What a wonderful day!

Today, this morning, I was having a big old pity party, laying on my bed crying. I was crying about one thing,
that led to another thing, you know how that is. But the one thing that I mostly have been crying about for years
was that I could not see, email, write, or have anything to do with 4 of my grandchildren. It's a long story.

My son, who is their father, and Ashley's father, has been visiting me and so when the news hit the family that
I was ill, he went to his wife, who was the hold out on this, and told her that he wanted to bring the kids to see me,
and her too if she wanted to. Well, it ended up that he brought Jamie and Kathleen, two of the prettiest and sweetest
kids I've ever seen and I was overwhelmed, and my other son was here with his son, and Ashley was here with her two,
and of course Robin was the catalyst! I mean I am one more happy person right now, and I hope soon to see my
other two, and of course his wife.

It has been 6 years since I've got to see them. 6 solid years of heartache. It's over now, I pray.

On another front, Robin talked me into listing some paintings that I did not think were much good, but she did,
and there is a lot of bidding going on over there!!!!!! That helps more than anybody could ever know because
money is extremely short right now.

So I'm going to take a nap and I feel pretty doggone good, there was no pain while they were here, not a bit.

Cia

CT Test Results

Well, my friends, we come to a place in the road where everything you thought was important is really not. We (Robin and I) saw the pictures from the CT scan. What we saw was amazing.
In no less than 10 months, since my last chest x-ray, growths have appeared. In my lungs, both of them, and my liver has 3 in it, it looks like, they are bunched together. My liver is swollen and way bigger than it is supposed to be.

I go in for a biopsy on the lung tissue next Tuesday. This is hard for me to write. But I made a decision not to close myself up and hide. I'm going to live, live, and have fun! More butter pecan ice cream! And I'm going to paint all the time, all the time, all the time. Anybody that doesn't like what I do, I don't care. Suddenly I feel quite free.

Love you all.

Life is a Beach

Life is a beach, they say.

Here's what I just listed, I am proud of this one. It's about 7.5" x 10" on Kilimanjaro paper, 140 lb. Cold press, bright white.

I was sort of urged (to say the least) to venture in this direction by my lovely daughter, Robin.
Man was I resistant!!!!!

But now I'm very glad and have plans for some more "beaches".

Also, today I go see a new doctor, he's a lung specialist. There are some odd nodules on my lungs and I've been in pain and pretty sick for about a month, actually. I had a CT scan yesterday,
so we will hopefully have the answer to what this is. And hope it is something that can be treated!

Later

Beach 1

Hello everyone! I've begun a series on "beaches" and this is the first one. We have beaches as a project in my teaching group right now. If you would like to be a member, go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/WatercolorLessonsbyCia/join
and join us! We are already at 109, world wide! Every month (which we begin on the 15th of each month) we have a competition. We've divided ourselves into 3 groups,
Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced. This is all FREE! There are many, many demos and lessons in the files.

Here's my first "beach", called "Beach 1". Comments welcome!

Close to Finished

Here's where I am right now. Not much more to do on the Confederate Rose painting.

Full Sheet Confederate Roses WIP

Here's what I'm working on right now. This is a full sheet painting, although in the WIP you can't see all of the drawing. This editor really won't let me put this in the right order, right now it's showing up last picture first. So look from the bottom up!
Cia

"I'm So Glad"

I did this small painting for a group I belong to, Aquanet, for a theme called
"Close Up". Don't worry, I will finish the rose one soon, but this was kind of
urgent to finish.

This one is about 8" x 10" on Arches 140 lb. cold press bright white paper.

It was growing in my garden, and this represents what I did with one of
the photographs I took. I was standing with the sun coming over my shoulder,
I put the glad on my deck floor, stood on the steps and photographed it.
That is why the shadow is above it instead of below it.

Comments and Critiques always welcome!

Variegated Roses - WIP

Here's what I'm working on right now. This is a huge challenge because these roses are variegated in color! This is from a photo I took of my neighbor's garden last year. Stay tuned!

Pink Hydrangea - step by step

Whew, trying to get these in the right order is harder than painting the dang thing.

Stay tuned!
Cia

Hydrangea Final

Here's the final on the Hydrangea painting. I'm calling it "Naomi's Hydrangeas" since she was my mother-in-law, now deceased, and she could grow the most beautiful hydrangeas ever.

You can click on it to see a bigger version.

It's available for sale at http://www.glowing-watercolors-by-cia.com

Comments always welcome!
Cia

Hydrengeas WIP Step 4

Hydrangea - Step 4, WIP
I am loving this one, it's fun to paint, like
a good book it slowly unfolds for me. And like a good book, somehow I will miss working on it when it's done.

Cia

Hydrangeas WIP

3 WIP pictures. Stay tuned!

Link to my ebay store

It's been suggested to me that I put a link to my store on here, so here it is:
http://www.glowing-watercolors-by-cia.com

Thanks so much for asking about this!

