Solanacea Close-Ups

Here are a few close-up shots of the plants to see the details. I used lots of color glazing in this painting, and most plants ended up with a final yellow glaze, which brought a sense of continuity to the painting. I didn't think a glaze of yellow would look good on some of the plants, like the eggplant, but I loved how it turned out.

Solanacea Family Painting Progress

In one class period, I finished up my Solanacea plant family poster. This took at least four hours, if you can imagine it. Having gone through this larger painting, I learned so much and feel if I was to paint it again it would look much better.

Solanacea Background

After sketching out all the plants, I went about painting the background of my Solanacea family painting. I have yet to be able to master painting a large background, going around various objects, and getting a seamless color. For this painting I did a mix of blues and greens, which I varied in different spots. 

Captain was my assistant.

Marbles

A decent first attempt at painting marbles. I like the color washes of my background.

Another Apple

I refuse to let a fruit beat me...much less the common apple. I painted it from the top this time. The side leaked a little where I had taped my paper down.

Cinderella Themed Bridal Shower Invitations

I'm throwing a Cinderella themed bridal shower for my sister and painted all of the invitations. I went with a simple pumpkin with a twisty stem. I painted the pumpkin in four stages: two pink layers, the green stem, and a final gold layer. This took me way longer than I expected, but I had fun doing it. Fortunately, watercolor is a major trend right now in stationery.

Solanacea Sketch

For my final painting, I'm going to make a poster-type display of the Solanacea family. Here's my initial sketch.

Watercolor Pencils & Waterbrushes

In my watercolor class, I learned a new tip for painting while travelling. Instead of bringing a traditional palette of paint on your journey, create one by rubbing  swatches of watercolor pencils on a piece of watercolor paper. While you're out, use a water brush to pick up the pencil color from the paper and paint away. I tested this out at home and this could actually work if you're just planning on doing a light wash of color on a few small sketches. Definitely not for a larger paining.

M&Ms

For this past class's assignment, we had to paint candy. I chose to go with M&Ms in a circular pattern. I used my watercolor pencils to tidy up the edges of the M&Ms and for the shadows, which turned out nicely. Masking fluid was used to keep the highlights. There isn't much of the colored background, but I used the chalk again--it's just so fun.

Matches & Buttons

A new technique I learned was to use different materials as stencils. For the matches' background I used this type of wire tape and a cardboard doily for the button's background. Neither turned out great, but with a little less wet paint and a slower speed, I could see how this might look good. The buttons are just deformed.

Veggie Sketches

I would like to do more watercolor sketches. I love it when artists have a loose style, but I cannot seem to grasp it. Maybe sketching with watercolor pencils will help.

Radish

I whipped out this cute, little radish. Why do some paintings come out so much better, with what feels like less effort?

Lunchtime Watercolor

On my lunch break, I took my watercolors out to the park across the street and just had fun with my paints.

Onion & Garlic

For my watercolor homework this week, I tried my hand at painting an onion and a garlic. Neither of them turned out as fabulous as I'd hoped, but it's the first time I tried painting these. Next time will be even better.

Peppers

I do not enjoy eating peppers, but they were fun to paint. I originally wanted to keep a distinct highlight on the peppers, as in the top photo. Unfortunately, I ended up painting over them.