Blog/Art News

If you follow my blog you will notice I haven’t posted anything in a couple of days when I planned that August would be an everyday blogging month. The reason for this is that I have made an important decision to provide more time for Artwork and for my career in Art. This means that I will be closing down my blog. I have only been blogging for about 6 months and I have loved every moment of it, however managing a Fulltime Job, a Blog, a YouTube channel, my Social Medias and my Art Collections has become increasingly difficult. I am currently working on several Art Collections so I can open an online store, hopefully this will happen in the next two weeks. I generally work with Pencils however over the coming months I will be experimenting with Watercolour and Oil Paints. This is purely a professional decision based on where I am heading in my career as an artist. I love blogging, it’s a beautiful way to share and connect with other people who you may never meet.

I do make YouTube videos as well which I will still be doing, so what I blog about will now be in a video instead of a post. I will be making videos of Makeup Tutorials, Speed Drawings and Artwork, Lookbooks and Hauls, DIY’s and anything else I want to talk and share with my subscribers.

I will definitely consider returning to blogging once I have more time to spend writing my posts and not feel like their rushed. Having a fulltime job and trying to establish yourself in a competitive market is very time consuming and hard work. The future plan is for my Fulltime Job to be my artwork, however at this point I have to balance my time very wisely like most people with a dream and ambition to do something they love.

If you like my artwork or you are a fan of my blog please follow my Instagram and Twitter as I will be posting everything there.

You can see three pieces of my new Graphite Collection Below.

 

Thank you for Reading J

See You Soon

Katy xoxox

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BLAKE

This Graphite piece is part of my Black and White Collection I am currently working on. I used Faber Castell Graphite Pencils, Derwent Graphic Pencils and Faber Castel Polychromos on A3 Bristol Board. This took about 22 hours in total to finish. There is a lot of detail in this piece so patience becomes your best friend.

Katy xoxo

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Etsy Art Store Open

I am partime Artist, Blogger and Youtube. I also work full time in the Financial Sector. I have been working hard on a Black and White Collection so I can open my own online store. Unfortunately my drawings do take a long time to finish, the average being a week as I have to balance it with work and having a normal life. I have always been a creative person and after going back to drawing 9 months ago my skills have rapidly improved.

I have now opened an Etsy Store with a few of my drawings and I am in the process of finishing my first Black and White Collection. When I have completed this collection of 5 drawings I will be opening a Big Cartel Art Store. My intention with my Art Stores is to work in Collections of 5 Drawings and I will be experimenting with Oil and Watercolour Paints.

The drawings below are all listed in my Etsy Store and these prints are available in A4 and A3. You can visit my store by clicking on the link below.

Katy Harmston Art

FREYA

CARA DELEVIGNE INSPIRED

AMELIA



JUSTIN BIEBER

 

AMONGST THE GREEN

 

If you have any requests or suggestions please leave your comments below, and if you are interested in a commission you can contact me at katy.harmston@gmail.com.

Katy xoxo

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A MINI ART HAUL

If you follow my blog or any form of social media you will be aware that I am a partime Artist and I am working on a Black and White Collection. I am having alot of fun just working with Graphite tones however the only thing I absolutely hate about Graphite Pencils is the fact graphite is reflective. With this in mind I wanted to try some charcoal as I love how soft and smooth graphite is and after researching an alternative I found Charcoal. Obviously I was previously aware of Charcoal but had never used it in my own artwork. I do want to get my hands on powder charcoal and apply it with a brush. 

I bought the Derwent Charcoal Pencil Tin 6 Piece for this reason, it was £8.00 for 6 different toned charcoal pencils. They come in a smart slimline silver tin along with a sharpener which is always handy. Its is the perfect size to travel with and I have always had good experiences with Derwent Art Supplies.

Along with these I bought the Daler and Rowney Willow Charcoal in order to try and used them with a brush, but I haven't tested this as of yet. You get 12 pieces in this set and at £2.50 it is well worth testing them for that price.

As I explained previously I am currently working on a Black and White Collection. Unfortunately my Black Faber Castell Polychromo Pencil was getting very small, so it was time to repurchase. Faber-Castell Polychromos and Prismacolor Pencils are my absolute favourite coloured pencils to draw with. 

All Art equipment was purchased from Hobbycraft . It is slightly more expensive than an Online Art Store like Cass Arts, however I am the type to want something then and there. Hobbycraft does have an Arts Sale starting today but as I said earlier, I didn't really want to wait for the sale to start.

Have a beautiful weekend!

Katy xoxo

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PORTRAIT PROCESS

As I am sure you are aware if you follow my blog that I am currently working on a collection of portraits. This piece is the second in the Collection. I will be sharing the whole collection with you when every piece is finished.

I used Faber-Castell and Derwent Graphite Pencils for this piece.

My Art Store will be launched very soon. 

