Flag Chicken - No Pun Intended

I was struggling to draw, then paint a plain chicken.  It looked so barren:

I just had to jazz it up a bit:  No pun intended.  I am not saying the U.S. is chicken....or am I?????

Keep the faith. 

Dog Days Of Summer Are Upon Us - 2016

If it's too hot out there for ya, just stay inside and paint pretty pictures.  It is fun, creative and makes you feel good.  No matter what your age is, or your state of health, painting is a wonderful diversion from problems.  Don't watch the news - it's depressing.  I recommend staying  in tune with your happy self and keep a positive attitude. 

July Is Hot - 100 Degrees In The Shade

All I can think about is how to stay cool.  Staying inside in the air condition.  Wish I could go to the beach, but the heat would be hard to handle.  Here are a couple new digitally created paintings.
It is very nice to be able to paint by hand and then clean them up on the computer. God  Bless You.
Always, your friend, Cooky :)

Have A Safe Fourth Of July Holiday

Are hobbies a waste of time, if you do not have talent?

In my opinion.  One has to feel proud of their own work.  Otherwise,  is it a waste of time?  What is the use of doing it as a hobby, if the paintings are not considered to be very good in comparison to the masters' great works of art. Hopefully, my answer is somewhere in the paragraphs below.

For instance, Pinterest is very inspirational and the pictures are to die for.  However, recently, I changed my Pinterest settings in order to not have  them send me so many  "how-to-videos." on painting, cooking, etc.  When painting my pictures, doing the best I can, it is a downer to always see the same or close pictures, that are perfect in every way and looks like a photo.  Compared to my paintings, most works of art on this site are done by professionals with lots of talent and experience.   Their works put my stuff to shame.  There is a lesson in the next paragraph, please be patient while I explain.  lol

I remember when, I first joined a local art club and experienced my first art show.  It was an art show on a grand scale, outside, with hundreds of artist displaying and selling their art. Everyone's art works were considered by the judges for the best in show, etc.  I sold tickets for the show at the front gate.
It was not exactly cheap to enter one's picture, photo, or whatever for consideration in competition.

Some artists had dozens and dozens of their works displayed and ready to sell. It was a grand event with at least 100,000 plus  people coming to look and oft times buy items they liked.  It was more an art festival of enormous magnitude. 

  I  had just two small, framed pictures, that I had painted of my grandmother's old house.  The house was an historical site due to the fact that, it had been a hospital at one time or another during the civil war.   I distinctly remember  one young lady,  who had a small picture she had completed and wanted to enter it in the art show.  She paid the expensive admission fee,  because she was very, very proud of that one  little piece of unframed canvas.  She had created something wonderful and wanted to show it off to the world. I felt, feel exactly like this girl did about her one painting creation, in my work, just like all those professional painters out there in this world.   No matter how big or small, or how it may look to others, the feeling of accomplishment is still there.  By the way, first place was given to a young man an unknown artist , for his life sized painting of an American Indian. It didn't have a frame either.   Second prize went to a young lady with her small picture of a beautiful cat!

Now, some forty years later after my first show, I don't belong to an art club any more and do not compete.   However,  I am still learning and enjoying that wonderful feeling of accomplishment in painting my pictures.    It is definitely not a waste of time. 
 Keep the faith
Your friend, Cooky
A.k.a   Loramae :)

4 June 2016 - Reality Shows And Freedom

Summer is hot in Virginia, and golf, baseball, swimming sports are everywhere.    Love to watch reality shows about winter on TV.  These shows remind me of how cold it can be in the mountains and on the lakes.   Mountain Men, Last Frontier and Bush family to name a few.  I am truly blessed to live in Virginia, where there is a moderate climate all year around - most times.

A few new shots on TV last night regarding Alaska's Brown family.  It was really fantastic seeing them jump into the ocean and have a real pig roast on the Pacific Ocean beach.    It was very kind of the mechanic who let them borrow his beautiful RV.  Their RV had died big time on the road trip.  Yes, I know the boys helped the owner of the shop doing something or another as partial payment to fix their RV that needed a new motor.    I think more people should be kind to them in that way.  Instead of being critical of the show, folks should send them stuff, like a case full of spam or chilly and maybe a tractor to help them clear the land.  Can't wait to see next week's episode.  I do not like all the commercials and repeats, as there are too many interruptions that waylay our seeing more of the family.   I wish Billy would stop saying "I don't know what to do." occasionally.    He knows everything and the boys are learning so much.  I just love that family and the spirit of freedom they are trying to represent.

