Category: Acrylic

Putting it all together…

 

Barn

Graphite on Bristol Smooth

       I put everything I have learned over the past few months and I was able to complete this drawing.  Maybe I did get a little ahead of myself, but now I have a good grasp of landscapes and buildings.   I feel much better about my upcoming commission of an old homestead which worried me to no end and it never hurts to expand your portfolio, right?

  This is the only drawing that I have, but I’ve been very busy in my absence.  I have been preparing for an arts and crafts show.  Believe me when I tell you, that I am not a crafter.  So this has been a difficult experience, but it’s also a good opportunity to sell my art.  So I’m sucking it up and making a few crafts as well as selling some of my prints. 

This is just a peek at the stuff I’m selling, but it gives you a pretty good idea.  The glass is a lot of fun to paint, which was a pleasant surprise.  ( If you have any ideas of what I can paint on these glasses, please let me know.  I have a bunch more and I’m running out of ideas, lol)….I’m also selling rice bags, handmade cards, bookmarks, Zentangle art,  jewelry as well as some prints and orginials….So wish me luck:)

Be Well and Happy!

Tabby…

Tabby

Acrylic on Drafting Film

   I love this painting  and did I say that I love this painting….cause I really want you to know that I love this painting, hee hee…. This took me about two weeks and many hours.  Suffice it to say unless my speed picks up, I don’t believe anyone could afford an acrylic pet portrait from me.  Although it was time-consuming, it really was’nt difficult, but I think if the coat was fluffy it would’ve been much harder.  I’m a slow painter and the only downfall I have with acrylic painting  is that the paint dries too fast in the palette.  I found a stay wet palette for decorative painting for a big total of $6.00 and that’s much cheaper than an “artists”  stay wet palette.  It has 16 wells, a water cup (with a lid) in the center.  I used that in combination with Liquitex palette wetting spray and my paint lasted the whole 2 weeks!  The downside to my palette is that the wells are not very deep, but that’s it.  Oh, and the drafting film was fun to paint on too:)

   Be Well and Happy!

On the Coast of Somewhere Beautiful…

Beach II 

Acrylic on Canvas panel 

     You may look at this painting and think that there isn’t much going on and it seems a little boring. But I look at this painting and I see peace and relaxation.  I can imagine myself just beyond the borders of this canvas taking a nap in a hammock under a couple of palm trees.  Ahhh…doesn’t that sound nice?  

   There have been a lot of moments this summer where I would  have loved being on a tropical island somewhere.  As you know, the first part of the summer was spent getting the house ready to sell so we could move back home.   But as time passed, it was just one obstacle after another preventing us from making that leap.  So we called off the move and we are going to stay put in Newport News.  I was a little sad at first, but I learned a long time ago not to ignore God’s signals and these were impossible to ignore.   Life is slowly getting back to normal,  David is home and we as happy as three peas in a pod.  ok, enough already with the personal stuff…. 

I’ve been trying my hand at pastels.  I’m a little scared of working in pastel, because they are pretty toxic.  I wear a mask and open a windows and all that good stuff, so I guess it’s a respectable fear..kinda like fire.  Annnnnnnnnnyway, I’m not very good with this medium and my color falls of the paper.  I’m just playing so it’s no big whoop, but I don’t see how artists get that fine detail unless they are working on a large-scale.  If any of you have any suggestions,  I accept all help.. I’ve been using Derwent, Gioconda from Koh-i-noor, and chalk pastels if this is useful. 

Gosh, I forgot to mention that the painting above is from a photo and not a tutorial…Yepper…I painted this one all by myself:)

 

 

Be Well and Happy!

Uhh…Yeah

Tutorial

Acrylic on Canvas Panel

   We live pretty close to the beach and I thought it was a real shame that I couldn’t paint (or draw) a beach scene.   So, I found this tutorial on acrylic painting by Simply Painting and I thought I would give it a try.  TRY being the key word here as this looks nothing like the beautiful instructional that was on my monitor for the past few days.   I can’t  begin to tell you just how awful my rocks and clouds look.  I mean P-EWWWW comes to mind…Now, with that being said, there are some elements that I liked.  The waves look frothy and I really like how  the sand and water kinda of run into each other.  I would call this a success.   I mean,  I don’t think it’s anything that anyone would really want, but it was fun, I learned alot, and most importantly…I didn’t give up, it didn’t get thrown in the trash and I’m not going to gesso over the painting. 

   Simply Painting is by the artist Peter Clarke from Ireland.  He also has instructions on watercolor and oil if anyone’s interested:)   

Be Well and Happy!

Finished!!!!

SANY0002

Bird of Paradise

Acrylic on 7 x 9 Canvas Panel

     Wow, this took a while but I am very pleased how it turned out.  I used thin washes, so there are many many layers to this piece.  Using thin washes is time consuming, but it adds a lot of depth.    AND  I didn’t have any trouble mixing color which was a great surprise.  I do need to work on blending and I  need lots of practise with brush strokes.   I’m still very excited that I finshed it!  I am going to live with this for a couple of days before I varnish it just in case I want to change something, but I am calling this done and I’m ready to move on to something else.

