Studio Organization - Colored Pencils

Colored Pencils
Artists are notorious for having lots of art supplies. I'm guilty as charged. It is a necessity. It is a passion. It is like baking supplies for a foodie. And to make matters worse, I work in a variety of media...from colored pencils to pen and ink to acrylic paint to watercolor paint to oil paint to clay.

So I am constantly fighting to keep things organized and within reach at the same time.  So I thought I would post a few photos of a project that I've done to 'try' to get my studio organized a little.  But keep in mind that this is a work in progress.  One step at a time, right?  So, one side of my studio is devoted to drawing. The other is devoted to clay and paint...the 'messy' media.  Today I just want to talk about the colored pencils on the drawing side of the studio. In case you cannot tell, Prismacolor Colored Pencils are my favorite. I have a lot. I have more stored in containers in my desk.


Organizing Colored Pencils

Problem: Keeping said colored pencils organized (in one place) enough that I can find the colors when I need them and make good use of 'small nubs' of colored pencils.
Solution:
Buy (2) 2' length White PVC Pipes
( I used 3" diameter, cut to preferred size to hold the pencils)
** I cut 5 pieces approximately 4 1/4" each with the remaining piece being 2 1/2" for pencil nubs.

NOTE** You may want to get more, or longer, PVC and cut all pieces the same size.  But I always have little nubs of colored pencils that I want to keep up with.  I use them to glue onto new pencils!  But that is another story!

(2) 22"  length 1x4 painted white boards (I cut them to fit the number of pieces of PVC I wanted AND to fit the top of a bookshelf that sits beside by drawing table. You may want to cut one wider board, instead of two to fit onto a table or desktop.)  I wanted 2 separate boards so I could move them around later. Also, I already had the wood pieces painted.
*E-6000 Glue (or any strong glue) to adhere the PVC to the boards, making sure the black words printed on the pipes are facing each other for a cleaner look.

I had my husband cut the PVC pipe on his electric saw.  Then I placed them on the board, into position, the way I wanted them to be glued.  I positioned them so that the 'unattractive' words that come printed on them would be facing each other.  Then I started by picking up the end piece and spread glue onto the bottom of the PVC and placed it back on the board.  I continued with that until I finished with all six pieces. Then I started on the second board.  I let it dry overnight before I organized my sharpened colored pencils by color groups and placed them on the bookshelf next to my drawing board.

And for current projects,
there is just enough room at the end of the two boards to hold two large mugs that will hold the colored pencils that I will keep while working on a project.   I think this will work pretty well for me! I've been searching for some ideas for keeping up with my pencils and found some ideas on YouTube, but I recently went to a colored pencil workshop and the instructor, Nancy Charles, had a similar version of this.  So I modified it to fit my needs and came up with this.  So, thank you, Nancy, for the inspiration!

Beth♥

Pretty Leaves are Going Fast

This week as I was outside walking the dog around the yard, I was also looking for pretty fall color in the yard.  This year another red maple in our yard started turning pretty red colors that I had not seen on this particular tree before.  This tree is special to me because we planted this tree in our front yard the first fall that we moved into our house 17 years ago.  Our house was a new house, so it did not have any trees, so we wanted to have some pretty colors eventually.  My son was in first grade at the time.  He and his friend helped his dad plant the tree in the front yard.  After several years, the tree did not grow very much. The tree is a Red Maple and is supposed to grow quickly, but it was not thriving like it should.  So we decided to dig it up and move it about 30 feet towards the backyard.  The tree must have liked its new spot, because it started to grow and thrive.  Now, 17 years later, the Red Maple has grown into this tree. It decided to show us its pretty red leaves this year. But they are falling quickly. They are covering the ground now.  But even on the ground they are pretty. I may have to  preserve some of them in a drawing or painting or maybe even a clay design.  I'm still hoping for a repeat of last years color from another tree in the backyard, but the cold weather last week may have changed mother nature's plans this year.

Beth  ♥     

Fall Palette of Color...

