A studio project this week has involved re-working a medium sized quilt I made about a year ago.
There is a lot in it I like.
And a lot that disappointed me.
Time for re-do and a new life!
In the process, I needed to mix up some new colors to make fabric to go with what I had created before. It did not need to match identically, but I wanted the new stuff to be compatible.
This is when I am grateful that I work with a limited palette of base colors, and that I have learned what color mixes I like.
This week’s project took me into the realm of tealish-blues.
So. We need to begin by talking about brown. Brown is a great mixing color. It can magically transform a plain old boring out-of-the-jar color into one with a little more interest. One of my favorites is Cerulean ( a basic lovely but not-very-interesting blue) mixed with Raw Umber.
This is my set-up. A few disposable mixing trays. (Which I actually use multiple times before discarding.) My paints. Some water. A mixing brush. And a sponge for applying.
Cerulean Blue + Raw Umber I am calling the base color. (Even these two colors alone mixed in varying percentages yield a nice family of hues.) But my goal was to create the base color teal-blue, then use it to create two variations: base color + yellow for greenish and base-color + white for a lighter teal blue.
Here are the two pieces I painted.
I applied the color with a wet sponge dipped into the mixed color and painted loose and fast. It’s not absolutely constant across the yard or so of fabric I created. I’m fine with that for this application. But, If you want a good solid with no variation, painting with a brush or a foam roller and controlling the percentage of water-to-paint by more thorough mixing before application would help accomplish that.
In the quilt re-do project, the colors I painted were mixed in with some of the original colors from the first version, and also overprinted with new patterns. Here’s a look at a detail of the work-in-progress.
I’m not done . . . but I’m happy with the color conversations that are developing.
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STUDIO TOUR COUNTDOWN: 4 WEEKS
To readers who are near Central Florida, I hope you will put DeLand’s Art Studio Tour on your calendar. It’s a great way to meet artists and see where the art is created. I am proud to be on the tour and will welcome visitors to my studio.
Thank you for reading. I always enjoy questions and comments.
--Bobbi
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