Sunflowers... finished?

I still have to scan them in so the colors are correct- the colors shown here are still a little off. I think it might be done, but there's a possibility that I'll be adding a ladybug to one of the leaves on the flower on the left. A little more pop of color and something random to add interest.

However, two friends have suggested something else. One friend of mine (author of this wonderful blog) suggested a honey bee, either on a flower or flying toward them. Another friend (and author of another great blog!) mentioned that she always has grasshoppers on the leaves of her sunflowers and suggested one of those.

Either that or the bee would be interesting because I could do either of them in a way that they would almost blend in and not be noticable right away.... so there are still some other possibilities with this painting!

Sunflowers

Here's what's been on my easel the last couple of months! I've taken some time away from it to get the Christmas artwork/gifts done, and have also been spending a lot of time on my triathlon training. But I do hope to finish this one very soon and finally remove it from my easel!

I'm debating on putting a small lady bug on one of the leaves on the left-most side of the canvas. What do you think? On one hand I think it would be quite cute and visually pleasing. But I also know not everyone likes bugs.... but everyone likes ladybugs, right? Decisions, decisions!

I've done a slightly different technique with this piece, once again trying not to hide my brushstrokes like I used to do- just trying to be happier with keeping things simpler. I'm working to blend more efficiently (meaning, without having to do each coat 10 times) and I think that seems to be going well. I've also been keeping track of how many hours I've spent on this piece and so far it's only about 12. Go figure! A painting has been on my easel for 2 months (or more) and only worked on 12 hours. That is SAD. I need to really spend more time painting. Even just an hour here and there makes so much progress!

Keeping track of my hours like this will help me to figure out what's taking the most time, and when I'm done, should facilitate in pricing the art since I have such a hard time with that. Plus trying to spend less time on things will also mean lower prices on these paintings, too. I kept this one so simple, yet it still has taken me longer than I would like to complete.