iHannas Winter Postcard Swap, by Leada Wood, Texas Artist

I am so excited! I received all my names yesterday and mailed out my cards. Can you tell it's my first swap? I had one from UK and one from Australia and the rest were spread across the USA. I can't wait to get mine! I made a collage of the cards that I created just for the swap. I want to share my post with Hanna and hope this works as I am a newbie at all this sharing stuff. To see iHannas winter diy postcard swap blog please click on the link:  http://www.iHanna.nu  or copy and paste in case it doesn't work.

I had two lovely comments on Google + but could not get my comment to work...so thank you Sue Marrazzo and Sandra D for your comments. Sandra D I cannot wait to get your card! Have a wonderful weekend!

Happy Thanksgiving! By Leada Wood, Texas artist

Wild turkeys are plentiful around my neck of the woods but you really have to be on the lookout to see them. My oldest son shot one and thought we should have it for Thanksgiving. Poor bird not enough meat to feed our herd! He wound up giving it away to someone with not so many mouths to feed.

Wishing you a wonderful day of plenty surrounded by family and friends. I am grateful for so many blessings that come my way, including you dear readers of my blog. Blessings and peace to all!

Winter Postcard Swap by Leada Wood, Texas Artist

There is still time to sign up for IHannas postcard swap. You have until November 26th to join in on the fun! I made mine standard postcard size 4x6. I have enjoyed working small so much I am continuing to paint daily Minis.

For these I used my Gelli to make mono prints on all of the cards and used them for the springboard to  contine with the layering. I used watercolor paper and acrylic paints along with stencils, water soluble crayons, glitter pens, colored pens and markers. The sky is the limit! 

Best Of Show, by Leada Wood, Contemporary Texas Artist

Today was the West Texas Art Guild's annual Regional Big Country art show and I was thrilled beyond measure when I found out I won Best of Show. 

The painting Sunflower 2 is a batik on Unryu paper which is a little bit thicker than tissue paper. I draw the subject on the paper with sharpie pen and then save the parts I want to be light or white with wax. Proceeding on with either watercolor or liquid acrylics I complete the painting and coat the entire painting with wax, let it dry and crumple it up in a ball. If the painting survives this I flatten it and push paint down into the crevices. Then it is wax off and I remove the wax. It is quite an involved process and a risky technique...but isn't that what making art is all about...taking chances?

Roz Stendahl of Sketchbook Skool by Leada Wood, Texas Artist

copyright by Roz Stendahl and Sketchbook Skool
 

 

What a wonderful week we have had with Sketchbook Skool's Roz Stendahl. The whole class has been great but Roz's generosity and teaching videos were extraordinary! This was one of her parting gifts to us, a memento of our week together. I had to print it out and cut the cards of course but it was worth every minute! Roz has an awesome blog you should check out: http://rozwoundup.typepad.com

It has been so cold this week the only live animal sketching I did was of my little Yorkie, Mollie. She was very suspicious of all the activity following her around with my sketchbook and pen. I found that sometimes standing up and calling her name was the only way to get her to be still...she is a little hyper.

This was my first attempt at a live animal subject and sketching with a Pentel brush pen. This was drawn standing up calling her name as it was the only resource to get her to stand still. This is called a gesture sketch and probably doesn't take over 35 to 40 seconds to create...or however long your subject cooperates. These quick sketches are not meant to be fine art but only practice of capturing the essence of your subject.

The assignment was to draw a live animal everyday. Another gesture pose of Mollie with the brush pen. I really like it for fast sketches.

Mollie getting use to me following her around and tired too...but she won't be still for long!

 

 

 



 

 

I caught her napping in the sunshine before I left for work so I had a quick go at drawing her again.

 

 

 

 

 

And this is the way she looked laying in the sunshine on a cold winters day When it warms up a little I will try again sketching live animals on the farm. Maybe sheep, goats or llamas!

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Winter Post Card Swap by Leada Wood, Texas Artist

IHanna is doing a winter Post card swap and I have been playing with my Gelli, paints and water Crayons getting ready for it.  You must sign up, there is still plenty of time, and join in on the fun! You are suppose to create 10 postcards but it has been such fun I can't stop. 

Gelli printing is like mono printing but a whole lot easier. You don't have to have a press or special paper and you can do layer upon layer. However you choose to create your cards is as individual as you are and some lucky someone, somewhere will enjoy getting one. Oh this is an international swap so your cards could come from anywhere. Please come play!

Here are two of mine

Catclaw by Leada Wood, Texas Artist

Catclaws have always intrigued me. My Grandmother was very creative and she made Texas cowboy mosquitoes out of them. I still have one that she made. Although she has been gone many years, the sight of a catclaw brings back memories of her and her creations. 

I am taking a class with Jane LaFazio this week in Sketchbook Skool and we are doing grids and composition. I decided to do the life cycle of a catclaw in ink and watercolor and it is 7x10.

This was my set up so that you can see the actual catclaw. The bloom reminds me of a small orchid and has a very heady smell. I can smell them on the wind sometime and the bees love them. They say catclaw honey is very tasty. The pod when it ripens splits into and then falls off and the catclaw is left to dry.

This is what my Grandmother made out of Catclaws and sold many of them.  Texas Catclaw Cowboys.   I guess she was ahead of her time in recycling things. She also made beautiful little rocking chairs, very ornate from cans. Grandmother could make anything!

Have a great week!