Persuasion Miniatures

Anne Elliot and Captain Wentworth  are depicted on the beach, with a wind almost blowing off Anne's bonnet and Captain Wentworth admiring her, although he is "half agony, half hope".

Blue Marianne

This is Marianne Dashwood, or Sense and Sensibility, resting during one of her rambles in the hills around Barton Cottage after Willoughby deserts her.

New cards

Under the mistletoe, a Regency Christmas.

This original watercolor depicts a regency couple under the mistletoe. The sketch for this painting was part of a few that were commissioned from me for a Mr.Darcy and Elizabeth Christmas painting, my customer picked the other sketch and this one was left over. I thought it would make a pleasant addition to someone's Jane Austen collection.

Christmas at Chawton Print available now, and a peek at Bingley's Teas illustration

The top print of Chawton Christmas is now available for sale, and the bottom one is the one that was done exclusively  for Bingley's Teas.

http://www.bingleysteas.com/

Anne Elliot of Persuasion

This original watercolor depicts Anne Elliot of Persuasion, sitting on a bench at the Assembley Rooms in Bath, during the concert in chapter VIII (volume 2). 

Woodston Christmas (Northanger Abbey)

This miniature original watercolor depicts Henry and Catherine decorating a mantel with a Christmas garland, I can just see them enjoying doing things together.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/171272319/woodston-christmas-miniature-watercolor?

Christmas at Hartfield finished

This Original mixed media painting depicts Emma and Mr.Knightley skating on the pond together at Christmas time. You can see Hartfield behind them, with softly lit windows and the snow falling gently. 
I painted the watercolor on 140 lbs. hot press paper, cut it our carefully and decoupaged it onto a music sheet covered canvas panel, that has been antiqued and sprinkled with a few sequins for a lovely Christmas sparkle. The music is traditional Christmas carols that would have been sung even in the 1800's.

A preview of Christmas in Hartfield

work in progress...

Jane Eyre Map and Marianne's Walk

This  watercolor depicts all the places mentioned in Charlotte Bronte's novel Jane Eyre, one of my favorite works of English literature. I wanted it to look as a visual journey of Jane. You can start in the upper left corner in Gateshead Hall, then on to Lowood School, in the middle of the painting is Thornfield Hall where she meets Mr.Rochester and a little church where they almost get married, then a road takes us to the upper right corner to Moor House where she finds her cousins, St.John, Diana and Mary and next we go to the lower right, to Ferndean Manor where Jane and Mr.Rochester are reunited. All along I wrote some quotes that belong to those places in the novel.

This  watercolor depicts Marianne Dashwood, on her fateful walk through the pleasure grounds and shrubberies of Cleveland, as she indulged in sad dreams of Willoughby, who is now lost to her forever. 

Holiday Sale and Why Art is the Best Gift you can give.

Starting today and until December 31st I will be starting my Holiday Sale.

You can get 25% off your entire order of $15 or more.  Just enter coupon code GET25OFF during checkout. 

Wondering why you should give art print or an original piece of art instead of perfume, socks or chocolates?  The reason is simple: art lasts, it shows that you know the person intimately enough to know what it is they love, be it Jane Austen piece of art or a portrait, a landscape or a custom map.  It is always there, on their wall, their kitchen counter, their dresser, constantly reminding them of your  friendship, a time you spent together or place you have visited, or your tender relationship.  

Another reason:  Art is versatile.  You need to give a gift to a person who has everything?  They love dogs?  Give them a piece of dog art.  They love to cook?  An Alfonse Mucha inspired art print or a painting of a cake/lobster/cooking utensils/large print of a recipe to hang in their kitchen.  Gardiner?  Botanical prints, garden watercolor or oil painting.  A person who has a summer home by the sea?  A nautical print.  Your friend just had a baby?  A lovely pastel colored print for the nursery or a custom piece of art with the baby's name on it.

How about personalized art - a custom watercolor of their child, their home, their favorite book character, their pet.  A Star Wars, Dr.Who, Jane Austen fan?  The geeky possibilities are endless :)

What other gift can compare to that?  

