The 4-1-1 on my painting

As promised, I'm taking time today to show you how I created my pretty pretty painting!  Pictured here: 

Unlike conventional paintings, I prefer to use wood canvasses instead of cloth.  This is all just sheer preference.  I like the sturdiness of wood, and the way it adds more depth to the finished product, but if you like canvas...go for it.  The only problem with using wood is, you usually have to build your own canvas.

That's where my Dad, and his mad wood working skills come in.  After a few hours, a few dozen nails, some wood glue, and sand paper; we turned my 8' x 4' sheet of plywood into these:

Three pretty framed canvasses.  

From there, I primed all the wood, so that it wouldn't soak up my acrylic paint when I started.  I used Kilz, but I think they also have a high-end painting primer you can use...if you want to fork out the extra cash.

I always try to have  a plan of what I want to accomplish before starting.  This was my jumping off point:

 
So once the primer had dried for a few days, I got down to work.  And instead of explaining it all in detail, I'll just show you each step:

Step 1. The top:

Step 2. Base coat on Bottom:

Step 3. Add grass and splashes of greens and blues:

Step 4. Pulling in the orange, red, and yellow tones:

Step 5. Adding the landscaping and final touches:

It took me about 2 days total to finish it, mainly because I wanted to let all the layers dry properly between application.  And then once I painted the edges, I wanted it all to dry another 24 hours before hanging it.

Which, thanks to my Dad again...it is now hanging perfectly level on the wall!!!

My goal is to incorporate all the colors in the painting into my house.  I already have the red and blue tones throughout, so now I'm going to pull in all my accents with the green, yellow, and oranges. 

Here's hoping it doesn't end up looking like a clown decorated it (cross your fingers)!!!