In and Out of The Studio

Composition Lesson

2012-02-15T14:53:00.000-05:00

Still Life Composition Lesson and More Buttons

This morning in class we talked about the placement of objects on our paper. Not the right or wrong placement of objects, but how they relate to one another spatially.

The lower left pencil drawing was just drawing things as they were - no arranging or composing. We just drew what we saw, how we saw it. We were trying to place things up and down the picture plane showing the volume of the objects - that is, making sure they would really fit where we put them.

The top left watercolor is just a very quick, three object still life, sketched only with watercolor - no preliminary drawing. It was a salt shaker, a bottle of ink, and a spool of thread. This exercise was to get the objects in place without fussing at all with any detail.

The buttons are just more buttons. This is the beginning of a new session, and some of the students hadn't had a chance to see the button demo or try it for themselves. These buttons could become habit forming.

I see I am really behind with replies to comments. I LOVE your comments, and I will get right at it!

Rose

2012-02-14T09:53:00.001-05:00

A Peach Colored Rose
and a squirrel story

I finally got around to painting one of the roses. It was fun, and I'm pleased with the way it turned out. I may have done the whole bunch, but I was a little (a lot) distracted by the squirrel in the attic. I had recently watched an episode of the Hoarders in which a homeless person was living in the hoarders' stuff, and they didn't even know it. I swear that squirrel was moving things around up there. He found his way from the attic down to the enclosed back porch (several times) and sat in the rafters or right on the window sill and watched me in the kitchen. I went out the front door and went around the house to open the porch doors. His friends were frantic - they were hanging on the house here and there and weren't afraid of me at all. I must admit, I was afraid of them!

I determined from the looks of HIM (?) that he wasn't pregnant or nursing, so we were not dealing with a nest. This was an accidental break-in, so why wouldn't he just walk out one of the open doors???!!! He obviously didn't want to be here, and his friends didn't want him in here either, so just leave already. I was hoping that he was going to go out, and his friends weren't going to come in - I don't know how squirrels reason.

When my husband came home, he lowered the attic steps (they come down into the back porch) to make it easier for the squirrel to come down and go out the back door!!! I was in stitches - that was the funniest (most ridiculous?) thing I had ever heard of. I guess not so ridiculous after all - the squirrel left then. Not exactly down the stairs, but it obviously encouraged him to get the heck out of there.

It was pretty quiet when he left. A nice kind of quiet.

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

Library Demonstration

2012-02-10T11:27:00.001-05:00

Colored Pencils in a Mustard Pot

White Buttons

I have an exhibit of my paintings at our public library, and yesterday I did a reception/demonstration/book signing. A really nice bunch of people showed up. They asked a lot of great questions and were very enthusiastic. To those of you reading this, that were there yesterday, thank you so much for coming!

As I sit here posting this, I'm watching it snow, and watching the temperature drop on the digital thermometer. When I sat down to do this it was 16 degrees, and now a few minutes later, it is 14! We live in a very old house with large windows, and I'm sitting here looking down the street, over the rooftops toward the Bay. Yesterday the Bay was very blue - today it is completely obliterated by the snow. There are cardinals in the forsythia and lilac bushes, and there are always people walking within sight - crisscrossing the street as it goes down the hill.

Okay - I could sit here all day watching the snow, birds, and people, but I do have a few other things I want to do - like eat something.

What are you sketching today? I'm going to do those roses I keep talking about.

Using Cobalt Blue

2012-02-08T17:07:00.000-05:00

Color Mixing in my Sketchbook

I have probably posted small geraniums a million times, but . . . here are some more. I haven't used cobalt blue in a long time, and I think I've really been missing out. In real life (as opposed to photographing and posting) the cobalt blue in these mixes really glows.

I used cobalt blue and quinacridone red on each of the geraniums and switched out the yellows - using New Gamboge, Hansa Yellow, and Quinacridone Gold.

There are some beautiful roses on my work table just waiting to be painted. They are kind of a cantaloupe color. Gorgeous! I guess I am a little intimidated by the color and I am not a rose painter, but they aren't going to last much longer. What would happen if I failed? We all know absolutely nothing would happen! I would have had the fun of splashing around in paint. I would have loved drawing them and looking at the lights and shadows of that wonderful color. Just go do it.

What holds us back?

Ellie's Flowers

2012-02-03T09:33:00.000-05:00

Contour Drawing Demo

These flowers have been around for awhile - going on three weeks. I salvaged a few for my classes to do a very quick contour drawing and a fast swoop of color. It doesn't take much to get an impression of an object. I wish I had timed myself, so I could tell you exactly what " very quick" and "fast swoop" really mean. Wednesday's class wanted me to set the timer for ten minutes when they started theirs, and they were finished in much less time than that.

It is dark and gray here again! That's okay - I have some class promotion to do, I have a play-date with a friend, and Youngest Granddaughter will be here late this afternoon. Of course I also have some laundry, grocery shopping, errands . . . . . I don't think I'll do that stuff.

It's Friday - plan a date with your sketchbook.

Beads

2012-01-28T12:24:00.000-05:00

Paper Beads

My latest obsession.

For some reason I am really into paper beads right now. I am not very good at getting a nice tight roll, or keeping it centered and even. I'll either get better with practice, or move on to something else when I get sick of these. Either way, I'm just having fun - I'm not going into the paper bead business. In fact, I may never even string them - I love the way they look in this little white bowl.

The paper I used is book binding paper, scrap paper, and magazine pages. It needs to be thin enough to roll, but thick enough to make a substantial bead.

Now if I can tear myself away from all the pretty paper, I need to get creative with some promotional material. That sounds like it might be a little too taxing on the brain for a weekend, doesn't it?

Are you creating something this weekend?

Lunch at Jesperson's

2012-01-26T09:04:00.000-05:00

Tomato Soup with Garlic Croutons

This wasn't our usual Wednesday tomato soup place. The soup was nothing to write home about, but the croutons were delicious. That was my second piece of cherry pie this week. What's with that? I don't even eat desserts - not because I'm virtuous - I just don't care for sweets.

This is a contour (continuous line drawing) done with my Noodler's pen with periwinkle Noodler's ink.

I am looking out the front window toward the Bay and it is gray gray gray - sky, water, trees, everything. I guess I will just have to go do something colorful. I have this urge to make paper beads in bright colors. Maybe I should get dressed first. Get ready for this afternoon's class. Load the dishwasher ....... But those beads are calling me. Here I go.

Do something creative today. Anything!

Sunny and Cold

2012-01-22T16:35:00.000-05:00

Up to 23 Degrees!

I'm not crazy about this paper. I like the color, but not for winter. We need to color coordinate our sketchbooks for the seasons, you know. Blue would have been better - predictable, but better. I'm not really crazy about the texture of it either, so I should just move on to the watercolor paper that I do like, and use this for lists and notes.

I have a cold and my brain is feeling a little muddled, so I'm just sitting around eating cherry pie and drinking coffee. That's what you do for a cold, right?

Ellie's Chili and a Cutie

2012-01-12T19:44:00.000-05:00

A cutie in my sketchbook and the recipe for Ellie's chili

I love it that they call these little tangerine things cuties. I like the boxes they come in. I like the size of the cuties. I like the way they peel so easily. And, they are fun to sketch.

This was done with my Noodler's pen and Noodler's periwinkle ink on Mi Teint paper, which, in this case, is actually quite green - you'd never know it here. I used watercolor and white prismacolor pencil also.

On the right hand page is a recipe, more or less, for chili. I say "more or less" because I didn't write down any amounts. I was supposed to be teaching, not writing down recipes. I don't know "grillin' beans", but I think they are in the Mexican food section.

We discussed a lot of life's problems in class today, and even got some painting done. Such a fun and supportive group!

Happy painting. Keep those pencils, pens, and brushes moving!

