On the Easels: Sunflowers... & Christmas...
On this page, I discuss my current projects. Check back frequently; as I make significant progress, I add new pictures.
** NEW **Christmas card project started October 1, 2025
Last Updated on October 12, 2025
Sunflower project started June 27, 2025; 1st version scrapped July 13
Second version started July 19
Last updated on August 6, 2025
In-progress pictures of my 2025 Christmas card.
The bright white surface running diagonally is a sheet of glassine, which protects the work from my hand, and doesn't rub out the rough sketch like the drawing glove will.
The Co-Star of the Show
I'm doing something I've never attempted before: working on two large pieces simultaneously. Sunflowers is on the floor easel, but is getting a little rework after inspiration hit.
In the meantime, the leaves and the calendar are turning, and I realized that the holiday season is nearly upon us. I try to have a new design finished by August to use as my Christmas card, but this year the deadline didn't just sneak up on me... in true Halloween fashion, it leaped out and startled me! How is it October already??
I pulled out my trusty table easel to complete two butterfly drawings (Golden Longwing and Doris Longwing) that you can see on my home page. Since everything was already set up, it was easy to change out the pencils and start this piece.
The paper is Strathmore Mixed Media Toned Gray, and the pencils (so far) are exclusively Caran D'Ache Museum Aquarelle and Supracolor II Soft. As an added twist, I am activating them with water as I work, which speeds up the process by covering the color of the paper faster. The finished piece will be 16” H x 20” W. Completion deadline, in an ideal world, is November 1. I have my work cut out for me....
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Ready to begin. The photo is just for reference when doing the rough sketch, which I drew in the lightest color pencil possible. I used a Caran D'Ache Supracolor II Soft watercolor pencil in Ash Grey to sketch the rough outlines. Full disclosure: this photo has been heavily gamma-corrected to make the outlines visible.
The Star of the Show
On the easel is a 16" x 20" drawing of sunflowers.
I staged the reference photo in my backyard, then painted in a new background using Photoshop. The only AI used here is Actual intelligence (i.e., my own brain); I don't use the artificial type...
Version 1 only: PanPastels, ready for use.
You can also see my two-fingered drawing glove. It covers my palm, pinky and ring fingers to keep skin oils off the paper while I draw.
The Supporting Cast
The paper:
- Fabriano Artistico extra white hot press watercolor paper, 140 lb / 300 gsm
The pencils:
- Caran D'Ache Supracolor II Soft (Ash Grey)
- Caran D'Ache Luminance
- Faber-Castell Polychromos
Gamblin Gamsol Odorless Mineral Spirits
(version 1 only) PanPastel Artist Pastels and Sofft Artist Tools
(version 1 only) SpectraFix Spray Fixative
The original plan was to spray the PanPastel layers SpectraFix, then use solvent to blend the pencil layers over it....
Version 1: Progress as of July 14
The Production Specifics
Ordinarily, I prefer to work a piece without interruption from start to finish. I made an exception in this case, and set the iris, Rococo, aside temporarily to attempt to finish by a competition deadline.
Unfortunately, I was overzealous in my application of PanPastels, and was struggling to create the brightest highlights on the sunflower using the colored pencils. The Fabriano Artistico is a wonderful paper, but doesn't have enough tooth to properly accommodate both mediums. I don't often scrap a piece entirely, but it wasn't worth the daily struggle I had set up for myself. Sometimes for sake of quality it's better to just start over....
Version 2: Progress as of August 6
Redrawing the piece on a new sheet of paper took 3 days. I started coloring the piece by filling in the sky, working first in Luminance, then layers and layers of Polychromos. For those who know pencils, that layering choice violates the "fat-over-lean" principle. Luminance pencils have a higher wax content than Polychromos, so putting them on the paper first makes smooth blending of the Polychromos pencils a real challenge. Mistake #2, but I'm working through it.