Animal And Wildlife Challenge Dec 2025/Jan 2026
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Joy
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Anne, The crop you did really worked out well. The way you tapered out from the neck without making it look "cut off" was excellent. I really like the soft, gleaming fur, especially the color blending under the chin. The eyes could be a wee bit darker, as it looks a bit startled. Maybe under the lid area and medially, casting a shadow on the eye, if that makes any sense. The overall shapes are very well observed.
Grapes, that is coming along really well. You really get a lot done; it is amazing to me how people find the time to do so much. I have a lot of other activities, and we had unseasonably cold weather for the last month. Today we had -13 C temperature with -25 C wind chills. The winters have been mild lately (and it is not even winter) but we had a lot of snow yesterday and today. Our old snowblower died, and we ordered an electric one this time. It was ordered almost two weeks ago and finally came today. So we spent a while fiddling with that. We still did not put up the Christmas tree, although we don't put it up early. "Christmas creep" in the US has people decorating for Christmas in October.
Grapes, that is coming along really well. You really get a lot done; it is amazing to me how people find the time to do so much. I have a lot of other activities, and we had unseasonably cold weather for the last month. Today we had -13 C temperature with -25 C wind chills. The winters have been mild lately (and it is not even winter) but we had a lot of snow yesterday and today. Our old snowblower died, and we ordered an electric one this time. It was ordered almost two weeks ago and finally came today. So we spent a while fiddling with that. We still did not put up the Christmas tree, although we don't put it up early. "Christmas creep" in the US has people decorating for Christmas in October.
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Grapes
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Wayne, thank you!
Jade, thank you for your comment!
I only did one pastel drawing - a blue bambi ... blue because I was then very young lol - but never worked more with pastels. I still have them somewhere in a drawer.
If you start oils and let's say get low quality paints and if you think they smell too much then the quality paints won't smell that much. I started out w./Van Gogh brand long time ago, loved them, still do but they smell b/c of my asthma it's quite impossible. Now I only use artist quality, mostly OH but they are stiff and for that reason not good for everyone.
You have in Brittain one very good brand Michael Harding. I have those too. They are soft paint. My favorites are OH, Williamsburg, MH, Rembrandt. I order my paints from Madrid.
About artist grade vs. low quality paints what ppl often don't realize is that expensive brand becomes actually cheaper because the cheap brand you use in a heartbeat but the expensive ones last 3 or 5 times longer. Think about that
... and of course if I paint on paper or pizza box (needs to be the frozen one where pizza is in plastic) of course I use low quality paints or more often leftover paint from freezer. These last animals were painted w./ leftover.
I think for studio work like portraits in the future l might try to move from OH to Rembrandt/MH brands more
.
Just few thoughts about paints. I'm passionate about paints
Joy, thanks!
I "find time" because that's the only thing l do. But l still need to organize myself in my studio better and work more on larger paintings, too. I'm not doing that atm. I leave "all the other" stuff to other ppl.
We continue having +5 °C and rain
so no winter here. Your snow and cold situation sounds terrible 
. I wouldn't want that here but many years that is the normal. Cold weather doesn't permit you to do much anything else than paint 
in the studio!
I'm not even celebrating Christmas this year. I have some things out for my cat only because she likes them l can tell. I just don't feel christmassy this year. So, this year I can paint all through the Holidays.
Jade, thank you for your comment!
I only did one pastel drawing - a blue bambi ... blue because I was then very young lol - but never worked more with pastels. I still have them somewhere in a drawer.
If you start oils and let's say get low quality paints and if you think they smell too much then the quality paints won't smell that much. I started out w./Van Gogh brand long time ago, loved them, still do but they smell b/c of my asthma it's quite impossible. Now I only use artist quality, mostly OH but they are stiff and for that reason not good for everyone.
You have in Brittain one very good brand Michael Harding. I have those too. They are soft paint. My favorites are OH, Williamsburg, MH, Rembrandt. I order my paints from Madrid.
About artist grade vs. low quality paints what ppl often don't realize is that expensive brand becomes actually cheaper because the cheap brand you use in a heartbeat but the expensive ones last 3 or 5 times longer. Think about that
... and of course if I paint on paper or pizza box (needs to be the frozen one where pizza is in plastic) of course I use low quality paints or more often leftover paint from freezer. These last animals were painted w./ leftover.
I think for studio work like portraits in the future l might try to move from OH to Rembrandt/MH brands more
.Just few thoughts about paints. I'm passionate about paints
Joy, thanks!
I "find time" because that's the only thing l do. But l still need to organize myself in my studio better and work more on larger paintings, too. I'm not doing that atm. I leave "all the other" stuff to other ppl.
We continue having +5 °C and rain
so no winter here. Your snow and cold situation sounds terrible . I wouldn't want that here but many years that is the normal. Cold weather doesn't permit you to do much anything else than paint in the studio! I'm not even celebrating Christmas this year. I have some things out for my cat only because she likes them l can tell. I just don't feel christmassy this year. So, this year I can paint all through the Holidays
.
Jade
Well-known member
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I love your passion about Paints Grapes! . I'm shopping today and saw some watercolours for a good price but then I started to think maybe I like the control I get with pencils. Plus I'm very messy and already drive my husband mad so paints might not be the right thing lol. I will save your message though.. I appreciated your thoughts.. you never know.. I might get my own studio one day!
Plus I'm very messy and already drive my husband mad so paints might not be the right thing lol. I will save your message though.. I appreciated your thoughts.. you never know.. I might get my own studio one day!
