Coffee Is My Meditation | a watercolour commission

Oh, I have been away from the blogging world for so long! I have a list of posts on my to-do list of my latest work but it’s been too nice outside to sit in front of Photoshop and Lightroom, you know? I must enjoy this weather, especially after the long, long winter that we had here in Nova Scotia. I am already dreading the next winter! Eek!…

A wonderful girl named Rachelle tweeted me months ago to ask if I could paint something for her. I was thrilled to do so and so we chatted about what she would like. It came down to coffee, coffee, coffee. I myself am a self-confessed earl grey (of almost any variety) tea snob but, oh, how I LOVE the smell of coffee: the fresh grins permeating the air, the sound of a percolator, the scent of brewed coffee. .

Rachelle was very patient with me as I took the time to finish the tarot card I was working on for a fund raiser. During that time I did some idea sketches for Rachelle and we messaged back and forth.

I am a big yoga and meditation freak. Every day. It’s my sanity, like art. And since coffee was such a big love for Rachelle I saw it as her moment in a busy day where she takes a break and just breathes…with coffee in hand, of course!I felt I had to fit in the ‘ohm’ symbol somewhere so I added in a necklace. I love using salt in my watercolours and especially in the hair. The little white dots here and there through the painting add interest and pull your eye in to see detail. They are fun to do, too. Must be fun!I always add in my ‘moon’ somewhere in my work.Rachelle has this wonderful red hair and her personality is so very alive so I wanted to illustrate a bit of that with her hair. I think the hair was the funnest part of the drawing for me. Big coffee cup. Oh, it looks tasty! By the way, all the brown in the painting, as in the colour of the floor and the steam coming off of the coffee is actually coffee. Yep. Painted with coffee. This was a long  process for me and I have to whole-heartedly thank Rachelle for her patience. I did a lot of thinking and a lot of sketching before I got to the final piece. I wanted it to be just right. The painting was not rushed either, I wanted it juuuust right. 

I have to say this is one of my favourite pieces to date. I have learned over the last couple of years to take time with my work, let it flow, let it speak. I rush around a lot of the day, as we all do. This painting took a couple of months to complete but I am so glad that I didn’t rush it.

In the end, Rachelle was very happy with the painting and for that I am very, very grateful, for even though people say you should paint for your own sake, there is nothing like the feeling of your art, your creations, being enjoyed by others. What can I say, I am people person!

Happy creating! xx

Moongirl