Hebridean Dream

Here is a painting I did from imagination inspired by the Outer Hebrides with its mountains and beautiful shell beaches its called Hebridean Dream watercolour and Oil Pastel on watercolour paper its 20 inches by 14 inches in size

Its been a while

Its been a while since I have last posted since then been experimenting with oils, acrylics and of course oil pastels, will post some more recent paintings soon, I sold a small oil painting at a recent exhibition, need to practise more and do more mosaics as well which I really enjoy doing as well will update soon Lesley

Trying out new set of Watercolours

The past school term I haven't done much daily painting I have been in helping at the local school make a community mosaic noticeboard, the kids were brilliant and have done a fantastic job, will take some photos when it goes up on the wall and is completely finished, a received a gift voucher from the school and with it bought a small pocket set of Winsor and Newton Artist watercolours and a small pad of paper, this is a quick doodle to try them out the colours are so intense and lovely to work with, I hope to use them outside for painting, need to remember next time to leave some paper white

Strichen Park

Spent a lovely day last Wednesday with the art group at Strichen Park this is the finished painting of the pond and a swan using Caran d'ache Neopastels

Fulmars on Cliff Top

One good thing about waiting in all day for a parcel to turn up by courier it is a good excuse to finish a painting, after a dabble with oils and then going back to oil pastels I realise how quick and easier they are to use, I think oil pastels are the thing for me, mind you it is good to experiment with other media once in a while, this is a painting for an exhibition at the Lighthouse museum in Fraserburgh, it has to be paintings of seabirds, two Fulmars sitting on top of a cliff with pink flowers I cant remember what they are called

Oil painting experiments

These are a couple of small experiments the mountains are done using a brush and liquin to give a misty feel to the painting with soft edges, the trees are a contrast of lots of texture and a bit expressionism using the oil bars and blending with fingers found that baby oil and kitchen roll is good for washing hands covered in oil paint and then with soap and water afterwards need to do some bigger paintings

Fraserburgh Beach painted using Oilbars

This painting on stretched Canvas of Fraserburgh Beach from memory using Winsor and Newton Oilbars took about 45 minutes to paint.

Oil bar paintings today

Today I managed to put an extra layer on Tuesdays and Wednesdays paintings, having great fun with the oil bars

Winsor and Newton oilbars arrived

Managed to have a quick go with my new oil bars that

arrived today in the post, they are great to work with very quick, En plein air landscape of Mormond Hill again, they are great for a painterly effect not for detail, need to paint bigger, better if working very few layers, maybe need to leave this a day or so to dry, no brushes were use to paint this just the bars and my fingers

Isle of Skye Oil Pastel progress

This is nearly finished just a few things to change did a bit more at art class last Wednesday,
 been a busy week with birthdays and been in at the local school helping them with a mosaic project, I have ordered some art stuff with my birthday money and after some deliberation and trawling the internet for bargains, I have ordered some colourmount pastel board, more neopastel oil pastels, more colourfix clear primer, zest-it solvent and a set of Winsor and Newton Artist oil bars that I got reduced,  haven't tried the oil bars before I cant wait to try them out and see what they are like, watch this space!!!!!, only thing now is I have to wait in for deliveries to come by

the post!!

Homemade willow charcoal

This is my second attempt at making willow charcoal, next time I will need to use thicker pieces of wool, cut pieces of willow so they would fit in to old metal sweety tin, take bark of them, fill the tin up to the top put 5 holes in the lid and put on top of outside camp fire or barbeque coals that are grey ash colour, leave until fire goes out and tin has cooled down, then you will have hopefully some charcoal, be carefull with fire (dangerous) and make sure you make holes in lid so steam and gas can escape.

Charcoal cloud study

A quick cloud sketch using homemade charcoal, I was surprised hoe well the willow charcoal turned out it, is very fragile but does the job

Charcoal drawing of our dog Rosie

This is a quick charcoal sketch done yesterday

A view of Knockmonean Hill from my house

A very quick sketch using a pen and then a watercolour wash on top today's daily painting, I missed art class my daughter and I have cold and coughs, they were going to do pen and ink today, so did a view from my conservatory

A view of Fraserburgh from Lootingstone

A quick gouache en plein air landscape of a view I have been wanting to paint for years, from the very far corner of our field next to the house. A beautiful day today for painting I should be cutting the grass!!!!!

