Jolie Guillebeau

Eli is Finn’s brother, and he’s confident and strong. But they have the same beautiful blue eyes.

Eli and Finn live in Alabama, and I’ve heard from their mom– they’re safe and sound. But so many other people aren’t. My heart and thoughts are going out to everyone who is looking for faces that they love.

This is a week of siblings–Meet Finn. His mom says he’s mischevious and sweet, and I love that his blue eyes shine brightly even under that baseball cap.

Tomorrow you’ll meet his brother, Eli.

Anna sent me this photo of her sister Sara. Sara is an artist, and Anna thought it would be really fun for Sara to see herself in paint form.

I love the photo– it really shows Sara’s personality, and that Anna must be right when she says that Sara is one of the most open, loving and accepting people that Anna knows.

What a great sister.

This is Anika’s brother, Chris. And he looks like he has big plans for that snowball. While I’m glad it’s not snowing here, I’ve really enjoyed painting this kids playing in the snow. Hopefully they’ll enjoy playing in warmer weather soon. Warmer weather is coming, right?

Right?

This is Anika, and she obviously loves playing in the snow. I’m honored to paint her face– especially with such a beaming smile on it.

Since I painted Max yesterday, I thought it was time for another painting of a kitty. This is Blue. He lives with Cait, and is apparently very good at winning over people who don’t like cats very much.

He looks as if he has something important to say– his eyes are very expressive. They were fun to paint.

Meet Max. Originally from Japan, he lives with Peggy in Mongolia. He’s the family Dachshund mentioned here and was perhaps a little jealous of the painting of Hunter, so Peggy sent a photo of him over, too.

This week in one of my classes, we talked about values. When I teach, I’m continually saying, “The colors don’t matter as long as the values are right.”

One of my students wasn’t convinced. She thought about it for awhile, and then asked, “Really? The colors don’t matter at all?”

I gave her a few examples of paintings with unexpected colors that worked because the values fit, but she was still skeptical.

“So you’re telling me that you could paint my face in pinks and greens and it would still look okay as long as the values were right?”

Yes, Cheryl, that’s exactly what I’m saying.

Have you seen Patti Digh’s newest book? What I Wish For You: Simple Wisdom for a Happy Life. I just got my copy this week– and I’m thrilled to be included in such an incredible book! (My painting is on page 18.)

One thing you should know if you ever plan to hang out with me, is that I attract odd people. If we’re on public transit, you can be sure that the crazy person is going to talk to me.

I also attract curmudgeons. The Eeyores of the world seem to seek me out and attempt to tell me all their problems. But I don’t mind. In fact, I see it as a personal quest to make certain people friendly.

One of these people is my mailman. Now, I realize that being the mailman isn’t the most awesome job (it’s definitely not as cool as being a painter), but Tom is especially grumpy. And since I’m shipping paintings out pretty regularly, I have determined to crack Tom’s shell. He’s going to smile at me eventually.

I’ll keep you posted on the progress.

Have you seen Patti Digh’s newest book? What I Wish For You: Simple Wisdom for a Happy Life. I just got my copy this week– and I’m thrilled to be included in such an incredible book! (My painting is on page 18.)

Gwyn sent me this beautiful face of her friend Celeste. I loved painting this because I could see Celeste’s wisdom and vivacious spirit very clearly in her face, and I really think I managed to convey that in the painting. Which makes me happy.