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Did you ever see something that triggered your creativity, and you had no idea what you would do with it? That happened to me yesterday afternoon while walking through my friend Barbara’s garden! We were walking through the garden, admiring all the beautiful blooming plants, I was being offered clippings of her succulents when I […]
Good Morning Everyone! We have another cool morning here in Oceanside, California, and I am loving it! Inspiration comes more easily for us all when we aren’t surrounded with heavy, humid, hot air!
Yesterday I said I’d do a sketch with charcoal, but I admittedly didn’t do that. I used Shades of Gray PITT pens. They come in a Pac of six with three being cool gray, and three being a warm gray. I love grays, and always have fun with them. These pens are a great addition to our supplies. Everything is a great addition to my art supplies! My motto is, “You never have too many supplies!” Oh, and “You never know!” (Mixed Media artist coming out!)
Each day I put out a challenge however, I’m only giving suggestions. We are all inspired by different things, at different times, and the thing that triggers me, might not trigger you. So by all means, do your own thing, don’t be limited by my ideas! After all, I’m only trying to keep going and get better at my craft! Some of you are very precise in your renderings of a subject, some ” wonky ” like myself. There isn’t any right or wrong . Each of you has your own way and that’s what makes us all so special! If I can inspire you to do the same, it’s a double win for all of us!
The sketch I’m putting up for you today is one of a pod I found on a walk with my son Dennis, and grandson Nolan. Dennis noticed me eying this pod, and on the second pass said to me, “Mom, pick it up, I know you want to! You keep eying it!” I didn’t want want my son to witness me grabbing yet another treasure off the ground, but he understands, being a musician, and gathering inspiration from nature, his surroundings, and experiences!
Inspiration is all around for artists, whether they are writers, painters, photographers, or musicians. We inspire one another with ideas, our creative energy, places we visit, a walk, it’s all good, and it’s all valuable.
For Thursday, I’m going to look for a picture that inspires me to either paint, draw, collage, or in some other way use my creativity. I invite you to post your pictures of intention on FaceBook or talk about them in the comments here on my blog. I also need your input to give me inspiration to keep going! Get your intention out there, that will hold your feet to the fire! So, look for something that inspires you to sketch, or paint for Friday!
There are many things in this world that are green, but I wanted to sketch and paint something not normally green. It wasn’t cool for me to sketch the things I suggested, especially since I wanted to be a little more outside the box! My feeling is I missed the mark on this one, because the more I tried to think of something, the fewer ideas I came up with. It was starting to feel more like a chore, and less like the fun it’s supposed to be!
Today my sketch was of our cat Kramer. A rough sketch I must admit. After I sketched him on paper , I used acrylic ink on him for his “Green with Envy” color! Here’s what I have learned over the weeks since I’ve been sketching regularly. I mix media, literally! I’m always working with different kinds of materials. Sometimes fabric, sometimes acrylic, watercolor, pencil, charcoal, and yes even metal! The sky is the limit for me. I always purchase mixed media journals, and finally I realized that’s not cutting it! I really need to purchase watercolor journals, and here is why….If I use anything wet, such as acrylic, or watercolor, even glue, the paper buckles and looses its integrity, sometimes even tearing. I guess I’m rougher on my materials than I realized! Watercolor paper is much hardier, and will take the beating I give it! I just started a new “Mixed Media” journal and it dawned on me, there are a hundred pages, and I am not liking the paper. Now, that in itself isn’t the problem. I could give it away to one of the grandkids.
Prior to ever using a journal, I decorate the cover and make it look “artisie fartsie!” (This is a technical term I use often.) So now I’ve spent time embellishing the cover just the way I wanted it, and I really don’t like the paper inside the journal….What to do? I could coat each piece with medium before I sketch. Does anyone have any suggestions, because I really don’t think I have an answer?
Do any of you decorate your visual journals, if so send me a picture, I’d love to see what the rest of you do.
