I didn't know anything about these stools until my friend got home and I was finished up with my time at her home house sitting. 
This is going up for auction in a couple of days from now.

This piece goes up for auction July 14th. Auctions start at a very discounted price, to bid go to http://www.dailypaintworks.com/fineart/denise-maxwell/asian-trends-antiques/243674
You can also click on the images scrolling to the right and this will take you to those pieces up for auction.
While house sitting earlier in the year I had access to my friends antique collection. I have my own but hers struck me as being more interesting. Well I am about to get back to my own as I will continue with my portrait project and my own antique collection and plein air painting, oh my, I'm just too busy and today I seem to be taking a day off from painting which has me a bit anxious.
I've been putting my collection of those earlier pieces up for auction at my Daily Paint Works gallery. Most of them got onto this site under Still Life earlier but I hadn't had the chance to start the auctions. This piece as the first that I did and the chinese medicine cabinet that they are sitting on was pretty amazing piece of future. I guess it was for herbal medicines.

Thursday afternoon/evening was again really, really busy at the farmers market. Had people offering advice on how to paint this and people sneaking photographs, hope it was my good side:) 
My young friend was there to help setup the still life and it was again a collaboration. David doesn't go for flowers much so he just cropped them out pretty much. He suggested the cherries and I hung the couple off the container. A nice touch if I can say that. David was leaving earlier then me, so I bought the fruit from him so I could finish. I definitely have my style changing of late and I like what is happening to it. My main design element was an oval just off centre and I have remembered to keep a space opening to let the eye travel through to the background and back again.

To bid on this painting go to this link at my Daily Paint Works gallery. As always the auctions are a very good price to get these works at a most reasonable price the auction will start tomorrow July 12th.

David did a fantastic painting this week and I introduced him to the alla prima techniques to starting a painting and I wouldn't let him use white until he was well into it. He loves his white too much and it has been desaturating all his hues. This has helped maintain rich colours and given him lots of contrasting hues that vibrate against each other. Well done David!

David's painting.

I was painting down at one of my favourite spots where I've photographed many, many times the moods and changing atmosphere but hadn't painted there. A heron sat out in the middle for the longest time and an eagle could be heard nearby. There were also flies pestering my bare legs, won't do that again go out with legs bare. I ended up slightly reworking this after getting home but still am not sure that I like it well enough to save I may need a couple of trips back to the spot.

I started this painting a little differently by massing in the dark background then wiped away the areas where I wanted the flowers. These cascading blooms are so full and heavy many were just laying on the moss covered rock below and even on the ground. They were shaded but sun was glinting through as the wind had everything dancing and shimmer.

I just love working on these boards they are very forgiving and the texture adds that pentimento that I like so much. I was able to use transparent staining pigments and still they wiped right off

This has been posted to my Daily Paint Works auction and is going fast at a very good price.

Sketching today, thought I'd work on crosshatching and doing ellipses. Both areas I can use some more practice at. 
Took a relaxing day and passed on the Canada celebrations. Tonight it will be hard with the fireworks and my freaked out dog, I maybe up all night with him.