Yeah --  I did start 3 days into the Challenge and reworked two of my paintings but I managed to get 27 completed.  It was really fun painting them, fun getting likes and comments from people on Facebook that I know and new friends who were following me as well.  I'm looking forward to viewing the artists who participated on the Challenge blog because when you put them altogether it is really fun to see.

All these paintings are 6x6 except the Ballerina Toe Shoes (20x16) and the Orange and Black Striped Pump is 12x12.  

I like to paint on different surfaces so some are on 
AquaBord 2" cradle
Yupo
Marbled Paper I had done a couple of summers ago on different kinds of paper,
Old paintings were revived by cropping the part I liked for the painting
I love to paint on Fabriano 300 lb paper the best when using Dr. Ph. Martin Hydrus Watercolors.

Most of these will have to be sealed before mounting on a 2" or 3" cradle. The Yupo paintings actually look better under acrylic or glass.  I could put any of the ones on watercolor paper under glass in a frame as well.  We'll have to see if the potential buyers want something specific then I can accommodate their wishes.  I do have three other shoe paintings done this past year which are also available and are mounted and sealed already.

I'm thinking of doing a poster print or some other way of reproducing a grouping of the shoes, not necessarily all 27.  I might also do a calendar for 2017 if any of you are interested, please let me know.

​Voila!  Today is the final day of the Challenge and I'm sad and happy at the same time.  My family will definitely be happier when there is not so much painting going on "under the gun," so to speak.  This has been an awesome experience for me and I hope a fun one as you have followed me through the days with different shoes, "pumps" being posted.  When I post the entire collection tomorrow in a collage I hope each of you will take the opportunity to look at them and it would really be fun for me to have a voting of which of the paintings were you top 2.

I started with a Valentine tribute and I wanted to end with a Valentine tribute because what a wonderful holiday to express your love to your family and friends in a special way.  Hopefully it isn't the only day where we focus on those special people in our lives.  I really loved how the marbled design radiates hearts from the shoe -- I used several pinks, reds, magentas and jeune brilliant for the inner sole.

​I had one more piece of that original painting that I thought would do justice to this beautiful shoe.  The colors aren't quite as bright as I wanted but I was running out of time today.  I do have other things to get done today.  I used phthalo blue, perinone orange, Hansa Yellow Lt, Skip's Green and a touch of black to outline. 


 There is something about this color on Yupo that makes any painting look good.  I had to rewet the background at the end and actually it is still wet when I took the photo .  I love the background and I really love how intricate the pattern on the shoe is considering they were dealing with the materials of the shoe.  Love the open toe as well.  Hmmmm  another shoe I'd love to have in my closet and I already have a few outfits to go with it.

Today I've worked on two paintings that are painted on different surfaces and the the backgrounds were painted earlier.  
The Aqua Leopard Pump  6x6 Watercolor on Yupo.  I sprayed the background with several of the turquoise and aqua Dr. Ph. Martin Hydrus Watercolors -- even a little of the Payne's Gray which helped to darken parts of the background.  I babysat my painting and swirled it as often as I could to get a difference in the color as it was drying.  I even applied some additional Aqua after the shoe was completed to get a little different texture on the right side.  The shoe was painted with Lamp Black, Burnt Umber and Blue Aqua.  I do love "slings" so this shoe appealed to me from the beginning.  With a love of Africa as you can see over time in my paintings there had to be some wild animal influence in the shoes as well.



Aqua Leopard Pump  6x6 Watercolor on Yupo


Being resourceful I cut up one of my painting's from last year's challenge that wasn't one I was totally happy with trying to make the design better.  The background was perfect for this shoe when I was trying to match it.  My Mom loved polka dots and as I was growing up she made me a little fur jacket with red polka dot lining and when I saw this shoe I knew it had to be painted.  I also wore a one shoulder black and white polka dot with three tiers of lace short dress to one of our formals in high school -- so the polka dots bring back good memories.

I used Dr. Ph. Martin Hydrus Watercolors:  Ultramarine and mixed a little black with it in the shadowing on the shoe.  I used White Gouache to make the white stand out from the underpainting. I used Vermillion Hue for the red.  It does take several layers of intense paint to cover when you have backgrounds like this one if you don't want it showing through.  

​Well I'm painting in the "groove" and can't seem to stop.  I know I'm going to go through withdrawals at the end of this Challenge!!  I'm going to post the three paintings I worked on yesterday and today.  Since I started a few days late I might even catch up and get 30 paintings in the Challenge.

