It’s back to beautiful springtime here in Wisconsin, so I’ve been painting outside in the grass, surrounded by the first spring flowers and the cheerful chirping of robins in the pine trees.

For so many years, I can hardly believe that I hid my creativity away and stopped painting. Now that I’ve been painting full-time for more than fifteen years, I do whatever it takes to get back to a less serious place.

Whenever I get frustrated with my work, I take a step away, get outside, start a new painting, finger paint, or go back to using my favorite techniques and colors. I do whatever it takes to get myself back to a less serious place, so I can start having fun again.

I start every painting with a colorful background – this is definitely the most fun part of the process and one of the reasons I move back and forth between backgrounds and forms as they develop.

Covering up the white space is when I feel like I’m playing, getting the layers down. Then painting my figures is more like bringing something out of the paint.

My faces generally begin with the same color palette – a circle of titanium white mixed with a flesh tone. Then a layer of gold or brown acrylic paint for shadows behind the eyes. This creates a surface with a bit of contrast so I can add my initial eyes and features.

Once I’ve got the face in place, then I move around the piece, covering up what I don’t like and working with what I do until it all resonates with my heart.

These paintings all began with color inspiration from the gorgeous sunsets I experienced during my artist’s residency this past February. The layers and colors transformed into a radiance that reminds me of the golden hues on turquoise waters—a moment of calm that guides my heart to peace. It’s so uplifting to gather inspiration in nature and at different locations around the world and see where it leads me in my paintings.

If you’ve been wanting to paint or play, I’ve put together a new class bundle called THE SCHOOL OF HAPPY PAINTING MEMBERSHIP.

It’s actually something many of my subscribers and students requested as my classes became one of their favorite ways to loosen up and find their own unique style.

Whether you want to dip your toes in for a month or deep-dive for a year, it’s perfect if you’ve been wanting to explore various painting techniques, experiment with new mediums, loosen up, and develop your style. It offers online access to seven of my classes—a library of video and text lessons and a private community that you can access anytime.

If you’ve been curious about the membership, I have extended the special pricing until May 15th.

For those of you who share a passion for creative inspiration, I invite you to explore The School of Happy Painting Membership by clicking here and let it motivate and inspire you.

I can’t wait to see you in the membership!

Love, Juliette

PS Most of these originals have sold. You can find new original paintings in my shop here.