A Rock Painter's Brain - Updated for 2017

I originally blogged about A Rock Painter's Brain - The Creative Process in January 2015 and realized it was time for a 2017 update.

I did not apply a sealer to the brain in 2015 so I could repaint sections where my goals were met and add new items for the upcoming year.

The sections of the brain still include:

• Inspiration
• Creative Soul Food
• Rocks To Finish
• I Want
• To Do
• Rocks I Want To Paint

Inspiration - After 2 years, I still get my inspiration from Pinterest, Nature, and two Facebook groups - Rock Painting and Rock Painters Extension Group.

Creative Soul Food - Nothing has changed here. I still enjoy chocolate, coffee, pistachios and wine.

Rocks To Finish - This section is for my priority projects. In 2015, Noah's Ark was completed and gifted to a friend and elephants now replace that section of the brain. I need to start and complete a 6-sided rock. Nativities are always a priority in preparation for the upcoming Christmas season.

I Want - I like to buy rock painting supplies and acquired most of my wants in 2015 and 2016 - display easels, gift bags, a fine point pen, and nail art brushes. In 2017, my new wants are Posca fine point pens, white gel pen, white beach pebbles, and small pliers.

To Do - In 2015, I received a new camera and learned how to use it to photograph my painted rocks. A project I now want to accomplish is a pebble art wall hanging for my entryway porch.

Rocks I Want to Paint - Many of these (and more) were painted on rocks between 2015 and now - matryoshkas, mandalas, owls, cactus, dogs, hearts, slimy critters. I kept most of them on the brain because they were so enjoyable to paint. Maybe I should rename this section "Favorite Rocks to Paint."

This is the mind map concept taken to the next level!

Happy New Year, everyone.
May all your rock painting dreams come true.

© Cindy Thomas Painted Rocks

A Rock Painter's Brain - The Creative Process

Many times an inspiration dictates my next rock painting project. In this case A Crafter's Brain did the trick.

Source: Total Class Creative

Step 1: Once inspiration hits, I start looking for the shape of rock I need. In this case, I had the perfect stone which eerily resembled a skull.

Step 2: I primed the rock with white acrylic paint and allowed it to sit for a while. As I walked past the primed stone, I started to visualize how I wanted to paint it.

Step 3: I decided where facial features would best fit on the rock to allow a large, brain section and then painted only the face portion. (Because I'm not a portraitist, I found many how-to guides for drawing/painting faces on Pinterest.)

Step 4: For a little bling, I used E6000 craft glue to attach earrings onto the stone. (These were small, flower-shaped beads I had from an earlier project.)

Step 5: I spent a few days putting thoughts on paper to gauge the number and size of each brain section I planned to paint.

(For other rock painting projects, I've used a piece of paper or computer paint program to sketch my designs and test paint colors prior to committing it to the rock.)


Step 6: I started painting the sections - sized according to what I recorded on paper earlier.

Step 7: Sharpie fine-point markers were used to fill in each painted section with words. (Note: I generally don't use Sharpies because they can bleed and change color when sealed. But in this case, it would have been very difficult to use paint and brush to write my words.)

Step 8: I continued filling in all the sections with my rock-painting thoughts.

This video shows each angle of the completed "Rock Painter's Brain."

Now I have my 2015 rock painting goals set in stone.

Click here to see how I updated my brain for 2017.

© Cindy Thomas Painted Rocks