Week 71 + 72: Autumn in Ohio!
Art news, drawings, paintings, and fall foliage -- plus two coupon codes!
Hi, friends! We’re still in Ohio visiting family and we’ve hit peak leaf season. I’m reveling in all the fall color and feeling so lucky that I got to be here for this — first time in years! My heart is so full.
Time is flying by faster than a leaf whirling in a windstorm, but I wanted to post a few highlights from the past two weeks before I got too far behind.
Forest Walk Painting
My biggest achievement for the last two weeks has been finishing a watercolor painting for my Dad’s 80th birthday present — I just had to share it with you! It was a stretch for me — way more representational/abstract than my usual work. It was also so much fun! I had the best time splashing on color.
I painted it from a reference photo that I took at Timberdoodle Flats while was an artist-in-residence at Allegheny National Forest, and I embellished it with little details from here in Ohio:
I started it in the driveway, and then finished it over by the woods at my parent’s house. I tried to capture that feeling of sunlight filtered through fall leaves as you walk through the forest. I just love that feeling! I added little touches inspired by the woods at home.
Dad was out running errands when I finished the painting, so I framed it and put it in his chair to surprise him! Then next day we took some photos of it near the woods.
Here’s a look at the painting in progress:
I really love painting outside, or “en plein air” — it helps bring an indescribable something to a piece. Highly recommend that you try it sometime if you haven’t already.
Everyone always asks, so I thought I’d add a bit about my camp setup. It’s by Cup Easel, and consists of a tripod flat shelf with two pivot shelves and a backing board plus their quarter sheet carrier. This is the tripod that I use, and I have two collapsible water cups — one for clean water on the left, and the other for rinsing my brush. I add an EaselCaddy to the tripod for brush storage, and put my Art Toolkit Folio palette on the flat shelf.
I’ve been using this setup since February and I really love it!
The best part? Dad got to watch me paint and I was showing him some techniques and brushes, including my long dagger brush that I love to use for tree branches. Now he has it up in the living room, and I feel like I’ve graduated from refrigerator art - LOL!
New Colored Pencils
Longtime readers may remember that back in Week 64 I received some packages at Jason’s parent’s house, including two pencil sets from With Official. It’s such a cool concept — you swap the colored leads in and out of your pencil, so you can have a ton of colors with you in very little space! There’s even a lead pointer so you can sharpen them and not worry about getting pencil shavings everywhere when you’re out and about. It’s perfect for van life!
I keep the Ultralight set in my daypack so that it’s always with me, and the Deluxe set in the van.
I finally had a chance to swatch out all 72 colors from the Deluxe set and I put together a quick video to show you how the system works:
Review
I’ve really been enjoying these pencils! I like to draw with the pencils, then splash on watercolor. It makes for such a fun, lively painting! Several readers asked if switching out the pencil leads is a problem. I actually prefer the bit of a built-in pause as it makes my drawing more intentional and I’ve been less likely to wreck it, lol!
I’m excited to announce that I’m an ambassador for With Official! (As always, reviews here are my own.)
Ambassador Discount Codes
I have two coupon codes to share with you:
With Official: Use code LISA15 and you’ll receive 15% off your purchase. Full disclosure: I purchased the the Ultralight 18 Color set and was gifted the Deluxe 72 Color Drawing set.
Art Toolkit: Long time followers will know that I’ve been a huge fan of Art Toolkit and I’ve been using their palettes since 2017. I’ve been an ambassador for several years now, and they’ve given me a code to share with you: use code LISAFAN10 for 10% off your purchase of an Art Toolkit, palette, or mixing pans. In the videos I’ve been using both a Pocket Palette (I love the blue and red palettes!) and a Folio filled with a mix of Daniel Smith, Winsor and Newton and Holbein paints.
If you use either coupon code I’ll receive a small commission at no charge to you — thank you for your support, and to these two great companies for generously sharing the codes.
Rogers Flea Market
Friday we went to “The Sale” — an open air flea market just down the road from Dad’s. I’ve been going here since I was a kid and it brings back so many memories.
People come from the tri-state area (Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia) to look through all the antiques/treasures/junk, get fresh produce, and snack on street fair food. We got warm soft pretzels from an Amish-run booth, locally grown apples, and I admired all of the mums. It was so much fun!
White House Fruit Farms
After The Sale we headed to White House Fruit Farms to get Jason some Ohio-made, real maple syrup. This is another place that I’ve been going to since I was a kid! This time of year they have a pumpkin patch — I loved seeing all of the pumpkins!
When I was growing up they only had blueberry donuts and apple fritters — now they have so many different donuts that people have a hard time choosing which flavor to get. Not me — I go for good ole blueberry every time:
We usually eat our donuts down by the lake and watch the ducks:
YUM!
Family Time
We had so much fun with family over the past two weeks, laughing, playing endless card games (Jason has been on a winning streak!), eating, and laughing some more! Here are just a few snapshots from the week:
We got to celebrate our niece Madi’s 15th birthday, too! I don’t know how she’s 15 already — time really goes by too fast!
Beaver Creek State Park
Before I wrap up this week’s post I wanted to share some fall foliage shots from Beaver Creek State Park — it’s just down the road from my Dad’s house and one of my favorite places in the area. Beaver Creek has been designated a State Wild and National Scenic River and is just so beautiful:
It was the perfect fall day, so I just HAD to go for a hike. We took the trail down to Gretchen’s Lock and I couldn’t stop taking photos.
One of the things I missed the most when we were living in Austin, Texas was the fall color.
All of the oranges, yellows and reds make my heart sing!
Can’t wait to paint some more fall scenes!
That’s a Wrap
That’s it for this post! We’re going to get back on the road soon, so I’ll be soaking in every moment in the time we have left at home with family.
Thanks so much for joining us on our journey — Lisa, Jason, and Walter-the-Van
Can’t believe it’s week 72 already!! As always enjoy all your pictures! Finding fall color in the eastern Sierra Mountains now. My favorite time here now. Safe travels!
Thanks for the info on the pencils. I was wondering if you were using them. I am excited to see what they do when mixed with watercolors. Also have you found you can blend colors as you work? I am also curious what your travel plans are as the northland heads into winter. Heading south east or back to the southwest? Love following your travels.