Katy xoxo

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COMBINED ART & BLOGGING SOCIAL MEDIA

It has been a few months now since I separated my Art and Blogging Social Medias. This seemed like a smart thing to do as people who like art might not be interested in seeing makeup tutorials and vice versa. I created two separate Social Media Accounts for Instagram, Facebook, Youtube and Twitter. Although this seemed like the smart thing to do it really wasn't. It has been so difficult to manage 2 separate account for 4 different types of social media, work full-time, finish my art pieces and have some sort of life. It is so exhausting and unfortunately there is not enough time in the day to keep on top of everything.

From now on I will deleting all social medias for Swaine and Stone which is my Art Name. My art collections and doodles will be a part of my blogging social medias so everything is incorporated under one platform. The name Swaine and Stone will still represent my Artwork and be the name of my online art store when I have finally finished setting that up.

I know this may not work for everyone as some people may not like to see everything altogether, but hey this is me so I guess if you like all things created then definitely follow my social medias. There will be a variety of content to keep you happy whatever you are interested in.

These are just a few snippets of what you should expect to see on my social media and blog. If this is something you are interested make sure you hit that follow button.
You can find me by clicking on the Social Media links below.

Katy xoxo

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New Youtube Art Channel | Drawing Baby Daniel

It was my nephew Daniels First Birthday on the 29th May and I wanted to do something special, something that my brother James and his girlfriend Nicola could keep through the years. They had just moved into a new house so it was perfect timing for this. I had already bought him presents for his birthday but this was a special surprise. My brother has always been an enthusiast when it comes to my Art, so not only was it a present for Daniel but for the whole family. I had a really good picture of  Daniel on a swing which I decided to go with. He looks more mature in his face now so it was a great time to do a drawing as he is growing into his looks.

This drawing was a serious test as I hadn't drawn a baby before, but I believe in jumping in and seeing what happens. In this case it clearly paid off and I was incredibly happy and proud of the results. It did take me over a week to complete and approximately 22 hrs, so it was hard work and patience became my best friend.

When I start a drawing I always start with an outline and then build up texture and colour with the medium I am using. For this drawing I used Faber Castell Polychromo Pencils and Prismacolor Pencils on an A3 Winsor & Newton Bristol Board.
 

 

You do have to be very patient with a drawing this realistic but when it is finished it is such an amazing feeling, and at that point you know all the time and effort was worth it. To finalise this piece I put it in a nice clean black frame with a black and white border. Without a doubt the best present I have ever given.

 

SWAINE & STONE

I had been meaning to launch an Art YouTube Channel to link with my Beauty and Fashion Channel for some time but drawing and painting videos do take a long time to film and edit. This piece is my first speed drawing which is now up on my Channel.

I hope you like this drawing and video which you can watch above, please rate and subscribe as I will be uploading more videos. I am working on a collection of prints and I am currently in the process of setting up an online store for prints and commissions. This will be updated on my channel and here on my blog so make sure you hit that follow button to keep up to date.

 

Thanks for reading and watching!

Chat Soon

Katy

xxx

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Justin Bieber Portrait

This piece needs no introduction, I'm sure we are all aware who this is but for those who have been living under rock for the last 10 years. This is the extremely popular Pop Star Justin Bieber.  I did have to play around with Justin's skin tone quite abit as he has a very yellowey undertone to his skin. This could be his natural skin tone or this could be due the lighting on the photo shoot. 

This is a mixture of Watercolour Paints and Coloured Pencils.

I hope you like this portrait and if you have any portraits you would like to see then please leave that in the comments below.

I will be starting an Art YouTube Channel that will be linked to my Beauty and Fashion Channel, when I get some free time.

Katy

XXX

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Cara Delevingne Inspired Painting

Art has always been a massive part of my life. My Granddad was a brilliant self taught painter who was the very first person who advised me on how to hold a paint brush. Recently I have been painting and drawing a lot which I haven't focused on in quite a while, I think life just took over.

The medium I swear by is a mixture of watercolour paint and oil based pencils. The brands I use when painting or drawing are Winsor Newton Watercolours and Oil Based Faber Castell Polychromo Coloured Pencils. I like a mixture of watercolour paints and pencils as the watercolour provides a really nice soft base and the pencils are great for fine details. Although this is my routine when creating a realistic portrait, you can use either the pencils or watercolour paints for a certain piece.

The Winsor Newton Watercolour Paints are really vibrant and mix extremely well which is very important when painting portraits.

The Faber Castell Polychromos are oil based pencils so they have a soft texture when drawing, this allows them to blend perfectly which is great for skin tones.

This piece was inspired by Cara Delevingne's Love Cover. I think she is so beautiful, so normal and has such striking features, plus she's British. 

Work In Progress

Draw a light Outline

Watercolour Painting

Full Watercolour Painting

Pencil Details

Full and Final Details

I do want to start an Easy Shop and take on personal Commissions when I feel I am ready, so please leave your comments and feedback below on whether you like this piece so I can take that on board when creating pieces for prints.

Please follow my blog below if you like its contents and leave comments if you would like to see further video time-lapse's on my channel.

See You Soon
XO

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