Bookmarks

My sister inspired me to create bookmarks, and what better theme could there be than coffee and tea?!

Birthday card insertions



Well,.... but I spent an hour mixing colours and trying out different brush strokes and water/paint dilutions and I forgot all worries and focused and was at peace.                                                          This IS the point. 

Developing creativity through persistence

So... my overlapping flowers just smudged into one mass, and I could not mix the greens I wanted, and there was little pleasing balance in my painting. I went to bed strangely - for such a seemingly inconsequential project - discouraged. I decided to sketch in my journal upside a nature scene upside down, and then sketched some little happy cartoon long-legged birds.  I felt better. Let out my creativity- vanquish the comparison and sense of not measuring up ?!  Dios mio! 

This morning, I daydreamed awhile of ideas, untaught, and attempted to incorporate my own sense of balance and colour to the watercolour; I feel I stepped forward- not in the work itself, but in having fun ---letting myself fly a little.

Caramba! This is fun!

Following fancy, I experimented with creating fall colours and did a 'quick' water-colour to as part of a birthday invitation.

Fall Babies 

A sister sends me her interpretation of the 'cute bird' water-colour of a couple weeks ago.  Hers reflects her. Wonderful!. 

My sister is inspired by the simplicity of this design and applies it to what she sees in her garden.














This morning, the background dry, I experimented again with creating muted colours and  hope to add more petals once this one drys. Inspired by YouTube artists who offer tutorials.  Emma Lefebvre and Bette Orr. 

Inspired by nature; taught by YouTube artist

I walked and painted, trying out mixing media, less precise filling in of colours, mixing colours to get the tone I desire, painting a background for a painting to come.

Estoy muy satisfecha con mis dibujos.

Background (on semi-appropriate paper)

A kind of meditation

Morning walk and my German saying for the day.

Gently letting go of sadness. 

Un poco de todo

Es bueno que no necesito probarme a mí misma.

Water-colour

Inspired by Pinterest

Fall - My morning walk

Inspiration for plant sketch

Paseos matinales

On another morning walk: 

Patience with Learning

Remember: the process counts; most things we desire, take time: conviction, sense of urgency, enthusiasm, and effort.

I begin to move from my goal of copying art I see, to being inspired by it to create something new.

Dinner Plate Flowers 

Communication

Tools and Sharing

I mentioned one sister in the last blog, but two other sisters are also inspiring me to draw and paint and colour.

One shared her 'must have' portable water-colour set with me and some colours I might try, some brushes. 

After this sharing, I went to shopping in two recommended art supplies stores.  What fun! 

I sorted out a small set of crayons I use often. 

My other sister explained how to use other colours to create the greys I want for shadows, and how to use colours to make a various shades of black.  I used her idea to get the more subtle colours for the 'elephant', Nina, a few posts back.

I have found that water colour pencils can create some lovely grey shades.  I look forward to more work using them effectively.

My other sisters and mom and friends continue to inspire and encourage me to follow these forms of self-expression. 

Doodling

I find myself doodling for pleasure, doodling to relax, doodling to find 'calm', doodling to work on a technique, just doodling.

While visiting my mom....

About to leave my stay in my sister and husband's home. 

Inspired by a Pinterest artiste. 

Visualizing a chipmunk I'd seen on a morning walk.

Inspired by my sister's work, as I sketched the fish, I thought of 'save our oceans' posters, and how I might be able to apply her techniques in the future. My own version, as pictured her, only meant as a sketch to remind of the textures, colours, and shapes she created in her lovely card. 

New Techniques and Supplies

With a few new techniques and art supplies, I am continuing on my watercolour journey:

Inspired by Amber K. Creative, an artist on YouTube
Amber

Inspired by a children's book in French: Nina et le Chat

Morning River Walk Sketches

Sketches in Ink and Pencil 

With ink, there is no erasing, but I am finding pleasure in the risk. 

With pencil, there is the ever renewed joy of different pencil weights and erasing until the image 'just feels right'. 

River Walk

Pencil Drawing 

While sipping coffee in a café

Somewhere in the Middle

 A strange - to me- discovery: I like to draw, color, paint, recreate images, and even create them. My GOODNESS!

Over the past 18 months, I have spent endless, 'timeless' moments - hours- following online suggestions, recapturing online  and children's book drawings.  My words put on paper in my morning journals have been expressed increasingly in images, and slowly these images, sketched in pen, and pencil, and given color with highlighters and pencil crayons, and, of late, with water-colours, are replacing the words.

As I draw, color, paint, and follow YouTube and Udemy videos, I forget time and food and the day's preoccupations. These moments are 'peace'.

This blog, then, I hope to use as a kind of archive, or a Hansel and Gretel crumb trail. I am hoping, you, my readers, will look more than read, and that you will empathize with this source of  unexpected joy.

My first attempts at water-colours: