SLMPetersen

I started my watercoloring adventure with school grade pan paints. I have a vintage set from Artisan and a set of Prang, both of which have been great starter paints.  I will continue to use these sets, as I absolutely love the colors and the pigment of them. I’ve created a few projects using my Distress inks as watercolors, as they are a water-reactive medium and they blend beautifully. I also have a lovely set of Derwent Inktense pencils, and while they aren’t considered “watercolors” they're a water-reactive medium that I’ve used for watercolor projects as well. Recently I purchased three small bottles of liquid watercolor from Let’s Makes Art. While I haven’t plaid with them much yet I feel like they come with a bit of a learning curve for adjusting color intensity.  I will continue to explore this medium, but so far it's my least favorite option. Then, over the weekend I added to my watercolor collection by purchasing some Windsor & Newton ...

Drawing faces, something I enjoy but am no expert at.  I just draw them.  I'm honestly not concerned about them looking realistic or even that everything is in correct proportion. Quick pencil sketch using  Koh-I-Noor Progresso Woodless Graphite pencils. More defined pencil sketching using the same pencils. Mixed media background created with Distress Oxide inks on mixed media paper , drawn with Prismacolor Markers . Pencil sketch with shading and additional details.  More practice with pencil sketching and shading. Tim Holtz watercolor paper with Distress Ink background and over stamping.  Face drawn with the same Prismacolor markers as above. Mixed media background, Feathers created with texture paste, face painted with acrylic paints. Watercolor paper, with a watercolor background and face sketch, created using Micron pens and Dylusions Paint Pens . Maybe its time for me to draw faces again.  I hope you're ...

I was just getting into the swing of writing daily posts again when I was struck by what so many of us call the annual school crud - the Delta Plaque.  For those of you who follow my art journey and aren't aware of my "day" job, I work as support staff at a regional training center that is partnered with our local school district.  In short, I see kids every day and some of them share germs. I've been sick since Friday of last week.  So my creativity has looked a bit more like this in the last few days. Cough syrup. Hot Tea. Along with lots of sleep.  I'm sure things will be back to creative things soon, but in the meantime, I'll be sipping hot tea and nursing my voice back to normal.

I'm really not much of a "rule" follower, so it's a good thing there aren't any rules in art.  The first tutorial Jesse released for the February Art Journal box was to create a bio page.  Not really my thing.  So, of course, I broke the rules and did my own thing.  I did use the colors and the technique she showed us, but it kind of ended there. Here's a shot of my background and the technique card that came in the kit.  Once the background was dry it suggests adding a pic of yourself and then doing some journaling.  Nope, skipping that step.  Once the background was dry I added splatters.  When the splatters were dry I did a bit of hand lettering, which if I'm honest usually just looks like my handwriting no matter what I do.  I love how it turned out.  I'm really enjoying this box subscription so far and can't wait to see what next month's box brings.  This box pushed me out of my color comfort zone.  I'm u...

I started this altered book project in September of 2019, with no deadline for finishing it.  I created this space to play with my art supplies and explore mixed media.  I have a wonderful stash of art supplies because I'm mildly curious about all the things.  What better place to play with all the things than in an altered book.  I started my project by prepping the book.  This included pulling part of the pages, gluing pages together to create thicker pages and adding some pages back in as fold-outs.  As I work in my book I gesso pages and add things.  Sometimes I paint pages.  Sometimes I add texture paste.  I've added ink, washi, fabric, metal and other bits as I build the pages.  My altered book is where I go to create when I feel a little stuck in a rut or burned out.  There are no rules for this book and I enjoy the blank slate and the freedom.  Stay tuned for more posts about this book, as I have more p...

Sketching is something that comes and goes in my creative life.  This year I'm trying to sketch more often.  I'd love to say daily, but I haven't quite gotten to that point yet.  I bought this small sketchbook on our trip down the west coast over Christmas break.  It's a much smaller sketchbook than I have used in the past, but I really like the size. I started sketching in the little book while on vacation, but only completed one sketch while traveling.  It's a rough sketch from a photo I took of the Redwoods we saw in our travels. Sketch two is of wheat or wild grass, whichever you see.  I often draw this kind of thing and have several versions in other sketchbooks.  Sketch three is a bit of a rendition of the winter that is laying its hand on our yard this time of year. Sketch four was created using a reference photo from Instagram.  I have no idea what the flower is, but it was a fun sketch.  Sketch five is my coffee cup th...

This Iris was the first thing I watercolored that wasn't just a background for another project.  This was my first Let's Make Art project using their free tutorial and outline .  I created my first rendition on 9x12" Canson XL Watercolor Paper with my vintage watercolors.      Then came two A2 cards.  This more maroon variation was created with Derwent Inktense Pencils , which are water-reactive. This more lavender version was created with Distress Inks , which are also water-reactive. Then I had to create postcards.  Each done in one of the mediums mentioned above. I really love how accessible it was for me to take what I already had in my supply stash and follow the Let's Make Art tutorials.  I really can't say enough good things about Let's Make Art , and no they don't pay me to say that.  I only share what I truly love and they're one of those great resources.  I'll be painting this Iris again, with...

In 2014, I picked up my pens and started creating pen and ink art pieces.  Pen and ink drawing is a way to unwind my mind and lose myself in a bit of art.  Today I thought I'd talk about a few of the tools I use when making this type of artwork.   When I picked up pen and paper I started with the notion of getting into zentangle, but once I got the idea of it I kind of lost interest in it.  I started with a sketchbook that I grabbed at Barnes & Noble, along with a book on zentangle, and pens I already had in my stash of supplies.  This piece is sitting unfinished in my sketchbook. I was curious about using watercolor paper.  I used Canson XL Watercolor paper and my student grade watercolors to rough out a flower.  Once the watercolor was dry I added ink with a dip pen.  This piece happens to be living in a drawer currently.  Maybe I'll frame it someday.  I'm not any kind of supply snob, as I said yesterday ...

I saw this yesterday in a Facebook group I'm part of and it resonated with my current creative state of mind.  I've debated sharing the creative shift that is happening.  I can't keep plodding forward and sticking to my current path.  When I read this quote it compelled me to stop and focus, to really think about how my creativity is growing and changing. The hard thing about trying to build a side hustle is finding the fine line between sales pitch and resource.  By the way, I hate the term side hustle, but anyway. I make a lot of things, and I get told I have a lot of talent and that my things are lovely.  Being a resource is a hard thing for me.  I mostly passionately curious about everything and have not really honed my craft into any kind of expertise in any one area.  I know a bit about everything, but I've never been disciplined enough to become an expert. While I'm a passionate card maker and I will continue to make cards, I'm going to ...

I recently decided to subscribe to the Art Journal box from Let's Make Art .  They have Watercolor and Lettering box subscriptions as well, but the Art Journal box really spoke to my current state of creativity. I got my first box on Saturday created my first page on Sunday morning.  I'll start by saying I'm quite impressed with the quality and quantity of supplies.  Let's talk about what was included in the box and what I added on with my first order. Box content: 4 - Full-size bottles of acrylic paint 1 - Sample size jar of Yes! Paste 1 - A5 mixed media art journal from Carpe Deim  1 - White Posca pen  PC-1MR, pin type 1 - Red Posca pen PC-5M, bullet shaped 2 - sheets collage paper 1 - Graphite paper 1 - Let's Make Art Postcard project 3 - Technique cards 3 - Prompt cards Added on: 1 - Butcher tray pallet 3 - Bottles of liquid watercolor I think I'm really going to enjoy this subscription box .  It will give me a chance ...