Years ago I began studying reiki and investigating alternative healing methods. One idea and image that stayed with me was the idea that energy is especially powerful at dawn and dusk. Meditating or doing reiki in a garden at either sunrise or sunset would not only have a calming and healing effect on the person, but would also help the plants grow better. The idea stayed in the back of my mind for a long time.
For my painting Dawn in the Garden, I started and stopped over a course of a few months. I did a background that was pretty, but I didn't quite know what to add to it to make it more interesting. I kept painting and adding more stencils (
especially my favorite compass rose from Gwen's Ceramic Tiles club set) until eventually I was ready to add the foreground.
When I got a new shipment of StencilGirl® stencils, I knew that
Carol Wiebe's Sacred Feminine angelic beings were just right for my foreground. I used black and sepia archival ink and a purple acrylic paint.
Of course the angels needed wings, so I added some Dresden wings and grunged them up with some ink.
When I lived in the country the little bunnies were always having
a delicious dawn a dusk meal. They seemed to me perfect companions for the angelic beings.
First I cut them out of white paper and placed them around the canvas. I used a
rabbit stencil from Tracie Lyn Huskamp. Then I sponged them on with white acrylic, but they were too sheer, so later I redid them using white crackle paint. I also added some vintage shoes from The Graphics Fairy.
I added a bunch of stencils in greens and yellows to suggest foliage, including one of my favorite stencils,
Lacy Lotus by Jessica Sporn, and using circles from
Carolyn Dube's Playtime StencilClub set, a sunrise/sunset with pinks, oranges and yellows.
I also added some grunged gold Dresden crowns with faux gems. I also used a black General's Scribe All pencil to add some shadows around the bunnies.
The figures weren't quite the colors I wanted, but fortunately,
Gwen Lafluer's new Boho Blends worked perfectly to give the angelic figures some depth and shine. I used Wrought Iron on the far right figure, carefully masking over the shoes and bunnies with blue painter's tape.
On the middle figure, the
Cinnamon Boho Blend from the Spice Market trio was just right.
On the far left figure, the original purple was not working at all. I carefully placed the stencil back on the painting, added some VersaMark embossing ink, then sprinkled
Lapis Lazuli embossing powder generously. I tapped off the excess powder, carefully poured it into the container, then zapped the figure with my heat gun.
What a huge difference! The figures were more harmonious, and had shine and depth.
The foreground still wasn't quite right, and I put the canvas away for a while. I wanted to add some flowers at the bottom of the canvas, but they just didn't come out right when I tried stenciling them with acrylic paint.
It dawned on me that some tiny flowers with the
Paprika embossing powder would be just the perfect final touch! I used a flower stencil from
Ann Butler's March club set for the flowers, then added a drop of gold Nuvo Drops for the centers.
Truthfully, I have never tested out the garden meditation theory...but I do aim to one day be a serene being gathering and giving energy in a garden of my own!
