Romantic Bliss Continues ...

Hello My Friends! It is seems like Valentine's Day is just around the corner and today I have a special treat for you. These new pieces are from my Romantic Bliss collection for this special occasion and may be just what you like. If you interested in seeing more, please go to my shop 

I must be feeling sentimental lately ... all my new art pieces are filled with nostalgia and a sense of romance.  I posted this new piece last weekend and it has already sold. This Parisian inspired painting found a landing place in the beautiful state of Kentucky.  It 's so nice when my work finds a permanent home.  They are better out in the world, hopefully brightening peoples spaces and bringing back some happy memories!  Safe travel dear "French Kiss"!

If my work inspired you to ask about a custom piece - This is how the custom portrait process works: You send me an email from here or convo from etsy shop telling me as much about your idea as you want to - every little bits help: personality, stories, colors, all that. You can send photographs if you like.  Depending on my current schedule, it can take up to 2-3 weeks after you buy the listing for me to complete the piece and mail it to you. You will receive one 10 x 14 or 16 x 20 sized original watercolor.  The piece will be signed by me unless you request otherwise.

Check the images above to see if you like my style. As you can see, I work in a loose, semi-abstract style, so you will NOT have an exact reproduction of your photograph, but rather a loose interpretation based on what you told me about your subject and the images you sent me. 

As always my hugs and sweet wishes to all! What is your favorite Valentine's Day memories? 

xx, Lana

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March Madness

 Happy Monday lovelies! 

How is Monday treating you so far?  I had a brief but lovely beach day getaway - to just see the beautiful blue water was so calm and relaxing ... I decided to start my weekly post with these fresh pictures!  Though it is in blue hues it is still definitely summery and uplifting I think:) What do you think?

I decided to post this today - sun came out and all my blues were washed away....  I have my busy week ahead: a few commissions to finish, small illustrations to complete, get ready for my FL teacher's recertification renewal and most important prepare for my dear old ( not too old ... just from my high school years :)  friend come to visit me next week from New York ( it took her three years this time to finally visit Florida again - but it is better late then never :) 

I wish you a happy spring and many more great sunny days ahead!

xx,

 Lana

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Choosing Artworks For Your Home

 The act of choosing artworks to put in your home is sometimes seen as an overwhelming job. Often we look at the need for something to put on our walls or ‘add’ to a room and find the task of selecting that something difficult due to the huge range of art available. But the job isn’t that hard, and shouldn’t be seen as a chore, but something of great enjoyment and an avenue for much reflection and appreciation.

By Claire Wind: When choosing art for your home, ask yourself these questions to get an idea of what you are looking for:

- What is the involvement of the artwork within a room?

Custom Artwork for a lovely customer from Los Angeles 

- Is the artwork there to enhance an environment, or is it the central piece of an interior, which will then be inspired by the artwork?

My watercolors  found new home in Australia 

- What is the purpose of having the art? Decoration? Inspiration? Political/Social Comment? Enhance a theme?
- Budget
- Where is it to be positioned? Consider the size and balance of the space.

Lanasartstudio.blogspot.com

Once you have considered these questions the process can be far less daunting.

 “Always, the art chosen should meet your needs and reflect your personality and lifestyle.” 

The easiest and most rewarding way to use art in a room is to buy the art you love! What is your experiences or motivation for buying artwork? Please share your stories in comments, I would love to hear from you! xx, Lana

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Valentine's Day Inspired Collection and Custom Portraits

  Hello My Friends! Valentine's Day is just around the corner and today I have a special treat for you. This sweet Valentine's inspired collection for this special occation may be just what you like. If you interested in seeing more, please go to my shop.

I have been busy of the past two weeks with a few custom portraits and general abstract commissions. But before I show you some of my latest work please watch the video.   This is so true to my life lately is not even funny.

Here are some of the highlights of my completed and nearly completed pieces. Don't you think that they are precious:)  I still can't get those sweet little faces out of my mind!

And this is from my recent bridal and anniversary custom illustration: 

This is how the custom portrait process works: Then you send me an email or convo from etsy shop telling me as much about the people as you want to - the little bits help: personality, silly stuff, stories, all that. You send me photographs.  Depending on my current schedule, it can take up to 2-3 weeks after you buy the listing for me to complete the piece and mail it to you. You will receive one 9x14 sized original watercolor. The piece will be signed by me unless you request otherwise.

Check the images above to see if you like my style. Image here is a good comparison of photograph and final piece. As you can see, I work in a loose, impressionistic/semi-abstract style, so you will NOT have an exact reproduction of your photograph, but rather a loose interpretation based on what you told me about your subject and the images you sent me.