Tomorrow I’m going to do a charcoal sketch, maybe even use watercolor crayons for shading instead of charcoal. Join in on the fun, I’d love to see what inspires you. remember to post on FaceBook, or email the pictures to me at Karensamenow@me.com
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When I look at the wonder of nature, I am in awe! Each, and every thing I come across is a treasure to me. Birds, butterflies, trees (I love trees), flowers, I love them all. My yard has transitioned from very, very green, and lush to drought tolerant. Some of it forced, most of it by choice! I love to look at what others have designed, and implemented into their landscapes, and every once in a while, I’ll find someone who has been way too creative for a novice. It shows that they have put a great deal of thought into how they put together a front yard, or a design element in the garden. I see things all the time that remind me to be more open minded and think outside the box! Funny thing is, I always think I am outside the box, and just about the time Im feeling particularly clever, I’ll see something someone else has thought of, and wonder why I didn’t think of that!
This time I painted leaves! This is outside the box, right? It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time, and hadn’t tried. Now, I admit a project like this needs to be thought through. Most of these kind of projects take a little more time than we realize. I pressed the leaves over night, painted medium on them to preserve their flexibility, and stenciled, painted, and sprayed with a fixative! They are a little rough, and as the leaf project resurfaces again and again, I’m sure that they will look better each time. The ideas are endless, with so many different shaped leaves to work with! It could be fun to gather unusual leaves, or leaves great for painting, press them, and allow them to wait for just the right moment. This is coming to you from a person who saves just about everything, just in case! That’s what I call a “Mixed Media artist,” some would call it hoarder!” Surely those people aren’t artists? When I do throw something out, it’s picked up by our local trash company, and hauled away! Well, that’s when I need it the most. Always, I needed that, and wonder why on earth I threw it out?
Todays challenge is to paint, sketch, collage, or anything else you can think of, living from the yard. Leaves while they aren’t technically living, they were still flexible, and I did coat them with medium to preserve them! I chose leaves, but you may want to use something else!
I continue to encourage all of you to join in as much as you can, post comments, and enjoy my blog.
Many years ago my pride and joy was our thirsty gardens with dichondra for the lawn. The lawn was perfect with my husband spending hours and hours on it edging, and mowing constantly so it would be low and tight! The foliage was gorgeous. I had flower beds to die for, and a particularly beautiful Flowering Plum tree in the front yard. Now days we haven’t the time or energy to care for anything close to a yard like that, and I have grown to appreciate the many attributes of succulents! I’ve learned of the beauty in the happy surprises when they suddenly bloom leaving us with a sometimes unusual bloom that lasts for sometimes six week or more. My yard is now full of these wonderful plants, and I’m forever on a quest to find yet another variety to display in my garden.
I mentioned on Monday that the theme for the week would be our yards and gardens, and now seems to be the appropriate time to sketch another bunch of succulents. They are rapidly becoming my favorites! This little sketch is of a few pots some with freshly planted succulents, others with established plants that have begun to bloom. I mentioned the other day of the one I love the most right now. Not sure what the name of it is, but it seems to go on blooming forever giving my garden a much needed splash of color.
I can’t wait to see your sketches, and paintings of the living things from your gardens, and how much thinking outside the box some of you have been able to do. Remember anything goes, you are only limited by your imagination! Life is good, let’s capture some of the sweetness on paper!
P.S. My husband tells me the dictionary defines Dichondra as part of the Morning Glory family. Is this a good thing or bad thing, you tell me!
I’m not whining, really I’m not, but the heat, she’s not going away! This is just another lazy September day giving us an opportunity to create . I know, you’re going to say, “How can you whine, you live in Oceanside?” And, you’re right! I’m not whining, maybe just observing! Mornings seem to work fore me, they are quiet, cool, and I’m inspired by the little birds chirping, and dragonflies circling the garden. I guess we are all tired of the intense heat, and ready for relief. I keep saying it will be any day now, but any day now brings fall, and winter. I have trouble getting inspired when I’m freezing! We have a way to go before the freezing sets in, so I for one am going to enjoy every bit of summer left.
Yesterday, I set the challenge for a week instead of a day. All week long we will sketch, paint, draw, or collage something living from the yard. Those are pretty broad choices! It can be a plant, a flower, several plants, trees, anything just do a little piece of creativity! Sometimes there isn’t time to go into full fledged art mode, but some simple little piece of the making of art keeps the gates open, and I always feel I’ve accomplished something important to me, even on a busy day.
As you look around the yard, or your neighbors yard (snicker, snicker) take some pictures, or sit down in the shade with pencil or pen, and do a little something to keep the creativity flowing!
Old as Dirt and Proud of it! 
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