ONE PART WATER, THREE PARTS COLOR

wanted to thank you all, for your encouragement,ideas and friendship!! 2009 has been my first year blogging and i love it!! you are all so talented and helpful!!! love seeing all your exciting paintings and creativity.. WOW!!! i want to try it ALL!!...LOL thank you!!

wanted to wish everyone of you a very merry christmas.. hope your holidaysare filled with close friends and caring family~~ AND lots of love and laughter!!

happy new year and happy painting~~
cindi

found this drawing sitting around while cleaning my art room, drew it for a class i didnt attent a couple months back..so thought what the heck, its drawn.. might as well go for it!! had fun doing it but dang its so tight, it squeaks.. lol i think two of my new years resolutions in two weeks are going to have to be...1. try looser, 2.darker darks!!!! hopefully at the end of next year, i can look back and see some improvement.. hey, i can always hope!!!LOL

my gosh its been almost a month since ive been here?? where has the time gone??
guess its been the rushing, shopping, wrapping and visiting gkids and kids Christmas performances..

yesterday i wanted to paint.. i was getting withdrawals?? always a little uncomfortable painting gifts!! what if they dont like it?? how do they nicely pitch it?? LOL so thanks to ponting on wc for the yummy photo... i painted a little painting for son and dil.. they got some new red drapes and hope this will work in their family room...sorry forgot to take picture before i matted.. duh!!!LOL

wrapping this weekend and then one more day of shopping on monday and i should be done.. fingers crossed!!

will be stopping by to say hi and wish you all merry christmas, next week!! hope you're all staying warm !!

this week in "painting friends" we had our friday foto challenge! thanks to susan lacy for the fun photo!!!

these rocks are located in utah!! i started out painting my normal way.. lots of detail, very soft and light and then some thing said "oh what the heck just go for the gusto.. its only paper.." it only took a few minutes,once i decided to let the paint fly!!! i was splashing paint here and there and having a blast and not worring about what was going to happen!! ..AND i got the darks in, for a change!!

thats my story and i'm sticking to it!!! LOL

have a fun day all!!

i saw this photo on james parkers windows to the words blog ( http://windowstothewords.blogspot.com/) and i had to give it a whirl!!...the little kids were sooooooo cute..

was going to make my way around blogs, last week but got a thrown a curve ball late thursday night.. my brother in law wanted to accompany hubby home friday.. so rushed around and cleaned and made food and they arrived at 2 am.. we woke early and took them around san diego to see some sites and they left at 3 am the next morning... so little to no sleep, either night.. needless to say, by sunday i was a zoombie..lol even tho it was hectic.. i was glad he did it..he felt the trip caused major confusion getting there and he was scared to have him travel alone... so bless his heart.. they all arrived safe and sound!!

so i only got to a few places before getting the call, so i will be there soon to check out all your new paintings... lol hope you all had a happy monday!!

well i'm back and i had a blast!!! didnt know i could still giggle so much!! hubby is still in ohio and will be coming back on monday.. had a rough first week, but settling in a bit now and enjoying his family!

think i'll spend the next few days catching up on here, visiting a few of your blogs, to enjoy your new paintings.. wow!! feel like i've been gone forever!! and of course paint!!! wooo hooo!!

this photo was a friday challenge on painting friends.. the photo was provided by desiree.. thanks kiddo!! she always makes me stretch.. and the glass was a stretch.. for sure..

got little tighter on this than i wanted to but like the colors and how they play off each other... funny we all thought it was an apple in the bowl, but found out after painting, it was a peach!!! oopsie... its an apple now!!

hope everyone is having a good week.. will be by soon, to say hi!!

ps this looks a bit wonky on here.. its my great camera expertise!!

this is my grandson Joshua... he took this photo while playing with is new camera.. and then photo shopped it.. i loved the results!! i had a challenge to paint values.. using only two colors.. and i thought perfect photo.. the two colors i used were quin burnt orange and french ultra marine blue!! as usual think i should have my darks darker, but obviously this isn't going to be an over night fix!!! LOL must be a stubborn gal!

