A new product line that is proving successful are Valentine’s Cards. These cards feature my watercolour paintings, set inside a plain white card (6 x 6 inch) with a heart aperture.
I tried it last year with one card on Etsy. I was so surprised, and very pleased, when it sold really quickly. In this painting I was experimenting with a vivid sky over a sandy beach. It looked really good inside the heart aperture and made a great Valentine Card. I was delighted to get this feedback from my customer.
Beautiful original card , it was the best valentine card that I have ever bought
Sally
I didn’t have time to make anymore last year but I put a few paintings to one side as possibilities for this year.
During the course of the year I have also painted some small paintings that I realised would be perfect for a Valentine’s Card.
The main consideration is finding a painting that fits inside the heart shape neatly, without losing anything important. For example – I wouldn’t want to “cut off” the top of St Michael’s Mount!
Generic paintings
A generic painting is the best choice. This one is a watercolour painting of the sun setting over the sea. The sunlight is glistening on the water. This could be anywhere.
I have other paintings, that have been painted whilst sat looking at the scene in Cornwall, however they could be anywhere. Her are a few examples.
This scene I painted whilst sat on Castle Beach at Falmouth looking towards the entrance to the Helford River. It was a gloriously sunny day. The sun was glistening on the sea and many boats were on the water making the most of the weather. Set inside the heart aperture it could be anywhere where boats are sailing on the sea.
This one is very generic and similar to the card that sold last year. It is of a white sandy beach, with turquoise waters and white sand. This was inspired by the beach at Sennen and also on the Isles of Scilly. Again, this beach could be anywhere in the world that has the same turquoise sea colour and white sand. I am thinking of the Caribbean and the Maldives.
Cornish Coast
This painting is a typical scene from along north Cornish coast of the beach and surf, with the cliffs and island in the background. The scene is is low tide at West Pentire, painted looking across from Pentire Headland, Newquay. However it could be any coastal scene in Cornwall, Devon or anywhere along the north coast.
This painting is a different view of Crantock beach, with West Pentire in the background. Crantock is a vast beach, and low tide reveals a big expanse of beach. However in this little painting, painted last January, whilst I was sat looking across from Pentire Headland, Newquay. It shows the tide slowly going out and the beach revealing itself. However it could be any coastal scene in Cornwall, Devon or anywhere along the north coast.
Godrevy Beach
We had a particularly warm June in 2023 and I visited Godrevy beach on a couple of occasions.
This was painted on a glorious sunny June day early on a Sunday morning. I had just been for a swim and was chilling, enjoying the view. It was very quiet and I had to get my paints out.
On another visit during this sunny June day I was visiting the beach with friends. We had enjoyed a lovely swim and we were sat chatting afterwards, enjoying the view. Again I had to get my paints out and capture the scene.
These cards have proved very popular and I will definitely have to start thinking about next year. If interested have a look at my Etsy page, but be quick because they are selling fast.