Our "Freedom" in America is in dire trouble. The IRS coming after poor people instead of the rich,
State and county taxes on our personal property are rising along with utilities and cable food, medical, etc.    Waterways are being policed and hefty tickets given out in fines.  I really wish, that we all were free to pursue an independent life style free of taxes and bills and rich conglomerates controlling our lives and money.   We should have  the freedom to harvest food and fish in the oceans without all the licensing that is currently required.  Go down to the nearest fishing hole and you will get a ticket, if you have no license.  Lower these costs is my solution.  It will never happen.

I am not so sure that any president could ever fix these problems.  However, I hope whoever gets the presidency will be a responsible person in regard to some of my issues.  Taxing the old folks and poor makes no sense.  The scammers are out to get older people and anyone they can con.  The IRS is a scammer.  They want actual pictures of donations. One cannot claim donations like that stuff you gave to the local community Acts thrift shop or the food and money  you gave a neighbor to help them out.  What a crock.  I know how our democracy works for some.    However, at what price for freedom?  Now congress has a pending bill that would require young girls and woman to sign up for the draft, if it is passed. Woman and men should have freedom to choose what they want to do with the rest of their lives without fear of jail time, for not doing the draft thingy. 

In summary, real life cost so much money that we cannot afford to live freely.  I think it was tragic to send the Bush family members to jail.  They paid the money back already.    Billy is sick and probably mostly due to stress. Wish I could go live in Brown Town despite the bears..

Keep the faith,
your friend cooky

About Creative Talent

A colorful little southwest arrangement seems fitting for getting ready to have hot weather days.   Color and texture lend value to paintings.  However, theme is important as well.  Ethnicities have always interested me, especially in trying to paint people. God and our ancestors gave us talents,  many  that we didn't even know we had until we actually tried them.  Painting ethnic folks is fascinating to me.   I attempt to capture the varied styles of clothing and features first before the face.    That is, if,  I don't get tangled up in trying to paint details that bog me down and distract my mind from what is really  important in portrait painting - the joy of painting as a hobby.  That is what I am trying to achieve.

Many of my ethnicity paintings have been given away before, I knew how to  scan them into  the computer first.   I love the different type of ethnic features,  facial features and expressions.  If one can capture the essence of an individuals' personality, then it is possible to create a likeness.  Whether the art work is considered good, bad,  cartoon like, abstract or real life - capturing the jest of a person's nose, mouth, eyes, hair and personality can result in  a fairly interesting portrait of that person no matter what ethnicity.  I have learned more from watching portrait painting videos recently, than I ever could from practicing without the proper techniques being explained to me.  Thank goodness for You Tube and the many art lessons available on that channel and on Pinterest. 

I have been watching video art lessons given by dozens of fantastically talented  artist, who do just that. Each have their own unique style and abilities when painting pictures.  Sometimes, I feel that, I have no talent in art at all when I see how much real talent is out there.    Then again, my own cartoon-type style is more talent than lots of people have in painting and drawing.  One only has to see the work of students in elementary school and on up through and beyond college to know that talent is abundant all over the world.   When one dedicates their lives to studying art, it really makes a difference in their skill level.  Talent, of course, is God given.    Being skilled in more than one area of expertise is a God send.      So many different ways out there to paint things from a through z, one only  has to stay true to his or her own style and talents  to be  successful in any endeavor one
choses to pursue. 

God gave us some wonderful assortments of talents through out our lifetime.  Some talent is inherent and others are acquired through observation and higher learning.  Whether an artist is good or terrible, it is good that our creative side of our brain is happy doing something we are proud of and dedicated to in the different fields of artistic expressions. 
Keep the faith,
Always, your friend,
Cooky (aka lora) :)

May 2016

Summer heat is fast approaching.  Schools have only four more weeks of activities for students.
Vacationers will flock to D.C. to visit the wonderful monuments and archives.  The roads will be crowded and busy with more accidents -  some being  caused by young drivers. 

