A Fond Farewell . . .

"You are the rainbow to my cloud."

- Anon

Each year as The Summer of Color ends, a tiny piece of my heart goes with it. I put so much love and care into The SOC, and am continually humbled by your enthusiastic responses to whatever I throw your way. I feel like I've found a family in you, and as the years pass, I'm struck by just how lucky I am to host such a kind, supportive and talented group of artists. I know I've said it before, but honestly, you really do make a Mama proud! 

The Idea 

To create an event based upon limited color palettes was one that came to me about six years ago after having read the book True Colors by Somerset Studio. At the time I was participating in a blog challenge that had about 25 weekly participants. It occurred to me that if I could just get that many people to join my event, we could really have something special. I never imagined that we would have nearly 100 participants in the first week of the first year alone. And since then, we've continued to grow by leaps and bounds. Over the last five years, we've amassed over 1,100 photos in our flickr pool and have played with, learned from and made friends with literally hundreds of artists along the way. YOU have made The Summer of Color the success that is and for that, I will be eternally grateful.

So, if it Seems By Now 

That I'm ending our Summer adventure after five incredible years together, unfortunately, you're right. I know that there will never be an easy time to end it - and honestly my biggest fear is in disappointing you - but I've decided to dedicate the rest of my Summers to spending time with our daughter, who was 4 when I began The SOC and (I can hardly believe it!) will be 10 in a of couple months. I know that I only have a few years left while she still likes me more than her friends, and I want to take advantage of every little minute I can with her. I do hope you understand.

To Thank You:

I want to give you something special to remember our time together. I created this with you in mind, so I thought it only fair that you should have it! Please accept this piece from me with love:

"You are the rainbow to my cloud" 

9 x 12 Mixed Media

(Download and print your FREE copy Here)

And of course, your 2015 participatory Artist's Badge is here for you as well!

As for Me: 

I will continue to post my art & art process here on this blog, on my Facebook Art Page and on YouTube. This Summer introduced me to the world of YouTube and I must say that I love it. With that in mind, new videos will be on the menu from now on. Additionally, I have something else up my sleeve. . . .  

A Newsletter!

I'm happy to report that I've just set up an account that will allow me to share my little corner of the Mixed Media world with you via email. There I will offer art prompts, art challenges now & again and - this is the exciting bit - FREE downloadable items from my personal collection of vintage papers, photos, artwork and / or other ephemera that will be exclusive to my newsletter subscribers. I also plan to continue teaching in person and look forward to sharing where I can be found as the time comes. 

Sign Up Here:  

You can sign up directly through our Facebook Group Here (The link is found at the top of our SOC Facebook page). . . .

Now, Who Won The Last Giveaway of The SOC?

I've got our winner right here! A big congratulations to . . . 

Sue from Arty Creation Inspiration!

(please note: all winners will be selected at random via a Random Number Generator. 

The photos / proof of each week's winners will be on file and happily sent to anyone who would like to see them.)

Way to go Sue! Please email your address to Kdvanvalkenburgh@msn.com and I'll mail your Oranges n' Blue winnings right off.

Let's Keep In Touch!

Our Facebook group will remain open until the end of the month so that we can share our Facebook pages, blog or websites with each other and remain in contact. After all, some of us have been on this journey together for years, and I don't want you to loose the chance to connect. I will close the Facebook page on August first. 

Lastly:

I want to reiterate how important you are to me. You've made the last five years incredibly special and I want to thank you once again for sharing your art and heart with us all. You will be forever in my thoughts because of it. 

With Love & Colorful Kisses,

Kristin xo

The Summer of Color 5: Week Six . . .

"Orange is the happiest color."

- Frank Sinatra 

I Can Hardly Believe It!

But somehow (where has the time gone?!) we've already reached our last week of The Summer of Color. And I must say - like so many of you have already - this year's installment has been one for the books! I love seeing which hues you choose each week, love seeing all the gorgeous, drool-worthy work you've created and, on a personal note, have loved playing right along with you this year. Thank you once again for sharing your time and talents with us all! 

Although It's Our Last Week:

I hope you'll still consider joining us if you haven't done so already. You can read all about the event here, join our Facebook group for more SOC fun and check out our Flickr pool to see all five years of color palettes in one place. As for the rest of social media, you can find us everywhere else using the hashtag #TheSummerofColor5.  

This Week:

We'll be working on our sixth - of six - weekly color palettes. It's bright, bold and possibly the palette that best represents the colors of Summer. Again, we're double dipping here, so if you're up for the challenge, I encourage you to choose different hues for this palette than you may have used in weeks past. So, are you ready for it? Okay then, here goes! Our last palette for SOC 5 is:

1 Orange + 1 Orange + 1 Blue

And remember, what you do with the prompt is all up to you! The only stipulation being that you work with the colors provided above and here below:

Get Your Copy Here

How Did I Use Oranges n' Blue?

Well, I um, created a boat of sorts. It's a little different but hey, that's part of the fun, right? So, without further adieu, here's my latest YouTube video on the subject:

What About Our Last Giveaway?

Oh, it's a good one! There's a lot of my favorites in there, including a couple of the Montana paint pens (that blue is a new color in the line!) that you've seen me play with throughout the Summer.

