Hearts and Stars ACEO

This ACEO is built with layers on top of layers on top of layers. From the back:

The background is made of strips of handmade paper that have been laid side-by-side and glued in place like planks on a nice sturdy piece of mat board.

The strips have been toned with several layers of paint in varying degrees of transparency to give it an earthy organic feel.

The pink heart design is painted with acrylic paints.

The star flower and the little star in the upper left are cut from my favorite origami paper.

Spiral Mediation ACEO

Finally! Something that's not a fish!

Don't get me wrong, I love my fish. Love my fish! And now I'm glad to have something else to show, too.

I also love spirals. Here's one done in gold metallic paint on a green and red background. A really intricate, brushy, colorful background.

The whole painting is on a nice piece of mat board which gives it a very substantial feel. I'm very happy with it.

Enjoy.

Purple Squiggly Fish ACEO

This is the last fishy for now. No more in this series for a while.

This fish is cut from my favorite origami paper, as is the spiral. The background is painted with watercolors in a squiggly design.

I have a few other things to post in the coming days, so stay tuned.

Fancy Purple Fish ACEO

Now this is a really cool ACEO. The fish is made from my favorite origami paper, with spiral designs cut throughout. I love how the face is framed with the pink flowers and that yellow frill line around it.

The background is made from strips of beautiful papers woven together and then mounted on a piece of cardstock to give it some substance and hold it all together.

Overall, I just love this fish. I hope you do, too.

Should you be interested, this fish is in my Etsy shop: http://lifeneedart.etsy.com.

Happy Pink Fish ACEO

This cheerful little fishy is happily swimming along blowing bubbles! What a way to spend the day!

The fish and bubbles are cut from my favorite origami paper. The background is painted with watercolors on a piece of woven paper, which was then mounted onto a piece of cardstock to give it some substance.

Like all good fishies, this one can be found in my Etsy shop: http://lifeneedsart.etsy.com .

Fish with Red Flowers ACEO

After all those little fishes, here's a change up to a big fish.

I love how the pattern is laid out on this fish -- how the red flowers fit with the eye, and the yellow flowers fill in the tail.

The background is painted on a thick piece of matboard in watery green colors. The background has a wonderful texture that's tough to see in the photo.

As with all the fishes, they are available in my Etsy shop: http://lifeneedsart.etsy.com.

Cruising Fishy ACEO

Back to our regularly scheduled fishy installment...

Here's today's fish. This one is cruising, stirring up the water in her wake.

The fish is cut from my favorite origami paper, as are the swirls.

The background is painted with watercolors on handmade paper. The fibers in the paper lead the paint around in interesting ways that I couldn't have planned.

The handmade paper is then mounted on cardstock to give it some substance and weight.

As with the other fish, this one is available in my Etsy shop: http://lifeneedsart.etsy.com.