Thanks to Dr. PH Martin's white ink, I'm one tree short where I had to do a crop. Bye-bye to one messed up tree, but that worked ok. I'm liking this project. Maybe too much bark? I tried a bunch of non-conventional tools, including the cardboard edge. Mostly I used very fine round and thin flat brushes. Usually the scrap of cardboard is a miracle, but no matter! I took some breaks while I made a mess with other paints, but regained my calm and went back to these birches. This was a challenging project for me, Elisabeth, but I kept at it and learned. It's all about the learning. Your teaching style is miraculously emboldening for this student to try art that seems challenging. Thanks much for that and for this lesson. (Now I'm wondering if I have the stamina to paint the beautiful bonus! To be revealed -- or not -- later!) 

Stamina found, and here's the reveal! Could not resist. Again, tried a few pieces of box, board and whatnot, but ended up painting the same way as the first one. WAAAY too much black. Timidly I used white acrylic to take some black out, and was delighted that's what I was supposed to do based on Elisabeth's feedback. Ah! Relief!

Hmmm, now that I look at it here, I think there's still too much black, but just imagine how much more there was before the fix! I find acrtylic so sticky to work with! So, this is it for me! Always Onward! Judy