The colors of fall are so pretty.  Fall and Spring are my favorite seasons. They both are so colorful and I love color!  I created a hanging tile with fall colors that includes a little owl.  It is now listed in my Etsy shop: My Etsy Shop

I have also been watching for changing leaves for photos. Here are a few photos of what I have taken, but it is still early. But they are changing quickly.  I've been taking Sophie for some short walks to see some of the colors in the neighborhood.  I'm sure I will post more over the next few weeks.  Enjoy!
Beth  ♥     

Painting Birds with Acrylics

Painting is Good for the Soul
After spending hours and hours getting ready for the Norcross Art Festival and finishing up a large commission, last week I just crashed!  I spent several days unpacking and re-organizing my tent display items, then re-listing items in my Etsy shop, so I was working, just not on the creative part of my 'job'.  So Friday I pulled out a canvas commission that had been waiting to be finished and by Saturday morning I was in the mood to be creative.  I painted all day Saturday, finishing 2 painting commissions and then on to one just for fun!  And it felt really good to paint! It was a rainy day, so it was good to be in the studio.  It lifted my spirits quite a bit.  The blahs turned into a happy feeling.  I think I will spend more time painting in the near future, mixing my time up with some drawing, clay work and painting.  Sounds like a good mixture to me.

Whimsical Birds on Canvas
 A couple of months ago I painted the background of this canvas.  I used a coral color first. Then I rolled blue on top of the coral, leaving some of the coral showing through.  After that was dry, I drew the outline of the birds on the branch.  Then I put it away to get ready for the art show...then pulled it out Saturday. I got so excited about painting, I forgot to take photos of the background first.  I started lightening up the background (around the birds and branch) with loose brushstrokes of lighter blues, pinks, and yellows.  Monday I worked on the painting again and ended up here...

I'm letting it sit for a few days to decide if its finished or not.  We'll see. Now I'm ready to work on some commissions because my Soul is refreshed!

Beth  ♥     

Checking My List...

Norcross...done!  Last weekend we traveled to Georgia to participate in the Norcross Art Fest for the

second time.  I really enjoy going to Norcross. The people are so nice and it is so nice to be a part of such a well organized show.  The other artists are so nice and helpful. The weather was great and the crowds were large. The only thing I do not like about it is that it is so far away and so expensive for us to attend.  I really hope to find a show that is closer to home and just as organized and whimsical and creative as the Splash Festivals in Georgia.  I'm still learning this whole Art Festival business and still have a long way to go.  My booth is looking a little better each time we go.  I think it looked better this time, but I still have some ideas to improve on my display on the right side of my booth.  If we can find another good show, in Arkansas, I may have to try it out.
So, I can check off this event off my to do list for this fall.  Now I need to concentrate on working on commissions that have been waiting patiently for me to return and listing new items in my Etsy shop.

Next on my to do list.. some paint, some drawing, some clay....have some fun.

Beth  ♥

Almost time for Norcross!

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I have been very busy preparing to go to Georgia.  I am going back to Norcross Art Fest this year! I'm excited to go back! Here is a peak at some of what I will have in my booth.  I will be located in booth S42 on South Peachtree Street, in downtown Norcross.  If you are in the area, stop by and see me! 

Click here is more information about the Festival:  Norcross Art Fest,  October 5 & 6, 2013. 

Do you Read Blogs?

To Blog or Not to blog...that is my question.

I started this blog to document my creative journey in 2008.  At the time, many artists were blogging and I was trying to create a presence online. I was hoping to retire from teaching one day and work full time as an artist.  So I started blogging about my art.  Now, 5 years later, I AM retired from teaching and working full time on my art (YAY!) and I am still blogging. Not as often, but I am still here.  But after 5 years, I am wondering who reads blogs and why?  Does anyone actually read this blog?  If so, do you want tutorials? or just pictures of artwork? or life stories...my life is rather dull, except the story about the raccoons in the attic, or tackling my grand dog who wanted to play chase at a bad time...but those can be saved for another post.


On an art note:
Of course I had to include a photo of some art. After all, this is an Art blog.  I have to include some type of visual in all of my posts. This is a photo of a drawing I did several years ago (2006) for an Art Class project demo.  I call it creative doodling.  These days, there is a popular thing called Zendoodles. I guess I've been doing 'Zendoodles' for about 20 years!  I had posted it on my Art Teacher blog and recently someone contacted me about wanting to purchase a download of it.  So I set it up in my Etsy shop.   Maybe I should do more downloads?  I am thinking about it, but don't know how popular that would be. We'll see. Click on the image to see the listing in my Etsy shop.  Maybe I should go dig out my 'zendoodles' from my teaching years...It was one of my favorite projects to have my students create!

I really would like to know what you think about the blogging questions.  So please comment below or on my link from Facebook.  Thank you in advance!  (Hope I'm not talking to a black hole in cyberspace!!)
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Thanks for stopping by,

Beth  ♥