There is always light in darkness and beauty in imperfection. The key is perception….
I almost didn’t complete this watercolor painting.
Almost.
I was tempted to rip it apart midway, but I had a hard time wedging it out of my perfect paper stretcher. So instead, I walked away.
I came back, begrudgingly, thirty minutes later, and decided to give it one more chance.
The dark mood of the painting measured my own.
But I also saw light.
I stopped trying for perfection.
I forced myself to finish it.
And now, I like it. It’s not perfect. But there is beauty in the light which shines out of its dark places.
This watercolor painting is of a cottage in Grasmere, in the English Lake District. It is the second assignment in Peter Woolley’s Watercolor For Beginners DVD: Tone and Composition.
Watercolor Window and Roses
“One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all dreaming of some magical rose garden over the horizon instead of enjoying the roses that are blooming outside our window today.” ~ Dale Carnegie
Reference Photo Inspiration : Larissa O’Duffy: https://www.flickr.com/photos/lariod/3551184572
Meet Violet Dahlia
Princess, pixie, fairy, sprite, or heroine…
I haven’t decided yet.
I had a tremendous amount of fun sewing this whimsical character, with her purple hair and big eyes.
I could definitely see her in a children’s book.
As of now, my daughter holds the key to her magical world.
She even convinced me to add eyelashes.
You can find this sewing pattern on Etsy at Fancy Dolls.
A Tonal Watercolor Study: Farmhouse in the Dell
Fingers of fog,
Desecrate lightly
The farmhouse in the dell
Where silence walks
And stone walls talk
And darker stories dwell.
~ Janna Vanderveen
This watercolor painting of an English cottage is my second assignment in Peter Woolley’s Watercolor For Beginners DVD: Tone and Composition.
A Poem of Thankfulness
Your love is everlasting
Your arms reach far and wide
You carry me in splendor
You never leave my side
Upon your winds of favor
You lift me up to fly
Your wings, beloved savior
A shelter in the sky.
Your gifts, they fall like raindrops,
Your water soothes my soul
You fill my heart with plenty
Your grace, it makes me whole
~ Janna Vanderveen
The Robin
The north wind doth blow,
And we shall have snow,
And what will poor robin do then,
Poor thing?
He’ll sit in a barn,
And keep himself warm,
And hide his head under his wing,
Poor thing!
~ Mother Goose
(Click on thumbnail for high-resolution image)
Watercolor: Robin in Snow
Craft day is always fun, especially when Grandma is involved. She researched ways to create cabochon/pendant necklaces, purchased all the supplies, and set up the creative day for her grandchildren to attend.
I suggested that my kids draw a picture which I’d watercolor. Of all the necklaces they created, these were my favorites!
My daughter drew a doghouse with her puppy basking in the son. She also drew a self-portrait. My son drew a hero character with red eyes and fiery hair.
These are keepsakes for sure!
“Now we see things imperfectly as in a poor mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God knows me now.” ~ 1 Corinthians 13: 12
Sailing somber seas
Soft skies encroach muted trees
Heavy with sorrow
Striving, always striving…
Tear drops driving
A repeat of tomorrow.
~ Janna Vanderveen
The beauty of the Lord is like a Matryoshka doll. At first glance it is stunning, but a closer look reveals a magnificent multi-layered gift, full of even greater splendor.
Penelope Bloom dressed up as her favorite bunny for Halloween.
Cute or creepy. You tell me.
Handmade by Sweetheart by Janna
I cannot help but contemplate the work of God’s hands, while writing Lumen, the second book in my Eden’s Gate series.
Psalm 19:1 comes to mind and lingers…
“The heavens proclaim the glory of God.
The skies display his craftsmanship.”
~ Psalm 19:1
The unhindered imagination of children produces the cutest things.
Yesterday, my five-year-old daughter created this drawing of herself, with brown hair (she’s convinced that’s the color it will be when she’s older), and a red, rocket backpack. But most notably, she’s flying.
At Disney World, a shop assistant sprinkled fairy dust in my daughter’s hair and promised her that if she made a wish, it would come true. You can imagine what I was thinking as she spoke, my eyes large as I subtly tried to dissuade her from delivering this promise with a not so subtle shake of my head. But the worker didn’t see me, or maybe she just didn’t get it, and my daughter latched on to the thought with whole-hearted abandon. She confided with great confidence, that she wished to fly.