{Two Dylusions Ink Sprays in London Blue and Pure Sunshine, three rolls of adorable washi tape in oranges and blue, two blue floral embellishments, two large Faber-Castell Big Brush Pitt artist pens in Phthalo Blue and Orange Glaze, two Montana Acrylic Paint pens in neon orange and light blue, one Poppin leather-bound notebook in a gorgeous teal, two bottles of Liquid Pearls in Pumpkin and Royal Blue, one Dr. Ph. Martin's bottle of Bombay India Ink in Orange, one (it's my last ;) decorative napkin for collage and, last but not least, several iridescent confetti stars}

And Last Week's Winner?

I've got it right here! Last week's giveaway was randomly chosen to go live with . . . .

Linda Gibbons of Just Another Volunteer!

(please note: all winners will be selected at random via a Random Number Generator. 

The photos / proof of each week's winners will be on file and happily sent to anyone who would like to see them.) 

Congratulations Linda! Please email your address to Kdvanvalkenburgh@msn.com and I'll send your pretty, pretty things right off.

Ready To Play?

Please link your Week Six pieces to the widget below. To qualify for the oranges n' blue giveaway, simply copy and paste the direct link (from your blog, Facebook, Flickr, Instagram - or any other feed that can be linked here) to the widget below. You have until this Sunday (10:00 am, Pacific Daylight Time) to do so. Only one link per person, please.

Have Fun!!

Enjoy your last week and we'll see you back here next Monday, July 20th for our Closing Week as we reveal:

* The winner of our oranges n' blue giveaway

* Your 2015 participatory Artist Badge and. . . 

* More information about the SOC. 

* Oh, and to finish our Anniversary Year in style, this time, I have a little something extra for you as well. 

See You Then!

With Love and Respect,

Kristin xo

The Summer of Color 5: Week 5 . . .

"If people want to make war, they should make a color war, 

and paint each others' cities up in the night in pinks and greens."

- Yoko Ono

Now That's Cool!

Even on a holiday week with our most difficult palette of the Summer, we still had an absolute ton of ever-so-shinny & undeniably gorgeous submissions for last week's Reds n' Metallic challenge. I loved seeing what you created and am continually floored by all the talent and passion our group possesses. Thank you for sharing your art and heart with us all!

I Say It Every Week:

But if you're reading this for the first time, please know that you're more than welcome to join the party! It's a lotta fun around here and I promise you'll be glad that you did. Pop over here to read all about the SOC, over here to join our Facebook group and over here to peruse our our Flickr pool. Our hashtag for all social media is #TheSummerofColor5. 

This Week: 

We'll be working on our fifth - of six - weekly color palettes. It's pretty, preppy, and I hope you'll agree, really, really fun. I loved working with this combination and can't wait to see how you tackle it! So you ready?! Okay then, our color palette for Week Five of The SOC 5 is . . . .

1 Green + 1 Green + 1 Pink

Now, you may notice that we're double-dipping for the first time. Since there are only so many basic colors to choose from, both this week and next will contain hues from previous palettes. Of course you can continue to work with anything you wish, but if you'd really like to challenge yourself, I encourage you to try different versions of the colors you used before. As an example, although I used pale pink and neon pink in my piece from Week Two, this week, I decided to use a medium pink to go with my greens. Again, it's all up to you and as always, you can create anything you'd like, as long as your work is based upon this week's colors:

Get Your Copy Here

If I'm Being Honest;

This has been my favorite palette to work with thus far. The video is a bit buggy, but that'll make more sense as you watch. If you'd like, you can check it out here and of course, below:

And This Week's Giveaway?

Isn't she pretty?! Your giveaway for the greens n' pink challenge is . . . 

{One Dylusions ink spray in Fresh Lime, one Delta brand Crackle Medium, three - it's true! - Tim Holtz Distress Inks in Picked Raspberry, Crushed Olive and Mowed Lawn, two green washi tape rolls, four Caran D'Ache Neocolor 11 water soluble wax crayons in greens and pink, three pink straws for assemblage or collage, one Poppin leather-bound notebook, two Daler Rowney FW ink / liquid acrylics, one bottle of Liquid Pearls in Avocado, a couple pieces of Blick decorative paper (with bugs, you'll really want some ;) and a sprinkling of iridescent confetti stars}

And Last Week's Winnner?

The random number generator did it's job, and this time selected none other than . . . 

Susan Carol from Faith Words Faith Expressions!

(please note: all winners will be selected at random via a Random Number Generator. 

The photos / proof of each week's winners will be on file and happily sent to anyone who would like to see them.) 

Congratulations Susan! Please email your address to Kdvanvalkenburgh@msn.com and I'll send your package right off. 

Here We Go Again: 

Please link your Week Five pieces to the widget below. To qualify for the greens n' pink giveaway, simply copy and paste the direct link (from your blog, Facebook, Flickr, Instagram - or any other feed that can be linked here) to the widget below. You have until this Sunday (10:00 am, Pacific Daylight Time) to do so. Only one link per person, please.

Thank You!

I hope you enjoy playing with this combination, and we'll see you back here next Monday, July 13th for Week Six's Palette, Giveaway, PDF, Video and this week's Randomly Drawn Winner. 

With Colorful Kisses,

Kristin xo