While it is perfectly all right to work outdoors during a mist or light rain, anyone who has spent any time whatsoever in the Lake District knows that there will be days for which it is impossible to be outside, especially in the autumn when the rain can become heavy. Fortunately, there's an English institution known as the flower arrangement. Anywhere I've ever stayed, there's at least one vase of flowers, sometimes several, and I must confess: I'm a flower thief. Whenever it's raining (and there's no shopping to be done), I'll quietly apprehend the closest batch of flowers. Roses, acrylics on 9 by 12 canvas board    I've given up trying to carry brushes with me for acrylics; all my work is done with palette knives. And unlike any other place in the world, that wonderfully damp climate of the Lake District is superb for keeping acrylics workable; if anything, the only problem is drying time.

Look Out!  |  watercolor