Friday, April 29, 2016

Trees, Mandalas, and More!

 Lots to share today so let's get on with it shall we? First up- Happy Arbor Day!



                               Trees            By A. Joyce Kilmer
I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is pressed
Against the earth’s sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.


I was surfing You Tube for watercolor techniques to paint a tree. What happened was I brought out a scrap of paper and my oil pastels to get a feel for the shades etc. and scribbled the above. I decided I liked it enough to share just as it is. I'll get to the watercolor version eventually:)

A few weeks ago I won a book in a giveaway by Andrea from her Falling Ladies blog
 
                   front and back covers along with the art card she sent me

 Thank you Andrea it is a wonderful book! There are projects that range from watercolor mandalas, doodle mandalas, paper cut mandalas, mandalas from nature, to mixed media mandalas - all with subtitles and materials used. Nicely detailed step outs too! And they are in sections by 5 different authors/artists including Andrea. So of course I went on to try one of Andrea's watercolor mandalas first and this is what I did:

 It took my brain a bit of time to wrap myself around using the protractor to measure the circles but eventually I got it:)

  Here it is colored in: ( I used Peerless watercolors)

 And what I decided to do at this point was to make two copies of it so I could experiment with using white gel pen to doodle one and black to doodle the other:

    what a difference in the outcome, huh? So which one do you like better??

 I'm excited to attempt more of these along with some of the other projects! You can find the book here. Great book, and congrats Andrea!

 And here is my last entry for Art Journal Journey's theme this month - "For The Record-be inspired by music."


  Of course I must share the music of this song with you too:


 another blast from the past! Thank you so much dear Susi and Valerie for inviting me to host this past month. It has been a fabulous experience to visit so many artists and their entries-thanks to all!! Can't wait to see what the next theme will be- coming on Sunday May 1- so stay tuned at Art Journal Journey!

 I am also linking to the one and only Paint Party Friday for it is there where I discovered so many brilliant artists along with some of the challenges I participate in.  PPF,  you ROCK!!

 Much thanks for stopping by and taking the time to leave a message. Always good to hear from a friend or two, old or new.

"Doing good holds the power to transform us on the inside, and then ripple out in ever-expanding circles that positively impact the world at large."  - Shari Arison

36 comments:

  1. Wow, great post this week, such a lot to see. Love the mandala, and your tree and poem are wonderful. Thanks for joining us with your hot music and great journal page again, and thanks for all you did for AJJ this month. Happy PPF, hugs, Valerie

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  2. Beautiful art here, trees are so special, so this is great, I love your tree! The mandalas are super too, so relaxing to do. The first is soft and full of peace, the second is better defined with the black. Both are beautiful in their own way!

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  3. All of your art is beautiful and your words very inspiring Linda. But my favorite is your last entry on AJJ! So loose and colorful!!!
    Happy PPF!!
    Hugs,
    MiSchra ♥ #25 this week on PPF

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  4. Totally exciting page for PPF. Plus I love Billy Preston. Used to have one of his albums.

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  5. Lovely work for the challenges this week Linda, tree, mandala and has a month gone by already for AJJ?

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  6. Really love piece of work indeed and good thoughts. Have a nice weekend!

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  7. What gorgeous work again Linda :)

    I love how you have captured that tree.... great shading. I can just picture it standing in a field.

    I can't have a favourite! .... how different both mandalas look. One so dramatic and the other muted but still with a great impact.

    I love the fluidity of the last piece.... you always have such a wonderful variety on your posts.

    Very inspiring.

    Hope you have a lovely weekend

    Karen x

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  8. I love both your mandalas Linda. They are so beautiful. I just adore the free flowing movement of your piece inspired by the song.
    Happy PPF

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  9. Gorgeous inspiring art Linda, love the mandalas. Happy PP Friday!

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  10. Linda, your mandala looks like a beautiful quilt piece. Can't you just imagine a quilt using the last version, the one with the outlining? Wow! And I love the tree with the various shades of green. Thanks for sharing.

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  11. A great post and awesome art projects. You chose a great theme for AJJ I loved joining in
    Yvonne xx

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  12. Wow! I love both your mandalas, especially the one with the bold colors on the right. Thanks for the recommendation, as well as a like to the book. I placed it on my wish list on Amazon. Blessings, my friend!

