New Digital Painting: Evolution of a Digital Watercolour

I'm loving playing with Artrage 4 again, especially its watercolour settings. (I'm not an Artrage affiliate, by the way, I just love its ease of use). Here are the several stages of a watercolour featuring the purpley-blue flowers from our window box, given lots of artistic licence.

I think they're "pincushion flowers", or have the less-than-lovely name of "Scabious", but they have their own determined beauty, and the bees love them.

Anyway, first of all, I started with the flowers, using Artrage. I chose a watercolour paper setting, and increased the grain slightly, using low-blend and a small brush size for the stems, and the "just a spot" watercolout brush for the petals.

I might yet pop these into a pattern, but as they are, I felt they needed some fixing into the ground.

So Stage Two involved "just a spot" brush leaves...

Again, they might yet have a purpose all their own. But it still felt like they needed fixing into some earth.

So it was onto some flecks, again with the "just a spot" brush....

 Very definitely, this design on the right would make a card.

But then, using a combination of "low blend" watercolour paint blobs in new Artrage layer, and the spreading around of those blobs with the "Just Water" setting, the final version of this digital painting (for now!) turned into the picture you see below.

Would you have left this here, or earlier? Or would you have added more? Please do leave a comment and let me know what you think. Thanks!

New Digital Painting: A Cute Rabbit for Spring

Right-click and save this bunny if you'd like to send him as an ecard

At last, a new digital painting. I've had to throw off a cold, and as soon as I did, this cute bunny appeared (based on one I saw and photoed in Epping Forest, with The Computer Man last year).

Once again, I've done this rabbit in digital oil pastels, stroke by stroke, with a tablet and pen.

But this time, I changed the background paper colour first and then erased around it. Please do shout if you'd like a video of this process. (I've just bought a new program for explaining and videoing what's going on my screen and am *really* keen to test drive it ;-)

If you're looking for an Easter e-card, do right click and save him, sending him (or her, it might be a her!) wherever you want.

But this rabbit is for any time of year, and also features on a card and other goodies here.

And in any event, happy spring, Easter or whatever else is happening in your part of the world as you read this.

Fresh, Fun and Funky Mother's Day Card & Gifts

If you're in the UK and reading this when I'm posting, you're seriously late to get your Mother's Day card in the post...

But help is at hand, because you're welcome to send this one as an e-card (just right-click, save target as" and attach or embed in an email as you wish).

On the other hand... if you're in the USA or elsewhere, you're in plenty of time to get hold of this and let your Mum know how you feel with this design on cards *and* gifts.

It came out of a discussion with my hubby the other day about how there weren't many fresh designs for mother's day cards and gifts. So if you are looking for something bright and floral, but a bit more fun, this is for you...

Click here to get this card

And if you're not into buying cards, but would like to make one in this style, check out CraftArtist. I used the pro version as is (without any of the add-ons you can buy for it), and love how you can get a mixed media art-effect from it without any mess.

There's a free version too, here. (And no, this isn't an affiliate link, I'm just really impressed with the program).

More soon-and let's celebrate spring, whether ort not it's Mother's Day yet where you are.

Spring Birds Digital Painting

I couldn't post this painting before the recipients had had their card this morning, but these birds (we call them blue tits in the UK-I think maybe they're similar to "chickadees" in the US?) are doing their best to usher in spring in this digital painting, "By the Feeder".

As ever, use this as an ecard as much as you'd like, or get the paper-based version (and other goodies) here.

Happy Birthday Labrador (& Yes, He's a Free E-Card Too...)

It's been forever since I posted, so by way of apology, here's a frisky little golden labrador puppy to send as a free ecard to any dog lover with a birthday coming up soon...

 Just right click and "save as" the image to your device, then attach or embed him within any message to send him to anyone who loves animals. (Or anyone with a birthday, really).

Of course, if you'd prefer to send  him on a nice solid birthday card, in high resolution (with an envelope and no watermark), he's also available here.

I'm off to put the finishing touches to another Spring-based design now, working on the basis that if I focus on Spring long enough, it might actually turn up and stick around...;-)

In the meantime, enjoy!