No. 9--The last roses of the season.

No. 9--The last roses of the season.  Watercolor.
About 12 inches square.

No. 8--Ragweed

No. 8--Ragweed.  Watercolor and Crayon.
Approximately 10.5 x 8 inches.

There weren't a lot of flowers available in my yard, so I ended up with a couple of droopy ragweed blooms.  It may not be ragweed--it's an OH native that blooms in the late summer, you can see a picture and a first cut of the painting on Instagram here.  I got a bit from one of my boys' second-grade teachers when she subdivided a bunch from a small plot at their elementary school.

I need more vases.  I'm only 8 into my 100 bouquets, and I am wishing for another vase! You can see where else this one has made an appearance here and here.

Daniel Smith watercolor--ultra marine blue, hansa yellow medium, pemanenty yellow deep, and burnt umber.  Plus some crayon over the top.

No. 6--Butterfly Weed

No. 6--Butterfly Weed.  Watercolor.
Approximately 13 inches square.

No. 5--The Demo

No. 5--The Demo.  Watercolor.
Matted to 20 x 24 inches

Last month, and that probably gives it away that I'm way, way, way behind on my administrative type tasks, I visited the Colerain Art Club to give a demo.  This was my first ever talk while painting in front of a knowledgeable crowd, and they were incredibly kind since I was so nervous and panicked. I used to paint and talk when I painted with a group, but now I typically paint by myself.

You can see some iterations of this piece in my practice painting, and then my first final version. Then I decided to go back with some opaque watercolors and lighten things up in the background.

Two days later I went and did a show, and then collapsed in a heap and didn't paint for a while.

Anyhow, because I took this painting along with me, it's already matted.  It's fairly large.

No. 3--Redbud Branch

No. 3--Redbud Branch.  Watercolor.
Approximately 15 inches square.

The eastern redbuds are blooming in Cincinnati.  It seems early, which very well may be since it's been an extraordinarily warm winter.  I love this tree.  We've planted two here, and had planted two when we lived in Oklahoma.  I wish I knew if the trees were still going in OK, or if the subsequent owners took them out.  They were still very small when we left, so I wouldn't be surprised if they're gone--I'm sure they resembled scrub brush, and they'd never gotten big enough to bloom.

One of the things I like most is how the trees provide such a burst of color, but when you get up close, the blooms are tiny clusters.  Barely there.  When there are a lot of trees they look like a ribbon of color.

A note about brushes.  My very favorite brush at the moment in an Isabey 1 inch flat pure kolinsky sable.  I use it 99% of the time, and for some reason, they appear to not be available anywhere....hmmm.  I took my brush on a field trip last week (see here) and hadn't put it back yet--so instead, I did this painting with a squirrel mop brush.  I'm a loose painter to begin with, and going to a mop brush forces me even looser.  It's fun.

Quin Burnt Orange, Quin red, and Indanthrone blue on Fabriano 300 lb rough watercolor paper.

No. 2--Daffodils Abstracted

No. 2--Daffodils Abstracted.  Watercolor.
Approximately 12 x 10 inches.

Fearlessly marching ahead with #100bouquets.  Rather than making things up, I'm continuing working from set still life.  You can see my set up HERE.  (I tried embedding the instagram post, but that did not work, and I had to start from scratch twice.  Enough of that.)

You'll notice that I'm not super tied to the set up, which is my preference.  My style is definitely free-for-all, with lots of bleeds and mixing on the page.  I was also stymied by the fact that I took my model photo with my nose to the counter, which is not how I want to paint.  The point of view of the painting and the photo are different.

I don't own that many vases, so you'll be seeing them repeat.  This vase is from Neusole Glassworks, which is located in Forest Park.  The daffodils are from my front yard.

I'm not just painting flowers.  (That would be boring!) It just happens to be what I've been blogging about.

Paint:  Carbazole Violet, isoindoline yellow, lemon yellow, cobalt, undersea green, all Daniel Smith.
Paper:  Fabriano 300 lb Rough

No. 200 and No. 1--Orange Flowers From Kroger

No. 1 Orange Flowers From Kroger.  Watercolor.
Approximately 30 x 22 inches.

This is my 200th blog post.  I'm metaphorically patting myself on the back!  I never imagined where I'd be when I started this blog about watercolor in October of 2012 .

I've met some fabulous people electronically (Rhonda Carpenter and Laura Starrett, I'm thinking of you), and painted and painted, and painted.  I think I'm getting better.  I'll check back in another 5 years.

My paintings are getting more and more abstract, so logically, I'm starting a project that's literal.  #100bouquets. I'm taking this up after following Lauren Everett Finn's similar efforts.  This is my first, and it's on a full sheet.  I figure to take about a year to get this done, although I reserve the right to take more time.  I like to paint flowers, but they all just froze, which doesn't bode well, and I tend to get distracted.

Fabriano 300 lb rough watercolor paper.  Daniel Smith, quin burnt orange, quin red, isoindoline yellow, nickel azo yellow, and phthalo blue rs.