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  13. I do like your scribbled tree and the two mandalas - I can't choose a favorite! The one with the white is quite lovely but I like then one with the black too. Although I think the addition of the white highlights with the black really makes it nice. Thanks for sharing. :)

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  14. That tree looks like you worked on it for quite awhile. I think using it was perfect. And I love your page for AJJ today. That is a great old song and I think you made a wonderful journal page about it. I've really enjoyed your theme this month, it was a lot of fun. Happy weekend! Hugs-Erika

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  15. Lovely post, Linda.
    Happy weekend ♥

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  16. First of all thank you for all the support this month for Art Journal Journey Linda! You showed so many fantastic ideas.. this last one is beautiful as well! Your Mandalas and the tree and poem are wonderful!
    Happy weekend dear Linda!
    oxo Susi

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  17. Your mandalas have such joy and peace in them.

    I especially like this time that for the record-work, it's got rhythm!!

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  18. Trees are certainly with celebrating . Your tree is beautiful as are your mandallas

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  19. Your scribbled tree is so majestic and beautiful and the mandalas are so fantastic. I do think the one with the black is my favorite although it is hard to choose one over the other. LOVE the AJJ entry!!! It has been a wonderful month of fantastic music and art this month/ I didn't participate but I thoroughly enjoyed visiting the blogs that did ♥

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  20. Wow Linda...so much gorgeous work this week!! You are the queen of trees...I have no idea why you'd ever doubt yourself.. Love the mandalas too...so impressive!! I've really enjoyed watching Andrea evolve...glad you won the book so you could show us a few samples!!Love your AJJ TOO!! Someone has Spring art fever!! Love it!!

    Hugs Giggles

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  21. A lovely mis of art. Like the mandalas (love the darker version) and will look out for the book. It looks interesting.

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  22. I'm always inspired by your art dear Linda!
    The Mandala is fun and my fave is the one on the right!
    Congrats on your win!

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  23. Your tree and the mandalas look fabulous. Both the mandalas are great but I think I love the white pen one a little more:-) Happy weekend
    Susan

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  24. Your tree is lovely and the mandalas are so beautiful too! I love trees!

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  25. I love all your work this post! I am so pleased you were able to create the mandala from my instructions, they BOTH turned out wonderful! Thanks for all the praise for the book, i am so excited to have done it!

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  26. Maybe this is too much to ask, but i was hoping you would cut and paste your review of the book to the amazon site you linked to. I hope i am not imposing, and will understand if you don't have the time, but thanks in advance if you do. Again, so glad you enjoyed the project and book!

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  27. Beautiful projects Linda! Love the colorful mandala!

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  28. Wow - where can I start with my comment... Your tree, you were so right to share it 'as is' - it is beautiful. Hard to imagine that watercolor could be even better?
    Mandalas are great fun, aren't they? A couple of months back I started drawing some in my journal using a compass (Zirkel), but I have not colored them yet. Yours looks beautiful. I like the one doodled in black the best.
    I love your abstract interpretation of the song, record - the splash of color really is awesome!

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  29. Loving the mandala. I'm thinking the white gel pen is my fav! x Julie

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  30. Great post Linda and I'm thinking the white pen is my fav. But thank you very much for dropping by to take a peek at my poppies. x Julie

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  31. The tree has come out very nicely and the poem and tree fit perfectly. Glad you are enjoying drawing the mandalas. Mandalas, which originated in Asia many centuries ago were drawn on the floor when compasses did not exist. I do feel bemused by the elaborate instructions for measuring and drawing the perfect mandala.

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  32. There is always so much to enjoy when I come to visit with you dear Linda.
    Lovely tree you made and your mandalas are lovely.
    That is very meditative work. The second darker version stands out for me but it is not easy picking a favorite.
    I was sorry to miss playing along with your great AJJ theme last month. There was lots going on in my head that never made it out. Your last piece is excellent and such a catchy song too.
    Happy May sweet friend oxo

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  33. wonderful post linda. i wish i could come up with a tree like this, marvellous! and i love your Journal page for ajj, the Colors are awesome and i like the bird you added.
    have a beautiful week, linda!

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  34. Wonderful artwork, my, you've been busy! Learning to paint trees in watercolour is high on my list too. I even bought some special brushes for the purpose. Both your mandalas are gorgeous, but I prefer the white simply because I love white gel pens :).

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  35. Beautiful works, especially that tree illustration -- lovely!!

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Thank you so much for your comments; it's a pleasure to connect with you!