Saturday, December 1, 2012

Rabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit!
Welcome December! November sort of flew by: Art of the Carolinas, Zach's Birthday, Thanksgiving, Creating time in the studio, Work, Work and more Work...and then all of a sudden December...
As you can see, it's been a while since I have blogged, so here I go. I have lots of interesting things I've been up to, but I thought I would post some of my Free Art Lessons I shot earlier this year during the filming of my new DVD. I'm so excited about it!
Discovering Encaustics
I hope you enjoy it! It covers the basic set up of an encaustic studio and about 25 or so techniques are covered to give you a great jump start in your creativity! Please check it out.
I also have some free art lessons posted here. I'm just learning how to embed, so I hope this works!
Enjoy!
Happy December!
Get ready for lots of fun this month...I am.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/QWo3u13TmC8

http://www.youtube.com/embed/DykBSdZytMY

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Happy September!

Well last month (August) was another whirlwind! I sure am happy and grateful for such a wonderful and full life, I can hardly keep up. Work has been amazing and always such a challenge, especially this time of year, so close to Art of the Carolinas! But we just keep chugging away at the duties at hand and sooner or later the show will be here once again and we'll have tons of folks from all over the country congregating right here in Raleigh for the art feast extravaganza! So far, I think I have everything under control. I always get a bit nervous that I'm going to forget something major. But: so far, so good!

I had a great opportunity in the last couple of days of August to shoot a new DVD. This one is called "Discover Encaustics with Sharon DiGiulio". It covers the basic set up of encaustic painting, the materials and several techniques to get you started. The shooting went very well and all the folks at Burning Oak Studios were great to work with! Here are some on set shots of me.




We just spent this past weekend getting Matt and Bridget married. What a beautiful couple, beautiful setting and fantastic time! It was great to get all the kids together for this celebration!







One of the new on line things both Joe and I are pretty hooked on is Pinterest! Wow. Talk about an addiction...Just a warning: If you decide to go to www.Pinterest.com, allow at least three hours of your time, because it is endless! Tons of information, eye candy and also a great way to organize your interests (or pin your interests) on line. This allows for easy future access too! Okay, I warned you!

Happy September to everyone…



Thursday, August 9, 2012

Stealing time in the studio!



Yes, that’s what I’m doing…
And loving it too!
I’m doing lots of experimentation in the wax department. Encaustic wax, that is.
Here are a few images of my latest work:







These are all done on encausticbord, with R&F encaustic paints and mediums both of which I absolutely love. I am also working on birch wood with encaustic gesso applied to the working surface. I'm not quite finished with anything, but keep posted and you'll see what I come up with!
Take care and have a fun rest of the week...



Friday, August 3, 2012

Hello August!

The same thing happens every year right around this time. I have so much going on that I forget to blog! Yes, I’m way too busy enjoying this time of year. Family. Friends. Art. Work. Art of the Carolinas. Beach. Teaching. Gardening. Cooking. Wine. Travel. Creating. Organizing. Taking photos. WOW! That’s pretty much it right there…

I did have a chance to sort of clean out my studio and rearrange. I finally set up a permanent place for my encaustics. This is wonderful, as now I don’t have to pull everything out, set it out, plug it in and get going. I have committed a particular space to WAX! Now all I need is more time so I can get in there and paint. I have a sketchbook chock full of wonderful ideas and new directions. Time, where are you? Actually I really need you now! Great news! I’ll be shooting a new DVD this month – this time covering encaustic – WooHoo!
I spent an absolute fantabulous week with my family at the beach over the 4th of July. It was so much fun! This is something we always love to do…get together, play games, party, splash around in the ocean, cook, create, read, relax and just enjoy each other’s company. We all had a great time and it’s just great to be able to do whatever we want to on vacations together. I am very lucky to have such a great family that truly loves each other!
Part of the Crew:

Zach and me...
Joe Chillin'


Right after returning from the beach, we at Jerry’s were happy to present another fabulous Bob Burridge workshop. Something about that guy…He’s just one of those “life lovers” and I love it when he comes to Raleigh to share it! Thanks Bob for all the inspiration and creativity you give out in bunches!

Next, Joe and I were fortunate enough to offer workshops in Traverse City, Michigan. Wow! What a beautiful place. Right on the water, clear water, that is. Next time we will definitely plan a bit of an extended stay so we can enjoy the area more than just a few days. Both workshops; Joe teaching acrylic abstracts and me teaching encaustics, were very well attended and our students really pushed themselves and created some fantastic work! Great job. Here is a shot of some of the students' work. They were really cranking it out!
We've had lots of visitors over to DiGiulio Studios for some fun and painting since my last post!
Here is a photo of Cindy Lou:


And the lovely Ophelia:

Emily and Dragos visited the studio last weekend and had some fun painting some pieces for their new house. Great job you two!

