New Hobbies to Pursue

 

With space at a premium in a condominium, Jim and I have found new spaces to tackle our hobbies, and new hobbies to pursue.  Jim has a view of the water beyond our condo from his table, and I have a view of the kitchen from the granite breakfast bar with superb lighting so it works well for art work.  

For us, going to the Visual Arts Center in Punta Gorda has been inspiring.  I have learned a new art technique called "Alcohol Ink Painting", and Jim is tackling wood carving after acquiring a small wood carving in their gift shop.  Both new endeavors have proven to be interesting challenges.

With only a few new acquisitions required for each of those tasks, hours of entertainment have evolved.  When the weather's hot, air conditioned inside activities are definitely desirable.   Jim's hobby requires lots of patience and very small cuts of the wood to achieve a figure's shape, followed by some sanding.  The little figures are prepped for paint with a coating of linseed oil, then waxed.  Lastly, as I understand it, will come the acrylic paint.  Jim's watched a multitude of You Tube videos describing the process.  I am excited to see how the finished product comes out.

Typically, I like to play with watercolor.  But with special paper, or even a plain white tile, the alcohol ink can be used to create interesting patterns of an impressionistic nature, or with some stamps or freehand drawings more of a watercolor illusion.  This requires special "alcohol inks", more alcohol and a blending solution to work the ink into patterns, and later a clear coat covering sprayed over the work to preserve the results.  The multiple steps made it a bit tedious compared to watercolor, but then watercolor takes a lot of time to create the various color effects too.  Here are a few examples of what the process looks like below on a tile, with a stamp design, and with a drawing I made of a heron.

           

I think it will be fun to make some cards from the results eventually when I get more adept working with the alcohol ink.  It dries so quickly, even with the slowing process of the blending solution that one needs to work rapidly to achieve a desired design.  A small, manual air blower device, or even a brush, helps to maneuver the ink quickly over the tile or paper.  Another hobby trick I learned about at the class for this is using puppy training pads for protecting the countertop.  They're absorbent on one side and waterproof (in this case ink proof) for preserving spotless granite (or a table top) underneath.