The Log Book
Tales of an Artist Afloat
Depending on your hemisphere, your kids are either enjoying long summer holidays or a chilly, soggy winter... what better way to keep them entertained than by playing with watercolors?
I've put together a tutorial for a fun color mixing activity that will help your kids learn basic watercolor techniques as they explore a magical underwater world- and there are ideas for expanding the activity too. You can check it out on the Doodlewash website If you want to help disadvantaged kids to access their own creativity, as an Artist Ambassador for World Watercolor Month I'm giving 10% of all sales in July to the Dreaming Zebra Foundation. Treat yourself or a friend at my Etsy shop- and help change a child's life!
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Have you ever wanted to paint a night sky? It's a lovely way to spend an afternoon, especially on a wet weekend. Follow my step-by-step video tutorial below to create your own unique piece of art. Mine has a nautical twist (of course), but you could silhouette buildings, animals, mountain ranges... the only limit is your imagination! I've used masking fluid for my stars, but if you don't have any then a good quality gel pen works well too (see how I use mine in the final stages of my artwork). I'd love to see your results- tag me on Facebook or Instagram @andreaenglandart. Leave me feedback and questions in the comments below! I was very excited when my order of ink samples from Goulet Pens arrived, along with a couple of ink syringes. The syringes are supposed to be used to transfer ink into my fountain pens without creating an eco-disaster, but I soon got distracted by other possibilities! I made a video as I went- I've added more instructions and details about supplies below. I started off by creating the bell shape with some water from a pipette- a water-loaded brush would work just as well. Then I pulled a very small amount of gold ink into the ink syringe and squirted it into the water bubble. It only took a few drops- and watching the ink swirl in the bubble is so pretty! I added the darker red, then used a brush to trail some water to make the tentacles. Once again I squirted ink into the water- occasionally a little too much would come out but I think the blobs add interest. In fact, the inspired me to try drawing straight from the syringe! It was also perfect for adding some little dots, then I used a brush and some water along with turquoise ink to paint the water. A few swirls with a white Posca paint marker was the perfect finishing touch.
If you fancy trying this yourself, ink syringes are available from Goulet, and you can pick up a whole rainbow in ink samples from them for about $1.25 per sample (I used Noodlers Apache Sunset, Ottoman Rose and Navajo Turquoise). They also ship worldwide and the samples are so well packaged they survive international transit (I am in no way affiliated with or sponsored by Goulet- I'm just a fan!). You can also drop the ink in from an eyedropper or paintbrush. It will be a bit less precise but equally pretty! If you give this a try, then please let me know how it goes in the comments, send me a link to your pictures or tag me on Facebook or Instagram- @andreaenglandart I'd love to see what you come up with! |
Andrea England
An Artist Afloat- Painting the world one anchorage at a time. Archives
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