And also my dear friend Patty over for a fun night of painting last night!
Then today, Joe and I were fortunate enough to go visit Dragos and his dad, Stelian at their shop, Raleigh Wrought Iron Co. Oh my! What an awesome place! Really fantastic craftsmanship. Wow. This is just one mini corner:
Dragos and his dad. Can't wait for our new railing going up to the Buddha Lounge!
Okay, so now I have to clean the house, then I'll be in the studio all weekend creating! FINALLY!








Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Encaustic Workshop in Traverse City!

Encaustic Workshop in Traverse City, Michigan
I am returning to my roots in Michigan and bringing with me seeds to plant...in Encaustic that is! Joe and I will be traveling to Traverse City to offer workshops soon! Joe's class will be in acrylic and mine in encaustic. If you are in the area or plan to be, it couldn't be a better time of year for Traverse City! We used to go sailing there all the time when I was in college. My encaustic class will be an amazing 3-day wax extravaganza! I am so excited to offer this class. Lots of hands on techniques that will take your work to brand new levels. Come soar with me! Sign up here. It's a 3 day class, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, July 20, 21 and 22.

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Okay, so its May!

Sometimes life is such a blast and so filled with creativity that I just can't keep up! I think that's pretty much the saga of life. I want to do so much and experience and create and work full time on top of all of that, that just keeping up with all the modern technology, while trying to embrace the past...becomes quite the chore and challenge!
Creative wise...lots of fun workshops are going on at the store: watercolor, collage, encaustic, acrylic painting, stamps...you name it! Jerry's has it in store for you! Here's a link to the workshops we're offering this year.
We've also been busy at DiGiulio Studios! Joe has a big show up now at the Cardinal Club in Raleigh, NC. Check out the details on his blog. This is a collection of his newest work and largest work. A "must see" for all!
Both of us will be offering workshops in Traverse City, Michigan this summer, so if you're in the area, come and have some fun! Joe will be teaching acrylic painting and I will be offering a class in encaustic!
I (as usual) have been busy getting my hands into several different things: Encaustic on board and on paper, creating stamping tools (oh my!) and printing onto paper and fabric. Then of course, my acrylics and journaling just to keep me "right"! My sister is in town, so we are getting together today - finally! to art a bit in the studio. Not sure if we'll be plugging in the encaustic or batik pans, or painting on paper or fabric, but we shall see!
Some recent encaustic collages
 Collage parts and pieces

Stamped papers


Speaking of my sister - Cindy - she and I spent a loverly weekend in Asheville last weekend to celebrate her 60th birthday. LOADS of fun and antiquing and hunting for treasures, eating great food and tasting wines. Cheers to you girl! What a great "partner in crime" you are. I am so very thankful for you in my life!

Zach will be coming to town today, so I'm pretty stoked about that! He just informed me yesterday that in addition to the chickens, rooster, and goats, that he now has a cow! Yes, my son owns a cow...Who would have thunk it?


Joe and I finally made it out to Happy Hour at The Flying Saucer last night! Great beers - IPA's for Joe and Ambers for me. I took this shot and think it's pretty awesome:

Well hope you enjoyed this post.
In addition to all of this, I have been working really hard on Art of the Carolinas 2012. I am just about finished gathering all the artist info and information for the classes, sizing photos for the Web site and now building the Web site...so, it shouldn't be too long before the "games begin"! Be sure to check back for all of this year's details!
Okay off to the studio now!


Friday, April 6, 2012

April showers bring May flowers!

Well, the azaleas bloomed pretty darned early this year…like two weeks early. I guess that’s from this instant warm weather we had this Spring!



But now, a bit cold, a bit dreary, rainy and a bit confusing! I looked outside this morning and there was a little bird sitting on the back of one of the chairs on the deck. I looked at him and he looked back, cocked his head as if confused or asking a question. We sort of just looked at each other through the sliding glass door for the longest time. I hope he’ll come back and visit.

My friend Sterling Edwards sent this sign to Joe and me. I thought it was very appropriate! We really are very simple creatures, you know?


As some of you may know, I’m working on my donation for Chairs of Hope for 2012. This year, the theme is “Artists”. We were instructed to choose an artist as an inspiration for our chair’s design…Here is mine in progress. Can you guess which artist inspired me?


Whose pony tail is longer? Joe’s or Katie’s?


