Watercolours

Please respect that all my paintings are here to be shared, enjoyed but not copied or printed. They are copyright to Carol Mead 2008. You can contact me if you wish to use them and I will consider your request.

I have been painting in watercolours since 1996 when I took a class with the wonderful Janet Twigg-Patterson. I still have many of those first paintings and they still make me smile!

I love the delicate way watercolourcan be applied to paper, the colours and the way it is sometimes very hard to control.

While I do landscapes occaisionally, I usually paint flowers and leaves of the Australian Bush, and if they aren't available any flora is fine with me....... I have my own style of course and while my paintings are not 'botanical', in that they are very exact, they still have a botanical fee to them.

A few years ago I went into watercolour pencils as I usually paint in strange locations which is difficult with pallettes and water. I have painted in caravan parks, on card tables, under dull light, on the bed of hotel rooms, on the ground, on verandas and in the car. Watercolour pencils give me the freedom to paint without the mess.

All I need is:

• 300gsm watercolour paper
• 2b pencil, eraser, sharpener
• Watercolour pencils (1 have about 40)
• A ink pen for lining - black, permanent and fine
• A small paintbrush - I use a white size 4
• A container of water - I use a vitamin container
• Tissues - 2 or 3
• A glass with water in it for my flower I am painting

The Paper: While you can get watercolour paper that is thinner (say 190gsm), I have found that it buckles. I am lazy and I don't like to stretch my paper - and I am often not somewhere that I could do this even if I wanted to....so I use the pad of 300gsm paper and I like a rough surface rather than a smooth because I like the effect of the paint int eh furrows of the paper. I don't use the paper though with lots of little grooves......as I don't like the stripey effect it makes. But each to their own!! usually I paint on A5 and A4 sizes, but if I am painting at home I sometimes use A3 but find this to large to handle out in the field.....

The flower: All I can say about this really is it must be something you relate to.... the shape, the colour, the leaves......you will paint it much better if you like it. I love roses..... but I hate painting them, I think it is because I try to draw and paint each petal and they are very complex. But I love lillies, gums, fushias, irises, butterfly bush, daisies, hakeas and so much more so I don't paint roses - I grow and photograph them instead.

Study of the piece: Each painting is unique as I study the flower (or leaves etc) very thoroughly and ensure I know how it is put together (that is the almost botanical bit). And then I have to admit that I may remove some bits I don't want to paint (this is decidedly unbotanical!!).

Drawing of the Flower: The view also might be scewed because I might paint in a leaf or bud....that isn't there at all (the botanical painters will be have apoplexy about now!) for me it is all about the presentation and if I need to put in or take away something then that is what I do.

Watercolour Pencils: I draw it carefully with the 2B pencil and then start to build in colour. In watercolour pencils you need to think not only in form but the colour has to also do your shading of light and dark. There is a real need to practice this and it is the most common reason I have found which stops people developing a love for this medium.

Making Magic: Then I take my paint brush load it with water and blot the excess off the brush onto a tissue and start to work on the paint. The painting starts to take on it's true colours....and it is magic! I paint pieces of the work at a time, say the leaf, before moving on to another area. I take care not to touch an adjacent area of the work as the water (with paint) will run into the next area which I don't want to happen.

Darkening the Painting: I leave the painting for a few minutes to settle while it dries and then I may touch areas up with a darkening colour if it needs it. All I do is hold the pencil and wet the tip with a wet brush, blot as before and then paint in the colour, blending as I go.

Lines on My Work: I also may chose to draw in areas of the plant but not colour them..... This is something I like to do when I think it suits the piece. I then line my work, very carefully and this must be done when the painting is dry, including the part that is drawn but not painted. Once it is very dry, after an hour or so, I gently erase any lead pencil lines. Then I sign it of course!

One day I want to exhibit my work and sell some pieces.

The world of clay

I have gotta say I love playing in the mud!! It is squishy, silky and very therapeutic.... Okay I know you may have visions of me sitting in a puddle and squishing mud through my toes - but I am really talking about pottery! I love to lose myself throwing clay.

I have been throwing clay on a wheel for about 2 years now. When you first start you through little bowls, and eventually, when you have enough bowls to fill a good sized car boot, you start to look at other shapes and tricky stuff like handles and lids.

I have had my share of 'interesting pieces' but I must say that I find the garden a great place to pop those bits that you can't put on a table..... But I also have had some lovely successes which keep me going.

It is funny at work because I bring in a lot of bowls and plates that I just can't use but are not good enough for presents and we use them for pot pourri, candles or whatever. So I see my creations around a lot of the time, and it makes me smile that they are beng enjoyed.

As I throw on a wheel, that has been a time of learning....... in the beginning you don't think you will ever centre clay........ but bit by bit you get a feel for it and one day it happens, and you make a pot with even sides. That is a time to celebrate!! Now I can centre most clay, big or small, most of the time.

