ArtyFartyAnnie

 Another lesson from Let's Face It 2021, this time with Kara Bullock , the artist who brings LFI together every year. Kara was inspired by two artists; Robert Kelley and Paul Cristina. We've already had a lesson with Robert, who creates wonderful charcoal portraits, but I hadn't heard of Paul so I looked him up - and oh my word, I was totally blown away by his work. He also makes charcoal portraits, but then he cuts them up, distresses them and reconstructs them, combining with collage and mixed media to create intriguing and thought-provoking pieces. I've added links so you can check all of them out if you click on their names above.  For this class, Kara showed us how she creates a charcoal portrait, but she hinted that there may be a later lesson where she takes it a step further, inspired by Paul Cristina. I decided I couldn't wait so I would have a go by myself. First step, the charcoal portrait, which I filmed if you would like to see my process ... Here...

 Still trying to catch up with my online art classes - it's like a feast of inspiration which never ends, laid out before me like a buffet table which I can pick from at random, depending on my mood and how much time I have - this was a pretty quick one, as I only had an hour or two to spend.  Week 15 was a lesson with Angela Kennedy. I love Angela's work, and her teaching style - she makes it look so easy and achievable. For this class, she showed how to use a combination of pencil, blending stump and watercolour paints to create a beautifully wistful girl. As always, mine came out more kind of sad and vaguely disappointed, but I really enjoyed the process and watching her come to life - I got especially carried away with the hair! Here's a YT video of my process ... The next class I want to try involves making a charcoal portrait and then tearing it up - watch this space! Thanks for popping in today, see you again soon.  Annie xxx

I have two subscriptions to monthly boxes from Deborah Beads - the Kit Box and the Bead Box. I just couldn't decide which to get and as they're only a fiver each incl P&P, I decided that I didn't need to choose, I would just have both :D The Kit Box gives you everything you need to make a specific set (this month it was a necklace and earrings), including nice clear instructions - but of course you can do your own thing and I usually go off-piste a bit. The Bead Box gives you a themed collection of beads and findings to challenge your creativity and build up your stash. I usually end up throwing in a couple of odds and ends from my stash (I love buying old jewellery from charity shops and breaking it up to remake into something new) and there's plenty to make several pieces of jewellery.  Here's a link to my unboxing video on You Tube ... After drooling over the contents, I tend to start with the Kit Box to get me warmed up, then I move on to the Bead Box when ...

 Catching up on another art class from Let's Face It 2021 - the theme for this module is to be inspired by another artist. This lesson was with Kellye Fowlkes , who was inspired by two people - Rick the Muse , who provides hundreds of photo references on his Instagram account. He photographs himself in various costumes and with lots of different expressions, and his face is so interesting and full of character, so he really is a great muse. Kellye was also inspired by the work of France Van Stone, who creates wonderful portraits in pencil - Kellye showed us how she uses a combination of blending and crosshatching with different grades of pencil and then using erasers, to show texture and tonal values in a portrait.  Here's my version of Rick the Muse ... It was a challenge, but a very enjoyable one, and I will definitely be drawing Rick again. This was the first time I'd tried to draw a beard and I really had fun using the crosshatching, blending stumps and different kinds...