bah humbug

So very much hoping this isn't a reflection of me during this crazy hectic season. Sadly, I think it is. I meant for him to look happy. But this is how he was feeling this morning. Bah humbug. I'm doing my best to keep and eye out for the holiday spirit sometime soon :) This could be a great holiday gift for an art lover/Christmas nay sayer in your life...

This original 6"x6" oil painting on gesso panel is available for purchase, unframed, for $95 here.

amelias ornaments

More magical ornaments. There's nothing better than my early morning painting time. Just me, my coffee, my paints, my cat and my podcast. Today's listen was the Being Boss Episode #100 // Best of Being Boss. What a great idea to do a year in review podcast. Sure made me realize I've missed lots so now I have many podcasts I want to go back and listen to. Yea! They help you with defining your goals, setting your intentions, building healthy boundaries, and cultivating habits that will help you reach success on your terms. Who doesn't need to learn more about that?!? A great podcast!

This original oil painting is sold.

here comes santa claus

I hope this painting brings you fond memories of Christmas long ago...

This original 6"x6" oil painting on ⅛" gesso panel is available for purchase, unframed, for $95 here.

something magical

A box of vintage ornaments just waiting to be hung on the tree in the perfect spot. It's time to start getting ready for the holidays with Thanksgiving just around the corner. It takes weeks to get ready for Christmas and it seems to fly by in an instant. Same with painting. Time flies when you're having fun. Always.

This original 8"x8" oil painting is available, unframed, for $140 here.

work-in-progress

This is a close-up of the donut I've been working on. It makes me want to paint some abstracts and see what I can learn from that experience. But there's not enough time in the day. Not ever. So this is a work-in-progess, just like me. I feel like I haven't even started to really do what I want to do. I'm trying to figure out how to make painting work as a larger part of my life than just doing if for an hour a day, fitting it in between all the other "more important" things. To do that I need to have courage, confidence, take some risks, let go of what is safe an comfortable. I realize I will always be a work-in-progress...but right now I feel like I'm making no progress at all......I'm just in such a place of waiting to see what's next...do you ever feel that way? 

Ornament | 3

This one was actually commissioned so it's sold. :) to a college friend. I'm so happy it will be hanging in her home, and in her life. 

ornament | 2

So much childhood nostalgia all wrapped up in one tiny little ball. I'm never quite sure why Christmas makes me so infinitely sad. I sure wish it didn't. Don't get me wrong, I love spending time with my family when time stops, just for that one day. But somehow it's such an enormous marker of time passing, and all the emotion that I don't have time to think about all year long comes to the top. Lots of family and friends to miss...but lots to look forward to...

This original 6"x6" oil painting on ⅛" gesso panel is available, unframed, for $95 here.

ornament | 1

I love, love vintage Christmas ornaments. I had some time on Saturday morning to do a quick photo shoot of some beautiful ornaments that some friends kindly loaned to me. They are challenging to paint, but oh, so much fun! They look magical when they are finished. Christmas is right around the corner, and honestly, I should have been painting these in July!

This original 6"x6" oil painting on ⅛" gesso panel is available, unframed, for $95 here.

great design

Branding is one of my favorite parts of what I do in my day job. And I love being my own client! Little by little I’ve been working on my look for Kim Smith Fine Art. I wish I had known years ago to buy the domain Kim Smith, or Kim Smith Fine Art, Kim Smith Art. It’s a blessing and a curse to have such a common name. It’s easy, and I hope memorable in its simplicity. But the downside is that every combination I could think of was taken for a domain name. So it’s Kim Myers Smith, with my maiden name. I think it’s good luck because my dad would be happy about it as he watches over me from heaven. :) Anyway, kimmyerssmith.com it is aka Kim Smith Fine Art. I have also always loved calligraphy and hand lettering so it was a perfect combination to create the smith as my logo in my own handwriting. Then it was time to decide on a font and colors that would showcase my brand. I designed business cards to match plus stickers for the back of my paintings. I have a color palette that I love! Plus, some cute round stickers just for fun. I chose color coordinated ribbon for my packaging. Next I would like to design some fun patterns to go along with the overall look as an additional graphic element.

The design of my 2017 bird calendars complements my branding for a consistent look.

I follow Fiona Humberstone and love, love her book “How to Style Your Brand” which is an amazing resource for inspiration if you are looking for something to guide you in your own design and branding.

Let me know if you need help with design or branding for your business, it's what I do when I'm not painting!

golden beets

Fresh beautiful golden beets from market. A favorite of mine. Yum! Those leafy greens were a joy to paint, too!
This original 6"x6" oil painting on ⅛" gesso panel is available, unframed, for $95 here.

a bit blue...

The blueberries from market were particularly gorgeous (and delicious) this week :)
This original 6"x6" oil painting is available, unframed for $95 here.
Here are some work-in-progress photos from this very fun painting this morning...

a perfect match

Some things are just magical together, like peanut butter & jelly, like chocolate and wine, like complementary colors. They have such great energy as a team. I took this photo at Lancaster Central Market (which is worth a visit of you are ever in the area). Of course they caught my eye and I couldn't help but shoot some painting reference while making my purchase. Some people walk through market looking for something to eat, I walk through market looking for something to paint :)

This original 6"x6" oil painting on ⅛" gesso panel is available, unframed, for $95 here.

Here are a couple of work-in-progress shots and my palette.

seeing for miles

Seeing for miles in American the beautiful on this election day. No matter what happens I am grateful for our freedom to vote. I am certainly grateful for being able to get up in the morning and do what I love. Paint. When I get discouraged with life I direct my attention to these things I am grateful for. Hope you see for miles all of the wonderful possibilities ahead of you on this beautiful day.

This 8"x8" oil painting on ⅛" gesso panel is available, unframed, for only $140 here.

full heart

This painting is from a live demonstration I did recently, along with being filmed live on Facebook (you can see it on my Facebook page here) at the same time. It was a bit nerve-racking to concentrate on painting while paying attention to everything going on around me with visitor and answering questions, etc. Filming live on Facebook is really a cool feature especially for something like a painting demo. I was amazed at how many people watched and commented throughout the time that we filmed. It was a fun experience and it made my heart happy to hear all of the people who stopped in to say hi, both in person, and on Facebook.

This original 6"x6" oil painting on ⅛" gesso panel is available, unframed, for $95 here.

sunny side up

My daily small paintings give me an opportunity focus on learning different aspects of painting. This morning I focused on creating dimension. Sometimes it comes naturally, and sometimes I can't make it work. I feel like there's something about it that doesn't always click with me. Maybe it's the warm/cool thing, which I can't always clearly see. Maybe it's transitional values that challenge me. Not sure. But I think it worked in this one. And I also focused on putting down a brush stroke and leaving it, not moving the paint around on the canvas. Success!

Are you challenged with these same things? Or something different?

This original 6"x6" oil painting on ⅛" gesso panel is available, unframed, for $95 here.

a day filled with sunshine

Hope your day is bright and sunny!

This original 6"x6" oil painting is available, unframed, for $95 here.

cooper's hawk

This original 6"x6" oil painting on ⅛" gesso panel is available, unframed, for $95 here.

tangled up in blue

My painting "tangled up in blue" was accepted into the prestigious Demuth Auction on November 10th in downtown Lancaster. I'm excited to be among many distinguished local artists, as well as some national and international figures. Little ole' me, smiling ear to ear!

You can see the gallery of pieces being auctioned off here.