JANNA VANDERVEEN

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Rainbows and pearls  Adorn fairies and sprites Who dust imaginations With magic and light. ~ Janna Vanderveen

My watercolor study of Danielle Donaldson’s work.    

Glazing washes of watercolor (the art of grisaille) involves layering translucent colors to create a range of values that glow. If that sounds easy, guess again.  There are days that I feel blind, like a child trying to make sense of letters on a page while learning to read. In truth, I am training my brain to see beyond the obvious, in hopes of interpreting the shadows and tones to enhance the light. Oh to attend a watercolor class by… Read More

Watercolor Painting of Roses in Vase Dabbling with roses With love and with light This paintbrush of prose Births color and life. ~ Janna Vanderveen  

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

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 everlastingYour arms reach far and wideYou carry me in splendorYou never leave my side Upon your winds of favorYou lift me up to flyYour wings, beloved saviorA shelter in the sky. Your gifts, they fall like raindrops,Your water soothes my soulYou fill my heart with plentyYour 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… Read More

“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.

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… Read More

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… Read More