Another Pre Raphaelite Girl... She's back on the auction block

I started this last semester while my students were working independently.  I think I finished it the other day... one never knows for sure.  It is on auction this week through ebay.  A purchase will assure me that it is, in fact, finished :-)
To Visit my Ebay gallery and possibly bid... click here

SOLD1 Red Haired Girl 20x24 oil

This began as a class demo.  I started with several photos.  a few of pretty girls and a few from our trip to the Wichita Mts.  Like Frankenstein, I took a hand from one photo, a face from another, a pretty outfit from another and borrowed the hair from another photo.  All combined into this painting of a lovely girl taking a walk through the woods.  I think all little girls imagine how wonderful it would be to have very long hair.  If we grow up to be artists, we realize our dreams through our painting.

She is on auction this week on ebay .  To visit her on ebay click here

I reworked her flesh a little and then took a photo in a darker room.  Man the color sure is different.  I need to go retake this in light!

Better.  Can you tell what other changes I made?  see below for answer :-)

I took a little bit of hair off the top and left side.  I took a tiny bit off the chin and added a little to the left side of the forehead and left cheek.  I also brought a hint of blue further out to the left to suggest a portion of her dress.  I feel better.

Creativity Bleeds into the Garden "Bed"

A couple of months ago we got rid of a single bed and were left with the problem of the wooden box springs.   I first used them to put on new plants with a glass window on top as a cold frame in the garden.  I have sense given it a new look and decided to use it for its original purpose.... kind of.... as a "bed"  What I decided to do is create a slightly raised bed in my vegetable garden .  Here is how I did it.

 Step one.... and now I wish I hadn't already taken off the cardboard... remove all the fabric covering.

 I had some old fencing and scrap lumber laying around and used them for nailing to the sides.

 Here is the spot where it will rest.  First I will remove the mulch and flatten bed.

 Next I took a bunch of newspapers and cardboard boxes and flattened them out and stuck them under the box.

Then I threw in a bunch of compost and a little garden topsoil, complete with some nice earth worms and hopefully void of cutworm eggs or other nasty beasts.  I will continue to fill the bed with top soil, composted material and perhaps a little cow manure and peat.  I plan on having my little girl dream come true with a canopy bed in the near future as I will start with some cool weather crops and root veggies and ease on into  the summer with squash.  I plan to use a row cover to keep out the evil moths who lay eggs for squash vine borer.  I will beat them yet.

 Dead of winter veggies starting... Lettuce.