I've always known how relaxing it was, and I was delighted to discover some colouring books printed on watercolour paper so that now, as an adult, I can practise using watercolour paints without having to worry about drawing (a bit too scary to share just yet!).
Travelling as I am this year, I'm having to think very carefully about what supplies to take along for the ride. In my recent month-long jaunt around Europe - work and play - I had to really keep it down as I was changing country often, and the simplest thing seemed to me to be to take some watercolour paints, a Painterly Days watercolouring book by Kristy Rice, and my much-loved Pentel water brushes.
Here are just a few photos of my first encounters.
The outlines are in a pale grey tone, so they are very subtle.
Obviously I started in my blue-green comfort zone...
I'm not really particularly interested in the flowers, it turns out.
I'd just as happily stick to painting leaves all day long!
I do think the colouring helps with learning the brush sweeps required for shaping a leaf... I'll be braver about my own freehand leaves in future, I think.
I went for a fairly delicate peachy look for the blooms...
... with the occasional bit of bindweed in between.
Mostly, I was using a set of White Nights watercolour pans, but there are also some Ecoline inks involved in places.
The blue sky, for instance, is mainly Ecoline if I remember rightly. I do like how the leaves look against the early summer sky.
In any case, it was tremendously soothing to do, and I do recommend the Painterly Days books for anyone wanting to play with watercolours but feeling unready with their drawing.
I'm still trying to decide whether to take a more substantial craft kit with me on the next trip, or whether I can bear to stick purely to the watercolours. Packing is imminent. Hmmm...
Thanks so much for stopping by. There'll be a new creation along soon and then, depending on what I decide to take with me in terms of crafting kit, there may be a few more, or we may be back on the Encores... we'll see! Happy crafting all!
Now this relaxation of the mind from work consists on playful words or deeds. Therefore it becomes a wise and virtuous man to have recourse to such things at times.
Thomas Aquinas
UPDATE
To answer Yvonne's question below... you can get these books in the UK via Amazon (and maybe elsewhere too), but click to the other sellers, not the main Amazon price. You'll find the cheapest ones despatched by Wordery. Here's the link to the flower one, but there are different editions so make sure you find the one you prefer.