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Art

As seen on HGTV’s Fixer to Fabulous

This summer, I worked on my largest-ever commissioned pet portrait project – a collection of five original oil paintings for Jenny Marrs, to be featured in a home makeover on Fixer to Fabulous on HGTV.  It started when Jenny reached out to ask me to write an endorsement for her new book.  As much as time allows, I try to say yes to those requests to support other writers and creative entrepreneurs.  As I was reading through the digital sample of the book so I could write the endorsement, I realized that we both went to high school in Orlando, Florida.  As it turns out, we went to rival schools, and I was just a couple of years ahead of her!  I would imagine we crossed paths at some point.  Anyway, this led to more chit-chat, and I had the thought that I should present the idea of using my

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January 14, 2026 31 Comments
Art

January 16, 2026 | original art sale preview

I’m so excited to share the latest round of original oil paintings for sale.  It is the first of many collections (I’m sure) that include pieces inspired by my trip to England and Italy last fall. The original art sale is scheduled for Friday, January 16, 2026, at 1:00 p.m. Eastern (New York).  In this original art sale, I have pieces ranging from 4 x 6 hand-painted color charts on antique linen ($50) up to a 16 x 20 painting of a Cotswold cow ($650).  This collection includes still life paintings featuring plums, clementines, limelight hydrangeas, blueberries, and pears.  There are landscapes from Maryland, Italy, and England.  And I have a few animal portraits available, including Cotswold sheep, rabbits, one cow, and a few dogs (one Italian and the rest American).  I always think I’m going to stick to one theme for an online sale, and maybe I will one

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January 12, 2026 7 Comments
a slice of life

travel journal workshop

I’ll give you fair warning that my posts will be all over the place for a few weeks.  We’ll be bouncing around between Christmas decorating, gifting, and crafting, to early October in Italy, and then whatever else I’m working on.  Welcome to my life.  Today, we’re back in Tuscany at the La Dolce Vita Retreat.  While this trip was a vacation, it was also work.  I was here to teach a creative workshop for the retreat attendees.  I wanted my workshop to focus on art while staying approachable for those who don’t consider themselves artists.  I decided to teach on keeping a travel journal that went beyond sitting and sketching what you see.  While that can be a part of keeping a travel journal, I think that’s the piece that is intimidating to most people.  I am an artist, and it intimidates me!  I’m not as at home with paper

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November 24, 2025 9 Comments
a slice of life

miss mustard seed tees & hoodies

Do you remember Miss Mustard Seed tees and hoodies?  We’re going almost ten years back when I used to sell in retail spaces, at markets, and regularly added products to an online store.  I loved designing and wearing my own tees and hoodies, and they were my uniform for many years.  I finally let go of my last paint-splattered, faded sweatshirt a couple of years ago.  I’ve wanted to relaunch tees and hoodies for years, but I always get hung up on keeping the stock and physically packing and shipping each order.  Well, I’m happy to share that we (my assistant, Heidi, and I) have designed a new round of tees and hoodies AND found a way to sell them, so you can order exactly what you want without me having to ship each piece!  (Although I still have my custom-made t-shirt sign because I loved it so much.) All

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November 20, 2025 13 Comments
a slice of life

plein air painting at Hidcote

Let me start by saying plein air painting is not my sweet spot.  While I enjoy painting outside and on location, I’m rarely very happy with the results.  I prefer painting in my studio in a more controlled environment.  The lighting is relatively fixed; I have my easel and chair set to my height, all of my supplies are readily at hand, and I don’t have to worry about bugs sticking to my painting.  Whenever I paint outside, I feel like I’m fumbling around a bit, and I almost always feel rushed.  I know I would get more comfortable with practice, but it’s also okay if studio painting is my preference and where I do my best work. That being said, painting on location does a lot for my artist’s heart.  I love the experience of painting in a place.  Whenever I sketch or paint on location, that moment is

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October 22, 2025 11 Comments
Art

DIY wet panel carrier for oil paintings

In my previous post about traveling with oil paints, I mentioned I would share a DIY wet panel carrier tutorial, and here it is!  If you don’t use oil paints, you may wonder what a wet panel carrier is and why it’s necessary.  One of the wonderful things about oil paints is that they are slow-drying. This gives you a lot of time to blend and nudge the paint around, or even just scrape it off.  I find it’s even more forgiving than a pencil, which is one of the reasons I love working with oils. The downside of working with a slow-drying medium when traveling is that you now have a wet painting to transport home.  That is why artists who work with oil paints need a wet panel carrier.  I usually use premade wet panel cases from Raymar when I’m painting on the go, and they work great. 

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October 9, 2025 9 Comments
Art

Small Business Spotlight | A Gallo Watercolors

When I first started my business and blog, many creative entrepreneurs supported me along the way.  They showed me the ropes, invited me into their community, and introduced me to their audience and customer base.  I love that I can now return the favor to other creative entrepreneurs, from small start-ups to established, thriving companies, you may have never heard of.  This Italian company, which makes handmade watercolor paints, fits into the latter category.  They already have a devoted following, but you probably haven’t seen them in the aisle of your local craft store.  For that reason, I’d like to introduce you to A. Gallo.  (They are Italian-made, so it’s fitting I’m introducing them while in Tuscany!) A. Gallo handmade watercolors are developed and made by artists for artists, and they are passionate about their craft.  Their watercolors are made “according to a traditional recipe of raw pigments, gum arabic,

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October 7, 2025 3 Comments
Art

September 2, 2025 | original art sale preview

As always, thank you so much to all my new and returning collectors!  It is truly an honor that you would hang a piece of my art in your home.  Over the past year, I’ve primarily been working on animal portrait commissions, so I enjoyed shifting gears to focus on still life and landscape paintings.  I loved creating these pieces and hope you find one that resonates with you. My next original art sale is scheduled for Tuesday, September 2, 2025, at 1:00 p.m. Eastern (New York).  In this original art sale, I have pieces ranging from 8 x 10 ($225) up to a framed 16 x 20 ($650).  This collection includes still life paintings featuring clementines, limelight hydrangeas, peaches, mock orange blossoms, and white irises.  I also have a few landscapes based on photos taken around Maryland. As usual, this post provides a preview of all available works, including

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August 29, 2025 No Comments

I’m Marian, a painter, writer, and lover of all things creative. From art and antiques to home projects and everyday life, I share my journey in hopes of inspiring you to embrace your own creativity and make beauty in the spaces you live.

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