As an artist myself, the nicest reviews I get are from people who give art as a gift to people they love, be it because they love Pride and Prejudice or because I painted a historical home where they work as a volunteer.

Here are some of my favorite artists that you can find on Etsy:

Mai Atumn

https://www.etsy.com/shop/MaiAutumn?ref=l2-shopheader-name

Vladimir Mesheryakov  https://www.etsy.com/shop/vladimirmesheryakov

Kelsey Garrity Riley https://www.etsy.com/shop/KelseyGarrityRiley?ref=l2-shopheader-name

Kecky  https://www.etsy.com/shop/Kecky?ref=l2-shopheader-name

Fancy Slangfords https://www.etsy.com/listing/51089435/custom-regency-style-portrait?ref=favs_view_6

Mundo Meo

Petit Shop https://www.etsy.com/listing/49210858/hallway?ref=listing-shop-header-3

CarneGriffiths https://www.etsy.com/listing/158689638/eleven-ltd-edition-giclee-screenprint-on?ref=favs_view_14

The Litus Gallery https://www.etsy.com/listing/161175845/original-oil-animal-painting-the?ref=favs_view_4

Lady Poppins https://www.etsy.com/listing/157506881/dress-watercolor-painting-original?ref=favs_view_1

Danna Ray https://www.etsy.com/listing/62036595/take-me-out-tonight-limited-edition-art?ref=favs_view_24

Parodies Lost https://www.etsy.com/listing/84870170/doctor-who-tardis-print-hokusai-great?ref=favs_view_15

Breezy Tulip https://www.etsy.com/listing/71670031/the-storyteller-art-print?ref=listing-shop-header-4

Gemini Studio https://www.etsy.com/shop/geministudio?section_id=5437356&page=2

I would be happy to display any of these lovely works of art in my home, and these artist are just a fraction of what you can find on Etsy, the internet in general or your local art shops.

So Give Art!  Art is one of  best gifts.

At Pemberley Christmas ornament

Pride and Prejudice Christmas Ornaments

Chawton Cottage Christmas

This is an original watercolor of Jane Austen House Museum, in Chawton, Hampshire, England, as I picture it at Chirstmas time during Jane's life.
You can see Jane Austen in the doorway, welcoming her guests.
 As Jean K. Bowden, then curator of Jane Austen House Museum said "Chawton Cottage was Jane Austen’s last home – she came to live there in July of 1809 with her mother, her sister Cassandra and their friend Martha Lloyd. She remained there until just two months before her death in July 1817. So she was only there for eight years, but in that time she wrote three major novels – Mansfield Park, Emma and Persuasion, and she got Sense and Sensibility and Pride and Prejudice revised and published."

Sense and Sensibility Map

Map of Emma

Not too long ago someone commissioned an Emma map and I had a left over sketch.  It was really fun to paint and now there are 3 maps of Jane Austen's novels in my collection.

It is an artistic rendition of a map, on which you can see most of the places in Emma.  Highbury, Randalls, Hartfield, Donwell Abbey, Box Hill, Brunswick Square and Weymouth.  The background contains the garden dialogue and in the left corner you can see a miniature of Mr.Knightley and Emma encircled in a rosebud wreath.

Jane Bennet's Muslin Dress - The Process

This is my latest acrylic painting inspired by a lovely Regency dress I saw on Pinterest.  It looked like a perfect Jane Bennet dress to me.

I first painted my canvas dark and then sketched the dress in chalk.

This is a finished painting, I did most of the painting in just two colors, black and white, with just a bit of sienna in the background.  To be honest, I like it better in chalk :)

An accomplished woman

In Pride and Prejudice Mr.Darcy adds one critical component to Miss Bingley's list of musts of an accomplished woman -- "improvement of her mind by extensive reading"

In this original watercolor you can see Elizabeth Bennet, who loves a good book, reading one by a sunny window. She is wearing a yellow day dress and a blue ribbon in her hair.

