Big Magic!

Last Thursday night, I was lucky enough to see one of my favourite authors, Elizabeth Gilbert, and one of my fave bloggers, Mia Freedman speak at the Brisbane Writer's Festival. One thing that really stood out (among many things!) was when she said: "People wait their whole lives for inspiration to show up. But inspiration is there waiting for you (to start doing the work)." This is how I feel about painting. I can sit an look and think about a blank canvas all day long, and no matter what I have planned for it, once I begin to paint - it has a mind of it's own. For instance - I recently started out painting a "Day of the Dead" themed mermaid. I had it sketched out, planned out and started painting it on to the canvas. However...as it evolved, I realised what I was actually painting was "Snow White"...and along came the seven dwarfs with her. Except they weren't dwarfs at all - they were fish. Which eventually turned out to be "Snow White and the Seven Fish" (and the original painting is now up for auction, starting at $1 here!) There is a sense of mystery when it comes to inspiration and creativity - you just have to follow that little niggling of curiosity and see where you end up! If you're excited about living creatively - I highly recommend Elizabeth Gilbert's book "Big Magic" (and no, this isn't a sponsored post, I truly loved it.) With Easter coming up - I've put five of my bunny themed prints up for sale for a limited time only they are just $9.99 (normally $14.99)! For the collectors, I have a bunch of original paintings available here. Be quick! There is only one original painting of each, so once they're sold, they're gone. That is all from me for now. x Follow along with me ↓↓↓ Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ArtByJaz Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/JazHiggins Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ArtByJaz

"Fragile Beauty"

A new painting!

 This one is called "Fragile Beauty" and she is the first one up for auction in 2016. 

 

 A big blue eyed girl, with plaits in her hair, a skull by her side and butterflies fluttering around her.

 

The original panting is up for auction HERE. 

"Alice and Absolem"

This week I finished a new "Alice in Wonderland" piece! It's called "Alice and Absolem (The Blue Caterpillar)".

 

The original is 12" x 24" on stretched canvas (ready to hang on the wall). You can find it HERE (if it's still available).

 

There are also glossy paper prints available in A4 or A3 size HERE.

I had fun adding in lots of little details to this one. Little flowers, dots, mushrooms, butterflies...and of course "Absolem" - the blue, hookah smoking, caterpillar with a human like face!

Now that that is finished, I'm working on a couple of commissioned paintings with Christmas deadlines.

Unfortunately I have come down with some sort of head cold - which is making it hard to work for any period of time. I constantly feel like I need to lie down. I'm trying to listen to my body most of the time and rest up where I can, but for the work part - tea and panadol are getting me through. Also - my family have helped me out a lot which I am so so grateful for!

Last night's studio mess.

A couple of days ago I also got a delivery of a bunch of new CANVAS prints! They are beautiful. So close to the original painting, you can barely tell the difference. My Mum thought they were original paintings!

 

 

 

 

 

 

See all of the new CANVAS prints HERE.

 This afternoon I'll be busy packing up colouring book orders (which are proving popular as Xmas stocking stuffers!), and continuing on the commissioned paintings.

I hope you're having a nice week!

P.S. In case you missed it: all of my mailing list have been sent a FREE colouring page from my new colouring book. If you want to get your hands on one, simply enter your name and email here:

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Aussie Creatures + Bejewelled Fairies!

This week started off with a trip to Australia Zoo! We'd never been before, and it was great for all of us to experience it for the first time together. We saw crocs, eagles, exotic parrots, koalas, wombats, tasmanian devils, giraffes, rhinos, bearcats (I didn't even know there was such an animal?), iguanas, kangaroos...it was an awesome day out.

Crikey!

My colouring books have been selling well - most of my orders this week have been book orders, with the occasional art print order thrown in as well. I even managed to give one of the pages a go myself while we watched a movie one night. I rarely sit and watch a movie without doing something at the same time (usually painting or sketching) - and I found colouring in really relaxing! I can see why this craze is taking off...

 

I used Faber Castell Polychromos Pencils for this one...I'm yet to finish it!

I'm starting to get stock out to stores in the lead up to Christmas, so if you have a shop that you think my art or colouring books might suit, please let me know at artbyjaz@yahoo.com.au 

 I've finished two new little 5"x5" paintings this week -

 

"Pearl Wings"

and 

 

"Purple Shimmer Wings"

These were embellished with pearls and rhinestones and I love the way the wings turned out! Magical! °☆。

These paintings sold very quickly, but if you would like something similar, just email me at artbyjaz@yahoo.com.au and I would be happy to create something for you. This size as a commissioned painting would be around $65. I can create them in any size, hair colour, eye colour etc...

Ok, I'm off to see if I can fit some painting in while Mr 2 is sleeping and before I pick Miss 7 up from school! 

