P is for Purple

I tried my hand with the painting the letter in gouache. While I like gouache, I am not thrilled with it on HP paper. I tend to get nicer effects of vellum. I miss the transparency of watercolour in the letter but the gouache stands up as a good foil to the bright gold leaf. Finished size is 4" x 1 3/4" on Fabriano HP paper. The foliage is painted with Holbein Leaf green and Winsor Newton Sap green. The lavender roses and buds were painted with my Diane Townsend Pastels and darkened slightly with Winsor Newton Mineral Violet. McCaffery brown and Finetec gold were used for accent strokes.