I am so pleased to introduce Lauren Gray’s work to you today!

Lauren Gray is a self-taught artist living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her work is so appealing to me because, A. she frequently depicts nature in beautiful, simple compositions (I’m really loving her bird portraits! Oh the lovely details…), B. uses wood as a background quite often (the graphic + natural elements really works beautifully), and C. She seems to be addicted to black and white, monochromatic color-schemes (which of course means I love her work that much more).

The thing that makes Lauren Gray’s work stand out is her delicate drawing underneath the bold, higher-contrast layers that she works over it. But that delicate drawing shines through beautifully.

You can check out more of Lauren’s work on her website and Etsy shop: The Haunted Hollow Tree.

I’m off until Friday! But be SURE to check back on Friday for the Handmade Black Friday Shopping Guide! Many, many amazing artisans and designers have offered a discount on their shop that day (and some through the weekend). You are not going to want to miss this!

For those of us in the US, have a wonderful and happy Thanksgiving Week, for everyone else, enjoy this lovely pre-holiday season!