Getting a handle on the credit card tool

I completed the second "credit card tool" painting assignment (2014: Year of the Fairy Tale online class) . This time the experience was less vexed:

The Princess and the Pea #2

As with most techniques practice is key.  With one painting "under my belt", the second was less about the tool and more about color.

The layout was not from the earlier layout collages but a spontaneous image that just showed up in my head - when I was doing something completely unrelated. I like it when that happens; feels like inspiration. I have to say that not all of my inspirations work but I will run with them anyway :-)

Geronimo

My streptocarpuses are beginning to bloom. Here is one of the first - Geronimo - grown in natural light:

I love this part especially because this is the first time I've ever grown Geronimo.

Two days later (today) he looks like this:

This color is more true in this photo.

Blooming plants.... wonderful :-)

In a word, some love

... and a heart :-)

Paint pens, gel pens and glitter pens...so much fun :-)

"all looseness is lost"

The latest class assignment for Carla Sonheim's 2014: Year of the Fairy Tale requires the use of a credit card as the main paint application tool. Hmm, credit card? Have I been living in a cave? I checked on the internet and it's a well-known technique. Okay, credit card it is.

I was frustrated with desiring to place color just in a specific area and the only way of applying it was with the uneven line of paint clinging to the edge of a thin piece of plastic. An imprecise tool? Yes. Did I want to grab a paint brush and be done with it. Yes, please.

We could use a brush for finishing details and a pen to define the figure. And here is the painting:

Pretty "loose" all things considered :-)

As Carla said in her video: when she uses a paintbrush, "all looseness is lost" and those words stuck with me - because they're so funny and also because they became a quick mnemonic to remind me that keeping it loose is one of the goals of this assignment.

I'll keep saying it to myself as I work on the second painting... yes, the assignment calls for two :-)

Trust word art

I had the pleasure of taking a "Letterista" class with Lisa Engelbrecht a couple of years ago. I had a lot of fun and Lisa is a great teacher. She gave the class some loosening-up exercises that I found to be very helpful for me.

I wanted to take a quick break from the painting I have on my table (helps me gain perspective and quiet the self-critic); so I grabbed my container of word art pens, markers and brushes, loosened-up and had some fun:

In fun I trust :-)

And now I am ready to get back into that painting...