Day 18 – My son, Zach dabbles in blacksmithing and he made a hair pin. I liked the shape and thought I’d paint it.
Day 19 – After the complicated shape of the hair pin, I decided to paint something simpler. I read a while ago that painting an apple over and over is a great way to work on developing painting skills.
Day 20 – Lemons! It took me a couple of tries to get this bright yellow mix.
Day 21 – Brass teapot – I couldn’t find something to paint so I asked my family for suggestions. One of my daughters selected this as my subject. Reflective surfaces are hard to paint, but overall I’m happy with this.
Day 22 – Lichen. I found this on the path to our goat shed one day and I kept it. I thought it would make an interesting subject today.
Day 23 – What a very long day this was. I spent the day at the state capitol to give testimony on a bill that would remove the immediate threat of eminent domain from our land. By the time I arrived home it was late and I was so tired. I settled on painting this little vase.
Day 24 – I don’t know what I was thinking. Painting a milk glass vase under multiple light sources was ridiculously hard. I sketched it three times to get the proportions right and then after I started painting I realized I hadn’t left enough room for the stems that are in the vase. So I squished them in. It shows.
Day 25 – Another apple! After the difficulties of the milk glass vase, I thought I’d paint something familiar again. I LOVE the way this one turned out!
At this point in the challenge, I was definitely feeling that I had turned a new corner in my painting skills. I was mixing familiar colors more confidently, and I was actually mixing the right amount of them (I always tend to mix too little and then have to try to recreate it). I knew a few of my brushes well and could reach for the one I wanted to make a certain brush stroke. Painting every day was challenging to find time, but it was exactly what I needed to keep learning.