Gifts Archives - Leichsenring Studios

Thanksgiving 2020 – Wall Worthy Words

by Sharon Leichsenring· November 22, 2020· in Artwork, Gifts, Lettering, Scrollwork·

Pick a word. Any word Ok, pick a dozen, maybe two. Give them to Sharon, and… Wait a minute, let me back up a moment to the beginning of the story. I was working with a client that was trying to find a way to have a design that showed all the words that were important to her and her family. She told me she also had a photograph she maybe wanted to use. (secretly, this is when I panic cringe. What if it is a picture that is boring or badly taken? How can I avoid hurting someone’s feelings?). However, I was more than pleasantly surprised when she showed me the picture. It was a candid black and white that captured her and her husband while on a cruise vacation. It was just perfect, but too small and we had no negative. I’d had a lot of success enlarging photos of photos I had taken. Steady hand, I snapped a photo, used the filter Warm dramatic and suddenly, the black and white came to life, not exactly sepia, but warm, dark grays and beige tones that were perfect for the room. I envisioned a simple frame with a scroll […]
Read More

A Toy Chest for Caroline

by Sharon Leichsenring· March 02, 2020· in Artwork, Childrens, Clouds, Fretwork, Furniture, Gifts, Lettering, Video·

Let me say this: Soon to be one-year- old Caroline is a lucky little girl! The first grandchild of my client (her grandfather) will be receiving this painted toy chest, beautifully built by her grandfather, for her birthday. I met my client almost eight years ago while on a job site. I was there painting a ceiling dome; he was there doing his master carpentry magic. We’ve stayed in touch via this very newsletter you’re reading now. We started the conversation about this project with a few sketches. The requests included her name and perhaps fairies? Done. You had me at fairies. And an opportunity to create my own. Here is the beginning work. A little more refinement, and a few more fairies later, we arrived at scaled drawings approved. The chest was delivered, primed and basecoated. I just about forgot to take a picture before I started but remembered enough to catch this. I must admit, I am at my most absolute best (forgive me if that grammar is incorrect here) when I can immerse myself in the studio with such a project. To create a magical world for this little person with my own characters and as much […]
Read More

A Tale of Two Commissions

by Sharon Leichsenring· April 01, 2019· in Artwork, Birds, Closet, Gifts, Ocean, Trees·

Sometimes, it’s truly a pleasure to take a break from flinging paint and plaster at walls and sit down before a canvas on my easel. I recently had two such projects. My first commission went as smoothly as any artist could wish. My client has a vacation home on Long Beach Island and was looking for large canvas pieces. After discussing the size of the walls, we settled for gallery wrapped canvases, measuring 30′ by 40″. I would paint the edges, eliminating the need to frame them. What to paint? After reviewing literally hundreds of photos, the choices narrowed down to a particular stretch of beach and another view of the bay area. The dunes were easy to find reference pictures, but the advantage of having an artist design the scene is that it can easily encompass all the particulars that were important to my client. No one photograph could do that. These clouds, these waves, this angle of the bay where small ponds caught the reflecting blue in the sky. Add a slight touch of impressionistic painting, and voila! We have arrived. Here are the two paintings, still at home in my studio. It was really hard parting with […]
Read More

Trees For All Seasons

by Sharon Leichsenring· September 04, 2015· in Artwork, Gifts, Staircase, Stairwell, Trees·

I just completed this project for one of my favorite clients. We have from an artist’s perspective, the perfect relationship. She’s very visual and we approach each scenario as a team. I love her input. Her home has a charming walkway to the front door, terraces of rounded brick steps. It’s beautiful for guests. However, family members generally come into the house from the garage and enter climbing up a most boring staircase. Climbing the stairs may be good aerobically but the view! It can’t get more boring than this. If one could see through the back door’s window to the right, one would be rewarded with a gorgeous sylvan vista. So a solution was born. A canvas of a good size (30″ by 40″) depicting the missing view. The transom window mimics those found in the home. I drew this sketch and we were on our way. I had to shift the perspective a little and drew it as it would be seen from a “worm’s eye’s view”, the opposite from looking downward like in a bird’s eye’s view. It may not be something the viewer is aware of, but it trick’s the mind to accepting it as more […]
Read More

A Tale of Two Projects

by Sharon Leichsenring· August 06, 2015· in Artwork, Bathrooms/Powder Room, Floor, Gifts·

