Miniature Paintbox

I think a lot of watercolour enthusiasts end up collecting paint boxes and palettes. Me I'm no exception. What is it that's so attractive about paintboxes, I don't know, but I ended up owning way more than I need. I think it is a pursuit to find the best paintbox that suits your needs. But sometimes you HAVE TO buy a paintbox that actually has no practical use and here's the example. It's the smallest paintbox I own. I believe the paints are genuine, but I am not going to find out. I bought it from Miniature Treasures. I am very lucky to own this piece of beautiful artefact!

Until I bought the miniature paintbox, the Winsor & Newton Bijou Box was my smallest box and it was my baby. Now the Bijou Box looks like a grown-up!

 

Goldfinches in Flight

I. LOVE. BIRDS. I stumbled upon a beautiful photograph of goldfinches arguing in flight while surfing on the web, and I couldn't help painting it. Goldfinches are so unique with such striking colours of intense red, yellow and black. A true natures' wonderment.

It is drawn with hard graphite pencil and painted with watercolour in a notebook with quite thin paper. The surface of the paper is very smooth and the graphite pencil runs nicely on the surface, creating free flow of lines which I enjoy very much. The thing about drawing/painting in this notebook is that I feel very casual about making marks and not afraid of making mistakes or I don't care if it will become a successful image. And this often end up in a picture I am satisfied with, because it looks much more alive and free than the ones painted with a lot more care on a proper heavy weight watercolour paper.

A Landscape

A watercolour landscape incorporating water surface and trees, and some warm colours. I have gone over on trees too many times on the left bank, and it looks busy with small brush strokes. Still working to "get there" with the fewest brush strokes. I need to work on perspectives and the base drawing that the watercolour hang on. I find that if the drawing doesn't look right, then it will never look right in the finished product so - really need to get that basics right. I am kind of happy that I see some warm colours in the painting, but again the houses don't exactly look right and they could also have been toned down to more neutral, muted colours in accordance with the right bank. Well well, so so so many things to consider!

Study of Water Surface

Again trying and learning how to "get there" with fewer brush strokes. Another tricky thing I find is when to put down the wave shadows. Too early when the paper is still quite wet and it becumes blur, too late then it will leave sharp edges where you don't want it to be.

The painting looks a little too cool for my liking. In fact I tend to use cooler colours much more than warm colours, when painting the landscape. This makes the finished painting looking flat and somewhat monotonous. I need to learn to use my imagination to incorporate more warm tones in the picture, even in reality (or in photograph) it does'nt exist.

A Banana Painting

A painting of a randam banana hanging around in the kitchen. I am trying to paint with fewer brush strokes, trying not to leave messy brush marks. I find bananas are good to practice that. They have simple form that curves naturally to suit the brush strokes, so you can paint the form with a few bold strokes and add the shadow on the lower side wet in wet with a little thiker and darker paint. Leave to dry and add a few brown spots plus the shadow, and it's done.

Chateau de la Roche Bagnoles

Drawn and painted from a photograph I took while in Normandy, France. I struggle with the architecture drawing and this one has bits and pieces that doesn't make sence, but hey, it's all good fun and hopefully 'practice makes perfect' one day?!!

The chateau is standing on a verdant ground and it's a lovely place to be. Surprisingly there was almost nobody around, it felt such a luxury to have this place almost to myself (and my friends) for a while.

Thames Walk

I had a walk on Strand on the Green by the river Thames the other day. It must have been a spring tide after the super moon on Tuesday. The tide have already turned just a while ago but the riverside pedestrian walk was still wet and slipperly with the mud the high tide brought with it. I was wearing a new-ish cream coloured leather shoes and they were anointed with the mud.

Bags and Things

Apart from drawing the wardrobe, I usually also keep a list of smaller items to take, categorised into four: valuables, stationery and gadgets, Wash bag and make up bag. I would like to draw each item but being a procrastinator, the time before the travels are usually limited with actual packing to do - so I didn't manage this time, again.
But this time I have added the suitcase and bags I used. The bags ended up one size bigger than what I originally planned to take (plus at the end of the journey I was carrying one more shopping bag!).

Paris/Normandy Wardrobe 2014

I have been to Normandy again for summer holiday, but this time I went via Paris. Normandy could get pretty cold even in August so I had to pack clothes fit for three seasons. I didn't get the chance to wear the fluffy silk tunic even in Paris. In a cool/cold regions layering works best.