Tuesday 13 July 2021

Wanderlust 2021 - weeks twenty-five to twenty-eight - Boundaries

Wanderlust continues, with more challenges.  Week 25 was about reviewing how far we have come and what was holding us back. It was a monochrome page which I really enjoyed putting together.  My boundaries were 'enjoy the process' because sometimes I worry too much about how the finished thing will look rather than concentrating on the process to make it, which is much more important. The other one is 'perfection in imperfection' again to remind me that the end project is not the most important thing.

Week 26 was all about watercolours.  I did feel a bit anxious about this as my watercolours in the past have not been successful.  However, the lesson was very clear and I actually really enjoyed trying to paint six versions of an iris.  Using a watery, loose style really appeals to me and the teacher said she thought I had a knack for it, so that was really encouraging.  I haven't tried to paint anything else in this style, but the thought of trying a poppy is in my head.
Week 27 was about mixing four media which would not normally be used together. These were watercolours, gesso, soft pastels and oil pastels.  It was a game where we wrote the media onto little cards then picked one to see which layer would be next. It was an enjoyable way to make a background. 
Week 28 was really exciting to me,   I have recently rediscovered my distress inks and this week was all about using them to make a tag book with different edges on each page.  I created a background page for the tag book to live on.
Here's the tag book.
I used lots of stencils and had so much fun.  It took me all afternoon, but I was pleased with the end result.
I really enjoyed the process though - more than the end product.  It's beginning to sink in!

8 comments:

  1. I LOVE your iris. Your teacher was right. Perfection? Not a happening thing here. Ever.

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    1. Thanks, EC. I was surprised with the iris paintings as I thought I couldn't do watercolours at all. Now it seems I can, but using the loose and watery style. I am realising that imperfection is to be celebrated and so is the process of making something. Who wants to be perfect anyway?
      Best wishes
      Ellie

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  2. This really is a fantastic project. Well done!
    Amalia
    xo

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    1. Thanks, Amalia. I am loving this course and am so glad I signed up. I am thinking about doing it again next year...
      Best wishes
      Ellie

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  3. Love-love-love your art work, Ellie!! Kudos to you for keeping up with Wanderlust for the year!! ~Andrea xoxoxo

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    1. Thanks, Andrea. I am loving this course so much and look forward to a Friday when we get the next lesson. It is giving me an arty focus and also is keeping me creating every week.
      I am enjoying it so much, I am considering signing up again for next year.
      Best wishes
      Ellie

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  4. The watercolour iris is lovely, as is the old black and white photo composition :) Watercolours were my nemesis for many years. I completely avoided them, but then during lockdown I watched a couple of youtube tutorials, gave it a go and loved them. Mam's got me some thick watercolour papers for my birthday, so no excuse now :0 Looks like you are really getting a lot of enjoyment from this course. Lulu xXx

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    1. Thanks, Lulu. I am absolutely loving this course and am so glad I signed up for it. (It helps that I have pretty much everything I need and haven't had to buy anything specific - 'use what you have' is a theme for the course anyway). I think I was trying to be too 'realistic' with my watercolours and they went all muddy through overwork, so I got despondent. I am realising that they can be used in many different ways and layering can work really well if you let each layer dry.
      I think I need to do more experimenting!
      Best wishes
      Ellie

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