yesterday hubby left for ohio for a few weeks to be with his family.. as i've mentioned before, he has early onset alzheimers... well getting ready for the trip really pushed him down that path farther.. it was quite unsettling seeing how much he struggled.. i almost cancelled the trip, but his mom is getting older and i was concerned that he might not have this chance, again..... hope after a few days of being there, he will settle in ok!

using the alone time wisely ~~ heading out to see a few gals from high school for few days.. with 7 of us chatting and giggling .. hoping it will be just what the doctor ordered!!.. i'll see ya all as soon, as i get back

have a nice week! and HAPPY PAINTING!

recently i was honored by getting the Kreative Blogger award from silvia williams !!thank you so very much !! i have seen the cute little awards around on different blogs and have thought.... wow!!! i see why this one got an award.. its wonderful.. not sure mine is so wonderful, but sure having lots of fun and appreciate the award...please stop by silvias blog and check out her new portrait!! thank you again... :)

i guess when getting this award, i have a few fun duties.. one is to tell you 7 things about me, you might not know!!

the 7 things:

1. i am married, with 2 kids, and 5 wonderful grandkids!!
2. i'm 5 ft tall and shrinking!!
3. i love watercolor!! i try and paint everyday!!
4 my favorite things to do, besides paint, is read, dance and be with friends and family .. not necessarily in any order...
5 i'm afraid to fly, so travel long distances by train!!
6. im a san diego native!!
7 i really enjoy my new blogging friends !! thank you all so much, for sharing and being so encouraging and helpful!!!!

my 2nd fun duty is one that i thought long and hard about.. there are so many folks that have been so helpful, kind and encouraging.. but most of them have already been honored.. so i tried to select some very special folks to receive this honor that haven't won this award before and are very deserving!! altho a double recipient or two slipped in!! LOL i am to honor 7 special folks with this award!!

i have included their links, so please take a minute to visit their blogs, by clicking on their name, you are in for a very special treat!!

stephie is an extremely talented young lady.. she not only paints like a dream, but her photography is also AMAZING!! even tho we have never met in person , i feel very close to her and have for over 2+ years!! her cute voice( we skyped the other day) has such a wonderful accent, i told her i thought i was talking to the queen!! xxx

Rhonda ..even tho this lady has been awarded this award before.. she deserves it again.. she is so encouraging to everyone, with such an uplifting personality! she is so talented and has a heart of gold.. rhonda,thank you for being a wonderful online art friend!!

christiane!! this gal joined our painting friends fourm, awhile back... and i was amazed, not only by her wonderful talent, but her bubbly excitement about watercolor.. she is with out a doubt...my favorite pear and door lady!!

desiree is another multi talented and caring gal, that im lucky to know.. what can't she do??.. her day must have 15 more hours in it, than mine.. she has her own fabric line out(as of last week) and does fantastic quilts ... and not to forget her watercolor paintings and pastels.. truly stunning!!


deb i saw her work when she first joined painting friends, but because of her busy working week.. she disappeared, but i've found her now and im so glad.. she is a wonderful artist!!

deb w this is the fun lady that got me pouring paints and making a complete mess of my kitchen sink.. how can she not get award?? it was either that or a bill for the cleanup!! thanks for the encouragement and your wonderful blog that makes it look so easy ... when i can tell you for sure, its NOT!!! LOL

Candy, this lady has been so encouraging on here and i love her recent gratitude Friday post.. really made me stop and be thankful... thank you, candy!!

i must mention that there are 4 other folks that blow me away, by their talent and generosity!! but they have this award many times over because they are so generous with their time and are multitalented too !!! their names are ROSEMARY SEXTON, ANN BUCKNER, LIZ HOLM and the wonderfully talented mr. FABIO click on their names and check these blogs out .. you will add them to your blog scroll, for sure!!!! wow .. special thanks to you 4 for your wonderful kindness to a very new blogger like me..


you are all the best!! thank you so much!!! xxx cindi

its been a few crazy weeks and another few are coming up..been a bit awol!! first i want to thank sylvia williams for the wonderful honor of the kreative blogger award.. what a wonderful surprise!!! hope you have time to stop by her blog and check out her great watercolors..(http://silviawilliamspaintswatercolors.blogspot.com/..) she has a wonderful flower going, right now!!! wow!! im going to take a few days to pass this blogger award forward and take time to look around to find a few specialfolks..... again thank you sylvia!!

