'tree girl' ~ casein paint, beeswax, watercolors and oil pastels on stillman and birn 'delta' paper

it's been a long time...  i've painted a lot since the november post.   i've tried to draw and paint every day, because it keeps me happy...

pencil and watercolors on 'delta' paper

but for sure there've been plenty of days when this was my motto.  when i painted and drew even when i couldn't think of anything to paint or draw. 

watercolors, oil pastels and pencil on 'delta' paper

i finished the landscape orientation book from the november post,

oil pastels, watercolors and pencil on 'delta' paper 

watercolors and pencil on 'delta' paper

pencil on 'delta' paper

watercolors and pencil in pocket moleskine

 started in a new pocket watercolor moleskine, and made a new book with stillman and birn's 'delta' paper.

pencil and watercolors in pocket moleskine

i painted a lot of leaf girls.

'golden' high flow acrylics and pencil on 'delta' paper

here i was messing around with 'golden' high flow acrylics. i *like* them.

watercolors, gouache, colored pencil and pencil in pocket moleskine

i painted/drew a lot of this page while i was on the phone, on hold.   listening to muzak can make you go a little crazy.

watercolors and pencil in pocket moleskine

i've thought about how much i love to draw small faces,

watercolors,  oil pastels, pencil and gouache in pocket moleskine

and bigger ones.

watercolors and pencil in pocket moleskine

watercolors and pencil on 'delta' paper

last summer i decided that i wanted to paint faces with watercolors only - no colored pencil or oil pastels.  i'm practicing and i feel like i'm making progress...

watercolors, pencil, acrylic paint, matte medium and gesso in pocket moleskine

a few days ago i took danielle donaldson's e-course 'creative girl: the land of light and shadows', which is offered on jeanne oliver's ning group. for two days most of jeanne's classes were half price; i took danielle's class and signed up for kathie vezzanie's 'plaster and wax 101' for $34!   i appreciate that jeanne keeps the prices of her classes low in general, and sometimes has super good deals on them.

watercolors,  pencil and uni-ball signo pen in pocket moleskine

in danielle's class i learned a lot about highlights and shadows, which is a subject i'm endlessly  fascinated by.   and danielle's a watercolor and pencil girl too - you know i love that!     i painted this 'danielle girl' in class...  (i'll pretend that the bottom line of her cape  really does make my eyes smile ; )   not only did i learn a lot, it was a lot of *fun* to paint and draw in a different way.

watercolors and pencil in pocket moleskine

i painted this yesterday, sitting outside.  i've hardly been out wandering at all - the ground is really muddy and it's been cold, but yesterday it was 30 degrees, which is warm enough to walk, and, if you find a sunny spot, warm enough to paint.   since i couldn't think of anything to paint i just put color down; i kept painting and repainting until the sun went behind the trees.  it felt so great to be painting outside again...  and yeah, i *do* keep a tube of white gouache in my daypack!

if you've made it this far, you have true stamina, ha!   thank you for your kindness, your comments, and your support in the past year...   and for all of the cool tips and great products that you've shared with me.  may 2015 be a happy one for you all!

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"Art is a line around your thoughts" 

 ~Gustav Klimt