After all that test work, those sketch paintings, and thumbnails, I can finally start. Here's where I am now:
My iced tea is there for size comparison. They're 3' by 4' canvases. I hand made the stretchers, and pulled the canvas myself. Considering my small stature, it was interesting. There's some blood hiding beneath that gesso...^^;
So this is how I start my paintings, a light charcoal sketch done with vine charcoal. That way I can plan out what I want without affecting the canvas too much, and without getting things mixed into the paint. D: I decided to keep the basic composition of the indoor scene, but make an outdoor setting. It'll be fun. Yes I know my sketches are nigh-incomprehensible.