been working on this class assignment this week.. i missed a few of the classes( like all of them) so hope i got the idea of what we were supposed to do!!!LOL

had fun just letting the shadows blend in the horse and ground.. used three colors ayellow, perm aliz.crim and ulta marine blue.. love how they just took on a life of their own!! tried not to touch much with a brush once they were down. just rolled the paper to try and keep the freshness..

first of all thank you michelle at following the master blog...(http://followingthemasters.blogspot.com/) decided to give this a try... looked on google and came up with this lady she is antonelo da messina.. she is a renaissance master artist, from sicily!!

to be honest not sure if i fell in love with her beautiful face or that she had a scarf covering her head, which meant, no hair to paint.. yippee!!

i had lots of fun with this.. i realize we are just giving our interpatation, but its really a learning process also.. i struggle with darks and in this one i really had to throw them in to get the curvature of her face.. way more than i usually do.. but it turned out good, so maybe i can kick it up a notch in the next one and not be so whimpy!!.. heres hoping anyhow!!

leaving for a few days in palm springs..its hot hot hot over there, but should have fun.. taking my new watercolor travel palette with me, so we'll see if i play or paint...??
have a good week everyone!!

after yesterday's disaster thought id try again.. this time i put the frisket down first.. then painted the frog instead of poring then painting the frog..(..photo one!!) cause last color on, is the one that shows most and i need to sink this little guy.. at least part way.. i actually like him better before sinking... but on with the assignment!! this is the final painting.. i would like to show a bit more murkiness in the water but if i do that, ill lose the froggie!! i love the frog and the frisket areas.. so i think this is where i need to stop!!

now its time to thank deb ward, for the encouragement to try this.. if you read the disaster previous.. post.. i want to add.. i had a blast and learned lots and will defiantly try it again.. and sink is white and sparkling again..!!! YIPPEE!! how ever if anyone ever opens my pipes, under the sink!!.. they are going to find the most colorful plumbing around!!! LOL

not sure what order these will be in..but here's my story and i'm sticking to it!!
i have been watching all of you try this frisket thingy and pouring and deb ward said go for it .. so .. i did!! first mistake..

for my art class this friday, i have to have a semi submerged frog.. so i thought hey this would be fun to try and use this technique.. it would make great pond scum!! second mistake!!

third mistake was very quick after, that i did all the frisket and then started paint.. OOPS!!!forgot to pour!! duh!!! BIG MISTAKE

so we start again!!

the first photo is the first pour(finally).. kinda fun, i was a mess, but oh well!!

second picture is the second pour and i can tell right now this is not going to work!! for what she wants in class.. so 4th mistake!!.. ps the frog is not smoking a cigar.. i just thought i didnt want to pour there.. dont ask me why.. i haven't clue!!

3rd photo...so i did it all again and i thought yippee!! this one is going to be perfect!!!! i'll just add a bit of salt!! HA!! 5th mistake.. the dang bottom of the frog disappeared!! NOT GOOD!!

then looking into my kitchen sink, i forgot i was using phthalo blue staining color.. oopsie.. 6th mistake .. stopping to clean sink out before the sinks is a new beautiful polka dot, with dark phthalo blue!!! will be right back!! so far i'm batting 1000!! should i say thanks to deb, now?? LOL

first of all thank you david for the self portrait challenge(http://spgloballovein.blogspot.com/)

the challenge was to paint a self portrait, wearing head gear of some sort!! my first thought was, i'd just paint a bag over my head.... worked for halloween many times..LOL but then i went in and took a few pictures looking in the mirror and this one seem to work.. the only thing was, when drawing my pencil zigged when it should have zagged and i had the quickest, cheapest face lift of all.. nice looking neck line.. so liking that look..A LOT, i just left it!! hee hee!!

why cant other things in life, be so dang simple!!??

entered this in james porters blog challenge(http://windowstothewordsart.blogspot.com/) thanks so much for the photo ron fenley and for the time you put in to your blog challenges, james!! this kitty looks satisfied and happy beyond belief... woo hooo!! there are days i feel like that too and its always after breaking my diet.. its later i think.. what the heck were you thinking?? LOL

this was a challenge on painting friends... thank you ann, for the wonderful photo!!

i was abit hesitant on doing this, as i had never tried copper before... so i asked around for ideas..tried a few different colors, and finally thought this one might work.. especially with the green of the apples.. ended up using a wet on wet wash of aurelin yellow and light perm a c.. then after dry, i added a overall light wash of quin burnt orange!! it was a fun painting to try !! after looking at it again this morning.. i might go back in and darken the left side of the background a bit more, behind the apples, to give it abit more variance

have a great sunday!!

