A Simple Christmas Acrylic Painting

Bringing Home the Perfect Tree
an acrylic painting
16" x 20"

MERRY CHRISTMAS!


A Simple Christmas Acrylic Painting

 

Sometimes a simple painting can be the perfect decorative item for your home during the winter months.  The acrylic painting above, Bringing Home the Perfect Tree, is an example of just that. 

 

What says winter and Christmas more than snow, a sled and an evergreen tree?  This simple version is painted as a “sketch” with even a few pencil marks showing for the scale of the sled.    The painting shows movement and allows one’s imagination to come to life in the painting….it encourages one to use imagination to tell the story of the painting  through the sled and tree moving off of the painting on the right. 

 

Supplies Needed:
Canvas panel:  I used a 16” x 20” white primed stretched canvas

Brushes:  flat and round  (sizes of your choice)

Paint:

• White
• Black
• Ultramarine Blue
• Medium Orange
• Cadmium Red Lt.
• Crimson
• Cadmium Yellow
• Raw Umber
• Sap Green 
   
  Note:  Learning to mix colors is an important part of achieving harmonious colors in your paintings.  Practice mixing the paint rather than using a premixed color. 

• Brown can be mixed from the colors above (red, yellow and blue or orange and blue).
• Green can be mixed from the colors above (yellow and blue).

 

Painting Instructions:
Lightly sketch the sled on the canvas with detail given to the sled runners.  Refer to painting above.

Snow:

Using a flat brush, lay in the snow areas of your painting.  Snow is not only “white.”  Notice the shadows in the snow (especially under the sled) and add a little black to make gray or a little bit of blue paint.  See where the snow was compacted under the sled runners?  Painting those areas with a white mixed with blue or black will show those shadows.  The snow under the sled is also in shadow from the tree.    Paint a light wash of white over the pencil marks around the sled, allowing these markings to show through the paint. 

 

Sled:

The sled is painted in various shades of brown mixed from Raw Umber as well as a brown mix from orange and blue.  White and/or yellow can be added to lighten the shades of brown.  Blue can be added to deepen the shade or brown.  Black can be used sparingly to add shadow on the runners.  Work with the colors and refer to the painting above for shadows and light. 

 

Evergreen Tree:

Trunk:  Block in the truck with Raw Sienna and come back over the top and add in darker and lighter areas of brown to indicate the bark on the trunk.  This does not need to be detailed.

Branches:

Prepare several shades of green paint before starting to paint the branches.  The branches will be shades of light, medium and dark green to show light and shadow.  Using either a large round brush or a flat brush, paint the branches in a sweeping motion painting from bottom to top.  Add layer on layer of varying greens to make the tree realistic.  Again, this is not detailed – step back from your painting to view your painting and see where you need to add paint.  Let some background white snow show through. 

 

Details:

Check the sled for any details you would like to add.  The snow can be deepened and movement can be created in the background snow using shadows to show “humps” in the now.  Rarely is snow on a completely flat surface.   The “pencil marks” can be enhanced by using a liner brush and painting these sketch marks. 

 

You can make this painting your own by add

 

Sign your painting!  Congratulations!

Happy Painting!
Karen

 

Painting Leaves with Salt

Winter Trees
9" x 12" watercolor painting

Salt Technique to Paint Fall Leaves in Watercolor

 

Many techniques can be used to create leaves and foliage in watercolor painting.  In the watercolor above, salt was used to create the leaves.    This blog entry will discuss the technique for using salt in watercolor painting. 

 

Salt can be used to create interesting patterns in the paint for various subjects.   When salt is scattered into wet watercolor paint, the salt absorbs the water in the paint pulling the pigment across the paper in abstract patterns.   All sizes and types of salt can be used.  However, remember the bigger the piece of salt, the more it will absorb and the larger the abstract patter you will achieve. 

 

I wanted abstract patterns in the background and leaves with only a definite shape in my tree trunks.  I selected blues, golds and orange as my dominate background colors.  The trees are a nice contrast in white.  Select whatever colors you would like in your background and foliage and let’s get started painting! 

