I'll be kind...it looks great! ha I see nothing wrong with your strokework or anything else. I can see why you chose this one. You are gonna have quite the Valentine day stash of decorations soon. I like the little shaded birds and their tails are so cute. Very nice. So where are these little love birds going? =D

~Anj

Luvs, this looks great. Don't you just Juliet Martin?

Anj, you are always so sweet and kind. But unfortunately, I know when mine doesn't match the example in the book! LOL

I've got a little nail just inside the front door just perfect for this one I think.

Yes, Bebe, I do love Juliet Martin. I have two or three of her books and there are still more things in them that I would like to paint someday. The gal I took some classes with way back in the 80's loved her, so we did three of her designs right off. I have some cute little farm animals, gave away a bunny family, and still have a couple of leprechauns from her books. As I remember, the designs looked very complicated, but weren't so bad since we just did it all step by step. LOL

Luvs

Oh Luvs,

How can anyone do anything but be kind? That is so sweet and well done.

IMHO, I don't think that anyone's artwork should be the exact duplicate of the author. It should always reflect your particular brushstrokes, your own "eye", even your own color choices. It should be "YOU". When we do that, then we can call any "mistakes" our artistic license :)

This piece is your art and very, very nice. I always enjoy your work, it inspires me.

Joan

Joan, what a sweetheart you are! ;o) I do like this piece, just thought my little comma strokes around the edges should have ended up with better "tails" on them.

I went to a craft show on Thursday, and saw lots of wooden Valentine's hearts. All were either just the shape with glitter sprinkled on or the shape with words painted on top--absolutely none had lots of design or detail to them! So I guess mine will be "unique" in more ways than one, won't it? LOL

Luvs

Luvs....your love birds are adorable sitting in the flowers and the letter painting is excellent! As you have said before, " I am drooling over my keyboard!"

As to not looking like the one in the book....impossible! When I make my own patterns and paint more than one, they never turn out the same. And in books the colors are usually off so you already have one strike against you. Now all I have to do is read this over and over and stop comparing my work to the artists!

Thanks for sharing!!!!

Belle

I think we are all perfectionists with our own projects. There are so many things I wish I could do better with my own painting, but practice is all I can do. I think your "tails" look great Luvs. And I agree with Joan....it's like I used to tell my DD when she would try so hard to copy other kids art in school....I don't want to see so&so's art, I want to see a Chelsea original! She really took that to heart. ha I like to see each person's take on a project. I love how the pattern may be the same but they each come out with a little bit of ourselves in each one we do. I'd sure be proud to hang your cute heart in my house!

Thanks for the sweet comments and reminders to not be so hard on myself ladies. I have to agree that even when I do two or more of the same design at the same time--they all look just a bit different! LOL

Luvs