Ashley Hackshaw, Author at Ashley Hackshaw / Lil Blue Boo

Sweet

March 20, 2013 by Ashley Hackshaw

I don’t even remember what it was like B.T. (before texting)

Some context/translation:

1. Our gardener confiscated the key to the sprinkler box. I couldn’t turn off the sprinklers yesterday afternoon. The sprinklers soaked our Daisy girl scout troop and resulted in chaos. I was very annoyed at the gardener. Why did the gardener take the key?? Because he was very annoyed at Mr. LBB for messing with his (our) sprinkler irrigation schedule. To prevent annoying the gardener anymore, and mitigate the risk of him being fired, Mr. LBB hired an additional gardener today to secretly take care of the crabgrass situation. It all sounds so dysfunctional now that I wrote it down…but really it’s perfectly normal around here.

2. Fred is the fish Boo won at the Halloween carnival at school. He was expected to live one week. I did not want a fish (just like I didn’t want a lizard)*. He’s doubled in size over the last 4 months. I think Mr. LBB got sick of changing the water in the bowl every 2 days and as of today we have a new filtered fish tank….and bamboo for “extra oxygenation.” Oh, and an additional goldfish because I felt like he might be lonely. Boo named the new fish Smokey. Smokey is a nutcase…..pick me! pick me! pick me! Poor Fred looks miserable.

3. If I wasn’t bringing dinner home, we would have resorted to eating ice cream and pretzel crisps for dinner…..or pizza rolls for the 3rd night in a row. I thought it might be time to go grocery shopping.

4. “Sweet” = “I’m ecstatic”

P.S. Boo let “Fred” the gecko go a few weeks after she caught him last year. I see him periodically by the sliding door where we let him go….at least I like to think it’s him. While contemplating the potential “escape” of Boo’s gecko night after night, at one point I suddenly had the sinking feeling that maybe my turtle Magnolia didn’t actually “escape” when I was 6 years old like my parents said she did. The only reason Fred the goldfish hasn’t “escaped” is because I read this article.

P.P.S. And then somehow I stumbled upon this article about a disabled goldfish outfitted with a sling to help her swim. I think I reached the end of the Internet… but at least it’s a heartwarming end:

Teaching to Paint (Favorite Tools)

March 19, 2013 by Ashley Hackshaw

I thought I’d do a follow up post to my last one to show some of the tools Boo uses when painting. The process I go through with Boo definitely changes as she gets older…..I’ve written several posts over the years with tips on painting with children….I linked them all up at the bottom of this post.

As I was collecting photos together for this post I starting making a collage of Boo painting over the years…..she was so tiny!

So onto the topic of this post! I love giving Boo all the tools she needs to be creative as possible. I give her tips and pointers along the way….teaching her how to use different techniques. What we are always working on though is the building up of layers. The more layers…..the more interesting the painting.

I always make sure to have lots of paint and oversized brushes. We mix the paints with water so that it’s easier to apply to the canvas. The faster she can cover a canvas with paint…..the more likely she is to paint multiple layers:

Gesso is key! It’s a white primer……but great for painting an opaque layer over something. She mixed it with different colors to lighten them:

Willow charcoal is great for drawing lines as guides onto a painting. I usually draw a few lines for her when she wants to write something on a painting. After the paint dries the charcoal can be wiped off with a damp cloth. Willow charcoal is the only thing I draw with with painting….if you use a graphite pencil no matter how many layers you keep painting over it….you’ll keep seeing it! I like the way it crumbles and mixes into the paint as well. To make a charcoal drawing permanent you’ll need to spray the drawing with some matte varnish in between layers.

When painting with multiple layers I teach Boo to “deconstruct” her layers. A mouse sander is a pretty safe tool for her age if I’m supervising her. All it does is vibrate back and forth….I just keep a close eye on her to make sure she doesn’t sand right through the canvas and weaken the fabric layer.

I love mixing different kinds of paints, markers and crayons. The rule is: start with water soluble mediums and move up to oil based. Once you add oil based mediums you can’t paint over them with water based mediums. But sometimes we cheat…. and use spray paint in between layers. Spray paint is pretty permanent.

Examples of water-soluble:
Acrylic Paint
Watercolors
Aqua Crayons

Examples of oil/wax mediums:
Wax Crayons
Oil Pastels
Oil Paint
Oil Based Varnishes

I love aqua crayons because she can draw and then use water to turn the images into water colors:

Stencils are an easy way to add texture and design to a painting. I let Boo use spray paint when I’m watching her. If you let a young child use spray paint make sure to put goggles on them just in case they happen to spray the wrong direction! Boo just uses swim goggles. We use all different types of objects to create stencils….cut paper, glue gun stencils (click here for a tutorial), and letter stencils. When they are covered in spray paint they become great stamps too!

We always take advantage of excess paint. Anything that’s left over is used to create layers….by pouring paint, dripping, or even using bubble wrap and other items to print patterns onto the canvas:

Here’s the video of Boo’s process all wrapped into 3 minutes:

Source info:

Mouse Sander
Gesso Primer
Willow Charcoal
Value Pack Flat Brushes (Dharma Trading)
50 Pack of Brushes (Dharma Trading)
Set of 12 Brushes (Dharma Trading)
Black Fabric Marker (Dharma Trading)
White Chalk Ink Markers

Paintings by Boo

March 18, 2013 by Ashley Hackshaw

A process video of Boo creating 3 paintings….all painted to raise money for a good cause: The Academy of PDCPC (you can click here to view the listings)….I gave her ideas along the way and then we decided on quotes for her to add based on what the finished paintings looked like. I taught her to finally use the electric sander. We used lots of paint and bubble wrap.

I recently accepted the Cre8time challenge from Michael’s to create for an hour a day for 8 consecutive days. For few days I worked in my art journal and on the days the Hungry Bunnies. For the remaining days this weekend, I left it up to Boo what we would do. She wanted to make something to help raise money to help kids go to her school next year……and this is the idea we came up with: Paintings for a Cause. I stocked up on large canvases, paint, aqua crayons and willow charcoal. I taught Boo a few techniques as she painted. You can see her creative progression in the little video we made:

We’ve listed them on eBay. All proceeds after fees go directly to The Academy of PDCPC here in Palm Desert and will be earmarked for financial aid funds. Check out the paintings below. If you click the paintings you’ll be taken to the listing…..I like to tell people they are an “investment”…..maybe she’ll be a famous artist one day.

Me: What do you want to sell them for?

Boo: How about $30? ……or….if they think that’s too expensive I’ll take $20…..or how about $15?

I’m hoping they’ll go for a little more than that….it’s a chance to get a signed “Boo” original that benefits a great cause ; )

Be The Change
24″ x 18″ Acrylic/Mixed Media Painting
Signed by “Boo” Hackshaw

*****

A Little Light
20″ x 24″ Acrylic/Mixed Media Painting
Signed by “Boo” Hackshaw

*****

A River Runs Through It
20″ x 24″ Acrylic/Mixed Media Painting
Signed by “Boo” Hackshaw

It feels good creating for someone else. It’s what I do everyday. I hope to pass that onto Boo. I think we’ll just keep painting…..and see where it goes.

Update: Additional paintings are listed on the Lil Boo Paintings page here!