Watercolor Work In Progress

So far all I've done is add a bit of underpainting. I have no idea how to paint sand - I think it needs speckles of colors and I think I need to put the beach grass in such a way as to convey hills and distance behind the chairs. Any ideas would be appreciated.

I am thinking I need to put in some variation of color in the sand directionally behind to indicate hills and distance. I am planning to put in some beach grasses in greens, browns, yellows. Does that make sense at all?

I need to go to the store later this morning to get milk, bananas, soy milk, Claritin (the hubster is experiencing a lot of sneezing and runny eyes), chicken broth, etc.  Dana and the girls are coming out for dinner this afternoon, so I have some chicken breasts thawing and will make rice and a vegetable to go with it. Miss M is still running a fever between doses of her medicine so is not yet back in school.

Miss K is supposed to be running at the track at Lumen Christi tomorrow morning as a fundraiser and I am planning to go if the rain holds off. Meanwhile I am trying to be a good caretaker. There is a fine line between doing too much for the patient and doing too little. 

I stayed up until after 3 this morning to watch the next video lesson in the Artful Journaling class and so slept in until 9:30. The hubster had already made coffee and managed to get himself and the coffee in a locking travel mug into the living room and into his easy chair. We've each had a bowl of cereal with blueberries and are ready to get this day started.

Are you making time for yourself today?

xoxo

Busy, busy

Yesterday afternoon I went to Miss P's basketball game; Miss M was there and sat with me to watch. After the game their coach/Dad took the team to the ice cream shop up the road. I took Miss M in my car and followed them there and then took the girls home with me. I had gone into town earlier to buy a frame for my watercolor and to pick up a few things for dinner.


When we got home it was almost 7 pm, so I quickly made pork chops and corn with garlic bread (I let the girls decide what was for dinner) and we ate. I then took the girls to their Mom's house where Miss M colored with me and Miss P got in the shower. We visited and gave their two cats lots of love before the girls went to bed at 9.


After their Mom arrived home, I visited a bit and then drove home to check on the hubster and the Tiger game and then washed up the dinner dishes before hitting the sack.


I got up early this morning so I could watch the next video in the Artful Journaling class and then did the assignment. It amazes me how when Laure says she did quick sketches hers look so good and when I do quick sketches mine look so lame. The assignment was to fold an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper and then do 4 possible sketch arrangements for the next page in the journal. I couldn't think what to do, but you know how I love barns so I chose a farm theme.

This is the page opened up and scanned.

My daughter is bringing Miss P and Miss M out around 1:30 this afternoon and they will stay either until she gets off work around 9:30 or overnight, I don't know which yet. Miss P has an early release today and Miss M doesn't have preschool on Fridays.

Here is what my watercolor looks like framed for the exhibition. I forgot to sign it, but will do so before I enter it.

I have a question: where do I sign it? in the light blue water on the lower left? up the green part of the reflection along the lower right side? below the brown of the ground under the trees on the right side? Is there a right place to sign a painting? Do I print or write in cursive? Do I make it legible or arty? As you can see, I am full of questions. Those who know me well might say I am full of something else altogether .

I'd better get this day started or I am going to be behind all day.

xoxo

A Bit of Art

I've finally spent a bit of time in my art room since the hubster's surgery (I'm afraid I am not a very good nurse - I tend to hover) and spent that time working on an assignment for my Artful Journaling - Foundations class. The assignment was two part: make a page of borders and make a page using a border.


Here is the page of my borders:

I'm afraid these are not very "arty", but they will have to do for now.

And here is the page I made using a border:

I am hoping to get into town today to pick up some mats and a frame or two from Michael's so that I can see what my watercolor is going to look like when finished. Meanwhile, I think I need to get on the treadmill and get my routine going again.

I am planning to make some lamb stew later today and start to think about meals for the next few days. I am not used to doing all the cooking and I'm afraid it shows, but so far I've had no complaints.

I have to watch the Tigers again today - they must win to stay in it! 

xoxo

Surgery Update and Scrapbook Pages

The hubster's surgery on his Achilles tendon went very well and I got a very good report from the doc when the surgery was completed. He is not allowed to put any weight on it until the follow up visit in about 2 weeks. He is finding that crutches are a big drag and his sciatic nerve is not at all happy with the stress placed on his backside while using them. Thanks for all your well wishes.


I intended to do some sketching while waiting for him, but found myself working crossword puzzles and listening to my iPod instead. We got to the hospital around 6 am and were home about 1 pm. The hubster slept for a bit in the afternoon and I probably should have as well. We watched a great Tiger game later in the evening and then made a night of it.


I had a lovely surprise in my email this morning from the people at My Memories - they have some freebies on their site and I couldn't resist trying one of them out. They come as png files and can be used with the My Memories Suite software or independently. Here is what I put together this morning:

I used the quick pages to make this two page spread, but the freebie comes not only with the two quick pages, but all the elements used to make them. That means you can custom them to your own needs. You can find the freebies here. And if you are interested in the software you can use the code in the sidebar to get $10 off.

A big thank you to all of you who took the time to comment on my two watercolors. I am planning to use the trees with reflections as my exhibit piece and am hoping to add a bit to the "blob" on the left to make it look more convincing. I'll share the finished piece when I think it is done.

I am way behind in my assignments for the Artful Journaling class and hope to get to them some time today. I have to run some errands and should get back into the workout routine. I have another Tiger game today and am hoping we can win again to make the series 2 - 2 before we head back to Texas.

