Experimenting ... or ... I Am Being Pulled Out of My Safe Zone

Some experimenting going on!
This is a LONG way from finished. And I know I will be doing many more renditions of this wonderful dog. I have about thirty photos of her, all different, all full of life and humor. Her owner recently requested a commission of Miss P., and I accepted with great enthusiasm. This Westie has such personality, such character, it is amazing! She and her owner [a watercolor painter and teacher]  both seize life, and savor every morsel. I find I am being pulled out of my usual approach to painting, exploring ways to express this joy in living.

This is another painting I started late last week. I thought I would re-visit one of my earlier paintings [below] but this is as far as I got. Miss P. is so much more compelling.

I believe I am going through another growth phase, always hard, but the results are great. With painting, I am being pulled out my usual ways, trying to really express some strong emotion in my work.

With riding, I have also taken some steps forward. I have always preferred at least a bit of control. As a result, I have done almost all my riding in the ring. But Sunday, two of my neighbors made me an offer I couldn't refuse. They saw me heading home from a walk with Maggie, and said - go home, change, throw a saddle on Bruno - we're going in the park. So I did! Thanks to their wonderful companionship, I was so comfortable riding him into the "unknown". Yesterday, I took him out on the trails solo! And I got the feeling from Bruno that he loved it, and wanted to keep on going. 

A very strange thing happened yesterday. I woke up, went into the kitchen, and found the chinchilla cage OPEN! ... and one was missing. I quickly shut the window [if he got out, he was a goner], put the cat in the bedroom, and Maggie outside. Maggie had been lying, staring at one of the sofas, so I was fairly sure the chin was under it. After a rousing, merry chase, I caught him, and put him safely back in the cage. The question is - how did the cage door open? I now have a large safety clip on the door. Never a dull moment!!!

Thank you so much for visiting!

Trying to Turn a Sow's Ear into a Silk Purse

There aren't any steps because I deleted them form  my photo library [in frustration]. I think I am a bit obsessed with trying to interpret the dried hydrangeas. At least, I am learning with each effort. I want to create a looser, almost abstract background, and yet keep the detail and delicacy of the dead flowers. 

This is where I realized it was NOT going to work. So I dragged some dark blue across to see what it would look like - messy and wubbly, but there is an idea coming out of the experiment. Back to the proverbial drawing board for another go!!!

As always, your comments are most welcome!