Artists Stocking Stuffer Ideas
Here is another new addition to my watercolor palette. Quinacridone Violet!
It is a rich, transparent color that mixes well with blues and reds or can be used on its own.
Artists Stocking Stuffer Ideas
A new color on my palette is Schmincke Horadam Aquarell Translucent Orange. I absolutely love this color! It mixes well with yellows and reds and is beutiful on it’s gorgeous on it’s own.
Translucent Orange is considered a transparent color and has excellent lightfastnest meaning that it doesn’t fade over time. It is a great color for painting flowers!
Artist Stocking Stuffer Ideas
Since the holiday season is upon us, I thought it would be fun to share a few of my watercolor paints that I have recently added to my palette. Any one of these colors would make a great stocking stuffer for the watercolor artist. You can drop a hint to Santa by sharing this post!
Today’s color idea is: FRENCH VERMILION by Sennelier.
Today’s color idea is: FRENCH VERMILION by Sennelier.
“The word vermilion came from the Old French word vermeillon, which was derived from vermeil, from the Latin vermiculus, the diminutive of the Latin word vermis, or worm. The name originated because it had a similar color to the natural red dye made from an insect, the Kermes vermilio, which was widely used in Europe. The term cinnabar was used interchangeably with vermilion until the 17th century, when vermilion became the more common name. By the late 18th century ‘cinnabar’ applied to the unground natural mineral only.”
Gift Ideas
Did you know that my art work is featured on lots of fun, cool gift ideas with FineArtAmerica? Not only can you buy prints and canvas paintings but they also offer my art on pillows, notebooks, iPhone cases, towels, totes, coffee mugs and much more! Even shower curtains! If there is a painting that you would like to see added please contact me. Check it out!
Watercolor Journeys
My updated, self-published book, Watercolor Journeys, has just been reprinted. It is now 70 pages of watercolor, painting and art journaling information. This conveniently sized, spiral-bound gem is full of color photos, information on color theory and how to use color in your paintings, fun exercises, examples of my travel art journals, tips, inspiring art quotes, and much more.
Here are a few pages from my book:
Watercolor Journeys is $22 plus shipping.
Here are just a few emails that I have received about my book:
“Wow! What a treasure! I love it! You need to expand on it and publish it big time! What a gorgeous book and filled with great information and beautiful artwork!” ….. Lynn
“I just wanted to follow up with you…I LOVEthe book, I have been pouring over it and working on the lessons – I feel like they should be called “workshops”, they have proven to be so productive and interesting for me. Your careful, organized, right-to-the-point explanations and ideas to try out the concepts (especially color mixing, love the chickens:-) has been very helpful, fillling in the holes in my watercolor education. I am having so much fun with it, and not feeling any of the tentativeness or anxiety around the outcome as I have in the past.” …..Jeanne
“Got the book today and I do indeed love it! I’ve already taken a couple of ideas from it for my travel journal [my palette and colour wheel] and will take your book to Italy with me.” …..Lori
“I received your book today, and absolutely LOVE it!!! So much so, that I just ordered 2 more, to go along with the additional copies of the DVDs that I purchased.” …..Cori
To order your copy, please click on the BUY NOW button to the right.
Painting in Italy, 2018!
Join me on this fun adventure to Orvieto, Italy!
I am very excited to present my watercolor workshop with Adventures in Italy Painting the Italian light and color! One of my favorite things to do is to teach how I create visual journals of my travels using watercolors. Orvieto, the charming Italian village perched on a rock, is the perfect place to spend our week together. We will enjoy colorful painting time, tasty food delights, wine tasting, exploring the rich culture and history of the area, shopping, and relaxing in the quiet gardens of our Italian home. Umbria is rich with sights, sounds, and colors – all wonderful inspiration for developing your artistic eye.
on this fresh morning
“it is a serious thing
just to be alive
on this fresh morning
in this broken world”
― Mary Oliver, Red Bird
So here is beauty to add to your fresh morning!
just to be alive
on this fresh morning
in this broken world”
― Mary Oliver, Red Bird
So here is beauty to add to your fresh morning!
“There are things you can’t reach” by Mary Oliver
“There are things you can’t reach. But
You can reach out to them, and all day long.
The wind, the bird flying away. The idea of god.
And it can keep you busy as anything else, and happier.
I look; morning to night I am never done with looking.
Looking I mean not just standing around, but standing around
As though with your arms open.”
by Mary Oliver
You can reach out to them, and all day long.
The wind, the bird flying away. The idea of god.
And it can keep you busy as anything else, and happier.
I look; morning to night I am never done with looking.
Looking I mean not just standing around, but standing around
As though with your arms open.”
by Mary Oliver
Working my Way Around the Color Wheel
I am using my color wheel to pick my colors to go on my new palette. I went from my yellows to oranges, reds, purples, blues and now finally greens. I weeded out lots of colors that are too similar or that don’t interest me by using my little color swatches that I painted (see previous posts). It is time to start laying out the tubes of paint in the order that matches the colors on the color wheel.
More About Yellow Watercolors
I like to make a color swatch of each color. This takes some time but it is fun to do! You can learn a lot about your colors this way. I start by cutting pieces of watercolor paper 3″ x 1.5″.
I write the name of the color and the manufacturer of the paint on the back side of the paper. Then I wet the front of the paper and paint it. I try to have lay the color on thick and thin to see how dark it can get. When it is dry I write the name of the paint on the front of the paper.
When I decide on a color, I start to lay the tubes of paint around my palette to see where they will go.
