Dienstmarke Tulip - Postcard

I love tulips and each spring I can hardly wait for them to push their way out of the ground.  It's a sure sign that spring is just around the corner.  We have early variety tulips that first appeared around February 21 this year and whose buds opened last week on St. Patrick's Day.  These tulips bloom so early that they have even been snowed on, as this picture from March 2009 shows.

Don't the red flowers look pretty against the white snow?  This clump of tulips is still going strong which tells you how hardy they are.

Since I have tulips on the brain right now, I decided to make one the subject of a mixed media postcard.  The look I was going for was a vintage botanical print.  I painted my tulip on 140 lb watercolor paper and used a brown Prismacolor pencil for outlining and shading.  However, I didn't like the way it looked so I stood over the sink and sprayed the paper with water until a lot of the paint and some of the pencil ran off, leaving a muted version of the tulip which I then reworked with more watercolor, colored pencil, distress ink and a sepia-colored artist pen.

I added a scrap of vintage book text and a German postage stamp from the 1920s, then sponged scattered straw and gathered twigs distress ink around the edges.  The Berlin cancellation was stamped with black soot distress ink, which is just about the same color as a real cancellation mark.  The final step was to stencil additional distress ink through a piece of punchinella.

This postcard was popped into a clear envelope and is now en route to a very special person.  It's my way of sending a bit of Midwestern spring from my house to hers.

Thanks for stopping by.  Happy Spring!

Supplies:
Strathmore 5x7 hot press 140 lb watercolor postcard; Schmincke Horadam watercolors; Prismacolor Premier pencils; Pigma Micron sepia pen; scattered straw, gathered twigs and black soot distress ink; vintage book text and postage stamp; cancellation image by Stampa Rosa; splatter background stamp by All Night Media; punchinella.

ICAD No. 8 She Got the Way to Move Me, Cherry

Today's ICAD prompt is grapefruit and cherry.  It's a funny coincidence because just this weekend I watched a Youtube video in which the artist painted some cherries to demonstrate how Brusho watercolor crystals worked.  And week before last, for the first time in a long time (decades?), I splurged and bought a bag of sweet California cherries at the grocery store.

I lightly sketched a cherry on watercolor paper, then used regular watercolors to paint it.  I added the Neil Diamond lyric and spatters using black India ink.  Once I reached this point, I realized that this card is rather phallic in nature.  That makes me laugh because I certainly didn't intend it to be.  You Freudians can have some fun with that.

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a wonderful day.

Supplies:
Strathmore 140 lb watercolor paper; Schmincke Horadam watercolor paints; Higgins black India ink; calligraphy pen; Tim Holtz alphabet stencil.

ICAD No. 5 Poppy Dreams

I broke out the watercolors for today's card, but I used 140 lb watercolor paper instead of an index card.  You're just asking for disaster by not using the correct paper for this medium.  And since I wasn't motivated by today's prompt (owl), I waited until late in the day to complete this.  I had plans to attend a reception and exhibit opening at the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art this evening, and I knew I would be more inspired afterward.

I worked wet-on-wet for the initial layer, then after some drying time refined the petals and stems.  I couldn't resist adding a little outlining with a Staedtler pigment liner pen.  I'm happy with how loose I was able to keep my poppies and how vibrant I was able to keep my red.  I really need to watercolor more often, because I do see improvements every time I play with them.

Thanks for dropping in.  Have a great weekend!

Supplies:
Strathmore 140 lb watercolor paper; Schmincke Horadam watercolor paints; Staedtler black pigment line pen; Tim Holtz stencil.

In Flanders Fields - Envelope Mail Art

This month marks the 100th anniversary of the beginning of World War I, or the Great War as it was called then.  I've been learning more about WWI since becoming obsessed with poppies, which are an enduring symbol of the war.  From what I've read, the red poppies grew naturally in the battlefields of northern France and Belgium, sprouting among the graves of the fallen soldiers.  After the 1915 poem In Flanders Fields by Canadian soldier John McCrae, the flowers became forever tied to the war.

Front of the envelope

My main interest in poppies is much more aesthetic:  I'm simply in love with their crepe-paper petals and funky pods.  And if you've been reading my blog for more than a few months, you know that I've been painting poppies, and planting poppies, and otherwise mooning over poppies like a woman mooning over her first love.  So for this month's altered envie exchange I just had to use...poppies!

Address side of the envelope

I did a loose watercolor and ink painting of poppies and foliage on a piece of watercolor paper.  After cutting and folding my painting to form an envelope, I adhered a photograph of some WWI soldiers from a penny postcard I bought at an antique shop.  Among the poppies I wrote the beginning lines to John McCrae's poem.  I've included the complete poem at the end of this post in case you've never read it.  I think it's magnificent.

Close up of the front

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day.

Supplies:
Strathmore 140 lb watercolor paper; Schmincke Horadam watercolor paints; Faber Castell black PITT artist pen; medium charcoal pencil.

In Flanders Fields

John McCrae

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row by row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard among the guns below.

We are the dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved, and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe;

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

Ginkgo and Linden Leaves - Watercolor

Last night in watercolor class we painted leaves.  I bet that sounds rather boring but it was actually quite fun.  Leaves are fascinating if you take the time to study them.  Think about it:  based on just the shape you can identify what type of tree or plant they are from.  They come in a wide range of colors and even their veins follow different patterns.  They make great subjects for painting.

This is my interpretation of a leaf from the "little leaf linden" tree in our front yard.  At this time of year in Iowa, the linden leaves are a bright golden yellow.  My leaf is not yellow because I wanted to practice a wet-on-wet technique where you put two different paint colors on the same brush.  However, my leaf does include the dramatic "age spots" that were found on the original leaf.  (The shadow I tried to create was not as successful, so we'll just ignore that.)