A good novel

https://www.etsy.com/listing/162276252/a-good-novel-original-watercolor-5x7

This watercolor was inspired by the passage in Northanger Abbey where Jane Austen defends the novel. I smile every time I read it. So in this watercolor you see Catherine, absorbed in a good novel and in the background an excerpt from the Northanger Abbey, unfortunately the whole text didn't fit, but here is the rest of it for you to read:
"Oh! it is only a novel!" replies the young lady; while she lays down her book with affected indifference, or momentary shame. -- "It is only Cecilia, or Camilla, or Belinda;" or, in short, only some work in which the greatest powers of the mind are displayed, in which the most thorough knowledge of human nature, the happiest delineation of its varieties, the liveliest effusions of wit and humour, are conveyed to the world in the best-chosen language. Now, had the same young lady been engaged with a volume of the Spectator, instead of such a work, how proudly would she have produced the book, and told its name; though the chances must be against her being occupied by any part of that voluminous publication, of which either the matter or manner would not disgust a young person of taste: the substance of its papers so often consisting in the statement of improbable circumstances, unnatural characters, and topics of conversation which no longer concern anyone living; and their language, too, frequently so coarse as to give no very favourable idea of the age that could endure it.

Mr.Darcy Letter

Depicted in this painting are Mr.Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet, with a little sketch of Pemberley at the bottom, Mr.Darcy's letter (the actual text) in the background and some of Elizabeth's lace in the corners.

And a small watercolor of the door to St.Nicholas' church in Steventon, where Jane Austen's father was a rector.

Another take on Bad Girls of Jane Austen

A long time ago I had a trio of bookmarks titled Bad Girls of Jane Austen. I let the bookmarks get out of print and almost forgot about them but then one day I was looking through some shops on Etsy and came across a photo of three ladies sitting on a black and white striped couch looking sullenly at the camera.   I thought they would make a perfect trio of Jane Austen's "bad girls". I lost the link to the shop, but the idea was too fun, so here they are: Caroline Bingley of Pride and Prejudice, Isabella Thorpe of Northanger Abbey and Mary Crawford of Mansfield Park, sitting together on a couch during perhaps a morning call in London. 

Elizabeth and Georgianna

https://www.etsy.com/listing/160414871/pride-and-prejudice-original-watercolor

This was an extra sketch for the custom request a while ago.  I have been looking at it for some time wondering if I should erase it and use the paper for something else, but I liked it too much, even though I did not pick the subject here, so I decided to go ahead and paint it.  My favorite part of the painting? The little tea cakes on the tiered plate :)

Jane Eyre

This miniature watercolor depicts Jane moments before she meets Mr. Rochester. She is sitting beside the lane to Hay and he is about to round the bend of the road and fall off his horse. She is wearing her black mantle and bonnet on this cold and fateful winter evening. 

Mr.Knightley

This is Mr.Knightley of Jane Austen's Emma.  My favorite Austen hero.

He reminds me of my husband, that must be why I like him :)

Pride and Prejudice bookmarks

Emma bookmarks

Emma, improving herself.

This watercolor shows Emma, in one of her attempts to improve herself by reading. You see her deep in thought about an upcoming ball or Harriet's next love interest, the book forgotten :)

Anne in the Octagon room miniature.

Anne is standing in front of the fire in the Octagon room, right before she meets Captain Wentworth.  I looked up the interior of the real Ocatagon Room, and though it has probably changed a bit since Jane Austen times I thought it would be fun to include it in my painting.

Map of Persuasion

On this artistic rendition of a map you can see all the places mentioned in the book - real and fictional. Lyme, Bath, Kellynch, Uppercross, Winthrop, Shropshire. Inside the map I penciled in Captain Wentworth's letter to Anne. There are also miniatures of Anne and Captain Wentworth and a full rigged ship in the lower right corner. To add to the nautical feel of the painting I added a compass on the top along with swirls of evergreens for eternal constancy and tiny forget-me-not flowers. Of course I am no cartographer and if you are a person good with maps, or living in Britain you will probably laugh. But I thought it would make a fun Persuasion keepsake :)

Emma's Hartfield

Pride and Prejudice box

https://www.etsy.com/listing/151477567/pride-and-prejudice-keepsake-box-jane?

Reading in the Garden

This is how I imagine Catherine on a sunny day at home, stealing away to the garden to read a book.