Gimme Some Sugar!

6"x6" oil on gessoed masonite archival artboard

"A kiss is a lovely trick designed by nature to stop speech when words become superfluous."
-Ingrid Bergman

Just helpin' you get ready for Valentine's Day. Another sweet one from 'the vault'. Back to 2008 prices and free shipping until Valentines, just to give you a helping hand in saying the very thing you want to tell your loved one! It's dry and ready to ship!

Buy this painting on PayPal

Price: $100 USD

Or, send me an email

"An Easy Start"- Floral

12"x16" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival panel

"No gift to your mother can ever equal her gift to you - life."

- anonymous

"An ounce of mother is worth a ton of priest."- Spanish proverb

"There's a lot more to being a woman than being a mother, but there's a hell of a lot more to being a mother than most people suspect." -Roseanne Barr

"Other things may change us, but we start and end with family." -Anthony Brandt

It's been a busy week, shipping out two paintings that were dry and ready to ship, framing up another one that's ready to deliver next. And of course, painting. "An Easy Start" is a little larger than most in my current series of florals (the Sunshine Series). It pictures what I imagine to be an 'easy start' to a day, flowers, and a cup of something hot, perhaps a lump or two of sugar if you prefer?

I also knew that with my time restraints this week from other appointments, that I might take a bit longer to finish this one. So instead of the Cremnitz white that I usually use, I did use Titanium white on this one. Some of the attendees at my demo last Saturday might recall that I usually use Cremnitz white in my work. It is a lead based paint that really has a wonderful consistency and sets up within a day or so, without the stickiness that some alkyd paints have, or runnyness that an alkyd medium might have. This painting, I knew I didn't want it drying too fast on me, so back to the Titanium white paint. Now it will probably take several weeks to dry to the touch on the surface.

Some of my blog readers might remember that last summer I did a little 'white paint experiment' testing out just about every type of white oil paint out there. They do vary by brand and by color name. Each has it's own particular qualities, thicknesses, opaqueness vs. transparency, & drying times. It's useful to know what you can expect out of the tube that you buy. As an artist, you'll find it so helpful to know your materials as well as you can.

*****I hope you enjoy your Mother's Day weekend- whether you are a mom, or are spending time with your mom....or honoring the memory of her, or even being a 'stand-in mom' of sorts to those you love. I think Roseanne Barr would agree, it's a lot more complicated than many would suspect!

Contact me here, for more information or to purchase.

Afternoon Prelude, Floral

12"x12" oil on gessoed archival panel

“The afternoon knows what the morning never suspected.”

- Swedish Proverb


Thursday was windy and chilly, so I stayed in to get caught up with all my framing for the paintings I'm taking down to Norfolk, VA next week. Early Friday morning I went out for some flowers to paint. All the colors they have now that it's Easter week- hehe, they called some of them "Jelly-bean Bouquets", and the colors were just like that! I've set this arrangement up as sort of a tea-break before afternoon- sort of an afternoon 'fortification'. These paintings I've done in this series are a reminder to bring these things into our lives; flowers for the table, a cup of tea, a bit of honey to sweeten, a bit of fruit, and some colorful linens just for the cheer of it. Hope you can make room in your life for some of these things.

To purchase this painting:

Buy this painting on PayPal
Price: $550 USD
Or, send me an email

*****Just a reminder for my Hampton Roads friends; next week I'm headed to Norfolk! Saturday, April 30th I'll be demo-ing palette knife techniques and speaking about "Finding Your Artistic Voice" at London Square Gallery from noon to 2pm. I'd love for you to join us!

Time Out For Tea

18"x14" oil on gallery wrapped stretched linen

"Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush."

-Doug Larson

It seems that I've been a slacker when it comes to sending out the "Cheer Factor" emails this week. But I have been working on a new painting, a bit larger than my usual small daily works. I've been thrilled with the better selection of flowers lately at our grocery store! It must be one more 'sign of Spring'. "Time Out For Tea" is the name of this painting I've just finished. It is an 18"x14" oil on gallery wrapped stretched linen. Contact me here for availability of this painting.

Hubby and I also spent some time planning and ordering some seeds for this year's garden. I look forward to being able to paint in the middle of all this in just a few months! Oh the colors are going to be fantastic!!

Be sure to sign up for my "Cheer Factor" newsletter and see all the latest paintings fresh off the easel as well as subscriber specials.

Gimme Some Sugar

6"x6" oil on archival panel

"Joy is the feeling of grinning on the inside."

- Dr. Melba Colgrove


"Gimme Some Sugar" is the name of this little painting. My southern granny would say this to us as we'd be loading up the car to go home. We couldn't leave without a good-bye kiss. We'd try to stifle a giggle, try not to roll our eyes. Now, my grannies are long gone and I think of that saying every time I see a sugar bowl, like my little blue & white one. Hope the thought makes you smile and think of your Granny, too!

Slices Of Sunshine

6"x6" oil on gessoed masonite

"It's the artist's business to create sunshine when the sun fails."

- Romain Rolland


I was so hooked on painting orange slices after painting the one I posted yesterday (Sunshine State Of Mind). So of course I had to do a small one, with a few slices & a cup (since I brought my coffee mug into the studio). My coffee grew cold, as once I had placed it 'on stage' I didn't want to move it! "Slices Of Sunshine" is a 6"x6" oil on gessoed masonite archival artboard. You can start every day with a bit of sunshine, no matter what the weather brings!

Berries 'n Blue

6"x6" oil on gessoed masonite archival artboard

"Adopt the pace of Nature: her secret is patience."

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Sometimes patience during the winter is pretty tough to think about when you're anxiously awaiting Spring to arrive.

Yet - another painting to bring out of the 'archive'! I am offering these 'Valentines' at 2009 prices during the month of February. They are dry and ready to ship as soon as your Paypal payment clears! I also accept personal checks - it just takes a good bit longer for it to travel through the mail from your house to my bank. Paypal is that sure bet to receive it in time for Valentines Day!

******For these Valentine special offerings, I'll cover shipping via Priority Mail (for continental US) between now (Feb 1st) and Feb. 14th! Treat your sweet-heart to something wonderful, that lasts forever, isn't fattening, and is the perfect size! Forwarding this email to 'the likely suspects' might be helpful as a gift-giving guide! OR be good to yourself, a personal Valentine 'from you to you' might be just what you need.

My fourth Valentine offering for my subscribers this month is, "Berries 'n Blue" a 6"x6" oil on gessoed masonite archival artboard. Reply to this email to let me know you'd like this piece & preferred payment method. Your Valentine price is $100 +zero for shipping (see above)! ...all in the name of love! Email me at roxannesteed@gmail.com for more information!

Now go on, work on that love life!

Yes, indeed, I have been painting new pieces while posting these older works, I have a couple saved up ready to post soon!