When Inspiration Doesn't Strike

What do you do when you're a full-time working artist with a bit of "painter's block"?  

Go to your stash of art books (I know you have them) and pick one.  

Today, when I was blocked about what to do, I closed my eyes and picked one of the many books on my shelf- and it happened to be Mary Beth Shaw's fabulous book, Stencil Girl!

This was pretty serendipitous; recently, Stencil Girl hosted a blog hop and members of the creative team did projects inspired by Mary Beth's book.  There's some amazing inspiration in that hop, so if you didn't check it out, I highly recommend it.

I closed my eyes again, and opened the book to this spread:  Unmask That Paper Doll

I had this photograph on my work table, which popped to my attention, and led me to create a chain of paper houses, instead of paper dolls.  But other than that, I started off following Mary Beth's instructions by creating a collage and covering it with gesso.

I added color with my Medallions and Flowers, Hearts and More stencils, and then placed my paper house chain and glazed color around it.

I decided to create another row of smaller houses behind the first row using the same process.

Here's how it looks with shadowing and glazing.  I also used created a stencil from some of the paper remnants, so I could add some houses behind.

Then my muse took over, and the canvas took on a life of its own, and my own hand became more apparent.

Once it said "done," I added some text and the photograph.

Thank you Mary Beth for writing such a terrific book with such wonderful inspiration!

"Home is Where Love Lives" is available as a print on paper or on canvas at Society 6.  I hope you'll think of me if you need a house blessing for yourself or as a gift.

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