I used Rembrandt pastels on Mi Teintes paper that I coated with Golden Pastel Ground so that I would have some grit. My reference photo was from a recent kayaking trip on the Brazos river in Texas.
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Brenda,
Every time I see another of your watercolor paintings, I see how much you have improved. These are both lovely.
Teri (With 1R)
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Thank you so much, Teri!
Brenda
This is really lovely!! So picturesque. I feel as if I could step right into the image. I suspect the Brazos is much higher and flowing fast right now with all the rain we’ve had!!
Thanks for sharing this. My husband loves to kayak and canoe.
Brenda
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Hi Terri,
Thanks for the nice reply.
In regards to the forum, I probably need to spend a little more time exploring the site to learn it better. Sometimes I’m so busy (and impatient) that i rush through things.
I definitely like the idea of having a goal of so much artwork in a given period of time. I’m going to start that. I tend to spend too much time deciding what to draw next. I have thousands of pictures on my iPad that I’ve taken or downloaded. Hundreds of them I’d really like to draw and then I have to decide the type and color of paper, the medium and colors that I’m going to use. That’s the part that often feels like a chore to me. Once I actually start drawing it is mostly a pleasure.
I’ve been using a program on my iPad called Camera Lucida. I can trace an image on my paper, looking at the screen hovering over my paper. It’s really cool, but there are size limits. I agree, it helps seeing the detail. I can draw freehand, but if I’m drawing someone’s dog or cat, I want the proportions to be correct. Plus, it saves so much time.
I am slowly learning that deviation from the reference is often important or even necessary. I agree, it’s not easy. I struggle with backgrounds. On the Members Minute 477, Matt reviewed a drawing of a dog by Sonia. I really liked the drawing! The dog was on a gray tile floor. I liked that and I’m sure I would have drawn it the same way, but Matt suggested a terracotta color tile. I never thought of that. (I learn so much).
I mentioned that I was impatient earlier. Well really not so once I start working. I’m not good at timing my work. I can sit down after lunch and get lost in my drawing- all of a sudden it’s dinner time! I can certainly believe the potters wheel took almost 40 hours! Thanks for the advice and encouragement!
Bill Potts
I’m going to try to attach a picture of a friends cat “Jasmine”
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Today I did a watercolor of a guinea pig. I used a white gel pen for whiskers. It was a fun tutorial from a watercolor site I subscribe to.
I mixed my black using Daniel Smith indigo and Winsor-Newton burnt sienna. I like the Daniel Smith indigo better than any I’ve tried. It leans more black than others. When mixed with burnt sienna, the resulting black is so convincing and more natural looking.
Brenda
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I’m so proud of you because your focus and efforts are paying off. This painting is delightful.
Terri Robichon
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Thank you so much Terri! It was a lot of fun to do. That’s how I know I’m getting better. I’m so much more relaxed throughout the process.
Thanks for your support.
Brenda
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I’m so enjoying watching your journey with watercolors
Terri
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Nice job with Jasmine. I’m working on an oil painting of my own cat. Actually, I’ve got it 3/4th done and have taken a break. Kinda afraid to attack the finishing touches. Someday soon I’ll get back to it.
Actually, I’ve got 4 things that are only partially done right not. The cat, my dad, my sisters and my dog. Maybe the problem is that they’re all in the family.
Terri Robichon
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Wow! How long did it take you to paint that cute guinea pig? It’s so nicely done. I wish I had more time to try something like that.
Maybe after we start summer break. This past two weeks have been exhausting.
Random….They had me and other teachers doing face painting during a water war field day. I have never painted a face in my life. I had to use stencils LOL. They figured that because I draw, I would do beautiful face paintings…
Well It was ok-ish, but Im super sore and exhausted so my art has been stalled until school lets out 
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@Meme5, thanks for your comments. The guinea pig took between 1 and 2 hours for me. It was a 30-minute tutorial. I had to keep pausing the video, which I always do with tutorials. I’m so happy with the little guy!
The last few weeks of school are always a roller coaster! And face painting is a whole other animal! I hope you get to the end of the year and can get back to your drawing and painting in one piece. 
Brenda
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Hi Sonia. Don’t ask me to do a face painting either. Totally NOT in my wheelhouse.
Terri Robichon
PS. Just keep hanging in there. School will be over before you know it.
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Hi Brenda. I would have thought the Guinea Pig would have taken longer. He is a delightful guy. And I always stop, rewind, rewatch and pause lessons too. They always take me tons longer than what they say it takes. But that’s perfectly ok.
Terri
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Love this~ The colors and the movement are nicely done. I like the kayak!
Love your Guinea pig!
This is an 8x10 drawing on PastelMat paper. It was really hard for me because Pastel is not one of my favorite mediums. After finding a photo of my 9-month-old German shepherd, I decided I wanted to simplify and lighten the background so that Duke would be the star. I did something I never tried before. I started with the background, and when the layered pastels were on the paper, I grabbed a brush and some clean water and I painted over the pastel. That blended it, lightened it and reduced the detail. It looked awful. I told my husband I should just throw it away and quit wasting my time. I don’t know why but I just kept pushing ahead, working hard to capture my boy’s facial details. Keeping the white of the eye and the catchlight was tricky. In the end it is not my best piece of artwork. But I love it and am glad I decided keep going until it was done.
Terri Robichon
This is the background before I added the dog. By the way, the color in this photo is more accurate because the sky is a light blue.
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Turned out really good! Photorealistic as always! Next time try using alcohol instead of water. I never use water. As you probably already know, alcohol dries super fast. I also use a misting bottle to mist alcohol if I don’t want to blend the colors, that way the soft pastels to “settle in” which gives back some tooth to the pastelmat paper.
Sonia
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Hi Sonia,
I never heard about using alcohol for pastels, and the idea of a misting bottle is interesting. I guess I will have to play around some more. Thanks for sharing the idea.
Terri Robichon