Life Book 2015 – Lessons 43, and 44

The lesson for Week 43 was by Patti Ballard. It’s a full length class on drawing and painting a girl in “Every Day is A Good Day to Celebrate”

I really took a different route on this one.  Same concept, different girl.  Patty made the cutest girl with a cake.  I prefer cupcakes, so that’s what she’s celebrating with!  I used acrylic, Caran D’Arche, colors, stamps, and stencils.  I also used up some of the paper I created in one of my other lessons for the dress.

When I was drawing her dress I remember the dresses worn in Mexico called China Poblana.  I Found this picture on Pinterest.

The legend of the China Poblana goes something like this, according to my google search.
“In the early 17th century, a girl from China, Mongolia, the Philippines, or India was brought to Puebla, Mexico by the Spaniards as a slave. The unfortunate girl, whose name was Mirrha, was apparently bought by a man named Miguel de Sosa. Sosa had Mirrha baptized and given the Christian, Spanish name Catarina de San Juan. Upon the death of Sosa and his wife, Mirrha married Domingo Suárez. Oddly, Suárez was the Chinese servant of a local priest, and this fact seems to have added to the legend that Mirrha was Chinese.”

Not quite the same thing, but you get the idea.

The cupcakes were actually an ephemera picture not drawn.

I added a banner and stamped the word celebrate and added starts from my stash.

Finally, a close up of the girl with flowers in her hair.

Life Book 2015 – week 44 – Bonus: Reach for the Stars with Jenny Wentworth & An Artist Interview with Mati Rose McDonough

 Jenny Wentworth‘s lesson was a bonus.  “The concept of this lesson was to start with a ‘seed’ in which you write all the things you want to have more of in your life. And then out of that seed, the things you want more of will grow and flourish into a beautiful tree symbolising your hopes and wishes growing and coming to fruition.”  Tam’s quote. 

I used Brushos crystal watercolors for the tree, but it turned out to be a big blur.  I went with it, adding a few stars in the back and coloring in some hills and a sunset in the background.  Since the outline of the girl wasn’t very visible, I used a white pen and outlined her.

This are the roots where I wrote some of the things I want more in my life, and then covered with watercolors.

The close up of the girl with her arms stretched out wanting more of what makes her happy!

So there you have two more lessons.

Next, I’m posting my favorite lesson so far

Swan Girl

Thanks for dropping by!

Hugs,

Carmen