©1997 Alaskan Sketchbook Cover Laure Ferlita Watercolor 11.5" x 5.5"

Game On! Or maybe I should say "Schedule Up!"

I have posted the 2013 Imaginary Trips Schedule and you can find it here! New trips and visits are planned as well as some prior destinations that you might have missed the first time around. For those of you waiting for the Independent Learning Classes (or should I say still waiting), that is my first priority for 2013. The first of the ILCs will be posted by the end of April!

I have to tell you I'm pretty excited about the first class on the schedule for this year, An Imaginary Visit to A Past Vacation! (Please click the title for more information.)

If you're anything like me, you've probably taken at least one vacation in your life before you started to sketch or before you became comfortable sketching around others. Or maybe you've taken one recently, but the trip was so fast-paced you didn't getting any sketching done.

Take a look at the sketch at the top of this post...you'll note the copyright date is 1997! And that's when I completed the sketch from my trip to Alaska...from 1996! It also happens to be the only sketch I completed from that trip despite my well-thought-out plans.

Is that just not sad? That was a fabulous trip! I made the sketchbook, I gathered my materials and I painted the cover. What happened to everything else, all those other great pages dancing in my head?

Somewhere along the way life got busy and interfered with my well-thought-out plans. I have no sketches for that trip other than the cover. The horror! You know they say about "good intentions," right?

I decided to correct this huge oversight and it started me thinking about the trip and all the stuff I didn't remember. (Oh, come on, it was nearly 20 years ago! Surely you don't think I can remember it that well!)

How could I go about reconstructing my trip so that I had a sketchbook that was worthy of this great trip when I CRS (can't remember stuff)?

This experience lead me to put together the class and to share it with others who might have done something similar. So if you're one of those people—just like me—that have lots of good intentions but no sketchbooks, come join me!

Please check out the new schedule for a "trip" or a "visit" as we're going to some fun new places as well as revisiting some of the prior places we've visited.

I am so happy Autumn has arrived! It is truly my favorite season. Life seems to start slowing (fingers crossed), at least slowing enough that I can start to savor the passing of the days. There's a sweetness to the air when I go outside—on some days. Others, it's just plain muggy.

Yay! First pumpkins are showing up on the shelves!

Colors change, growing warmer, and the light changes especially. Love the long, cool shadows and warm golden light at the end of the day.

Just a few leaves have started to change color

I find that all I want to do is sit and paint leaves and pumpkins and landscapes and harvest corn and sunflowers and coneflowers and scarecrows and ravens and naked trees and tea bags and coffee mugs and outdoor fires and and and!

Dreaming of beautiful fall colors!

Now, if the weather would cooperate and drop about 30 degrees, it would actually feel like fall—until then, I'll just have to live vicariously through all the folks living north of the Florida state line!

What could it be!?! A pill box?

No...

Painted Thoughts Blog's 1st Giveaway!!

I have wanted to do a GIVEAWAY for a long while now, but it had to be just the right item! I've looked for a long while, and finally, I think I've found a very special item for the 1st giveaway! I must say it's hard to let go of this little goody, too...

So, ready!?!

Love the lilacs on the top!

How about a mint tin?

Getting closer!

Donna is fairly new to watercolors (but not to art) and she wanted to combine two of her passions—travel and art–on her upcoming trip. She took the two online classes as a way to help her prepare. Take a look at her gorgeous pages! I'm posting her delightful email below:

Hi Laure, 

I want to thank you again for your fabulous online classes that helped me practice and achieve such personal satisfaction with my art skills. Working with different tools [in the classes] helped me pack my supplies knowing what would work for me. I often made use of the fountain pen and waterbrush for super quick sketches (something I had never used before your classes).

During August I traveled in France, Switzerland and Italy, sketching and painting in my journal as we went along. I managed to do 16 pages over 3 weeks.

Here are some of the pages:
Eiffel Tower - 15 min. on site and embellished later at the hotel 

Moulin Rouge - Painted leisurely from memory, 4 sessions on the bus

Venice - 50 min. on site (while being constantly photographed by tourists!)

