Trying Out Acrylic

Last summer, I tried out using acrylic paints. Naturally, I'm just now writing about it! I follow a lot of artists on Instagram and that's what got me thinking about trying out acrylic. I decided to go with an abstract as my first piece just to help get a feel for the medium and to have less pressure for it to look perfect. I tend to gravitate to warm, happy colors. I went with oranges and pinks. My mom loved it and I let her take it home with her.

It looks great in her craft room!

I decided to recreate it for myself. It was a bit more challenging because this time I felt like I had more pressure to get it right. I was a bit more critical, but I am still very pleased with the result.

Two years ago, I did a watercolor painting for my dad of a starry night sky. I decided to try doing it using acrylic. This one was tricky with getting the purple to cooperate, but it eventually got to a place that I was happy with. I really like seeing the brushstrokes in the blue parts of the sky.

Here's the original watercolor I did.

The next one I did was of a hillside covered with flowers. Again, I struggled with getting the colors in the flowers the way I wanted, but I kept with it. I love seeing the brush strokes in the sky because it gives the feeling of a fresh spring wind blowing through.

This final one, was a rough one. I ended up ruining it and starting all over again. That's how some of the best lessons are learned though! As I was showing it to Jonathan, he said it looked like a planet that was eclipsing it's sun. I want him to create a rendering of my new planet some time!

Since these paintings, I haven't done much with acrylics. I really enjoyed it and need to break out my paints again soon!

BJ's Story

Growing up, I didn't realize that I was crafty or creative. I could brain storm with my mom, but I didn't feel like I could actually make what ever it was. I still remember when I was about 11 or 12, one of my favorite church leaders was trying to teach us girls how to sew a button. I was such a punk that night to her! I kept making excuses and complaining. I feel badly for making a simple lesson so difficult on her! That's how I felt about anything crafty like that. I just couldn't do it! At some point in high school, I started changing my tune. I still stayed away from anything that involve needles and thread, but I was helping my mom with some of her projects around the house. After taking Honors Physics, I helped my mom switch the order of the switches in the kitchen because the order that the builder put it in made no sense. Then we installed a new ceiling fan in my bedroom. Slowly but surely, my confidence was growing. After getting married, I have been busy with a wide variety of projects: painting furniture, assembling Ikea furniture, patching my husband's jeans, recovering an office chair, and making homemade presents.

A few years ago, I asked my husband to give me watercolor supplies for my birthday. I stumbled across Alisa Burke's blog about a year before and finally wanted to start being more artistic. I didn't do much with the supplies for a long time, but I had them. After getting an Instagram account, I started following many talented artists. After seeing their work for a few months, I thought to myself, "I can do that!" And so I did! I got out my watercolors again and went all out for my first painting.

Thanks to doing a lot of ambitious projects for my lack of experience, I was confident enough to do a watercolor of the Los Angeles Temple. Though, I still took my sweet time doing it. I started the sketch of it in August and finished painting it just a few days before Christmas. I took a hiatus and didn't paint until the following December. This time I painted the Oakland Temple in about a week and the Idaho Falls Temple in one day.

I started a painting using acrylics, but I like the first layer so much that I haven't touched it in months.

I go through sporadic periods of creativity and I hope that they will continue to get closer together.