Just Paint It Blog

  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Home
  • About
    • My Stuff
      • My House
      • My Hubs
      • My Paintings
        • Illustrations
        • Murals
  • Projects
    • How To/PIY
      • PIY – Paint It Yourself
      • Quick Stuff
      • Tutorials
      • Videos
    • Techniques
      • Antiquing & Distressing
      • Blending Colors
      • Color Wash
      • Decoupage
      • Drawing
      • Dry Brushing
      • Faux Finishes
      • Glazing
      • Highlighting
      • Shading
      • Stenciling
      • Transfers
    • Home Decor
      • Accessories
      • Furniture
      • Holiday Decorating
      • Seasonal Decorating
    • Crafts
      • Dollar Store Crafts
      • Holiday Crafts
        • Christmas Crafts
        • Halloween Crafts
      • Kids Crafts
      • Seasonal Crafts
    • Paint Types
      • Chalk Paint
      • Chalkboard Paint
      • Glitter Paint
      • Metallic Paint
      • Pearl Paint
      • Specialty Paints
      • Spray Paint
      • Watercolor Paint
    • Paint Surfaces
      • Paint Canvas
      • Paint Fabric
      • Paint Glass
      • Paint Metal
      • Paint Paper
      • Paint Plastic
      • Paint Walls
      • Paint Wood
    • Submit Yours
  • Shop
    • A.R.T. – Art Related Things
    • Original Art
    • Pet Portraits
    • ClipArt & Printables
  • Portfolio
    • Pet Portraits
  • Contact

A Simple Painting That Wasn’t

February 2, 2011 By Colleen Jorgenson Leave a Comment

I painted this today. Just a simple little baby name canvas with a couple of elephants.

102_4196

Simple.

But there were a few bumps along the way to this simple painting.

Now, normally you’d expect a bump or two, right? It happens to everyone, right?

Well, I have a confession to make. I don’t do ‘simple’ very well. Give me something complex, complicated, difficult, and I’ll find a way to figure it out.

But something simple? For some reason those projects always befuddle me.

I try to accept this about myself. After all these years of crafting, painting, being a chronic DIYer, I know that simple projects never turn out, well, simple.

elephantgreen-lg_1

I painted the canvas to match this bedding.

elephantgreenwallart-lg

Brown, green and cream. And circles. Lots and lots of circles.

102_4168

So I did a preliminary sketch, planned the colors, and figured it might take me an hour or so.

102_4166

I basecoated the canvas with a medium green because the nursery walls are beige. I knew I couldn’t match the beige since I haven’t seen the room. So green seemed the right choice.

102_4169

Then I chalked out the basic design.

102_4170

Chalk works great because you can ‘erase’ with a damp cloth. Much easier than pencil or transfer paper.

102_4173

Once I had the design chalked out, I taped off the border.

102_4172

I carefully measured the tape on all four sides.

See my ruler? It’s clear. It’s large – 24”. It’s a fabulous ruler.

Then I meticulously cut the corners so I’d have clean edges.

102_4174

Then a couple coats of Burnt Umber for the border  .  .  .

102_4176

. . . and the sides, so no frame is needed.

Then Bump #1.

102_4177

I mean, really . . . how hard is it to see that I didn’t paint the green far enough to the edges?

102_4178

Apparently, pretty hard. Even with a clear ruler.

I planned to paint these circles for the background. But knowing myself and my propensity to screw up simple stuff, I figured I’d paint green on green, rather than brown on green.

102_4181

A soup can and chalk should work great to mark the circles.

 

102_4182

I even ‘sharpened’ my chalk to get a good circle template.

But not sharp enough.

Plan B –

102_4183

I’ll just cut out circles and trace around them. I’ll even do 3 at a time!

Nope. I won’t even go into why this didn’t work. But it didn’t.

So I grabbed the cap to my hairspray and just quickly drew some circles.

102_4184

At first glance, they might look okay.