Sincerely,
Donna Vacca 

Eiffel Tower by Donna Vacca Click to Enlarge Donna Sketching at the Eiffel Tower (Note that she's standing up!) Click to Enlarge

Moulin Rouge by Donna Vacca Click to Enlarge

Gondola by Donna Vacca Click to Enlarge

The first Imaginary Trip to Greece is scheduled to begin on April 26th and registration is now open! I hope you'll come and enjoy this beautiful country with me. Rich in color and culture, Greece is a treasure trove of history, diversity and beauty.

Ancient ruins, azure seas, wineries and olive groves are just a few of the things we'll see as we wander through this sun-kissed land.

I do hope you'll join me! Please click here for more information.

Well, actually, I think maybe the humidity has just dropped as the high for today is suppose to reach 92º! Still, you can see and feel the changes....you just really have to be paying attention. Some of you though, have really begun to feel the chill and see the changes.

And all this means it's time to start preparing for An Imaginary Visit to Autumn's Garden! This class is scheduled to begin on November 18th and run through December 16th. There will be one assignment each week.

For more information and to register for the class, please click here. If you're interested in registering, I suggest you not wait as this is one of the really popular classes over at Imaginary Trips!

An Imaginary Trip to Paris will begin on Tuesday, September 6th. You can find more information by clicking here.
An Imaginary Trip to New Orleans will start on Monday, September 12th! It will be a whole lot of fun in that great city. Please click here for info on this trip!
Also starting on Monday, September 12th, is Artful Journaling: Foundations class! For more information on getting started with watercolor journaling, please click here!

Please let me know of any questions you may have.

Thanks!

An Imaginary Trip to Italy gets underway on Tuesday, August 2nd! That's just a few weeks away. Come and join in the fun, but hurry, there's only a few spaces left! More info HERE.



An Imaginary Trip to Paris will be leaving on Tuesday, September 6th! Breakfast, gardens, castles, strolling down the side streets to take in the sights and sounds....come join the trip. More info HERE.


We're also headed for an Imaginary Trip to New Orleans on September 12th! Talk about fun—we have too much of it with beignets, trolleys, balconies, and iron lace! Check out the trip HERE.
There's also a few spaces left for NOLA Live! An Artist's Painting Holiday this coming November! We'll be taking all of our skills and spending the days painting on location with visits to an old plantation, Mardi Gras museums and homes. It's the perfect opportunity to actually visit the city and develop your skills for painting on location. More info HERE. Come and join us!

Not only is Spring finally getting underway, the Spring Schedule for Imaginary Trips has been posted!

We'll be going on "An Imaginary Visit to the Garden!" starting Thursday, April 14th and the Artful Journaling classes, Foundations and Explorations are starting on Tuesday, April 19th!

Come join in the fun! For more information, you can visit the links above or visit the i•Trav•e•logue here.

The party's over and now, it's back to the business at hand. Yesterday was Fat Tuesday, the culmination of over two months of parades, parties, soirees and all manner of merrymaking....but wait! Don't be sad that the party's ending!

The party need not be totally over as www.ImaginaryTrips.com leaves this Friday for an "Imaginary Trip to New Orleans" and boy, are we gonna have fun! Wanna play too?! Just click on the link above for all the details!

The next Imaginary Trip to England will be leaving promptly at 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 1st! We'll be visiting the Queen's palace guards as well as the wilder side of England. This trip shows the different sides of a country that are often overlooked.
And don't forget we leave for an Imaginary Trip to New Orleans on Friday, March 11th! This is shaping up to be a really fun trip with a few surprises thrown in along the way! Want to join the fun?! Come on!

Watercolor of St. Patrick's Cross Handbook Watercolor Sketchbook 3.5 x 8.5 inches

All aboard for An Imaginary Trip to Ireland!! 'Tis wet, cold and windy in Ireland today,* but oh, the beauty of such a wind-swept land! Complete with ruins, leprechauns tales of old, and legends of giants, the Emerald Isle is destination not to be missed. 