Trees in garden watercolour

Another quick watercolour sketch a view from my kitchen of some of the trees in my garden will need to practise drawing/painting trees I think

Clouds over Mormond Hill Watercolour

Todays daily painting using watercolour on watercolour paper

Impressionist Sky

Todays daily painting of a sky using acrylics and after the style of Monet.

Rays of Light over Mormond Hill

This is todays daily painting for a change using gouache, from a photo I took from our field next to the house looking towards Mormond Hill.

 

 

Yesterdays painting was done at the Wednesday Art Group it is still a work in progress oil pastel of dolphins.

Tuesday's paintings

I was helping my friend yesterday and then had kids club so today I did two paintings today and tried to take photos step by to make a video but on both got carried away and didnt take as many photos as I should have here are todays paintings on mount board the farm one has a gouache underpainting

No painting yesterday

I didnt do any painting yesterday but was showing the kids how to use oil paints they wanted to try them out, got a bit messy but they had fun

Halo around sun 27th April 2013

Painting using oil pastel looking towards Mormond Hill only the bottom half of halo was visible when I painted this and then there was a great big display so the camera came out and painting had to stop first time today have seen Parhelic circle, and 120 degree Parhelia

Painting 26th April Stormy sky

Oil painting on primed paper painted with pallete knife

1 week of daily paintings

I have managed to do a daily painting now for one week most have been small paintings done in under an hour, have to watch less tv, less time on facebook and more painting, it the only way to get better!!!!! only another 51 weeks till a yea,r at this rate I will be needing more art supplies and more space as the thick impasto oil paintings done with a knife will take ages to dry.

April showers

2nd painting usinfg oils and pallete knife, having great fun using both , painted the clouds outside and then the rain came down had to finished the picture in studio. Oil paint on primed mount board

daily paintings 24th April

The dolphin was quickly painted at art class, oil pastel on  black mountboard, the tree is my first attempt at using my new Reeves plastic pallete knifes from great art, its a fun piece just to try them out used oil paint straight from tubes.

Oil painting practise 23rd April 2013

This is a practise piece, a view from my studio, oil paints on primed mountboard

A bit of a misty feel to this one, too much blending

A view of Upper Strathellie from Lootingstone

This was painted today in 40 minutes using caran d'ache neopastels on mountboard, another view from my garden

View from field next to house daily painting 21st April 2013

This is a quick 10 minute sketch from the field next to my house, it started raining before I could finish, Sennelier oil pastels on mountboard with colourfix primer.

Mormond Hill Plein Air sketch 20th April 2013

This is a quick sketch of Mormond Hill on Daler Rowney Mountboard using Caran d'ache Neopastels

Studio

Here is a photo of my studio, all set up for painting looks a bit messy,

Home made Pochade box

This is a "homemade" pochade box which attaches to a tripod for my camera it was made using a pastel storage box and using the hinges and canvas holder from a heavy table easel box that I rarely used, that I got from the barn New Hope Trust, for £5 many years ago, I gave the whole thing a varnish so it can withstand Scottish weather and used a 1/4 inch t-nut so it can attach to my tripod, Pochade boxes can be expensive this homemade one cost me about £15. No excuse for not getting out and doing some Plein air painting.

Paintings 19th April

Here are a couple of paintings the small one was completed today and the larger one is a work in progress

Both are painted using Caran d'ache Neopastel oil pastels

To long......

Its been well over a year since my last blog, my attempt at doing a painting everyday was a flop, maybe too ambitious but it can be done if I get commited, I have painted over the past year and will put my attempts up on this blog, I am regularly attending Wednesday art group in Fraserburgh a great bunch of artists. I have realized that to do a painting everyday then it has to be small but I need the practise so here I go again second attempt at daily painting! A Robert the Bruce might have said try,try again.