Long, great day in the studio

I was so blessed today!  My husband Chris was willing to continue painting the outside of the studio (which we didn't quite finish last week) while I worked on the canvas inside.  I didn't spend much time in the studio yesterday, so I was burning to get in there and paint!  My schedule is a bit turned around this coming week, so I really wanted to paint.  My family knows if I don't paint for a while, it's bad for everyone because I get VERY GRUMPY!  My kids know that if I'm in a bad mood, the best thing for them to do is to remind me that it might be a good idea to go paint!  (And perhaps also leave the house so I don't pick on them!)

Anyway, I worked a lot on Beauty in a Veil II.  I re-worked the hand yet again.  I couldn't get the nuances I wanted to with brushes in oil so this time I used pastel pencils.   That worked really well.  I was able to blend colors and get in and do the details like I wanted to.  Now I'm finally pleased with the hand.

I began work on the other hand (her right hand).  First I outlined carefully in pastel pencil then applied paint.  This picture is before I applied paint.  I'll do more nuances in paint next time I'm in the studio then use pastel pencils after that dries.   You can see from the crudeness of the sketch how much work goes into making it look good.  I think I've spent 8-9 hours on the other hand already.  Yikes!

I also worked on other parts of the figure.  Here's what it looked like by the end of the day.  I did some work on the veil but mostly worked on her breasts, arms and hands.  I am excited about this piece and think it'll be pretty wonderful by the time it's finished.  It is certainly a complex piece.

Chris took some pictures of me working today.  I wouldn't say they're flattering, but you can get a sense of how I work. Obviously I use the photo for reference!  My teacher Tom would be proud - he always tells me:  "Look at what you're painting, NOT at the painting - otherwise you'll paint what you think something looks like rather than how it actually looks."  It's fantastic advice.