Recently while haunting Youtube watercolor tutorials, I’d seen a number of artists using a watercolor technique where you cover parts of your paper with masking fluid, then paint over this in a colorful wash, let it dry, then add more masking fluid, and then paint another colorful wash, etc. So, I tried it out myselfContinue reading “Masking Fluid + Washes”
Category Archives: Exercises
Watercolor Within the Lines
Here’s some pictures I painted this week! You’ll remember these perhaps from my geometrical drawings post, and I figured these were the perfect canvases to work on some very basic watercolor skills: painting within the lines and practicing some of my new-found color knowledge from last week My chosen color palette didn’t come out quiteContinue reading “Watercolor Within the Lines”
Back to the Basics: Color Theory
I have a confession to make: Even though I’ve been painting for over a year now, last week if I’d been asked to name the primary colors I’d have needed to puzzle it out. See, when I started watercolors I did the very thing most experts recommend beginners NOT do: I bought a large setContinue reading “Back to the Basics: Color Theory”
Dip Pen Calligraphy
I had a tsunami of work projects swamp me this week, so my time for creativity was way limited. I did however manage to stumble further into the world of calligraphy. In my previous post on this topic I shared the Beth Style Worksheet I’d purchased from The Postman’s Knock. While this is a greatContinue reading “Dip Pen Calligraphy”
Faux Calligraphy
Since I’ve committed this year to only sending out cards that I hand-make, I felt that it was time to tackle some calligraphy. While my handwriting isn’t lamentable, it also isn’t anything to write home about, so developing a fancy version of writing for fancy occasions has always been a creative goal. This development ofContinue reading “Faux Calligraphy”
Beginning Again . . . Part II
So, the other back-to-basics thing I have been doing DILIGENT work on is practicing my scales. A scale is an “organized sequence of notes,” or, for the willy-nilly musicians among us, boring shit that you don’t feel like practicing. HOWEVER, scales improve finger strength and dexterity, help with hand coordination, and improve intonation. They areContinue reading “Beginning Again . . . Part II”
Beginning Again . . . Part I
Music theory is, according to Wikipedia, the study of “the practices and possibilities of music.” I love how they put this! Anyway, because music theory is essentially the language and rules of music, it is vital for any musician that gives AF. During the past couple years of playing piano, I haven’t moved much beyondContinue reading “Beginning Again . . . Part I”
Watercolor Explorations
Since my initial experimentations with salt and watercolor, I’ve spent hours watching tutorial videos on different techniques and materials one can use with watercolors, and I’ve gone to art supply and hardware stores multiple times in the last five days (and I don’t like running errands, folks). It’s been a bit of an obsessed week,Continue reading “Watercolor Explorations”
Keys To Drawing Project: Eyes
This is the second post in my journey through Bert Dodson’s Keys to Drawing. Find the first project here. This week I undertook Dodson’s Project 1-D–Eyes: drawing my own eyes using a mirror. The lead up to this exercise was a riff on the necessity to draw exactly what we see, not what weContinue reading “Keys To Drawing Project: Eyes”
Salt + Watercolor
After my last watercolor project fiasco, I vowed to return to this medium with a lighter heart and more exploratory aspirations. I have to remind myself again and again that it’s the act of creating that’s key, not the end result. So, this week, I played around with a new watercolor technique: SALT! Adding saltContinue reading “Salt + Watercolor”
Compulsive Creation 