I always look forward to the challenges offered by karin on different strokes for different folks, blog..... she really forces me out of my comfort zone!! thanks karin!! i think!!!

this week she has us trying these yummy cupcakes.. how come, when i'm on a diet??? LOL im surprised one cupcake doesn't have a bite or three, missing from it...

these were fun to do!!! had never tried cupcakes before!! in wishy washy.. nora and i did desserts and she did cupcakes, i did the strawberry short cake..

have a good week!!

today back to art class.. woo hooo!!! gads a gazillion new folks again.. they usually drop out by the 4th week, but the first few weeks its tough to find a seat!!LOL

today since there is awide variety of abilities.. we went over a wash and graded wash.. then put this little painting together, using just one color and using the examples we had just learned.. and of course our nifty viva paper towels, that do great wiping, when damp or dry!! i need to buy stock in the company.. cause they are fantastic..

next week on to frogs.. with bodies above and below, the water.. ought to be interesting...!!

c-ya later!!

well nora and i challenged each other to try darker skin tones this week, on our wishy washy challenge, in painting friends!!..both our painting attempts lately, have been a bit weak in the dark value areas.. so we got a neat photo from wc.. called namibian girl.. offered by patrick hedges.. thank you patrick!!

we were going to try and do this in chas reid style.. (so much for that !!! LOL) this is my third attempt and might try again, but time was up for our challenge.. i used only three colors.. fu marine blue, quin burnt orange and a bit of perm. aliz crimson for jacket and lips...

it looks better on here, than in person!!! i like lots about it .. but i can also see room for improvement too!!

back to the painting easel!! tee hee .. have a good one!!

ps always open for critiques and suggestions.. thanks!!

going to go camping for a few days, just to check out the rv... its been awhile.. so not sure if we remember how to work everything..??? so taking it on a short trial run...

been busy packing and grabbing just the important necessities.. paint, water jug, brushes, paper sketch paper and pencils and camera.... then if room left, food and clothes and fishing supplies..lol see i do have my priorities right lol

this was a fun painting to do.., glazing techniques, for a 2 hour challenge on "painting friends" .. was happy how it came out, so no tears shed!!

wanted to stop in and say a quick hi... and bye!!! enjoy the rest of your week!! ;)

Having ten for lunch.. kids, grandkids etc... .. So lots of giggles and silliness!! Should be a wonderful day!!

Hope you all have the same!!

Here is my veggie painting.. This painting was done from a photograph, provided on the blog Different Strokes From Different Folks, where artists are encouraged to paint or draw their own interpretations. I decided to crop it a bit and had really fun painting it.. Enjoy seeing what everyone does with their paintings!!! Thanks Karin for doing this and spending your time to make it work!!

whew!!! finally got the peppers done!! just in the nick of time!!! LOL

our wishy washy team chose a photo by madmum (ruth) in wc..thanks ruth for sharing your photo!!

wanted to try doing under painting and glazing.... and have the whole effect seem loose... some how loose left the table !!! LOL

it was fun to do and enjoyed trying some thing a little different...

hope everyone is having a happy sunday!!

today on painting friends we challenged ourselves to try and paint a quick sketch a day.. we are using the alphabet as our guide.. so today we started with A.. lol

we have a few avocado trees so thought, ok that will be different... since they are hass avo's, they have bumpy skin.. first i tried just pressing the scott towel lightly, over fresh paint, to give it some texture, but it just wasn't enough.. so i re-wet, adding light wash of color and used my stylus, while still wet.. i think that gives it a great suggestion of bumps.. with out painting every single bump!!! LOL these look yummy, wish they were ripe, would have an avo sandwich...