Souter Lighthouse in the Snow

Oh I love this, Thea, it is truly atmospheric...makes me think of hurrying home for hot chocolate and a warm-up by the fire! All the colours used have contributed to the atmosphere, especially somehow the red which you have mixed very cleverly. I have left you a message on my latest Quirky before I had seen this.

lovely seasonal scene Thea

For two 'firsts' in the same painting Thea you've done an exceptional job. The snow shadows (which can be tricky) are not over done and also work really well as a lead in, so do the foot prints. You have captured that cold, crisp atmosphere perfectly, which is probably down to the sky. Love your treatment of the windows. This should definitely go on the 'keep' pile Thea!

Super snowy scene Thea which looks decidedly chilly! Actually, I didn't realise that it was yours at first probably because you've painted to the edge with the sky. The sky actually balances the white foreground well and I do like the snow flakes. Are those gouache paint? Like Fiona, I do like the way that you've painted the windows and the footprints, although perhaps a little large where they approach the buildings, work well and lead us into the painting. They add interest and I can imagine some cold soul walking home through the snow to the warmth of the house, conveyed by the slightly warmer glow in the sky. It's good!!

Lovely snow scene, the light in the sky subtley reflected in the snow Thea.

I think that you have done the snow and the buildings and the light coming out from the lighthouse beautifully Thea but the sky looks a bit overdone. You were scared about using a strong colour and perhaps tried to add several layers with a too small brush. I hope you don't mind me criticising your work Thea!

Thank you very much Ruth, Michael, Fiona, Louise Carole and Satu for looking kindly on my efforts at snow and skies. Satu, I really was in the wilderness when it came to painting this sky. It was very streaky in the photo, so the only thing I could think to do was overlay a bit more paint after the first layer had dried. I don't paint like this ever so that was a new concept in itself. All my paintings are done with getting the first hit right in colour and tone, so glazing or layering is a technique I never use - hence the sky looking a bit over worked as you say. Still, it was an experiment to see what I could do with it and as I am really struggling for a spare 5 minutes to paint anything at all, I was just glad to be able to sit at my easel for an hour or so egardless of the outcome. And no - of course I don't mind you criticising my work - all opinions welcome I say!

P.S. The sky was done with my Escoda size 12 brush (Escoda sizes are smaller than other makes, so that probably makes it about a 10). I wonder if even this was too small a brush?

I had to go and have a look at my watercolour brushes and the ones I ever use are size 14 and 16 . Of course your works are much more detailed than mine but it's amazing what one can do with a good quality big brush. Some watercolorists use a big round mop for the sky and make sure that they have enough paint for it because you can never find exactly the same shade again. If you want to do layers it is important to let the first layer dry completely before the second, otherwise you create puddles and it shows. Let me know when and if you try a bigger brush.

Hi Satu, I normally paint with my Escoda 10 which is fine for my work. It holds a lot of water but also has a very fine tip, so is multi-purpose. I am not used to mixing up paint as I usually paint directly with the colours mixing mostly on the paper. The concept of mixing up enough paint to do a whole sky in a palette is alien to me as I tend to dislike fully homogenised mixes where you can't still see the original colours. I also never wet my paper before I paint - just can't get on with that idea. I did allow the first wash of the sky to dry (five days I think as I was busy Christmas shopping!) so the second, very thin layer was only put on in places.However, as I said, I never ever build up layers of washes of colour, so this was a bit of a one off and my inexperience probably shows. I can't say I ever bother about back runs, hard edges forming etc as I rather like them as I feel they can add character. I don't suppose I will do another sky like this for ages, if ever, as it isn't my thing really. I just did it on this one for a bit of fun and just to see what happens. I don't currently own a larger brush than a 14 (which, as it is an Escoda, is probably more like a 12) as I am not sure I will ever use one. Thank you for all your valuable and useful advice. I shall definitely call on it if and when I attempt another fully painted sky like this one!

Lovely watercolour gallery, Thea. You are not afraid to experiment and you make it look so easy. Complex scenes have just the right amount of detail - never overworked.

Thank you, Ronald, very kind of you.

Playing 'catch-up' again! Well you've certainly taken a leap right out of your comfort zone with that whole upper page of leaden grey sky, very impressed as it's so unusual for you. I think it works very well, I really like the effect of the snow falling, more please!!

Thanks very much, Debs. I have to keep playing catch up what with being so busy and also so many paintings being posted in a day. It is definitely out of my comfort zone and I think I might be leaping straight back into it after this one, lol!

This is so, so beautiful, Thea! The subtle palette and wintry atmosphere are superb and just right for Christmas! As the queen of overworking, I'd say your sky is doing pretty well - two layers would hardly be considered overkill in my book!

Thank you, Seok, for such an uplifting comment. I was just trying to combine my love of painting lighthouses with a festive atmosphere. I think I should have cropped it to leave out the white border - Louise suggested this and I think she is right. That'll learn me to post first and think afterwards, lol!

I am pretty hopelessly late on your xmas posting Thea! But it is so typically Thea that i had to add a note, it is lovely and the strong sky colours be it I layer or 2 allowed your painting of the white buildings and nearly half the paper left white for the snow, to work perfectly

Thank you very much, Ros. I haven't tried snow before this, one so it was a learning curve. I did overwork the sky, but then it turned out kind of ok. I was quite pleased because my elder daughter (who is definitely NOT an art lover) liked this one so much she wants me to frame it so she can hang it on the wall in her house. Praise indeed!