Christmas branch

Another watercolor painting for Christmas.

Happy Sunday friends! 🙂

9 x 12 inch Christmas branch on bee watercolor paper

Leaves are one of my favorite things to paint and sketch. I decided it would be fun to paint a cheerful branch. I now have my second Christmas card for this year. Yay! 🙂

I started with layers of light green leaves using a round #12 brush. I allowed each layer to dry and worked up to darker leaves in different shades of green.  For the last layer of pine needles, I switched to a flat angle brush which helped me get some nice variation and added texture. As a last step I used a white gel pen for a hint of snow and a few highlights.

I hope you are inspired to create art and do what you love. Thank you for stopping by and following along. Until next time, share a smile and have a great week.

Happy Painting! ❤

Patty Anne

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PattyAnneArt

 

 

 

 

Inktober sketching

Inktober is a drawing challenge started by Mr. Jake Parker where artists from all over the world take part in working on an ink drawing each day for the month of October. I am participating this year by sketching what I love when time allows.

Hope you enjoy my little sketches this week.

Happy Thursday!  😊

6 x 9 inch – Poppy flower

I’ve been using fine tip pens and trying to keep a light touch when sketching flower petals. I think it is starting to get a little better.

 

6 x 9 inch Flowers and vines

 

9 x 12 inch Sunflower

A happy little flower inspired by a sunflower in my garden. 🌻

 

9 x 12 inch  – Standing tall

Working on the leaves in this sketch was easier and more fun once I started to doodle and let go. I tried to be careful to leave enough white space and develop some areas more than others.

9 x 12 inch – Little birdie in a tea cup

All of my ink sketches are on mix media paper using Micron pens of various sizes. I like mix media paper because it is smooth and has a great surface for ink sketching. The other nice thing is that it can handle a little watercolor if I choose to add some color.

I hope you enjoy seeing my art and are inspired to do what you love. Thank you for stopping by and following along. Until next time, share a smile and spread kindness all around. 💗

Happy Painting!

Patty Anne

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PattyAnneArt

One last swim

A few favorite photos to share from a recent weekend at the lake.

Happy Sunday friends! 🙂

One last hurrah at the lake, splashing around and having fun!

 

Diving in and loving every minute of it. 💗🐾 Oh, happy day!!

 

and back in again… but this time I managed to get a shot with one paw in the water and the rest of his body in the air.

 

Playing at the shore in the weeds and getting ready to hit the dock again at full speed.

 

A view through the weeds on the shore as my boy swims by.

 

I love this lake view, so calm and peaceful.

 

This photo of a pine branch in the afternoon sun really speaks to my heart.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this time at the lake and Huey’s last swim of the season.

Hope you have a great week.

Happy Painting!

Patty Anne

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PattyAnneArt

Painting butterflies

I have been painting butterflies inspired by Jean Haines. I absolutely love her loose free style of watercolor painting. I found that with just a few simple steps you can paint a little butterfly.

Happy Sunday!

Steps to paint a butterfly:

1. Using a liner #2 brush and a black brown mix, add a small round head. Then just below that, add a line of dots for the body getting smaller as you near the bottom.
2. Outline the top of the wing with a deep color and then use a little clean water to smooth it out.
3. Next to the midsection of the body, add paint with the side of your brush and pull it out away from the body. Continue this on both sides and build up the color.
4. Add more color to the head and wings as needed.

Special notes:

• Allow the paint from the body to touch the wet paint of the wings. Remember that the mix and mingle is where the watercolor magic happens. 🙂
• Be careful to not overwork your butterfly, less is more here.

 

It is always fun to play with different shapes and colors. My favorite butterflies here ended up being the ones in the middle where I left part of the wings unpainted. It feels like they are moving across the page. 🦋

 

Trying to put it all together with a little painting of a flower and butterfly.

Butterfly dreams painted on Bee watercolor paper

I hope you enjoyed this little butterfly practice and are inspired to pick up a paint brush and create art. Thank you for stopping by and following along. Until next time, I hope you have a great week and shine on!

Happy Painting!

Patty Anne

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PattyAnneArt

 

Soft pink roses

A quiet post with soft pink roses today.

🌸 Happy Thursday! 🌸

Soft pink roses  –  9 x 12 inch Bee watercolor paper

 

watercolor inspiration photo – March 2018

Until next time, share a smile and sprinkle kindness all around.

Happy Painting! 😊

Patty Anne

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PattyAnneArt

A little sunshine

A little bit of sunshine for you today. 🙂

Happy Thursday!

Keep your face always toward the sunshine and the shadows will fall behind you.

~ Walt Whitman

 

This glorious sunflower in my garden just makes my heart sing.

Such a happy flower, sunflowers are always smiling. 🙂

 

Even as the petals begin to wilt they are still lovely.

 

I caught this little chipmunk resting out back and staring off into the distance. Such a cutie, I just had to share. ❤

 

If Huey Lewis had been outside with me I’m sure this fella wouldn’t have hung around for his photo shoot. 😉

I hope you are inspired to create art and do what you love. Thank you for stopping by and following along. Until next time, share a smile and shine on.

Happy Painting!

Patty Anne

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PattyAnneArt

 

Painting bees

I’ve been practicing painting bees and flowers. In Jean Haines’ book, Atmospheric Flowers in Watercolour, she noted that adding little bees to your flower paintings will give them more energy and interest.

The cute little bees in Jean’s book looked like a fun exercise so I jumped in.

How to paint a little bee, simple and loose: 

Use a small brush,  I used a Liner #2

1. With dark gray/black, paint a round head and with the tip of your brush pull out a few antenna.
   Paint a couple dark curved stripes below the head.
2. In between the stripes add yellow paint and allow it to touch and blend with the other areas.
3. Pull out the wings from the wet paint on each side of the bee. Add a little more gray color at the top of the wing. Use a damp brush to blend out the wings to keep them soft and delicate.
4. Bump up the color by adding more yellow and gray/black where needed.

 

You can also switch things up and paint a few bees with different shades of yellow and gold, or try using a different gray mix. There are so many possibilities. 🙂

My little bee and flower study was a great way to have fun and try new things. I was able to experiment with how much water to use, when to blend colors, and try different  shapes and color combinations.

I love the freedom to just play and experiment without worry. It is a great way to build skills and enjoy the painting process. I highly recommend taking some time to play.

Flowers and Bees  – 6 x 9 inch

I hope you are inspired to create art and do what you love. Thank you for stopping by and following along. Until next time share a smile and spread kindness all around.

Happy Painting!

Patty Anne

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PattyAnneArt