Hi,

Thanks for stopping by and for the nice compliments on my oil painting "Dahlia Red".

When
I first started to paint in oils, I too felt intimidated by them. 
(After all, all the "masters" used oils, right?)  When I relaxed into
it and just started experimenting, all of the sudden I loved it!  - 
And, my paintings were turning out great!  (Because of my initial fear,
my first 2 or 3 attempts in oil were awful.)  But, mistakes are
awesome; They help you to improve and to learn.  Keep allowing yourself
to experiment and make mistakes.  Have fun with it.

My most important tips would be:

*To look at your subject for a long time.  Really, really
inspect it and be curious about it.  Explore it and try to see its
"inner life" expressing.  (Hard to explain in words.)  Let it "come
alive" and then paint what you see. 

*Paint subjects that speak to you.  If you feel something about it, it will come through in your work.  Do what you love, not what "they" think you should love.

*Be
fearless.  I cannot stress this one enough.  It is easy to be safe and
paint without passion...but, what fun is that?  You must be willing to
explore and to try different things.  

*Paint your vision. -  Paint your landscapes, your animals, your portraits, your
abstracts, etc....Staying true to your own inner voice is key.  There
will only ever be one you, so you might as well  do it up!  For 
purposes of practice it may be quite helpful to try out  another artist's title or
content. - for practice - But, your work is uniquely your vision and should be original to you; that is what we really want to see.

*Practice,
practice, practice!!!  Take breaks whenever you feel the need (everyone
has times when they feel uninspired) but, be sure to keep doing
something you love, until the inspiration returns.  And, remember, you
will never stop learning; so  just keep at it for as long as it is
something you really love doing.  Always listen to your heart.  Always.

I
hope these tips/comments help!  If you ever have a more specific
question, feel free to ask and I will do my best to get an answer to
you.

Have fun! 

Beauty is everywhere!

Have a good one,

-Jendria