shoe galery girls: August 2011

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

I'm Here!

Life has been full of family and friends here at the cottage since we got back from Colorado. Thought I'd better check in with you out in cyberland since I've begun to receive emails enquiring about my well being. All is well and this next weekend is the last BIG family one of the summer season. When it quiets down here, I'll catch you up with the goings on in my life.

Next week I'll be gearing up for participation in ArtPrize. You may be interested in this article in the Washington Post about the event. I'm pleased to be a part of it again.

On My Art Desk

I'm getting close to completing the fourth in the series of canvases I began last week. Or was it the week before? The days have sort of slipped one into the next without my realizing; that tends to happen when I am extra busy...as I have been readying the bunch for "back to school." Then throw in a hurricane and watch out!

Now that the boys have started their school year, I can grab some more time in my studio and CREATE! I have a lot planned...all associated with some really big news that I'll be sharing soon! REALLY big, "pinch myself news!"

So I look forward to another fully artful day tomorrow and wish you one as well.

© Nancy Lefko

Monday, August 29, 2011

MEXICAN FIESTA DAY OF THE DEAD HALLOWEEN PAINTING

ORIGINAL DAY OF THE DEAD PAINTING

PAINTED ON STRETCHED CANVAS

READY TO HANG

SIZE: 22" X 28" X .75"

$300.00

Sunday, August 28, 2011

MEXICAN FOLK ART PAINTING COUPLE MARIACHI BY PRISARTS

Acrylic and Oil paints on16 x 20 stretched canvas, ready to hang

El Dia de los Muertos (the Day of the Dead), a Mexican celebration, is a day to celebrate, remember and prepare special foods in honor of those who have departed. On this day in Mexico, the streets near the cemeteries are filled with decorations of papel picado , flowers, candy calaveras (skeletons and skulls), and parades.

Painting comes with Certificate of Authenticity

Check out my paintings for sale:

ORIGINAL: PRISARTS GALLERY

ETSY

OBJECTS OF ART

PRINTS: FINE ART AMERICA

ZAZZLE

DAVID VENNE STORE

NEEDLEPOINT: KATHY'S SPAREROOM

BEHIND THE SCENES: UNITED BLOGGERS OF BENETTON - MY WINDOW DISPLAY

I was recently asked to participate in a project called United Bloggers of Benetton alongside some of Dubai's favourite bloggers. One of our projects was to style the window at Dubai mall which I got to do this week. Here's a few photos I snapped of the process. I never thought it would be so hard to take those mannequins apart!

I went for one casual look, one semi formal look and a beach look.

MEXICAN DOOR ORIGINAL FOLK ART PAINTING

Check out my paintings for sale:

ORIGINAL: PRISARTS GALLERY

ETSY

OBJECTS OF ART

PRINTS: FINE ART AMERICA

ZAZZLE

DAVID VENNE STORE

NEEDLEPOINT: KATHY'S SPAREROOM

Friday, August 26, 2011

vintage:repurposed {2}

my mom found this great stool at an estate sale this summer. it had a bit of water damage, 3 coats of paint, a bit of rust, and a lot of character. i will run through a quick step-by-step process of what i did.

1. find awesome chair
2. tear off all existing material and loose strings

STOOL BASE: {as you can see i have no pictures of refinishing the base. it was quite frustrating, a few curse words may have popped out of my mouth through this process.}
3. strip wood with paint stripper!
4. sand away any paint or damage with hand-sander or dremmel tool that was left on after stripper
5. remove dust with tack cloth
6. stain! {i chose an ebony color}
7. seal with polyurethane
move on to the seat.....

SEAT TOP:
8. pull out majority of nails and screws that were holding the previous fabric in place. as you can see, i left a few in...
9. measure and fit new padding - glue to seat base
10. add a bit of quilt bunting stuff {my mom suggesting using this to create a nice flow from padding to wood} and staple to back side of seat
11. grab your awesome, new fabric and add it to the seat {i used this black bonetti} remember to pull tight and line up your pattern! staple in place
12. cut away extra material and add a bit of trim to hide cut ends
13. grab a cup of coffee and ENJOY!

questions? leave them in the comments and i will get back to you!
-E

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Half Way There

My goal a couple of weeks ago was to create four new canvases. Well folks, I am half way there.

This summer (aside from our vacations to Wisconsin/Chicago and Maine) has been very busy. Too much running around, too many appointments and too many times I was looking at my watch checking how much time I had left before my next obligation! Not ideal. And certainly not conducive to relaxed creating in my studio. Little did I know that finding the time to create four new canvases would be so difficult.

So here we are, the last week of summer vacation before the kiddos go back to school, and son #1 returns to college. I know that once the school year commences I'll have a bit more uninterrupted time in my studio. Kind of bittersweet. I think I'd rather that summer continue, no matter how busy, if it meant keeping all of my chicks at home in the nest. Remarkably, I am not eager to send them off again. Perhaps that's the sign of a "really great summer," no matter how busy it felt.

© Nancy Lefko

ORIGINAL WEDDING COUPLE MEXICAN PAINTING

Monday, August 22, 2011

Somerset Studio "Hitchcock Halloween"

Somerset Studio's call to artists for "Hitchcock Halloween" submissions really caught my eye. I have long been a fan of all Alfred Hitchcock films and remember watching his series, "Alfred Hitchcock Presents," when I was a kid. So when this call came along it didn't take me long at all to create my mixed media piece.

With so much inspiration to choose from, I finally narrowed my focus on two wonderful films, "The Birds" and one of my very favorites, "Rear Window." I hope that Hitchcock fans enjoy my tribute to the one of the best directors of all time.

Thanks to the editors for selecting my piece, "Why Can't We Be Friends" for the September/October 2011 issue of Somerset Studio magazine!

© Nancy Lefko and Stampington, Inc.

Friday, August 19, 2011

MEXICAN DAY OF THE DEAD VIRGIN GUADALUPE PAINTING

Thursday, August 18, 2011

sneak//peek

sharing a little sneak peek on some branding and marketing materials i have been helping a client with.... too excited not to share an inspiration board! i will share the package once we have everything finalized... until then..

-E

{photos from pinterest board: vintage modern inspiration}

LOOK OF THE DAY: NEON, BLACK & WHITE

I absolutely adore this shirt by London based fashion designer Eskandar. I picked it up last year and it has been one of my favourite items of clothing since then. Made of pure silk it's seriously as light as a feather which is perfect for the insane Dubai heat.. If you're not familiar with Eskandar check out the line here.

Shirt: Eskandar, Pants: True Religion, Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs, Shoes: French Connection, Necklace: Aldo Accessories