New art – Stephanie Richey Art

This month has been a busy one. As all months usually are. I like it when I’m busy, especially during January and February, as that makes these coldest months of the year pass more quickly. This will be an update on happenings with several things.

Painting of magpies on plexiglass. 2024 Willow Winter Carnival written across the center.

First, I was asked to paint a window for the Willow Winter Carnival that happens each year here in my little, tiny town. I did a little bit of research and realized that painting windows when it’s -30 degrees really isn’t possible. So I painted plexiglass instead to create a “window” painting of sorts that will be displayed in the front entrance. This was more time consuming than I imagined it might be, both physically in obtaining materials and painting, as well as mentally because I’d never done anything like this but wanted it to turn out well. I like the finished product.

Next, I finished up my new website and have now launched it! Busy Mom’s Life Coaching is now available to the public! This has not just been a January thing. I started on it way back about September. I am excited to share what I have learned over the years about goal setting and habit changing, and hopefully I can help other people progress in their lives. There is a lot of information there, but I will be adding to that as I go along. There is also a zoom link for 30 minute meetings once a week with topics of discussion as well as time for Q&A.

Watercolor painting of a hummingbird flying toward a purple flower.

I have been painting a lot of small sketches over the last several months, but wanted to do a bigger painting. This new online class has been great to get me going and inspired again. I decided to take a spin off one of the tutorials and I painted a hummingbird. I created the composition from a couple of different pictures, and then painted. It was a fun project and I love the finished product.

Lastly, and this didn’t happen all through January, it just happened today, but I got back my edited manuscript from the publishing company. I haven’t had a chance to go through it yet, but I am super excited to continue on with the process of getting this next book completed!

I mentioned several posts ago the opportunity I had to purchase a large format printer. I have had so much fun with this printer. I am amazed at how beautiful the prints are, and how detailed they are. I know, they wouldn’t sell these printers for this purpose if they didn’t make amazing prints, but they really are beautiful. I am grateful to be able to print at home, which would normally have taken 2 weeks to get what I ordered. Now I just walk downstairs, sit at my computer and print. And if there’s anything wrong with the print, I can fix it and reprint. It’s amazing.

Anyway, Prep. I am preparing for a local art tour before Christmas. I have been printing, framing, coming up with new ideas, looking over product that I haven’t look at since the end of September when my last summer show was. I love looking at what I have, but I really like trying new things. This year it wasn’t necessarily new product so much as how to display existing prints. I have been having fun trying new things since I can now print whatever I want, within reason, and can manipulate it and cut it, and don’t have to worry about “ruining” it because it would take 2 weeks to get another print and cost a lot more than printing it myself.

So, my craft room, that is still slightly torn apart as I revamp and utilize the space differently, is filled with picture frames, scrap paper and mat, and lots of art that has been framed and some that still needs to be framed, and a huge list of what still needs to be printed and framed or packaged. But I love this! I love the opportunity to share with my local neighbor’s somethings that I love doing! I just hope the weather will cooperate and people will get out on a Saturday to shop local.

Anyway, one other thing I wanted to share. I wrote a post in November about Music and shared some of my favorite music, but I have recently had shared with me a new Christmas song that has become my favorite this year, so I would like to share it with you! It’s called Far Away, and I would love to hear your thoughts. This version was sung by a group of missionaries in the Nashville, Tennessee mission, and filmed and edited by a missionary in that mission, that happens to be a friend of the family, so I got a preview. Thank you, Spencer Murray, for doing what you do! I loved it! Do you have any new favorite Christmas songs this year?