Ciao for now,

Donut know when I'm going to finish this painting...

I couldn't help but begin this with a donut pun. #sorrynotsorry

I've had donuts on the brain lately. I'm seeing them everywhere. I'm pretty sure they're 2015's answer to the gourmet cupcake.

So it would seem that the only reasonable thing to do would be to create a Donut Princess. I mean, there is a Donut King after all? Maybe she should be called the Donut Queen? No...I think this one is a Princess.

I started by just roughly painting in a bust of a half pink/half blue haired girl, with several donuts falling around her. I wanted her to have a crown, and a donut tiara seemed to fit just right.

Then I did what every great artist would do, and tracked down some still life reference materials to work from. Thanks Krispy Kreme.

I continued to build up some of the layers of colour on the donuts, and start to work out what each one will look like. Sprinkles, icing, coconut, chocolate flakes...so many possibilies!

 


...and that's where she's at at the moment. I've got a few other projects on the go, and some commissioned paintings to finish up this week. So "Donut Princess" will have to wait a while...

In the meantime I would love to hear from you if you have any ideas for a painting! And if you're not on my email list, jump on there and every now and then I will send you special messages. :)

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"Ice Cream Fantasy" Mermaid Painting

This painting really just came from the heart. I had no idea where it was going to go when I started it. I had no idea that she was even going to be a mermaid. Just slowly, bit by bit, day by day, I worked on it at any spare moment. Slowly a mermaid emerged and I spent hours painting whimsical details around her. I found it to be quite meditative actually! Tiny dots, swirls, starfish, lilypads and shells...

"Ice Cream Fantasy"

It's a big painting. 12" wide x 36" long x 1.5" deep.

The original painting is available HERE.

A4 and A3 sized glossy paper prints are available HERE.

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"Little Dragonfly and Daisies"

I've just popped this little 6"x6" original painting up in my shop:

"Little Dragonfly and Daisies"

A little fairy with blue-green eyes on a background of bright yellow daisies. She's looking at her dragonfly friend who's stopped by to visit! Right now there's still free worldwide shipping on everything in my shop, including all original paintings (which can save you up to $200 in shipping on some of the big ones!).

I'm also saying goodbye to my old 80s style kitchen tonight, because tomorrow we are ripping it out and putting in a new one! Woo hoo!

 I look forward to posting updates on the new one!

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School holidays are over and the last few days I've been working on some line work drawings for a project.

 

It's actually been nice to work with ink and paper rather than the usual paint and canvas. Black and white as opposed to lots of colour. Mixing it up.

The house is finally starting to look a little more organized. There are still boxes everywhere, and we're currently working with a make-shift kitchen (and studio) but it's starting to feel a little bit more like home. 

I'm arranging my studio slowly, and in line with the New Moon on Tuesday, I put my original "Moon Phase Angel" painting up for auction, starting at $1! You can go to the auction by clicking HERE.

The weather is finally cooling down today. It's been the longest Summer here in Brisbane, Australia. I thought it was never going to end. It's nearing the end of April and we're still wearing t-shirts and shorts. I love the heat, but we're definitely ready for a cool change. :)

What's the weather like where you are?

 

 

  

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"Blessed Mermaid"

Hello Monday!

Our weekend was mostly filled up with catching up with friends and family. The weather is still HOT here in Brisbane Australia, so I would've been happy to sit at home in the air con all day, but I'm glad we got out and about. :) We went to Wynnum yesterday for lunch and the kids loved playing on the whale park.


On Saturday morning I finished and listed a new original painting "Blessed Mermaid" up for auction in my eBay store, starting at $1.

"Blessed Mermaid"

 It's 15cm x 30cm on stretched canvas, so it can hang on the wall or sit on it's own on a desk or side table.

It looks like the week ahead will be filled with lots of painting with a couple of commission requests coming in this weekend. It's fun to do custom paintings now and then. When I'm painting I can have a million ideas running through my head, and I never really know where the piece is going to end up. Sometimes I can start painting a mermaid and it turns into a fairy. But with a custom piece, I am working with someone else to bring their ideas and dreams into being. It's really a team effort!

Even if you don't want to commission a painting for yourself, I would love to hear any ideas you might have for paintings. Feel free to message me anytime on Instagram or my Facebook page.

Here's to a great week!

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"Purple Lotus"

This morning I finished up a new "Purple Lotus" painting I've been working on over the weekend. 

"Purple Lotus"

Side View

I've popped the original painting up in my store HERE.

There are also 8x10" art prints of her available HERE.

I've just had the urge to paint flower after flower after flower lately, and I had saved some really beautiful pics of purple lotus flowers on my computer, so I decided to put them in a painting. They have a really nice meaning also. They are born in muddy water, yet they bloom to be so pure looking and beautiful - giving them a sense of hope and rebirth.

