New Paintings - Morrigane, Alondra & Medwin and a Personal Commission

Whew, I sure have been busy the past couple weeks! I have finished up three large paintings that I've been working on for a couple months now. I've been alternating between them, so it was fun to wrap them all up at the same time. I thought I'd take a moment to show you all the finished pieces!

Morrigane

Morrigane is my first big finish of 2013! She measures 8x10" and is a commissioned painting. My client wanted me to depict traditional elements of The Morrigan mixed with personality traits of herself. They combined together to create this beautiful character that I was so excited to be able to paint!

Because this was a commissioned painting, the original has already been sold. But prints and products of this piece will soon be available in my Etsy shop here.

Alondra & Medwin

I have another exciting new painting to share with you all today! This was another commissioned painting titled Alondra & Medwin. This is part of a 4 painting series of elemental witches. I have already completed the first in the series "Serafina & Firenze" that depicts the fire element. Alondra & Medwin is the second in the series and depicts the water element.

This was such a fun piece to paint and probably my most detailed painting to date. Between all the carvings and detail in the back and the intricate coral reef elements in the front...not to mention the witch and the seahorse...I spent hours upon hours on this piece from start to finish. But it was so much fun to do and I enjoy seeing this piece alongside it's companion piece. I can't wait to finish the rest of the series!

Again, this was a commissioned piece, so the original is already in a great home. But prints and products are available in my Etsy shop here.

Personal Commission

This is the third painting that I've wrapped up in the past couple weeks. And this is definitely a special one! I was approached a few months ago by a wonderful customer of mine who wanted a stylized portrait commission of her and her daughter.

Now those of you who follow my work know that I usually only paint things with wings, hats, fangs, tails, etc... lol. And I have never painted any children before. But this customer is so important to me, I just couldn't say no! And I'm really glad that I didn't.

It was such a challenging piece, but I really feel like I pushed myself a lot on this painting. And I'm really happy I got the opportunity to work on such a special piece for a special person! I hope that you all enjoy it. 

 

A Look Back At 2012

2012 was a busy year for me! It started out preparing for my first big convention, MegaCon 2012 in Orlando, Florida. Then, my husband and I made a big move from Atlanta, Georgia to Columbus, Ohio. After the move, I was able to focus more time on my artwork and I took on a lot of commissions and was able to finish quite a few paintings! I thought it might be fun to take a look back at all the paintings I was able to finish in 2012!

Cheyanna - 11x14 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in January 2012

Symphoni - 11x14 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in May 2012

Kenda - 2.5x3.5" Watercolor and Ink - Painted in June 2012

Serafina & Firenze - 11x14 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in June 2012

Lissa - 5x7 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in June 2012

Rayne - 5x7 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in July 2012

Copper - 11x14 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in August 2012

Riley - 5x7 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in October 2012

Lexy - 5x7 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in October 2012

BreAnna - 5x7 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in November 2012

Jayna - 5x7 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in December 2012

Fallon - 5x7 Watercolor and Ink - Painted in December 2012

Congratulations to Becca Bencini!!

Well, I put everyone's names in a big box and chose a winner for my giveaway and the name I picked was Becca Bencini!! Congratulations Becca! You have won an 8x10" original commissioned painting, painted to your specifications. Just contact me at nikki@aurella-art.com to claim your prize!

I wanted to thank everyone who entered my giveaway! Your kind comments about my work really mean so much to me. It was so much fun to read about how you all discovered my art and what your favorite pieces are.

I also wanted to thank the very kind donor who made this whole giveaway possible!!

I will definitely be having more giveaways in the future, so just be sure to keep an eye out on my blog!

Holiday Giveaway - Original 8x10" Commissioned Painting!!

I'm having another holiday giveaway this year and it's a BIG one! This year, a very wonderful and generous person has donated money for me to give away an 8x10" fully shaded commissioned painting. That's right!! An ORIGINAL painting, valued at $300, painted to your specifications that you can win for free!! How exciting is that?! Can you tell I'm excited?? =D

And the good news is, it's super easy to enter! You can enter by commenting below this post in my blog by answering one of these two questions:

1. What is your favorite painting of mine and why? You can find my complete gallery with names of all my paintings here.

2. How did you first discover my artwork?

That's it! That's all you need to do to enter my contest. But if you want to show your love for my art and support my work, I would also love it if you would share my contest on your Facebook account and/or "like" my Facebook Fan Page here. While that's not necessary to enter, I would definitely appreciate it! =)

Only comments under this post on my blog will be accepted. I have enabled anonymous posts, so even if you don't have an account you should be able to post a comment. If you leave an anonymous post, please leave your name and email address so that if you win I have a way to contact you. Also, if you have any account, please make sure that there is a way to contact you when viewing your blogger profile such as an email link. If not, please leave your email address as well.

