Northeast Louisiana's Blend of the Bayou

I was invited again to participate as one of the artist's at the Northeast Louisiana Art's Council's yearly event "Blend of the Bayou. It's a fundraiser for the arts council that involved local businessmen cooking, and as people enjoy their afternoon, stroll through the outside art gallery. It's always lots of fun. This is my fourth year to participate. The setting is the beautiful home of Dr. and Mrs. Waltor Sartor.

The weather was perfect for this fun afternoon. The temps were just right for May in Louisiana. (Last year it was chilly - we were wearing jackets and sweaters)

Me with Leah Reitzell, one of my partners at the Sugar Art Gallery. 

Portrait Artist Ricky Sikes painted live.

Some of the great food by local businessmen.

Art by local artist / architect Doug Breckenridge.

I had Doug Breckenridge take a photo of me with my art.

I had a wonderful day. I took 10 paintings and came home with three. I'm working hard trying to build back my inventory as well as finish commissions. If you haven't been to this event, start looking for tickets to go on sale in April 2016 for the next event.

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great week!

Last week's Taylor Swift 1989 World Tour Concert in Bossier City Louisiana

Last week my daughter and I went to the Taylor Swift 1989 World Tour concert in Bossier City, Louisiana. It as the first US city for the tour. How exciting. We met up with some friend's outside and took some pics with the tour truck in the background. There were lots of folks taking pics like this.

We were soooo lucky to have gotten tickets. They sold out in seconds the first day. It was in November, so I gave them to by daughter as a Christmas gift. Our seats were very high in the second tier and for some reason, this is the only concert I have attended and sat up high that people stood up. and never sat back down........ ever. Some did, but if people in front of you stand - you can't see. The second tier is at such a slope that standing for prolonged periods of time is uncomfortable. Plus if you have a purse - you have to stand AND hold it? When Taylor was talking about her personal struggles.... there were two ladies behind us talking - quite loudly.... I almost videoed them to post - so people could be shocked... but I didn't want to be THAT mean. So I told me daughter to follow me. We went to the lower level and found two seats - asked if anyone was sitting there - and (shock) they were free. A sold out concert..... and empty seats. Yeah for us. The people on this level were all sitting and we enjoyed the show. Her platform that raised and extended was right in front of us. So nice. Here are a few pics.

She only sang two songs from previous albums. This is my fourth time to see her, my daughter's third. I do miss the older style, but she's a fabulous entertainer, and as an artist, I understand changing and exploring. I mean, we would have been there three more hours if she covered all her songs. It was great. She went to Baton Rouge, Louisiana two days later and I enjoyed seeing more of my friends post photos from that concert.

Thanks for stopping by! I am so sorry I have neglected my blog. Please follow my facebook page at Melanie Douthit Art Studio for more current news.

May is all about flowers! Mixed Media Monthly Challenge

The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge Blog is all about flowers for the May challenge. Since Mother's Day is right around the corner, I thought it fitting. 

And hold onto your rose-petals because We have TWO prize packs this month from Stampers Anonymous featuring Dina Wakley products. And guess what? Dina Wakley is our guest designer for May!

If you are new here, the Mixed Media Monthly Challenge Blog is just that - it's a challenge to create mixed media art. To be eligible for prizes, on the main blog, link your themed project, and a winner (or two!) will be selected by random drawing. If you love creating mixed media art, then this is the challenge for you to motivate you AND possibly win a little something.

For my project this month, I created a piece using Dina Wakley stamps. (I videoed the entire process, but am having issues with editing it to my satisfaction to share - so maybe I will learn what I need to do in the next few weeks).

I stamped the images and quote on a patterned paper, then cut them out. The surface is a 5.5" wood block. I used patterned papers, felt flowers, paper doily, and chipboard buttons as well as paint, punch, and ink.

Thanks for stopping by and hop on over to the main page at Mixed Media Monthly Challenge Blog to play.

April Showers with Mixed Media

The Mixed Media Monthly Challenge Blog has geared things up this month. We have a fun challenge with some prizes from DecoArt!

I'm so thankful (as well as my team members) to DecoArt for graciously sharing their awesome products with us. I'm so excited to share what I created. DecoArt has a line of products specifically for mixed media artist. The line is called DecoArt Media (click the link to view the product line).

