Sunday, October 15, 2017

Learning Something New

As some of you may know, I have been doing some kind of needle work almost all my life, starting when I was about 6 years old. I have sewn my own clothes. I make quilts. I have knitted many pair of socks. I crochet all sorts of things. And I enjoy doing all of those things for the most part. However, recently I have become bored with the projects I have been working on. Yes, like many crafters, I have so many WIPs (works in progress) that I doubt I will live long enough to finish them! But, like I said, I'm bored. Let's learn something new!

For some time, I have wanted to learn a new craft. I have looked through the catalog for the local adult learning program and nothing strikes my fancy. A while back, I was reading a book and one of the characters was doing pastel painting. Eureka!

Several years ago, I tried painting with acrylics. I was not very good at it. Oh, my pictures came out looking somewhat like the step-by-step instructions, but I wasn't enjoying it. Mixing the paint resulted in mud many times instead of the nice color that I wanted. I still have those acrylics, but I doubt I'll ever try them again.

When I was inspired by that book character to think about pastels, I looked into it. I found a craft that I could try without investing too many dollars. Less than $20 would purchase a cheap set of oil pastels and a pad of paper. So, I signed into Amazon, ordered those supplies and in a couple of days I had my paints and paper and was ready to start.

My first attempt was an apple. I was going on memory instead of getting an apple and using it for reference. I think it turned out OK for a first attempt. What do you think?

Well, that is OK, but what about working from a picture? I looked online for a simple picture of my favorite flower -- iris. I gave it my best attempt and here's what happened:
It actually looks like an iris! Still, it's an amateurish painting, but it's a start. Turns out, I really do like making pictures with oil pastels. I have a lot to learn. My next attempt will be a bird, maybe a cardinal.

Learning something new is exciting. It stimulates my brain and gets my creative juices going. And now I have supplies on hand that will help me ward off the boring days of winter. Maybe I should get another pad of paper...just in case!

As always, thanks for reading my ramblings. I would love to hear from you with feedback on my newest craft.

Amy