Noodler Doodles

2012-01-11T21:02:00.000-05:00

Doodles and Figures

First of all, I am happy to say that our son is home from Afghanistan, safe and sound! He looked pretty good walking through that door. His wife and kids are pretty excited, we are very relieved, AND we all get another shot at Christmas this weekend. Fun!

The doodles were done with a Noodler pen with periwinkle Noodler's ink. The pen nib has a flex to it that allows it to make thick and thin lines depending on the pressure used. It's a lot of fun to doodle with, and I haven't tried any serious drawing with it yet.

The figures above the sketchbook page are little demonstrations that I did in class today. They're fun and easy - just stick figures with a little more body.

It's all fun - Noodler's doodles, figures - whatever. Even with your serious drawings, don't get too serious. It's all about the journey, not the finished product - that will usually take care of itself.

Buttons

2012-01-05T16:46:00.000-05:00

Buttons and Clouds

This week in my classes our "warm-up" was painting a few small white buttons. I can't take credit for an original idea here. I saw buttons done in watercolor posted on Pinterest and followed it back to the blog of Jane Minter.

In yesterday's class, we each took a few buttons, sketched them, and started adding shadows and detail and background. That's the one on the top right. Today's class did the little paintings by painting a very wet wash without mixing the colors up too much, and leaving some white of the paper in a few spots. We lifted some color here and there to leave some lighter spots for more buttons. This is the one on the bottom right. When the wash was dry we lightly drew some buttons, and then added a little detail and some darker shadows around the buttons.

The buttons at the top left were done in prismacolor pencils on Mi Teints paper in my sketchbook.
Bottom left - everyone in the class is working on a different theme, and this was a little demonstration for one of the students doing clouds.

The buttons have me thinking that it might be fun to do a series of very small things grouped together - thumb tacks, sticks of pastels, pen nibs, corks, combs and barrettes, pretty stones . . . what else?

I hope this will inspire you a bit. I think we all need a little help this time of year to keep our creativity going and our brushes moving.

Snowy Afternoon

2012-01-01T16:02:00.000-05:00

The One Blossom Christmas Cactus

This is the perfect afternoon to wind down the holidays. We are getting a lot of snow, so maybe this won't be the end - maybe we'll be snowed in!

I have spent a lot of time this past week puttering around the house, and it really felt good. I've been sorting through things in my studio, rearranging, spending time with the grandkids - one day they stayed in their jammies all day and played with modeling clay.

This afternoon my husband and I have both mentioned things we really should be doing, but we've been playing dominoes, listening to music, and watching it snow.

WISHING YOU A HAPPY, HEALTHY, AND CREATIVE 2012!!!

Lights on my Shelves

2011-12-23T09:40:00.000-05:00

On the Shelves In My Desk

It is quiet and dark here this morning. There is a little snow falling. Very peaceful. BUT - I have to get going. I still have a grocery run to make, some cooking to do, a table to set . . . We are doing Christmas Eve Eve dinner tonight. It won't be peaceful for long : ) Last year we set the table with blue and white, but I think this year we will put holly in glass vases and use crystal candle sticks. I know - you were dying to know that.

Okay. My mind is on things other than blogging, but I did want to drop in here to wish you all a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS! Have a great Holiday.

Cafe Sante

2011-12-19T12:13:00.000-05:00

Salt and Pepper Shakers at Cafe Sante

My dinner was not colorful, so the salt and pepper shakers will have to do. Yeah, I know, they aren't colorful either. Of course I was hungry, and I am always the last one finished, so doing salt and pepper shakers before the meal comes works out well for me. My husband, brother, and sister-in-law are very patient people, but there is a limit.

I had chicken fricassee, and it was delicious! The place was very crowded, noisy, warm and cozy. Fun!

The paper I did this on is Canson Mi-Teintes in my hand bound sketchbook. I think it is pastel paper, and this particular color is an olive-y green. I did the drawing with a Gelly Roll pen, then used watercolor, and added white with a Prismacolor pencil. Gelly Roll pens are permanent and archival, and an be found in scrap booking stores. Prismacolor pencils can be purchased open stock in most art supply stores.

Now I'm going to go wrap a couple of Christmas presents. I'm getting there. How about you?

Salt and Pepper Shakers Again

2011-12-12T12:30:00.001-05:00

Salad

I hadn't done this style salt shakers yet. They weren't exciting - just a little different than any in my "collection".

We went to the book store before dinner, and I found a book for my husband for Christmas. When I told the girl at the counter that this was my first Christmas gift purchase, she acted shocked. Come on - I was really pleased to be getting at it. Don't judge me.

Our Christmas tree is up! The lights are on. The cat has climbed it a couple of times. We are officially into the season. This week we have a Christmas event with my husband's library board members, and two grade school concerts - among everyday things that at times can seem overwhelming. It's okay - 'tis the season to be jolly - and we are!

How are your Christmas plans coming? Are you taking a few minutes to sketch some of your activities, ingredients, illustrate your gift list?

A Theme for December

2011-12-09T20:02:00.001-05:00

Measuring Spoons

I took a little blogging break, and now - where were we? Themes?

Back in the November 29th post, I mentioned using a different theme for each month. For December, I had listed dinner ingredients, labels, bottles and jars. With a theme in mind it is pretty easy to jump-start an idea for a sketch. I was getting out things to see what I need for holiday baking, and I was thinking about the labels on the can of cocoa and the bottle of vanilla. They weren't too interesting, but the measuring spoons caught my eye as a possible sketch. I threw in the sprinkles as an "ingredient" from the theme list.

For fifty some Christmases my mother made a certain kind of cookie with nonpareils, or sprinkles, on them. In November she would start to worry about the stores running out of them. They never did that I know of, but maybe. It does seem like a funny thing to worry about, but I must admit that I checked my supply a couple of weeks ago.

Do you have your sprinkles? Are you going to paint them in your sketchbook?

Themes

2011-12-01T21:55:00.001-05:00

Simple Figures

Often I will have my students choose a theme/topic/subject and work on it for several weeks. They will work through the whole process of being inspired by a theme, keeping their eyes open for their theme, sketching, working out the composition, planning the value pattern, and then, finally, getting right down to it and doing the painting. By the time they get to the painting, they are pretty inspired, have a plan, and it comes together pretty easily.

In my post of November 28th, I mentioned a few themes. This week was the beginning of a new eight-week session, and I handed out a list of ideas or thought starters. I don't want to bore you with the whole list, so here's the short version:
Passions
Light and shadow
A place
Every view from your porch
Figures
Tea, coffee, cups, pots, mugs, cafes
Interiors
Chairs of all kinds
Gates
Food and anything to do with food
Weather, nature

A few of the students have chosen to do portraits, some figures, one is doing "things around my house", another is doing "portals" such as doors, windows, gates, and another is doing landscapes. Several are still undecided, but I'm sure once they start looking around and thinking about the possibilities, they'll have trouble narrowing it down.

This is more fun and more personal than painting still lifes all winter that I set up for them.

Wow - I made it through November blogging every day, and here it is December 1st. Of course I'll keep blogging - don't think I'm going to keep quiet - but I really don't have anything interesting enough to blog every day. Thanks for putting up with me throughout November.

Day Thirty

2011-11-30T20:56:00.000-05:00

Alphabet Series

Continuing the series or theme idea, here is an example of the little alphabet sketches I did a couple of years ago. As I mentioned in a previous post, I did the drawings from things I could actually look at.

It made me look at things in a different way. I paid more attention to objects in my life, looking at everything to see if I wanted it for the series, and how I might place it in the very small format.

Fun stuff like self-imposed challenges gets us going when we think we don't have anything to paint. Don't get all hung up like I did on how to put it on the page - across the page spread? Up and down in columns? Just DO IT.

