The Saltbox Sampler

Patriotic and new tutorial coming

It's definitely summertime and when my home becomes "red, white and blue" everywhere.  the nice thing is, Peter's room is "patriotic " year round so I can always get my fix--  Our new release will be all about Summer and Americana.  You will be able to use it for boy's cards, your friend's , birthdays,  and for our troops and their families year round.  To get y'all thinking "red, white and blue"  I have posted the folk sheep I colored quite some time ago.(the stars would be great red too)  I love adding khaki or off white with R<W<B for an aged feel.  My next post will be a simple colored pencil tutorial.

If you do not have an investment in colored pencils, I suggest heading on over to the A Muse blog or calling them and pick up a set of 24 Kohr-i-noor pencils.  Linda has been using(and offering for purchase) these for years and I find them quite awesome for blending because they are a bit softer and easier to manipulate.  To add to your collection the other pencils I suggest are the Derwent Softcolour-- great colour range, and a bit easier to work with than Prisma.

last of tutorial

Here is the fuzzy version "fixed" with black lines.  Take a very fine black marker such as Pitt or Sakura and outline just inside/around the image. Do not create "perfect" lines just outline quickly.  I suggest  to outline "just inside" so you do not end up with background between the black line and the colored image. Add an eye, nose  and mouth (if you choose)  and then the balloon string. You've now given the imperfect watercolour version a finished look. 

For the  good watercolour  version I only added an eye, nose and balloon string.  I used a gray Pitt marker. I prefer to add just a little outlining for the watercolours.  It really keeps the focus and feel on  the watercolour look.

Tomorrow is my boys' Dining Out ceremony.  This is the military's name for a formal night including awards, promotions those type of things.  It is huge and today, tonight and tomorrow there is much prep work.  Saturday is their Regional Drill Team competition.  They do competitions in Regulation and Exhibition.  My oldest son, Peter  who is also on the Honor Guard/Rifle Team  will be performing a solo.  It amazes me how he can throw 9 pounds of rifle in the air and still catch it and go in to such precise movements.  I can bearly work out with a 5 pound weight--  So, because of these events I will do my best to post, but if not I will I will do my best to post when I get back in town.   I suppose I can time the posts...

Thank you everyone for the kind comments.  No news yet on my "tick" status.  There are about 5  types of infections that I could have.

A New tutorial-Watercolour with marker!

I truly enjoy watercolor.  It's a medium I am calmed by.  I used to paint more in it.  However, once I became a Creative Director and then went on to designing in textiles and needle arts  I always had marker and colored pencil in hand.  I've never like working with wet media much-- (except watercolour).  I think that started in college when my allergy to turpentine, mineral spirits or "gamsol" as SU gals call it almost killed me during one of my Painting courses. From that point I had to use Acrylics, however, I could not even be in the same room as the Turpentine so, that class became an isolating experience.   At the point I decided it was only dry media for me--except watercolour.  As a poor college student I could not afford every art supply  around, so, I got creative.  I watercoloured with my alcohol markers.  The Professor was shocked at the result.  Didn't believe it was marker AND that I used nothing else but the markers!  So, my next tutorial/technique for you is "Watercolouring" with alcohol marker. 

Mama Mouse above is created only using alcohol markers.  My next post will explain the procedure--

Tutorial Video Style

I decided to do this tutorial in video format so you could really see the laying down or painting of the color.    The video is Intentionally blurry to keep your eye from getting distracted by the image.  It also has music to it.  So, if you don't go for the music video--make sure you hit the mute button.

I will post a photo of the finished piece. (It looks much like Tuesday's post).

Tutorial

Well, I really goofed.  I was working on part two of the tutorial and forgot to photograph the other parts.  So, I now have to do another.  In the meantime, I have posted a very simple, yet elegant way to use markers.  I think you might find it quite handy for a quick card.  Although it's a snowman and I just can't bare to think of winter again, I decided to post it because it gives you a example of using light colored markers for outlining and a touch of fill. There is an outline around the outside of the snowman using Brick white.  The photo does not show it so well.  Check out an earlier post here of the colors I use for this look. 

A New Tutorial

I think I will be home enough this week to actually "color" a bit, so, I can begin a new tutorial.  This one is colored pencil and marker, with the background being marker and the image using both colored pencil and marker.  The big difference is I am going backwards for this tutorial.  It won't look exactly the same because it won't be the same final piece, but, that is the point I want to make because each of yours will look different too.  Even if you do follow the "technique to the letter" .

