Category: Watercolor

Floral and Fairy Watercolor Paintings

Rose Petal Fairy in Watercolor

Rose Fairy

This rose fairy painting proved to be quite time consuming. I worked on it off and on over the last two weeks, putting the painting aside when I became frustrated (mostly with the color scheme), and picking it up again later so I could approach it with fresh eyes.  I nearly gave up on this painting early on in the process but stuck with it because my daughter encouraged me to press on. Now that it’s complete I think the color scheme is fine. I particularly like the little mouse and the colorful sky that depicts an early morning sunrise.

This painting is based on a tutorial in Linda Ravenscroft’s book, “The Fairy Artist’s Figure Drawing Bible.”

Rainbow Dragon

Greta's Rainbow Dragon1

I couldn’t wait to share this rainbow dragon that my daughter painted today. I love the colorful scales paired with the neutral gray tones; it creates a wonderful balance of cool and warm colors that helps guide viewers’ eyes around the painting. This painting is an interesting play of contrasts: its whimsical and sophisticated, colorful and subdued, patterned and random. What’s not to love?

The Love Note

Heart

I was searching through a box of artwork that my daughter created when she was young when I came across this note she gave me when she was 8 years old. It was so darn cute that I just had to save it. It’s the best love note I’ve ever received. I posted this last February when I first created my blog, but since Valentine’s Day is approaching and many of you haven’t seen this before, I thought I’d share it again. My answer is written on the bottom of her note. How precious is this?

Greta's Love Note

One-Year Anniversary

One-Year Anniversary

February 18th will mark the one-year anniversary of my blog. Since I began this blog to share my efforts on learning how to paint with watercolors, my daughter, Greta, thought it would be a good idea to repaint our first painting and share the results here. We’ve developed a lot of new skills in the past year–and I’ll share some lessons learned in an upcoming post–but we still have a lot to learn. Our plan is to repaint this little lion–which we intentionally kept simple since it was our first effort–each year on our anniversary to show our progression.

My blog has grown into much more than an art blog over the past year. I’ve also branched out and included posts about the things I love most–art, cooking, interior design, gardening, and spending time with my family and animal friends. Life is good, and I’m pleased to share the goodness with you. I’d like to thank my loyal followers and readers for all their encouragement and lovely comments over the past year and I hope to continue to share all the goodness life has to offer.

Daisy Chain Fairy

Daisy Chain Fairy

This little daisy chain fairy is a bit of a departure for me since I typically work with cool colors. I had to adjust the colors several times before I was satisfied with my color choices. I may rework her in pink tones instead of orange, but for now I’m calling her done. This painting is based on a tutorial in Linda Ravenscroft’s book, “How to Draw and Paint Fairies.”

Mushroom Fairy in Watercolor

Mushroom Fairy2

This little mushroom fairy proved to be more time consuming than I’d anticipated, but I’m pleased with the results. I’ve been working on this painting since last weekend and was beginning to think that I wouldn’t complete it before the week was done. This painting is based on a tutorial in Linda Ravenscroft’s book, “How to Draw and Paint Fairies.”

Here’s a close up view of her face.

Mushroom Fairy3

Moon Goddess in Watercolor

Moon Goddess1

My daughter worked on this painting off and on over the last few weeks and finally finished it last night. She got a bit frustrated because she had to darken the background several times to create the glowing moon effect, but I think it was well worth the effort. I like the texture in the background and the way she incorporated the background colors–purple and blue–into the maiden’s hair.

This painting was based on a tutorial in Stephanie Pui-Mon Law’s book, “Dreamscapes Myth & Magic: Creating Legendary Creatures and Characters in Watercolor.”

Winter Mice in Watercolor

Winter Mice1

I thought it was time to expand my horizons and paint subjects other than flowers and fairies so I gave these cute little winter mice a try. This painting is based on tutorials in Linda Ravenscroft’s book, “How to Draw and Paint Fairyland–A Step-by-Step Guide to Creating the World of Fairies. This comprehensive book not only shows readers how to paint fairies but also their environment and a host of other creatures–like these adorable mice. You don’t have to be a fan of fairies to benefit from the instructions in this book; there’s something for everyone wanting to improve their painting skills.

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