on or will if I can't pay for the assistance.

Going through all of this has been a huge learning curve and I am grateful, believe it or not, when something does go wrong. It means I can get that situation fixed and wait for the next debacle. It is kind of like a painting that looks great and when you turn your back on it one nice drip forms and runs right down the area that you just detailed to perfection! It is and can be maddening, but it is all part of the experience. These issues like window painting can be fixed easily if you are patient and have a steady hand...

There are quite a few tricks you need to know about if you want to decorate your windows. The project can be a mess if you do not follow the right steps.