      I wish I had some words of wisdom for painting in acrylics, but this medium is still  foreign to me.  The only thing I can say is just to paint and if you mess up just throw on some gesso and try it again!  

 

Have a fun and safe Labor Day weekend!!!!!

  

 

Still At It…

  

SANY0042

     I really don’t like to post unfinished paintings, but at the rate I’m going this will be completed sometime next year.    This is a cropped close up of a bird of paradise, I believe it’s called.  It’s not nearly completed and is definitely in a ugly stage of  the process.  I have read that this is the stage where alot of artists give up.  I understand why now because I am completely lost.  If I were in school this is the point where I would raise my hand and ask for help from the teacher.    But despite my trouble, I am enjoying painting again. 

     I think I’m going to walk away from this painting for a little while, so i can come back with a fresh set of eyes.  I have a couple of commissions that I should be working on anyway. I will probably start on those Thursday (hopefully).

     I do have something good to share.  I found this paintbrush holder with two water reservoirs.  One  reservoir has a  grid at the bottom so that you can knock the paint off your brush and the other you can use for mixing.  I bought it from Joann’s Fabric.  It is from the  Donna Dewberry  line for  decorative painters. I love love love it!

One_Stroke_Brush_49672c82ac315With a price of under $10.00, you can’t beat it.  I also have their stay wet palette, but I’ll have to let you know on that one, but it looks promising.    Right now I’m using small dabs of paint and mix colors on my brush, but I feel certain I’ll need it when I start painting on a larger canvas. 

Well, I’m off.  David is in Canada,  Alana is at a sleepover and there is a new J.R. Ward book with my name all over it.

Today I’m One . . .

daisy-in-acrylic

         Daisies                   Acrylic on canvas panel

       I thought I’d celebrate the birth of my blog by showing you where it all started…with this painting.   Yes, this little decorative painting of daisies has caused me to have an addiction from which I want no cure.

     My dad is an artist, my grandmother was an artist, and my twin sister is also an artist, so no one in my family was surprised by my desire to learn to draw and paint.   I’m no artist, but it doesn’t hurt to dream the little dream, does it?   Maybe I will wake up one morning and some of that paternal DNA will kick in,  and I’ll be a  artist.    But unfortunately it didn’t happen this morning.    I doubt it will happen tomorrow.

I have some of their artwork that I will post in the future.    Anyhow….

     I can’t believe that I have kept up with this blog for a year.  It’s been sporadic at times, but I think I am getting the hang of it.  And I am enjoying every minute of it.

Pear

pear

Acrylic on 5 x 7 canvas

  This is the first and only painting that I’ve done so far with my new acrylic.  I know that it’s a little boring, but I was just playing around with mixing colors.  I am pretty happy with the way the pear turned out although the background was suppose to be gold but it turned out a little too green and it sort of blends in with the pear.  It would have looked better if the background was a burgundy or maybe a burnt umber, but who cares….it was just practice anyway.  

     I really haven’t drawn or painted anything for a little while because I have been down with a sinus infection that has been pretty brutal, David’s back is out again and Alana is stopped up.  So, we have been a pitiful bunch.  I have noticed that colds and stuffy noses doesn’t get to kids as much as adults and Alana was able to play soccer like a champ and seemed unfazed that she could only breath through one nostril.  She made 3 goals and they won the game.  Meanwhile, I was in the stands and the light was hurting by eyes and I was praying that the game would be over soon.  Of course, I had to root for my child, so on top of everything else, now I have a sore throat.  I just love winter.    I am feeling some better so I hope I can get some art therapy in very soon.

 

 

    

   

I’m so excited…..

paint

(Sorry, about the blurry picture)  This is paint and palette wetting spray, slo-dri fluid retarder, 1 8 oz. each of tit. white and ivory black.

     Isn’t that the most beautiful sight  that you have ever seen?  I have been wanting these for a long time and when I saw that they were on sale at Dick Blick I went for it!  They were still expensive so I didn’t get a whole lot of colors this time around.  I did get enough to start mixing.  I kinda  hate the idea of learning to mix acrylic with artist grade paint.   I am trying to look at this way, the better I learn to mix the less colors I have to buy, which will be cheaper in the future right? 

     I bought a mix of two different brands of fluid acrylic, Liquitex and Golden.  I think Golden is suppose to be a better brand, but they didn’t have all the colors that I needed so I ended of mixing brands.

     I have my acrylics and  I have canvas NOW  I have to think of something to paint!

Sunflower

EDM#124 Draw something yellow

Craft Paint on 5 x 7 canvas panel

 I gave this little Sunflower to my sister-in-law this weekend when we all got together for our yearly shopping trip.  We started this tradition about eight years ago and it is a nice little girl’s only get away.  Our trip involves alot of shopping, alot of eatting and then we pile in a hotel room for the night leaving the kids and the hubbys at home.  I usually use the time to Christmas shop but came home empty handed on that end.  Either I wasn’t in the mood  or nothing caught my eye.    Either way, This trip was just what I needed.  Boy. . .  I can’t wait til next year!