A Tale of Two Watercolours

Hello there

And...breathe...

Don't know how it feels to you, but things are a tad intense out there right now.

Which led me, this week, to breathe as deeply as I could, and go back to basics. If it feels right, this is your invitation to do so too, as I show and tell you, the tale of two watercolours... 

Watercolour One: Stripey Purple Crocuses

Whenever life feels like it is spinning too fast, I'm learning just to breathe, and return, to  inspiration in the strangest of places...Revelling in the simple joy of putting pen to paper (or, in the case of the crocus below, digital pen to tablet).

Purple Stripey Crocuses Digital Painting in Krita

I'd like to say that I felt inspired to create these crocus (or is it crocuses?) by a major event. I'd like to, but I can't.

 No, strangely, even in a week in which I received the most magnificent bunch of flowers from the dearest of friends (I mean, how lovely are these, and how lucky was I?)...

Photo credit: Jim Fernbank
 

the flowers which caught my eye with that indescribable whisper of, "Paint us now, please," were some brave little crocuses, pushing their way through the mud, in weak rays of "almost spring," sunshine.

Photo credit: Jim Fernbank

And they led, in double quick time, to the purple crocus picture you've already see. Which is already making its way into several places, to which I'll link when done. (Update on March 15th 2025: for starters,  they're here on wrapping paper).

Watercolour Two: Daffodils and Narcissi

As for the daffodils, they were gorgeous. And The Computer Man and I both enjoyed looking at them *so* much in our house for a full week. And yet, in three attempts, (one digital and two with pens and brushes) I'm only just now getting even close to capturing something about them that feels resonant, and has that "aha," or, "yes" moment (as you can see in this scan  from my sketchbook, below).

Daffodils and narcissi in my sketchbook

Finally...

This tale doesn't have answers. I have no idea as to why one item should be easier to draw in any given week than another. (I've drawn both flowers in the past, in various amounts of complexity. Eg here, and here.)

But the lesson I'm taking from this tale is that following small joys, however strange or illogical it seems to be, strangely. yields the easiest path forward, at least for me, at the moment. 

And if that (and/or just the chance to sit down, breathe, and stare at some flowers) has in any way made everything seem a little less full-on for you too, then this post will have done its job.

Enough from here. As ever, thank you so much for being here, and for reading down this far. 

Enjoy your week-more soon.

___________________________

Like this post? Tap or click here to subscribe to BoundingSquirrel

Announcing: That The New Spring Florals Mini-Collection Has Arrived...

Click or tap here to visit my Craftsuprint shop...

Hello there and I hope you're thriving.

If you're one of the card makers who reads BoundingSquirrel, thank you so much for your patience...

The watercolour spring florals have finally made it into a mini-collection in my Craftsuprint shop. 

(Every sheet in the mini-collection links to the others at the bottom of the Craftsuprint site page, so it doesn't matter which one you browse first).

Each sheet gives you a watercolour design, (shown above) a blank insert, and a choice of six occasion tags, and six verses that fit into any insert. So, for example, even though these tulips are for Mother's Day by default...

Click or tap here to see the "Wild Tulips"
 card front sheet

you can change the tag to a different occasion, and mix and match with the verses that go with the crocus birthday card, 

Tap or click here to see the
 "Wild Crocus" Card sheet

or the verses that go with the daffodil card. As with all the cards in this series, the spring flowers intentionally burst out of the frame, as if in joy...

Tap or click here to see
the full daffodil card sheet...

This is much easier to see than to describe. So to have a peek, please take a look at the daffodil, crocus and tulip sheets in my Craftsuprint shop.

And, if cardmaking sheets aren't your thing, thank you for your patience too. There'll be something new and different for you too, in the next post.

Until then, thanks so much for being here, and enjoy your week.

More soon.

___________________________

Like this post? Tap or click here to subscribe to BoundingSquirrel

Spring Watercolour Flowers (and Favourite Line and Wash Tools)

Spring Watercolour Flower Sketches...

Hello there

This week, it's time to share some spring flower sketches, as promised last week. 

These are from imagination, but  you never know-if everyone thinks of them enough, they might appear "for real," soon...

Update on Feb 27th 2025: To see how the mini-collection turned out, tap or click straight to this post...

Line and Wash Watercolour Paints, Tools and Supplies

If you're the kind of person who likes to know how things are made, I used my current go-to favourite supplies for physical watercolour: a waterproof Sakura Pigma Micron black pen (size 0.1, though from a set with several), Derwent Inktense paints from the 24 half-pan set, Pentel water brushes, and my latest trusty Daler-Rowney sketchbook... the third one in a row, and am planning to buy another one soon...

