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Misc. Monday Moodiness

Monday, October 11, 2021 0 Crochet/Knitting, Living in Michigan, Misc. Blatherings, Painting, watercolor No tags Permalink

How’s your week starting out? Although Monday didn’t start out poorly, it quickly got there and proceeded to become more troublesome as the day went on. Yes, it’s Misc. Monday Moodiness today. I am very thankful for the small bits of kindness others shared with me, and I’m especially happy to be home with my family at the end of a long day.

The above painting is a quick watercolor study. Some parts of it are nice, but others didn’t work out quite well. Isn’t that often the way it goes? I’m always thankful to have a little time to paint, though. I’ve been busy with a large (5 foot x 5 foot) crochet blanket out of a bulky yarn to go in my hygge basket for the Whisker Mixer silent auction. The basket also includes a bottle of Bailey’s, a mug, a blank journal (a really nice one, too…I have way, way too many unused journals), fairy lights, bath soak and a lotion bar. I’ve also done a mani-pedi jar, a safety first home improvement basket, a cupcake basket, and a Christmas basket. I just hope they bring in some decent money for the shelter pets. This year’s fundraisers have been a struggle for me on several fronts. Virtual events are a ton more work than live events, with a much lower payout. Anyhow, here’s the blanket:

It’s Bernat blanket yarn, HDC with a giant wooden hook, and it’s really soft. I’ve gone back to crocheting my shawl, and I just finished watching the 1992 movie Candyman. I’m not a horror fan, but I really wanted to see the scenes shot in Cabrini Green. I’m trying to get my holiday shopping done well early this year, so I don’t have to worry about it. I need to get started on the holiday greeting cards.

One Image, Several Mediums

Monday, September 6, 2021 0 gouache, Painting, Pastels, Soft Pastels, watercolor No tags Permalink
one image several mediums - soft pastels

As you saw from the August 16 Watercolor post, I took one reference image and used it to paint in watercolor and fountain pen ink. I decided to continue the trend over a few other mediums, hence One Image, Several Mediums. Above is the attempt in soft pastels. I like the boat and I like the overall softness of the image.

one image several mediums - oil pastel

This next image is in oil pastels. This is my first attempt using them. Here’s a hint if you haven’t tried it before: don’t use watercolor paper. Especially cold press. It is too textured and you can’t get the best blending nor can you get color in all of the low areas of the paper. I’ll have to give oil pastels another try on a different paper for sure.

one image several mediums - gouache

This final image, and the best one I think, is in gouache. I’ve had the most practice with gouache, and I’m probably best at it for that reason. I think it’s still not what I would want it to be, but maybe it’s the reference image. I read once that a photograph might not always make the best reference for painting, but I can’t really figure out what makes a good reference and what does not. I don’t feel like I’ve had great successes with painting in the recent batches, which is a bit frustrating. Still, I’ll continue on.

Beam Watercolor Paints

This final image was a watercolor using a very limited palette of Beam Paints. Gosh, these are gorgeous paints. And the kit, when you receive it, makes you feel like you have purchased a very special gift for yourself. I encourage you to check out the link for the company, even if you aren’t a painter. I think it will spark your own creativity and make you consider how you purchase any art or craft supplies. I’m not pleased with how the image turned out, but that’s my fault and not the paint. I just don’t quite get watercolor yet, you know?

It was a lovely, peaceful holiday weekend. I did wind up finishing my last book, so I’ll have a Summer Reads update coming up soon. The summer went much, much too fast but then again doesn’t it always here in Michigan?

Misc. Blatherings

Wednesday, August 25, 2021 0 Animals, Kitty, Misc. Blatherings, Painting, Soft Pastels, watercolor No tags Permalink
misc. blatherings postcards

Time for some misc. blatherings. Can you believe we’re nearing the end of August? I did finish a sewing project, an altar cloth, for Mom. It has some decorative stitching on it. Work is a bit stressful now. I’m trying to chill out, but you know how that goes. Most of the time, I wish I was home painting.

I have been doing a little bit of painting. I’m not counting these, above, in my official paintings, so they don’t have numbers. They are small, postcard sized, trying out some new paper and new techniques. Again, I figure it is fair to show the things that aren’t working out so well and not just the good ones. Cousin Marlene sent me a pack of vintage postcards, including this one of cacti. The piece one on the left is in watercolor on watercolor postcard stock. The one on the right was my first attempt with soft pastels on sanded paper. It’s obviously not good. But, I think maybe I like pastels? Last night I started a bigger one, of the boat on the water images I did with watercolor and ink in the previous post. I don’t quite have all of the right colors but I think it’s coming together anyway. I’ll post it when it is done. It seems you need a bigger size piece for pastels, especially the Terry Ludwig variety as they are chunky.

I belong to a large number of facebook art groups. So many in fact, they are taking up all of my feed and with a lot of crap. So I have taken to hiding a lot of the artists from the groups as if it isn’t inspiring or I just don’t like that kind of art, why look at it? And horse paintings? Automatic hide. I would guess horse paintings are the number one subject for people just starting out in art. Why? I don’t care how good it is, when you’re done with it, it’s still a freaking horse.

