Birch Trees – painting with a plastic card

I love painting with a plastic card. Today I have birch trees that I painted using this fun technique.

Happy Sunday! 💚

Using a plastic card to apply watercolor is easy to do and very enjoyable.

Paper of choice: I recommend a cold pressed watercolor paper. Cold pressed paper can stand up to the plastic card pushing and pulling paint without damaging the paper. In addition, the slightly textured surface of this paper gives the trees a more realistic look.

Simple Technique: Using a plastic card to apply paint.
Dip the edge of a plastic card into a puddle of paint (see photo above) or directly into pigment and then apply the paint to the paper using the card.

A view of the beginning stage.

I used the card to print lines on the paper and create various tree shapes. Then by dragging the card left and right I can pull and push paint to look like markings you might see on birch bark.

It doesn’t look very good at first but by continuing to add more paint and detail, the trees start to look quite nice.

I used three colors that really play nicely together:
Prussian Blue
Paynes Gray
Sepia

In the same area on the mixing tray, the colors slowly start to mix together as I dipped into them over and over. I just continued to add back each color to the puddle as needed.

I also swiped the edge of the card into concentrated pigment to get some nice color for darker areas. In some places a damp brush with a little water helped move paint around a bit.

It’s really all about playing and seeing what happens!

8 x 8 inch – Birch Trees on Fluid Watercolor paper

To finish things off I added a sky and some grasses. The darker area around the base of the trees helps to anchor them so that they aren’t just floating on the page.

I had so much fun painting these trees that I think I will try this again and work larger. I hope you are inspired to create art and do something you love.

Until next time, share a smile and sprinkle kindness everywhere!

🌸 Patty Anne 🌸

Join me on Instagram @pattyanneart.

Beach painting – then and now

I’ve been working on more landscape paintings lately. I thought it might be good to look back and remind myself just how far I’ve come. Today I have a recent beach painting to share and a few to look back on.

So here we go back to 2017

Beach watercolor – 2017

and then 2018

Beach watercolor 2018

Below is a recent beach painting before final details were added. I really like the color palette and the simplicity of the sky.

Beach watercolor 2022

I decided to add a few birds and some grasses in the foreground. I think that really completes the scene.

Beach watercolor 2022

I can definitely see the progress I’ve made over the years and that makes me really happy. As they say, practice makes progress! 😊

I am enjoying the journey and trying to remember that not every painting will be a success. When I am unhappy with a painting I find that taking time to step back and reflect on what worked and didn’t work helps me with the next painting.

I hope you are inspired to create art and do something you love. Until next time, keep playing and having fun!

🌸 Patty Anne 🌸

Join me on Instagram @pattyanneart

Silent Sunday – watercolor flowers

Join me on Instagram @pattyanneart

Little seascape painting

Today I have a seascape to share with you. I was playing in my 5×7 inch sketchbook and was pleasantly surprised with the results.

Happy Sunday! 💙

My first step was color mixing. I painted a few samples in my sketchbook documenting the colors that I planned on using.

The next step was deciding where to place a light pencil mark for the horizon line. The space is quite limited in the 5 x 7 inch sketchbook but I didn’t let that stop me.

I worked from top to bottom with the wet on wet technique. I simply wet the paper by brushing on clean water first and then added some paint on the damp paper.

I like to focus on the sky first and then move on to the middle and foreground areas. There’s something very calming about painting a water scene and I love all the blues of the sea.

I placed a matt over the painting to see how it might look in a frame. I think it looks pretty good that way. 😊 I hope you make time to play in your sketchbook and have fun.

Until next time, share a smile and shine on.

🌸 Patty Anne 🌸

Join me on Instagram at pattyanneart

Sunny Floral painting

I have a sunny floral to share with you today. These little yellow flowers make me so happy. I hope you enjoy them too. 💛

I had some fun playing in my sketchbook and started with a light pencil sketch. I used my Tombow dual tip brush pens for some bright color.

The small tip of the pen worked well to draw the lavender. I used dark purple and blue to sketch the little petals. Then I used a damp brush with clean water to wet and blend the lavender a little in some areas.

The yellow flowers were a combination of different shades of yellow, light gold, and pale orange. I tried to keep it all very simple here just blending on the page with a little clean water.

When the flowers were dry, I used a blue brush pen to make a bunch of very tiny lines and dots in the center of the flowers. I think yellow always looks so pretty next to blue and purple.

I hope you are making time to do things you enjoy. Until next time, share a smile and sprinkle kindness everywhere.

🌸 Patty Anne 🌸

Join me on Instagram at pattyanneart

Calming leaves in my sketchbook

Today I have a few pages in my little watercolor sketchbook to share with you.

I’ve been painting leaves using a plastic card and brush. I just can’t seem to get enough of this. 💙

I like simplifying my color choices. Here I used just three colors.

I push paint around with the plastic card and use the watercolor brush to wet the paper and smooth out any areas that need it. A damp brush helps encourage the paint to move around a bit.

