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If you are of fan of PBS, then you probably have seen Donna Dewberry's "One Stroke Painting." It's a painting technique that saves a great deal of time, which is accomplished by the way you load your brush with paint, along with the different brushes and brush strokes that with applied pressure are used to create a specific design.

At local craft stores or online, you can find a huge selection of One Stroke Painting books, videos, brushes and additional supplies - and don't forget to use your 40 percent off craft store coupon that is in your Sun Chronicle Sunday newspaper.

As a painter, I'm always interested in different techniques and I thought that this would be a fun class to take with friends. So, I gathered the troops - some came very willingly, others had to be dragged - to take a One Stroke Painting evening class at a local craft store. We had a lot of fun; our instructor, Pat, was very helpful and we were able to come pretty close to completing a placemat, despite having such a large class.

While it's called One Stroke, it takes a lot of practice and many strokes until you get it right. Strokes are practiced on freezer paper (or wax paper that you can place over an illustrated work sheet in books) with an acrylic paint. Once you do get it down, and you will, it cuts the painting time in half. I was amazed how quickly I was able to complete a project.

There are many crafts that can be learned with a book or watching a video, but in this case I'd recommend taking a few classes just to get the basics down. In order to reach a level where I would feel comfortable about writing an article, I practiced on terra cotta pots. An outdoor acrylic paint is recommended and, to save time, I painted the base coats on four or five pots at one time. Depending on the brand of acrylic paint, it will take about three coats of paint to cover the pot. The inside of the pot should be painted with a clear sealer to prevent moisture from seeping through. I also painted a clear sealer over the whole pot before starting my one stroke design, as this makes it easier to wipe off the paint in the event you make a mistake.

Practice your flower and leaves on your freezer paper before painting on your piece. If you don't feel confident enough as to your placement of the design, you can lightly pencil in the outline of the design or use a transfer sheet (use yellow or a light color sheet) onto your surface.

Now comes the fun part - painting! There are three simple rules used in this painting technique: First, make sure you have plenty paint on your brush; second, the handle of your brush should point straight down with your pinky finger resting on your piece; and third, apply enough pressure to your brush for a perfect stroke. Let your design dry completely and apply a coat of varnish.

If you are one who loves to give or donate handmade gifts, but is short on time, then this is the craft for you. Find a friend and take this class.

Happy painting!

Follow these steps to make your own One Stroke items. To view these steps pictorally, visit http://www.thesunchronicle.com/multimedia/wonders/index.html

Step 1: Gather your materials. Get paint brushes of varying widths and lengths together before beginning. It’s also helpful to learn and practice on a piece of wax or freezer paper before painting an actual item. Use a paper or Styrofoam plate as your paint palette.

Step 2: Load and work your brush. To load your brush, dip a corner of the brush into the first color. Then, dip the opposite corner of the brush into the second color, putting a dab of white at the end. Work the brush back and forth. Repeat this three times until 2/3 of the brush is loaded with paint.

Step 3: Craft the petals of a Johnny-Jump-Up. Hold the handle of the brush tip straight up with the dark color paint on top. Apply pressure and wiggle the brush to create a shell-design that actually is a petal. Repeat this step again next to the first petal. Then, put the brush head across the bottom of the group of petals already there with the light color on the right side. Hold the handle of the brush tip straight up and wiggle down. Repeat on the bottom of the other petal with the light color on the left side.

Step 4: Get centered. Load the brush with white and yellow on alternate sides to create a smaller, final petal in between the last two in the center of the flower. Use the end of the paint brush to make a yellow center. Step 5: Add details. Dip a thin, liner brush into a mix of water and purple paint to make the thin lines from the center onto the petals.

Step 6: Leaf time. Follow the brush loading technique with dark and light green. Hold the brush straight up, press down and pull up until the brush is straight up again.

Step 7: Practice makes perfect. Keep practicing your petals and leaves to get them to look perfect.

Linda Alger is the Administrative Assistant to the Attleboro Municipal Council and is a local artist who is very involved in the Attleboro art community. She can be reached at BEAKERALG@AOL.COM (please include the word "CRAFTS" in subject block). Any letters she receives may be used in future columns so please include your name and daytime telephone number.