I’ve recently been considering the possibility of incorporating small areas of gold into my paintings. However, before dropping into a gold leaf rabbit hole, I realized I already had some ground gold watercolor pigment from Daniel Smith that I must have bought at their flagship store when we lived near Seattle almost 30 (gulp) years ago. It’s so old I don’t think you can even get it like this anymore, but what I have hasn’t suffered any with age. Once reconstituted with water, it’s just the touch of Midas I was looking for, without the learning curve.

When I worked in graphic design (and we actually drew with real ink rather than on computers), I had a ruling pen for making rules/lines. It’s a great tool that I’d completely forgotten about. Listening to a podcast recently, I heard someone mention using a ruling pen as a way to get a really fine and even line with masking fluid for her watercolors. Eureka! Works like a charm — as you can see both above & below.

Gold paint and masked lines in action on my current piece

It hasn’t taken long to realize that if I’m going to continue with watercolor painting, I need to stretch my paper. I wanted a couple of boards that could accommodate smaller cuts of paper and would fit on my desk with all the other supplies. But I didn’t want to have to buy a full 4′ x 8′ sheet of plywood which was way more than needed. I’m so grateful that a friend had a smaller, cast-off piece in his barn that he was willing to throw my way. My husband cut it down into 4 pieces of varying sizes and sanded them to a velvet finish for me. A quick coat of sealant on the flat sides and gesso along to edges to keep out the water and I am now in business with several sizes to choose from. If you’re interested in making your own boards, “Watercolorish” has a solid video that discusses his boards and his method for stretching paper.

Jazper Stardust paint is 100% handmade in micro batches of pure earth pigments. I bought a set of 12 half pans of what he calls “Skin Tones” and I absolutely love them. They mix and granulate beautifully. If you’re curious, he has loads of intriguing individual colors and sets – a lot of which are geared toward landscape artists with specific locales and weather in mind.

Last fall I bought two round Polina Bright brushes. Their performance is so outstanding that I bought a rigger and mop brush last month. Made with synthetic hair, they aren’t expensive yet they hold water and a point better than any of my other “fancier” brushes. Heads-up: she’s in Australia so your order will take a bit of time in transit.

I grabbed this gem last weekend at a nearby bookshop; it’s from the awesome Peter Pauper Press (love their sketchbooks too). It comes with 3 removable book-like inserts: 1 with lined paper, 1 with dotted grid pages, and 1 with blank pages, and it also includes a zippered storage pocket.

It’s wonderfully compact (7-3/4″ x 4.5″) with a faux leather cover and an elastic band closure, so I know it will be secure in my bag and can stand up to lots of use, making it perfect for both travel and around town. I’m thinking I’ll just switch out a couple of the ready-supplied inserts for a homemade sketchbook using the Fabriano or Stillman & Birn paper I have on hand.

Sneak peak of “Keeper of the Keys” earlier in the week as I was choosing thread colors.