A little birdie told me to get out my tea cups again! This time it’s a bluebird of happiness alighting upon the forget-me-nots plucked from my garden and an art deco teacup I found at a local antique shop.
![Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 1 Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 1](http://mariecameronstudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Forget-Me-Not-Tea-and-Feathers-WIP-Marie-Cameron-2014-11.jpg)
I began sketching with my brush and thinned oils directly on the 12 x 12″ canvas.
![Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 2 Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 2](http://mariecameronstudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Forget-Me-Not-Tea-and-Feathers-WIP-Marie-Cameron-2014-2.jpg)
Sadly, my sweet little drawing was off center and it’s important to me that the tea cup remains dead center in this series of little square paintings, so I wiped it out with a cloth and began again – this time measuring out my center point with a little dot.
![Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 3 Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 3](http://mariecameronstudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Forget-Me-Not-Tea-and-Feathers-WIP-Marie-Cameron-2014-3.jpg)
Happy that I had my tea cup centered, I began to develop its volume using warm and cool hues and light and dark values.
![Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 4 Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 4](http://mariecameronstudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Forget-Me-Not-Tea-and-Feathers-WIP-Marie-Cameron-2014-4.jpg)
Next I wanted to make sure my bird was going in a good direction, and blocked the blues. I started to work in bits of the background and flowers, working the composition and color story.
![Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 5 Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 5](http://mariecameronstudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Forget-Me-Not-Tea-and-Feathers-WIP-Marie-Cameron-2014-5.jpg)
Not forgetting the forget-me-nots, I began layering them in behind and over he bird and draped over the edge of the saucer. This helps to develop the illusion of a depth of space. It’s pretty and light with bits of white showing through.
![Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 6 Forget Me Not Tea and Feathers WIP - Marie Cameron 2014 6](http://mariecameronstudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Forget-Me-Not-Tea-and-Feathers-WIP-Marie-Cameron-2014-6.jpg)
But I want to sculpt the image with shadows, anchoring the objects with a sense of gravity, so I layered in some darks. Tomorrow, more highlights!
Oh I’ll be thinking of a title too – I have the working title of Forget-me not Tea and Feathers, but maybe I’m also thinking along the lines of Souvenir of Happiness, or Remember me Blue….
![Forget-me-not Tea WIP Marie Cameron 2014 7 Forget-me-not Tea WIP Marie Cameron 2014 7](http://mariecameronstudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Forget-me-not-Tea-WIP-Marie-Cameron-2014-7.jpg)
OK, I didn’t see this coming yesterday! Today I woke up and wondered what my bluebird would look like with the rust breast of the male. It was a brave decision to make as I was pretty in love with the very simple color palette going on, but I thought this color break in a sea of blue might add a focal point and help the bird pop. Maybe I’m not so brave – it’s only paint after all!