Watering Can Bouquet on a Gorgeous Day

 

Continuing to take inspiration from some of the art shared in my Wild Art Summer class, this one was relaxing and fun…again, it’s an art journal, not a painting, so it’s okay if it’s not perfect (she tells herself).

 

It’s so hard to believe that summer is almost over. Kids are going “back to school.” It’s mid-August here in Missouri, and it’s 72 degrees here at mid-day. Incredibly glorious out on our deck, where Sassi just kept me company for a coffee break!

 

 

I am remembering one year, near the end of my teaching career, when my classroom was on the third floor of a very old building, with no air conditioning. When school started, my classroom temperature was 98 degrees. I’m not even kidding. Yep, memories like that REALLY help me enjoy days like today!!!

Art Journal: Butterfly Inspiration

No sketching, no painting, just a good-old-collage-style art journal page. Well, the background is painted—watercolor crayons scribbled on, then smooshed around with a wet wipe. My kind of painting—I can’t mess it up!

Butterflies are so inspiring in so many ways.

Watercolor: Inspiration Journal Lighthouse

(Click image to enlarge.)

 

Inspired by the wonderful work of one of the gals in my Wild Art Summer class, this sketch and watercolor was a really quick project and was inspiring for me to do.

 

While there are no Scripture verses that actually use the word “lighthouse,” there are many passages that describe God and Jesus as “light,” and His followers are to be a light in the darkness.

 

I have always loved lighthouses. They are beautiful and symbolic of safety and strong, true direction.

 

I sketched the lighthouse on a blank page in my altered Purpose Driven Life book, then lightly gesso-ed over it and then used a light charcoal pencil and watercolors.

 

Linking to

Anything But a Card Summer Challenge

Mixed Media: Cheerful Little Flower

Feeling cheerful today, as we are expecting some special house guests for the weekend! My daughter and grandson are coming, and I’m looking forward to their visit!

This project was inspired by a lesson in Wild Art Summer. I used a 2x4x4 board that my husband cut for me. I covered all sides with gesso and then used book paper (cut the leaves, stem, and petals from it) and acrylics (some with glass bead gel mixed in). Some of the petals were created with pieces of gesso-ed muslin.

Watercolor Simple Sailboat: Peace Be Still

 

One of the reasons I am okay with sketching and painting is that I can sketch “the idea” of something rather than getting “hung up” with details of “the real thing.”

 

Here, the “idea” of a sailboat invokes feelings of peace and solitude. I like that. I’d like to be on a sailboat someday.

Watercolor: Thoughtful Lady in Floppy Hat

I am quite “taken” with some of the art that is created by the gals in my Wild Art Summer class, and I used one of their works as inspiration for this piece.

Watercolor: Bursting with Blooms

 

Taking inspiration from my Wild Art Summer class, here is another spread in my altered book. I am so inexperienced with watercolor and with sketching, that I probably shouldn’t even “publish” this stuff, but this way I can “document” my {hoped-for} progress!

 

For this little lady, I decided to bring in some heavy body acrylics on top of patterned paper to give her hat some dimension…

Art Journal: Cheerful Birdies

While most of my recent projects have been sketching and watercolor, I still love to do crazy art journal pages. This one uses a strip of watercolor paper I did for a class, some vintage dictionary pages, and I even did some stitching!! Yes, me, with a sewing machine! Well, at least a mini-sewing machine. My mother taught me to sew when I was 17, but I never really enjoyed sewing. It’s rather fun to use it for crafting now.

I find I am rather drawn to bright colors for summer.

Projects from “the road”

While on our recent road trip to the Pacific Northwest and back home, I worked on a few projects. I am completing some of them now that I am home.

Lavender is a common sight in Oregon and Washington.

Still completing pages in my altered “Purpose Driven Life” book. There are always some pointed reminders that show through, as I use a light coat of gesso and then watercolor for the background.

Linking to

Anything But a Card Summer Fun

All for God’s Glory—Birdies Watercolor

Working in my Purpose Driven Life altered book, I used watercolor on a sketch that I started several days ago.

Gladiolas Watercolor

Inspired by my Wild Art Summer class…

Enjoying the Pacific Northwest

We are so very enjoying our visit with our son’s family in the Pacific Northwest. The area is breathtakingly beautiful, the weather is incredible, and we are being treated like royalty. What’s not to like?!

