Changing It Up A Bit

I have purchased a few new Sakura Gelly Roll pens as I await the arrival of my order from Dick Blick. I just couldn't wait to try some new techniques I've been reading about and letting them steep in the back of my brain. I've had some seriously wonderful creative dreams, knowing that these new supplies are coming. I'm dreaming up new paintings and when I wake up I can still see them in my mind! It's so thrilling, this has never happened to me. 

I am immersed in creativity lately so when I pulled out an older (2 months ago) watercolor painting, I knew instantly what I wanted to do. In a later post I'll be mentioning a new book I purchased  but until then just know that I'm feeding my creative spirit from many different directions at once!

I had read a post from an artist friend where she was talking about all the art she has half finished sitting in her studio. She decided a few years ago to stop feeling guilty that half painted pieces kept piling up. She said sometimes a painting had to marinate, then when one pulls it out again, the path that's just the right direction to go in becomes clear. That's what stage I'm in right now. I must have almost a dozen paintings in various stages of completeness. Reading my friend's post freed my mind to stop obsessing on where a certain painting would go. I let them marinate now. They'll find their way eventually.

One such painting found it's path tonight. That abstract watercolor got a makeover and became a favorite. To see the detail please click to enlarge the painting. The original watercolor was done using my Holbein paints. I laid down color then used a slightly damp round brush to wick away paint where I didn't want it. I guess I had a pond in mind as I proceeded but the "picture" in my head sure wasn't clear. I figured I'd come back to it the next day and add more watercolor paint, then decide what I would be. When I awoke the next morning and looked at the dry painting I just felt uninspired to into the "todo" pile it went.

Two months later... I used the white gelly roll pen (gotta love Sakura pens, I couldn't live without their micron archival ink pens!) to define the reeds in the foreground then added highlights and shadows to the moss in the mid-ground using a green metallic gelly pen. I enhanced the boggy feel by smooshing a green-blue gel ink with my finger where I wanted the bog to stand out. Then I added more white to highlight the feeling of mist. At this point I realized just how great my finger worked to move the not yet dry gel ink around, avoiding the harsh lines of a rollerball pen. I did the same in the sky using the same white, metallic blue and a medium purple to enhance the misty moisty feeling of the sky. I absolutely LOVE how different this mixed media painting is from any other painting I've ever done. I just went at it with reckless abandon, not worrying that I might "ruin" the original abstract watercolor beneath.

And here it is digitally framed...

Title: "The Pond"

I'll be back soon with a few drawings, mom is requesting that I go sketch the little bridge outside our apartment building. We're lucky to have a beautiful idyllic  setting in the "backyard". We have a stream and pond and rock bridges that curve over said stream. It's really beautiful and mom wants a sketch of it. Okie dokie pokie.

Until then you could go on over to Inspiration Avenue and see the final results of my "You've Got Mail" challenge. The entries are spectacular.

Gotta go to bed, although I love the effect of daylight savings time I HATE the doing of it... one less hour of sleep, *sigh*.

Nightie night folks, sleep tight when you do!

I'm out.

P.S. I would really appreciate it if you enjoyed reading this blog post, that you follow my blog using my new Linky Tool. As Google Friend Connect will be discontinued within the year, I'd really love to collect my readers once again in the New Linky tool. I'd also truly love new followers, every one who follows makes me abundantly happy! If you follow in the new Linky Tool and would like a follow back please leave me a comment telling me and I'd be more than happy to go to your lovely blog and follow back! I'm always thrilled to discover new blogs.

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