Month: June 2016

Day 730 – Happy Birthday Blog!!! 

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Happy Birthday Blog!!! Caran d’ache neocolor II on Kilimanjaro 5×7″

Absolutely THRILLED to say  TWO years of posting daily. I started out just trying to post daily for 50 days. I think I made it!! 😊👍🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Start of an Abstract iii 26×40 Arches 280# elephant sheet 

Have a couple of watercolors ready to paint. I really need to get with it but …..

So what else is up???  Plotting a trip to somewhere -probably France or China. 

Travelzoo had some great deals. $1800 for 14 days in China including air fare may be hard to pass up.

But then there’s a seven day deal in France 4-5 days in Paris, museum passes hop on hop off bus, then off to the French country side around Dijon driving ourselves. Thinking that could be an adventure to remember. 

Raisin full sheet watercolor Fabriano Hot Press just started 
And thinking about  a repeat of the Paris – Normandy Viking Cruise. You say why?! So I can draw Paris, Vernon, Auvers, Normandy and Rouen without being hustled everywhere nonstop while being pampered on the ship. Not bad. 

Never touching a suitcase has its appeals. 

It’s running $1900 including airfare. The southern leg thru Provence is also dirt cheap now. 

So many possibilities. Which will it be. In the meantime heading to the mountains and Key West while we decide. 

Thanks for reading. 

Margaret dreaming of foreign lands instead of painting. Xxx

Day 728 – That Abstract 

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Abstract 2 – 22×30 For Sale 

Is done. A friend said it looked like a flower unfurling and the more I look at it I think she’s right. 

I added one thick  black squiggly line on to this painting that is in the first picture. Can you find it?  I think it makes a big difference. 

Most of the squiggly lines are strips of paper colored with caran d’ache watercolor crayons though some of the black ones are done with Pitt pen which are India ink markers. 

This was painted with Ted Nuttalls transparent palette and black. 

Thanks for reading. 

Margaret xxx

Day 727 – A Hmm 

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But off to opthamologist to see if I have a retinal tear so this is all you get today. Maybe I need some glasses because drawing this statue of James Brown on Broad Street was NOT my finest hour. 


Once again I used Ted Nuttalls transparent palette plus Daniel smiths green apatite. Love that for trees. The tree tops were sponged with a sea sponge. 

The greys were mixed usually with Quin burnt orange and ultramarine blue. The more color you add the darker the grey is. 

Thanks for checking by. 

Margaret off to the doctor. Xxx

Day 726 – Almost two years. 

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My Van Gogh Sunflowers 20×24 Acrylic For Sale 
Coming up on two years of daily posting on Day 730 or at least attempting to do that. 

One of the things I learned this year – if you are taking a Viking cruise up the Seine River the wifi is definitely UNdependable. Have to think about a cure for that next time we go. 
My friends and fellow artists say they have seen a lot of growth since I started this journey. I started out to do a month then 50 days then 90. It grew like topsy. 


Auvers sur L’Oise – Prints available Watercolor 8 x 11″ approximately 

I love Van Gogh. Ever since the Viking Cruise and a tour of Auvers where he died I have been thinking about painting sunflowers because I knew I could never afford a real Van Gogh. I had to paint my own another that mine is in his league!! 
This week was the week. I bought a bunch of sunflowers at Krogers and Costco to paint in my blue Shishir pot from Tire City Potters in Augusta.  

Colors used – Pthalo blue, cerulean, ultramarine blue, golden Green Gold and nickel Azo gold, hookers Green, cad yellow medium, cad yellow light, cad red light, burnt umber, titanium white. 
I had a lot of trouble with the yellows. They tend to be transparent which did not work well over the turquoise background. I finally found a tune of Golden Primary Yellow that I drew petals on straight out of the tube. The impasto ( thick) paint finally did the trick. 

Day 725 Saturday. 

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Marking her up as a WIP. Her profile definitely needs some work but I like the odd colors she’s painted especially the Thalo blue and the golden green gold. A bit of liquitex cad red light, liquitex flesh and titanium white. The background is golden nickel Azo gold and green gold over em white gesso. 

Al Beyers oil

Ilanias

Cathe Dennis charcoal 

Lee Ringler pigma micron  pen 

Ruth Oearls beautiful pastel  


Tom Needhams watercolor


Fred Bakers fun acrylic 

Day 724. Oops 

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Thought I had posted this but was too busy painting. Busy day. What can I say!?  

Snacks at Costco were good today. That Kirkland wine is pretty tasty!

Thanks for reading.  

Margaret xxx 

Day 723 -WIP –  Three hours of work so far

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This is  HUGE 28×48 Acrylic.   I have only worked on it about three  hours this includes drawing the photo to paint it. 

I have a few glaring problems which I need to fix before going on. I have made her face and body much too wide. The shadows are nonexistent on her body on the left. 

She’s a friend and I intend to fix that. I would fix it even if she weren’t because I would rather make people thinner than they are.  

I had intended to paint this but all my friends said paint the next photo because the light is better which is true. I really love her boots. If you know her she wears boots most of the time since she rides horses. 

Only problem is that I had already drawn this to do a full sheet watercolor too. It took hours and hours to draw it and LOTS of erasing. 

 Even in this one the face appears a little wide. Possibly due to the lack of shadows?! 3/4 views are always a pain. 

So I guess I will do two since this one took most of the day to draw. 

I do think it’s interesting that it was so much easier to draw the second time out. Practice makes perfect right?!!

One last thing. A lot of times I will change the photo to black and white to paint from so if I want to I can give her a red shirt and a purple jacket. I do like the blues better but getting comments it’s TOO pretty. 

Sigh! You just can’t make everyone happy can you?! 😋

Colors used so far Golden Quin Nickel Azo Gold, Thalo Blue and Ultramarine Blue ( great for denim), Liquitex Burnt Umber and Titanium white plus a tube of Winsor Purple. 

Day 722 – the Miller 

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Named after its owner Frank Miller the theater is an Arte Moderne  theater built in 1938 in downtown Augusta. 

This side of Broad Street rarely gets any direct sunlight and of course it’s the side where all the old stores are. 

Business office buildings are largely on the other side of Broad the sunny side probably because who wants to shop in the hot summer sun??

The onset of the malls in the late 70s destroyed downtown Augusta business and forced the closure of the Miller in 1980s. 

Currently under new ownership of Peter Knox it is slated to reopen fully restored in 2017 as the new home of the Augusta Symphony. 

As kids we went to see Disney movies, Beatle movies, and the umpteenth screening of Gone with the Wind here. I distinctly remember watching Swiss Family Robinson and 101 Dalmatians here. 


Colors used. Ted Nuttalls colors and sodalite. Really like the way the sodalite granulated on the front of the grey stucco building. I also used a white and a light yellow caran d’ache watercolor crayon and a white gel pen for the lights. 

Anyway. Thanks for checking by. 

Margaret xxx  

Day 721  – Alexis 

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One of my Aiken painting friends blocking out her new painting. 
Alexis always comes to paint dressed to the nines frequently with a scarf flung over her shoulder wearing ballet flats. She says she’s trying to wear out her old work clothes now that she’s retired. 
I quipped at her it wouldnt take me long to do in my good clothes with acrylic paint smears. 
This painting doesn’t do her justice because she’s also very tiny. I fattened her up a bit. 😁 Sorey Alexis. She works hard on staying slim. Always eating somethings healthy. 
Speaking of which I think I will go eat a salad. Big wedding coming aka Mother of the Groom dress. Eeekkk. 

Colors used – Ted Nuttalls transparent colors. And sodalite. Makes a great granulating grey.