I wanted to have some fun creating watercolor abstracts in my Strathmore 8.5 x 5.5″ watercolor art journal. To create this fun design simply add your watercolor paints to the paper (leaving them fairly wet) and cover it using plastic wrap. Set it aside to completely dry. Then remove the plastic wrap and see what fun shapes you have.
For this design, I saw mountains emerge and went with that. Some areas turned out too light so I used colored pencils to give it more depth and to define the mountain tops a little more. It was still needed a pop of color so I added I added pink flowers and of course finished it off with a little bling.
Hope this inspires you in some way today. Have a fantastic weekend and thanks for stopping by!!
I hope your weekend is off to a good start! This is the 16×20 inch abstract painting I’ve been working on in the studio. It’s easy to overwork a painting, always thinking it needs more but I’m calling this one finished.
This painting is a stunning piece with lots of texture plus fun splashes and drips of colors. There are a lot of layers which peek through in different places making it all the more interesting. It has a very happy and uplifting vibe to it.
Now the real fun begins, I need a name for it but I’m coming up empty handed. Would love to know what you see and/or feel when you look at this painting so I can give it a title😊
Thanks for stopping by and I look forward to hearing from you!!
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“A true artist is not one who is inspired, but one who inspires others.” ~Salvador Dali
I’ve been working on creating a new design for the Expressions of Love Collection and this is what I came up with. It’s an organic design with beautiful hearts, outlined in glistening gold. I collaged a paper doily to the background for a bit of romance and it can be seen on each heart.
These 3 paintings were created on 1.5 inch thick canvases making them ideal as a shelf sitter and the perfect décor for a desk, shelf or counter. Plus they can also be hung on the wall. They will all be up in my Etsy Shop by the end of this weekend.
Below is a time lapse process video of me painting a layer on the Rose Pink Heart. I’m working on getting over my camera shyness 😅
Thanks for stopping by, have a fantastic weekend!!
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“My goal as an artist is to create art that makes people look at the world in a different way.” ~Autumn de Forest
I’m starting a new practice this year. I’m playing with different color combinations and various mediums on 9×12″ watercolor paper. After the painting is done I’ll add notes on the back of what I did, the colors and mediums I used and what I discovered about the process.
This abstract was made with watercolors, acrylic paints and inks, alcohol inks and pen. I was very happy with this color combination, it turned out pretty nice. What’s making me laugh though, is how everyone sees something totally different.
What do you see in this painting?
Have an amazing day!!
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“Art is the only serious thing in the world. And the artist is the only person who is never serious.” ~Oscar Wilde
While on my holiday break I enjoyed working on inchies for my art journal stash. I love taking these on trips because everything fits inside a small ziploc bag. All you need to bring are the tiles and 2-3 different sized Sakura Micron pens.
I do a little prep work before the trip like cutting the watercolor paper into varying sizes. Then I’ll splash paint on a handful of tiles while leaving the rest plain. That’s it! When you have a little spare time, you can create some really interesting and fun pieces of art. There’s no mess and it all easily fits into your purse or bag. I love bringing minimal supplies and creating on trips because it helps to keep the creativity flowing😊 Plus this would also be a great idea for kids to use their creativity on trips!
Hope you enjoyed this post, thanks for stopping by!!
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“A true artist is not one who is inspired but one who inspires others.” ~Salvador Dali
I needed a change of pace so I went to my art journals. I got carried away with this one and went crazy with color. The paint was flying in the studio as the colors exploded off the pages. I think I had more paint on me than in my journal😂
I added some wording to each page and it was just really good medicine, exactly what I needed. That’s the beauty of journaling, it doesn’t need to be neat or pretty. It can be a total explosion of color. It can be anything you want it to be!
So if you find you have some time over the holidays, take a much needed break and just have some fun. You’ll be less stressed and much happier for it!!
Hope you enjoyed this post, thanks for stopping by!!
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“Color! What a deep and mysterious language, the language of dreams.” ~Paul Gauguin
You may have heard the term “encaustic art.” It gained a lot of popularity in recent years but this is actually a 2,000 year old technique which had been lost over time. Encaustic art is a process of painting with heated wax that has been colored with pigment and as a result produces luminous and transparent works.
The word “encaustic” originated from an Ancient Greek word that means “burning in or to burn.” The earliest encaustic paintings came from Ancient Egypt where they created detailed portraits to cover the clothed faces of mummified bodies during the burial ceremony (100-300 AD). The photo below of Fayum is one of those burial paintings. But it was also a common technique used in ancient Greek and Roman paintings.
However, during the 18th century encaustic art lost it’s popularity because it became too costly and was basically replaced with tempera paint. I was very interested in this technique and created the encaustic artwork below as a tribute to my parents which included bits of sheet music composed by my father.
To create this artwork I collaged my background pieces in place and then added beeswax pellets on the canvas which I carefully melted with a small mini quilting iron (available on amazon). I added bits of color and small pieces of heart confetti in between the layers of wax and mixed it in as I went. I finished it off with sheer flowers and a drawer pull at the top. As you can see the end result is a very soft and delicate, dreamy affect.
There are plenty of books available online and in the bookstore on how to create encaustic art. It was a fun learning experience creating my first piece and I plan on making a more of it. There are so many things fun ways you can incorporate this medium into your art.
I hope you enjoyed this post today, thanks for stopping by!!
I wanted to share with you my latest 16×20″ abstract painting titled “Crescendo.” I like to think of this as a reminder to go for your dreams and reach for the stars. Never give up and keep climbing to the top. Set your goals high and climb, climb, climb till you reach them!!
Hope this makes you happy and inspires you to create today. Thanks for stopping by!!!
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“The best view come after the hardest climb.” Unknown
Laly Mille’s online course, “Wild Roses” has rekindled my love for painting roses. So I decided I would work on two 4×4 canvases and paint a single rose on each one. These canvases have lots of layers. I thought of creating the usual layer of texture like I’ve done on my other paintings but that didn’t feel right. So I opted for lace doilies and tissue paper for a more romantic feel.
These paintings aren’t finished yet as there are still more layers to go. It takes a bit of time creating the layers but it’s so much fun. So stay tuned and let’s see where these go…
Hope this inspires you to create today, thanks for stopping by!!!
Growing up, dad kept the most beautiful rose garden. I used love to walk through and look at all the different colors and varieties of roses. Each one was unique and absolutely lovely.
Laly Mille is a very talented mixed media artist in France and has a romantic style of painting. When I saw she offered a course on roses I couldn’t resist. So this past weekend I immersed myself in her online course, “Wild Roses.”
It was a well taught class where you create this beautiful mixed media canvas. Laly did an excellent job teaching how to paint the roses plus color mixing, composition, tips and techniques. She also explained about adding light and shading to the painting.
I learned new things that I’ll be using in my paintings including new supplies that I hadn’t thought to use before. So I’m looking forward to creating art with these new techniques.
I need to work on my composition a little more because my painting is a bit busy and should’ve left more to the imagination. But after painting the roses, I fell in love with them and didn’t have the heart to cover them up. So I decided to leave them as they were. I plan on doing a few more practice runs on paper before doing a large canvas to see what speaks to my heart more.
If you’re interested, I highly recommend Laly Mille’s online course, “Wild Roses.” It was an absolute delight!
Hope this inspires you to create, thanks for stopping by!!
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“The rose speaks of love, silently in a language known only to the heart.” ~Unknown