Painting Kitchen Utensils Since I Forgot to Buy a Shower Gift

This Saturday, Mike and I had plans to go to a coed Wedding Shower this weekend, and I completely forgot to purchase a gift. Luckily, I had free time on Saturday to paint a card for the sweet couple, which filled in as an I.O.U. for a William Sonoma gift card. Since the weekend is my main time to paint, I took the opportunity to make them a card that was relevant, but also to accomplish my goal of creating a downloadable desktop image for April.

I will always love the look of black pen and ink filled in with watercolor, and it's probably what most people think of when they think of my drawings. However, I want to push myself to rely less on what feels safe, and practice using color, layers, and paint to add depth and dimension.

This was the perfect exercise, since I love painting anything related to food, cooking, and baking.

Above, you can see how I used the light washes of color to draw the objects and figure out where everything would be. This was freehand, but usually I would have used a light pencil to sketch it out, and erase after the painting was completed.

In the picture below, I would add layers of color on the various objects after they dried to create depth and substance. For instance, painting the inside of a pot with a darker color to show that it was deeper. I used light washes of color on the outsides of the objects to ground them on the blank white surface. Lastly, I used my tiny brush to line some of the edges of the objects to further define them. I tried to make it slightly loose and sketchy, and retain a limited palette for a more cohesive design.

I had fun creating this and either drawing things that I have and enjoy using in my own kitchen (a Le Creuset Oval Dutch Oven) or items that I am coveting but don't need in my life right now (like a Chemex Coffee Maker).

Here is the finished piece! My favorite things to paint were the measuring spoons, the details on the measuring cup, and the muffin tins. I'm pleased with how it turned out, and I hope they liked their card. We weren't there to see them open it since we also did not get a babysitter and had to switch off going to the party, which was actually quite convenient since it was a block away!

I liked this watercolor so much, I have also added it as a print in my Society 6 store here.

April Free Watercolor Art Downloads

I have wanted to offer free monthly downloads for your desktop or mobile devices, and this is the first one! Please enjoy and share with your friends who love cooking, fancy kitchen items, turquoise, and baked goods. I really wanted to paint rain or umbrellas, but I was not happy with what I made (that happens, doesn't it?!) However, I loved this recent watercolor I made for our friends' wedding shower, and am always inspired to cook healthy food (and aforementioned baked goods) once Spring comes along.

I also made this print "Kitchen Utensils" available here via Society 6. Maybe for May I will get it together to add the calendar portion, although I like that there is no expiration date on this image! Enjoy and please let me know if you have any questions or issues downloading the images. Click on the link to download the larger image for the device you wish!

Invitation Illustrations for Brunch Wedding at Valley Green Inn

A good friend of mine is getting married this November. We met on the SEPTA 48 bus, back when we had the same commute years ago. We bonded over knitting, poppy red scarves, and she is just a beautiful person. I'm so happy that she has found such a special partner to share her life with. When they asked me to help them with their wedding invitations, I happily agreed, and knew this was one wedding present that would actually be on time! They're having a brunch wedding at The Valley Green Inn. This is on the Wissahickon in Philadelphia, and is a scenic area to hike, bike, or take your kids, and was so much fun to paint. I was tasked to create watercolor, pen and ink illustrations based on their brunch celebration.I love drawing food. I think it's my favorite thing to draw, tied with NARS lipstick these days. Although I'm trying to not use pen & ink all of the time in my drawing these days, it's probably my signature style. It is so satisfying to fill it in with paint once you're finished (and the ink dries of course, lest it smear!)

I hope you had a good weekend, and were lucky enough to get a Mimosa like I did (thanks to an impromptu brunch with a favorite relative in town for a few hours). I'm still sad I didn't get any cake this weekend, but I'm sure I'll rectify that in the next few days.

These are off to the Graphic Designer who will work her magic next. I can't wait to see how it all turns out!

Ina Garten Inspired Summer Corn Chowder

Before Summer officially ended, I made a huge batch of Summer Corn Chowder. Using a few recipes for inspiration (the ever fabulous Ina Garten and a few others), I came up with this recipe. It is delicious, if I do say so myself. I ate it for about a week solid. I'm hoping to make it one last time before the leaves turn.

Ingredients:

Directions:

Rustic chic table setting:

Food detail drawing:

My favorite companion to soup:

I heart soup.