Written by There’s really nothing better in the hot summer months than a cold bit of ice cream. I remember when I was young, I’d go to things called an “Ice Cream Social” which I loved to attend, but mainly for the ice cream itself. The social bit was sometimes awkward, because I didn’t really know everyone who showed up. I fully realize this was the entire point, but any type of forced mingling has always made me extra shy. Getting a bunch of people to show up to something based only on the promise of ice cream didn’t always materialize the kind of crowd I preferred. I mean, the vast majority of people in America like ice cream (over 87% have it in their freezer right now), but this didn’t automatically mean that we’d have absolutely anything else in common. I’d find myself stumbling through conversations trying to figure out what to say next after the initial discussing of flavors that we liked best. And when I would say “vanilla” I would often get the usual sad look as though I simply didn’t know how to truly live life properly. But sometimes, I would find the other person who would look me in the eye and smile knowingly, acknowledging that vanilla was indeed the best. A true connection made, around something rather niche, is a wonderful thing indeed.
It’s wonderful to find others who share your passion. I think that’s why I’m so bent on bringing all watercolor lovers together. There are lots of ways to create art, but when you discover the magic of a particular medium, then it’s such a transformative thing. Acrylics, oils, and pastels are all wonderful, but when I first discovered watercolor I felt like I’d discovered gold. Something precious and rare in its qualities that just spoke to me and made me want to pursue it further. And it’s rather intriguing to me that so many people call themselves watercolorists. We rarely hear of artists describing themselves as oilists, pastelists or acrylicists… probably just because they’re all really super hard to pronounce. But I do think it’s a testament to the medium itself. That artists can describe themselves using the actual name of the medium with no need to add anything else to dilute the message. No longer a painter, but simply an artist in love with a medium.
So, as an adult, forming my own little social meet-up of sorts, I couldn’t be more thrilled to be surrounded by so many talented watercolorists. If you’re visiting this site and see the menu, you may have noticed a new Community link. The kid in me thought it would be super fun to form a club and since I’ve let him take charge lately, the Doodlewash Club is off and running. Simply log in with your chosen social network and you’ll get a profile right here on Doodlewash where you can upload your watercolor art! I’ve built in the functionality for a news feed, profile, wall, likes, comments, groups and forums to name a few. All the things you need for a proper social network. With one key difference… I’m letting YOU decide what we do with it all, and well, all post appear in that old-fashioned chronological order we all love. This is a club, like the fun ones when we were kids, so it’s up to you to help me decide how it forms and what it becomes. I hope you’ll hop in and try out the features, and post your feature requests in the forum. I can’t promise I’ll be able to figure out how to do them all, but it will certainly be fun trying. And yeah, the only thing that would make it cooler would be some kind of dessert to celebrate, so I present this virtual one, so it’s still rather like a little Doodlewash Ice Cream Social.
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About the DoodlewashM. Graham Watercolors: Pyrrol Red, Gamboge, Ultramarine Blue, and Neutral Tint. Alvin Draft-Matic Mechanical Pencil in an A6 Hahnemühle Watercolor Book. |
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Yep, ice cream in our frig – one gallon rocky road and one vanilla caramel – yum yum! No such thing as plain vanilla – there are about 4 different varieties of vanilla and all go well with the toppings of one’s choice – yum yum yum yum.
Yay! yum!! hehe! We do as well, but it’s yep… vanilla. And yes, there are definitely several varieties, but thankfully they all taste blissfully vanilla to me! 😉💕
Thank you Charlie for all of your hard work. It’s a pleasure to visit your site and now the community as well.
Thanks so much, Laura!! 😃💕 I’m so happy you hopped in and joined us! I’m not seeing a profile pic for you, did it not come through? I’m still trying to debug things so curious!
I think you’ve caught the spirit of summer so well in your ice cream sketch, Charlie. Makes me want some!
Yay! Thanks so much, Janina! 😃💕 Yeah, I’ve been craving a sundae ever since I painted this. These dessert fantasy doodlewashes are rough! lol
Yay, for the creation of Doodlewash! And may I say that your strawberry sundae looks soooo yummy. I have to ask though why people are always expected to have favorites? My changes from day-to-day, and I would hate to be pinned down to any one flavor forever, lol.
Thanks, Sandra!! 😃💕 Yay for Doodlewash!! Such a fun social gathering! And yeah… favorites should be allowed to change. It’s what makes life interesting!