Frozen Waterfall - Hocking Hills

Frozen Waterfall at Old Man's Cave  5"x 7" oils 

This one is little, but turned out so nice! I started on a 5"x7" black canvas board, and (with the exception of the water), a palette knife was the only thing I used for the first step (below). The waterfall is at Old Man's Cave in Hocking Hills and this first step includes the bridge that passes over the top.

The second time I worked on it (below), I used a little artistic license and eliminated the bridge.

I didn't like the way it seemed to cut into the atmosphere. I also started using some small brushes to create a little more form in the rocks and continue adding detail to the water. 

The result of the third session is what you see at the top. I went back to the palette knife and, with patience, kept that nice rocky texture. I also brightened the area where the bridge used to be to give more perspective and atmosphere. I did that by scumbling - applying a thin layer of white oil paint over the top of the dried layer of paint. Then, I went over that with a bit more work with the palette knife.

By the way, the reference photo I used was taken by me during a Valentine's trip to Hocking Hills with two other couples. Though the weather made the trip there treacherous, and the hike was no joke (though we had several laughs as we had to scoot along over the icy trails on our butts in some places), I feel fortunate to have seen this area in its winter glory.

Thanks for stopping by!

And if you're here on the 14th, Happy Valentine's Day!

February - Love Letter

 die-cuts and digital

"Woo-hoo! February is here!" - says almost no one. It is typically one of the gloomiest months of the year weather-wise. I, however, am a person who loves February and I've most likely blogged about that before. 

Not only does it contain the incredibly exciting Groundhog, and Presidents Days! but also Valentine's Day, the Superbowl, and lastly . . . MY Birthday! Seriously, WOOHOO! 

 

If you're looking for more reasons to enjoy the month, you can celebrate something nearly every day with all those exciting little national days of celebration. February 1st - National Ice Cream for Breakfast Day! to February 28th - National Chocolate Soufle Day! Ironically, February 28th is also National Tooth Fairy Day, so maybe you can make some money when your teeth fall out after celebrating all those sweet food days. Win-WIN. Right?

For more of these fun national reasons to celebrate something in February, click here. I've made it easy for you!

Make everyone your valentine this month. Spread the love! Love yourself! Get your taxes done early. Organize that closet you were supposed to do in January. Shop for a new green shirt to have handy when March 17th rolls around. Start a Christmas ideas list (never too early for that, and you'll thank yourself in December.)

All I'm saying is . . . February can be your favorite month too. It's all about attitude. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Olive - Grid Drawing

My granddaughter "Olive" 8 1/2 x 11 graphite

 

This one is in my handmade sketchbook - the kind where you can't really tear out pages.

I did a grid drawing, both to make it easier on myself, and to share a little about the grid drawing process.

I printed off a copy of the photo at the same size as my paper. The grid I drew in white gel pen on the photocopy is the same size as the one I drew (very lightly in graphite) on my sketchbook page. Then it's a matter of copying what you see inside each individual square. 

Here's the beginning. I erase the grid as I go. Remember to draw the grid as lightly as possible to make this step easy on yourself.

I am the most comfortable with my simple mechanical pencil which is a medium graphite, halfway between the soft, very dark graphite (like 6B or 8B) and the hard graphite which doesn't make marks beyond a soft gray color (like 6H). I do, however, switch back and forth between harder and softer graphite pencils as needed. You can see at the top of the photo. 

Notice that my drawing hand is resting on a piece of scrap paper. This prevents my hand from picking up graphite and smearing it around, making a mess on my hand and the paper. It also keeps any of the oils from my skin off the paper.

You also see a couple types of erasers, including the very important kneadable eraser just at the top of the photo, and a brush to wipe the surface after erasing (again keeping my hands off the paper as much as possible).

Lastly, the blending stomps! I don't know what I would do without them for those soft gradations. They hold a lot of graphite from blending the darker areas, and then become a drawing instrument themselves.

Information on blending stomps, erasers, and varying degrees of graphite hardness can be picked up in nearly any beginner's drawing book. I just wanted to share my workspace with you.

A closer look

These next two photos are simply progression shots that I take at the end of a setting. I usually work about an hour at a time. This isn't a commission so I go at a leisurely pace for the joy of it.

One more supply to mention - black colored pencil!

A book passed through my hands recently, and I learned that you can get the really dark blacks that make a drawing pop by switching to black colored pencil for the heavy shadowed areas and places like the eyes. It goes smoothly over the graphite. I use Prismacolor colored pencils.

You can also see that rich black in her hair at the top of the page.

Thanks for stopping by!

House in Watercolor

This is a project I did as a wedding gift for my best friend's daughter. It's approximately 8 1/2 x 11.

She lives around the corner from me, so I was able to stroll over and take photos when I knew they were at work. (Didn't want to spoil the surprise.) 

The evening shot was a little trickier because I didn't want them to see me out there. But, I wanted the painting to look as closely as possible to the moment they were to get married, and I like the colors of the sunset on the house.

Below is just a quick watercolor study I did in a 5 x 7 watercolor sketchbook.

Then, I started on the big one. 

First, I drew a light pencil drawing on watercolor board.

This is what it looked like after the first layer of watercolor. I takes me a few layers to build up rich colors. Once the layer dries, it's lighter than what you expect.

 

Second session

Third session

Almost there. Just need the details

As the piece was going to be a surprise, I couldn't get a photo of their dogs outside, and I'm not skilled enough to just paint them in. I really wanted to include their "kids" so I took an extra photo on a different occasion, hoping they wouldn't alert Mom and Dad to my presence.

You can see a couple guidelines I drew on the photo. I usually do this step by just eyeballing it, but I wanted to share a bit of a trick that could help you at some point. It's a step away from a grid drawing. I'll share a drawing, later in January, that I did using a grid. 

Step one - graphite

Step two

Step 3 - I incorporated some colored pencil as well.

I had both pieces framed to match and hang together if they would choose to do so. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Happy New Year 2025!

This is "January" from my 5th calendar! 

It's a combination of Spellbinders die-cuts and digital artwork in the Procreate App.

I'll share one of the calendar pages on the first of every month this year. They all begin with die-cut designs, so the calendar has a nice cohesive design. It was a fun project to work on!

I've already started brainstorming and taking photos for the 2026 calendar. It won't be with die-cuts, but there is a theme I'm going to try to stick to.

As always, thanks for stopping by! 

Happy Halloween from the House of the Kracken!

Digital image done in Procreate

I saw this house a couple of weeks ago when I was out for a walk.

It was so cute! I had to take a photo.

I did this small study in a watercolor sketchbook, making the tentacles larger and more threatening. 

But, that wasn't enough! I put a photo of this watercolor onto my iPad in the Procreate App and drew over the top of it, stretching the height of the roof, and making it a nighttime scene.

This was FUN!!!

 

I wish everyone a safe and Happy Halloween!

Thanks for stopping by!