Day Twenty-nine

2011-11-29T16:54:00.001-05:00

Collections
Sometimes in my journal classes, I'll have my students look around for certain objects that interest them and paint several. It's a way of "collecting" things we like. Some of the collections have been stones, flower containers, ginger bread trim on cottages, windows, flags - just to name a few.

I have been "collecting" salt and pepper shakers everywhere I go. I do them in restaurants, even if I have done them before, or they are identical to some others. I guess I am collecting the experience more than the salt shakers. You'll find an even better variety in your friends' homes too.

If you're a little housebound (at least you're probably not out on the beach looking for stones) this time of year because of winter coming on, there are always things around you that are colorful and fun to sketch.

For example:

January - chairs, interiors
February - fabric folds, lace, patterns, curtains, tablecloths
March - perspective, buildings, streets, doorways
April - trees
May - figures - people and pets
June - lawn chairs, window boxes, planters
July - gardens, gates and fences
August - produce, farm markets, sunflowers

September - clouds, landscape,

October - fall vegetables
November - dishes, silverware, glassware, tablescapes
December - dinner ingredients, labels, bottles and jars

If you have some prompts, themes, or a series you have done, we would love to hear about it.

Day Twenty-eight

2011-11-28T13:13:00.000-05:00

Themes and Prompts

Ooops - back on Day Fifteen I said we would talk about themes. Sorry.

There are a few ways to use themes as thought starters - or painting starters - prompts. Themes can easily turn into a series. If you're doing a series, you almost always have something in mind to paint.

A few years ago in the winter I did some little sketches in my journal using the alphabet. The sketches were only about two inches square. The self-imposed criteria was that the subject had to be something real - something I could look at and draw.
Sometimes I have used a grid to set up some themes for a long weekend. I would use ideas such as "simple pleasures", "light and shadows", "tastes", "just being here". Art Escapes by Dory Kanter is where I read about this idea.
For some reason a few years ago, in the back of one of my sketchbooks, I made a list of my 100 favorite things. The list grew, of course. It would make a pretty good reference for painting and journaling ideas.
There are always the simple, quick sketches you can do in restaurants - the salt and pepper shakers everywhere you go, your water glass, your lunch.
Then there are subjects such as gates, doors, gardens, figures, every view from your porch . . .
And the more obscure themes such as passions, random thoughts, gratitude, spiritual . . .
There is always that view from a window every day for a year - watching the seasons change.

The possibilities are endless.

In the next day or two, I'll explain a little more about each of these and show some examples. Creative writers use prompts, and I think they work well for visual artists too.

Day Twenty-seven

2011-11-27T19:22:00.000-05:00

Wrapping up Thanksgiving Weekend

This is a sampling of the day, sketched on a journal page.

We did manage to get another lunch out of the leftovers, but we've hit bottom now. Well, there are two pieces of pie left. Tomorrow I will have to go to the grocery again. Aren't you always amazed that you have to go to the grocery store a few days after Thanksgiving??!! Planning, shopping, cooking . . . didn't you think that would take care of it for awhile?

I hope you're all set to start a new week. Do you have some sketching plans lined up? Maybe illustrate your to-do list? Your shopping list?

Tomorrow I'm going to post some ideas that I hope will inspire your journaling habit.

Day Twenty-six

2011-11-26T17:18:00.000-05:00

My Little Studio Mannequin

I'm just doing things today like watering plants, putting away the silverware, gathering up the tablecloths. Things are in disarray in every room of the house, but I don't want to rush into anything. I do have a couple of paintings buzzing around inside my head, and I don't want to lose that buzzing.

It was very dark and rainy today and felt nice and cozy inside. We had enough leftovers for lunch, but I suppose I may have to come up with something for dinner. Then, again, maybe not. Wow - feeling so lazy!

I do have to mat some paintings, and I have to make space to do it, so that will get me going. It will feel good to get back on track. And my new classes start next week!

Day Twenty-five

2011-11-25T21:09:00.000-05:00

My Kitchen Window Sill

I just thought I would show you a picture of where I have spent a lot of time in the past three days - and loved every minute of it. We had a great family Thanksgiving! We all grocery-shopped a lot, ate a LOT, cleaned up a lot . . .

Now everyone has left, and it is pretty quiet here - except for the dishwasher running.

Maybe it's time to settle down and watch a movie. I'll sketch something tomorrow. Promise.

Eating!

2011-11-24T21:25:00.000-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!!

We have been eating ALL day. That bingo turkey was fabulous.

During dinner we Skyped with our son in Afghanistan. Sooooo far away!

Sorry, no pictures today - we need to get in a few more games of dominoes before bed-time.
I hope everyone had a nice day.

Day Twenty-Three

2011-11-23T20:58:00.001-05:00

Pumpkin Pie

I know I should have sketched this, but I have reached the limit of my creativity for today. The local granddaughters and I have been to the grocery, made a salad, made two pumpkin pies, and set the table (very creatively, I might add) for Thanksgiving dinner. And we threw in fixing burgers for dinner tonight, playing Mario Kart, making place cards for the table, and I think somebody watched a movie in there somewhere. This has all been since about 4:30 this afternoon, and it is now almost 9:00.

I don't make the prettiest pie crust in the world, but I manage to get it in the pan, and it manages to hold the filling - and it is really pretty tasty. Good enough for me.

Is everyone in the United States cooking tonight?

Day Twenty-two

2011-11-22T22:13:00.000-05:00

Giverny, France, 1993

Yesterday I started a new sketchbook. Starting a new book makes me think fondly of the ones that have gone before it, and this is the one that started it all.

It was a fabulous trip. We painted in Monet's garden in the evenings after it closed. We stayed in a rented house and did our own cooking and had to get groceries in the next town - we didn't have a car. Once we hitched a ride on a vegetable truck. A little old grandma lived downstairs, and sometimes she would come up to see us. She always had a dog and two geese following along. She didn't speak any English but somehow we managed to communicate. One of her geese would make a bee-line to our pantry and pull out the bread. I went with two artist friends and the house was full of artists coming and going. We stayed about two and a half weeks - it was beginning to feel like home. Every spring I get a little homesick for the place. I've never gone back. It was one of those experiences that couldn't be duplicated. Maybe because they wouldn't want those crazy Americans back in the neighborhood.

Okay - back to reality. Back to cooking. Back to digging out the table linens.

Day Twenty One

2011-11-21T19:29:00.000-05:00

A New Orchid Blossom in a New Sketchbook

I thought I should sketch the orchid blossom, because somewhere along the line I'll want to know when it started to bloom again.

Last year when I received it in February, I did a couple of watercolor sketches of it. It bloomed until July! I had never had an orchid like this, and I was very surprised that they bloom for months! When it was finished, I cut the stalks back, and a new one grew - and here we go - it's blooming again.

This is a contour drawing (continuous line) done mostly while looking at the subject, not the paper. Although I do check the paper once in awhile to make sure I'm making the right connections. A contour sketch does take some concentration, and I must admit, I was thinking more about the grocery run I had to make in a few minutes. But I say any line is better than no line.

Day Twenty

2011-11-20T18:31:00.000-05:00

Apple Crisp

Could there be anything more colorless? But it was pretty tasty!

This afternoon I have been getting things ready for Thanksgiving dinner. I baked the sweet potatoes and the squash, fixed the fillings for two apples pies, and mixed up the crust for those and two pumpkin pies. I put everything in freezer bags, and I'm that much ahead of the power curve. In the middle of all this, I figured a few more apples sliced up into a pan for apple crisp was no big deal.

Our son, in Afghanistan, says he'll be thinking of us on Thanksgiving trying to replicate his green bean casserole. Oh - you mean there's a trick to it? A secret ingredient? You can bet we will be thinking of him too - green bean casserole or not.

What did you sketch this weekend?

