I keep running into hydrangeas

Painting by Vicky Christensen, watercolor on cold press paper 

I discovered another beautiful hydrangea bush on a walk today and had to paint it. There's no way I have enough skill to capture its beauty, but this painting tries to capture its essence.

Shrub roses

Painting by Vicky Christensen, watercolor on Arches cold press paper 

Trying to loosen up my watercolor painting style with this one. I passed these shrub roses on a walk a couple days ago and snapped a photo with my phone.

Another hydrangea painting

Painting by Vicky Christensen, watercolor and gouache on cold press paper 

Keep trying til you get it right. I didn't use masking fluid this time, painted around the buds but ended up  losing some of the highlights after an ill-fated attempt to glaze them. Fortunately I have a starter set of Windsor and Newton gouache so this gave me a reason to put the paints to use. Everything else is watercolor.