Where Do the Wee Ones Come From?

Painting last week, this wee figure appeared under my brush, quite unexpectedly. Where did he or she come from? Is it a Neolithic person who might have assembled that craggy and creviced stone circle nearby? Could it be a Druid or rotund monk? Or perhaps a fabled wee one?

 

No matter. Popping out of my imagination, this creature with little feet and a hooded cloak is most welcome.

This spread started out as an experiment to see how watercolors washed over bits of foil. It turned out to a little time travelogue. I love it when this happens!


 

Still Playing with Watercolors

For over a month, I’ve been experimenting with both ½ pan and tube watercolors in a commercially-made journal. There’s only two spreads left in the book but that will not stop me using watercolors after that! From the looks of this journal, you can see various techniques borrowed from my first love—acrylics. Can’t believe how warped this so-called watercolor journal has gotten! Has anyone ever ironed down paper after it has dried?

  There are many test spreads using Windsor & Newton ½ pans and a no. 14 brush as well as a few with W&N tube watercolors and a 2” skywash brush. Love the freedom of such a wide brush and look at the tube colors here! Indigo, what a gorgeous color! Blue jeans, stormy skies, deep waters. Guess the acrylic comparison would be Phthalocyanine (or Phthalo) Blue. Such a gorgeous hue!

Now I am convinced watercolors have a place in my art cabinet. They ARE great for working in art journals and will probably do their main job there inside. Right now, I just can’t see painting and framing a watercolor nor using it as a journal cover since the completed work can lifted with more water!

 

Next up? I’ll probably make myself a new watercolor journal using up paper originally bought for acrylics. Not sure why I have an 18” x 24” block of rough watercolor paper—maybe I was inexperienced at the time with the difference between cold-press and hot press and how each affected the way I used acrylics. I want to see how using 100% cotton paper allows for more experiments. Maybe I’ll make a sampler with various other watercolor papers on hand.

Green Flower Power & Blue Leather Peace Journals

Still on a journal-making roll! Here are my two newest. The first is the Green Flower Power Art Journal that has green cotton fabric outer cover fused to brown textured fabric inside.

There are four painted pages and four pockets with, what else, leaves!

The paper is one artists dream of—Fabriano Artistico cold-press 140 lb. watercolor.

Five signatures are sewn into the covers, tied with a leather cord with a small leaf bead around a maple leaf concho.

The other is made of dark blue leather with a gray spiral fabric fused inside. It ties around with a leather cord around a peace sign. Far-out!

More painted pages and pockets to hold all your tickets, paper scraps, and wild dreams.

They feature blue and turquoise colors, naturally.

Six signatures of very light blue 140 lb. Magnani Pescia paper.

Both are available in my Etsy shop.