Day Nineteen

2011-11-19T21:25:00.000-05:00

Lemons

I love lemons. They are ridiculously expensive by the piece - something like 79 cents each. I think that is a lot for a couple of table spoons of juice. A bag of seven was 2.99. I put them in a big fat glass vase on the kitchen counter so I can see and smell them. Before they go bad (I hope I'm paying attention) I'll squeeze them and freeze the juice and some of the zest.

I really have to get with it, and get things together for Thanksgiving. I worked on my list today. That's something, huh? I cleaned the fridge.

Who's cooking? Are you ready?

Day Eighteen

2011-11-18T22:19:00.006-05:00

A Pile of Paintings

I have a pile of paintings that need to be framed, so I ordered frames today, and will give the measurements to my husband so he can cut the mats and glass. There's one thing off my to-do list. And onto his.

I also sent out and posted the information for upcoming classes. Another thing off the list.

And then I went to the grocery store. That never really gets off the list,does it? While I was standing in the check-out line, a customer came up to me and asked if I wanted the coupon she had for $4.50 off $55 worth of groceries. Sure! How nice.

My friend, Karen, called, laughing hysterically. She was at a fund raising bingo event and had won a turkey. There is something pretty funny about playing bingo for a turkey - and winning. I mean does anyone even play bingo anymore? Well, I'm not knocking it - because she can't use the turkey, it is now in our fridge and will be coming here to dinner. I guess that should be AS dinner, not TO dinner. Thanks, Karen!

Are you sketching? Sketch some of the things you bring home from the grocery store, and some of the pretty dishes we all dig out of the cupboards this time of year. It only takes a minute or two to do a contour drawing.

Day Seventeen

2011-11-17T15:43:00.000-05:00

Salt and Pepper Shakers

My friend, Cathy, called this morning to say she was in town running errands - how about lunch? Today is Thursday, so they weren't serving their fabulous tomato Gorgonzola soup, and their loaded potato soup looked like it might be loaded with everything I am trying not to eat - cheese, milk, cream, butter - Yum. I ordered my favorite sandwich - hummus, roasted peppers, artichokes. . .so good! It was warm and cozy in the restaurant and we could have stayed all day, but life goes on.

November 17th. I just realized when I wrote the date in my sketchbook, today is the anniversary of the day my husband and I met. Years and years ago. He was in the Air Force, and when I met him, he was on his way from Key West to Omaha. He was gone for another year and when he came home we decided to get married. In the few months before our wedding, he worked nights and weekends and I worked days, so we still didn't see each other. How well could we have possibly known each other? Well enough, I'd say! Tonight is spaghetti night. I'll put candles on the table.

Day Sixteen

2011-11-16T19:34:00.000-05:00

A Simplified View Along the Shoreline

11 X 15 Watercolor

When I did this painting, I kept in mind my reason for painting it. It wasn't to render the cottage in detail, but to show the color of the cottage and the way it sets along the shoreline of the lake. There was another cottage to the left that I had put in the sketch, but it really didn't add anything to the composition. The simpler, the better.

If this had been a commission, it would have been another story. I would have paid attention to the detail of the red cottage, and I would have done the setting differently. In other words, I would have shown a bit of the cottage next door to give the red cottage a sense of place in the "neighborhood".

We had some snow and sleet late this afternoon - enough to stick on the rooftops. It may still be there, but I'm not looking. It's almost Thanksgiving, which means it will start snowing seriously any day now. That's okay - we don't have hurricanes, earthquakes, floods . . . A couple of years ago I did some winter landscapes. That was fun. Maybe I'll do some this year. No, I don't do them on location. I've said it before - I'm all about comfort.

Day Fifteen

2011-11-15T11:22:00.002-05:00

Color Scheme

I am not really a color scheme kind of girl. I don't like to be locked in to two or three colors in a room. A little bit of everything feels more comfortable to me.

My husband and I saw a picture of a bedroom with a red door, and we have to have it. I'll paint a little bed-side table the same color - WHEN I find it. I don't love all reds, in fact I don't live with much red, so I'll know the perfect color when I see it. Yesterday as I was leaving the flower shop after my volunteer flower arranging thing, I walked past the trash bin and there was this beautiful coral/red gerbera daisy. Close. Needs to be "rusted" just a touch, but not orange . . .

This morning one of the members of one of the groups I teach in the summer called to plan out next year's schedule. Fun. It makes a Northern Michigan winter feel a lot less bleak when I'm planning summer lessons. I know - live in the moment, but those moments are good planning moments.

How about thinking up some themes for winter sketching? We'll talk about that tomorrow.
Carry your sketchbook. Open it. Sketch in it.

Day Fourteen

2011-11-14T22:03:00.000-05:00

Peppers and Wine

and some of my favorite things - garlic, lime, lemon, and fresh herbs.

This is a painting I did for an auction with a wine and food theme at the art center this past summer . It was about six by six inches, matted twelve by twelve.

Here we are, nearly half way through the blog-everyday-in-November thing and I don't seem to be gathering momentum, do I? It was a busy day, okay? I was trying to get a couple of pieces of furniture second coated to get them out of the way, I did my afternoon of volunteering at the flower shop, my husband came home feeling crummy with a cold, our middle granddaughter is spending the night and had a lot of homework and needed help. How can they possibly think I am the one to help with the math!!?? I'm going to put a sign on the back door - "please take off your shoes and leave your math homework on the back porch". Just kidding about the shoes.

Day Thirteen

2011-11-13T19:38:00.001-05:00

Paintbrush

I spent the day painting furniture. It doesn't matter what you paint, right? Just as long as that paintbrush is moving? A couple more days of furniture and then it will be walls.

This is the point where I always get bogged down - things get torn up, and then I don't know how to follow through to finish. I'll just keep painting. I bought a gallon of white paint for window, door, etc. trim and a gallon of black for furniture. That's going to go a long way - I won't have to get back to real life for a long time. I may get a little sick of black furniture before the gallon is runs out.

Did you sketch something this weekend? Anything? Keep it simple - it's supposed to be fun!

Day Twelve

2011-11-12T19:40:00.001-05:00

Saturday Night Pizza

Our fat, dairy, white flour, and meat splurge of the week. We are trying to lower our cholesterol, so all week we are pretty good about sticking to a healthy diet. Saturday nights we treat ourselves to pizza. Sometimes we make our own, but often we are in the middle of some weekend project, and suddenly we are tired and hungry, and it's time for pizza.

This weekend's project is way off track. While we were in the middle of discussing the re-do of the kitchen and dining room, we decided to redecorate the bedroom. We spent the day cleaning closets, painting window trim, getting rid of things that really didn't need to be in there, buying paint, going over paint chips, and looking at carpet, mudding some bad spots in the plaster, and on and on. It was fun - of course we aren't finished, but I'm hoping this doesn't drag on too long. Things can do that around here.

I hope you're treating your sketchbooks to pizza or dinner out. I hope you're treating yourselves to a nice relaxing weekend - or a nice productive weekend - whatever feels good.

Day Eleven

2011-11-11T17:25:00.001-05:00

The Last of the Red Hot Blossoms

This has been on its way out for quite awhile, but this last blossom is really hanging on. It's a great color - somewhere between red and "hot" coral. I think it is a Kalanchoe Calandiva. If the leaves stay nice, I may try to keep it going to see if it will blossom again. It can live with my messy geraniums that I keep shuffling around.

A strange day today - it feels like a Saturday. My husband took the day off, and Middle Granddaughter was here because there was no school. It is one of those things that throws off the days of the week - in a nice way.

Day eleven of blogging every day in November. I have nothing exciting to say or show, but I am hanging in there. I can tell from my stats that you are too. Thank you for "listening".

Day Ten

2011-11-10T11:47:00.000-05:00

Indigo Sky

This is a scribbly little watercolor done in my sketchbook on Strathmore drawing paper.

