Mixed Media Artist

I will see you all again in 2018!  Hope your holiday season is wonderful :-) Nate, Lizzie, Cyndi, Mike (back) Katherine, Dani, Julianna (front)

Jennifer, My Love Cyndi Lavin, 2017 The western juniper is actually considered an invasive species in Oregon, which seems terribly sad to me since they are so interesting looking.  I spent some time taking pictures of them, along with other Northern California and Oregon trees.  I decided upon a juniper for this piece, not just because I love the gnarly way they look, but also because the song Jennifer Juniper kept running through my mind! This is a pretty simple piece when you get down to it.  Draw a tree or something else that you love.  Chose the colors that remind you of the place.  Assemble! 1. I used a lightbox to trace my drawing onto dressmaker's pattern paper with medium and extra small Pitt pens .  Spray the tracing with an acrylic fixative .   2. On a wet piece of heavy watercolor paper , use foam brushes to paint around the outer edges with Phthalo blue acrylic paint. All of the paints that I used were diluted with quite a bit...

Aspen Afternoon Cyndi Lavin, 2017 For this piece, I started with a very limited palette that I wanted to experiment with.  For the sky, I used a Phthalo blue gradient, and for the trees, I used Hansa yellow medium , Pyrrole orange , Green gold , and waterproof white ink .  1. Using a large foam brush , paint a blue gradient onto a wet piece of watercolor paper for the sky.  Use a paper towel to wipe off an area for the mountain background.    2. Working from the bottom of the piece, alternate blobs of your yellow, orange, and green paints.  Use White gesso on a foam brush to pull the colors upward.    3. Use white ink to drip trees from the bottom with a pipette .  Use a skewer to add some skinny branches.  Also use the skewer to add bark markings with diluted Phthalo blue.  4. Cover the tree area with Polymer medium and the sky area with Matte medium .  Let it dry.   5. Use a ratty bru...

    Paintings for Sale One of the best parts about abstract painting and mixed media work is that you just never know what's going to pop up next! I'll be starting to post a series of work like this in the new year, based on particle physics, geometry, electricity, and anything else sciencey that happens to catch my fancy. You can blame it on my being married to a particle physicist if you'd like... Copyright 2017 Cyndi Lavin. All rights reserved.

    Tribal Stripes bead embroidery pendant Here is the last installment (for now!) of tutorials that have been posted on Beading Arts , covering beaded arts, jewelry, and other wearables. Part one Part two  Crocheted bracelet St Petersburg Chain bead embroidered pendant Bead embroidery pendant with blue pearls (2 parts) Stitched freshwater pearl bracelet Tribal Stripes bead embroidery pendant Fierce bead embroidery pendant   Cherry donut beaded necklace   Hanging the Moon necklace Flapper necklace Golden harvest necklace Mixed metals and beads necklace Red jasper bead embroidered pendant A bead embroidery clock motif African trade beads necklace   Leopard skin jasper bead embroidered pendant Bluebird singing in the Dead of Night necklace   Sandcast beads Boho necklace   Red bead embroidered pendant with drops   Blossoms of the Moonlit Waves  

Deep in the Evening of the Smiley Moon Cyndi Lavin, 2017 Prints for sale Each month, the smiley moon is my favorite part of the moon phase.  I'm not sure why, but maybe because it reminds me of the Cheshire Cat? 1. Wet a heavy piece of watercolor paper and use a foam roller to paint it solid with Hansa yellow opaque . 2. Alternate small blobs of Pearl violet , Metallic olive , and Red oxide along the top edge, and use White gesso   to pull them down the page in long strokes, using a foam brush. 3. Scratch into the damp paint to reveal some of the yellow underpainting.  Add more pure colors to adjust.   4. Use the bottom rim of a small paper cup to stamp in a moon arch with Hansa yellow opaque . 5. Use waterproof black India ink in pipettes to drip in the trees. Take a raggy, craggy old brush and use it to stipple in the "leaves" with a mixture of Yellow ochre and White gesso .    This post contains affiliate links Co...