Think Spring! Think Harder!

65 degree's here today.  Tomorrow, sleet/snow mix with a weather advisory...So, I thought I'd cheer myself with another go at the Primrose.  I like this better than the last one.  I always love the rough paper.  I feel it somehow keeps me looser...?? Maybe its a mental thing??  Enjoy!

Mixing Color

Here is my latest tutorial on Empty Easel Online Art Magazine.  This lesson shows the ways you can mix color with watercolors.  Enjoy! 

http://emptyeasel.com/2014/03/10/3-essential-color-mixing-techniques-for-watercolor-painters/

Think Spring

It's here!  At least at the grocery store...Every year they come to the stores and I buy them.  I can't stop myself!  They signal spring to me and they come to the stores long before they bloom in the yard, at a time when I am tired of winter and longing for the colors of spring.

I tell myself "no more", but I don't listen to me.  I succumb again and again to the vibrant colors that call to me after a long and colorless winter. When it warms I plant them in the yard. Then they bloom the next year--bonus!













Painting the same thing over and over need not be boring.  As you become familiar with a subject you can experiment with different ways to paint them.  These little works were all done in spring through the years.  Each is different and I like them all for different reasons.

 Primary Primrose 2014

I did these in my sketchbook this year.  Its hard not to get detailed and fussy when working small.  I got wrapped up in the beauty of the leaves and noodled them to death.  I love the shapes, pattern and blue green of the leaves.  I don't have long periods to paint these days, so I was a little rushed, but it still screams SPRING!  I like others I've done through the years better, but at least I got my brushes out!  Good for my mood, cause it's COLD here and I've been a little lethargic!

 Enjoy--and think spring!!

Charlie

sketch for finished painting

This is Charlie.
Charlie is a rescued beagle mix owned by my next door neighbors.  The first time I met Charlie he lifted his leg on my foot!  I thought my neighbor would die!  Dogs do that, usually not on my foot, but I was not put off. Since then I have built a relationship with Charlie. I watch Charlie when his owners go out of town.  Charlie and I chat when I garden.  Charlie comes to the fence to visit my menagerie of dogs and flaunt his freedom.  

Charlie has a blanket he throws up in the air and runs under when he wants to nap!  Once, while watching him, I came over to let him out.  He was under his blanket and never even moved when I called his name!  I confess to panicking and pulling up the blanket to see if he was alive.  Never even lifting his head or opening his eyes, Charlie merely wagged his tail, thump, thump against his bed! The little devil!  Charlie is a character and a half! 

This is a painting my neighbor commissioned for her husbands birthday.  It's always easier painting a face (or dog) you are familiar with. We included his blanket and name tag with his "cute" ears and tilted head!  

Happy Birthday neighbor!  

Latest Empty Easel Watercolor Tutorial

I forgot to publish the latest in my Watercolor tutorial series!  For those who are interested, here is that link:

How to Mount Watercolor Paper (and when you don't need to)