I am so in love with these colors. I decided to let the paint to bleed out a little on opposite corners. It needed a little something extra and that worked well.

I hope you are inspired to create art and do something you love. Many thanks for all of the kind words and condolences on my last post. It was very much appreciated.

Until next time, share a smile and shine on.

🌸 Patty Anne 🌸

You can find me on Instagram at pattyanneart

Daffodils & Tulips

It was a very difficult start to Spring this year with the unexpected loss of my beloved brother. Although I try to keep my personal life and struggles out of my art blog, this is where I am and what I’ve been going through. I just thought I should let you all know.

Today I have some pretty pictures of the daffodils in my garden and a few other paintings to share.

The daffodils this year did not disappoint. They’ve since faded but I did manage to get some nice photos when they were at their peak.

I really love this close up view.

Once again no luck with tulips this year. The critters outside have enjoyed snacking on them. I think I will just plant something else in the fall.

I painted some pretty pink and red tulips in my sketchbook. These playful loose watercolor flowers are so cheerful.

I also filled a page in my sketchbook with butterflies. I used watercolor brush pens for this and really like how it turned out.

I hope you are inspired to create art and do something you love. Creating art has always been very therapeutic for me. I shall continue to lean into my art and give myself time and space to heal.

Until next time share a smile and sprinkle kindness everywhere.

🌸 Patty Anne 🌸

Join me on Instagram at pattyanneart

A few landscape paintings

It’s been a while since I posted a landscape painting so here we go.

Happy Thursday! 💙

I really like the distant hills in this landscape. The pine trees and the birds make me very happy.

I have a few in progress shots of the next landscape. I painted and let things dry overnight before continuing. That allowed me time to view my painting with fresh eyes and make some decisions.

Here I started out with some rocky hills in the distance.

The next step was to soften the sky a little and work on the foreground.

While I was happy with the rocks added in the front, I felt like the rocks in the center were too dark and needed to be lightened up. Also the distant hill on the left seemed too dark as well.

The white gouache that I added did provide some nice highlights but I knew that wasn’t enough.

It’s one of those things…. risk overworking the painting or just leave it as is. I decided that the risk was worth it since I still wasn’t satisfied.

9 x 12 inch – Rocky shore watercolor painting

I worked on lifting some of the color on the rocks in the center using a damp brush. I tried to be gentle and not damage the paper. I also used a damp tissue and blotted some areas. Both techniques worked pretty well.

I’m happy with the improvements and glad that I kept going. Whether successful or not, this painting did provide me with an opportunity to try various techniques and build my confidence. I will keep showing up, having fun, and enjoy the process.

I hope you are inspired to create art and do more of what you love. Until next time, share a smile and stay excellent!

🌸 Patty Anne 🌸

Join me on Instagram at pattyanneart

Saving space for the focal point

My painting started out as simple vines and buds.

I left space for more flowers to be added later. I should have taken more photos but I’m glad I have this one to share.

I strengthened the buds with darker color and loose shapes. I love how the pretty purple flowers and leaves at the bottom guide your eye up into the painting.

There was enough space for a large flower at the top. It worked out well and became the focal point that this painting needed. The center of the flower turned out really nice. The little bit of dark color that bled into the petals from the center really makes my heart sing. The best part was that I didn’t overwork it. Yay!

It’s important to remember that showing up and having fun really makes a difference. Some paintings will work out better than others. While I may showcase some of my favorite paintings here, I have many that aren’t successful. I do my best to keep in mind that each painting is a step forward and an opportunity to learn and grow.

Until next time, share a smile and shine on!

🌸 Patty Anne 🌸

Join me on Instagram at pattyanneart

More fun in my sketchbook

I’ve been playing in my sketchbook and have a few pages to share with you. I layered watercolor shapes with markers. It was a fun and easy exercise that I hope you will try as well.

I’m always inspired by watching Shayda Campbell videos on YouTube. She has so many great ideas for filling your sketchbook. I love her style and enjoy her watercolor tutorials.

I painted simple watercolor leaves and flowers all over the page. I love the combination of peachy pinks and soft browns together.

Once the page dried I used my dual tipped Tombow markers for some detail. I’m always amazed how adding detail with a pen or marker really wakes things up. I tried to keep the detail all very simple but I did get carried away with a few of them. 😉 Looking over my page, I really like the simple flowers much more.

Note to self…whether painting or drawing with markers, you have to know when to stop.

For my second page, I switched up the colors. I covered the page with a variety of leaves. I ended up with a nice little playful pattern.

Wow, the fuschia really added a nice punch of color. Nothing shy or boring about that color.

These dual tip markers are really nice to work with. They have a fine tip on one end and a larger brush pen on the other. I do need to practice more to learn how to control the brush pen though.

I hope you are inspired to create art and do more of what you love. Art is for everyone and I hope you play and fun in your sketchbook too.

🌸 Patty Anne 🌸

Join me on Instagram at pattyanneart