Preparation:
Base the oval box with Jansen Art Traditions Blue Grey + a little Pine Green and Medium White. Mix this together then add an equal amount of Light Primer. This will make a base coat the primes and seals the surface for us. Let dry and sand lightly. Use a large, old stiff brush to do the next step in the preparation. Pick up very little Medium White + touch Pine Green in the old brush. Stroke the brush on the palette until the paint starts to dry. Just before the paint starts to dry, brush it over the box very lightly in many different directions. This is called dry brushing. Repeat this step until most of the Blue Grey is lightly covered up with the Medium White mix. Dry. In the old brush, pick up a little Prussian Blue + touch Pine Green and Raw Umber. Use this color to lightly drybrush the top/side of the box. Dry. Using a small flat brush, pick up a little of the Prussian Blue + Raw Umber + Pine Green mix and some water. Wash a transparent thin band around the bottom of this side piece. Dry. Transfer the pattern with grey transfer paper.

General Steps:
1. Basecoat all objects with a transparent wash of Raw Umber.
2. Add darker shadows with more Raw Umber.
3. Wash in petals and shapes with transparent color.
4. Remove graphite lines and give a coat of Glazing Medium to protect.
5. Wash Raw Umber over the surface to darken if desired.
6. Shadow objects with desired colors.
7. Build petals and leaves, etc., with medium values of desired colors.
8. Glaze surface with Glazing Medium to protect.
9. Start first highlights.
10. Final highlights and details

Suggested Steps:
1. Using a #6 filbert brush, wash in all objects with a very transparent Raw Umber + touch of Dark Blue. Use water to make this transparent color so that you are able to remove graphite pencil lines.
2. Darken all objects with a little more Raw Umber + touch of Dark Blue, using a sideloaded #6 filbert brush. (No need to be perfect here; most of this will cover up. This is step one on the step sheet.)

General Steps:
1. Basecoat all objects with a transparent wash of Raw Umber.
2. Add darker shadows with more Raw Umber.
3. Wash in petals and shapes with transparent color.
4. Remove graphite lines and give a coat of Glazing Medium to protect.
5. Wash Raw Umber over the surface to darken if desired.
6. Shadow objects with desired colors.
7. Build petals and leaves, etc., with medium values of desired colors.
8. Glaze surface with Glazing Medium to protect.
9. Start first highlights.
10. Final highlights and details

Suggested Steps:
1. Using a #6 filbert brush, wash in all objects with a very transparent Raw Umber + touch of Dark Blue. Use water to make this transparent color so that you are able to remove graphite pencil lines.

2. Darken all objects with a little more Raw Umber + touch of Dark Blue, using a sideloaded #6 filbert brush. (No need to be perfect here; most of this will cover up. This is step one on the step sheet.)

3. Transparently wash in the flowers and leaves with the suggested base color. Add water to this to keep the colors slightly transparent. Use short choppy strokes for interest. Don’t blend smooth.
Suggested Base Colors:
Reds: Medium Red + Dark Red 1:1
Leaves: Yellow Green
Yellows: Dark Yellow + Medium Yellow 1:1
Blues: Medium Blue + touch Dark Blue
Whites: Raw Umber.

4. Dry well. Remove graphite lines. Give the oval box a coat of Glazing Medium to protect the painting and add depth to this layer. (I like to add layers of Glazing Medium during the painting to increase the interest and depth to the objects.)

5. Now that the graphite lines have been removed, add Glazing Medium to the brush as you paint. This will increase the interest and help with transparency. Sideload the filbert brush with desired colors + Glazing Medium to keep them slightly transparent. Build the petals and objects using strokes pulled from the tip to the base of the object. (You may have to repeat this step a few times as the colors dry.) You want to soften some of the shadows while building an area of color for the highlights to sit on. Do not cover all the shadows or the original base colors. Small strokes are best.
Suggested Petal and Leaf Colors:
Reds: Medium Red + Dark Red 1:1 + touch of Medium White
Leaves: Yellow Green
Yellows: Dark Yellow + Medium Yellow 1:1 + of touch Medium White
Blues: Medium Blue + touch of Dark Blue + touch of Medium White
Whites: Medium White + touch of Raw Umber

6. Sideload the filbert brush with the desired colors + touch of Glazing Medium. Use short “choppy” strokes to shadow and tint the objects. (This shadow and tint color should be transparent.) You do not have to blend this. The next petals and highlights will soften these colors. Refer to the step sheet to see just how “choppy” to leave it.
Suggested Petal and Leaf Colors:
Reds: Dark Red + touch of Raw Umber
Leaves: Yellow Green
Yellows: Dark Red + touch of Raw Umber
Blues: Dark Red + touch of Raw Umber
Whites: Dark Red + touch of Raw Umber

7. Sideload the filbert with desired colors + Glazing Medium to keep them slightly transparent. Build the petals and objects using strokes pulled from the tip to the base of the object. You may have to repeat this step a few times as the colors dry. We want to soften some of the shadows while build an area of color for the highlights to sit. Do not cover all the shadows or the original base colors. Small strokes are best.
Suggested Petal and Leaf Colors:
Reds: Medium Red + Dark Red 1:1 + Titanium White
Leaves: Yellow Green + Medium White
Yellows: Dark Yellow + Medium Yellow 1:1 + touch of Titanium White
Blues: Medium Blue + touch of Dark Blue + touch of Titanium White
Whites: Medium White

8. Dry piece well. Give the surface a coat of Glazing Medium to protect and add interest.

9. Start first highlights with suggested colors. Keep these highlights smaller in area than the base color. (You may switch to a smaller brush such as a #4 filbert to help with this.)
Suggested Petal and Leaf Colors:
Reds: Medium Red + touch of Dark Red + Titanium White
Leaves: Yellow Green + Titanium White
Yellows: Medium Yellow + touch of Dark Yellow + touch of Titanium White
Blues: Medium Blue + Titanium White
Whites: Medium White + Titanium White 1:1

10. Finalize highlights and details. Using the same colors with just a touch more white, repeat the highlights in a smaller area. Sideload the filbert brush with Dark Yellow and tap around flower centers. Dry. Sideload with Medium Yellow + Titanium White and tap a few smaller highlights around the centers. Be careful not to cover up all of the first color. Use a small round brush to add a few dark details such as leaf vein lines, stems, etc, varying the colors. Dry.

Finishing:
Dry the piece well. Give the box two coats of JansenArt Traditions Water-Based Polyurethane Varnish and one coat of wax if desired.


©2004/2005 These designs may be used for personal study. Please request permission for teaching from the individual artist.