During my June workshop in Maine, I waited all week for the perfect day to drive to the top of Mt. Battie and spend some time sketching. My patience was rewarded when we awoke one morning to abundant sunshine and clear blue skies. The view from the top of Mt. Battie is spectacular – deep […]
Category: Step-by-Step
Sketches from Maine – Step-by-Step Iris Watercolor
Merryspring Nature Center is an idyllic little gem in the heart of mid-coast Maine. The day we visited, we had the place entirely to ourselves. There was so much to draw that I found myself wandering around for awhile just taking it all in, waiting for something to “speak” to me. Should I do a […]
Thumbnail Sketches – All Dressed Up!
One of the lessons I taught my students while in Tuscany was about using thumbnail sketches to zero in on a scene and test out various compositional options. I suggested using a separate sketchbook page for the thumbnails and later turning that page, with its accumulation of tiny scenes, into a dynamic page in its […]
Step-by-Step Watercolor: Fattoria Bacio
In one of my recent posts, I promised I would show you the step-by-step process I used to paint a sketch of Fattoria Bacio, our workshop location in Tuscany. The villa is perched on top of a hill, surrounded by vineyards and olive groves. One pretty fall morning, I walked out along the ridge, about […]
Sneak Preview! Step-by-Step Watercolor Painting: Terracotta Tile Roofs
In just a few short months I’ll be going back to Italy! I can’t wait to see the Tuscan hills again and enjoy the endless delights of fresh, delicious Italian food. And the gelato…don’t even get me started on that! October 3-10, 2015, will find me teaching a week-long workshop in Sketchbook Journaling at Fattoria […]
Step-by-Step Watercolor: Winter Farm Scene
My Christmas gift to you…a new watercolor tutorial! The Minor Farm, Greene County, PA, 17″ x 10.5″, ink & watercolor on Fabriano Artistico 140 lb. paper Come on into my studio and look over my shoulder as I paint a rural farm scene from Greene County, Pennsylvania, where I live. This painting was done […]
Fall Harvest Journal Page + Step-by-Step Border
This page from my new nature journal shows a selection of what I collected the other day when I took a walk in the woods near our house. I wanted to see how many “crops” (seeds, nuts, and berries) I could find as fall dwindles down and winter moves in. Ink & watercolor, two-page spread […]
Step-by-Step Watercolor: Lake Scene
I visited my mother last week at Alpine Lake, West Virginia, and while I was there spent a wonderfully relaxing couple of hours following the walking trail that meanders through the woods along the shoreline. There are so many pretty, sketch-worthy scenes, but I finally chose this one: Stillman & Birn Zeta series sketchbook, 7″ […]
Step-by-Step Watercolor: How to Paint a Blue Hydrangea
Everybody loves hydrangeas. They’re big and showy, and the range of colors runs from the palest baby blue to deep burgundy and purple. I love them all, but my favorite has always been the traditional blue mophead hydrangea, and I thought you might enjoy seeing step-by-step photos of how I go about painting one. 6-1/2″ […]
The Most Adorable Ruffled Lampshade On Planet Earth
Here it is! The most adorable ruffled lampshade you’re ever going to see… And it belongs to the most adorable baby in the world! That’s my granddaughter, Callista Rose, just 18 months old . She’s the sweetest, cutest, funniest little girl, and I just love her to pieces! When her mom was decorating Callista’s new […]
