Friday 8 February 2013

TrainSketches || More leaves and a few feathers

More trainsketches, and more leaves. Nature never ceases to inspire me, I love trees and leaves, and leaves are just so fun and easy to draw and paint. As it's all grey and white outside, I wanted to fill my pages with an extra colour burst. And leaves are just perfect for that.


I'm learning to get to know my watercolours, thanks to my trainsketches, and I'm getting fonder and fonder of them. And it's a quick and easy way to add some colour in the evening, when I don't have the time and energy to get out my acrylics. I just love the vibrancy of the wet colour on the page...



... but am always slightly disappointed about how mucht the colour fades once the paint is dry, I must admit. Of course you can just add layer and layer of more colour, but I usually end up covering up all those little white spaces, which I try to leave out. I think it might be the paper of the sketchbook, though. While it takes watercolours pretty well, it's not proper watercolour paper. I found some watercolour sketches done on proper watercolour paper the other day, and the colours seemed much richer. But I'm not complaining. I love my little sketchbook, and it serves its purpose beautifully.


Sometimes I add the background colour first and then decide what colour I want my subjects to be, if I don't already know what I want. Here, I did the leaves first. I know I wanted them to be colourful. I wasn't sure what colour to choose for the background, and I even considered just leaving it white. But I prefer colour, so decided on a neutral blue. Just a few brush strokes in a darker shade to add some shadows to make the leaves pop off the page. I love how little it often takes to achieve a great effect.

I added the finishing touches the following morning, in the train. Some broader pen lines, and a few touches of white here and there. I love adding dots and things like that all over the place, like I did with my other leave sketch, but here it wouldn't really have fit.


And of course I've already begun my next sketck, again inspired by nature: feathers. The pencil and pen sketches have been completed, now they're waiting to get some colour over the weekend.



Linking up to the fabulous Paint Party Friday. Make sure to pop over and have a look at all the other talented artists sharing their work. It's always worth a visit.

22 comments:

  1. Wonderful!!!!
    Nicole/Beadwright

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  2. I just love the clear line of pencil and ink sketches! I wrote that somewhere else today.

    Happy PPF!

    Ilona

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  3. Beautiful sketches! And the way you photograph the drawings is just amazing :0)

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  4. Oh, I just love this!! HPPF!

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  5. they are fabulous.....super great job!
    I love how they look like they are coming right off the page.

    blessings,
    Cynthia♥

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  6. these leaves are gorgeous! you make watercolours look so easy to use when i know they're so not! i love the way you've created the shadows-those leaves really do seem to pop off the page!

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  7. Loving all your gorgeous leaves. Happy PPF, Annette x
    http://nettysartadventures.blogspot.co.uk/

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  8. Wonderful!! Love the happy colors, great job!!

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  9. Those are wonderful!! I love all the colors you used! It is disappointing sometimes when the paint dries lighter. Winsor & Newton has neon paint pans that stay brighter. I haven't tried them but I've seen examples.

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  10. Love both your leaves and your feathers. It's amazing how different the leaves appear with different colors!
    Rinda

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  11. Love your leaves, little shadows is a genius idea! Beautiful colors, both wet and dry! :) Looking forward seeing how you finish the feathers!<3

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  12. Love, love, LOVE your leaves- and while the color may have faded a bit upon drying, I think they are still extremely vibrant!
    Happy PPF,
    Stephanie

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  13. Wonderful shadows...and somehow I wanted my eye to move the paint splashes on your paint set over to the page! ???

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  14. what fantastic watercolor sketches!!! The shadowing under and around the leaves really makes it look as though they're floating on top of the page-wonderful!!! Happy PPF!

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  15. These arewonderful and bright! But i know what you mean about the colors lightening as they dry. I sometimes do a few more layers too!

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  16. I love the leaves!!! Beautiful!!! And so colorful!!!

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  17. I LOVE these! Adding that shadow was a great idea! I really thought at first that you'd cut out the leaves and just put them on your page. Love the colors too!

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  18. Beautiful and I love how the shadows make them pop off the page!

    Hugs Giggles

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  19. I love your watercolors, and the little shadows you added really set them off to good advantage. such cheerful colors!

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  20. Wonderful leaves and sketchbook page. So lovely!

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