Berries & Bowl

 

One of the things I want to be working on this year is crystal, so I was excited to get started doing it. The crystal bowl was a gift to me from my dear husband. I worked from my own photo. When I took a photo of it today it buckled up immediately, I think because it was so freezing cold outside and the painting was wet. I'll probably chage out the photo when I get it fixed.

Numbers24Nine

As the lion or lioness - who dares arouse him?

size 11 X 14 

My Nephew, Mark Nesseth let me use his photo for a reference in painting this Mountain Lion; thank you Mark!

Times and Seasons

This is the finished painting, a project on Watercolor Workshop last July 2012, but I didn't do it then and it fits the project requirements for March 2013.

Photo by Brian E

 Times and Seasons

This is my first WC in which I adhered the paper (Aches 140 lb CP) to a piece of hardboard, in this case a gessoed art panel that I've had for awhile.

I loved taking this out of my Clearbag and it was ready to go. No messing with taping, stretching, mounting, stapling etc. As I wet the paper with my brush, it did not lift or buckle, never through the whole thing. I'm going back in now for a 2nd sitting to tweak this painting and will continue to report to you how it went. I can see this mounting technique would work for me even if I didn't intend to varnish it. I am smiling!

Follow this link for how I prepared the board for this painting

https://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=36662206#editor/target=page;pageID=3032892072931196785

Two days later: I have now given this one and the wrapped portrait 3 coats of varnish. I used Golden Polymer Varnish with UVLS (Satin), put some in a glass jar and added approximately 1/4 of volume of water. I used a new brush for the first coat but found it to wash out easily enough and was able to dry it for the next coat; this product isn't nearly as sticky and brush destroying as the Golden Soft Gel that I used to glue the paper to the hardboard in the first step. My plan is to switch to using a sponge applicator for that glueing process in the first step.

My observations so far: (1) I like the soft sheen which as far as I'm concerned, did not change the color at all. (2) I think diluting it down is definitely necessary; small bubbles were present but disappleared as it dried. (3) The first coat made the paper buckle slightly, not on this painting but on the portrait. It flattened back out when dry, then buckled less on each subsequent coat. (4) I plan to give them both the fourth and final coat tonight before bed. Drying overnight or all day is long enough in our Minnesota dry climate; consequently I will do the varnishing in two days as opposed to four.

Stop and Smell the Roses

This is WC paper soaked, wrapped and stapled to a stretcher frame like you would stretch canvas onto. I have yet to decide if I'm finished painting it so I haven't put on the varnish yet. I have never tried this technique, but so far I enjoyed the clean professional feel to the paper. It is no more work than stretching paper or taping it down like I've been doing for years, and in the end, the painting can be hung without glass, and even without a frame. It was so different going around the wrapped edges like a gallery wrap, but how fun.
My thanks to my friend Brenda for allowing me to use her beautiful photo; very enjoyable to paint.http://emotiveexpressions.blogspot.com/search/label/gallery%20wrapped%20watercolour

Here is a link which explains this technique, which I can't take credit for:
http://emotiveexpressions.blogspot.com/search/label/gallery%20wrapped%20watercolour