Kristy and I have enjoyed doing some art most every day. Today’s project was to sketch and watercolor some of the herbs that Mark has in his garden.

For the background, I tore a page from the Spice section of a 1934 cookbook I found at an antique store in Longview. If you look really close, you can see words like parsley, mint, chives. Fun.

Art while in Washington

Have lots of fun “stuff” to blog about from the beautiful state of Washington, when I can catch my breath. But for today I want to post a couple of pieces of art that I have completed for the Wild Art Summer class. It has been really fun working on some of the projects with my daughter-in-law. Notice I’m not posting HER work, as she is a “real” artist!!!!

Summer Botanicals Around My Home

With motivation from my summer art class, I took my Rebel T3i outside, just around the perimeter of my house and took several photos, from different perspectives. It was a great reminder, through a fresh perspective, of the beauty of God’s creation right around me each day!

Art Journal: Larkspur Watercolor

Working in my altered “Purpose-Driven Life” book, still “out of my element” with watercolor, but it was fun anyway! The left side has a watercolor background but is mostly collage and some acrylic (more comfortable for me). The Wild Art Summer Class is very inspiring!

Often when I see something beautiful in nature, I think of this verse.

Art Journal: Peaceful Tent

(Click image to enlarge.)

This is another piece inspired by Junelle Jacobsen’s Wild Art Summer class. I am still struggling to be satisfied with less that exact, less than perfect, I am pleased with the “feeling” I was going for in this piece. I often need the reminder from Jesus, when he said to his disciples, “Come away with me. Let us go to a quiet place and rest for a while.” I was recently reminded by my son/spiritual mentor that solitude is often a necessary element for connecting with God.

I created this piece in my altered “Purpose-Driven Life” book. I started with a good coat of gesso and then used several shades of blue for the sky and several shades of green for the grass. I wanted to use cotton muslin for the tent, but since I did not have any on hand, I used some white crinoline, washed, scrunched and dried. I glued down the back side to the page, folded the fabric over twine, rolled back the flaps (adhered with fabric glue). I did not “stick down” the outside of the tent, so it is very bumpy and has lots of dimension, though it doesn’t show in the photo. I painted the tent with some white paint and lots of cream paint, and grunged it up with brown paint. I grunged up the whole thing with Coffee Archival Ink on a sponge.

Still so inexperienced with leaves and flowers. Working on it. I used a Uniball Signo for the white pen work and a Sharpie Fine Point and Molotow for the black lines.

Linking to

Art Journal Every Day

Sketch and Watercolor: Little Vintage Campers

When were were little girls, my sister and I used to ask our mother to “tell us about the old timey-times.” I have always loved the good old days, so my current interest in all things vintage is really nothing “new.”

In my Wild Art Summer class, one of the projects involves sketching and painting little vintage campers. I just don’t have the knack yet—my sketches lack something. But I will keep practicing, and maybe I’ll just “get it” at some point!

The discussions in my class about “old campers” prompted me to get out a photo of our very first home, an 8 x 29 trailer, smaller than several of the campers we have owned since that time. I loved it!

Ahhhhhh, the simple life!

Painting on 2x4: Wildflowers in Her Hair

Made this 6-sided painting in the Wild Art Summer Class with Junelle Jacobsen. My husband cut and sanded a 2x4 for me. It was such fun to paint on the wood!.

Art Journal: Reflections—All My Needs

(Click image to enlarge.)

I needed a break from class assignments, so I made this journal layout using some new products, along with stamps, Molotow markers, acrylic ink, and gauze (stained with spray ink).

It’s difficult to get a shot that shows shine. In this case, my motivation for doing this page was to use a couple of new products. I used a stencil with Silks Acrylic Glaze (Key Lime) as a resist, with Inka Gold Cobalt Blue painted all over the background. The angle in the photograph below shows the shine a little better, but not at all like “real life.”

What’s funny about the following picture is that the dove was NOT painted with the Silks Key Lime. It was cut from a page of scrapbook paper and then stamped! But the doily stencil is Key Lime, and the blue background is Inka Gold Cobalt Blue.

I am linking to

Art Journal Every Day

Creative Every Day

Simon Says Stamp and Show Anything Goes

Anything But a Card Challenge #22 Get Messy