A 365 day art project… one drawing a day
Santa took an adorable selfie with Ellis at the Christmas in July event we hosted last month at the Chick-fil-A Virginia Beach Blvd. There were a ton of great moments I could have chosen to sketch, but this was a highlight for me. 🙂
Obviously I haven’t added color yet, but thought I’d go ahead and post the beginning of my next art journal. I am determined that these layouts will look more “complete” than the last journal. I’m using a Strathmore 400 series journal, in a larger format this time. (found HERE on Amazon) Â (not 100% cotton paper, which makes it slightly less fun to paint on. But this is one of the first watercolor journals I tried, and even with all the awesome types I’ve tried, I still love it! At about $15, (currently), it’s more affordable than some, and quite nice to use.)
I’ve only started the title page and one entry so far, but I’m pleasantly surprised by how much I’m enjoying the larger pages!
This page is from Saturday July 27th, our Christmas in July event. That’s Santa, taking a selfie with Ellis! I’m both eager to see this painted and also afraid to do anything else to it:
(It was a GREAT event, by the way)
I’m particularly pleased that Ellis looks so much like Ellis to me here. Also, that’s why I’m afraid to add color. 🙂
I’m not going to do one page each day this time, but hopefully still quite often. I’m wondering, though, if I will keep myself on task effectively without that self-imposed deadline each day.
A complete look at the little entries I made each day for a month…
Kinda’ going out on a whimper here. But can you believe it’s been 30 days already!? And I DID it.
Shopping for vacation Santa’s photo area at Saturday’s Christmas in July event:
So. I still can’t paint a black dog. In fact, my earlier attempts may have been better. I’m UNlearning. 😦
Not a great layout. Gorgeous weather, though, that’s something! 🙂
(PS Affiliate link included here: Clara’s new doggy pool is awesome!! (linked here on Amazon)Â It was $65 for the xxl (63″ across) and I hesitated before spending that much, but it has very good reviews and the cutest joyful doggy photos and videos. There are a lot of sizes, the smallest is under $30. The sides are sturdy and I wouldn’t hesitate recommending it for both dogs and children. Easy set up, easy storage. Best little storable pool I’ve even purchased like this. I feel like the plastic is strong enough to last a long time, and it accordion folds to store. AND it stays up without water, so even with just an inch or two in there now, it is open fine!)
Back to my art journal experience: I’m glad I challenged myself. I’m going to try to art journal my way through August as well, although I may allow myself to miss some days. Thirty days without a break was a bigger challenge than I expected.
Several advantages, though:
It is GOOD to make myself stick to something thirty days straight even if I don’t feel like it.
I’m more comfortable/familiar with my current paint set now.
I’m more comfortable/familiar with my pens now.
I have this cool diary to refer back to in later years. (I’m not sure art journaling my life every single day is wise… I’ll never look back at all that! )
A lot of practice at general sketching/painting.
Re-developing the habit of everyday art.
Really the only disadvantages:
It was hard to do EVERY day without fail, and took more time than I expected.
Sometimes my day was super boring (online paperwork etc all day) and I didn’t know what to draw. (maybe an advantage, too, sometimes, since I might have to draw something I’m less comfortable with)
Thanks for listening!! I may do a journal overview and supply list later!
Arcade games, rubber duckies, frozen fun, thunderstorms…and a bunch of boring stuff I omitted.
The heat index today was 110!! Crazy! I had to take supplies in to work for Monday’s storytime (We will be painting little wooden birdhouses. What was I thinking!???) and then hold orientation with two new team members. I stayed to help out a bit through lunch because an excessive number of people called out (??!!) Then we had dinner with Sean, who was dropping by for a quick moment on his way to Nags Head. I did not, however, sketch Sean, because stupidly I didn’t get a photos! So I sketched Seth from Friday night in quite a sweet pose, holding his girlfriend’s purse and packages while waiting for her. He’s looking down at the bag but I’m afraid maybe I’ve just made his face look squished?
Just six more days till my book is filled and my 30 day challenge is completed! It’s getting tougher than I anticipated! I’m looking forward to comparing THIS journal with the completed journal from my NEXT 30 day journal challenge, whenever that is, and hopefully seeing layouts (and skills) that seem improved!
The kids asked me top go to East Beach in Ocean View with them for a bit.
A killer hot day today with heat indexes in the 100-110 degrees F range, but still really nice out in the shallow water of East Beach.
The floor of the water area is clear and soft, and shallow enough to walk way out, a plus with young kids. And, the waves are really minimal. The lack of waves makes the water particularly clear.
Ellis and I spent our time devising ways to capture small schools of fish which swam all around us, but we were unsuccessful. On the way out, however, MOMMY and Ellis actually caught one!!
Meet Emily, in our little green shell bag with the net bottom:
Emily is back with her family, no worries!
Not our boat:
Day 1 of the 2019 Summer Cheeseburger Challenge:
Ellis hadn’t tried a cheeseburger until July 4th when she tried one Papa grilled, and liked it. So we decided to try every* cheeseburger in Hampton Roads this summer, and began with a classic, McDonalds! (she liked it)
This toad greeted me on the top step at my back door first thing in the morning:
All in all, a very pleasant morning.
Watching a couple of Shayda Campbell’s youtube videos, I decided to practice them. Too too fun!!! Thanks Shayda!!
A stool from the dining room at work. Proportionally challenged. No… perspectively challenged. Maybe both, I guess, but that’s what I get for sketching in ink. (Either way, I filled the time which I should have spent interviewing someone with a journal sketch, because they did not show up) In real life, the stool is nice and straight.
Salt shaker, also from work. Dinner (salmon, green beans, salad) made by nice husband! Neighbor’s dog, Barkley.
My life is pretty boring. But honestly, I enjoy drawing the mundane, so I suppose it suits me rather well!
The challenge: to fill 30 days of art journal. (one full book)
Using this watercolor journal:
(I have spoiled myself recently using heavy 100% cotton paper. I gotta admit it does make a huge difference. The paper in this journal is fine for the way I sketch, and the journal is quality… but I’m finding I have to readjust the way I’m painting because the paint dries so quickly, and I’ve gotten used to the cotton paper, which stays wet and can take so much water.) If you haven’t tried cotton paper… do.
The title page:
*That interesting light blue background is lapis lazuli from A. Gallo in Italy. A really soft gorgeous color. She sells out almost immediately when she posts colors, but I love all of them. If you can find some available I do recommend you grab them.
PS Those are lightning bugs (fireflies!) and pussy willows in the “f” and “e”… you just can’t really tell.
What fun sketches will my boring life inspire over the next month???
ThreeSixFiveArt 