Come and join me on a glorious imaginary trip through this wonderful country. We leave* on January 31st and return* on March 10th. We'll be sketching the gorgeous coast and castle ruins as well as in the modern city of Dublin. For more information about the trip, please visit here.


Let me know if I can answer any questions.


Thanks!


*We're not really in Ireland and we're not actually leaving as this is all "imaginary!!"

I love a "play on words" and when I heard the words "love reigns" it sparked an artistic thought that led to a painted thought in my journal. This is what I started with:

 I liked the idea of the hearts floating down as if it were raining. I decided to go a bit further with this but realized my idea wasn't going to work the way I currently had journal positioned. I turned it counter clockwise one step so that "Love Reigns" now ran along the side rather than the top. Then I added the words "Love Grows" on the opposite side going down the left side:
When I first "conceptualized" this piece, my thoughts ran along the lines of what works with rain/reign besides falling rain or hearts and my answer was an umbrella. But rather than having the umbrella protecting something from rain/love, I turned the piece over to "catch" all the love pouring down:
When I put the three elements together on the page and added the word "Where" on the left side, this is what the finished page looked like:
Another cool thing about this is that I can break the elements apart and use them to create a Valentine Day card! The finished size of the page is 5.5 inches square which is not a standard card size. By using my scanner and photo editing software, I can easily downsize and rearrange the art to fit on any size card I want it to! Interested in learning more? Come join me for the Valentine Cards eClass starting tomorrow, January 18th! More information here.

What in the world do fleur-de-lis, hearts and shamrocks have in common? They mark the BRAND NEW LOCATIONS and classes on the Winter 2011 schedule for ImaginaryTrips.com! Come join the fun!

We're starting out the year with a Valentine Cards Mini eClass that focuses on using our journal art for dual (or triple or quadruple...) purposes! We'll be exploring the idea of making cards for Valentine's Day and beyond. This class begins next week on the 18th. If you'd like more information, please visit the Mini eClass page for more information!

Then we're heading off for an Imaginary Trip to Ireland!! The Emerald Isle beckons with crumbled ruins, megalithic passages and coastal views that will still away your breath....and your heart! We'll be leaving on January 31st! For more information, please visit an "Imaginary Trip to Ireland!"

No winter would be complete without an Imaginary Visit to the Beach! We'll sink our toes in the sand while sitting in the warm sunshine, listening to the gentle waves rolling up on the shore. We'll explore the area, the wildlife and beach life for a glorious 5 weeks! Want to play?! There's more information here. This visit begins on February 1st.

Before you can blink, we'll be on our way to New Orleans! An Imaginary Trip to New Orleans gets underway on February 22nd and will include visits to old courtyards, the French Quarter and the Garden District! We'll even get acquainted with this thing called Mardi Gras! Come and join in the fun! For more information, please visit here.

There's nothing quite like England in the Springtime, so that's next on our agenda! Cottage gardens and pubs, castle ruins and ancient doorways to another time and place...come and join the fun! The "Imaginary Trip to England" begins on March 1st! For more information please visit here.

To see a quick overview of all these classes, please visit the Winter i•Trav•e•logue! As always, please let me know if I can answer any questions!

Leaf Meditations in watercolor handbook • watercolor • journal 3.5" x 17"

I looked up with a start when I heard Chris ask "Did you get lost? Again."

I was in the studio, but for all intents and purposes, I had been lost. In my own little world. Painting leaf meditations.....

Close up of image above

These were painted with an Escoda® Travel Brush (in the first image), Series 1214, Size 6. This brush came home from the trade show with me, and I have to tell you it is an absolute pleasure to paint with! The brush is only a size 6 but holds as much water as some of my larger brushes. It also comes to a razor sharp point (which I love) that allows me to get to the small details without having to change brushes.

These brushes are made in Barcelona, Spain and the company has been making brushes for 75 years. This is particular brush is made from kolinsky sable and is on its way to becoming my favorite brush. I recently read over on Wet Canvas that when someone had a question on an Escoda brush and emailed the company. Ricard Escoda replied with an the answer—I find that remarkable in the age of Big Business.

