This is the last illustration in the orange section of my Rainbow Art Journal. Phew. Orange is not my favourite colour so it has been a bit of a slog to get through this section, which also coincided with a lean period when it came to free time. Looking back through my blog posts, I learned that it was almost exactly a year ago that I created the first illustration in the orange section. Yikes. That isn’t very speedy progress, is it? Let’s hope it doesn’t take me a year to complete the next section which is, of course, yellow.
On the subject of transitions, this illustration was inspired by the transition between seasons. As frequent readers will know, I am very much not fond of Winter. This Winter has not been too abysmal in that we have not had any big monster storms. We had a surprise snow storm in November that caused a lot of chaos but we really got off lightly in terms of quantity of snow. What we have experienced instead is a number of smaller winter weather events that caused disruption – days when my kids had snow days or late arrivals when I had to still go to work, for instance. The landscape looks beautiful when blanketed in sparkling white, but shoveling it is not so appealing. Shoveling it while your husband is working in Hawaii is even less appealing. Anyway, there are finally definite signs of Spring around and the temperatures are steadily increasing. This means we can venture out wearing slightly fewer layers and can feel comfortable in less bulky coats or in cosy sweaters.
I wanted the composition to be quite narrow in order to accentuate the idea of cosiness. Since this is a page in a journal with an illustration already on its reverse, I could not crop the paper down. I, therefore, used strips of washi tape to “frame” my drawing. The tape then inspired my colour palette.
A Pict in PA 
Fabulous illustration, Laura. I like how your used the leaf shapes to indicated the knitted pattern. The wash tape is a nice touch. Awesome blue hair.
Thank you so much, Sharon. I couldn’t figure out how to draw the knitted texture so I decided to take the basic shape and exaggerate it. It is not as if I am ever aiming for realism after all.
I love the frame.
Thank you. I have a lot of washi tape that I have been gifted or have picked up on sale and I keep it as if it is treasure. I need to start using it more.
Your color journal reminds me of a book I have somewhere that you might find interesting. Only I can’t remember the title and Google has been zero help. I’m unpacking, so when I find it, I’ll be sure to come by and tell you about it.
There is a lot more going on here than orange. Very nice.
Thank you. I think that washi tape frame adds a lot of colour that knocks that orange back and makes it less dominant.
Found it! It’s called “True Colors: A Palette of Collaborative Art Journals.” If you haven’t seen it before, definitely check it out. Luscious!
Thanks for the recommendation. I have made a note of it and shall have to look into whether my library system has a copy.
It’s an older book. I hope you can find it.
Love the tape border and all the colors. What a great idea using the tape. I didn’t even know it existed.
Washi tape is great because it is super thin and pretty low tack. I see people using it in their planners and bullet journals a lot. It comes in lots of beautiful designs too.
I will have to look for this next time I’m stocking up on supplies. It is so cool.
As a knitter I say, you got this sweater right. Looks so cozy and happy winter feeling. I notice the lady has a satisfied expression too. Fantastic work.
Thanks, Claudia. My Gran was an incredible knitter, including Fair Isle, and she tried to teach me to knit so many times but I just never got the knack of it. I always appreciated the knitwear she made for me, however.
I absolutely love this one!
Thank you!