 

Supplies Needed:
Watercolor paper – your choice of size – I used a 9” x 12” piece of 140# Arches watercolor paper
Masking Tape
Watercolor board

Salt – small grain table salt as well as larger, coarse grain salt

Masking Fluid and old brush
Brushes:  flat and round (size of your choice based on the size of your paper)
Paint:

• Yellow Ocher
• Windsor Blue
• Burnt Sienna
• Payne’s Gray
• Sepia

• I made green from mixing the colors above (yellow ocher and Windsor Blue).  Green made from mixing the colors used in the painting make for a more harmonious color blend.
• Also, the brown in the painting was mixed from the blue and burnt sienna. 

 

 

Painting Instructions:

Sketch only the tree trunks.  The darker branches will be painted in last.   Apply masking fluid on the areas of the tree trunks you want to remain white.  I left a break in the trunks to allow the foliage to cover parts of the trunk.   Allow the masking fluid to dry.

 

Foliage and Background:

Wet the entire area of your paper with clean water.  Using the painting above as a guide or painting as you would like, drop in deep concentrations of watercolor.   Leave some areas of the paper white.  Let the colors mix on your paper.  While the paint is still wet, drop in the salt.  I used both small grain and coarse grain salt.  The coarse grain salt was used where I wanted larger “leaves” – mainly out the outside edges of the painting.  The finer grains were used in the center section of the painting and along the bottom edge. 

When the paint is dry, gently rub off the salt.

 

Tree Trunks:

Remove the masking fluid.  Each tree truck is painted separately.  If the trunks touch, let one dry before painting the adjoining tree.  Wet each trunk with clean water.  While still wet, use a round brush and Payne’s Gray and/or Sepia, and apply the paint along the right side of the trunk.  The water will pull the paint across the trunk leaving a dark line on the right side of the tree.  A pale wash of Windsor Blue also be added on the trunk for additional shadows and to tie in with the background. Allow to dry.  When dry, use the same color paint and make small lines and indentations on the trunk. 

 

Branches

The branches were painted using a small round brush and Payne’s Gray and Sepia paint.  These can be added randomly; or if you are uncomfortable with only using your brush, the branches can be added with a pencil and then the paint applied. 

Details:

The only details I added were a few spatters of “leftover paint” on my palette.  A few spatters of green, orange or brown.  If you do add spatter, be certain to cover your tree trunks so that they remain white.

 

Sign your painting!  Congratulations!



Happy Painting!
Karen

 

Painting Small Buildings with Few Details

Echoes of the Past
5" x 7" watercolor painting

Painting Small Buildings with Few Details

Elkmont

Abandoned Cabins in the Mountains

 

The painting above was painted from a photograph I took in the Elkmont area of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and is a good example of painting small structures in a landscape with little detail in an Impressionistic style.   

 

To add a little background to this painting, below is a short history of the Elkmont area:

 

Elkmont was a former community in the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee named for the numerous elk which once inhabited the area.  The community grew up adjacent to the former logging town of Elkmont when the Little River Lumber Company sold land to individuals to create a private social club.  What began as a “Gentleman’s Hunting Club” soon developed as a place for affluent Knoxville, TN families to escape the hot urban summers.  The Elkmont Campground of the GSMNP exists where the original town of Elkmont was located. 

 

When land was acquired for the creation of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in the 1920’s and 1930’s, most farms and homes of the mountain people were purchased and residents were required to vacate the property.  The Elkmont Club residents were able to negotiate lesser sale amounts in exchange for lifetime leases on these properties.  The last lease expired in 2001.    The Park General Management Plan calls for all structures to be removed and returned to their natural state.  However, the park is currently conducting an Environmental Impact Statement to determine the future of this district.  All Elkmont buildings are closed to the public; however, photos can be taken from outside the structures along the trails.    

 

One can see the beauty of many of these mountain cabins in spite of the ravages of time and the elements.