​The first one is a more casual pump which attracted me to a different kind of fantasy setting on where you could wear such a shoe.  I love the different leathers he used in the design of the shoe.  I've always like purple and it was an intresting combination of brown, orange, gray and purple leathers on different parts of the shoe.  I used the marbled paper because I thought it would show off the colors and textures better than other papers I could have used.  I did have to highlight the paper to make it all happen and bring the shoe forward.

The marbled paper was almost like tissue paper and so wetting it again both on the background and in painting the shoe was a little more difficult but because the marbling is acrylic paints I think it held it together.  I like this one a lot better than the one on Yupo.  It speaks to what I wanted to portray.  Summer will be coming and wouldn't it be fun to have a pair of shoes to wear to the first summer party!  It was a little difficult to get the clear part of the shoe to appear with the busy background but watered down white gouache seemed to do the trick on both paintings.  Gene Gill always said to use whatever tools you need to finish a painting and he used gouache a lot in his awesome paintings.  Thanks Gene!! 

​The paint went crazy when I mixed these particular colors for the background -- obviously the characteristics of possibly Skip's Green didn't like the other pigments?  The salt added to the texture which I think is a mistake on Yupo.  There are two versions of this shoe because I really wasn't sure I could even pull this one off.  Sure need to sign it again if I finish it behind glass or acrylic.

Well, here is a painting on Yupo (a plastic used by the printing industry) I mentioned several days ago.  It is a very slick and nonporous surface so the paint sits on top.  Most of the time I burnish the wet paint to set it before applying any other colors or layers.  I just let these sit.  The colors always remain exactly as they were applied.  I did move the board around so the pools of color could flow in different directions.  With the wet weather it took awhile to dry.


I was a little disappointed because I did masque the whites in the shoe but the masque didn't want to come off easily on this surface.  I also applied some sea salt to the surface and that isn't what I would do in the future.  Many layers were applied using white gouache and I added more black to the shoe itself.  I really think this pump is outstanding but spending many hours painting it, I'll have to stand back and not look at it for a day -- hope you enjoy looking though.  I still might create a dark shadow under the shoe before finishing and sealing this or putting it under glass -- whichever I decide.  Yupo actually looks great under acrylic or glass.

​Black and White Striped Pump   6x6 Watercolor and Gouache on Yupo

I was excited to paint this pump today because I personally like to wear a sling heel and have an open toe.  Turquoise is one of my favorite colors on my palette as well.  I decided to take a look in my old paintings to see if there were any good backgrounds to use the rest of the way in the Challenge.  Yeah, I found quite a few to use.  The problem with this background was I didn't realize that there was still fluid on the paper.  It was this great grayish color and so I had to do a little maneuvering to get it to be similar.  The heel was different from any other shoe I've seen and it certainly would keep me stable -- gosh, another shoe I think I need to own......


I used Quiller's turquoise and also Cobalt Teal Daniel Smith.  I used Moonlight Interference and Silver Interferace by Daniel Smith to give the heel and background a little glow.  Jeaune Brilliant for the sole.


I spent the morning getting the paintings lined up for the rest of the Challenge and worked on seeing if I could pull off a mostly white shoe on Yupo to my satisfaction -- stay tuned.


When I think of Turquoise I think of the SW desert and so it is named:
​SW Desert Platform Pump  6x6 Watercolor on 300 lb rough watercolor paper

It was somewhat of a challenge to get the right shoe to work with this background because parts of the background I wanted to highlight the pump.  I'm not sure where I would wear this pump but what a kick it would be to have a pair.  There were several catchy phrases which popped into my mind but I thought I should reject them when it comes to flames and putting out the fire.....
Anyway, I had to really lay on the jeune brilliant to have it show up on the darker background -- many layers and then finding two colors to blend with it to delineate the shadows and darker colors on the insole.  All in all it was a lot of detail work but I'm happy with the result.  I think I'll resign it -- signature looks a little weak.
Hope you like it too.  

​Blazing Pump  6x6 Watercolor on 300 lb Fabriano

I spent several hours this morning matching the backgrounds I have painted over the Challenge with the shoes I had selected as potential prospects.  It was a fun morning deciding if I could come up with the next 8 days of paintings and which backgrounds need to be painted.


This background had lots of potential to shine with several of the pumps but in the end I chose another shoe that I would love to own in my closet.  I really like the combination of the red and black--no wonder since I am a Black Tornado!  The shimmery cast of a silverish glow made it a little more difficult to paint but I learned a lot in the process.


