Finished this one today

When I paint this size in acrylics, the customer may choose to frame it matted, under glass, in an 11 x 14" frame like a watercolor. In this case, my client chose to frame her home portrait in an 8 x 10" frame, without glass, like an oil painting.

I get excited about a painting when the home starts to feel like it's jumping off the canvas. This one's starting to come alive.

Here's the photo I started with. Did some pencil drawings and then colored one in a little bit with watercolors.

Sharing this sketch with the homeowner helped her direct me to remove the autumn wreath. And she sent me a different photo to use for the shrubbery and decorative grass to the right of the steps. 

She liked the flag and we decided to plant the black pot to the left of the steps with red geraniums. 

Can you see it start to come alive in the photo below from where it was in the 2 photos above?

More work begins today, trying to incorporate the plaque with the street address and correcting some things before picking out frames to show it to the homeowner later this week...