-
Easy Drawings for Plant Labels
As summer approaches, we add to our garden and patio plants weekly. Plants often inspire my drawings and watercolor, and the outdoors teem with inspiration right now. Strawberry plants bloom, tomatoes and peppers wait for the day they become fresh salsa, lavender promises blooms and aroma while chives and parsley offer deliciousness sprinkled over food … I could go on and on. This week, we’ll turn this inspiration into easy drawings for plant labels. After drawing, painting, and lettering them, you can use them to decorate indoor plants or gift them with a plant. (These markers are for indoor use only, as they are not waterproof.) We may get our…
-
Thanksgiving Drawings for Name Cards
With Thanksgiving fast approaching (gasp … next week!), I know that some of you are getting ready for time with family and friends. Decorations, recipes, and little ways to make gatherings special are dancing through your heads. Today I have a tutorial to help those ideas turn into action. We’ll take some Thanksgiving drawings and add watercolor to make name cards for your food celebrations.
-
Acorn Drawing
Today is a good day for an acorn drawing ... with a smattering of watercolor, of course! Fall is a bittersweet time of year. The growing season, the warm season slowly ends. And although I'm almost ready to hibernate by then, it still means the long, dark winter looms. We say goodbye to the color and warmth and hello to the cold, bland, endless months. Both seasons have their good points. Fall has its colors and smells like honey. It tastes like apple pie and pumpkin lattes. Winter has its cozy sweaters, warm fires, and promise of spring. I must say, though, I am particularly fond of fall. So, while…
-
Maple Leaf Drawing
This time of year inspires me to draw leaves, maple leaf drawings, oak leaves, birch, poplar, sumac. Their shapes and colors enthrall me, and I find myself stopping to pick them up (or jump on the really crunchy ones) on my runs and as I walk to the mailbox. One of my favorite trees is a maple tree in town. Its colors range from red (almost pink actually) through orange, yellow and green … all at the same time. Sometimes on the same leaf. Amazing. As I world around me is painted, I’m inspired to paint and draw as well. So I came up with a quick and easy maple…
-
Perfectionism – Allowed to be Imperfect
As I walk through the daily pieces of my creative business, some days come easier than others. Sometimes, I’m focused and on task and cranking things out. Then other times, I feel as though I’m slogging through mud while walking uphill in a snowstorm. What makes the difference? Why are my ideas all exciting and energizing one day and too hard and unappealing the next day? What gets in the way of my motivation and kills my creativity? In this post, we'll talk about the first of seven creativity killers and give ourselves permission to move beyond them. What is perfectionism? On a quick Google search, the dictionary will tell…
-
Watercolor Techniques
Watercolor techniques give you freedom to explore and mix, to watch and join in, to dream and create. Last week, we talked about giving ourselves permission to play. Watercolor techniques are the playground of learning to paint with watercolors. Are you ready to play? Today, I want to show you several of my favorite techniques to help you start playing with watercolors. Beyond that … you can build your own set of monkey bars.