They weren’t. Not even close.

102_4186

Since the circles overlapped in certain areas, I just dotted paint inside of the circles.

102_4187

Not too bad. At this point, I actually fooled myself into believing I could pull off this simple little painting in record time and not miss NCIS, NCIS L.A., and The Good Wife.

102_4188

I ‘whited’ out the large elephant and the letters.

Notice anything funny about the elephant?

Well, I didn’t.

102_4189

So I added little circles to the ‘E’.

102_4191

Then I added the elephant’s eye and then . . . “OMG! What is wrong with that elephant? He looks like a anteater!”

Not even an anteater. He looks like a deformed anteater.

Bump #2.

102_4192

Okay, so just add the ear, fix the head with some green paint. Not too bad.

102_4193

On to the ‘L’. And Bump #3.

What would be cuter than a little brown plaid for a baby boy?

102_4194

I’ll get back to Bump #3.

At this point I was still under the mistaken impression that this looked fine.

 

102_4196a

Pulled out my Sharpies and added some outlining.

102_4196b

This little guy looked like an elephant on the first try.

Okay. This might actually work!

102_4196

I’m thinking I’m done now.

I take the canvas off the easel, prop it up on the mantel and stand back.

Remember Bump #3? The cute little plaid? That cute little plaid also makes it very hard to read.

You can see the ‘E’. You can see the ‘I’. But what is that plaid thing in the middle?

My paintbrushes are washed, my paints are put away, my camera batteries are recharging, and I just couldn’t take it.

I grabbed a brush, mixed some cream & brown together and went over the plaid.

It’s still sitting on the mantel and I’m still looking at it and I’m still trying to figure out what to do to it.

And now the 10:00 news is on.

Maybe it’ll look better in the morning.

Doubt it.

I meet with the client @ 9 am. I’ll either leave it alone and see if she likes it, or try something else.

By then, my batteries will be recharged and I’ll be able to take another picture of my what-should-have-taken-an-hour-simple-but-not-simple-for-me painting.

The End.

For tonight.

 

Beyond The Picket Fence

Get your craft on Thurs.
giveaways
NightOwlCrafting
A Crafty SoireeHouseofHepworthsBlogging Hints Catch a Wave WednesdayThe Thrifty Home Refinished Furniture Party

All Things Heart and Home

Hump Day link

Filed Under: Confessions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    About Me

    Hi there! I'm Colleen, a self-taught artist, writer and blogger, among other things. You don't get to be old enough to order off the Denny's senior menu without accomplishing a few things in life. Read More…

    Recent Posts…
    • Patriotic Fourth of July Printables June 25, 2019
    • Camping Coloring Pages June 15, 2019
    • How to Paint Purple Iris January 28, 2019
    • How to Paint a Teddy Bear January 24, 2019
    • How to Paint Tulips January 21, 2019
    Comments…
    • Colleen on How to Paint Easy Leaves & Vines
    • Sunny on How to Paint Easy Leaves & Vines
    • Tape and Float on Painting Red Gingham
    • Abir on My Dream Art & Craft Studio
    • Colleen on Frosted Branches – The Right Way This Time

    Subscribe via Email

    Get updated delivered directly to your inbox!

    Art Digital Downloads

    Archives

    Pretty Handy Girl Fun DIY Gifts!

    PHG_zazzle-banner

    Videos

    Error type: "Forbidden". Error message: "Method doesn't allow unregistered callers (callers without established identity). Please use API Key or other form of API consumer identity to call this API." Domain: "global". Reason: "forbidden".

    Did you added your own Google API key? Look at the help.

    Check in YouTube if the id muralmaker1 belongs to a . Check the FAQ of the plugin or send error messages to support.

    Instagram

    Google+

    Facebook

    Pinterest

    Etsy

    Copyright © 2025 Just Paint It!/Colleen Jorgensen · website by Houndstooth Media Group