17Sep 2012 by Leisa
Historic House Portraits in Annapolis, Maryland

Historic House Portraits in Annapolis, Maryland

News
Beautiful Bed & Breakfast in Annapolis, Maryland, makes Great House Portrait Subject! I am continuing to add to my Annapolis Maryland historic house portrait series and this classic Dutch Colonial Revival caught my eye.  Well it would be hard to miss it!  Situated just one block from the famous Annapolis City Dock and the Naval Academy, the Academy Bed & Breakfast  is right in the heart of the Annapolis Downtown Historic District.  Just a few years ago the building was run down and delapidated.   The current owners lovingly restored the building -- both inside and out  -- to its former glory.    I take my hat of to them. Doing a pen and watercolor painting of their lovely creation was the easy part! [caption id="attachment_28181" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Brightly colored 1849 home in the heart of Annapolis on Prince George Street[/caption]…
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29Aug 2012 by Leisa

First House Portrait in New York State

News
Newsflash!  House Portrait in NY  State makes my 18th House Portrait State [caption id="attachment_2594" align="alignleft" width="650"] Modern Ranch Style - Long Island, New York[/caption] Remember my game of doing watercolor house portraits in all 50 states? Well I just added one more. The state of New York!  Here is the house portrait. I was commissioned to do this Long Island New York home to be given as a gift to its homeowner.  I specially love the spacious porth and clearly a lot of care has gone into the colorful garden. Here's some interesting facts about Long Island.  Situated in the southeast area of New York State it has a population of around 8,000, making it the mostpopulated island in any U.S. state or territory. It is also the 17th most populous…
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09Aug 2012 by Leisa
House Portraits in Traverse City, Michigan

House Portraits in Traverse City, Michigan

House Portraits, News
Discovering Beautiful Victorians in Traverse City, Michigan Traverse City is about 15 minutes from Lake Arbutus. It's an artsy community-spirited city with an abundance of interesting cafes and restaurants as well as unique boutiques, specality stores and art galleries.  It also hosts a popular film festival annunally which we enjoyed.  Traverse City is named after the Grand Traverse Bay, which the city heads. The bay earned its name from 18th century French voyagers who made la grande traverse or "the long crossing" across the mouth of the Grand Traverse Bay. There are lots of beautiful historic homes in Traverse City, especially elegant and well cared for Victorians from smal to very large.  I did my usual "house portrait walk-about" and selected what I think are some of the most art inspiring homes. Here…
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18Jul 2012 by Leisa
House Portraits with San Gabriel Mountain Backdrop

House Portraits with San Gabriel Mountain Backdrop

House Portraits, News
Craftsman Homes and Mountains -- A Perfect Combination! One of the greatest things about staying in Pasadena and the surrounding area is that you are able to enjoy the changing colors and moods of the San Gabriel Mountain Range. They provide  such a wonderful backdrop to any house portrait painting. As you can see here I especially love to capture the mountains around sunset when they turn shades of soft blue and green. It  makes the darker, natural tones of the craftsman homes in Pasadena stand out. Located in northern Los Angeles County and the western San Bernardino County, the San Gabriels also have wonderful walking trials and I never failed to find pockets of interesting house portrait subjects nestled into the hills. Architectual styles mainly included Craftsmen houses and bungalows, Spanish Revival…
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16Jul 2012 by Leisa
House Portrait of a Victorian Beauty

House Portrait of a Victorian Beauty

News
My Artist Loft Studio in Pasadena, California When staying in Pasadena California we found the perfect place to live and work. Here is it.  When the  owner asked me to do this house portrait commission for him and I couldn’t have been happier. The loft studio is up there in the roof and it was quite a treat to also have our own private turret! Only ten minutes from the heart of Old Town Pasadena, we found the loft on Airbnb, which is an online service that matches people seeking vacation rentals  with private people who have rooms in their home to rent. This is the link that we clicked on and it also has more photos inside the house.  http ://www.airbnb.com/rooms/411493 The homeowner, Albert Reyes, was the perfect host and he has…
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