I have a pretty ridiculous sweet tooth… I love candy, and always have. While other adults grew up, and grew out of their sugary candy cravings, I think I craved them more. After awhile, my students started to pick up on my sweet tooth. How could they not, anytime anyone came in selling candy for a fundraiser I would immediately start requesting Skittles.

I realized that my students found out about my candy addiction when I started to find candy presents left on my desk. My class would dismiss, I would sit down, start this and that, and I would find a pack of Smarties, a few Starburst, or my favorite, Skittles. Little things like that can really make your day, and one day I sat down and discovered a fresh pack of Skittles. My day was immediately brighter, and it got even better when the student coyly approached me to ask if I found anything on my desk, and it got even better when I could return the favor and make a page about that small gesture.

Little things like that show that you are appreciated. I love teaching because it is a rewarding job, I have people tell me everyday they love my class, love art, and are so happy to be there. There are a lot of emotional ups and downs, you can’t reach every student, but the good definitely out weigh the bad. The only problem is candy gifts lead to cavities… which isn’t such a great thing…

To make this page I used watercolors, India ink, and the actual pack of Skittles my student gave me. I started by drawing out the table and the skittles, so I could get the composition just right before I painted. I started with the background, and put a drop of watercolor on each Skittle, and blew it so the paint would splatter. I then took a very fine point paint brush, dipped it in India ink, and painted the S and outlined them to make them pop. I painted the table with browns and yellows first. I then added the wood texture with a paint brush and India ink. I used hot glue to attach the Skittles package and added the words with India ink.

TIP: when you create wood grain start with straight lines, allow them to wiggle if your hand isn’t steady, it will make it look more realistic since there are no straight lines in nature! After you have a few rows of straight lines, create an oval, then make straight lines that wrap around the oval, to create a knot in the wood. The best thing is to stay loose! Don’t stress if your lines are uneven or imperfect, because that is the beauty in nature!

CHALLENGE: Create a page about your favorite sweet, whether it’s candy, ice cream, cake, cupcakes, or even fruit! If you have the package try to incorporate it!

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