I don't look forward to scorching sunny days like, I used to when younger. When we lived near the river in eastern Virginia - sunny days were spent fishing and cooking out in rainy weather or good days.  Even in winter the days were so beautiful.  Some days were simply breathtaking, it was so lovely.  Now, all I want to do is curl up in the cool air conditioning with my paints and computer.
The weather, wind, sun and rain affect me and hubby badly.  Allergies are constant problems and our medications make us blister, if we get in direct sunlight. I long to go to the beach and walk on the wet sand.  Maybe this year, I will make it to the ocean once again.  It is definitely on my bucket list.

However, our  children and grandchildren love every minute of summer, especially after school is out.  My daughter, who works in her daughters' school will be happy to have the days off.  Her family will head to Oak Island, N.C. a few times to enjoy visiting relatives there.  The beaches of N.C. are really beautiful along the shoreline.  My other family members will head out on road trips that serve as their vacations. 

Two of my nieces will be driving off to summer jobs and then college in the fall.  I know they are safe drivers. I trust their driving responsibly.  However, I do worry about other drivers that are not so careful.  Adults as well as teens should be extra careful.  The sirens of our rescue workers are constantly going off and it is scary just how often.  It is often many times a day that they must respond to an accident call.  We all had to good through the learning to drive techniques.  My grandson will begin learning and practicing those driving lessons in school next year.  Bless his heart, he cannot wait.

I will love it when my morning glories began to bloom.  For such a tiny living area and yard, we have quite a few rose bushes, shrubs and flowers in and around the trailer that we live in.  It is a wonderful and comfortable time for us here.   Well keep the faith.  Always your friend. Cooky (aka lora :)

Pinterest Is Awesomeness In Art Works

Pinterest has some of the most beautiful paintings, pencils, pictures by all kinds of artist., i.e., pop art (like me), realistic art, fantasy art, portraits, expressionist (me). All types of media.  I really like the workshops they provide. One is never to old to learn new tricks and techniques in oils, pencil, pastels, watercolors, etc. Check them out. Awesomeness.

Painting Pretty Pictures

Painting is a wonderful, relaxing experience for me.  I can idle away the day playing with my paints and brushes so easy.  Then, after I have created my master pieces (pun), off to the scanner they go to be copied to my computer.  Here is where the magic happens !  I digitally correct, cut and past, color, straighten lines, add depth and highlights to a few of them.  Gimp and Paint are programs that allow these necessary refinements that make my art work look so much better.  Further, it doesn't hurt my wrists at all like painting with a brush does.  Here are a couple of my recent works:

On My Palette - A Recent Creation on Gimp

Angels - I Wish I could Paint One

Angels - I Wish I could Paint One:    I truly believe in angels. My daughter says she has an angel named, Sara, who takes her to visit with her grandmother in dreams. My daughter tells me that Sara pops up in her dreams often. In addition, there could be are all kinds and types of angels. Some angels give us blessings and make us feel good. For instance, my sister, Terry, is like an angel; and she has been a blessing to me all these years as only a sister can. I would hope, that just maybe, everyone quite possibly has a guardian angel watching over them. Perhaps, its just our spiritual conscience speaking to us in times of need that make us wish we had an angel sitting on our shoulder. Especially, when we have a need for a higher understanding of what is happening to and around us. Call it fate, magic or God, I'm not sure what, or if it really happens, that angels do visit us here on earth. For example - think about all the times one has just barely missed a car, or some other unforseeable disaster, that could have taken our lives in an instant. Thank goodness, fate or angels were with us.

Several times, I have been delayed before going out in the car to the store or wherever. Often that delay saved me and my hubby's life. My guardian angel, she or He knew exactly how to delay us inorder to keep us safe. It happened again to me. Once while visiting my daughter, my eyeglass lense popped out when sitting on her deck. The pin fell between the deck boards to the ground below. It took at least five minutes to find it. Coupled with the few minutes it took my husband to repair my glasses before we got in the car and headed down the road helped us probably avoid a bad car accident that had happened seconds earlier as we arrived at the scene. If we had been a few minutes earlier, it could have spelled disaster for us. Coincidences like those I talked about earlier happens way often to me. So I can't just chalk it up to fate or luck. Call me crazy or what, I believe that Angels are real.

Perhaps, they are sweet, caring and all-seeing spirits sent by God to keep an eye on us. Who knows? My husband, daughters and grand children are angels in a difference respect, but angelic none-the-less. I often think, how would I have gotten along in my senior years without the love and support of my family, who are definitely my angels. Keep the faith. Your friend. Cooky :)

Shopping...Shopping.. & More Shopping !

