Painting

Inspired by Monet

I love the colors and textures of the works of Monet. I wanted to do an 8 x 8 inch soft pastel painting, and I thought Monet's Waterlilies would be a great inpiration. I always love how they start out looking like a kindergartner's class work. :) I used Lyra watercolor sticks to block-in the main colors for the background, then activated the pigment with water on a paintbrush. This also keeps you from using up too much of the pastels and making them harder to layer. After layering ... View the Post

Painting

Acrylic Pink Floral

Whenever I have leftover open paint, I quickly paint a second canvas. They don't always turn out. I have mixed feelings about this one, but the colors are calming. I think popping it into a frame would be good. Autumn has been so beautiful that it's been hard to be down in the studio. I have been writing a lot. I think it's time to start painting some fall colors! Here are some favorite products! ... View the Post

Painting

Inktober (So Far)

October is my favorite month, and it's been Autumn perfection here in Michigan! Here are a couple of ink and paint sketches for Inktober! There are links at the bottom of the post for great supplies to get you going! ... View the Post

Painting

Acrylic Winter Painting

This square painting was done in acrylics. It is a sunset behind the trees on a wintery day. The colors I used are below. I created a design paper as well that will be available for free in a future post, so be sure to subscribe so you don't miss it! ... View the Post

Painting

Acrylic Painting by the Lake

I love the calming effect of purple. This painting removes the stress of using all the colors you own (though I love all the colors!) and keeps it simple. Using my favorite brushes, it's easy to create trees and reflections in the water. Painting on canvas board makes it easy to pop into a frame. Of course, you can do this with your favorite color. ... View the Post

Painting

Loose Watercolor Floral

I love painting with these Japenese watercolors. The colors are rich! Today, I'm showing the steps and layers of this floral watercolor piece. This time, I started with the leaves in an oval pattern. Then, I started to fill in the middle with general shapes and colors of what will become the flowers. It's time to start giving some definition. Painting the centers of the flowers also starts to give them direction. Let the layers dry in between. Watercolors tend to lighten ... View the Post