Miss Fiona

 

You can find the inspiration photo by @mozarts_ride here.  Carey reposted his photo for St. Patrick's Day and I learned something new about the feast day reading it.  

Miss Isabel

 

You can find the details for Miss Isabel, along with the inspiration photo by @mozarts_ride here.  In his Instagram post, Carey goes for a trip down memory lane remembering one of my favorite bands - ZZ Top.

Playing With Inktense Blocks

Years ago my sister bought me a set of 72 Inktense Blocks for Christmas.  (What a lucky girl I am!)  I've been using them lately as a massive set of pan paints to paint truck drawings.  I've been using my Paul Rubens Hot Press Watercolor sketchbook which is lovely to draw and paint in.  It's another more recent gift from Dianne.  She's queen of (the) Amazon.

Hide

Inspiration Photo:  Kelly Sikkema, Unsplash

 I've been accused of "hiding" myself behind a book now and then.  Anyone else?

Buddy

 

Inspiration Photo:  Girgio Trovato, Unsplash

Chef

Inspiration Photo:  Louis Hansel, Unsplash

 

Trap

 

Inspiration Photo:  Francis MacDonald, Unsplash

Slippery

 

Inspired by a photo by Michael Yero, Unsplash

Hope

 

Inspired by a Photo by Diego PH, Unsplash

Inktober has come and gone for another year.  I didn't participate last year, but I was drawn to begin on October 1 and I did something each day.  Some of them were half-hearted attempts, and I didn't share anything on social media this time.

There were some things I really enjoyed about my casual approach and process this year, though.  Until the last few days, when lettering took over, I would type the prompt into Unsplash, and sketch whichever photo I liked the best.  I didn't think about how well it represented the prompt.  In fact, I didn't think at all - this is what I liked about it!

On the first day, I wanted to sketch with a brush, so I swiped it across Inktense Blocks; the use of "ink" was the only rule I followed.  I ended up using Inktense and a brush most days.

Stencil with Inktense Blocks

Mostly people use acrylic paint with stencils.  Acrylic paint is not my favorite medium - it is too messy for my liking.  I love the look of the mixed media layers, though, and I have recently found that you can do the same thing with Inktense Blocks.

When I say "the same thing", you must appreciate that one of the appeals of acrylic paint for mixed media techniques like stenciling is that acrylic paint dries permanent.  When you apply another wet layer over top, the paint does not reactivate.  (Contrast that with watercolors, for example).  Inktense pencils or blocks are also permanent once dry.

Here I used punchinella, or sequin waste, as a stencil to put the yellow dots on the page.  I applied it with a damp cosmetic sponge, which I stroked over the block to pick up the pigment.  When this layer was dry I drew and painted over top.

Fun, fun, fun!

Saran Wrap Backgrounds

Part of finishing up journals is using jazzy backgrounds.  They make great backdrops for calligraphy, if they're not too bumpy.  I love to let saran wrap dry on top of watercolor (or Inktense),  so I had a couple of these to fill.

Talkative Tern

Reference Photo by Sandy Scott, Paint My Photo

Spoonbill

Elegant Writer, Inktense

Strathmore Watercolor Journal, 5.5" x 8.5"

Photo by Angeline Rijkeboer - Paint My Photo

Note to Self

Sometimes I have to stop questioning my ability and just TRUST. 

What can I say yes to today?

Note to Self

I don't like change.  I could handle it better. If I could stop fighting and start looking for new opportunities that would be a good start.  I think that I have finally accepted that summer might just be over!

Elegant Writer meets Mushrooms

I got my Elegant Writer out again the other day.  Still finding my way... 

In Joined Hands There is Hope

ATC, Rubber Stamps, Inktense, Pen

This is a real mixed media extravaganza!  First I stamped various stamps on white cardstock, dripped Inktense Blocks, and collaged dyed napkin for a background.  

The focal point is stamped on tissue paper and the script added with a Platinum Carbon Ink Fountain Pen.  

I'm using gel medium for collage now and loving it!  Note to self:  Let delicate materials like napkins and tissue paper dry after using the first layer of gel medium to glue them down.  When they are dry, more layers can be added.

The Crowed Went Wild

And so begins my series of mixed media artist trading cards.... 

Silly Scraps Saturday

I've made a few more bookmarks to give away.  These are made with old scraps of watercolor experimentation.  I used Inktense Blocks for these and a bit of white acrylic paint.  You can read about the process here.

The Things We Do for Fun: Playing around with Photo Editing, Color Palettes and Inktense Blocks

The Upper Room, Jerusalem

Inktense Blocks

5.5" x 8.5"

This sketch was based on a photo I took in Jerusalem:

I played around with the Heat Map functionality in Picasa, and then created a collage in PicMonkey to finalize a color palette.