Still some places on this one too....

If you want to come along to draw and paint in a wide range of mediums then this is the class for you. I break down everything we do, showing you how to build up an image with specific techniques and mediums.

Another finale....

this week was my watercolour class. Again although it's always sad when a course ends I'm also really looking forward to the next one which starts next Tuesday. I'll be seeing most of the learners again plus a few new ones. Again to watch the students progress is amazing especially when it's a new found passion. 

Here is what we got up to for the second half of the course.......

This was the negative painting which was really hard to get your brain to think in reverse to how you would usually paint. This is a great one for those that love to paint flowers, landscapes and foliage.

Although Still Life can leave people with dread it was really fun, the colours and shapes the students achieved from a wide range of fruit and flowers was amazing. Plums and pears were great for their colours and textures. 

This was the River Beam near Chase Lakes, it's like a little hidden sanctuary down there that my girls love to explore. This was taken from a photo from one of our walks. I love the tree that looks like upside down legs!

Again if you fancy joining, it's a lovely, relaxed art class on a Tuesday morning at Havering Adult College at Bower Park. I break down all images showing you how to build them up slowly including any techniques and brush strokes. It's also really nice to see students being incredibly supportive of each other's work and I love seeing what everyone has been up to at home. 

So if you fancy it then click here for more details to join, Tuesday mornings 10am-12.30pm at Bower Park Centre at the Adult College. 

There's still some places....

 if you fancy coming along to get creative.....

It was a bit sad this week...

as it was my last session of a 10 week Painting and Drawing class. We had loads of fun and maybe a few hard moments where I pushed them to be creative but the outcomes were amazing. Here are a few pictures of the things we covered. Next term I'm going to take pictures of their amazing work too, if they'll let me : )

One of my most favourite sessions was using ink. We tried a variety of media from coffee stirrers to feathers and dip pens. The marks you can achieve with Ink is very satisfying and free.

Portraits are always hard but the students did amazingly, again I wish I had taken photos of their final pieces! This is my daughter, drawing someone you love is very hard as you become extra critical, but apart from looking like she's wearing lippy and mascara I was really pleased with it. I just need to do my other daughter now!

Then we moved onto painting with acrylic in a traditional style, then onto mixed media with gel medium and finally onto oil paints.

I painted this for my friend who has just moved into a new house. Again I had great fun with a squeegee, roller and finally using a palette knife to paint with. We're going to cover palette knife painting on the next course partly because it was requested but mainly because it's so enjoyable.

We start the new 10 week course next Wednesday and I am really looking forward to it. It's great that most of the learners are carrying on especially as their work continues to grow and improve (I feel like a proud mother hen!) so I cant wait to see what they create next. It's amazing when students start the course declaring that they can't draw or paint and end up finishing with works of art that I would love to have on my wall! 

So if you're interested in coming along it's a lovely, fun and relaxed afternoon at Havering Adult College, Bower Park every Wednesday from 12-2.30pm. Click here for full details if you fancy joining onto our next course.

Watercolour class what we've been up to.....

This year I was excited to start a new 10 week watercolour class at Havering Adult College. So far we're half way through and I thought I'd share what we've been up to.

We started off with a simple landscape image.....

 Then we looked at a tonal study, this was taken from a trip to New Zealand. I love derelict buildings and this was a great example. Painted in Payne's Grey, my new favourite colour to use.

We then took a limited palette to complete a tree. The great thing with watercolour painting is the different effects you can use. I love wet on wet backgrounds where the colours blend beautifully. Then using a dry brush for images and layering different colours.

We had some fun experimenting with wax resists the salt technique. 

And more fun with masking fluid and the alcohol technique.....

After half term we're going to look at an architectural detail using a photo I took of St.Paul's. Sometimes the hardest thing with art is knowing when to stop. I started this painting with loose wet on wet colours blending into one another and I loved the effect but then I kept going, adding more and more detail.

So I went back and started again with a loose sketchy style which I love.

If you like the look of what we're up to and want to come and have a go the next course is on 19th April. Click here for more details.
If it looks a bit complicated, not to worry as I break down every image step by step and demonstrate all the techniques so anyone can attempt it from complete beginners to those wanting to brush up their skills.

Watercolour class.....

Last year I was lucky enough to teach some art classes for Havering Adult College which I am absolutely loving. I have a Tuesday morning watercolour class at the Bower Park Centre and we started off experimenting with Brusho. 

I loved playing with all the colours and here some of the results. If you've never experimented with Brusho it is great fun as you literally watch the colours explode on your paper, however because of this you can't really control them and you never know what you're going to end up with. This can either be exciting if you go with the flow or a little frustrating if you had an idea in your head of how you wanted it to go.

We also did a simple seascape image, this was taken at Holywell Bay in Cornwall where we had an amazing holiday in the summer. It definitely brings back happy memories when I see this.....

We also attempted a country landscape image....

And to finish the course, just in time for Christmas we painted a festive little robin. The other students finished theirs with backgrounds and the snowy log he was stood on which completed the picture so when I get the chance I shall take inspiration from the students and try to finish him maybe in time for next Christmas!

When teaching art it's amazing to see the creativity in the classroom and the fact that everybody's work looks completely different as they add their own styles and interpretations. I was really proud of what they achieved especially as most had not picked up a paintbrush since they were a child. I'll try to get some pictures of their amazing work to share.

Autumn sensory bowl......

I saw a sensory bowl on the Imagination Tree, which is an amazing site for children's activities, and thought it was a brilliant idea to put the endless amount of leaves, sticks and conkers that my girls collect every day.

I added food colouring to salt, perhaps not the best idea as we all ended up with orange hands : )
Then I got the girls to add all of their found items from our latest nature walk. The bit they enjoyed the most was writing and drawing on the leaves and conkers. The Montessori side of early years teaching is to do letters and numbers which we did but they loved drawing monster faces on the conkers the most. Perhaps not the most educational but definitely the funniest! I had a white sharpie in my art drawer which was perfect for the conkers. It's very addictive and fun for both little fingers and big!

Eloise with her proud work of art.....
 

They loved it and it still sits in pride of place on our table.