I also love to throw different clays - they all react differently to each other. I love Walkers Dark clay as it is a biscuit colour when stoneware fired. But I am not too keen on their Red which is pink on the same firing. I like the challenge of throwing porcelain, which is so silky and looks great really thin.....and terracotta for big garden pieces. One day i am getting my own studio on the farm and I can't wait for that!!

Hoilday Adventures

Phil (DH) and I love to travel....... we try to spend some time each year travelling through different parts of Australia. Being a single parent on limited finances for many years restricted my ability to travel much - there were always more important things to do.....

Phil and I travel well together, we like similar things like the bush, landscapes and historical stuff..... we both paint and enjoy photography. We even are both fascinated by cemeteries (I know that might be a bit strange).....

Last year we did a wonderful trip to Western Australia starting in Broome and drove to Darwin....it was beautiful. We went in late July and the weather was 25 - 31 degrees, no rain and clear skies all the way.

My job is very pressured and one of the reasons I love to travel is so I can change gears in my brain and think of different things. I certainly sleep better when we travel, and excercise more!

This year we are off to Melbourne (after the wedding at Easter to recover!), Cairns in May and Tassie in October. Lots more photography and scrapping coming up!!!

Photography Intro

I seem to always be behind the camera and that is fine with me! I really don't like my photo being taken but I put up with it when I have to.

I bought my camera about 2 years ago and I love it. After years of having cheapies, film cameras I splurged on a wonderful Panasonic Camera that does everything I would want it too and more. It has lots of manual settings but I will admit here - that I rarely use them. I keep to the heart (the simple mode), use the settings in the menu like sport, landscape and macro - for my flowers. I rarely use the flash, unless the camera is having problems with lighting.

I also love photshop. I work with photoshop elements and enjoy this program. I crop, colour, burn, brush and sharpen with the best of them...... I have been known to brighten my teeth, reduce my bags (under eyes) and do a little painless plastic surgery when required. I share feature this also among friends and family........ we all need a little help sometimes.

This is where I love to share the photos which mean a lot to me - enjoy!!

Scrapping

This is a space to enjoy the wonders of scrapbooking - though my families eyes glaze over a little when I speak of this - my scrapping friends are very friendly and love to chat......

To date it has been really difficult to get my family interested in this hobby .... I have tried though....I have given my kids and their partners scrapping kits and photos but alas I still do it alone. Never mind though I can use it for time out..... Nothing is quite as lovely as retreating to my scrap space and creating.

I am a member of four sites - LSBS and Scrap Therapy are my most favourite. My web name is homeywine after my last name Mead.... cute hey?? I also look into Memory Bugs and Two Peas sometimes...... but I tend to lurk at those more than post on the threads.

So I have heaps of challenges this year in scrapping:

1. Wedding album for my DD
2. Wedding layouts for me
3. Off the page albums for her attendants (bride doesn't know)
4. Retreat in May - Scrap Therapy
5. Retreat in August - LSBS
6. Three holidays - Melbourne, Cairns and Tassie
7. More cards
8. General and family layouts
9. Circle Journal LSBS
10. ATC cards - both retreats
11. Calendar 2009
12. RAKs - various and lots

RAKS - I am involved in two RAK clubs - and 2Peas as well but that seems a bit 'clicky' so I don't do much there. I love RAKS - last week I received 2....... and I love sending them too! What is a RAK?? Random Act of Kindness - you have a list of people in the RAK club and every now and then you send a little parcel of RAK goodies around to a few - to brighten up their day. It could be really random, or a birthday or a challenge which I started recently and was really successful. Once Matt helps me to figure out how to post photos I will upload the one I sent to Sams little bub Bridget.

Circle Journals have been around for years and I found out about these about three years ago when I started going onto 2Peas. I have been in so many now that I have loost count - but I do love them! First you begin with a number of interested scrappers - who are prepared to commit to the months it will take to finish (this is important as I have lost a few journals in the past through slack people. Then everyone picks a theme and prepares their journal. A list of addresses is prepared and everyone is informed on who they will send to on that list - this is the circle bit. Then each month everyone send out the jounal they have and receives a journal to complete a page or two in..... It is such fun because you see everyones styles, read about people (I guess I am a bit nosey) and then create a page or two in the theme of the journal. After many months yours comes home all decorated with input from everyone in the journal - it is wonderful!

ATCs - Artist Trading Cards are fun to do too. You take a little cardboard - 2.3"x3.5" and decorate it with details of you and a theme front and back. Then you pop them onto a ring and display. They are a sort of mini work of art. Because they are traded, never paid for, you make as many as you need for an event - all the same. You number them also 1/10, 2/10 etc as a sort of limited production. they are great fun. We are making them for the retreats and I have made a set for the 'Back to Black' ATC swap organised by Relsi at Scrap Therapy.

News .... I am off to 2 retreats this year one in Cairns (May) and the other in Sydney (August) and I am looking forward to them both!!! They will be enormous fun with lots of laughs and creating!