Being loose and free in my art is something I’ve learned to do.

Having fun and playing as I paint allows me to capture the soul of my characters.

But sometimes I need to get out of my own way and start playing again so I can stop thinking so much and really uncover the beauty.

The other day when this happened, I was in the middle of this new painting (she’s called ‘Do More Of What You Love’ 11” x 14”).

I’d been wanting to paint another female portrait.

But I couldn’t get her eyes or posture right.

I kept trying to make her more loose and free, but she kept looking so mature.

I wanted to cover up her entire face.

Instead, I took a step away to let her dry.

When I came back, I fell in love with her strength and powerful spirit.

She reminded me of a queen or guardian, so I took a crusty bristled brush and gave her a feathered cape.

Oftentimes it takes getting stuck in that ugly stage to finally get enough courage to let go and paint something new.

It wasn’t until I snapped in-progress photos of my paintings that I realized every painting has an ugly stage (especially the eyes and faces).

And at that stage, I’d always get frustrated and feel like I couldn’t finish another painting.

That negative self talk completely took the fun out of painting. But once I realized it happened to me every time, I learned to turn off my inner critic.

In this video preview from my Happy Painting Mini Course you’ll see how I create a portrait using just a few supplies and a water-soluble pencil in my sketchbook. This is a project you can do in just a few minutes, so you can still paint, even if you don’t have a lot of space or time.

“You’ve really inspired me in the VERY FUN CLASS of Happy Painting. I’ve gone from cut and paste to fearless, throwing paint on paper and actually painting and trusting in the process. I’ve been actually creating little beings.” -Nancy Rose

“I had always felt that need for perfection the first time around and it led to so much frustration and thrown away pieces that weren’t just right. Seeing your process of letting the piece become what it wants to become instead of trying to force it into what you want it to be was an epiphany to me! Thank you for teaching us your style and letting us see the mistakes along the way.” -Shannon Beesley

Click here to Learn More About My Happy Painting Mini Course.

Happy Painting!

xo Juliette Crane

P.S. Click here to Join My Free Painting Workshop

P.P.S. Want to learn more about painting faces? I’ve put together my FACES – Mxed Media Portraits class to help you paint faces with more freedom.

You can learn more about my FACES – Mxed Media Portraits class right here.