Category: From My Sketchbook

hibiscus sketch

Trying out new paints: Prima Marketing Watercolor Confections

Recently I got an email from a reader asking me what brand of watercolor paint I use. I generally use Winsor & Newton and M. Graham, but I recently purchased a new set of watercolors and spend the last few weeks testing it out. I originally heard about this set on the Artist Journal Workshop facebook group that I am a member of (a great resource for hearing about new supplies).

The watercolors are made by a company called Prima Marketing based out of South Korea. The set comes with 12 half pans in a handsome metal enameled tin with a numbered color chart that fits nicely in the box. There are several sets available: The Classics, Tropicals, Decadent Pies, Shimmering Lights, and Pastel Dreams. I decided to go with Tropicals. Upon reading the reviews, some of the colors in the other sets are metallic so be aware of that.

The paint is advertised as being professional grade, but I beg to differ. The paints are numbered and there is no pigment information listed, which is a red flag. I was able to find this lightfastness chart, but the color names sound more like makeup than paint names (e.g., lilac rain, pool party, etc.) I, like many others, bought the set solely for the tin with the intention if filling it with my own paints later on. The paints are actually not that bad though, and I will definitely use them in my sketchbook, where I am not concerned about lightfastness. I was able to mix all sorts of muted and intense colors. I especially like #16 (avocado) which is a pale yellow green and nice to mix with blue or brown to make some nice earthy greens.

The best thing about this set is the price, which is very reasonable and worth it for the tin alone. This would make a nice gift for a budding child artist or someone just getting introduced to watercolor who was hesitant to spend a lot of money.

I used the paints for the following sketchbook pages. I also included an image of the color chart that came with the set.

hibiscus sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Hibiscus Study (4/21/2017). Watercolor (with notes in ink) in large moleskine.

camellia japonica sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Camellia japonica (4/27/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.

prima marketing watercolor
Prima Marketing Tropicals color chart

orange butterfly drawing

Butterflies!

Over Spring Break I delved into my reference photo archive and sketched some butterflies. I have a nice collection of photos, some from the butterfly conservatory and some from outside. I tried to identify the butterflies in the last two sketches but had no luck. I did waste a few hours looking at photos of many beautiful varieties though.

swallowtail butterfly sketch
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Swallowtail with Ragged Wings (3/4/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.

orange butterfly drawing
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Orange, black, and white butterfly (3/6/2017). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.
©2017 Carolyn A Pappas, Watercolor butterfly on leaf (3/8/2017). Watercolor and ink in large moleskine.
wool socks sketch

Warm Woolens

wool socks sketch
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Warm Woolens (12/27/2016). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.

February can be a rough month for me, mostly because I am so sick and tired of winter and its unpleasantness, such as driving in snow. On the other hand, I think winter is a visually beautiful season and I do love the way snow transforms the world outside. I love looking out of the window and seeing the snow pile up, while being cozy in my house and not having to be anywhere all day. I was recently gifted some absolutely wonderful wool socks and I really enjoy wearing them while relaxing at home. They found their way into my sketchbook, of course.

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garden sketch collage

Plans for 2017

garden sketch collage
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Garden Sketch (11/6/2016). Ink, watercolor, and collage in large moleskine.
garden sketch collage
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Garden Sketch (12/20/2016). Ink, watercolor, and collage in large moleskine.
Above are some pages from my sketchbook when I was thinking about time and time management.

For 2017, my goals are simple. First and foremost, I plan to successfully complete my nursing program. Secondly, I want to find a way to include art in my life during the school year. Last semester, I only broke away from my studies one time to do art and I missed it terribly. I don’t think I can mentally function for a whole year (including the summer) by only drawing between terms. At this point, I’m not sure how I will implement more frequent art making, but I will post updates throughout the year.

Last year, I did have the foresight to realize that I would be buried with schoolwork and I saved some drawings to post during the year. I am aiming for one post a month at minimum, but more often if I can manage.

