Here is a sampling of my watercolor art.
I painted these pink miltonia orchids last spring but I couldn’t resist re-posting them now that I’m able to capture a better likeness of the original painting using my new scanner. This painting was based on a tutorial in the book, “Orchids in Watercolor” by Ann Mortimer.
Happy spring, everybody. I hope you’re enjoying this beautiful Easter weekend. The weather is finally warming up, the redbuds and cherry blossoms are in full bloom, my phlox are beginning their annual spring show, and the tulips will soon be on full display. After the long, cold winter I’m so excited to see these signs of spring.
Pink and white tulips in watercolor.
I’m still playing around with my new scanner this afternoon on yet another rainy day (goodness, when will it end?). Laundry and housework can wait; I’m having way too much fun.
Learning how to use watercolor pigments was certainly a challenge, but it was well worth the effort. I love the bright, transparent, highly saturated colors.
Cymbidium orchids in watercolor. This painting is based on a tutorial in Ann Mortimer’s book, “Orchids in Watercolor.”
What a beautiful scan. My watercolors never looked so good. The Epson Perfection V600 photo scanner is affordable, compact, lightweight, easy to set up, and a snap to use. Since I typically photograph my artwork in the evening, I was plagued with artificial lighting issues and shadows that I couldn’t easily correct in Photoshop without distorting the color. Bye-bye lighting issues and unwanted shadows. Hello gorgeous color.
The Epson Perfection V600 also solved a problem I was having with my camera capturing the texture of the cold press watercolor paper that I typically use. I don’t want that texture to appear on high-quality prints. Thank you so much for the fabulous gift, Mom, Greta, and my bestie, Tami. It looks like instead of doing housework and laundry on this rainy day, I’ll be playing with my new scanner.
Night fairy in watercolor on cold press Acquarello Artistico paper by Fabriano. This painting is based on a tutorial in the book, “Enchanting Fairies–How to Paint Fairies and Flowers,” by Barbara Lanza.
My daughter and I have an ongoing disagreement over this painting. My intent was to paint a male fairy since all of the fairies I’ve painted thus far have been female, but she insists that this fairy looks like a girl, too, because of its long locks and the way it’s sitting on the daisy. I disagree. I think it clearly looks like a boy. What are your thoughts–boy or girl?
This painting is based on a tutorial in Linda Ravenscroft’s book, “The Fairy Artist’s Figure Drawing Bible.”
Winter has definitely arrived. It’s dark and rainy and cold today. Even the dogs don’t want to venture outside. It’s been pouring here for hours so lately I’ve been dreaming of spring–as you can see from my latest painting.
I’m a big fan of color so this brightly colored hummingbird tickled my fancy. This painting is based on a tutorial in the book, “Painting Garden Birds” by Sherry C. Nelson. The book is geared towards oil painters, but it translated easily into watercolor. This book has been sitting on my shelves for years. I’m glad I finally pulled it off the shelf and put it to good use.
Happy holidays from my home to yours. I hope your holiday is filled with laughter and love. I can’t wait to spend the day with my family and friends.
Holiday fairy in watercolor.
I just finished tweaking this painting in Photoshop to remove the gray overcast (from photographing it at night) and brighten the colors. Ah, that’s much better.
I hope everyone enjoyed the long holiday weekend. It went by way too fast and I didn’t accomplish everything that I had planned to do. But I managed to squeeze in a brief painting session this afternoon. Fall is the perfect time to plant tulips, and these Angelique tulips would look fabulous in my spring garden. Now all I need to do is find the time and energy to plant some before winter sets in.
Today is a spectacular fall day with crystal clear blue skies and temperatures in the high 70s–not too hot, not too cold–just the way I like it. The leaves are just beginning to change colors and I can’t wait to see the show. All this fall goodness got me in the mood to paint something with a fall theme, so I whipped up this colorful fall fairy complete with a magic wand and pumpkins just waiting to be turned into Cinderalla’s coach. Now All she needs is some white mice to be turned into horses, and away she’ll go to meet prince charming.
This painting is based on a tutorial in Linda Ravenscroft’s book, The Fairy Artist’s Figure Drawing Bible. I’ve learned so many new painting techniques from the tutorials in this book. It was definitely money well spent.
Afternoon Artist 