More than anything else, I was trying to record the contrast of colors as I looked out the front window. It is raining/sleeting/snowing, and the sun is shining very brightly periodically, but the sky is VERY dark in the north. A very interesting, beautiful, dramatic day - and I can hear geese "barking" as they head south, away from that black sky. They don't know what they'll be missing. Just as I don't know what I'll be missing where ever it is that they go.

I did dig out a couple of Julia Cameron books and I'm feeling more creative already. Is Julia Cameron my little creativity pill? She's one of those "just do it" people, and I need that once in awhile. I have always said you can paint whether you are in the mood or not. I guess I just forgot my own advice for a week or two (or more).

Now I'm going to round up some objects for a still life for this afternoon's class. It's a warm colors kind of day - maybe with a little glass added to the set-up. Maybe the round bottle with the plant cuttings from my post a couple of days ago, and a few pieces of pottery. We'll just see what falls together.

Happy painting!

Day Nine

2011-11-09T16:29:00.000-05:00

The Living Room Window

This is a very quick contour drawing with a little color. Just do it.

We talked in class this morning about jump starting creativity . We all know it is just a matter of doing it. It certainly doesn't have to be a masterpiece - it just has to be SOMETHING. We spent a lot of time mixing greens. Greens are always tricky and get us thinking about what colors do in a mix.

I dug out a couple of Julia Cameron books - The Artist's Way and The Right to Write. I may not have time to read them - I'll be too busy painting.

Day Eight

2011-11-08T16:04:00.000-05:00

A Contour Drawing in my Sketchbook

This is ink on drawing paper. Sometimes I will do watercolor on this paper, and sometimes I just like the look of the ink.

I am in kind of an uncreative funk. I figure if I just get my pen, pencil, or brush moving, I'll work my way out of it. I am in a dry spell and don't have a plan, so I've decided I just move on without a plan. One of my very favorite quotes is by Julia Cameron: "You may find yourself to be temporarily without a vehicle - just keep walking." Maybe it's time to read Julia Cameron again. She wrote The Artist's Way, and several other very similar books. So similar, in fact, that if you've read one, you've read them all, but I like her style, so I have read them all

Tomorrow I have class. They'll get me going. Actually, I had better get going before that - they are paying me to get them going. No problem - it is always easier to have a plan for someone else.

Day Seven

2011-11-07T19:15:00.000-05:00

In My Studio

While puttering around and going through old sketches, I came across this drawing I had done a few years ago. It seemed appropriate to post while I was going through sketches in my studio. Also because I didn't do anything else to post today.

It was a nice sunny day here, but I went out to buy windshield washer fluid (good to 20 below) and boots. I'm ready. I had a whole list of things to accomplish today, but you know how it goes.

Now I am helping with 5th grade math homework. Thank goodness for calculators!

Day Six

2011-11-06T15:52:00.000-05:00

Very Small Demonstrations

These are a few little demonstrations that I'll stick in my lesson demo binder. I have various categories - figures, color mixing, fabric folds, negative spaces . . . I know you didn't need to know that, but remember, I am trying to blog everyday for the month of November, and I have to say something. Because I am going through "stuff", as mentioned in yesterday's post, it seemed fairly appropriate to say that.

I just looked at my studio clock and realized I have not changed the time on it, so I have an extra hour. Fun. However, I am afraid in that extra hour, I still won't know what to fix to eat. Okay, I get it - it is not that I don't know WHAT to cook - it's that I don't WANT to. So now the question is - what do I WANT to cook when I make up my mind that I DO want to cook? A nap will help.

Day Five

2011-11-05T18:11:00.000-05:00

Brushes and Palette

It's a lazy day here, which is really pretty nice. I've been going through stacks of papers, shredding and filing. I've been throwing away all those little scraps of watercolor paper that I do little demos on - a cloud, a wave, a leaf . . . It really all piles up, and by the time I sort through it, it is all unnecessary and not where I would find it anyway.

When I sort through things and spiff up my painting area, it always inspires me to really get painting. My goal, of course, is to get through the sorting process in a hurry, so I don't lose the inspiration. I come across sketches and lesson plans that I had forgotten about, and if I don't hurry, they'll get shuffled into another pile, to be forgotten again.

Okay, here I go, back to the drawing board - literally.

How is your weekend? What is inspiring you?

Day Four

2011-11-04T13:39:00.000-05:00

Little Chairs

Are these "little dolls chairs", "little doll's chairs", "little dolls' chairs", or "little doll chairs"?

A student brought these to me for drawing props. This a contour drawing I in my sketchbook. I didn't have enough concentration left to finish the right side, so I just threw in a border. Works for me. Don't forget, when you are drawing in your sketchbook, it is your sketchbook - you can do anything you want.

The cream sauce I made last night worked out great. I used olive oil, whole wheat flour and unsweetened almond milk. I also used some onions, mushrooms, and, of course, garlic.

We have SUNSHINE today. Maybe I should get out there and soak it up before it turns to snow. At least when it snows I won't have to feel guilty about the yard work I am not going to do.

Day Three

2011-11-03T15:26:00.000-05:00

Pomegranate

Day three of Blogging-Everyday-In-November. I know I should be linking to the website that does this challenge - maybe tomorrow.

We got a lot of things discussed in class this afternoon - everything from the body found in the creek a short distance from here to Herman Cain's smoking ad. Oh yeah - we did discuss triads and color mixing for a minute.

Now I'm going to go try to make a mushroom cream sauce using almond milk. What do you think? Is it possible? I'll let you know tomorrow how it comes out. In the meantime, sketch some little thing - a piece of fruit, a mushroom.

Day Two

2011-11-02T17:27:00.001-05:00

Triads

Today in class we played around with various triads. We do this every once in awhile. I feel it kind of simplifies things - gets us back to basics as far as color mixing is concerned.

A triad is the use of the three primary colors - red, blue, and yellow - or some variation of the primaries. A very basic triad is ultramarine blue, quinacridone red, and lemon yellow. A stronger, more dramatic triad might be pthalo blue, quinacridone burnt scarlet, and quinacridone gold. Using a triad (as opposed to using the whole palette full of colors) sets the mood of a painting, and makes for a pleasing harmony of colors.

It has been very dark and raining all day. I have little princesses in sparkly dresses here today, playing Christmas carols ( ! ) on the piano.

Day One

2011-11-01T12:04:00.000-05:00

“Be aware of wonder. Live a balanced life - learn some and think some and draw and
paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.”
Robert Fulghum

For a couple of reasons I'm posting this picture of me as a five year old (?) again. Every couple of years I post this because, first, I really like the quote and the picture reminds me of who I really am (some things never change) and the second reason - I CAN NOT FIND MY CAMERA CORD!

This is the first day of Blogging Everyday in November - and for the month I am going to try to be aware of wonder. My sketchbook helps me do that - it makes me much more aware of things around me. I'm always looking for shapes and color, and beauty in general.

On my way now to pick up a friend to go to the grocery. We are cooking together tonight, so we are shopping together too. Spaghetti night at the Carey's.

Be aware of wonder!

Squash

2011-10-28T16:18:00.000-05:00

Squash and Hot Peppers

Watercolor on Arches Cover Cream Paper

This was a demonstration in simplicity and color application in my Thursday afternoon class. I love the colors of fall vegetables, although this would be pretty much nothing without the hot peppers. We cooked that cut squash for dinner - I didn't add the hot peppers. I don't mind a little kick, but I am not quite sure how to tell what "heat" I'll end up with when I'm cooking it myself.

There was a little ice this morning on some water in a container in the backyard, and then later in the morning it actually snowed - great big flakes for quite awhile. I am just not ready for this.

Painting in Karen's Garden

2011-10-24T14:50:00.001-05:00

Painted at the End of the Season

I painted this back on September 1st. I needed something to post. I could say I have been neglectful because I am saving myself for "Blogging Everyday in November". Yeah, I'm gonna say that.