Anyone can enter! Anyone around the world, friends, family, fellow artists....if a commissioned painting is something you would like to win, then please enter! =)

This giveaway will run through midnight EST January 3, 2013! The winner will be drawn randomly from everyone who has entered and your answers will have no influence over who the winner is.

The winner will receive an 8x10" fully shaded commissioned painting. It includes one character, a background, and animals if you so choose. I will create a sketch to your specifications, a rough colored version and then a final, finished watercolor painting. Please be familiar with my style and what I can and cannot do before entering. This process can take anywhere from 1-3 months. For more information about my commissions, you can look at my website here.

The giveaway donor wishes to remain anonymous, but if you would like to express your thanks for this awesome gift they are giving away, please feel free to do so in the comments below! I'm sure they will be reading. =)

Cyber Monday Sale - 20% Off Entire Etsy Shop

I decided to have a big sale for Cyber Monday in my Etsy shop!! I'm offering 20% off EVERYTHING. Just type in coupon code CYBERMONDAY2012 upon checkout to get 20% off. That's 20% off originals, prints, sketches, digital stamps, collage sheets, stickers and more! This will be my biggest sale before the holidays, so don't miss out if you have your eye on something!

Since I sort of announced this sale last minute, I'm going to have it today and tomorrow! So you'll have until Tuesday at midnight EST to make your purchases. =)

Monthly Fantasy Art Auctions Group on Facebook

I wanted to tell you all about an awesome new group that I'm a part of over on Facebook. The group is called "Monthly Fantasy Art Auctions" and it's a big group of very talented fantasy artists that put their work up for auction! All auctions close on the last day of the month. And we're now offering up "Buy it now" options on some of the pieces. So it's really a lot of fun! Everyone's super friendly and chatty, so come join us!

I currently have 5 different auctions up for grabs. Here are links to all of my available auctions:

Auction #1 - 8x10" Hand Embellished Print of Evania

Auction #2 - 8x10" Hand Embellished Print of Kiandra

Auction #3 - 8x10" Hand Embellished Print of Arden

Auction #4 - Halloween Sticker Pack

Auction #5 - Original Kiandra Sketch + 8x10" Signed Print

Riley Print Sale - One Week Only

From Thursday 11/5/12 - Thursday 11/15/12 I am offering over 40% off of all my Riley prints! Riley is my brand new steampunk painting.

You can purchase Riley in the following sizes:

8x10" Prints = $7.00 (Regularly $13.00)
5x7" Prints = $4.00 (Regularly $8.00)
ACEO Prints (2.5x3.5") = $2.00 (Regularly $4.00)

I'm also offering a fun option! You can also choose to get your prints hand embellished! What I do is paint iridescent watercolor medium on each piece by accenting their clothes, hair, eyes, or other details in the piece to give them a soft shimmer. It really makes these prints so special! On the hand embellished prints, I will also sign, title and date the back of each one.

Hand embellished print prices are as follows:

8x10" Hand Embellished Print = $10.00
5x7" Hand Embellished Print = $6.00
ACEO Hand Embellished Print = $3.00

These prices are still below my retail print prices without hand embellishments! So this is really a great chance to get a fantastic deal on some one of a kind art.

All you need to do to purchase this weekly special is send me an email to nikki@aurella-art.com and let me know what you'd like to buy! I'll then send you an invoice directly through Paypal to your email address for an easy and safe purchase. Once I receive the payment, I will package them up and ship them off to you. There will be a shipping charge added to each order (though I do combine shipping so this is not a charge per print! =) ) The charges will be as follows:

8x10 Prints

United States: $3.75
Canada: $4.75
Everywhere Else: $9.00

5x7 Prints

United States: $3.00
Canada: $3.75
Everywhere Else: $6.00

ACEO Prints

United States: $2.25
Canada: $3.25
Everywhere Else: $4.25

**Please note that this special is not being offered through my website store or my Etsy store. Though I will happily combine shipping with any orders purchased through my Etsy shop or website store. Just message me if you have any questions. =)