90. Have Portraits of Everyone in My Family : Heidi

I painting this the other night while watching Big Brother.  Have you guys heard of that?  I think it ran for a few years in the US but it's a pretty big deal here.  It's just a bunch of people living in a house with no TV, no internet, no phones, etc.  They get really bored and then there's a bunch of drama/romance/etc - kind of reminds me of summer camp actually.  I'm embarrassed to say I'm addicted.  But at least I multi task!

Do we see the resemblance?

Speaking of my bucket list, I'm planning a chicago cupcake crawl for when I go over next week!  I'm so excited!  Any Chicagoans who need a sugar high are welcome to join!
It will probably occur on Wednesday July 4th.

How to Paint Crappy Portraits

Hi Friends,

Those of you read my 100 Things To Do List may have noticed one of my goals is to have portraits of everyone in my family.  Well let's get real, those things are expensive!  Since money is not something that we're swimming in over here, I knew I would have to paint these myself.  Maybe like me some of you have too much free time and want to give it a go...

Start with a picture you really like.  I chose one of my sisters.  Print it out and draw a grid on the photo.  Then blow up your grid on the canvas.  It is important to be careful with this part because if your grid is off it will throw everything off.

Then, in pencil, sketch out your portrait.  The grid will make it 100 times easier since you can focus on smaller parts of the photo.  After you draw it, start painting it in watered down shades of brown.  It seems like an extra step, but think of it as a map.  It really will help to guide you when you start putting color down.

Then for the fun part!  It's kind of like a coloring book for adults at this point.  It's best to start with the background and work your way forward.

Voila!  I know it's not gonna win any awards, but for my first painting since high school art class I don't think it's too bad.  Hope this inspired you to get your creative juices flowing!

Happy Friday!