Snowdrop study

by Alice Savery March 1, 2022

Last week I had a really inspiring phone conversation and afterwards I decided to go for a walk and keep mulling over the goodness as I went.

It was bitterly cold but bright and the sun was catching a huge swathe of snowdrops that I passed.

Well, I almost managed to pass them, but not before crouching down to photograph them!

Snowdrops galore photographed by Alice Draws the Line

When I returned to the studio I got a piece of A3 watercolour paper out and started to create a version of this on the page. First I worked in black ink, focusing on the outlines of the snowdrops in the foreground.

Art materials used to create the snowdrops by Alice Draws the Line

I really wanted this to be a fun and energy filled mixed media piece and so I used all of the above when making the piece. After drawing out the foreground snowdrops I then painted their petals - mainly the shading in light grey watercolour. When that dried I added masking fluid - which I hadn't used in years! Having found it in the studio I used it on the petals and where they would be on snowdrops in the background. This needs to dry and looks a bit yellow and rubbery, but it protects the paper underneath and allows you to paint around and over them without the petals being coloured.

snowdrops artwork by Alice Draws the Line, seasonal illustrations Adding detail to the greens with pastels by Alice Draws the Line

I painted the background, leaves and stalks of the snowdrops with watercolour and then added details with the selection shown above.

Using masking tape on the snowdrop piece by Alice Draws the Line

This was the most fun bit! When the watercolour was dry, I peeled off the masking fluid to reveal the white snowdrop petals underneath.

Snowdrops by Alice Draws the line and the art materials used

I made a little video when making this piece which you can watch on Instagram here.

If you too are a snowdrop fan, you might enjoy my Snowdrop Colouring in sheet that you can find in the shop here.