Stage 1:watercolors on damp paper

Stage 2: lifting off the light areas.

Stage 3: adding shadows and details

Stage 4:"Golden cat" is finished (5" x 7 1/4")

Drawing on my work breaks.

Pink Rose (4 1.2" x 6 1/2")

I"m trying to put more "passion" and less "perfection" into painting.  This would be one attempt.

Before demolition (to make a gallery out of the dining room)

part way through demolition

cleaning up horse hair plaster and lathe

Red Roofed cabin  (7" x 10")  -SOLD-

Dean encouraged me to paint larger than 5 x 7's so I'm trying out drawing 7 x 10's on my work break.  It sure makes me draw fast since there's more area to cover. One thing I'm noticing is the 2 middle water shapes are similar in length.  I'll have to live with it awhile to decide whether to change anything.  I like the contrast of blues in the mountains and sky with the red roofs.

My painting table (My painting looks like mush in the first stage) Notice how many brushes and colors I needed for this image.

I remove light areas with a brush before it dries.

I've started to add darks in the hat and lift out light areas

It's finally starting to look like the photo. I have far to go though till it's done.

The Photograph on the Nexus tablet, next to my painting.

I experimented with putting white gouache on the whites on the paws and face before soaking the paper in water.  It helped keep the whites bright because I could remove the browns that laid on top of the gouache pretty easily.

Stage 1: watercolor paint on damp paper

Stage 2: after lifting off light areas 

I enjoyed doing this subject because of the limited colors. The first stage can be more complicated with a lot of different colors. There are times when I have multiple brushes in colors, waiting for the frenzied painting process.  Doing all the colors at the same time helps them to dry at the same speed. If they dry at the same rate, the colors mesh well, and the subject looks more like a unit, (instead of separate puzzle pieces).

Finished watercolor painting of a Boxer (5" x 7") -SOLD-

Strawberries (4 1/2" x 6 1/2")

I might end up cropping this to make the composition better. The largest, red strawberry is too centered on the bottom edge of the painting for my liking.

Cropped Strawberries (3 1/2" x 4 1/2")