Adventures in Water Color

For a long time now, water colors have scared me.... a lot. A lot, a lot.Growing up, most of my painting sessions were painting ceramics with my mother at our dining room table. This meant a lot of acrylics, or sometimes playing with stain. Otherwise, not much else. The painting stopped around 9 years old, do to us losing our home and whatnot. So, painting is something I left for a long time. Recently, I tried my hand at painting ceramics and other ornaments again, and then watched a lot of different videos opening boxes and paint supplies (a lot of different videos and different people.)        

 So, what did I decide to do? Face those fears of water color head on and challenge myself. 

Back in Mermay, I sketched this little mermaid. She was holding some sort of shining in her hands, and I thought her lovely (even without eyes).

 So, taking up a canvas, I re sketched her, but with more detail. I also, off to the side, played around with the paint and the water, thinning and mixing the colors I wanted to use. The brand? Random Dollar General brand. Not too long ago, I wanted to to a craft night with friends and just bought a ton of stuff from Dollar General. Needless to say, that night was a blast!! Which is where the water color paints popped in. I must say though, trying to make lighter colors was much harder than I thought! So much water had to be added to them. O.O SO. MUCH. WATER. For a little bit, I wondered if it would work!

After I got a sketch that I was pleased with, I used a kneaded eraser to erase as much as the graphite as I could, while still keeping the original layout. I was told later that I prolly would have inked it first and gotten rid of all the graphite, to keep anything from muddying. I will remember that for the future.

Then the painting process began. I wanted things to be really blend-y and fluid. Then I tried to ink with water color black, which was a mistake that messed up the arms a little. Then I used pen and a white wet erase pen by Expo for lines and highlights. And yeah! She may not be the best color job, but I am really pleased with my first push towards the world of water color. She is just so gorgeous and flow-y !! Best part, I learned a lot. I learned out to pick up most colors. I learned how to flow colors together, what works, what doesn't work. Just a lot of good knowledge. Could there be more shading? Yes. Could I have done better on the right hand? Yes. Am I happy with it? Yes, I am. 

I will probably revisit water colors again. Until then, I will just enjoy this piece for what it is.