Bottom section of top image

All of the leaves were painted loosely without pencil. The pigment was allowed to move "outside of the lines" to give the impression of movement. To further the impression of movement, no cast shadows were added. For me, there is something very zen like in painting these little masterpieces of nature. If you're interested in learning how to paint this type of artwork, please join me for an Imaginary Visit Through Autumn! The trip leaves on October 21st! Please click here for more information.

Go no further and do not watch this video if your favorite reason for not taking your sketch kit with you every where you go is something like "It weights too much," "It won't fit in my purse/pocket/bag" or "I don't want to be weighed down with too much stuff!"

Here are a few suggestions for creating sketch kits that are slim, trim and as easy to carry as a piece of paper!

Let me know what you think!

....where the poppies bloom,

....where the lavender's sweet scent fills the air,

....where thousands of sunflower sway in the breeze,
 ....where visiting Domaine du Haut Baran makes the living easy by taking care of the daily details so you can enjoy each day to the fullest!
This lovely country inn is located in southwestern France, about 20 minutes from a small village called Le Boulvé. The area is known as the Quercy, and is located about an an hour and a half north of Toulouse. The inn has been restored by William and Rosalie Haas. ImaginaryTrips.com had the good fortune of being next to their booth at the tradeshow.
Gabby, Robin and John were at the tradeshow representing Domaine du Haut Baran, and we had a delightful time working together. William is Robin and John's brother, so you can see it's definitely a family adventure!

The chateau offers bicycling tours (as the Tour de France passes through their region),, cooking classes, horseback riding, walking tours, and (my personal fav) artist retreats! Anyone want to join me for a week or two in the South of France?

For more information about visiting the chateau, please contact William or Rosalie at hautbaran@aol.com or visit their web site at www.hautbaran.com.
______________________________________

Not able to get away right now for a quick trip to France? Then why not take an "Imaginary Trip to Paris?!" with me to prepare for a visit? The Imaginary Trip leaves this Friday, October 1st! Please click here for class information!

Please Note: all photos are from the Domaine du Haut Baran website with the exception of the poppies and the Haas family photo.

Detail of ImaginaryTrips.com Signage

The 39th Annual Florida Watercolor Society Exhibition and Tradeshow are going on this weekend and ImaginaryTrips.com will be there!!! Woohoo!! Lots of excitement, work, and craziness, but mostly excitement! Oh, man, I gotta tell you when I saw that sign hanging up I was suddenly 10 foot tall and bullet proof! Imaginary Trips seemed more real in that moment than it ever has. Did I mention excitement?!!

The tradeshow will be held at the Innisbrook Resort in Tarpon Springs/Palm Harbor area. There will be demos, slide critiques, and goodies for sale all day Friday and Saturday. The juried show opens Friday night at 5:30 at the Leepa-Rattner Museum of Art in Tarpon Springs.

Stop by and visit if you come to the show—we'll be in booth #27!!

Journal Calendar Page from Artful Journaling: Explorations Class

The Artful Journaling: Explorations class starts tomorrow, Tuesday, September 20th and there are still a few spots if you'd like to join the expedition! We learn about integrating our journal into our lives as a companion, various techniques including salt and sand, using tissue paper, gesso and a host of other fun things!

You can find more information here. Hope to see you there!

Another month! And another class!

Dandelion Snow

Artful Journaling: Explorations just finished up and the image above is from our last assignment! It's salt and sand! This class was so much fun and it was made so by the fabulous students in the class—so much creativity and talent! Totally fun!

The cool thing about these classes (IMO) is that we learn as much from each other as the students learn from me. I put an idea out there and they come back with several of their own that I wouldn't have thought of in a dozen years! I love it when those creative sparks fly and we're all able to see different thought processes and approaches to the "technique."

Artful Journaling: Explorations is about learning new ways of looking at the journaled page as well as learning new techniques to give your page a different look. And these techniques can carry over into painting an actual painting as well.

If you're interested, I do hope you'll check it out here. The next Explorations class starts on Tuesday, September 21st!