The purples and pinks in this painting really pop!

My mini paintings are proving popular in the eBay store, so I might work on a couple more of them today. If you're after another original painting or a print though, I suggest you buy it through ArtByJaz.com because you will get FREE SHIPPING Worldwide.

I hope your Mondayitis isn't too severe today! ;)

Happy Friday the 13th!

Is Black Friday lucky or unlucky for you?

For generations it's been lucky for my family. Thank goodness - because today is the first of two in a row! It's Friday the 13th next month as well! :)

On Tuesday I managed to finish my "Moon Phase Angel" painting. If you follow me on Instagram you would have seen me working on this one for the past couple of weeks.

"Moon Phase Angel" original painting

 I've put the original painting up on eBay starting at $100. 

There are also glossy paper prints of her available HERE.

After doing a couple of bigger paintings in a row, I wanted to do a few little ones - so I've started on some 6x6" canvasses, and I really like how they're turning out. The first one this week is "Little Bluebell Fairy", who I put up on eBay starting at just $1.

"Little Bluebell Fairy" original painting

Today was mainly spent packaging art print orders and ordering stock, so I'm looking forward to putting brush to canvas tonight. I also want to wish my late Grandad a happy birthday. He would have been 87 today.

Wishing you a magical weekend!

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"Flutters of Pink" and "Deep Sea Mermaid"

I finished my "Flutters of Pink" painting!

"Flutters of Pink"

The original has already sold, however there are 8x10" prints of her available (with FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING). 

This week I've been busy working on a new painting called "Deep Sea Mermaid". I had an idea for a gothic style mermaid with a creepy cute feel. I love deep sea creatures, so I wanted to add some scary angler fish in, and of course an octopus.

"Deep Sea Mermaid"

If you look closely, you can see the background is made up of hundreds of tiny dots and rain drops...

Detailed view of the "Deep Sea Mermaid" painting

I've popped the original painting up for auction starting at $1! It's quite a big painting at 12"x24". You can go to the AUCTION HERE.

It's very HOT here today in Brisbane, Australia. Hubby's taking the kids to the pool, and hopefully I'll be spending the afternoon with a cool drink and paintbrush in hand!

1st painting for 2015 - "Wattle Fairy"

Good morning! and Happy New Year!

We spent Christmas in Sydney and had a wonderful time with family! This week we're back home and back into work mode, although it is still school holidays, so Miss 6 and Baby A are both at home with me. So let's just say we're back into work/play/chaos mode!

This week I finished off my first painting for 2015. She's called "Wattle Fairy".

"Wattle Fairy" by Jaz Higgins

I can remember walking to school and smelling Wattle along the way. It's smells so pretty and it's like tiny little yellow pom poms decorating a tree! It is probably my favourite native Australian flower.

Wattle flowers.

 

The original is up in my shop for $275, including FREE postage to anywhere in the World. Actually, everything in my shop now has free postage! There are also prints of her available in two sizes HERE.

It's raining here today (which I love) so apart from one run to the post office, I will be painting! Stay tuned via Instagram for regular updates.

"Fairy of the Crescent Moon"

We've had blue skies here all weekend, here in Brisbane, Australia. We've said goodbye to Winter and Summer is well on it's way with really warm weather today. We went to the farmer's markets this morning to grab some fruit and vegies, and Miss 5 picked up some water bombs, so we spent a few hours today running around the backyard throwing these at eachother! The kids think it's hilarious!!

God I love weekends.

Friday night I also listed a new 8x8" painting I've been working on. It started out like this:

As I worked more on the facial details I felt I wanted to make the background darker and layered over it in a darker teal wash. Her wings also transformed from "butterfly" to more of a "bat" style. 

I then decided I wanted to make the background even darker and she started leaning towards having a more gothic feel. 

I swear these girls have a mind of their own. A lot of the time I have a pre-conceived idea on what I want the painting to be and almost 100% of the time it doesn't work out the way I imagined. They seem to morph along with the creative process in to whatever 'they' want to be.

So she ended up as this:

"Fairy of the Crescent Moon"

I've popped the original up for auction here on eBay starting at $1.

 Quite a few original paintings have sold this week, however I've still got beautiful paper prints of them all up in my shop. The original paintings that have sold this week are:

"Taurus" (Fairy)

"Little Tree Nymph" (Fairy)

"A Splash of Colour" (Mermaid)

and

"Turtle Cove" (Mermaid)

My Halloween Sale has been popular also! It continues this week with 5 of my art prints at only $10 (A4 size) or $19 (A3 size) (with free Worldwide shipping!).

Tonight I'll be getting ready for the week ahead, and hopefully getting some more work done on some commissioned pieces and maybe even this mermaid painting I've started sketching out:

 

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I hope you had a beautiful weekend!