My project was quite large. I worked on a 20" square canvas. I collaged various papers on it, then used this wonderful DecoArt product called Crackle Paste.  I used various stencils and a palette knife to apply it, then let it dry. I hope you can see the wonderful texture it made.

The theme for this month's challenge is April Showers. If you are participating, this can be anything from umbrella's, to clouds and rainbows, to  - well.... the sky is the limit (literally!).

I chose to paint coneflowers after a fresh rain shower. The next wonderful DecoArt product I used was the Fluid Acrylic paint. I used it in a variety of ways from dripping and spraying with water, using it like watercolor, and also direct application and line work. I love these paints! I also used their Gesso (white) to separate some of the background from the foreground over some of my collage papers. It's great, too.

"After the Rain" 20" x 20" by Melanie Douthit

Here's a closeup of the paint OVER the crackle paste.

In order to participate, go to the main Mixed Media Challenge Blog and upload the link for the project you created for this month's theme. There will be 3 random winners and each will win a  prize package of DecoArt Media products. How cool is that!

I hope you are inspired by this month's challenge. We can't wait to see what you create.

Thanks for stopping by and have a great day!

March with Mixed Media Monthly Challenge

The design team has been busy creating some fun products for the March Mixed Media Monthly Challenge. We have been so thrilled with the number of folks creating and participating in these each month.

Our theme for March is "Birds of a Feather".

Create something that reminds you of birds - birds, feathers, wings, quotes, nests, eggs.... be creative! Let us know how birds inspired your project.


Here's my project for this month.

I collaged patterned papers on a 9x12 stretched canvas. I then used acrylic paint draw the design and add color to the images.

Our sponsor this month is Faber Castell Design Memory Craft. They are offering Gelato prize packs to 2 lucky winners!

One winner will win Mixed Media with Gelatos kit

Another winner will win the Card Making With Gelatos kit.

To enter this challenge, link your project to the space provided on the Mixed Media Monthly Challenge blog.  Be sure to visit all the designer's pages for tips and info on their creations.

Thanks for stopping by and happy creating!

Think Pink February Mixed Media Monthly Challenge

For the month of January, I hopped on board the challenge that I have seen many artists participate in over the past few years. The "30 Paintings in 30 days" challenge has fascinated and terrified me in the past because I felt I was a slow painter, but I jumped on the train and completed 29 paintings this month. One of them is for this month's "Mixed Media Monthly Challenge" theme of "Think Pink"

If you haven't participated in the Mixed Media Monthly Challenge, I hope you will do so this month. 

The sponsor this month is Ellen Hutson. 

"Ellen Hutson LLC was established in November 2006 and is currently located in Issaquah, WA. We are an on-line retail store that caters to the needs of paper craft artists. Ellen Hutson, LLC is always looking to provide our customers with quality products, excellent customer service, and education and inspiration for each of the products we carry."

and the prize is a $25 store credit!

I love doing girls and faces, so I created a whimsical girl on a 12" x 16" canvas panel.

Here's a close up of her face, using acrylic paint. 

and I used patterned papers for her dress and the field she's standing in.

I wanted to incorporate the phrase "Spread Love Everywhere You Go", so I used black Stayzon ink and some older (discontinued) alphabet stamps. I call her a "Ragamuffin Girl". 

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you take part in the mixed media challenge. Just go to this post on the Mixed Media Monthly Challenge Blog and follow the instructions for linking up. You can enter up to five times!

Have a great week!

Happy New Year 2015

It's my first blog post of the New Year! Happy New Year!

I'm sharing my project for the Mixed Media Monthly Challenge Blog. Our challenge was to use a new-to-you technique or product.

I had been saving a wine bottle to do something with, so I decided to pull it out and decoupage it. I chose a palette of blues and greens and browns. It was quite easy to do. I can envision a grouping of these to decorate tables.

Our sponsor this month is Butterfly Reflections Ink. The random winner of all those that participate will win a $25 store gift certificate. How cool is that? 

To enter, link your projects to the Mixed Media Monthly Challenge Blog anytime in January. We can't wait to see your projects. 

Thanks for stopping by and have a great new year!