Painting #326 - Dec 16 - A bit late getting this in tonight

Accidents to happen, I got wrapped up in a mini series on A & E, I happened on Stephen King's "Bag of Bones", I usually don't get into these kinds of movies, but my friend Carol mentioned it the other night at Blue Moon, so I wanted to check it out, then I got hooked, so tonight's painting is kind of a Christmas card, again, and I believe I plan on matting and framing this as a gift to my Sister-in-law, she loves cardinals, this is one of a few that I've painted for her, and we are going there just after Christmas, we plan on taking my Son and his 2 boys to Minnesota since the boys have never met their Great Grandmother, and she isn't doing all that well, I just want them to have that actual connection, so they will remember they do have family there.

Well, this is a card size painting, and I sorted through some magazine photo's and made this composition from several of those reference photo's, unfortunately, I've never gotten close enough to take a photo of a cardinal myself, and his is nothing like the reference material I had.

I painted this wet on dry, and it's on 300 lb. paper, after I got the snow shapes, and the cardinals in, I let that dry. Then I decided to put in some background color behind the branches and the birds, while it was wet, I threw some white in, which made those splotches. It kind of looked like snow, my original idea, so I finished the birds and the branches and pine needles, then put snow shapes in front of the birds so it kind of looks like it's snowing, I like this little painting, and I hope you do too.