I am hoping to have some art to share with you tomorrow and am wishing for you a wonderful, artful day.

xoxo

Artful Journal Update and Watercolor WIP

I tried to get some interesting photos of barns and Fall color as the hubster drove yesterday for our lunch meeting with my sister and her husband, but was unable to get anything worth showing. We talked about walking around Shipshewana after lunch and taking pix, but it was pouring rain by then and we just headed for home.  We had a lovely lunch and a good visit before transferring a 4-drawer file cabinet and some lovely garden rocks from their vehicle to ours. But the ride home was less than lovely. It poured all the way and there were more large trucks on the road than I've seen since the dreadful semi parade of the far north.


Nevertheless, we made it home by 5:30 or so and the hubster made chili for dinner. We ate in the living room while watching the game shows. I won a ton of money, including the bonus round on Wheel of Fortune and didn't do too badly on Jeopardy either.


I then spent a bit of time working on the watercolor that is in progress. I added the water to it and am puzzled by the spots in it. I haven't had something like this happen before. Could it be pigment that wasn't well mixed? Is it something from the brush? Is it dirt? I did brush off the paper before I began.
I am planning to put more color into the water so am hoping it will not be noticeable when all is said and done. Have you ever had anything like this happen to you?

I also decided it was time to sketch the pear in my Artful Journal and thought it would be fun to draw it as a letter in the word pear. I rather like how the word turned out - I used an alphabet I found in The Speedball Textbook as a model and I don't think the spacing of the letters is too bad. However, when it came time to put in the striped dish towel/tablecloth, I was at a loss. I found a red Pitt brush pen and began to put in the stripes. At about stripe number three the brush failed, so I switched to a Sharpie marker. Unfortunately, the color closest to red was a mauvy purple and I am not so sure I like how it turned out at all. I can't remove the color so I will accept it as a creative accident and share it anyway. I thought about adding shadows to the letters too, but really wanted the pear to be the star of this page, so left the letters flat.

Except for the "striped cloth" I am really pleased with how this turned out.

Imagine my surprise when I'd photographed the "pear" page and was preparing to upload it to the Artful Journaling blog, I was distracted by the arrival of an email from Laure Ferlita with the next assignment for this class. Would you believe the next assignment is "word art"? Does this situation fit the definition of serendipitous? I have no idea what I am going to do for the word art assignment, but may have to do something with Zentangle doodles. 

The Tigers are playing the Yankees this evening in the first game of the playoffs on the way to the World Series. We are playing there and I am looking forward to seeing Curtis Granderson, but have to hope he doesn't have his usual spectacular game against us. With Verlander on the mound, I am hoping we can beat the Yankees soundly. I do like a close game much better than a runaway, and hope I will not be disappointed with this one.

Tomorrow I have my son's Miss 8 and she is staying overnight. I am planning to make time to do some art and maybe a bit of cooking. I haven't made any monkey muffins in a long time. I have some hot Italian sausage and some chicken thighs thawing in the refrigerator and am planning to make some gumbo today. It is a perfect day for it - gray and wet.

I hope you are having a fine day and that the sun is shining where you are. If your weather is like mine, try to get lost in art, cooking, a hot cup of tea and a good book and really enjoy yourself. A day like this is a great one for losing yourself in some kind of project. I just hope the rain doesn't prematurely knock the leaves off the trees. I am anxious for Mother Nature's Fall show.

xoxo

Pear Practice and More WC WIP

I had the day to myself yesterday and expected that I would spend it in the art room, but found myself cleaning the laundry room, replacing the contents of the master bathroom closet (purging as I progressed), cleaning up my art room, and finishing a novel I was partway through.


I then heated up the homemade chicken soup from the day before and watched the Tigers with the hubster before finally spending a little bit of time doing art.


I finally tried the method of putting salt on wet watercolor and then brushing it off when the paint dried. The photo I shared yesterday had the salt on it, but it hadn't dried yet and now that it has and I've brushed off the salt, I have quite a different look. I am still planning to add some very dark color and then scrape much of it off to reveal the color underneath, but haven't had the courage to do that yet.

Can you see the texture in the hills? I think I like it.

I also have a new assignment for the Artful Journaling class. It is to sketch a pear or slice of melon in ink and then add color. I have always liked drawing with ink, but decided to practice this in my everyday journal first. I found that I just couldn't get the roundness of the pear just right and think it looks more liked a chicken ready for a bit of salt and pepper before being roasted.

As you can see I did a couple of practice ones on the left.

Sometime this afternoon I will try the real thing in my Artful Journaling sketchbook. In the picture provided there is also a red striped cloth under the pear and it has lots of shadows and folds. It should be quite a challenge to draw it - and in ink....

Today I am getting my teeth cleaned mid morning and then the hubster and I are taking a day trip to meet my sister and her husband for a late lunch. They are bringing me a four drawer file cabinet they no longer want and I am planning to use it for art storage. I have it all planned out - acrylics in the top drawer, adhesives in the second, pastels in the third and paper in the bottom. I think my room will be so much more organized and I should have more counter and shelf space once I've moved these items into the file cabinet.

If you haven't yet entered the giveaway for My Memories Suite 2 digital scrapbooking software, you have until Monday, October 3, to do so. Find out more here.

xoxo