I painted the entire shoe Brilliant Cad Red and then Carbon Black in the parts of the shoe that were black.  I placed some netting over the shoe while it was still damp and lightly brushed over the areas to be cast in the shimmer with a broader brush.  I weighted the netting down with another matboard and let it dry.  I wanted it to be very subtle so I could build on it or lift depending on what needed to be done.  I did decide that the red should be Quinacridone Coral and lightly brought out the background to match the more brilliant color.

I picked this shoe to paint last year as one I would love to really have in my closet to wear.  I liked the darker reddish hue to the shoe's python leather and of course the trademark of the red inside heel and sole.  It was a tougher color with all the shadows to paint than I thought earlier.  I tried a number of reds, dark reds, red browns and used a number of them mixed to try and get the variety of colors in the shoe but remain homogenious(sp).  I also decided to outline with darker watercolor pencils.  In the end I also used interference red to give the color a little lift.  The background reminded me of trees in a tropical jungle where the pythons might live--safe with this painting.
​Red Python Pump  6x6 Watercolor on 300 lb watercolor paper

I had completed this background in the first week and decided to use it with a shoe rather than what I had originally planned since I'm on this shoe "kick" for this Challenge.  Love the background and this shoe fits is perfectly.  I might have to darken the background in a few places to bring the shoe forward -- but that will be before I put it on the website for sale.  It is a very rainy day outside for day and many days to come so I needed to think about bright colors and spring coming soon.  Hope you like the colors and the shoe too.

Spring in Your Step Pump  Watercolor on 6x6 300 lb Fabriano Artistico watercolor paper.  I used both Dr. Ph. Martin Hydrus Watercolors (Brilliant Cad Red , Hansa Yellow Light,  Hansa Deep Yellow, Indian Red and Red Oxide) as well as Cadmium Yellow Pale for the final layer of yellow and Jeune brilliant for the sole of the shoe.  
​

​This is a painting I started about a month ago.  There was light coming from two sources and I had to decide which source I was going to use to finish the painting.  The aquabord surface often takes the paint differently when adding layers of watercolor washes.  I did quite a few before I could get the floor dark enough to make the shoes shine.  I might still have some tweaking to do in the shoes themselves but am happy with the floor and background.  We will see what my critique group has to say tomorrow.  I really do appreciate Lindsey Curry sharing this photo of her daughter's toe shoes for me to paint.  She owns a Footnotes dance studio in Ceres CA.  We have become friends through Visi and she also is a very good photographer..

I can either put it behind glass if it is going to an exhibition or will seal it so it can be framed without glass.
Little Ballerina Toe Shoes  20x16 Watercolor on AquaBord panel.

I didn't want anyone to think I haven't been in my studio today painting for Day 15.  I've been preparing and modifying the pieces to be in this painting so not only the design will be good but the color pattern in the purses and clutches will be right.  This shoe is a knockout and you don't get any clues from the sketch.  You'll have to wait......  I'll be painting tonight but don't want to rush it.  I'll post here tomorrow the finished result.
​This painting isn't titled yet and is a 12 x 12 piece of Fabriano watercolor paper 300 lb.

I started working on two paintings late on the 14th.  My sister-in-law took this underwater photo as part of the rescue project studying the destruction of the Coral Reef on the Big Island in Hawaii due to the change in the ocean's temperature.  The coral is so beautiful and I wanted to pay tribute to the coral and hope that others will contribute in any they can to help reduce the number of coral which will not recover from this change in the ocean temperatures.


I started by masking the lightest part of the coral using a nib and Incredible White Mask.  I then sprayed the yellow in the middle, the turquoise blue on the top and sides and then the blue aqua on the bottom.  I used sepia and a little of the phalo blue to begin the darker structure underneath the coral.  Tomorrow I will begin the process of both lifting and adding color to make the coral's structure come out.  It could take me longer than one day tomorrow.  I want to do this one justice.  I needed a break from my shoe series as well.
​The Big Island's rescue of the coral reef project   12x12 Watercolor on 300 lb.

I decided to have a little fun and go from a simple design to something more geometric in the design.  This was fun and a lot more work for a small painting.  Wouldn't it just be great to have a closet full of awesome purses to choose from when we are going out in our Classic Snakeskin Pump for the evening?  Well it is kind of a fantasy since I only wear pumps on special occasions but I'm ready for one.

