When Vintage Illustrations and Watercolors Meet...

I'm by no means an artist; but when I saw the opportunity to enhance illustrations from a secondhand book with a wash of watercolors, I dusted off my artistic skills and put them to work creating another piece of art for the living room.
Thrift stores, on the right days, can be an absolute treasure trove if you go with an open mind and the willingness to look at everything. On one such day, I found a $1 book that intrigued me. The names of three prominent socialites appeared on its cover: First Garden, written by C.Z. Guest, introduced by Truman Capote and illustrated by Cecil Beaton. 

But it wasn't the premise of the book (a guide for novice gardeners authored by a member of America's upper crust) that sold me, it was the illustrations from Cecil Beaton that piqued my interest. His simple pen and ink florals weren't destined to be hidden in the pages of a thrift store book--I wanted to unearth them, introduce color and frame them.

So, I that's what I did.

To do so, I needed just a few supplies. I had been wanting to try this 36-color watercolor palette, part of the Kid Made Modern line of crafting supplies from Target, for awhile and this project seemed like the perfect reason to take it for a spin.

 (a b/w photo or illustration, a cup of water, a paintbrush and a watercolor palette)

The picture above accurately depicts the monochromatic illustration I was working with--it wasn't actually black and white, but green. The floral still life was very pretty as-is, but I could hear it begging for some understated color.

Admittedly, I hadn't touched watercolors since the tenth grade so I was slow and cautious when applying color to the illustration. I started with a light wash of coral for the illustrated poppies and built color gradually--this is really the key with using this medium.

 First the coral went on, then a hint of green for the stems and touches of plum and navy elsewhere.

The results were delicate and, I think, only helped to enliven the illustration. My newly-colored print found itself in this affordable frame from Target (which I spray painted white) with an over-sized mat. You like?

(all via Meet Me in Philadelphia)

No, this isn't a precious piece of artwork, but it sure is pretty all awash in color if you ask me.