Starting a loose painting without paint brush

 DESIGNING the painting

You can look at a reference photo. I am making this one up as I go, but it's helpful to have a reference. I used a sponge dipped in miskit to mask out a pattern of flowers, as I said in the previous blog. You can use contact paper to mask out petals and other hard edged flowers, leaves.

To make a symmetric vase, cut a piece of drawing paper the length of the vase. Fold it in half lengthwise. Draw half of the vase, using the fold as the center line. Cut it out just like we used to cut out paper dolls and hearts when we were kids. Open it out and you have a symmetrical vase. Just trace that onto your paper.

First step was to add yellows and reds using a sponge dipped in watercolor. I used hansa yellow, transparent pyrrol orange, and quin magenta. Before it dried I sprayed it to make some of the paint run. 

You can tip your painting in the direction you want to make the paint run. 

The vase area: I wiped some yellow and orange on the vase after spraying it. I just let the paint run even below the vase. Using the small cut credit card, I put in some edges to the vase, trying not to outline the entire thing with the same color. I use a cut up credit card (small) and run it through some green paint, and drag it through the damp paper to create some stems in the water. Also drug it through some of the flowers above the vase. 

Here is what it looks like before removing masking fluid.

Here is how I cut up a credit card. The two small narrow ones for applying paint and making lines; a triangular one with sharp points for scoring and one with rounded edges for scratching whites, as for trees.

Below is the rubber from a squeegie. It's more flexible than a credit card, so you can make the curves around leaves, petals, and other hard edges.

Using a small edge of credit card to create some edges.

Using the credit card to put color around the edge of a leaf.

After removing masking fluid, you can see where I've put a tulip shaped contact paper to preserve a hard edged white.

After removing the masking fluid. 

I was showing how to make a leaf with squeegie rubber, but I don't like how it turned out or where I put it. So this will have to be changed somehow. 

If you want to watch Karen Rice demo a similar floral  with no paintbrush, I've included the link here: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKgkKuqDNT4&t=647s