Savoring--An Unexpected Gift--Idea for Stress-free Holiday Giving--Plus, Bidding Update

A lovely, unexpected gift from an artist who works in iron prompted an idea for stress-free holiday giving. If you celebrate Christmas, or any other holiday which calls for a number of gifts all at the same time, I have a radical proposal for a no-stress alternative.

But first, the gift we received a couple of weeks ago: the amazing hummingbird pictured here. In a recent post about our backyard flowers, I showed you an iron obelisk, a garden sculpture our mandevilla vine happily climbed. In that post, I mentioned and provided a link to the iron worker who created the piece, Scott Hornbaker of Hunt Country Iron in St. Mary's Georgia. After I shot him a quick email to let him know that I was in the process of making him world-famous, he wrote back with gratitude. Would we please come to the Riverside Art Market here in Jacksonville, Florida one Saturday to pick up a thank-you gift he had for us? As you can see, the gift is amazing. In case you are wondering, he creates his work in wrought iron with the intention that it will oxidize, as it does quite quickly in our climate. For customers who want to retain the black finish, he can advise them on methods to achieve the look they want.

One of the delights of this beautiful gift is that it was completely unexpected--which led to a thought about simplifying the Christmas season. We could agree with certain family members or friends to skip exchanging gifts during the holiday season. Rather, we would send or bring each person a gift at some random time--wrapped as a Merry Christmas surprise when least expected. Maybe that's a little wacky, but could be fun. The unexpected gift might come when the recipient is feeling a bit low or when an expression of love is especially welcome. Other advantages of starting such a tradition include easing the financial burden of buying multiple gifts all at one time.

Question of the day: Do you have any unusual, creative gift giving traditions or ideas for your holiday celebrations?

Update on bidding for Purple Iris Solitaire painting from previous post:

There are no bids on this painting so far. Given that blog traffic falls off sharply this time of the year, it may not be the best time for me to run this offer. However, the lack of bids so far means that someone might be able to win this 9" x 12" painting for a very low price, well below retail!!

To clarify the shipping part of the offer: If the winning bid is between $12 and $19.99, I will ship it for $4.95 flat rate Priority Mail (at real cost with no additional charges) anywhere in the US. I will ship at the lowest possible cost for an international purchaser, by mutual agreement as to method and cost. However, if the winning bid is $20 or more, I will ship free anywhere in the US and will give an international purchaser $5 off the shipping charge.

This is a great offer for a nicely stylized floral painting. Get in on the bidding now; it will close at noon on Monday, December 14, 2009.

Growing--Floral Painting Up for Bid--Limited Time Offer

Although I do not normally use this blog as a marketing tool, some of you have emailed to ask if the paintings I post are for sale. The answer is yes, and one of my growth areas will be in online marketing. I hope to begin a website or other internet outlet early in the new year.

In the meantime, I thought it might be fun to take bids on this 9" x 12" floral painting, Purple Iris Solitaire. It is an acrylic on canvas board, coated with a clear medium. Quality acrylics are non-toxic and durable, do not fade, and can be cleaned with a damp cloth. They will last literally for generations--something to hand down as well as to enjoy now. The journey involved in creating this piece is described in my September 13 post.

I will take bids of $12 or more via email at lemmeneslandscape@bellsouth.net; if the highest bidder offers $20 or more, I will include free shipping within the US via USPS priority mail. As always, I offer an unconditional money-back guarantee on paintings returned within 10 days in original condition--no questions asked. If you are not satisfied, the painting will go to the second highest bidder. So this is a no-risk opportunity to purchase one-of-a-kind, original art (I do not make copies or prints of any of my paintings) for yourself or as a holiday gift. I sell works unframed in order to keep prices down and so that you can choose your own framing style. This painting will fit any standard 9" x 12" frame, can be custom-framed, or can be displayed as is on a small easel.

On Wednesday, December 9, and again on Saturday, the 12th, I will post the current highest bid for your information. Then, the following Monday, December 14, the winner will be announced (remaining anonymous is an option). The painting will be shipped as soon as the winner's payment clears.

Learning & Growing--Purple Iris Floral Painting

About a month ago, I showed you a magnolia floral painting I had worked on as a change of pace from my usual landscapes (scroll down to August 11 or enter "magnolia" in the search box above to see it again). This purple iris painting is an older work, one of my first close-up florals. Among other things, I learned the value of perseverance from this project.

I can't remember anymore how long this painting was a "work in progress," or how many times I was tempted to scrap the project due to to the fact that some of the changes I tried made it worse instead of better. Works in progress are supposed to progress, aren't they? This one definitely gave me trouble.

Probably one issue with the painting was that I used someone else's photo. A friend (thank you, David Young) who is known for his breathtaking photos of people from around the world, sent me a packet of varied photos several years ago. I was inspired to try to paint this iris from one of his photos with a few adaptations to fit my own vision for the image.

Although I am quite pleased with the final result, I felt hampered along the way by the fact that I had not seen, touched, and smelled the flower myself. A wiser artist than I was would have at least sought out live purple irises somewhere to observe, sketch, and photograph. I will do that in the future. I know some artists can create excellent paintings strictly from photos of places, people, or natural things they have never seen in person. I am humbled by their skill. For me, I have learned that nothing can replace being there. In addition to various technical problems I had to iron out for this painting, it was difficult for me to bring the blossom alive on canvas--we had never actually met. The result--and sort of a solution--was to paint an image that is more stylized than natural.

Venturing outside my comfort zone can be a thrill. But when an effort to do or to learn something new seems too unpleasant or too hard, I try to remember this painting experience. Of course, some attempts fail. No shame there, I believe--the shame would be avoiding the new for fear of failure. But in the thick of any difficult struggle with a new venture, I recall the BATTLE OF THE IRIS and persevere. After all, I think this image turned out all right. In any case, I learned and grew as a person and as an artist from this project.

Question of the day: Have you battled any irises lately? What growth or learning resulted?