The final painting - mixed media flower painting on an 18x24 inch canvas. One of my artist friends thought that when I first started the roses in the middle they were collaged, ie from a magazine image or similar. But no, all the flowers are painted in acrylic. The gold sections are cut from fiber/paper that  my bouquet of roses and lilies were wrapped in.

I used acrylic gel medium, fiber paste for the textured lines around the geometric spaces and painted it gold with acrylic paint. I also coated the edges of the canvas with gold painted fiber paste so no need to frame.

So a painting celebrating a Ruby Wedding Anniversary - the Red one. What do you think?

It has been a while since I last posted due to a vacation in Portugal - lots of material there for painting! Though I didn't have much time to get out my paint box and sketch book I did take a few photos. Can't wait to try and capture the atmosphere with my brush.

This is my mixed media flower painting a little further on in the process before I left. Some of the other sections started with more roses, the lily and foliage. The green fibre-paper I fixed with acrylic soft gel gloss medium. 

Working on it again and nearly finished -will post soon. What do you think so far?

Yesterday found me enjoying the "not too hot" weather with artist friends Carolyn and Sue at Carolyn's house (we're the Arty Girls) in the shade of the garage entrance. Sheltered from a brief summer shower but open to the garden and enjoying the birds flying past and the squirrels squabbling, running around trees a few feet away.

​ On my easel is a flower painting that will be in mixed media that I started a little while ago. So far I am working in acrylic paints on the central roses and background. The canvas is divided into different geometric shapes. Eventually some of the sections will have paper/fibre pieces and acrylic medium in gold. The flowers are sketches from the bouquet my other half gave me earlier this year for our ruby wedding anniversary.

I love red roses and big blousey pink roses! A lovely day painting alongside my arty girls catching up on art news and news in general. Out to dinner and a glass of red cabernet to finish a relaxing but industrious day. Certainly a red letter day!