Sunny Sunflower

/ Jodi

sunflower2

I found some time to splash in puddles this long holiday weekend….  Puddles of paint that is, because the sun was a shinin’ most of the weekend!

I watched a video on painting sunflowers done by Joanne Thomas, who is a queen of loose splashy watercolor.  I’ve really admired her style ever since I started watercolor painting about a year ago, so I decided to give her sunflower a try.

I painted it on a 10 x 14 sheet of Arches 300 lb cold press.  I put it in a matted frame to see what it would look like.  Such a difference it makes when you mat and frame a painting – eh?

Sunny Sunflower Original Watercolor 10 x 14 Arches 300 lb Cold Press

Sunny sunflowers is going in our McKinneyx2Designs Etsy Shop – the original painting, prints and greeting cards.

Sunny Sunflower All

Fluttering my “artist” wings, and enjoying the sunny, sunshiny summertime weather!

Sunny Sunflower Greeting Card Set

Happy Tuesday and short work week for many of us.

Cherish the moments.

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

91 thoughts on “Sunny Sunflower”

  3. wow Jodi, that frame and matt make it POP!!!!
    its full of joy and light and warmth. I imagine, just the message you wanted. I always have been partial to sunflowers, they are so dear to my heart 🙂

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  12. Your watercolors are wonderfully advanced now, Jodi! I met you on WP when you first started out with them I think and now – wow, take my breath away! Sunny sunflower – and I really like that center of the flower and how you handle your background with the addition of that lovely shade of blue.

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  14. Hi Jodi, your splashing paint, splashed in all the right places. And, I agree, the mat and frame give this exquisite painting a beautiful presentation. Keep painting, there is no stopping you now! 🎨😎

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  15. WOW! First Judith’s skies and now this! OMG and Joanne Thomas is SO the BOMB! And so are you! Jodi, this is a stunner!!! So many reasons to love this. First, the drawing underneath is right on! Second, great contrast, omg wonderful contrast! Wonderful colors holy heck! Great shadows, love the shadows around and between the petals! And lastly I think you’ve found the balance between loose and too loose. This is Perfect (IMO) – I think we should all be painting exactly like this, perfect balance, absolutely Grand! You must be so thrilled with this. And love the splattering at the end that complements, but doesn’t overwhelm your focal point. Bravo, Artistasista!!!! ❤

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  19. Oh so pretty and it is amazing once you put a piece of art with a mat in a frame how it really shines. Oh, how did you like painting on 300#? I have been wanting to get some and try it out. I have heard all kinds of good things about it. Can you rip it being that it is stiffer or do you have to cut it? Lovely painting Jodi! I love the loose look that you achieved.

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      • oh! now I have to get 300#! where do you purchase it? At the local Ben Franklin it is outrageous….of course most of their items are! How do you rip it? does it bend over enough to get the right measurement to rip? oh I am excited! 🙂 so, do you paint exclusively on 300? I was thinking that if I were to find a place that I get the best deal that I would like to move towards 300 exclusively.

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      • Hey Margaret, I do think Blick has the best prices on this, but if you find a cheaper price online, they will match it if you give them a link to the better price in the delivery instructions box at checkout. Also, I meant to tell you, I asked Patrick, one of the artists at Blick, how to tear down that paper and he said that artists he knows use the back end of an exacto knife, the blunt side, and score it with that and then fold it and tear. I hope that’s helpful. Jodi, is that how you do it too? Not sure if you will see this. Hey and thanks for pointing Margaret to my Blick button. You two are the best! 💛💛💛

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      • okay….I will definitely buy from them. Since fire season is here, my husband earns extra money and I will buy some extra art supplies including a large amount of paper, through Dick Blick. I do like to purchase my watercolors from Daniel Smith though. Oh, I use a very wide plastic and heavy ruler I will take it and slide it to bend it quite well and fold back over the other way and do the same with the ruler and then rip.

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      • That’s a good idea too, Margaret, let me know how you get on because I ordered a whole bunch of that paper to get the best rates and I’ve not even opened the carton yet. I work pretty small too so I’ll have to do multiple bends and creases lol.

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      • Not to belabor this issue but I wanted to make sure I was giving you accurate info re: the price match aspect, so I called Blick to check. They do price match the art supply houses, and usually they can but depending on the item and the price, they may not always be able to honor the competitor’s price. If for some reason they can’t, they will check with you before shipping the order so that you have the opportunity to then order from the other vendor. I hope this helps.

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      • It’s a big deal for me too and it’s the reason I’m so “fearless” about experimentation. I have nothing to lose and it’s fun to throw caution to the wind and see what happens, even if it flies in the face of logic. Often, it works out, and it’s really cool when it does! I was shocked to find out Michaels doesn’t offer this. They are the only art store available to me locally. Not only are their prices high but if you open a tube of WC paint and don’t like it, tough. They only accept returns for defective items. I just think that’s wrong. Once I found out about Blick and their policy for this, I felt free to buy whatever I think I might like without worry. Very important. And their service is triple A plus. Always courteous and knowledgable. These things matter.

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      • Oh and I meant to say – it’s cheaper if you get multiple sheets. They give you a price break at 10, I think, and there are other price breaks I believe at 3 or 5 that are not as good, but still better than the single sheet price. Look in the “bulk” column at the item listing and it’ll tell you how many you need to buy to get that rate. I think it’s a good deal, and the last time I compared prices a few months ago, Blick’s was best. 💚

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  20. I just love sunflowers! In my other house we had a guest bathroom decorated with a sunflower theme. It made the room so cheery (for a bathroom, HA!). If I still had that bathroom I’d buy that painting in a heartbeat, it is just gorgeous! xo

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  27. Ok I came back here to get that YT link and watch the video again and I seriously think I like yours best. And she makes it look easy but I don’t care if you were following a tutorial or not, it’s not easy what she was doing, because you’re having to find that balance again between defining and it being too loose and you lose to much of the flower or you could go the other way and squash it by becoming too detailed also. You did this just right, Jodi, just right! One day I may give this one a go too but I do think you have this impressionistic painting down to a science!

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  34. Jodi I love how you print your art onto cards. Do you do it yourself or do you send it to a print shop. The only way I’ve been able to put my art onto cards is to mount the actual photograph onto a blank card. I’ve looked at printing them professionally but it seems that you have to commit to a pretty large minimum.

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