As the day progressed, her questions grew more frequent… “Mom, am I going to fly yet? When is it going to happen Mom. I want to fly now.”
I tried to dodge her questions with distractions, “Look honey, we’re flying on Aladdin’s Magic Carpet ride…we’re flying on Dumbo the Flying Elephant…your wish came true.”
To which she’d shake her head and stomp her foot. “That doesn’t count. I want to FLY.” An eye roll invariably accentuated her disdain for my suggestion.
Eventually I had to tell her the truth, and in doing so, I broke her little heart. My explanation, that the wish was make-belief and pretend, was met first with denial and then sadness. “But I want to fly Mom, I have fairy dust in my hair.”
Many more distractions followed and a lot of hugs. Thankfully, she forgot about the promise and her wish.
Or so I thought…
Based on this picture, I’d say she hasn’t given up on her dream. Now she sees it as a challenge. Perhaps she will be instrumental in creating the next flying device designed for public transit. Or maybe, in the absence of that type of futuristic technology, she’ll develop her own fantastical world on paper, and live vicariously through the stories of her characters.
Either way, her curiosity and creativity are inspiring.
And, based on her character’s smile, I think I’d like to fly too.
(Click on thumbnail for full-resolution image)
Storybook characters really do come to life!
At least Snow White’s 7 Dwarves did at Walt Disney world.
Wait…is that Sneezy plugging his nose?
Is it possible that I stink?
Considering it was late at night, incredibly hot, and our wait in line to meet these guys was upwards of 75 minutes, I’d say it was possible.
Ha! I love how my daughter is holding Dopey’s hand.
These memories will last a lifetime!
The Neverending Story was one of my favorite movies as a child. In it, a bullied boy named Bastian, flees to his school attic to escapes the worries of his life. He enters a book and through that, the world Fantasia, which is in dire need of a hero and savior. Bastian learns to overcome his fear and triumphs in saving the land.
Having experienced some bullying in middle school, I related to this story on many levels.
And who could ever forget the beloved Falkor (the luck dragon)?
Apparently, not me.
I recently had an epiphany about my little Maltese dog, Lily.
Can you spot the resemblance?
Perhaps she’s my luck dragon.
Or not.
But regardless, I love her.
My daughter has been asking for a rainbow and pink Penelope Bloom Bunny for over a year. Yesterday, I decided it was time to fulfill on my promise and make her one.
I checked on my daughter late at night, and noticed that she slept with her new bunny snuggled tight in her arms.
That made it all worth while!
This week, I viewed several YouTube tutorials on “negative watercolor painting.”
I was intrigued by the title, learning quickly that it’s not a reference to one’s attitude. Instead, it ‘s a style of backward painting, or painting outside the lines/edges of a picture. Another way to describe it is coloring in the negative spaces, using multiple layers.
This technique fosters an impressionistic or fantasy feel.
My watercolor painting was inspired by Sydney Harper’s, “Rooftops.”
My five-year-old daughter drew this village picture, with a house, pink cotton candy tree (her most favorite snack), garage, car, dog, and flowers. We added a few trees to fill in the blank areas. Around it all is a fence. She would have preferred that I watercolor paint the entire picture pink, but I assured her that added color would look nice too.
So, voila!
“Pink World”
(Click on link for high-resolution image)
Now that the kids are back on school, I have plunged back into editing and writing. It is always a challenge to keep life balanced when I immerse myself into my work, so I make an effort to do activities with the kids that I think they will enjoy.
This week, on a whim, I asked my children to each draw a picture that I could watercolor paint . I wanted to do something unique with them and collaborate on a project together.
Intrigued, my middle child drew a cartoon figure. This didn’t surprise me much, for he is a creative soul who loves to illustrate comic strips, write his own stories, draw cartoons, staple papers together to create books, and develop worlds in games like Minecraft and Growtopia. He gave me insight into my watercolor painting, suggesting that I outline the mouth in black and add colors in different places. It was an enjoyable experience for both of us.
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Watercolor attempt #16.
“Volkswagen Camper Van”
Our family camping trips are complete for 2014 and school planning has begun.
Change is in the air.
It’s been a good summer filled with lots of happy memories.
In honor of all those memories, I painted a Volkswagen Camper Van.
Reference Photo Inspiration: http://www.ABPosters.com http://www.abposters.com/posters/vw-california-camper-v13241
JANNA VANDERVEEN 