Reflection at the shore

I decided to paint something different this week.

Happy Sunday! 🙂

Weeds and grass at the lake shore. Although it sounds like a simple subject, I worried that painting this photo would not turn out very well.

My painting inspiration, a photo at the lake.

A few notes and tips before I share my results with you…

• The water was painted first and after it dried I layered the grasses on top.
• As you get further away, waves should be smaller and their color should be lighter.
• For the weeds and grass, I used different sized brushes, different color mixes, and switched back and forth frequently.
• Brushes used: Round #12, Flat angle 1/2 inch, and Liner #2
• Painted while standing instead of sitting, it was a nice change.

 

My first attempt was a good practice. One problem that stands out is that there are not enough dark values. What I really like in this painting though is the feeling of movement in the grass and weeds.

Reflection at the shore  – 9 x 12 inch Bee watercolor paper

Then my second attempt… a very different result, darker and bolder.

Probably went a little too far with dark values this time, a little over correction. 😉

Reflection at the shore 2  –  9 x 12 inch Bee watercolor paper

Before starting the first painting, I had to hush that little voice telling me that I could not do this. I realized that I just had to get out of my own way and go for it. In the end, I had fun and learned something. That makes me happy. 🙂

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 simile and sprinkle kindness all around.

Happy Painting! ❤

Patty Anne

PattyAnneArt on Instagram

PattyAnneArt

I’ve been waiting…

I’ve been waiting for the Cosmos that I planted from seed to bloom. This week, it finally happened. I was pretty excited when I looked outside to see this beauty.

Happy Thursday! 🙂

She quickly became my painting inspiration for the week. ❤

Those little joyful petals just make me smile

and that yummy color just sings.

 

Just a few simple lines with a Micron pen to place the petals and then the addition of watercolor to brighten it up.

I hope you are inspired to create art and do what you love. Thank you for stopping by and following along.

Until next time, be the light and shine on!

Happy Painting!

Patty Anne

PattyAnneArt on Instagram

PattyAnneArt

Naming artwork

A little flower practice using a 1/2 inch Flat angle brush.

Happy little petals your way today. 🙂

I’ve been trying to come up with more thoughtful names for my artwork. I am finding that naming artwork is challenging. This small 6 x 9 inch piece I named, Baby Blues.

I wonder what the best approach is when naming artwork.

Maybe asking a few questions would be helpful before selecting a name…

• What do I see?  (this is my usual method, somewhat descriptive)
• What do I feel when I look at this piece?
• What did I feel when I created this piece?
• Does this piece bring back a special memory?
• Does this piece have a special meaning?

Then again, am I just overthinking the process?  Is it best to just go with your gut (or what comes to mind right away)?

Do you have a method that works well for you? I would love to hear how you choose a name.

Thank you for stopping by and following along. I hope you are inspired to create art and do what you love.

Until next time, be the light and shine on! ❤

Happy Painting!

Patty Anne

PattyAnneArt on Instagram

PattyAnneArt

 

At the lake…

A few views from last weekend enjoying time at the lake. 🙂

Happy Thursday!

The clouds in the sky were big and fluffy.

 

My dog loves the lake… It didn’t take long until this happened!

 

Lots of swimming and splashing around at full speed. ❤

I wish I had that kind of energy.

 

I just love this view of the grass and weeds along the shore.

 

Ahh, the sun peeked out from behind the clouds for a few minutes.

 

It is always nice to slow down and enjoy the simple beauty all around.

Until next time, share a smile and have a great week!

Happy Painting!

Patty Anne

PattyAnneArt on Instagram

PattyAnneArt

Floral Sketching

A little ink sketching today. Having fun with flowers and vines.

Happy Sunday!

Since I started doodling a while back, I stopped worrying about making mistakes while sketching and just going with it. I think that has really helped me loosen up and sketch freely. I also try to keep in mind that not every sketch is going to work out and that is part of learning and growing.

I surprised myself with these ink florals. I just love how they turned out.  I catch myself looking at them and saying, wow I did that! 🙂

July Floral – 9 x 12 inch Canson Mix Media sketch book

For each of the flowers I started in the center and worked my way out. After dropping the flowers in place, I added the vines and leaves. I used a .03 Micron pen for the sketch and a .005 for the detail.

Another quick floral sketch just before adding detail.

I’ve been trying to add enough detail without going overboard. If I let myself go I will add too much and it will look a bit harsh.

Blooms and Vines – 9 x 12 inch Canson Mix Media sketchbook

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

PattyAnneArt on Instagram

PattyAnneArt

Dreamy Orange Crush

More transparent watercolor petals to share with you today.

A little splashy orange crush. 🙂

Hope you have a great day and find time to do what you love.

Happy Thursday! ❤

Orange Poppies – 9 x 12 inch Bee watercolor paper.

For this painting, I slowly layered soft petals like I did in my last post. But this time, I continued on and developed the painting a bit further.

I hope you enjoy seeing my work and are inspired to create art and do something you love. Until next time, share a smile and sprinkle kindness everywhere.

Happy Painting!

Patty Anne

PattyAnneArt on Instagram

PattyAnneArt

Transparent Watercolor Petals

Transparent watercolor petals, delicate and lovely.

Happy Sunday! 🙂

This week I thought it would be fun to share with you a simple technique for painting layers of soft petals in watercolor.

A few key points before we get started:

– the goal is to slowly build up color with each layer of paint

– start with a very light color

-each layer added is a little darker

– let each layer dry before adding the next one (very important!)

– a round brush works well for this (I used size 12)

Each layer of color is mixed to be slightly darker than the previous layer. Adding more water to a color mix will give you a lighter shade which works well for this exercise.

This is what I used…

Daniel Smith watercolors:

Layer 1-  Quin Rose + Yellow Ochre
Layer 2 – Quin Rose + Yellow Ochre  (slightly darker than Layer 1)
Layer 3 – Quin Rose + Yellow Ochre + Mayan Orange
Layer 4 – Quin Rose + Yellow Ochre + Mayan Orange (slightly darker than Layer 3)

First layer is very light and pale.

Second layer, adding a few different petal shapes with a slightly darker shade of pink. Things don’t look very good at this point, but hang in there it gets better. 🙂

The hardest part is waiting for things to dry completely between layers.

I also added a few tiny green stems to build up later.

Another layer adding a few more petals with a slightly darker color…

Layer 3 is looking a little better now.

Then a last 4th layer of darker petals. It gets pretty exciting at this point when the flowers start to take shape.

You could stop now or continue on and develop your painting further. I decided to just leave this one as is.

I hope you enjoyed this little exercise. It is an easy way to develop soft, delicate watercolor flowers. Let me know if this was helpful, I would love to hear from you.

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

Happy Painting!

Patty Anne

PattyAnneArt on Instagram

PattyAnneArt