And just prior to workign on acrylics, I attempted two watercolor paintings, and realized that I bought the wrong kinds of paint (gouache?) from Walmart (a supermarket store). I didn't like the lack of opaqueness and detail, and didn't like the lack control, which is why I switched to acrylics.
In actuality, I was going to go with oil paints (specifically the Bob Ross style and brand), but it was going to cost much more than I was willing to put into it, for something that I didn't know if I would like doing or not. $20 at Walmart later, I find that I like the challenge that acrylics require in order to get everything in harmony with each other (I can always try oil painting later, lol). Unfortunately, my arm is apparently a wimp because I get tired of holding the brush up for long periods of time, haha!
Here are my two gouache/watercolor paintings...the first is a sakura tree (cherry blossom), which I painted for my daughter, Sakura (yup, same name); and the second is a painting of Mars, based on a photo taken by NASA (which didn't turn out so well...first time using an easel and the black was running into the planet...turning my shadow into some kind of world-eating sludge...