Urban Sketchers Dallas/Fort Worth

Our May sketch outing was at the Irving Convention Center.  The convention center is an amazing building!  But always being different, I climbed a huge staircase to sketch off the top of the building.  So, this is my sketch from the day....

After meeting back together and sharing all of our sketches, we went to Andalous Mediterranean Grill for lunch.  I love trying new food and this was delicious!!  We had a great time sharing and getting to know each other.  Great day!!

Luminous Watercolor Mixing

 When it comes to watercolor,  mixing and matching color has always been a mystery to me and something I found very frustrating.  Then I found  Craftsy class,  Luminous Watercolor Mixing with Kateri Ewing. Turns out....you have to do the homework!!

To be honest, I was not looking forward to doing the following color charts.  It just seemed so tedious! But the more work I did, the more I loved it! 

 By the time I finished these charts, I was able to look out the window and study our huge oak and figure out which colors I would mix to paint the tree trunk, or the brick on our house, or the pine trees across the street. Things just finally clicked.  They were not the colors I would have picked before this class....or before doing the homework! 

 I love that Kateri uses a limited palette.  It has helped me understand the basic primary colors and how they interact with each other.    I haven't finished the class yet.  I will start applying what I am learning as I paint a leaf and a pear.  I will share more as I go. 

Watercolor Class

I have dabbled with watercolor in the past, with not much success.  I decided to take a class for several reasons. Being part of a class keeps me on track.  As an artist, I know there are no rules, but it is nice to have a good foundation and have someone guide you with the basics.  In a classroom, you have the chance to meet other people with the same interests and that is always fun.  I also find that I learn from other students as well as the teacher as to what works for different people and I love to see the wide range of art supplies that people use.  My husband will attest to the fact that I am hopelessly in love with new art supplies.: )  Also, working primarily in graphite now, I have had a growing desire to add color to my work.  So, I am taking a class at the Upstairs Gallery with Margie Wittington.  I am in good hands.  Margie is a wonderful teacher.   I am a little shy about posting my first paintings, but I am doing that at the request of my sisters who follow my blog to see what I am up to.