My creativity seems a little sluggish, but we all need a break now and then, so we can come back ready to go. I played Mom to the two local granddaughters for a few days, I bought a "new" car (halleluiah!), I have gone through many boxes of Christmas decorations and pared it all down to one medium sized tote, I have done a pretty good job of putting the garden to bed, and I even got the leaves raked up and out to the curb for the pick-up - that was accidental, but still . . . .

I am finally getting into my autumn nesting mode and I have to go with it before it fades. It's the only time anything gets cleaned and grubbed out around here.

How is your autumn nesting going?

Lunch at the Twisted Olive

2011-10-12T19:42:00.000-05:00

My Lunch Sketched on Arches Cover Cream Paper in My Sketchbook

Food Blogging Again

I had a veggie burger on flat bread, orzo, and hummus. The veggie burger was made with chickpeas (left whole - how did they stay together!!!???) lentils, zucchini, and carrots - served on Naan flat bread with tomatoes and lettuce. I don't know why I felt compelled to give you all the details, but, there they are.

Beautiful beautiful beautiful weather here for the past few days. It's been a busy week, and oops, I didn't go to life drawing tonight. Maybe I need a little break from life drawing.

Okay - not to overdo the food blogging, but I think I will go roast some Brussels sprouts now.

Have you sketched some food today?

Carrots and Onions

2011-10-07T11:20:00.000-05:00

Vegetable Demo

These were a couple of very simple demonstrations in classes this week. We are always talking about composition, and I'm always stressing painting quickly and with a large brush. I wasn't trying for a good composition with the carrots (good thing 'cause I missed the mark if I was) but just trying to show how to paint a bunch of something without getting hung up on every individual part of it. Onions are always fun to do - the texture, color, and the hairy looking roots.

It's warm here today. As much as I dislike cleaning up the garden in the fall, I think I'll get myself out there and get a few things done. Everything is finished blooming, and it's 74 degrees! Okay - here I go. Where ever you are, is it still warm enough to work in your garden? Can you get in any last minute sketching in the garden?

Yoga/Painting Workshop

2011-10-02T16:38:00.001-05:00

Demo in my Sketchbook

Saturday morning I did a workshop with yoga instructor, Sandi Jones. She started off with an hour of yoga, and then I did sketchbook journaling instruction for two hours.

It was so much fun - everyone was so relaxed and very willing to try new things. They painted loosely and quickly, and really let go of perfection. Maybe every painting class should start out with yoga.

I had been feeling a little stressed for the past few weeks - just a lot of stuff going on. When I got home from the workshop, I stretched out on the couch in the sun, and I SLEPT for two or three hours. It was great. Talk about relaxed!

So here we are, into October. I'm finally feeling ready for a new season - was it the nap, the yoga, the beginning of October with fewer things to do? What are your creative plans for this season?

A View from Hitchcock Hall

2011-09-30T08:14:00.001-05:00

A Watercolor Journal Sketch from Late Summer

A sketch from late summer - wow - that seems like a long time ago. It is cold, very dark, and raining here today, and the leaves are turning.

It's fun to look through my sketchbook at the summer sketches. Summer here is crazy-busy, fun, and beautiful. I'm doing a pretty good job this year of moving on - transitioning into the quieter season. I've been busy with classes, workshops, and family. I always get into a nesting and organizing mode about now, but that hasn't happened yet this year - it still could, of course. I hope so - we could use a little organizing around here.

Now I'm going to go pack up my things for a mini workshop I am doing tomorrow. I hope you're all going to carry your sketchbooks around with you this weekend. I hope you're going to open them and paint in them!

Weekend Sketch

2011-09-27T14:42:00.001-05:00

Salt and Pepper Shakers and a Couple of the Grandkids

We spent a family weekend at a downstate hotel, seeing our son off as he deployed to Afghanistan. As difficult as that was, we had a really nice weekend together. Some woman came up and tapped me on the shoulder as I was ordering a Starbucks and said, "There are a lot of weddings here this weekend, but there are also a lot of people here that are deploying. Just so you know". Just so I know?! Yeah, I know! Did I look like I was having too much fun ordering my coffee?

This sketch was done on Nideggen paper in my sketchbook. I did the salt and pepper shakers at dinner, and one of the kids thought I needed the beverage menu as a backdrop. It would have been a good one to do in color.

I have a class tomorrow morning, so I had better go work on some sketches, so my students think I've been doing something. They keep me on my toes.

Cedar Campus

2011-09-22T11:01:00.001-05:00

Cedar Campus on Northern Lake Huron

in Michigan's Upper Peninsula

I attended a women's retreat here Friday and Saturday. Such a beautiful spot. I wish that I had taken a picture of the moon on the water - spectacular!

Last night was our life drawing group, and I was just too tired to go. But I went anyway and, boy, did it feel good! I really struggle with life drawing, but I enjoy doing this once a week. It feels so positive - I'm struggling with it, but doing it anyway because I want to LIKE it. I'm getting there.

Keep those pencils, pens, and brushes moving!

Flowers from Joanne

2011-09-16T07:57:00.002-05:00

Workshop Demo

This watercolor sketch is of a small part of a huge, beautiful bouquet given to me by friend Joanne during the book binding/journal painting workshop. That was a week ago, and the flowers are still going strong. Except for the lily that Rudy the cat got a little too friendly with - it has shredded petals and he has an orange-stained face. Looks good on him. Ooops - maybe not so cute! A quick call to the vet - they say he's okay.

Last night we had a freeze warning. I had intended to go out and cut the flowers in the cutting garden, but I forgot all about them. From the window this morning, they look okay. I did bring the geranium pots into the porch. I just hate to see the flowers get zapped while they are still blooming.

Okay, I'm babbling. Gotta go finish up a painting that is everything I tell my students not to do. Rules are made to be broken. Sometimes a painting just happens.

Dinner After Class

2011-09-14T13:13:00.000-05:00

Portobello Panini

Spell check needs to move into the 21st century. It thinks portobello should be "potbelly" and panini should be "panic". It kind of upsets me that spell check doesn't know what it's doing. Kind of like going into the fabric store and the girl at the cutting counter doesn't know how to figure your yardage. Not that that's ever happened. If someone or something, as the case may be, doesn't know more about something than I do - we're in trouble.

I did this sketch in my hand bound book last week after day-one of our book binding workshop. It felt good after a day on our feet to sit down and have someone set delicious food in front of us. It is really hard to paint it instead of digging in to eat it, but it does make the whole eating and talking with friends experience even more fun.

In the previous post, I mentioned something about buying a larger bag to carry painting things in. I try to keep the supplies to a minimum, but now I can't stop thinking about buying a new bag. I'm really not a purse kind of girl (once a girl, always a girl) and I'm not a shopper, but maybe. I kind of like those big baggy purses. I'm always a few steps behind - are they out of style?

Lunch - book binding in September

2011-09-12T14:32:00.001-05:00

Lunch

During last week's book binding/journal painting workshop we sat in the sun in big comfortable Adirondack chairs, painted our lunches, and talked about food, gardening, cooking . . .

The two days of the workshop, Thursday and Friday, were absolutely perfect - warm and sunny. And the sketchbook journals that were made were absolutely beautiful - colorful and creative.

The idea of having the journal painting day as part of the bookbinding workshop is to get the book binders to "bond" with their books. The books take a whole day to make and are very precious - not something you'd mark up, throw in your paint bag, possibly goof up a page here and there - unless of course, you were paying someone to coax you into making those first marks in your book, and you find out how much you and your book like being together. You might even get a little obsessive about having your book with you at all times. You might even find that you use it to, not only sketch in, but jot down notes and lists, directions and ideas. You might even buy a roomier purse for your sketchbook and a little palette.