Wednesday, 5 December 2012: Hi folks
Went shopping late last night at an all-nighter wally world and didn't get home til 1:30 a.m. It was so great. At least I got a cart and had plenty of room in the isles (Lots of workers stocking shelves - it was delightful, no rude customers.) I meet the sweetest, cutest young manager. He had beautiful blue eyes and was ever so polite and helpful. So were all the workers !. Its amazing how less crowds make shopping more funner. Keep the faith, Cooky :)

November 2012 - What TV Channel - None Maybe?

It's quite a choice on television today what to watch. Whether you watch the coverage of the elections, the weather, storm damage or new programs, it is all kind of heartbreaking.

The elections were so cut-throat and name-calling, it got on my nerves, not to mention the constant phone calls reminding us to vote. I just cannot get all hyped up about any of this stuff. I have my own problems like we all do. One must put God first, family second and job third. The election outcome can only help some and will definitely hurt others. We are all working to pay taxes and it will only get worse. Prayer is needed, badly.

Prayer for the victums of these storms is needed as well. I hate to see the devastation created by these storms for folks in these communities that have lost it all. However, we should all watch tv coverage of the storms and learn just how serious and vunerable we all are to the nature's extreme elements. Its scary to say the least. Unfortunately, those hard hit communities up north must contend with snow and cold.

We really dodged a bullet in Virginia with "Sandy". I am so very grateful it missed us. The trailer park would have been toast so to speak. I have had my share of hurricanes and storms.

Keep the faith,
Your friend, Cooky :)

Hello folks ! So good to see you. Happy Fall harvest pumpkin season. Vegetables this time of year are nice, healthy, warming food for the soul and body. Roasted is my favorite that are simply delicious to my palate. Having time to kill, I am continually trying new recipes from Pinterest and the Food Network. Cooking is my passion for the moment, in between creating and working on digital art projects. I'm no cook, although my alter ego is named "Cooky." Some of my ideas turn out alright and others are not so good. Here are a few mentionables.

First, I made a dump cake from a recipe on Pin. It was something I wanted to try but never had. Yuck ! It was the worse tasting stuff ever. I re-read the recipes and looked at dozens of pictures. Yep, I had made it and it looked like the pictures. Although, I had been sceptical about spreading dry cake mix on pineapple covered with bananas (a deviation from the original recipe) to say the least of my problems with the recipe. Second, I didn't like the mushy texture, nor the harsh flavor.

Subseqently, with a whole cake pan full of this stuff, I had to do something to save it, if possible. Luckily, I found another recipe on Pin for Cinnamon Bread Bread Pudding offered by a lovely young lady, and was able to reconstitute the entire dump cake mess into something very delicious. It turned out to be a delightful, pleasant tasting banana-pineapple-coconut bread pudding. Whew ! Another cooking disaster saved at the last minute.

Second, a previous failure had been trying to make cinnamin rolls from cresant rolls. It was a disaster because the butter, sugar and cinnamin didn't combine very well on those small scraps, that stuck together of cresant dough. So the leftovers went into the above mentioned bread pudding. That worked out nicely. Another previous food recipe success was the squash pie made from acorn squash. Now, that was very successful and delicious.

Third and fourth were successful craft and painting ideas. I made the coffee-filter flowers that turned out beautifully. Luckly, my daughter had done it before and she dipped each flower tip gently into food colors. My hubby then attached them to skewers and pushed them into a small pumpkin for a really AWEsome display. This lead to my painting with the left over food colors. See the results for yourself. I kinda like them. Well, tc and keep the faith. Your friend, Cooky.

Reference Workshops

References:
Oil - Old World Style Painting Workshop (Green)
Acrylics - Workshop (Ross)
Water Colors - Workshop (Madden)
Drawing - by Ronald Pearsall

Designs & Pictures By Cooky

Hello folks, so glad you could stop by. Get in touch with your creative side and pick up the ole paint brush, pencil, pen or whatever, and just do it - start painting, it's that easy !

Wish you were there right now?

Mountain View - Mother Nature Series;
Let these pictures take you to a quiet place in your mind. Serene, peaceful, feel the tiny bubbles of early morning mist gently floating in the air.  Take a deep fresh breath of cool mountain air and relax from your busy schedules.

Greeting Card Originals
Ethnic Series - "Main Street"

Original/sold, prints available