"How did you come up with that idea?" ...and winter roost boxes for the birds...

I had nine people ask me how I came up with the idea for my Christmas card "Chiggy decks the halls" this year, so I thought I'd show the process. Sometimes an idea pops right in my head, and I know exactly what I want to paint, but this year I wasn't so lucky. I was panicking because I only had a few days to create my card, and I had tons of ideas in my head but couldn't get anything to solidify. When that happens, I step back, get out the pencil and just sketch. Creating lots of tiny sketches that take only seconds to draw warms you up and lets ideas flow out. I did have a little direction in mind when I started: "Chiggy" was a favorite bird of my Aunt Pat, so to keep her in my heart this Christmas, I let lots of little chickadees appear on the page...

...tiny sketches of chickadees done quickly helped me zero in on an idea for my Christmas card. I knew as soon as I drew the chickadee on the birdhouse in the bottom-right corner I had my design.  

Even though I knew my card design would be based on a birdhouse with a chickadee and a wreath, I didn't know exactly what it would look like, so I got out a few pieces of scrap paper to start developing the idea. First came Chiggy with an ornament...

Scrap paper is great for developing ideas. You don't care what your sketch looks like when it's on a piece of paper headed for the recycle bin, so you're free to experiment. The ornament in this sketch just didn't feel right, so I put it aside and pulled out another scrap of paper...

...this design was a little better. Still, the ribbon didn't work. I liked the bird on the left side holding a sprig of holly...but...

...I went back to the ribbon idea. Maybe if he was pulling the ribbon around the wreath...but it still wasn't right.

...finally went back to the sprig of holly. It was more natural and seemed like something a Chiggy might do. But the idea of Peace on Earth was still in my head....maybe a ribbon on top like a banner....but nahhh. Just didn't work. It was best to keep the image simple and focus on the holly and pine rope. That image told a story and said it all.

...the first round of watercolor. Normally I don't scan the stages of my paintings, but when I'm not sure where to go next, or I'm worried I might ruin it, I often scan as I go.

...a second layer of watercolor to soften up the roof, add a bit of detail to the wood, and add the dark night sky; followed by gouache highlights on the white feathers and the green leaves, plus a rough layer of dark orange colored pencil on the rusty roof for a bit of texture. 

...then the snow...first a watered-down splatter of white gouache to add depth, next snowflakes painted in a thicker mix of gouache to create the mid-field view, and finally dots of snow in a much thicker and brighter mix of gouache to bring them to the foreground...and that's the final painting. 

So if you're trying to design a card and the creative part of your brain is frozen, don't panic. Start drawing images that take only a few seconds to complete. Don't think about them, just let them flow from your pencil. Drawing quick little images warms you up and melts the frozen part of your creative brain.

p.s.
Does anyone recognize the birdhouse I used in the card? If you've ever been to a Southern Living party, you might have seen it in the catalog. I bought it years ago at a Southern Living party, and it sits out on my deck. Often when I draw a birdhouse, it's what pops in my mind. I love it's vintage style and the way the roof has rusted...

Our Southern Living birdhouse...well weathered and beautiful.

p.p.s.
I hate to admit it, but even though I finished the painting on time, my card didn't go out on time (my cards still haven't gone out). I was swamped at work, and I got sick. Boo! My cards are going out as Happy New Year cards this year. Maybe I'll tape a 2013 banner on the roof...

one more thing....in winter, cavity nesting birds (like our little chickadee) use roost boxes to help them conserve heat and make it through the long, cold winter nights. Click here for a post explaining the importance of roost boxes and how to make them.

Birds flock to huge tree at the Krohn Conservatory...

Regional variations are detected!

Holiday cheer abounds...

A beautiful Great Blue Heron hand painted by a local artist looks up trying to see the top of the towering tree. Note the soft pink highlights, which are a winter plumage variation only found in Cincinnati in December...and then again, only in Eden Park at the Krohn Conservatory!

Officials at the Krohn have put out bird houses to handle the influx of birds here for the Holiday Season. The houses are claimed quickly. Here a Forked-tail Spiky Red stakes out its territory. You can only find this variation in December in the towering pine in Eden Park.

Oops...not birds, but super cute. These two Christmas mice needed to be photographed.

A beautiful Ruby-throated Hummingbird sips nectar from an equally beautiful Morning Glory! In most cities with snow, the hummingbirds have long since headed south, but the Cincy variations are tough. Note the pronounced white-tipped feathers. This adaptation helps the bright beauties blend into the snow-covered branches in this microcosm of the north.

An Egret tries to hide behind a bright yellow garland made of dried Black-eyed Susans. I think if I could find a beautiful, bright garland of Black-eyed Susans I'd hide behind it too!

Two little Walnut Pixie Owls (another local variation) peep from their home. Let's hope the mice on the upper branches keep an eye out for these adorable, but efficient predators. Looks can be deceiving...

The gargantuan tree itself!

All the ornaments on the tree were handcrafted from natural materials--all made by volunteers.

Candlelight and snow...

Christmas Waltz

Frosted window panes,

Candles gleaming inside—

Painted candy canes on the tree.

Santa's on his way,

He's filled his sleigh with things—

Things for you and for me.

It's that time of year,

When the world falls in love.

Every song you hear seems to say,

“Merry Christmas, may your

New Year's dreams come true!”

…and this song of mine

In three quarter time

Wishes you and yours

The same thing too!

By Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn, 1954

Time is passing so fast, and I just can't seem to get hold of it! What I'd really like to do is slow down and enjoy the love of my family and friends. So to help get us in that Christmas spirit and suspend time, I'm posting a few old-fashioned watercolors full of candlelight and snow...gentle night images of the holidays...