Since I've been carrying my sketchbook with me all the time, I find that I look at life around me with a little more appreciation. I see more colors and shapes, shadows and patterns. I guess if you look through my sketchbooks, you'd notice a lot of the colors, shapes, shadows, and patterns that I see are food related. Whatever gets ya goin', huh?

Walloon Lake

2011-09-06T15:47:00.000-05:00

Walloon Lake at the Foot

The Foot is at the southern-most end of the lake. And - it's shaped like a boot.

I still have sand in my sketchbook. That's okay - every part of our sketchbooks is all about "being there". Now this feels like a long time ago. Another season. It's cold this morning and some of the kids started school today.

When our kids were little, we lived near a lake with a nice beach, and we spent a lot of time there all summer. The whole neighborhood would be there every day. FUN. And then the kids would start school and the moms would still go to the beach once in awhile. After three months of having our eyes glued to the kids in the water, it was fun to soak up the sun, sand and water without being concerned for anyone's safety. Always felt a little guilty about that though. Did they know we went without them?

Today I'm working on class promos, planning, and catching up on emails. I will be sending out emails and posting info on an upcoming Yoga and Painting morning I'll be doing with a yoga instructor friend, and another bookbinding/journal painting workshop. Getting geared up for the new season!

Walloon

2011-09-04T07:27:00.000-05:00

Contour Drawing in my Sketchbook

I did this sitting under a big tree, talking about, and listening to friends talk about, composition and value.

In a contour (continuous line) drawing I don't worry about composition, and of course, as you can see here, there is no information about value (lights and darks). I'm just recording what it is about the subject that interests me. In this case, it's the vertical lines of the tree trunks and the horizontal line of the distant shore. I had intended to put a little watercolor on this, but I really like the simplicity of the lines.

This is labor day weekend. We don't have any big plans. The grandkids have been in and out. A few very large (3 to 4 inch) slugs have been in and out, and one pretty large toad. We put the toad in the cutting garden and then we googled "what do toads eat". They are actually carnivores and they eat slugs! The balance of nature - right in our own back yard. I just don't want to witness that one.

Painting with Isabelle

2011-09-01T15:58:00.002-05:00

Late Summer Flowers in my Sketchbook

Just a quick little sketch while sitting on the porch painting with Youngest Granddaughter a few days ago. She did some bright and colorful things to cut out and decorate the porch walls.

It still feels like summer here. It is fabulous!!!

As my classes slow down and I fill my life with other fun and creative things, I'm thinking maybe this year I'll avoid the annual autumn-crash-and-burn. I have a list of goals for the winter, a couple of deadlines, classes and workshops lined up, a volunteer thing I do (tiny - I need to ramp it up), and the life drawing group I go to once a week. Speaking of life drawing - can I show that stuff on this blog? Yes, of course, I know I can - this is the Internet - I can do anything.

It's Thursday - spaghetti night at the Carey's. Then I am off to paint with friend Karen.

Workshop Demo

2011-08-31T13:58:00.000-05:00

Large Raspberries, Small Fuzzy Peach, and Birdhouses

This page was done in my sketchbook on "Arches cover cream" paper.

Cathy Cohen and I just finished up a two day bookbinding/ journal painting workshop. As always, it was fun! It was a great group and their books are beautiful! The weather was perfect for outdoor journal painting.

Oh, wow - this is the last day of August! I can't believe how fast it has gone. A couple of posts back, I said things were slowing down. Maybe not. I haven't noticed it anyway. I think I am filling in the spaces with other things. If I slow down, I may feel obligated to clean up things around here. This morning while I was trying to make the house a little presentable for my Wednesday class, I was finding blue paint and dust bunnies everywhere. For some reason, I feel that the blue paint is a little more acceptable than the dust bunnies. Am I right?

Lucia's Coffee Cup

2011-08-25T19:16:00.001-05:00

Coffee Cup and Cherries

The coffee that was in this cup was fabulous and the cherries were huge and very sweet.

I spent the morning with some painting friends on Walloon Lake. Although the lake was beautiful, it was too cool and windy to paint outside, and we were too caught up in conversation to paint the view out the large expanse of windows.

I purposely chose this coffee cup for its colors and pattern, and because I liked it with the napkin and the cherries. While I painted this, we talked about paint colors, papers, brush shapes, refinishing floors and organizing closets. We also discussed sugar-free diets while we ate the best pecan rolls and little sugary raspberry filled things.

On a cool, windy morning it was such a nice place to be - such a pretty, welcoming home, and fun friends to laugh and paint with. I find it so inspirational to spend time with other people that like to paint. The closet organizing thing doesn't turn me on though.

Bay View Street Scene

2011-08-22T08:25:00.000-05:00

Wrapping up the Season

This journal page was done last week, the last week of my journal classes in Bay View. I hate to see it end. I have plenty to do to get ready for fall classes and workshops, so I'll quit complaining and move on. I also have a lot of fun things planned for the week - a volunteer afternoon, two days with grandchildren, a day of painting with friends, my life drawing session, a watercolor class to teach . . . Fun stuff.

Have any of you been doing thumbnail sketches? I keep a stack of pages printed up with 2 X 2 1/2 inch rectangles right on my work table to remind me to PLAN PLAN PLAN before I start a painting.

Our sketchbook journals are for fun - no planning required.

A Few More Value Sketches and Composition

2011-08-20T16:01:00.001-05:00

Thumbnail Sketches

I'm still at it - doing thumbnail sketches.

On the right are seven sketches done with various pens, pencils, charcoal, conte crayon . . . This was just to show my students how each one worked in a very small (2 X 2 1/2) and very quick value sketch. Although charcoal is a mess and I'm not crazy about the way it feels against the paper, I do like the way it blocked in the shapes and the lights and darks without any chance of time consuming detail. It is the second one down in the right hand column.

The sketches on the left are various compositions of one subject done in Prismacolor pencil, 90% warm grey. There are unlimited possibilities for compositions and the arrangements of light and dark shapes.

Things have started to slow down a bit, class-wise, but my brain hasn't received the message. I have classes and workshops coming up really soon, so I have plenty to keep me busy, but I thought it would be nice to "turn it off" for a couple of days before I start to re-group.

Did I mention that I have joined a life drawing group that meets once a week? My friends know what a big step this is for me - I don't like figure drawing. I really don't like it. The things is, I WANT to like it, so I'm going to the sessions. My right brain is working so hard, I can barely function when I get home - function, as in find something in the refrigerator to eat. Now that's pretty bad for me. My husband says this is good for me - it may be the way some of my students feel when they are just beginning, and now I know how it feels. I apologize to any of you that I may not have shown proper sympathy. I don't give refunds for lack of sympathy, but I do apologize.

Value Sketches

2011-08-12T07:33:00.002-05:00

More Value Sketches

Value sketches are such a quick and easy way to plan a painting - lights, darks. mediums - there ya go, all planned out. Maybe it's me. Maybe I'm not making it clear enough. Almost everyone wants to skip the sketches, or make them way too large, or way too detailed. Someone in class that ended up with a beautiful painting said, "It took me fifteen thumbnail sketches to get that." Good for her! That means she could have gone through fifteen failed paintings before she did the one she was happy with. She stuck with it and planned it out, and the thumbnail sketches really only took a few minutes.

Here's my plan - I'm going to hand out paper that has several two-inch squares on it and felt tipped markers.

I do realize that the process that I find most helpful is not necessarily right for everyone. However, I do think thumbnail sketches to plan the values and composition are important. It's one of those things "if you don't know where you're going, you're not going to get there." My whole life is "I don't know where I'm going" but at least I can control my thumbnail sketches.

