Another pumpkin ~ Nog een pompoen

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"Mini-pumpkin in Sanguine"
©2007. copyright Judith Nijholt-Strong
Talens' van Gogh sanguine chalk pencil
Mi-Teintes pastel paper, 10.5"h x 7.5"w

Another mini-pumpkin by "mom" - this time a drawing in Sanguine chalk on Canson's Mi-Teintes pastel paper (smooth side). She has a collection of these little gourds and pumpkins (pompoen - plural form is pompoenen) ... she buys too many each year and she keeps them! All dried out and faded, but she won't throw them away.

She'd be so mad at me if I kept all of my dried out mice & frogs, wouldn't she?!?!? Hmmmm...maybe I can convince her that they'd be good to draw too! heh heh.

Doei! (bye)

Sacha

Note: The pumpkin was drawn from life ... they sit on my desk under my lamp as I like the look of strong, well defined shadows. :o) ~ Judy

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Just a little note - Gewoon een klein briefje

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"Golden Pumpkin 2007" © Judith Nijholt-Strong
Winsor & Newton watercolors on Fabriano cold-pressed wc paper
11"w x 8"h (approx).

Just a little note to say that we hope all of our American friends here in Holland, around the world and back in the United States have a lovely and Happy Thanksgiving Day!

And for those of you who have been doing Google searches on "In November, is there Thanksgiving Day in Holland?" or "Do the Dutch celebrate Thanksgiving Day in Holland?" and finding this blog ... the answer is: No! (nee!)
Thanksgiving Day, in November, is not a Dutch holiday - it is uniquely American. When it is celebrated here, it's because some "lucky" Dutch person is either married to (or living with), an American (heh heh!! *wink*) . Or, a group of American ex-pats living in the Netherlands (or anywhere in the world, for that matter) get together to enjoy a feast and good company!

Here's what "we" did last year (this year will be much the same and I (Sacha) am looking forward to the left-overs - meowie!!) : A Belated Thanksgiving Wish - 2006

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE! :o)


About the watercolor above:
This watercolor was painted from life, not a photo. The watercolor paint is Winsor & Newton's Artists' Water Colour - in pans and in tubes (I use both).

I began with an underpainting in French Ultramarine Blue. Other colors layered on top were: Burnt Sienna, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Yellow, a little Sap Green and Brown Madder.

All darkest darks and blacks are a mix of French Ultramarine Blue and Burnt Sienna (a lovely combination , imo). No tube or pan grays were used and I do not use tube or pan black paint - I mix my blacks and grays from complements.

Burnt Sienna in light washes, or combined with a little Cad. Yellow, also makes a very nice orange. For me, the most enjoyment in watercolors, as well as in my colored pencil pieces, comes from working with a limitted palette of colors.

~ Judith Nijholt-Strong

Tot volgende keer (until next time),

Sacha (de kat)

& Judy (her human "mom" )

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Red,Yellow & Blue - Rood,Geel & Blauw

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This is a post from my human "mom" (Judith Nijholt-Strong) and a colored pencil technique she likes to use ( she does pretty much the same with her watercolors & gouaches too!). So, now I turn this post over to "mom".
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With Red, Yellow & Blue, you can be a mix-master blender too!


"Ready-to-Eat, Red" © 2007 Judith Nijholt-Strong
8" x 10" (approx.)
Colored Pencil on Rising Stonehenge paper

Often, I like to use a limited, tri-color (triad), palette consisting of one red, one yellow and one blue - be it in colored pencil, watercolors, or gouache.

In the colored pencil piece above, I worked with just 1 red, 1 yellow and 1 blue pencil + 1 white pencil (for highlights and blending).

The pencils I used were:
Prismacolor - Raspberry
Prismacolor - Canary Yellow
Prismacolor - True Blue
Prismacolor - White

All grays, 'blacks', and browns were created using various amounts of the red, yellow and blue layerings of the colored pencils ( much the same as overlays of watercolor washes) - no gray or black pencils were harmed (not even touched) during the process of creating this piece.

The addition of the white pencil is to preserve the highlights and to add a pastel quality to some areas, if/when I want that.

Sometimes, 150 colors (or more) are not necessary. ;-)

Try it, you might like it.

~ Judy

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Hey, I think I like this. Sharing a blog with "mom" is more fun than "pawing it out" by myself !!
Yeah I know, I'm a cat and can't draw or paint a thing...I do make nice messes though in "mom's" studio. heh heh

Tot ziens!
Sacha (a cat, really, I am a cat).