I wish everyone reading this a healthy, prosperous, and creative 2017!

aechmea fasciata painting

Selection of Pink Watercolor Flowers

Thanks to my membership at the botanic garden (and multiple visits over the summer), I now have a huge collection of snapshots of beautiful, showy, and unusual (to me) flowers to paint. Today I’m taking a look back at some pink watercolor flowers that I painted this past August in my large moleskine sketchbook. I spent quite a bit of time painting these—on paper that isn’t even intended for watercolor. It’s almost a shame that I didn’t use proper watercolor paper, but I think that the fact that it was in my sketchbook helped me to relax and enjoy myself more than I would have otherwise.

aechmea fasciata painting
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Aechmea fasciata. Graphite and watercolor in large moleskine.
watercolor hibiscus
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Hibiscus in strong lighting. Graphite and watercolor in large moleskine.

stones drawing

Sticks and Stones

These are some of my daughter’s nature objects that found their way into my bedroom, and then my sketchbook. I made the drawings in watercolor pencils, and then instead of using plain water to activate the pencil marks, I used a brush loaded with watercolor paint as well. It was an interesting experiment and fun. I used the same colors for the two pages so they have a cohesive look.

sticks drawing
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Sticks (7/31/2016). Watercolor pencil, watercolor paint and rubber stamping in large moleskine.
stones drawing
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Stones (7/30/2016). Watercolor pencil, watercolor paint and rubber stamping in large moleskine.

pen and ink roadside sketch

Sketching Rural Scenery

pen and ink roadside sketch
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Roadside Sketch (8/27/2016). Pen and ink in large moleskine.
Crimson King Norway Maple sketch
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, Acer Platanoides ‘Crimson King’ (8/27/2016). Pen and ink in large moleskine.
These are some pen and ink sketches I made while sitting on the porch of a beautifully renovated old farmhouse. The late afternoon/early evening light made it a very interesting landscape to draw and observe. When I was drawing the wires (not accurately, of course), I remembered this informational blog post from James Gurney, although I didn’t recall the specifics.

spring landscape

Experiment with Bold Ink

My favorite waterproof black fineliners are Staedtler Pigment Liners and I have the four pack in the plastic case. I find that I go for the 0.01 size most often and use the 0.03 size on a limited basis. I very rarely use the larger 0.05 and 0.07. For this sketch, I decided to do the opposite and use primarily the larger sizes and the smaller sizes only for the details. I also broke out my Pentel Pocket Brush Pen which is great for laying on black areas very quickly with juicy ink.*

spring landscape

©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, View from the end of the path in springtime. Ink, watercolor and colored pencil in large moleskine.
Interestingly, I just came across this blog post from Brenda Swenson, where she discusses taking risks and trying out new things.

*I found that the Pentel Pocket Brush Pen bleeds a bit on the new moleskine paper and saturated both sides of the paper, but it did not soak through to the page underneath.

moss steps tower hill

Working Plein Air at the Moss Steps

I took my watercolors to Tower Hill Botanic Garden to try out working plein air. It was a sunny day and I was worried about getting burned, so I went into the wooded areas. I settled down at the Moss Steps and did this pen drawing and then painted it in watercolor. Although there was a chain blocking the steps off from people, I did see a chipmunk running around as well as a wood frog hopping down.

I usually add the watercolor at home, but it was a welcome change to paint in person (and more of a challenge). I brought water with me in a bottle and poured it into a plastic cup, but I had to bend down to use it as I put my water cup on the ground. The pine needles falling down on my head were annoying, but a small price to pay for such a nice time.

Next time I would like to try painting in watercolor without such a detailed pen and ink drawing first because it took a very long time.

moss steps tower hill
©2016 Carolyn A Pappas, At the edge of the Moss Steps (8/5/2016). Ink and watercolor in large moleskine.
moss steps photo
A photo of the moss steps. I conveniently removed the chain from my drawing.
Some of the other interesting photos I took while walking through the woods.
Some of the other interesting photos I took while walking through the woods.