Such sweetness of a sleeping beast. I had last Thursday and Friday off work to join an online MSU gardening conference and Maxy sure enjoyed having company on the couch. He really misses Bob during the day.

We’re going through another round of 90 degree days, so summer hasn’t quite given up yet. It’s been humid, too. I’ve had two migraines in the past week, and headaches every other day. At least we did get rain last night so the garden was saved from certain death by dehydration.

Watercolor Painting

Monday, August 16, 2021 0 Painting, watercolor No tags Permalink

When I started painting, I thought to myself that it’s a process. Some will be ok. Some will not. And to be fair to others starting out, I’m not going to just show the nice ones. Some of them suck and it’s important to share those as well. I’m just starting to play around a bit with watercolor painting, and it’s honestly not going great. I love the tiny tubes or the little cubes of paint. They are so cute! At some point I will need to address if I enjoy watercolor painting, or just the supplies.

The second one is done with fountain pen in, Troublemaker Ink in the color Milky Ocean. That’s all one color, it just breaks out into different spectrums of color when combined with water. I used some bleach for the waves and masking fluid for the sun and reflection. Next I’m going to try this same image in gouache and see if the type of paint makes a difference. This is a reference photo off instagram, and maybe that’s part of the problem? I don’t really know what kind of photo makes for a great reference but I often read when I ask for advice that some photos are just terrible references. Could that be the case with this one?

I’m tired today. Mentally, physically. Just plain exhausted. I can feel the seasons changing, the grind of the turning of the wheel of the year. Not surprisingly, it has me feeling a bit anxious. The Delta variant of COVID is increasing and Calhoun County has moved into the red zone. The US has pulled out of Afghanistan and the Taliban are again taking over. July was, not surprisingly, the hottest month on record.

Summer Reading Update

Monday, July 12, 2021 0 Good Reads, Painting, Summer Reads, watercolor No tags Permalink
Summer Reading Update - How to Stop Time

We are maybe 1/3 through the summer, and I’m making progress on my summer reading. First up was Matt Haig’s How to Stop Time which I guess would be classified as a fantasy novel. The main character ages very, very slowly. It was a good read, but not very memorable. A week after I had read it, I forgot what happened in it. If you’re looking for a light beach read though, this could be your book.

summer reading update - convenience store woman

Sayaka Murata’s Convenience Store Woman is maybe more of a novella. I started and finished in it just a couple of hours. It was an interesting read for sure. The woman the story is centered around has some sort of un-diagnosed personality disorder. From not being understood in childhood to trying to find her place in life, she finds peace working part time in a convenience store. The descriptions of the store and her surroundings are quite good. You can really feel yourself there. Though I couldn’t identify with the character personally, the story gave me insight into another kind of life. I don’t think this is a book for everyone, but I have a few friends who might like it including my cousin Angie.

I’ve also been daily reading selections from Ryan Holiday’s The Daily Stoic looking for peace and inspiration. I’ve also been tracking down the Splash watercolor books. They are excellent for ideas and inspiration. Here’s my latest watercolors, #44 and #45.

The second one got a bit of traffic on the watercolor Facebook groups I belong to, and I did learn a lot through all of the comments. It seems the watercolor people are more active than the gouache or acrylic people. I did start a new watercolor last night and it’s not going well. Hoping it can still be salvaged. I need to sit and wait for things to dry instead of constantly reworking them while wet. Things always look different in the morning. That’s a pretty good metaphor for life as well. Worry and overwork things at night and it’s a disaster. The morning light will cast a new reality for you.

Next up on my reading list: The Burning [Tulsa Race Riot] by Tim Madigan

Summer Painting

Thursday, June 24, 2021 0 gouache, Living in Michigan, Misc. Blatherings, Painting, watercolor, Weather Update No tags Permalink
summer painting #42 - gouache pet portrait

The painting of Star for the Pet Portrait FUNdraiser for the Humane Society is done. Or, at least as done as it’s going to get. It’s framed, too, which should help. I hope the owner is pleased with it. This is painting #42 in gouache, and the first summer painting completed. I enjoyed working on it. As I’ve been doing donation letters at work, I’ve had YouTube painting videos on in the background. For whatever reason, I decided maybe I should try watercolor as well.

summer painting #43 watercolor landscape

So here’s painting #43, my first attempt at watercolor. The sky is good, I think. The rest still needs work. It’s an interesting medium and feels a bit more loose than either gouache or acrylic. I think maybe it also is more of a celebration of color over line?

We had more rain and storms last weekend, but fortunately no power loss or damage. We’re due in for rain every day this week, which will give me back time spent watering. I hate to think of the weeds once the sun comes out again! In Portland temperatures are nearing 110 degrees. Once again, the west is so dry. I suspect it’s only a matter of time before the wildfires start. Our arugula is pretty much shot. No green beans or tomatoes yet. The flowers look pretty good though.

News is starting to really come up about the danger of the COVID Delta variant. Michigan is now completely open and I doubt very much if it will close again, no matter the numbers or deaths. Right now we are planning in-person events for the shelter in the fall. Hard to know what that will actually look like. I’ve been working on a variant of the Whole 30 diet plan to get rid of inflammation. It might be starting to work? Giving up sugar is a killer, though. Worse than bread, pasta, salt, or alcohol.