Tag: botanicals

Painting, Phlowers & People – Botanical Painting

On By TimelessladyIn QuirkinessLeave a comment

botanical tulip

If you take a close look at the photograph above you will see a pot of tulips bookended by apple juice and a carton of buttermilk. The tulips were purchased last week. I intend to sketch them and paint a botanical portrait. Years ago I painted several botanicals and they are still on display in a row in my downstairs hallway. They have aged a bit. The watercolor paper has pulled in the humid air of our summers and there are slight ripples in the smoothness. I think it is time to try my hand at botanicals again.

I was also inspired to try botanical painting once more by an artist featured in an old Victoria magazine. In the March/April 2009 edition the paintings of Catherine Watters, a botanical artist, are showcased.  I searched for her work on Google and was happy to find her personal website. You can take a look at her work here: Catherine Watters

While browsing through Ms. Watter’s beautiful site, I came upon a word I never heard before: Florilegium. When I checked the Word Hippo website I found Florilegium is pronounced pretty much as it is written. Wikipedia defines Florilegium as a collection of botanically accurate paintings of plants, done by botanical illustrators from life.

Hopefully my pot of tulips will not languish in the fridge for much longer. I’ll update my progress…hopefully I will get to it before they live out their life and expire in their cold confinement.

Plants and Pressed Flowers – Buttercups

On By TimelessladyIn Plants, Pressed Flowers8 Comments

In the Mid-Atlantic States it is the season of the buttercup. I love these sweet yellow blooms. I thought the clump I photographed recently in a public park was a perfect specimen. I hope to paint it one day as a botanical watercolor. There is one problem with the photograph though. Buttercups reflect light so intensely off their petals, the details of the flower are a bit obscured in the brilliance. I found a great article that explains why buttercups reflect light. You can read it here: Why Buttercups Reflect Light.

Buttercups are one of the best pressed flowers for color retention. I have found I need to pinch away the hard green center before I press them in books. You can gently heat the book or just place it under weight for a few days.  I have many flowers to use throughout the year if I am diligent in picking and pressing them in the few weeks they are in bloom. I like to press most with their stems intact. If I chose to use only the flower it is easy enough to snip the stem away. Buttercups combine well with blue lobelia and ferns.