 

I enjoy painting cabins and these were interesting in spite of their condition.    As one can see from the painting above, the buildings are in disrepair and the red cabin on the right has braces holding up the walls.   In this painting, I wanted to give a general feeling of the area, not a photographic representation. 

This painting was done quickly with few details in the cabins.  The emphasis was getting the feeling of the area as indicated by the muted color tones as well as the misty background trees and the lack of details in the foreground as well as the cabins. 

 

Supplies Needed:
Watercolor paper – your choice of size – I used a 5” x 7” piece of 140# watercolor paper
Masking Tape
Watercolor board
Brushes:  flat and round (size of your choice based on the size of your paper)
Paint:

• Yellow Ocher
• Sap Green
• Ultramarine Blue
• Viridian Green
• Crimson
• Sepia
• Burnt Umber
• Payne’s Gray
• VanDyke Brown

  
  
  Painting Instructions:

  Lightly sketch in the cabins and background/foreground with very little detail.

Background:

Wet the top background area with is basically all foliage with clean water.  Painting wet on wet, drop in Sap Green, yellow ocher and Vandyke Brown.  Refer to photo above.  Allow to dry.

 

Foreground:

Wet the front section of your painting and again painting wet on wet.  Drop in the following colors:  VanDyke Brown, Sepia, and Sap Green.  Refer to the photo above.  Allow to dry.

 

Cabins:

Green Cabin:

I painted the roof first and worked my way down the cabin from top to bottom.  I painted the rock chimney on the right side last. 

Note:  I did not use masking fluid around the doors and windows, but painted carefully around the inside and outside of the window and door frames. 

The roof was painted wet on wet using a very light wash of Payne’s Gray.  Touches of Sap Green and Yellow ocher were dropped in various locations to show moss growth.  The underside trim of the roof was painted with a mix of Sepia and VanDyke Brown.  Paint the areas under the edge of the roof a bit darker.  Allow to dry.   

The cabin siding was painted next from a wash of Viridian Green mixed with Burnt Umber.  Refer to the photo and deepen the color in the shadow sections near the roof, under the windows and near the bottom of the cabin.  Allow to dry and then dry brush the same colors of paint onto of the wash to provide a little bit of siding texture.  Allow to dry.

Paint the inside of the cabin seen through the windows using Payne’s Gray and allowing for the view to continue through to the outside area.    Use a light wash of Payne’s Gray to paint the screen door.  Allow to dry.

Red Cabin:

The red cabin was painted using a wash of Crimson mixed with VanDyke Brown.  Vary the shades based on light.  The roof was painted with a wash of VanDyke Brown.  Allow to dry.    Add a few darker area of VanDyke Brown to indicate the siding on the cabin.

Paint the windows using Payne’s Gray.  Leave the frames white. 

 

Details:

I prefer to paint with few details.   However, the following details were added:

• Add the chimney using short brush strokes of VanDyke Brown.
• Add a light wash of Payne’s Gray around the window and door frames. 
• Using a liner brush, paint in a few very faint lines for the screen in the door.
• Using the liner brush, paint in a few tree limbs in the background using VanDyke Brown.
• Check for any additional details you would like to add; however, remember it is not intended to be a photographic representation, but a general feeling of the cabins in that area. 
   
  Sign your painting!  Congratulations!
  
  Happy Painting!
  Karen
   

How to Paint an Old Brick Wall

Old Tredegar
9" x 12"
Watercolor painting

The painting above is an example of an old brick structure painted using watercolor.  My reference material for this painting was a photo of an old abandoned foundry located on Belle Island in Richmond, VA on the James River.  The brick structure was crumbling with vines and trees growing around and inside the structure. 