And yes, all of those links (and in the pic below) *are* affiliate links, because I really do turn to them whenever I want to draw a non-digital watercolour, and also do sometimes get asked about my tools and materials. So, just to be really clear,  if you buy via these links, I get a small commission, at no extra cost to you.

The Derwent Inktense paints were actually a lovely Christmas gift (thank you Computer Man!). (And yes, I really have meant to talk about materials for that long...)

Anyway...here's a pic of them when the set was newer, and much less paint-spattered than it is now...(Note, the set had already been in immediate and delighted use, so even this pic doesn't show the paints in their initially, pristine state...:-) ).

These Derwent Inktense Paints got put to such immediate
use that an initial "pristine," photo of them never got chance to exist...

Sidenote: As far as I know, all these products are animal-friendly too (being a life-long vegetarian, it just isn't in me knowingly to use something that harmed either an animal or the environment in its production). But don't quote me on this, as I'm just a concerned consumer doing her best, not a paint and materials expert.

Do hope that this peek into materials has been interesting to you. As ever though, I've written more than I meant to, so I'll leave it there for now, and let you get on with your day.

But hope all's well with you, and thank you, as always, for reading down this far. Have a lovely week.

More soon.

___________________________

Like this post? Tap or click here to subscribe to BoundingSquirrel

The "Spring Crocus" Cardmaking Collection is Here...

Click here to buy the "Spring Crocus" card front sheet
 from my Craftsuprint shop,
for instant download *or* print-and-post.

Welcome, to a post (and a part of the world-I realise it's not the same everywhere) in which Spring has sprung.

The "Spring Crocus" collection is a set of papercraft products that celebrate this, and it's lovely to be able to reveal this to you today.

Over the last couple of weeks, I've poured my heart and soul into getting the essence of spring to glow into the art work and the finished papers of this collection.

It's been a joyful, though full-on process, at which I thought you might like to have a peek.

(If you're a "Just gimme the papers," type of person though, then please do click or tap here...).

 But, to begin at the beginning...

The initial idea...

The initial idea came all in a flash, one sunny Sunday a couple of weeks ago, strolling through the park with my husband. It was the first in months where it had felt warm enough not to wear a coat... (Yay, as am not a fan of coats, or heavy clothing generally). Anyway... what with the not-wearing-a-coat, the sun, and beautiful crocus like this one peeping through the soil after the winter...(this is my hubby's photo-thanks Jim)...

Photo by Jim Fernbank.

It was pretty easy, all-in-all, to begin to imagine "Spring Crocus" artwork taking shape.

Now at this stage, I remember a carpet of crocus having been there. But somehow, mysteriously, I failed to take a decent photo of it. (I wish I were joking when I say to people that I got into art because I really can't take decent photos, but, there you go...It's the absolute truth.).

What next?

So at this point, imagination and memory also took a hand, and lots (and lots...) of artistic licence.

After all, for me at least, the real point is remembering that feeling (often of joy, as in this case) and getting something down which represents it, (and on a good day, might even transmit that feeling) to another person. 

Sooo....

First, there was an initial sketch to get some shapes and colours...

Which became a traditional and digital watercolour hybrid like this...

And lots and lots of small pattern motifs that look really weird when you see them out of context, like this one...

Until...

It all came together in a paper pack, card sheet, and even a sheet with inserts and verses...

Tap or click here to find out more...

And so, if you've been one of the people I haven't got back to yet this week, this is probably why ;-) .

Finally...

Thanks soooo much for reading down this far, and really appreciate you being here, whether it's to grab the new papers, or mostly to hang out for the story and the pics.

Wherever you are, and whatever the season with you, hope this puts a literal "spring" in your step. And have a lovely weekend, when it comes.

More soon.

Happy Easter Chick Animated Gif by Clare Walker,
 BoundingSquirrel.Com. Click here to download
 and use or share it.

Yes, Easter would appear to have snuck up on us again, and so before taking a break for it, I just wanted to send you my very best wishes, whatever your way of celebrating  this time of year (or not).

For me, nature and the arrival of new life and hope is always key in spring, hence this image.

If you'd like to share this gif/send it as an online Easter card, please do (right-click, click or tap on the image to download and use it). I don't insist on credit, but it's always lovely if you're able to do so, or link back in some way.

Hope all is peaceful well and happy wherever you are. Have a lovely weekend (or more) and I'll see you in a few days.

Thanks so much for being here, and more soon.

___________________________

Like this post? Tap or click here to subscribe to BoundingSquirrel

Daily Illustration #38: Quick Crocus Sketch

Spent most of the afternoon in the park, so this crocus sketch is ultra-quick (in Art|Rage 4 again). But lovely to see the crocuses-it's almost spring...


Click to subscribe to BoundingSquirrel by Email