One of the best parts of my schedule is the wide scope of work that comes my way. Here are two projects that illustrate my point. The first is an elegant and sophisticated powder room. My part in it was quite small, a painted floor cloth. The cloth, a mere 27″ x 3″, was the perfect solution for the space. More importantly, it provided a vehicle to tie the palette of the room together. Here’s a picture of the cloth, the wallpaper and the fabric trims for the window treatment. Kudos to Linda Brencher Interiors of Branford for t the design found in this lovely powder room. The Anna French wallpaper in a light apple green sets the perfect crispness for every detail. Take a look at the floor cloth. This powder room is a busy place, so the protective topcoat will keep it looking like new for years. Here’s the finished project. The nightstand refitted as a vanity base with a new marble top and vessel sink is brilliant. The second project called for an entirely different direction. My client commissioned me to create a 24″ by 36″ painted canvas as a birthday gift for her husband. The […]
Read More

Oops, I did it again

by Sharon Leichsenring· May 04, 2014· in Bathrooms/Powder Room, Gifts, Scrollwork·

I promise myself over and over, not to get too attached to the things I paint. I’ll confess, I know the work is in your house, but in my head, they’re still my walls. That’s exactly what happened after I finished the walls and ceiling in this guest bathroom that doubles as a powder room for company. I simply didn’t want to leave. Humility aside, these walls rock! Here’s a before shot. The owner shared he just kept the door shut. Agreed , it was boring. So, the walls got painted a great shade of grey (Ben Moore’s Pewter). My photos don’t do the colors justice. There’s quite a bit of grey in the tile. The design would be done in monochromatic shades of the pewter. Here is how it began… And, now the finished walls—a quick 2 days of work, with one additional day for the ceiling’s matching medallion. I loved the play the mirror gave the design. Here’s another view showing the tub area. Here is a closeup of the wall connecting to the bedroom. Contemporary scrolls, not too frilly. I want them in my house, somewhere. Soon. I’d love to know what you think.
Read More

My Love Affair with Ornament

by Sharon Leichsenring· May 10, 2013· in Bathrooms/Powder Room, Gifts, Mica, Murals, Scrollwork·

I recently finished some detailed, painted ornament on a project. It may be my favorite thing to paint. I love the planning stages, sketching out the designs, playing with the colors. I appreciate the mathematical precision necessary to get the repeats correct, the arcs just curved so. My book shelves are brimming with source materials; Auguste Racinet’s polychrome series mingles with the lush pages of William Morris. There are torn out sections from discontinued wallpapers mixed with a seemingly endless collection of Dover catalogs from every historical period. Though the scroll patterns are certainly traditional, the choice of a mica-infused plaster as a backgrounds brings a contemporary edge to my this foyer. Here is a classical scroll, painted on a champagne gold base. The ornament has been painted on a layered, mica plaster. Graceful tracery adorns the front door here. Italian Renaissance Grottesca fills the loggia entrance to the living room in this living room. Grottesca is an ornamental art design combining scrollwork and foliage with humans and animals. A scene reminiscent of an 18th century French tapestry is framed with a simple trompe l’oeil (French, meaning “to fool the eye”) border. The rich chocolate brown walls of this master […]
Read More

Birds and Blossoms… Some of my favorite things

by Sharon Leichsenring· March 10, 2013· in Artwork, Bas Relief, Birds, Floral, Gifts, Murals, Trees·

Both of these kitchen wall solutions started the same way, with a discussion. Both clients were looking for “something” for the wall, but had absolutely no idea of what that something could be. Sitting in kitchen number one, our talk began. We talked about the interests of each member of the family. We took a walk through the home, and two things became apparent. The window treatments were minimal because everyone loved the view the yard afforded. It was full of trees, nested, as it were, in their very own forest. In almost all the artwork and accessories I saw, there were more trees, branches, leaves…you name it, more trees. So trees it would be. But a little stylized, and make sure I included a special interest in barred owls. The palette needed to be a subtle mix of blue greens, grays and warm browns. Here are two pictures to give you an idea of the results. Here is a close up of the barred owl. The second kitchen wall started with almost an identical discussion. The colors had to be soft; the design, appealing, but comfortable. It’s a small kitchen, and the owner spends a great deal of time […]
Read More

Playing with color

by Sharon Leichsenring· February 10, 2013· in Artwork, Ceiling, Childrens, Floral, Gifts·

Some months when I have to choose what projects to talk about, it’s these little ones that get left undiscovered; small in scope but adding so much to the outcome of the room. This first example started in my head as a simple silhouette of the child with some nice areas of color, taken from the fabrics in the room. However, it seemed as though it demanded a little dimension and the silhouette became a duotone, with the fun twist of the vibrant palette. Got to love that vibrant cobalt blue on a lemon yellow field! The young man is just about life size on this 30″x40″ canvas and to my pleasure, recognized himself immediately. Here is the canvas hung on the wall in his new room. This second example is much more subtle in its approach. Originally this master bedroom had been treated to a soft ochre/yellow sponge treatment by its owner. The tray ceiling which has so much area in the room had been simply painted ceiling white. My part in this project was first to establish a palette, which was derived from the bedding. The tray was then painted in several shades of the chosen blue; the […]
Read More