growing takes patience & persistence

These days my interest in various techniques of sketching and painting is all over the place!  One day I think I am heading in a direction with pencils then just like that I see something, get distracted, then off I go in the opposite direction with paints.  

What recently captured my attention was a technique called "line and wash."  First I drew the scene (buildings, trees, bushes, power poles, waves, ground outline with sprigs of grass), with the light blue lead pencil.  Next the blue pencil lines are traced with thin black india ink pens of different widths.  I used Faber Castell Pitt Artists Pens which are waterproof.  That is the "line" part of this technique, now it is go time with the "wash".  The "wash" is loosely done wet on wet!  First I wet the entire paper except for a narrow portion in the middle that consists of the tops of the buildings and the towers.  The colours of paints are mixed with a high water content, then laid on the paper with a wide brush trying to complete that part while the paper is still wet.  The finishing touches involved painting each roof and the towers with a more dense color then laying some dark lines in the tower reflections. This is the outcome!  It was my second attempt at this project, the first was a disaster.  

 

It has been a little while since I worked with my coloured pencils on toned tan paper.  I love how the colours pop in the top left photo.  I used my Faber Castell coloured pencils to complete this project.  I replicated it from a photo I found in a sketching lesson.  In the lesson it was done with watercolour paints on white paper but I was not keen on that look.  I like the look I gave it!  

The other four photos are projects I did with watercolour paints.  I followed a tutorial for each one.  The plan was to do one dessert, the salted carmel cheesecake. Once that was completed, I was hooked on desserts. Next it was time to indulge in the blueberry pie and the three layer fruit flan.  I liked working on the lattice pie crust and the carmel topping on the cheesecake.  I wanted more of that style so went for something a little more healthy, a piece of toast but of course I had to add the poached egg on top.

As I said at the first, I am all over the place with where I go these days with sketching and painting.  I would like to do more "line and wash", I keep looking at some anime lessons I have saved, I have been reading about gouache and I also have been thinking of buying a toned grey sketch book.  Stay tuned!