Valentines Day!

Hey everyone! I'm on this card-making kick, and on this learning calligraphy kick... so I made a whole bunch of Valentine's Cards!!  I decided to to a mash up of modern calligraphy, this years Pantone color palette, and some silly and romantic sayings.

I had a great time with these! They definitely reflect my personality and incorporate everything I love - art, fandoms, humor, and now calligraphy.  Theyre up on my etsy shop now, so take a look! I can't wait to make more!!

And once again, thank you to my friend Tiffani with Sun & Sparrow Photography for these amazing photos of my cards!

Holiday Cards

I realize that I'm about a month late to posting this, but the holiday season was insanely busy. So.. Better late than never, right?!

So I decided to make some hand painted holiday cards in my spare time to sell / give to family members and friends. I had a blast thinking of all the pretty holiday things I could incorporate, and even more fun with my new bottle of masking fluid (frisket)! Anyways, here are a few of my favorites!

Thanks for looking! I'll be selling more during the next holiday season in my etsy store, but keep an eye out for them and many more little goodies which will be posted throughout the year!

Special shout out to my amazing friend Tiffani with Sun & Sparrow Photography for taking these beautiful photos of my cards!

The Perfect Wedding Gift!

So I had a friend approach me about doing a painting as an anniversary gift.  She asked me to do a watercolor painting of the ceremony site - Convict Lake in Mammoth Lakes, CA.

I LOVED THIS IDEA!  I don't know why I didn't think of it before! I would have loved a gift like this because it's such a special way to remember your wedding day.

I took some progression pictures of the painting so you can see my process:

First I started with by sketching out the image.  When doing watercolor, it's important to have a plan (especially if it's supposed to be a more realistic painting.)

Then I laid down a wash for the sky. While it dried I started blocking in the shadows on the rocks.

Next I started with laying some light washes on the mountains.  I like to build up my colors, so I tend to move from light to dark.  I also start pretty broad and get more and more detailed as I go.

While the brown wash was drying, I started blocking in the color on the other mountains.

And here's where I start moving around the whole painting, blocking in colors by shade.

Now here's where I started just going for it, and I totally forgot to take pictures.  I basically blocked in all the color on the mountains, making sure all the defining characteristics of the mountain would stand out.  Then I moved to the water where I did a wet-in-wet wash, adding different blues and greens and a little bit of purple and brown.   

Lastly, I put in the details on the rocks, and the trees on the mountains, and I was done! 

Here's the final painting! 

Daisies

Daisies really are the friendliest flowers, which is why they're one of my favorites! Here are a couple small acrylic daisy paintings I made recently. Enjoy! 

More Macarons!

Sooo... I'm still on a macaron kick aparently! Here are a few small macaron gouache paintings.  My friend said the pink one with the chocolate filling looked like a pink burger, which made me laugh because it actually kinda does! My favorite is the Blue Moon Macaron though.. maybe because my reference photo was one I took of a macaron I made myself... and the bite out of it, that was me too. ;)  Enjoy!

Chickens!

Lately I've been exploring my options of things to paint, and I've discovered that chicken paintings are really fun! Here's a few of my latest acrylic paintings that are currently for sale at the French Farmhouse in Redondo Beach where I've been teaching painting classes a couple times a month.  I'm currently working on more chicken paintings in various sizes, amongst my many ventures. I hope you like them! Prints may be available on my Etsy shop soon, and I'm always up for commission work and new ideas to paint! :)

Sunsets and Pups!

Lately I've been inspired by one of my 8th grade students.  She always comes in and paints a new sunset every week, and it looked so relaxing that I had to paint some of my own.

This first one is a sunset that I found a photo of on Pinterest.  The contrast and colors were so pretty, I knew I had to try and paint it.

This next painting is an original design I was working on for the Art Night's I teach a few times a month.  A couple of ladies approached me after one of my classes and suggested that we do something with a local sunset/sunrise and pink clouds.  It was definitely an experimental picture for me, and I was a little nervous creating something without the help of my boss, but I love the way it came out!

 

This next little watercolor sketch was something I did while teaching class when my boss was dog-sitting.  One of the many perks of my job - hanging out, painting cute pups and getting paid for it?? Yes, please!