Saturday, September 12, 2020

A little sewing - and an experiment -


Another set of blocks is sewn -

For my Upstairs/Downstairs - Gleaned - top -
Gleaned - © Carolyn Friedlander - Robert Kaufman -


So far there are two GREEN sets of blocks -

And two BROWN sets -

I have four more sets to go -


After I finished the blocks -

I wanted to do another little experiment -

I wanted to see if I could make those "Easy Flowers" - HERE -

Again using my watercolor "pencils" instead of watercolor "paints" -

I did it for these -

The one on the left is watercolor "paints" -

And the one on the right is watercolor "pencils" -


Now I wanted to see if I could get a similar "pencil" version of this blue/purple one -


Using only 4 pencils - red - blue - green - brown -
A watercolor paint brush - the #4 that I got with the pencil "kit" -
Water -
A "white-out" pen -
And my light gold paint - because I don't have a gold pen/pencil - LOL - ;))


I accidentally got some pretty good watercolor paper on my first try -

But because I'm just beginning - and don't want to waste it -

I cut the 9" x 12" sheets in half -

9" x 6" is perfect for these little flowers - when I turn the paper side-ways -



So I took one and put it "portrait" -wise -

And put the three dots for my flower - according to the video -

PLEASE WATCH THE VIDEO -
"Easy Flowers" - HERE - for "how to" do the watercolor stuff -
It's TERRIFIC!! - and she explains it wonderfully!! -

She uses paints -
And I wanted to use pencils -
So my version is a little different -

I made the three dots -

Then made a "V" where I wanted my first petals to be -


Then I colored them in -


Made two more petals with a dot and a "V" -


And colored them in -


Added water to "activate" the color -

Watch the video for the "wiggle" - LOL -

And only did the first three petals - skipping two for later -


Then did the last two -

Mostly because I didn't want them to blend together -


Not bad -

So far - so good -


Next flower -

Another three dots per the video -


And again - I drew out the "V" where I wanted the petals to go -


And added the other two "V" for petals -


Remembered that I wanted them to be purple -

And that I had "mixed" the paints -

So I tried to "mix" the pencil colors the same way -

Adding red to the blue -


Filled in with some blue -


Added some red -

And crossed my fingers that I would get purple - LOL -

NOTE TO SELF -
paints are easier to mix -
And you know what color you're going to get BEFORE you put it on the paper! -


Added water -

And forgot that the water would make the petals MUCH larger -

NOTE TO SELF - the size of the petal is easier to control with paint -


OK - so on to the third flower -


Made an "oopsie" and used a cotton swab with clean water to clean it up -
NOT MY IDEA -
I saw it on one of the hundreds of videos that I watched the other day -
I call it my "magic eraser" - LOL -


Same drill on the third flower -



When I added the red - I had no idea if it would be the same or darker than the second flower -

NOTE TO SELF - same as before -
it's easier to preview the mixed color using paints -
next time use some purple pencils in various shades -
or one purple pencil making one lighter and one darker - LOL -


So - added water to the first two petals -


Then the other three -


And got a MUCH larger flower than I anticipated -

NOTE TO SELF - scale down the coloring - the water will make it BIGGER!! -


Added the brown pencil color in the middle of each flower -

It kinda faded out - so while it was still wet -
I dabbed the pencil in it to make more dots -


Let all of that dry for a bit -


Used the green pencil to draw in the stems and leaves -



Then went over the green pencil lines with a different #4 which is MUCH smaller than the #4 that I used for the petals -

And - while the stems and leaves were still wet -

Drew over them again with the green pencil to darken them up - 


Close - the color is off -

But that is to be expected - since I didn't know what I was going to get -


Just need the details -


So I got the "white-out" pen that I found in a drawer - LOL -
Pentel - Fine Point - Correction Pen™ - Multi-Purpose -


And my light gold paint -

SIDE NOTE - NOW I know why an artist's palette always looks "dirty" -
You can leave the watercolor paint in the ceramic palette - let it dry out - then spritz it with water again and it's good to go - and considering how much my TINY tube cost - there is NO WAY I'm going to clean it all out every time I use it and throw away all of that paint! - LOL -


All done - with white "center" dots and gold "accent" dots -


And it's not that bad - compared to the "painted" one -

The colors are darker because I got a little heavy-handed with the pencils -
And the flower petals got a little bigger than I expected -
Because I forgot that the water would SPREAD - DUH!! - LOL - ;))


All in all - a pretty successful experiment -

Which do I like best? - pencils or paints? -

Hmmm - I think that will depend on my mood -

But right now -

I think I prefer the paints -

The pencils can be used to sketch something out maybe -

They would probably disappear when I added the water and paint -

Maybe that will be another experiment - LOL - ;))

I think I got bitten by the watercolor pencil/paint bug -

And it must have been a pretty BIG bug -

Because it was a pretty BIG bite - LOL - ;))



Talk to you later - gotta go - gotta sew -



5 comments:

Frog Quilter said...

I’m impressed and yes your new addiction is now active. Beautiful though. They would be great for writing notes to special friends.

Barbara said...

I can’t pick a favorite either! I like the freer-formed painted petals, but think the finer stems of the pencils are more lifelike. You know, there’s no rule against using both brushwork and pencil work in the same piece!! I keep trying but haven’t even mastered the “wiggle” petals. I’m about to accept this just isn’t for my achey, shakey hands. I can’t draw anymore either. Absolutely beautiful work!

Gene Black said...

Oh yes, now that I "see" how you do it, I want to try with pencils too. And I will certainly start using the pencils for my stems. I think that will be so much easier than trying to paint them that thin.

Mary in Peoria Handmade said...

Hello Kitty. Thank you for the time and work showing us how the pencils work and the comparison. I have not tried the pencils. I might buy them soon. Where and what did you buy? Sometimes my hands are shaky and I get paint in places I don’t intend.
Stay safe
Mary

Sue said...

What a great bug to be bitten by.

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