Painting leaves

2017-08-032017-08-03 | Sand Salt Moon

Painting leaves on a rainy day here in Florida

20597056_1761446537223207_9126751696440420708_n

Egg Day

2017-08-022017-08-03 | Sand Salt Moon

Every other day, my sweetie makes us breakfast. It’s always the same thing. We call it “Egg day,” for obvious reasons. And it’s what’s for breakfast tomorrow. Can’t wait …

Gardening

2017-01-312017-01-31 | Sand Salt Moon

Yesterday, I went to a nursery with my neighbor and brought home some lovely plants to add to my garden. Here are my evening journal pages. Gouache and watercolor.

Book Nook

2015-10-222015-10-22 | Sand Salt Moon

“Book Nook” ~ watercolor and gouache, with a few graphite touches.

Book Nook - by Cynthia Maniglia — Book Nook – by Cynthia Maniglia

“Oh, look – a person!” ~ and a couple of patterns

2015-10-212015-10-21 | Sand Salt Moon

Girl in Cape – I sketched this around dinner time, unusual for me; I don’t draw or paint many (I can count them on my right hand) people.

Pretty in Pink gouache flowers | C. Maniglia

What All The Girls Like To Draw | C. Maniglia

And these are two fabric designs I created using my paintings from this morning (they’re both available on products, like pillows and tote bags and more, over at my Society6 shop).

I’m super thrilled with how the two patterns above came out. I’d love to do more of this tomorrow. For “Pretty in Pink,” I merely scanned my artwork into the computer and rearranged the flowers on a background in the same color as the paper I drew on. For the second one called “What All The Girls Like to Draw,” I used black ink after I painted the flowers and shapes to add more interest, then scanned in the computer and rearranged, added a few more black dots here and there, as needed.

Enjoy!

Painting Wet in Wet

2015-10-21 | Sand Salt Moon

Gouache and watercolor this afternoon. Floral arrangement painted wet in wet, something I don’t usually do, from photo in the holiday issue of ‪#‎VictoriaMagazine‬.

Wet in wet - gouache and watercolor. Floral arrangenment reference photo in the holiday issue of Victoria Magazine — Wet in wet – gouache and watercolor. Floral arrangenment reference photo in the holiday issue of Victoria Magazine

Finally ~ Roses in Gouache

Sketchbook - Roses In Gouache - by Cynthia Maniglia 2015 - available on Society6.com as an art print, cards, and phone case/skin.

2015-05-212015-09-21 | Sand Salt Moon

I finally used my gouache paints. Here are two pieces where I used gouache all by itself. I’ve been dying to use gouache exclusively in a piece. Saving it almost. In my sketchbook with the porous paper, I used my brush to stroke the underpainting freely, working from a still life, with a simple palette of crimson red, brilliant red, and green leaf. Then I used the same palette on smoother, 140 lb. cold press paper. In both cases, I worked wet on dry and wet in wet, and was careful not to overwork or correct.

I feel fruitful and happy. This is exactly the strength of color coupled with transparency and lightness, simplicity, and freedom I’ve been seeking in my work. Finally. Tonight, it feels good.

Lush Red Rose - painted in gouache on 140 lb cold press by Cynthia Maniglia, 2015 — Lush Red Rose – painted in gouache on 140 lb cold press by Cynthia Maniglia, 2015

Dandelions ~ watercolor, wax resist and gouache

2015-05-052015-05-06 | Sand Salt Moon

“Even in ‘weeds’ you will find sacred geometry. Look at the littlest of things and bask in their beauty.” ~ Red Deer.

While my painting is really of the dandelions that you blow off the stem – the airy white ones – I was outside and saw some jumbo yellow ones. They seem to want to sit by this painting to keep it company while it’s drying completely.

Looks nice on my bookshelf. I created this today using a variety of techniques: wax resist, varying my brushes, lifting paint off the paper, using both watercolor and gouache paints.

Trying to do extraordinary things in paint with ordinary subject matter – mostly recreating the feels these subjects have for me now. Today, where I live, it’s very warm – almost summer-like, yet it is still spring. And it’s oh so dry (we need rain). “These weeds have needs,” I thought as I plucked the big yellow dandelion out of the grass this morning to put in water in my little vase.