Cia

Apple Blossom Time~Original Watercolor Painting~by Cia

Apple Blossom Time~Just Listed!

This is a half-sheet of Kilimanjaro paper,
just finished and just listed. It has not one
single solitary bit of white paint on it anywhere.

The white you see is the white of the paper!

Thanks for looking!
C & C always welcome, but too late!
Cia

Flutterby 3-09

Here's my latest "Flutterby". It is listed, and it's starting at only .99. This is an ACEO.
I loved painting this, and leaving white where it was called for.

Update

I cannot believe I have not posted since March 15! Well, hmmmmm
There are now prints on my site at ebay. http://www.glowing-watercolors-by-cia.com
and I'm selling some of my old art books also. I have read them a million times (well, you know)
so I thought maybe somebody else would love them.

Here's the last two paintings I have there right now. There is a bid on the "Come Hither" one and not much time left.

The other one, and I do not know why there are no bids on this thing, because I think it's one of my best ones, is Confederate Roses.

On another note, I think that I am feeling a lot better finally after my back surgery back in September. More later!

A 5" x 7" Confederate Rose Painting

This is a lot like a tiny one I did but easier to do because it was a little bigger. With my new kolinski and sable brushes, I begin to improve a whole ot.
Cia

ACEOs - Just Listed - 3-8-09

Just listed, Starting at only $2.00 with FREE SHIPPING!

View a clip from the DVD!

Right now if you go to http://www.artmaker.com and order from there, I am going to pay for the shipping on this DVD.

"Pretty Peony" DVD!

Hello again! I must say this DVD is flying out the door! I listed it on ebay for $29.99 but then realized they were going to charge me $4.60 final value fee on each one! Man that didn't set well with me.

So if you want this 50 minute DVD which I have made, all on my own, and I feel really good about it, just go to Paypal and send $25 + $2 shipping and I will immediately send you one. Send to watercolorist@artmaker.com

This is how it looks.

The DVD "Pretty Peony" is ready to ship!!!!!

It's finally READY! I'm burning these things and I'm sending out some this morning already! I have it listed at ebay for $29.99, + $2 shipping. If you want one and you comment to me in this blog, then go to Paypal and send me $25 +$2 shipping to watercolorist@artmaker.com you can get it at that. This video is approximately 50 minutes long and it is detailed in its presentation. Up close to the paper and you can see what I'm doing. I've also included the colors and brushes I've used. Most importantly, I have included my secret tools! You will be so surprised when you see how one of them works!

Here's a picture of it. The painting, which is already featured on this blog, has already won a First Place award in an online competion!!!

Thanks so much for reading this.
Cia

Promote your art!

I sure would love to start a movement to promote watercolor painting!
I've started a networking site, come join us at http://www.ciaswatercolorfriends.ning.com

and share your story!

Cia

Today's Effort... Sun-Shy Peony

This is my peony of this day!
To find out more, go here!
"Sun-Shy Peony"

This is only a 5" x 7" painting! Hard to get all that in there.

Cia

First Place!

Hey everyone, I won first place at a contest at one of the groups I belong to,
Designing Women! Here's the painting!

This is also the subject of the DVD that is going to be out very soon!

Cia

Great Grandmother Again!

My newest grandchild finally was born on January 27! He weighed in at 8 lbs and 13 oz.
His name is Bowen! Here's a picture of the little doll!

Paintings and Babies

Hello all, today I'm going to show you the cover for the DVD on peonies, at least it's a work in progress, I have not decided how it will look yet. And let you know that my granddaughter, Ashley, has said she may go to have her baby today. She is already 1 day overdue.

Here's the cover so far, needs tweaking, don't hesitate to make some suggestions.

If I disappear for a few days, I will be back!
Cia

Pretty Peony Final

Here's the final on the Pretty Peony. The DVD is very close to being finished. I may have to wait a while to finish it, my granddaughter is at her due date and dialated 2 cm! That could cause some wait time.

Here it is though.

Latest Photo of my Peony

As of last night, it looked like this.

I've done some more since then, I sat up late last night thinking my granddaughter, Ashley, was going to have her baby last night! So to stay alert, I painted a little more. Will post that photo a little later today. That baby has his own mind! He
went back to sleep and decided it wasn't his birthday yet!

Cia

p.s. Thanks to Vicki Green who posted links to this blog and to my youtube
site where one can view some clips of how this was painted. I'm making a DVD
of it.

I'm adding a link to the Daily Painters Gallery

Here it is!

Daily Painters Gallery - Contemporary original art for sale

Early Snow

Here's one I think I'm about done with.
Cia

Pretty Peony!

This is my next planned DVD project. These 3 photos are still shots that I'm doing to
put in between the clips in the DVD. Here you go.



Stay Tuned for More!