My second leaf is a ginkgo, which one of my classmates was kind enough to share with me.  I remember several years ago when ginkgo leaves were all the rage among rubber stampers.  I never bought such a stamp although I love their shape, and now I don't need to because I can paint my own!  I'm especially pleased with how this leaf turned out.  Notice the pattern of the veins compared to the linden leaf.

For my final leaf, I used a different linden leaf and combined the leftover colors on my palette.  Notice how the shape is a little different from the first linden leaf, even though they are both from the same tree.  You can see the serrated edges better on this one, but I should have turned my paper around when I was working on the veins; one half definitely looks more natural than the other.

I hope the autumn weather holds out so I can get over to a local park in search of different leaves to paint.

Thanks for popping in!  Have a great day.

Supplies:
Strathmore 140 lb cold press watercolor paper; Schmincke  Horadam watercolor paints; leaves.

Watercolor Poppy - ATC

I spent some time watercolor painting over the weekend, and it took "only" an 11x17 sheet of paper to obtain this single ATC.  (Laughing at myself.)

Have a great day!

Supplies:
Strathmore 140 lb watercolor paper; Schmincke Horadam watercolor paints.

Blue Skies Smiling at Me - Watercolor

Tonight's watercolor lesson was on skies.  We also learned several techniques to lift (remove) color from our paintings.  To create clouds, dab a torn piece of tissue or paper towel on the paint while it is still wet.  For a moon or sun, use a circle stencil and a Magic Eraser (slightly damp) after the paint has dried.  To help delineate a horizon, use a slightly damp brush to lift or pick up color.  I used masking fluid to create the reflection in the water.  Our instructor used a clear candle; the wax acts as a resist against the paint. 

I've actually become pretty good at making skies.  It's when I try to add other things that I'm not as happy with the results.  In this example, I fussed too much with my trees and their reflection, and as a result some areas got overworked.  It's not as noticeable from a distance, so this is one painting that should be viewed from across the room (wink).  I do like the turquoise, cobalt blue and lavender hues in this painting.

Another thing I tried (in my sketch book) during class was painting a white birch tree using a palette knife.  The instructor gave a quick demonstration for one of the other students who had been working on a painting of white birch at home this past week, so I decided to try it myself.  This is definitely something I want to try again!

Thanks for stopping by!  Have a great day. 

Supplies:
Strathmore 140 lb cold press watercolor paper; Schmincke Horadam watercolors; paper towel; Magic Eraser; Grumbacher Miskit Liquid Frisket; miscellaneous brushers: 2 inch hake brush, small angle brush, no. 8 round; palette knife.

Asian-Inspired Poppy - Watercolor

Last night at watercolor class we once again had the chance to paint whatever we wanted.  For inspiration I used a landscape photo a friend of mine took while on one of her walks.  Unfortunately, I started out using too dark of paint where I shouldn't have, and the whole thing was pretty much a disaster from the start.  So I switched gears and worked from a painting I found on the internet.  It was a very simple and loose composition of poppies in just two colors, red and black.  It had an Asian or Japanese feel to it and looks as if it were done using sumi-e ink.

My painting had more foliage in shades of gray and black and another poppy to the right that I didn't like at all, so when I got home I cropped it out!  (Ah, the advantages of having a variety of craft-related tools at my disposal.)  I added a few splatters of black paint and little squiggles to the large poppy using a fine-tipped black Sharpie, and ended up with this 3x6 inch painting that I mounted on red cardstock.  It may eventually become the front of a greeting card, if I can bear to part with it.  Right now I'm enjoying it too much myself.

I can't believe it's October already!  Thanks for dropping by and have a great day.

Supplies:
Strathmore 140 lb watercolor paper; Schmincke Horadam watercolor paints; red cardstock by Bazzill; fine-tipped black Sharpie; long narrow rectangle Nestabilities by Spellbinders.

Poppies in Silhouette - Watercolor

I'm taking a watercolor class again this fall.  Some times I think I should give up on this medium that is so challenging for me.  But I love the look of watercolor so much, and it's my own fault for not practicing more (hence the decision to take the class a second time).  Eventually, hopefully, I'll get the hang of it and find my sweet spot.

(c) Kiri Stuart-Clarke

We were instructed to bring a photograph of our own choosing for inspiration this week.  I got online in search of poppy images, both photographs and paintings.  I downloaded and printed several, and once I got to class decided to work from this photograph by Kiri Stuart-Clarke.  I love the dramatic silhouettes of the poppies against the brilliant orange in the background.  I'll admit it's kind of a cop-out because this scene does not require me to preserve any white.  But the topic tonight was value and this did make me think about how to achieve light, medium and dark values.

My watercolor interpretation of the photograph above.

I started by wetting my entire sheet of paper and applying an orange-red wash.  While that was still wet, I mixed some dark colors to get a charcoal color.  I applied it over one end of the red in a wash, sprayed it with additional water, tilted my paper, and just let the paint spread.  It was fascinating to watch!  Once it had spread as much as I wanted it to, I dried it with a hair dryer.  And then fear set in!  I liked the background so much, I didn't want to "ruin" it by trying to paint the poppies over it.  It took me a couple of minutes to get up the nerve to add that first dark silhouette.  But really, what's the worst that could happen? 

My favorite section of the painting.

I mixed together some payne's gray and dark or burnt umber to get a solid black color, took a deep breath, and just went for it.  What a liberating feeling!  And you know what?  I'm really happy with how it turned out.  It's not perfect, but I'll take another shot at it and correct the things I'm not so happy with.  That's the only way I'll learn.

Have a great day!  Thanks for stopping by!

Supplies:
Strathmore 140 lb watercolor paper; Schmincke Horadam watercolor paints; 2 inch hake brush, smaller pointed round paintbrushes.