2015: New Year, New Brushes

I'm never been much for New Year's resolutions mostly because I guess if something is worth while starting or stopping or changing or learning, anytime is a fine time to start. But this year, my goal is to tackle a couple of things on my list of "Stuff I'm Not Good At." Like many people, there are things I haven't bothered to try more than once because I failed miserably the first time...and it's no fun not to be good at something. Ah! It's scary to do stuff you're not good at, right?!

To soften the blow, I started out with the least daunting of the two items on my list: watercolor. Before I got into drawing, I LOVED painting. Color everywhere. I was like a kid in a candy store picking out acrylics and mediums and brushes. Hobby Lobby took a LOT of my discretionary income between the ages of 18 and 23 and most of it was spent on paint. I took a painting class and failed MISERABLY at watercolor. I felt like there was no control (compared to acrylics, there really isn't...at least not with my "technique"), it was messy, it was pointless, it was hopeless. A little went more than a long way and stuff never stayed where I wanted it to. My attempts at watercolor looked something like the sad results of a fruit and veggie smoothie making without a lid on the blender. Not good.

I've been meaning to get back to my roots after spending WAY too much of my creative juices designing away on the computer and get a brush back in my hands. After a couple of difficult weeks, a little watercolor therapy is just what I needed. A couple trial runs and some practice later, things started to come back to me and feel a little more natural. I mixed this new watercolor thang with some hand lettering (another love) and this is the miniature little painting that was born of my practice of both. I'm pumped to keep going with this!

Next "Stuff I'm Not Good At" endeavor: sewing! Ah! Sewing involves needles...much more scary than watercolor. House before and afters still to come too! I just need to find time to get all my photos organized!

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