Although I do stop and smell the roses (Really, I do.) and take photographs - up until now, I hadn't stopped to paint them.

But then my friend, Dorota, commissioned me to paint a picture for her - a rose.

I consider 'Fragrant Beauty' a portrait of Dorota in the form of a flower.
The passionate red, the layers of color, the flowing lines and the light shining through - Beauty...Dorota.

This lovely woman is the owner and sole beautician at DKN Salon in Glen Ellyn, IL. We met 3 years ago when my family moved to the area. During my first few appointments, other clients stopped in to just to say hello or to bring Dorota gifts. I thought to myself, "Don't these people have lives?"

Well...now I understand. When you enter DKN, it's like being invited into Dorota's home. I am greeted with a hug and a "How are you, My Friend?" - I doubt that I am the only one. :) She offers coffee, tea, wine, water and european candies. She works her magic and our conversation begins.

I am inspired by Dorota's life story: leaving her home country of Poland in her late teens, living in Germany for a couple of years as a young bride, moving to the United States, having 2 boys, then raising them as a single mom - and owning her own business. I am blessed by Dorota's warmth, generosity, servant heart, strength, openness to learning, faith and character.

A fragrant beauty.

- Dawn Eaton