Bag Update & Linking With Rain's Art Date

   I spent this morning making another bag pattern and then cutting it into pieces for the fabrics. This is working out easier to figure out the piece's layout. I will see how this one sews up, and then can always cut it up differently.

  This first bag includes fabrics using: Procion dyes, rust dyes, Pebeo sun paints with salt, natural mimosa dyed-the pretty yellow piece.  The book suggests adding 1/4' to 1/2" on all the sides of the patterns-I chose the 1/2''. This allows for the pulling in of the stitches and also to make sure the cloth underneath is completely covered.

I have always loved fall colors so most of the bags will reflect that

I always loved the beautiful yellows one gets with the mimosa leaves. Much prettier than dyeing with goldenrod-and the goldenrod is tricky-have to pull the cloth out at just the right time The triangle piece next to the yellow was dyed with Pebeo sun paints and salt

   So now I will take a break and then lay these fabrics out correctly for sewing. The book suggests using glue stick for that-who knew?  Never would have thought of it.

  Happy Monday

Update: Wednesday-linking up this post for Rain's Art Date  Thinking these hand dyes could be considered art.

Watercolor Inks Practice Piece-Updated & Rain's Art Date

   Happy Midweek Friends,

     Of course it is still very hot and humid here, which keeps us indoors most of the day.

     Along with a little house work decided to try painting another mountain scene mostly with inks.  I am really liking the black walnut ink I made to also use for painting now, also grabbed a few of the watercolor inks, and a little watercolor paints

    This time I did the sky area last instead of first, I am not real pleased with it so far-once dry will work on lightening it more. I used the blue watercolor ink and even watered down was pretty dark.

    I started with the mountains and then really watered down the black walnut ink to cover the bottom of the page. Used inks for the grasses and little dots of flowers, also the tree is watercolor inks and black walnut. I did mix a little watercolor paint into the black walnut  ink to color the tree trunk. I also used watercolor green for the leaves

   I don't think it's finished but this time will let it sit a bit instead of jumping right in like I usually do haha Not sure what it needs yet perhaps more trees?

  Honest opinions and painting advice always welcome for this very newbie "painter"

I am using watercolor papers torn from a spiral. I was using painters tape to tape down my piece but it tore the paper so that did not work out. Now I just use a large clip on one end. When finished will weight it down.

   I really do not like this dark blue sky at all and looking at these photos, for some reason the grasses look lighter in the middle, perhaps the camera did that

Ok I am finished now, friend Barbara suggests less is more in the back of my mind-smiles.

    I added a little melting snow-or mist to the mountains, added in a few more grasses-in person the middle green is the same shade as the others

Updated:  I have been working on this watercolor practice-learning piece off and on most of the day today. One suggestion for improving the composition was to add something to the left side.  So a few hours later I messed around and added another tree-however I didn't have anymore of the same watercolor inks mixed up and ooops the tree turned out way too dark, and I didn't get a nice shaped tree for this one either--but I decided to go ahead and share for Rain's Art Day   I also worked on lightening up the sky a bit too.

    I am a work in progress with painting, so I am putting this piece out there any suggestions always welcome for improvement  I will say I really enjoyed working with the my handmade black walnut ink and winsor newton's watercolor inks for this piece.