The Portland daily press., 1883-12-25
How to Paint Christmas and Birth
day Cards.


A card that reminds me of lovely Swiss
scenery and snowy mountains was given to
me only yesterday, the mountain hearts
ease and the blue forget-me-not recalling
many a pleasant ramble at Miirren, The
flowers were beautifully pressed, and re-
tanned their original brilliancy of cooring.
1t was an uncommon card. and one not
likely to become common-a card of natures
own flowers. arranged by the skiful hand
OF the artist, more truly poetic and better
able to strike lateut chord than could any
touch of the painters brush But this is a
depression, you will say, when from the
heading of the article you expect to hear
something of designing and painting cards
We will take the hint, and say no more of
nature, except it be in the imitation of her
works.
Next best to nature herself, is to study
nature; and one of the best ways of studying
nature is to take some of her lovely flowers,
and 10 try TO copy them as nearly as you
can.
In so doing you will learn to love nature
and the more you study her, the greater will
be that love. It'll taste that grows in the
using; the love of the beautiful is a con-
slant source OF delight; and in initiating
with brush und pencil natures loveiest
forms, how can we fail to see fresh beauties
in every leaf and flower?
From moralizing let us turn to the practi-
cal side, the use Of painting Christmas and
birthday cards.. Each year the style of
cards improves, alongside of the progress of
the national taste.
Professionals as well as amateurs are now
engaged in painting them as a means of in
come, which is clearly evinced by the in
creased beauty of many of the cards of last
season. which could have come from no
other than professional hand. To many
OF your friends, especially 10 your relations
who take pride in your Artistic achieve
ments, card painted by yourself, however
simply it is done, has far more attraction in
their eyes than if you had simply gone into
shop and bought one; only let it be really
well done, that they may show it to their
friends as your work, and their pleasure will
be doubled, not only in the gift itself, but
because you have taken personal trouble in
painting it for them.
Looking at it from an economical point of
view, ii you have many friends you will find
you will save several shillings in painting
cards yourself. Hand-painted cards are also
sold at the shops, and realize good price if
original, and are very useful to sell at a
bazaar. You see there are many useful
ways in which You can employ your talent,
provided thai you set to work in right earn
est
Twill describe TO yon one of the prettiest
cards ! have painted, and by the way, it was
not very difficult one. I picked some of
the large purple clemetis that was growing
upon the house, and arranged it before me
just % it grew. The less arrangement the
better SO long as it is graceful-the less con-
tortion of nature, which is in itself so grace
full, 90 accommodating, the prettiest draw
ing being always the one most true to nat
ure. | arranged myself with due regard
to the light, so that it should fall on one side
only, and / arranged my drawing block
slightly OF the incline. This last precaution
makes the ,colors lie fatter and better. Il
put the flowers on box so that 1 might see
them from good point of sight, and with
finely pointed pencil began the flower in
the left-han1 corner, drawing from left to
right
Having sketched in the flowers to my sat
family at first, slightly indicating
the dark parts here and there, copying the
flowers and leaves as accurately as | could,
I proceeded to arrange my palette In one
division / mixed some Chinese white, car
mine, and cobalt; and in another, some In
dian yellow and cobalt; and in a third divis-
ion, some brown-pink. With a cameps-hair
brush put in the tint of the flower, using
white paint, carmine, and cobalt, mixed to-
gether. The white paint 1 used in the first
washes to give depth and richness to the
colorng. / we'll loaded my brush, mixing a |
good deal of water with it, and began at the |
top of the flower, spreading out the hairs of |
the brush as worked downwards, putting |
on fat tint all over. Then I put in the |
green leaves without the admixture of any