Spring Nature Journaling and a New Class!

The warmer weather has arrived, and we can finally sit outside in the sun and paint.  What a beautiful season to keep a nature journal!

I've been wanting to use watercolors to paint scenes in my nature journal, but the paper in my current journal is designed for pencils and dry media only.  It's impossible to move the watercolors once they've been applied to the paper, and it's simply frustrating to work on paper not meant for painting.

I solved the problem by cutting 140 pound Canson watercolor paper to fit my current nature journal.  When I want to paint, I clip a piece of watercolor paper to the front of the journal, and when the page is finished, I tape it into my book.

Would you like to learn more about keeping a nature journal?  I'm teaching a 3 week starter course in Nature Journaling at the Community College of Beaver County in Monaca, PA on Mondays, July 7, 14 and 21st, from 6-9 PM.  We will start indoors with practice activities and inspiration, then go outside to make observations and sketches.  Please dress for the weather, though in rainy or stormy weather, we will create indoors. All materials provided.

For more information, and to sign up, follow this link:

https://ccbc.coursestorm.com/course/nature-journaling-washington-county2

 

I hope you join me!

Draw Your Breakfast Challenge

 

In my Beginner's Pencil Drawing Class at CCBC, I assigned homework to keep us all drawing during the week.  This week, we have drawn our breakfasts.

Because I don't like to wait to eat until I've finished drawing my breakfast, I snapped photos each morning, and drew from the reference photos.

This project made picking out breakfast more fun!  The bagel was my favorite breakfast to draw, but these cherries were fun, too!

And the iron skillet full of sausage and eggs is a classic.

What do you like to eat every morning?  Try drawing it at the breakfast table.  

You'll be surprised how good it feels to start your day with drawing.  

Most breakfast foods are mushy (oatmeal), blobby (scrambled eggs) or formed into simple shapes like berries, fruits, eggs and sausages.  It's a great way to be creative and feel accomplished before you leave the breakfast table.  And much better for your digestion than doom scrolling!

Happy Creating!

Tiny Art Journal

I just finished teaching my Tiny Art class at the Community College of Beaver County.  We had a wonderful time painting small natural items with gouache.

For our final project, we made journals using old books and book covers, and mounted our paintings inside.

I removed the text from an old, tattered textbook, and refilled it with 140# watercolor paper cut to size.

I simply tied the folded pages in with a thick piece of cotton string. No sewing or binding required!

My class demonstration paintings are mounted on the pages within.

Several pages remain blank at the back -- space to add new paintings to my book.

I love the handwriting in old books, and the worn, yellowed look. It adds character.

I invite you to take a class with me.  For a list of my upcoming classes in Beaver & Washington Counties, PA, follow this link:

https://ccbc.coursestorm.com/

Click on "Arts" 

You can also check out my "Take a Class with Betsy" page here: https://betsyblissart.blogspot.com/p/online-art-classes.html

Happy Creating!

Spring Color & Art Classes!

I've been teaching Watercolor Flowers at the Community College of Beaver County the last few weeks, and have noticed how the spring sunshine has been spilling into my paintings. I love the way that a class can focus my art-making so that I build my proficiency and grow as an artist.

Taking a class can help you to create in a series and get your artistic practice rolling along, too!

I invite you to join me for art classes at CCBC this spring!  I'll be teaching Nature Art for Self Care starting April 23rd, Art Journaling starting March 26th, and Make Your Own Rubber Stamp starting March 23rd.  

All classes are designed for beginners. Everyone is welcome!

You can find more information here under the "Arts" tab: https://ccbc.coursestorm.com/

I hope to see you in class!

I've been preparing for my upcoming class "Watercolor Flowers" by gathering supplies, filling palettes with watercolors, and playing with ways to paint flowers with watercolor.  The class begins this Saturday morning at the Community College of Beaver County, and is full, but there are lots of other artful classes at CCBC.  

You can check them out here: https://ccbc.coursestorm.com/

At this monochromatic time of year, the simple act of squeezing out tubes of watercolor paint into little wells lifts my spirits. 

The invigorating presence of fresh flowers in my studio feels like Spring -- nourishing for this artist's soul!

Why not buy yourself a bouquet of fresh flowers, and explore the colors within these jewels?

Wishing you many happy hours painting!

Self Care: Enchanted Tea Party

 

One of my favorite self-care tricks right now is the Enchanted Tea Party.  I brew up a pot of herbal tea, put on a fun outfit, and create! 

Recently, I took inspiration from the bold & contrasting colors in Lynne Perrella's book Artists' Journals & Sketchbooks (Quarry Books, 2004). 

I pulled out my art journal & art supplies, and began layering bright acrylic paints and bold markers, then glued on some text and hand-wrote a quote.  All while sipping delightful Elderberry-Lemon Balm tea.  Time drifted away, my body and mind relaxed, and I slipped into creative mode.  

The bold, bright colors spilled sunshine into my soul, and freed up my mind to play.

I even incorporated the quotes from the tea bag labels into my page spread.

The beauty of creating in my art journal for me is that I allow myself liberty to create anything I want to.  There are no rules, only techniques to explore & materials to play with.  If I don't like some element of a page, I can paint or collage over it.  Each layer adds interest.

I found a quote, and felt the rich vermilion and carmine reds invited such bold thoughts, so I wrote it in and added some decorations with permanent markers.

If you would like to join me for an in-person course in creating your own art journal, follow this link: https://ccbc.coursestorm.com/category/arts?page=2

For information about my upcoming in-person art classes, follow this link to the Community College of Beaver County website, and click on the "Arts" button: https://ccbc.coursestorm.com/ 

I would love to see you in one of my art courses!

More Pastel Paintings of Flowers

Another week in Painting Flowers with Pastels, another painting.  

The recent rains have created a bounty of blooms to clip and bring into class on Saturday mornings.  And, this week, I also brought in some potted Wave Petunia plants.

Focusing only on the bright fuchsia blossoms of the petunias became meditative & relaxing. A simple background of bold colors finished the study an made the flowers pop.

I hope your summer includes some time to meditate on beauty and paint to your heart's content! 

Art Journaling Class at the Community College of Beaver County

 I just finished teaching Art Journaling at the Community College of Beaver County.  My students and I explored a variety of techniques and materials, from collage to acrylic painting to colored pencils, watercolor pencils and homemade stamps.  

We began each morning with inspiration from other artist, then moved on to a writing prompt, and spent the remainder of class creating in our journals.

Many thanks to CCBC for hosting this class, and to my students for the energy and authenticity they brought to each session.

I hope you all continue to create and make discoveries in your journals!

If you're interested in joining me at CCBC for future art classes, you can find a class listing here: https://www.ccbc.edu/arts