Make Do With What You've Got

[Donald Maier]

My dad again... Make do with what you've got. How often do I do that? Here is my most recent example.

I am out doing my weekly watercolor while Suzie is inside the supermarket shopping, when I realize I left all of my paper at home. So rather than be board for the hours or so, I looked around for some alternative. I have used the backs of our gallery showcards that I usually have a short stack of in the truck, for drawing cars in the lot. These I have already posted. But I had not tried doing a watercolor on them yet. The backs are uncoated, so it worked pretty well. The size is tiny on these, only 3"x4" in the space where you address the card, but makes a great little area to work and force yourself to be bold.

Here are some of the results.

[Cecile Hines]

Love it...goes along with" bloom where your planted" with me, doing quick people studies on napkins or on the newspaper I have with me. Often I will leave them behind on the table, have worked with kitchen mediums as necessity required, coffee, and even soy sauce. It is a freeing exercise as am not attached to the results.

[Cecile Hines]

Oh, paper bags are aces for a pinch, give a nice mid tone to the work.

[Donald Maier]

I began by working on the backs of envelopes from bills coming in the mail.

[Cecile Hines]

http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/drawing-aged-portraits-hi...  Saw this collection of artwork , mostly portraits done on envelopes, so you are in good company