Autumn Sketches

Hello! I just wanted to drop in to 1). share some of my autumnal sketchbook pages 2). share some of the autumnal handmade watercolors I've made and 3). the art challenge I created for this October and/or November. You are welcome to join in if you like! There are no rules. You can do any or all of these prompts at any time, but I would like it if you tagged me @annafranklinart on Instagram and used the hashtag #FlyingClubhouseChallenge21 so I can see your art. You can use the same hashtag on Tumblr or where ever else you like to post art.

Happy October!

⋆ bloglovin | pinterest | instagram | art shop | flickr | tumblr ⋆

Summer Sketches

I'm pretty late posting these, but I wanted to share some of the little sketches I made during the summer. Some of these were made in person and some were made afterward with photo reference. All these were colored with my handmade watercolors. Making, using, and selling my own watercolors has been hard work, but very rewarding. I'm very much still learning to paint with them, though. 

I've shifted my thinking about creating art in the last few years. I consider it a practice rather than a performance. Doing quick sketches like these help me move past perfectionism.

⋆ bloglovin | pinterest | instagram | art shop | flickr ⋆

Handmade Watercolors

I've been making watercolor paints. I started out with a recipe using gum arabic powder dissolved in distilled water, vegetable glycerin, honey, and pigment, but I've switched over to a honey-free recipe. I'm using mostly earth colors and oxides, with some other inorganic pigments like vine black and lamp black, thrown in. I was inspired to make my own watercolors to go with my drawings after having some trouble finding very muted colors in half pans. The first set - which actually is not a muted set, but a trio of secondary colors - is already in my shop. I hope to list more palettes soon, but the half pans take a long time to cure.

⋆ bloglovin | pinterest | instagram | art shop | flickr ⋆