I was feeling rather depressed by my rather poor watercolors of the other day – so, time for a break. What to do? Well, how about a bit of serious cleaning up of stuff that this gal has accumulated? What I am talking about is my bill and finance drawer. Need I tell you what was in it – nay! But let us say I shredded up about 4-5 fifteen gallon trash bags worth. Now there is a lot of room in the drawer, it is organized, and I have made the resolution to shred unnecessary items about every other month.
Okay, stop laughing. There is a definite pack-rat gene in the family, specifically on the paternal side (sorry, Dad!). De-pack-ratting requires a break, and a break from watercolors means using something else. Enter revisiting pastels. I did an apple.
I was doing pastels a few years ago and really enjoyed the medium. It is a combination of painting and drawing, both of which I like. Apples are rather generic and very recognizable, and cheerful, too, if you like bright red. I do like bright red, and so here we are.
I think I am going to be doing pastels for awhile. I need a bit of a break and a change from watercolor, even though I am really trying to work hard at it. The only drawback to pastels is the dust, but I wear an N95 mask and clean up the dust with a damp cloth afterwards. Here, Nupastels and Rembrandt soft pastels, and a touch here or there with a pastel pencil. I have some fixative arriving tomorrow which supposedly will not darken the pastel painting much. The paper is Mi-Teintes, reverse surface, painted upright.
Ink, Yarn & Beer 