A lot of times I mix my blacks but not in this painting.  I used Lunar Black (Daniel Smith).  I used a blend of different reds already on my palette (not sure which was which).  Then I mixed in the Interference and Iridescent colors from Daniel Smith to give the painting some "BLING".  My idea is to paint this again larger before the end of the Challenge.  It was really fun.  Any favorite purses you think would be appropriate -- send me the photos please.

Classic Snakeskin Pump  6x6 Watercolor on 300 lb. Fabriano watercolor paper

Well I love this background - several of my favorite colors--magenta, gray blue, and black. It was late and I forgot to get a photo of just the background.   I would buy this shoe in an instant because it makes me feel "classy" and "sassy" just looking at it.  It was late last night when I finished painting but I'm very happy with the result.  Can you ever have enough shoes?  or shoe paintings?  Stay tuned.   Comments??


This painting is done on 300 lb Fabriano which takes the Dr. Ph. Martin Hydrus watercolors very well although the shoe itself was painted with tube paints.  I used Opera, Payne's Gray and Smalt Genuine.

Classy Sassy Pump   6x6 Watercolor on 300 lb Fabriano watercolor paper

​Wow - can't believe we are all well on our way into this Challenge.  I am having so much more fun this time with this subject.  Wait until you see them all hung above my closet doors!  Great decorating idea and talk about saving money......  just kidding.  

I didn't get a photo of the background before starting on this yesterday.  Finally got all my Xmas decorations down and put away so that took most of my day.  

Anyway  I am in such a great place in my life that dreaming of being somewhere tropical on a vacation was high on my "dream" list today.  I am going to be wearing a shoe like this in June when I go to Cabo!  If you are interested in how an artist can afford to do that you'll have to message me to find out.  I did use my artistic license to change a few things on the shoe I was referencing but overall I love it......  I will need to be painting some more backgrounds today.  

Please comment......

Fun in the Sun Pump
6x6 Watercolor on AquaBord 2" Cradle

I really liked the flowers on this shoe and had an idea which had to be changed because my blues got too dark.  That's life when you paint.  Now could I make this a "happy" mistake.  As I've said before Dr. Ph. Martin Hydrus watercolors are staining -- especially the darker pigments.  Even though these are diluted when sprayed they take to the clay surface and penetrate it so even though it can be lifted with scrubbing without damaging the surface, I didn't want to go there.  So I let the colors be the colors of the flowers on the shoe.  I did lift out the whites as much as possible and brought out more brilliant pinks for the toe.  The webbing suggests crystals like frost so that gave me the idea for which the name reflects -- this shoe is stepping out of winter into spring.  I'm happy with the result and the flowers will have to emerge on another shoe some day -- maybe even during the Challenge.
​
​Stepping Into Spring Pump  6x6 Watercolor on AquaBord 2" cradle

This painting went through another stage in creating the painting I had envisioned from the beginning.  It has a totally different feel which I hope the viewer sees.  It was a little more work than I really had anticipated but I'm finished.  I didn't like the shape of the first shoe and had to add to the toe.  I wanted the background to represent a winter scene so added some white and then ended up spraying with toothbrush pearl white and the same blue in the shoe which is an Iridescent Electric Blue.  It is difficult with the shine coming off the shoe to photograph it.  It will be interesting to see when it is varnished (sealed) how that affects the color.  I learned a thing or two on this one.  See previous posts
​"Icy Winter Pump"  Watercolor 6x6 AquaBord 2" Cradle

I decided to improve upon my first painting which was posted on Jan 4th.  I will show the progression below of the three photos.  I am finally pleased with the outcome.  Will post on Day 7
I decided that the background needed some "heart" sentiments to push the shoe forward and I didn't particularly like the pink in the background around the shoe.  I added more of gamboge and yellow to the background around the lower part of the painting since the supper left corner had some so achieve some unity of color.  It will need to be sealed with Archival Varnish.  When you paint on AquaBord the colors will be even more brillant after spraying and adding layers using brushed layers of the same medium.  Comments anyone?  Don't we all love Valendtine's Day -- what a nice gift for a special lady......  The two previous positings can be seen on my www.diananadal.blogspot.com site.
​

This is really my Day 2 in the Challenge.  Hopefully I will catch up before the end of the Challenge.  I did do this more quickly today because I had a lot going on.  I love the background but the "blue" in the pump could have been a bit lighter.  I can still change it at some ponit if I want before sealing it.  6x6x2 AquaBord cradle entitled:  Icy Winter Pump