The tutorials I post are not from a company's how to demonstrate...they are from just me the artist and what I have used for over 25 years whether i was in college, or a Creative Director , or self employed.  When I began using markers, Copics weren't around
it  was (Design and Prisma) and  the product was created for the Advertising field-- for the artist-- artist's everywhere used them  how they saw fit. Just as if they were drawing with another medium.  The point isn't to have a  lot of markers (some colors are so close the difference wouldn't even show with a small area like a stamp image)  it's to learn to use the markers you have in ways you feel comfortable using them.  Color palettes are important.  Bright, muted...

I will be having a The Saltbox Studio Custom Basic Set of  Copic markers available through A Muse soon and a The Saltbox Studio Beyond Basic Set too.  They will be on sale through the SBS shop and A Muse.  I will let you know a few days in advance as to when.

So, for now the tutorial begins.  Tonight I post just the finished piece.  I will note all the markers and pencils used fro now on since I have had so many inquiries for colors.

I just got a 3 " circle punch. LOVE it.  Don't want scallops all the time and this fits so many of the SBS images ever so perfect.  Oh, one more important thing.  Step away from your computer screen to look at the tutorials to get the full effect.  Or move back a little and squint. Think of being in an art museum and looking too close at a painting  and then looking at the same painting back a few feet.  BIG difference.

 

Marker swatches

Those printed color charts just don't do the real marker or pencil color justice.  Therefore, I scanned my  Copic marker swatch page and Prismas I must have all the time and am posting it for you here.  Just click on the link below to download all the colors.  The reds did not come out nearly as accurate on the full page, so I created the reds as there own pix. (See above)
These samples are very close to original swatches.  Remember, screen colors due to monitor and print outs often alter color.  I hope this at least gives you a guideline.

Download copic_prismaspica_swatchesfinal.jpg

Art work from last week update

Here is the art I showed you last week with the finishing touches. (SCROLL DOWN) In the case of each of them I only added a touch of colored pencil (and market around snowman)

For the snowman guy : Some blue pencil around him with Neutral gray #0 marker on top of pencil
For the Sheep:  I added a bit of green in blanket, gray and black for edges , a little green for background/grass and a touch of white in stars
For the Basket: I shaded the background with a rose colored pencil (just a touch)  added edge shadow with a chocolate brown and some black, white highlights and a little dk brown  around flowers in basket (only in certain areas). 

Next tutorial will be  using flat color marker and one step shading with a pencil very close to the color of the marker.

The sun is shining here and I have a nice bright yellow t shirt on--need that color!

My Basic Copics

I thought I would post the markers I keep in my " take everywhere, work in the car tote". Instead of typing them all, I just took a photo. There are a few missing from the photo:  Moon white, Light caramel, Redwood, Wax white, Sky blue, Pale lavender and Spanish olive. Muted turquoise by Prismacolor and few other are always in there too. I have lots of Prismas since they have been collected over 25 years and I am attached to them, so, they stay on my desk. The Copics I've only been collecting since the early 90's. I even added a few this year from Linda. Hope your weekend is filled with color!

Art

I am a bit behind this am.  I just sent my boys off to a AFROTC Drill Team competition for the weekend--those uniforms have to be immaculate.   

I thought today I would post  some coloring  "in the process"   and where I am going with them.  For the basket I am going to work with the background adding lighter colors to it.  For the sheep, I am going to leave the background alone and add colored pencil to the sheep.  Finally, for the Snow guy--he is done, except for a tad of shading around him.  The Snow guy is my technique of "painting" with marker.  It gives it a watercolor feel.  Since I am on the go a lot and spend many a hours in waiting rooms, the marker portability is a plus for me. 

I haven't demonstrated the painted technique yet.  It is more complex and I use more color than it looks like in one area.  The pants have 4 blues and a gray!  Also I use watercolor pencils over marker so I think that will be a definite tutorial.  I may need to do these on video--  Oh, don't forget to send in your children's art for our gallery.   I will remind people periodically.  Enjoy your weekend.  It's Friday.

Oh, one more thing.  I  use Bristol art vellum in rough finish  for my  "white" cardstock.  It's much cheaper (and better quality) than the white card stock I have encountered in the craft Industry.    There is also a "smooth" finish that works just as well.