Make a Holiday Landscape a Personal Memory

I was visiting a business friend not long ago and noticed in his living room a new oil painting I hadn't seen when I last visited his home.

The painting was a strikingly beautiful landscape of what appeared to be Tuscany.   It had obviously been painted by a talented artist, and was of high quality.  It was large and very nicely framed also.  I was impressed.

I knew my friend and his wife had spent a few weeks in Italy several months back and I assumed they had purchased the oil painting in Tuscany and had brought it back with them and had it framed.  I complimented my friend on the painting which was the highlight of his living room. 

He was as proud of the painting as if he had painted it himself...and in a way, he had. He was very pleased to explain that the painting was an exact representation of a digital photograph that he himself had taken of that exact spot in the hills of Tuscany.  He and his wife had had a wonderful road trip through Tuscany and had fallen in love with the beautiful countryside.

After their return they searched for a way to display some of the beautiful photographs they had taken.  They finally chose a landscape shot from a location where they had shared a particularly meaningful moment and uploaded it to the Paint Your Life internet gallery site.  Friends had recommended the site which they had used for a wedding portrait and had been very satisfied with.

My friend had successfully combined a holiday memory with a wonderful home decoration that would definitely become a family heirloom.

I think I'll go home and take a look through that album of photos we took in Greece last year...

Jack

Take a Horse to College



My three daughters have been training and caring for their own horses since they were seven or eight years old. Horses are a large part of their lives and of mine.

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A Graduation Portrait with a Twist

High school graduation photos of the traditional kind - those frozen-smile cap and gown portraits - generally end up after a few years in a back closet or the attic.  It's not that we don't love and honor our children's graduation moment of triumph; it's just that the photos are usually stiff and unnatural and not a true reminder of that happy accomplishment.

Even studio and school photographers have in recent years come up with a few innovations using the new digital camera technology.  Graduation photos have become a bit more informal.  But, if you're interested in having a graduation portrait of your son or daughter that you'll be proud to display always, or even give later to their children as a family heirloom, then consider having a candid photo made into an oil painting or watercolor.

Photograph your graduate with a digital camera in various poses and situations that commemorate his or her high school years -  sitting at the computer; poring over books in the school library, standing on the high school steps, or pick a neutral background and add a few props such as a school sweater, yearbook, school flag...or even that funny tasseled hat (not on your head, though!).  Go for a medium close up and a natural happy expression or smile.  (Maybe even posed on the motorcycle that transported your student to school every day...)

Pick the photo that you and your graduate both agree is the best of the lot and upload it to the Paint Your Life website. Follow the easy instructions and before you know it you'll have a graduation portrait that the whole family will be proud of.

Jack

A New Family Tradition: Send a Photo Portrait for Easter


Instead of chocolate eggs this year, how about sending a unique Easter gift to your parents?
This could be your precious child’s photo printed on canvas and stretched over a wood frame (referred to as gallery wrap), ready to hang.

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Remembering a Fallen Soldier


Three Soldiers, Viet Nam War Memorial

Memorial Day falls on May 26th this year, only eight weeks away. With the way things are going in Iraq, almost every day has become a memorial day during these past few years. This is not a political opinion; simply a fact. 


The American tradition of honoring its fallen soldiers is a strong one...





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A Do-It-Yourself Smoothie Interior Design Idea

When a good friend of mine opened a fruit yogurt smoothie shop in a New Jersey Shore resort neighborhood last spring we asked me to help him with the interior design.

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The Secret to Taking Great Photographs of Young Children

We've all got scores (if not hundreds) of photos of our children snapped in their early years. Once in a great while we accidentally take a great one and have it enlarged and framed...and take undeserved credit for being a great photographer  :-) . 

Candid photos are fun, but if you want a special photo to send to grandparents or other family members for a special occasion, why not set aside an hour to take some great photographs. 

Here are a few hints for amateur parent/photographers:

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Tears of Thanks

Paintings from Photos Cause Tears of Joy and Pleasure

Lately we’ve been receiving so many wonderful thank you letters from customers who gave PaintYourLife paintings as gifts to family and friends for Christmas. The response is really amazing. So often they reported that tears flowed with happiness when the oil portrait of the grandchildren or the watercolor landscape of their new home was unwrapped. 

 It’s true, original paintings of people and places we love inevitably trigger an emotional response. I wonder why that is.
Maybe because it’s so personal; an acknowledgment of family love given and received.

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Turn a Photo Into a Painting for a Gift of Love

portrait painting

As soon as she saw the above  photo she jumped on the idea of sending in their wedding photo (taken at their wedding ten years ago this coming Valentine's Day) to be made into an oil painting to give Walt on Valentine's Day.

 

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A Personal Story Behind the Photo to Painting

 

Every day we receive many wonderful letters from customers who have used Paint Your Life to capture important moments in their lives. 

Here's a letter from Michael Dilios that I want to share with you:

"Dear PaintMyLife.com:
 
I want to thank you for the remarkable painting you made from a very special picture I had which holds many memories to me. 
 
The person in my painting is my father. In that picture, I was right behind him going up to a special place in the mountains in village of Politsani in Albania. My father escaped from Albania in 1957, leaving his family behind and seeking a better life in the United States. 

He has many stories going back to his childhood, living through World War II and the whole process associated with escaping.  All of these stores have shaped my life to what I am today. 

Below is the painting on our wall.  We will cherish this for years and years to come.  My hopes will be to pass it on to family with many stories of my lifelong trip:



 

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A Gift of Art to Express Your Love on Valentine's Day

One of the ways you can express your personal feelings for the one you love and bring fine art into your home is to give a work of art as a gift this Valentine’s Day. 

 

Bouquet of Flowers in a Vase

Bouquet of Flowers in a Vase, Paul Cezanne, 1877

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A Valentine Memory is a Gift of Love

I’ll let you in on a secret. I’ll tell you what I’m getting my soul mate and mother-of-my-children this year for Valentine’s Day. Maybe it’s a gift idea that will work for you. I know it’s going to work for me.

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A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words on Valentine's Day: A Romantic Gift Idea

 

A romantic Valentine's Day gift idea from Jack,  the Paint Your Life photo to painting premier gallery website's blog editor.

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Paint Your Life Says Happy New Year!

 
 
 
The premier photo to painting gallery website, PaintYourLife.com, introduces their new blog to start the New Year.  Jack, Paint Your Life's web site blog editor, will be posting great gift ideas, painting and photography tips and news of general interest.  He'll also be telling  some of the heartwarming stories they've received from their customers.
 
 

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