As always love, hugs, and the sweet wishes to all! 

xx, Lana

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New Year Resolutions - Organized Office & Studio Space

  

Hello My Friends! It is hard to believe, but January is here - and with is it my first blog post of this new year I decided to start with organizing my space. As you can imagine, I spend most of my working time in the studio or at my desk...( when I have break from my traveling:)

So, it is crucial to have an inspiring, creative space and organized at the same time.  Here I would like to share my tips on how to stay productive at the optimum level:

• Clean the Clutter Weekly

I used wait till an occasional guest visit to clean my desk area. But that only resembled more like tossing all my stuff in the closet and closing the door. This year one of my new resolutions is to spend Friday tossing old papers, organizing and labeling supplies, and putting all unused objects where they belong!

• Find Storage Solution 

Not a priority in the past, but it can be a lot of fun to decorate storage areas to fit your decor.  Check out lots of DIY ideas on how to dress up your old file cabinet or bookshelf  (both in my studio need more attention).
P.S. Updated studio pictures are coming soon :)

• Keep Cords organized and Out of Sight

Via

Tip from Martha Stewart: Eliminate tangles under your work area by feeding all cords through a hole drilled in the desktop. Then plug the wires into a power-surge protector strip mounted on the underside of the desk. Keep cords in a coated wire basket (available at housewares stores) suspended under the desk with wire hooks. Tags identify where each machine wire comes from.  

- Great ideas!

Duni Studio
(I wish I was as organized as her)

more here from Invisible Crown 

• Pick Pretty and Fashionable Stationary and Accessories for Your Desk 

Maybe it just old fashion but I still love to use handwritten notes and thank you card for my friends and customers. I feel more connected and more personal about good old paper and pen. During the holiday shopping I found so many stylish accessories for my desk .... 

can't wait to dress up my desk in the new more updated modern style:) 

via

• Make Inspirational Boards

I know what are you thinking .... another pinterest advertisement.  And of course you are right about .... I love the ease and convenience of my handy tool Pinterest.  But in time .... and I'm totally doing it .... I would like to create a real visual board.  It's nice to be surrounded by an inspiring wall while you are working!

via

Do you have your favorite organizational tips? 

I would like to share them if you have something on your blog just give me a link to add them here.

xx, Lana

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Giving Thanks

                                                 Hello my dear friends!

November is here already and it will be gone before we even notice it. In the midst of this busy time of everyone's life, I would like to say THANK YOU for:


* SEASONAL CHANGES 

( Which is always a perfect reminder that we aren't in control .... some days are sunny and bright, and some are rainy and windy......so let's be a very grateful for what is given us everyday!)

* FRIENDS 

(I'm so thankful for all of my new friends here. I learned a lot and I grew a lot with you. Thank you for being here for me when I have a stumble, and looking for help with my online enterprise. Thank you for motivating me moving forward and taking time to read my blog and leave your comments :)  You are a bunch of creative, determined,  and talented "followers".... and I'm thankful!)

woops....."old" friends, FAMILY, and loved ones ...please forgive me... you will get my "thank you" note personally!

* COLLECTORS AND BUYER 

Forever thankful for all my new "art lovers" and collectors who are totally awesome and help to keep me moving forward and push me to stay creative and excited about my craft. Love you all and hope to share with you my art for many, many years!

I think this list can go on and on ...but for now I'm busy with custom work, packing and shipping my sold orders, and generally busy with the creative process!

Stay tuned for more updates and Please leave me a comment and or like me on facebook, adding me to your favorites store on etsy, follow me here and on pinterest....   well you got the idea :)

CHEERS!

XoXo, LANA

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Keep Moving to a Deep Fall

    Happy Tuesday everyone! 

I hope you had a wonderful and restful weekend and ready for the workweek!  I did!  Today I packed all my 'sold' paintings from the weekend, sent the free print to the lucky winner in California from my free print give-a-way, signed up for a photography class at SCAD -  so look for new improved photography and photography tips soon! 

If I can touch a life, if through my paintings I can show something previously unseen, if I can reveal something old in a new way, if I can enrich a soul on its own journey - I feel complete. 

"Secret Garden" series is a concentration on new composition, and an impressionistic approach to a  floral motif. I wanted the flowers in this composition to exit the picture plane, to spill off of the canvas. I utilized the muted cool colors which helped to "set up" an opportunity to make the much stronger coral colors really "pop". In this case the buyer requested that the bright colors and flowers remain the main focal point of the composition.  

well, I'm really happy with how it turned out! What are your thoughts?   

 Love to hear from you! xx, Lana

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