 

Supplies Needed:

Watercolor paper (I used Arches 140 lb. paper – 9” x 12” size)

Watercolor board

Masking tape to anchor paper

Brushes:

Round brush – your choice of size

Flat brush – 1/8” or ¼ “ in size

 

Paint: 

• Burnt Umber
• Yellow Ochre
• Sepia
• Payne’s Gray
• Cadmium Red Pale (Light)
• Crimson
• Grumbacher Red
• VanDyke Brown
• Sap Green
• Hunter Green
• Ultramarine Blue
• Cerulean Blue
• White
   

Painting Instructions:
Lightly sketch your painting with very little detail.    Draw in the large tree trunks; however, the branches will not need to be sketched in with a pencil.  These can be painted with your brush after the foliage is in place. 

Check your perspective.  If you are happy with your perspective, use a ruler and a pencil to draw lines for the bricks.  

Note: The lines are not all parallel to the top and bottom of your paper, but will be angled to an “invisible” point to the right of your painting.  If you need to do so, align your ruler to your vanishing point in the distance on the right with a masking tape “X”  and place your ruler on that “X” as you lightly draw your pencil lines for your bricks. 

 

Background Foliage, Foreground and Sky:
It is easier to work from top to bottom on a painting to prevent your arm/sleeve from dragging across your wet work when working from bottom to top.

 

Sky and Trees:

Using Cerulean Blue paint the sky working wet on wet from top to bottom.  While the sky is still wet, drop in Sap Green for the trees.  Allow to dry.  Foliage will be added later in the painting when the tree trunks and branches are added.

 

Background Foliage:

This is the foliage that can be seen behind the arched opening in the brick wall.

Moving from top to bottom working wet on wet, paint the background with a light yellow green and then drop deeper shades of Sap Green in various areas for the tree foliage.  While this is still set, drop in a deeper shade of green mixed from Sap Green and Ultramarine Blue.  Allow to dry.  Again, additional foliage, branches, trunks and limbs will be added later.

 

Foreground and Foliage on Right:

Wet the area for the greenery on the lower right.  Drop in various shades of green:  Sap Green, Sap Green mixed with  Yellow Ochre and Sap Green mixes with Ultramarine Blue.  Allow to dry.

 

Sidewalk area:

Wet this area with clean water and paint in this area with Payne's Gray and green.  Deepen this near the greenery.  Leave some of this area unpainted.  While still wet drop in some  spatter of Sepia and Payne's Gray for pebbles. 

 

Now for the fun part – painting the brick wall!

 

Brick Wall:

Apply wet on wet a light base of yellow ochre on all the brick area.  Allow to dry.  Prepare several colors of paint for your brick.  Use different shades of red, orange, gray, etc.  Using your flat brush, paint the brick wet on dry using the pencil lines you drew in previously as your guide.  Vary the color of the bricks that are placed side by side and alternate your pattern so that no 2 edges are lined up.    This can be time consuming; however, it does not have to be perfect.  Remember this brick wall is part of a building which has fallen to ruin.  There are sections of the arched entry where bricks are missing.  Allow the bricks to dry. 

 

Prepare a light wash to Payne's Gray, Sepia,  Yellow Ochre and Sap Green.  Using the photo as a guide, paint the wash over the bricks deepening the wash in some locations and keeping it light in others.  Drop in green to indicate the moss growing on the brick in some locations.  Allow to dry. 

 

The brick had various locations with white brick from paint, etc. over the years.  This can be achieved by using one of two methods.

 

1. Use a small piece of sandpaper and sand off the paint in various areas to expose the white paper, or
2. Use Chinese White Watercolor paint and a dry flat brush to add areas of white.

I used white paint in this painting. 

 

 

Details:  Adding foliage and tree trucks and limbs

Using the previous mix of greens (light and dark) and a small sponge, add the foliage in the top section of the painting as well as through the archway.  Also, drop in some of the green onto the brick wall to indicate where greenery is growing over the top and up from the greenery near the walkway.  A brush can also be used if you prefer to add the greenery.

 

Using a round brush, paint in the tree limbs and tree trunk using VanDyke Brown and Sepia.  Refer to the photo above for placement. 

 

View your painting to see if any additional details need to be added in the painting.  When you are satisfied, sign you name.

 

 Congratulations!

Happy Painting!
Karen