At Last! Nicole Kennedy’s new gallery has finally opened! And it looks FABULOUS! When you get the chance, definitely check it out. I think you’ll love the new location (right next door to the old place) and the unique paintings she has featured on her walls. Here are a couple of shots from the opening this past Wednesday:

Looking forward to a wonderful weekend with my family! Happy Easter everyone!

Friday, March 23, 2012

Such crazy weather we’ve been having!

I actually love this time of year. I (thank God!) don’t have any issues with pollen (knock on wood), so Spring is just a fabulous time of year for me. I love it because that is when our customers sort of pick up the pace in taking workshops, and being creative and sharing their talents after a long winter’s nap. It’s also the time when you can open the windows (well, except for this week, as the pollen is SO THICK!) and let the fresh air in the house, put the plants outside and get going on a couple of those outdoor projects.

I tend to lose track of all my projects I have at any given moment. I like to write lists and cross things out as I go. Then I lose the list, only to find it stashed away neatly in a new file that I forgot I had taken the time to make. This is when it gets fun! I can actually look at the list and be totally amazed at the things I accomplished even with a missing list. Funny how organized I am when it feels like “unorganized”…

At the end of February and the beginning of March, Joe and I traveled to Key West to visit my sister and her family. I just love Key West. After having lived there in my twenties, I have fond memories of the place. I was fortunate to have spent lots of time on the water sailing, snorkeling and diving. My nephew took us out on his boat to Marvin Key. OMG! That place is absolutely beautiful. Marvin Key is basically an island of mangroves and sand surrounded by beautiful ocean. The water is deep enough to maneuver your boat close enough without dragging the ocean floor, yet shallow enough to hop right out of the boat and walk with your stuff to shore. Here is a shot from the boat:

And here is a shot of my “installation” – the Bowline knot project:


Basically, there was a random rope from a lobster pot sort of wrapped around the drift wood. So I thought as opposed to taking the rope, I would add some art to the scene. So there you go…

I had a fun three days of encaustic: Thursday, March 8th, I taught a class here in the store: Introduction to Encaustic with five wonderful students eager to learn what fun it is!

Then Friday, March 9th, I was part of the Festival offered at the North Raleigh Christian Academy. There were six artists who had the opportunity to share our talents with both middle and high school students. It was such a great day! Here is a photo of part of my second session...I forgot to take any photos in the first one:

Afterwards I got to spend some time with some of the (crazy) artists: Penny, Jodi and Ophelia for lunch at the Uppercrust. Thanks Meghan and Mariea for putting up with our loud laughter! Way too much fun! Then after that, arted with my friend Penny Arrowood in my studio until I had to go lay my weary head down for another round of arting at Jerry’s Artarama! Saturday, Penny taught a book binding class from 10am-1pm and Jodi offered a journaling class from 2pm-5pm. I plugged the encaustics in one more time and offered a demo in the store. Man, I really love this medium. I just can’t seem to get enough of it!

Ophelia Staton is one of our instructors here at the store. She is also here just about every weekend to demo for you yet another supply that we offer here at Jerry’s. She is another one of those gals (like me) that likes to collect all kinds of stuff for our studios. Then once in a while, we clean it out and share with others. Well, this time, I was the lucky one to be on the receiving end and was gifted with a full bag of hand dyed fabrics from the fabulous Ophelia. Oh my! I’ve only gone through the very top portion and became so inspired, I needed to stop and start creating. Here is the piece I ended up with:



We’ve had lots of classes running at the store this March! So much fun!

Here are a couple of photos:

Jodi Ohl’s Class:


Michelle’s Class


Dan’s Class


This past weekend, I was able to spend Sunday with some of the girls from my art guild: Carolina Mixed Media Art Guild. We all traveled to Liz Miller’s studio – just a “to die for” location on Sawmill Road in Raleigh. Lots of windows, lots of space and Sunday – lots of wax! Not encaustic wax (this time), but paraffin wax for batik and Tjaps! Thanks so much Liz for sharing this fun technique with everyone. Like I need another art addiction! Here’s a shot of Liz doing a demo:


And here is one of my creations of the day:

Now, one more time – Tuesday, March 20th to be exact, I offered a demo to the VAE members in guess what? ENCAUSTIC! Here's a photo from that event:


Then Thursday, the 22nd, I had a workshop at Jerry's Artarama: Carving Stamps and Painting on Paper. Here's a few photos from that class:





And lastly, here is a photo I took this morning of my tulip magnolia. Nice.


Busy busy March!!! And still more than a week to go.
Happy Creating!