Painting Holiday Treasures

Brighten the season with tales from the master of Christmastime fiction. Most famous in the realm of holiday literature for his 1843 publication, A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens was in fact a prolific writer in the yuletide genre and a great contributor to many now-prevalent traditions of the holiday itself. In the year following the release of A Christmas Carol, Dickens released The Chimes: A Christmas Story of Some Bells That Rang an Old Year Out and a New Year In. This story combined his usual sympathy for the poor with the notion that we must always strive to live in nobler ways. In 1845 came The Cricket on the Hearth, a novella that, in its time, surpassed even A Christmas Carol in popularity for stage productions. The years 1846 and 1848 respectively saw published The Battle of Life and The Haunted Man and the Ghost’s Bargain. Given this wealth of Christmas-themed works, it is no wonder that Dickens is sometime referred to as “the man who invented Christmas.” Perfect for both fans of Dickens’ work and those who just find special pleasure in the holiday spirit, these five Christmas stories are now available as part of the Word Cloud Classics series, providing a chic, inexpensive introduction to timeless tales.

Experience the joys of Christmas by painting gifts for friends and family, decorations for every room in your home, and memories to last a lifetime. From decorative boxes to hold gifts and holiday treasures, to tree ornaments, tableware, and even bookends, these painted specialties are a delight to create and a joy to share with others. Enjoy our collection of snowmen, Santas, angels, gingerbread figures, and more. Happy Painting!

"Holiday Treasure Stories" is a Scripture-based adventure through each holiday.

Across the globe there are scores of beautiful and unusual works of art that are largely unseen or fail to receive the critical acclaim they deserve. Why? The Best Art You've Never Seen restores to view 100 wonderful treasures of world art. Ranging from Peru to Papua New Guinea, it uncovers neglected wonders in offbeat corners of the world or locked away in the store rooms of the world's great museums. Some are hidden accidentally: by a rock-fall, a shift in a trade route, or through the drift of history. Others are hidden deliberately, buried as loot or destroyed by hate - like the fabulous Mount Kailash Temple in India. Many are hidden by changes of taste, marginalized because they don't fit into established ideas of art - works by artists such as Norman Rockwell, Nek Chand, and Niki de St Phalle. Other great works, like the the dazzling Très Riches Heures manuscript and the Mona Lisa, are being virtually hidden by the demands of conservation. And there are penty of treasures still waiting to be revealed - the Q'in Emperor's tomb or Leonardo's lost fresco The Battle of Anghiari. Author and former museum director Julian Spalding takes you into a world of beautiful and arresting artifacts and reveals their amazing stories. He sets forth a surprising and unfamiliar alternative canon of works that offers a fresh and controversial take on the world of art.

Have you ever been amazed by watercolor paintings that seem to spring to life before your eyes? Would you love to be able to paint with watercolors? Now, you can. Watercolor Painting For Dummies shows you the fun and easy way to create breathtaking paintings so beautiful you won’t believe you made them yourself. This friendly, guide gives you hands-on instruction and easy-to-follow, step-by-step exercises to help you master the basics. Filled with full-color projects and sample paintings, it shows you how to work with color and texture, practice composition, and make smooth changes. You’ll find out how to select the best tools, materials, and supplies, practice basic brush strokes, and use the three best common techniques: flat wash, graded wash, and rough texture. Discover how to: Select the right brushes, pigments, and paper Mix colors and work with white Create backgrounds and foregrounds Transfer your drawings to watercolor Avoid common watercolor mistakes Experiment with texture using salt, sponges, plastic wrap, and more Find your way around the color wheel Practice the principles of design Plan compositions using thumbnails Work with one-point, two-point, and three-point perspective Paint fabrics, shiny surfaces, and organic textures Paint landscapes, seascapes, animals and more Complete with strategies for improving your painting immediately and marketing and selling your work, Watercolor Painting For Dummies, is the resource you need to make your creative dreams come true.