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Welcome! I’m Carolyn Dube – This colorful journey is all about the freedom of play!

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Some of the links on this blog are affiliate links and I receive a small percentage. It doesn't cost you anything extra and helps keep all the free tutorials and videos coming! It's a win-win! The website is copyright Carolyn Dube, and that is kinda common sense since this is my site. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

What I Learned Painting a Pumpkin

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What I learned painting pumpkins...and how ended up just using spray inks on them.

3 things I learned about painting pumpkins this season all came from Oopsies.  I had planned to paint each pumpkin a color of rainbow and add some details.  It did not go as planned at all!  In the video, you’ll see how these happy pumpkins became drippy layers of color fun.

Watch  What I Learned Painting a Pumpkin on YouTube.

What were my 3 big a-ha moments while painting?

One…You don’t  have to wash them for the paint to stick but if you’re painting a gourd (these were just like little pumpkins)  or a pumpkin with speckles of greens and oranges on it you might want to put a layer of gesso to block the pattern.  Oops!  Paints stick really well to the pumpkin but the pattern kept bleeding through until I added a layer of gesso.

What I learned painting pumpkins...and how ended up just using spray inks on them.

 

Two…don’t paint the bottom. It makes a mess  if you aren’t willing to let the tops and sides dry before you paint the bottom.  I wasn’t willing to wait.  Bet you’re shocked that I’m impatient.  Who is going to see the bottom any way?

Three… Spray inks are a blast with a pumpkin!  I had no patience for painting detailed pumpkins.  So what did I do?  I threw lots of runny color at them and because of their shape, the drips down the sides were mesmerizing.  It was incredibly addictive just grabbing spray inks and runny high flow paint as I made giant puddles of color.

What I learned painting pumpkins...and how ended up just using spray inks on them.

So glad I gave myself permission to play and make these rainbow pumpkins!

Here are the supplies I used. Some of these links are affiliate links which means I get a small percentage. It doesn’t cost you anything extra and you are helping me keep this blog and my videos ad free! Thank you- I don’t like ads any more than you do!

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OOPS…and a Frustrated Tech Guy

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art journaling to handle impatienceI have been relatively quiet of late…lots of very unglamorous behind the scenes things.  Things like servers, migrations, and bears oh my!  All this has been so that I can make the blog the best experience possible for you!

If you’re reading this, you know my attitude about mistakes…OOPS!  A mistake is simply an Outstanding Opportunity Presenting Suddenly. That has spilled into other areas of my life.  But not everyone has that attitude…especially the tech support guy. Since this was server issues, I was not working with a customer support type person, this was a tech person who was used to talking to tech people.

I had to wait hours for the migration and I’m not patient so I decided to art out the experience.  I grabbed my vintage typewriter stencils and some paints to keep myself busy and not pestering the tech people.

art journaling to handle impatience

Imagine his frustration dealing with me searching for a root directory when I have no idea where that root directory is on my computer.  Then his frustration that I am not a coder so he is saying things very slowly to me so I can type it.  But then he neglected to tell me to add a space in places because it is such basic basic information.  Almost like breathing to a tech person.  I think he was having to take deep breaths to deal with me…

art journaling to handle impatience

Now, let’s add another level of fun for him… I don’t process what I hear very well especially without a visual, so it was almost like the Abbott and Costello “Who’s on First” routine.  The poor guy earned his pay dealing with me.  I actually think I frustrated him!  It was like a college professor trying to explain a complex concept to a kindergartner lol!

So how did I capture that chaos in my journal?  I let the colors fly!  Scribble journaling, splattering, just let myself loose to play and all my patience issues faded away and I was able to wait for the server migration…

art journaling to handle impatience

The good news is all seems well and there is more speed to handle all the traffic so it makes the blog and my workshops load even faster!  If you want early access to my newest free workshop, Permission to Play, get signed up for my newsletter.  The link goes out this Sunday afternoon.

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Cardboard and Stencils…and a New Project

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Working on cardboard with stencils and color

I have lots and lots of cardboard all around the studio. Why?  Because I have been using it as I prepare for an upcoming workshop.  This new free workshop has sprung out of my love of play and a conversation with an artist who didn’t know how to let herself play.

If you’d like to know when the new workshop is live, I’ll be sharing about it in an upcoming newsletter.  If you’re not already subscribed to my free newsletter, just click here to subscribe.Working on cardboard with stencils and colorAll the final technical touches going on behind the scenes meant a lot of computer work time.  I needed a break from the website work!   So…with all the cardboard around, I gave myself permission to play.  What did I grab, but stencils of course!  Working on cardboard with stencils and colorHere are the stencils, all from StencilGirl, that I used while taking a break from the computer.

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