Something I love

Sorry I haven't updated recently, I've had two shows right on top of one another, and have been in Houston visiting family in the midst of it all. If you're in the Houston area come down to Comicpalooza and say hello to me! I'll be in my Stickerella booth, selling lots of vinyl decals.

Since I have nothing new to show you guys right this moment, I thought I'd take a moment to share something I've found that I absolutely love. I was enamored with the idea of mineral makeup when I first heard about it, listening to some late night infomercial. I ordered some base powder from an organic company that I order house cleaners from, but when I got it I really didn't care for the smell, or the color. With only 4 colors to choose from, and a whopping $40 price tag, I wasn't happy at all. Luckily, I was able to return this to the company, and I was out looking once again. I decided to check out a few Etsy shops. I sampled powder from several sellers, then came across The All Natural Face There were dozens of colors to choose from, and I found the absolute perfect match for my skin tone.

I replaced 90% of my makeup (only kept my mascara, because there wasn't anything to replace it with). I got the base, the "glow" which makes a beautiful natural looking blush, the mineral veil, patina concealer, and four eyeshadows.

I get red patches on my face, especially around my nose. The patina concealer completely smooths these out, and gives me a clear canvas to apply the base to. The finished look is very natural. When I go out, I don't look like I'm painted with gobs of makeup. One of the first nights I wore it out, I had on the whole shebang except for eyeshadow. I was at the coffee shop painting, and one of my friends stopped by and commented on how beautiful my skin looked :) I was hooked right then. It feels really smooth and silky on, and my skin has really started to clear up. This is a big deal to me, because I'd break out every time I put my old makeup on.

I don't promote just anyone, and I'm getting no benefit from this review. I just wanted to share a great product with others. She offers very affordable samples as well, so you can try all of her products before you put down the big bucks.

Conventions and more decals!

I just got finished with Aggiecon back in College Station. Aggiecon was the convention that I was a part of during my years at Texas A&M University, and I love to go back and meet all the new kids and see how my friends are doing. This year I got a dealer's table, and my decals flew out of my hands. So, now I'm working on getting into several more shows in the near future. If you're somewhere in or around Texas, and have an idea for a Sci-Fi, Horror, or Fantasy convention you'd like me to vend at, just let me know!

So far, I'm set for sure to do A-Kon. I just got verification this morning, and I'm totally stoked to be going back. I'm planning to attend Delta H Con at the University of Houston, and Comicpalooza, but I'll be sure to post once I get verification for both of those.

I've got a lot of new decals available in my shop too! And I'll be adding more as time goes on. There are several commission pieces I need to do still, and I'll have more drawn images available in a few weeks. Suggestions? Let me know!

Life

Life is about to get a bit crazy for me over the next few weeks, so you may see very little of me. I'm going to Galveston to plan more of my wedding, and to celebrate my munchkin's second birthday! I'm so excited :D I'll also be working on some of my wedding crafts over the week, and I'll post links to tutorials and share photos once things are finished.

The 26th-29th of this month I'll be at Aggiecon. I wont be wandering around this year, so I'll be easy to corner (sorry again for those who missed me when I was there last year!) I'll have a table in the Dealer's room selling my vinyl decals, so if you purchase a print in the art show (no originals this year, I'm traveling light) or if you already have one and you'd like me to sign it for you, bring it by my booth! Also, if you've seen one of my paintings and would like the original, send me an Email at battlemaidenart@yahoo.com and we'll work out a price, and I'll bring it to the show for you.

Sometimes I need the boot

Seriously. Sometimes it takes a little nudge to set me on track. I have a tendency to run on tangents, which leads me to new tangents, and projects that I begin with every intention to finish get left in the wake. There are a few I can think of right now that fall into this category (Awesome dragon painting I started... Dancing Gypsy that's left half finished... one day I'm going to just stop and finish everything I have that's half done.)

I got an Email today from a guy who went out of his way and did a photoshoot for me years ago (I mean, YEARS ago) for a really awesome painting idea I had. He's a super guy, the photos were great, my talent at the time was lacking to say the least, and all sketches that came of it were far from being worthy of the huge and awesome idea. The idea was to paint several of the Norse Gods in settings that were very symbolic of the stories that pertain to them. I was going to begin with Loki (the one who was always the most interesting to me), and Rob was very kind and sat through two photo shoots (which he did completely on his own, wow) to get me the perfect reference photos.

So, my sketches sucked, Rob and I stayed in touch for a little while, and as things happen we lost touch. Years passed, and we arrive to about a month ago. I have been researching more into Asatru, and found a really great podcast that's been a delight to listen to. I started at the beginning, and came before long to an episode completely about Loki (Here's the link, if you're interested) and it rekindled my thoughts on this painting. They've been wiggling around in there, along with other paintings I've been thinking about, shows I'm prepping for, wedding plans, and the constant stimulation of motherhood. Then, today I got that Email. Boot.

You know what? I think I'm ready. Thanks Rob, I needed it!

Also, in a completely unrelated note, I've significantly lowered shipping costs in my vinyl decal shop. I've changed shipping materials, which has allowed me to lower prices. Yay!

Morrigan le Fae

This is a painting of the little sprite that fills our home with smiles and laughter. Of course, like any good fae, she is constantly leaving a mess and hiding my things... but look at that little face! Who could be upset?



The finished painting of my daughter, Morrigan. Scroll down if you missed the sketches and the work in progress. She'll be two in just two and a half weeks! It all moves so fast.

This painting is all mine, no prints will be sold (though her grandparents will be getting some :P)

Thoughts

I have never taken formal art classes, so pretty much everything that I know is self taught. There are a few places I feel I'm lacking because of this, but there are a lot of places I feel I've been able to play and experiment and develop in ways that people who begin as instructed artists don't get. David has been taking a watercolor class this semester, and I've been gleaning tips and tricks off of him as he learns. This is the first time he's ever worked with watercolor, so everything he does is being pretty heavily dictated by the professor. At times it's frustrating for him, but I can see where doing structured projects is helping him develop skills he's going to need when working on completed pieces.

All of this has me thinking about where my weaknesses lie, and what I can do to work on them. I think I'm going to spend some time after completing my daughter's portrait working on my own skills. Like usual, I'll be doing research online, as well as studying other artists for clues to their process, then working on some emulated pieces of my own design. We'll see how it goes!