Wesley's Lane

2011-08-10T14:08:00.002-05:00

One of my Favorite Places to Paint

There is a little lane with cottages backed up to it, that runs along a park-like area where there once was a railroad bed. On the front side of the cottages is the Bay. I love it here. I love the back doors and casual porches and the roof lines of the years worth of additions on each cottage. There is no pretense here, just some beautiful window boxes and laundry on the clotheslines. If you stepped out of your time machine onto this lane, you wouldn't know where in history you are. Well, yeah - the cars.

I'm catching up a little on sketchbook posting and am sitting on the back porch watching the humming birds. They come to the trumpet vine and phlox that are right by the back door.

This morning there was a six inch slug sliming his way around the porch. I opened the back door into the garden, hoping he'd find his way out. He didn't. My hero/husband came to the rescue. The slugs are just too big and icky to squash. My husband has been known to take them on a shovel and dump them in the middle of the street, hoping they will get run over before they find their way back home. I suppose we'll hear from some animal rights activists about this? I guess it is more humane to let them drown in a saucer of beer. Except the big ones don't drown - they just drink their fill and stagger away. Ick. They make me shiver!

Cosmos

2011-08-02T19:54:00.001-05:00

A Little Bouquet of Cosmos, Asters, and Ageratum

Because I carry my sketchbook around with me I use it to store information like most people use their electronic devices. There is no "delete" in my sketchbook, so I glued some Aquarius II watercolor paper over some information that I didn't need anymore. I hope I didn't need anymore.

The drawing on the left was done with a Pentel Sign pen, which is water soluble. The one on the right was drawn with a sepia Prismacolor colored pencil, which is not water soluble, and then I painted over the pencil with watercolor.

Someone in class today had a Tombow brush pen. Now, of course, I think I have to have one of those. It was sepia and had a brush pen at one end and a regular pointy nib at the other. She was doing some absolutely beautiful drawings with it. Oh, wait. Maybe it was her talent and not the pen that was making that magic. Anyway, Beverly, if you're reading this, those were wonderful drawings!

Planning a Painting

2011-07-29T17:02:00.002-05:00

Value Studies and Composition

In my classes this week we talked a lot about composition and values (lights and darks). I'm trying to get across the idea of starting out with very simple shapes in the planning process. If we get all invested in the drawing at that stage, we are not going to have the time or the inclination to start over if that's not the one that works. And often, the first one is NOT the one that works. There are so many possibilities to try, and it takes a lot less time to do sketches that don't work than paintings that don't work.

I find the planning part of the process a lot of fun. I like getting all comfy with a cup of tea, a glass of wine, or a bag of potato chips and just playing around with those shapes and values.

The cherry tomatoes were in our CSA share this week. I drew them with a Pentel Sign Pen that my friend Cathy gave me. It is a felt tip pen with water soluble ink. I'm going to have to look around and see where to buy these, because I think I'm going to use it up real fast. The ink seems to move a little better than a Flair.

I am so easily influenced - I saw a sketch someone had done with a bamboo pen, so I ordered one of those. I'm hoping I can use it with watercolor, but I don't have a clue. Does anyone know anything about bamboo pens?

Terrace Inn Tea

2011-07-24T10:12:00.001-05:00

Strawberries and Devonshire Cream

This is a little sketch done in Prismacolor pencil and watercolor on Zerkall Frankfurt Cream paper. The paper sounds good enough to eat, doesn't it? It is not watercolor paper, and it does buckle, but I kind of like it anyway.

I did this at my second annual Terrace Inn Afternoon Tea. Twenty-one ladies attended and they all brought their watercolor journals and small paint kits. Their paintings were wonderful! We spent the afternoon in the beautiful dining room (linen tablecloths and watercolors do mix after all) painting in our journals, compairing supplies, and catching up. We painted a little before we started eating and then everyone painted between bites.

The very fact that the Inn lets us paint at the tables set with linen says it all. The whole staff is gracious, accommodating, and creative.

I love the idea of getting past, present, and future students together, and it's so much fun to discover new techniques, find out where to pick up new materials, and just to share some time with people with sketchbooks in common.

Thanks to all who attended!!! I'm looking forward to next year already.

Old Birch Tree

2011-07-18T09:06:00.001-05:00

Demonstration on Aquarius II Paper in my Sketchbook

This little watercolor sketch was done in last week's journal class. It was done to demonstrate mixing grays on the paper (the tree) and using negative spaces to pop out white objects (the daisies).

We had a perfect week for outdoor journal painting. This week we're getting some of that Midwest heat wave. If I had a journal class, it could get a little uncomfortable being out in the heat for four afternoons. But - I don't. I just have some morning classes and that should be okay. This morning I have nothing! In fact the only thing on my calendar for today was "no art in the park meeting". How often do we have a minus on our calendars?! Of course my to-do list is pretty long for the week - isn't everyone's? The first thing is to shovel out the house and hose it down. Kidding (kind of). I have art supplies on every surface, and the dust bunnies are taking over. I am really kind of looking forward to reclaiming our space - a little puttering is good for the soul. I am not even turning on any music - just listening to the neighborhood sounds.

The biggest problem is that when I start picking up art supplies and putting them away, I want to stop and play with them. A few minutes couldn't hurt, could it?

What are you sketching this week?

Beets

2011-07-15T08:27:00.003-05:00

Chioggia Beets

These beets really and truly are bright pink with light green leaves. I haven't cut into them yet, but I understand they are pink and white striped.

We have subscribed to a Consumer Supported Agriculture (CSA) share for the season. We go to the farm and pick up our share (we subscribe to a half share) each Tuesday, getting a beautifully arranged box of whatever produce is ready that week. I am having a lot of fun figuring out what to do with everything. The cat got quite sick from eating the fennel greens, but that was his choice.

A couple of our granddaughters were here last weekend, and we were having a great time chopping, tasting, and looking at the pretty colors. We made a beautiful big salad, and when I went to dish it up, they said in unison, "Oh, we don't eat salad - yuk."

It has been a busy and fun week - seven classes Monday through Thursday. Wonderful people in every class, and beautiful weather! Who could ask for more!?

Summer Sketching

2011-07-11T08:57:00.001-05:00

That Blue Pencil Again

I'm having a great time sketching with a blue pencil, as I mentioned in my previous post. The watercolor sketch on the left was first drawn with a blue Prismacolor pencil, the little contour drawing on the right was done with a Gellyroll pen, and the lettering across the top was done with watercolor in a pen nib - B5.

I am teaching an outdoor watercolor journal class starting this afternoon, and right now it is getting darker by the minute. WHY WHY WHY does this keep happening to me!? A watercolor journal class is supposed to be outdoors!!!! I don't even have a room to go into. I'm not completely stupid - I do know rain happens ( do I ever know it), so we have a porch we can go to for shelter. I just don't want to.

Here it is Monday already. I have a very busy week ahead - two watercolor classes, four afternoons of watercolor journal, and a morning with a private group. I am not complaining - I love this!

4th of July Etc.

2011-07-06T14:02:00.001-05:00

Pages in my Journal

I didn't get as ambitious with my weekend sketching as I intended, but a couple of two-inch sketches is better than nothing.

We had a nice 4th of July weekend. We did, however, run out of gas about midnight in the north woods - the gauge didn't work, and that's the truth. My big brother came to our rescue as he has done for years and years. I told the grandkids as they were beginning to panic a little, "If you don't have a little adventure, there's no reason to leave the house." My husband and the kids were in a parade in the morning, and then the kids were in another parade in the afternoon. After all that walking and sunshine, we LISTENED to the fireworks from the comfort of our own bed.

The journal page on the right is this morning's demonstration using a blue prismacolor pencil for the contour drawing. I like the look, but I can't take credit for it. I read about it in Cathy Johnson's new book Artist's Journal Workshop. The class met at a park on the Bay, and it was sunny and breezy. I think it was the first morning I haven't had to worry about a class meeting in the rain or cold.

Now I have a painting to finish, frame, and deliver, and then we'll meet some friends at the waterfront for a picnic. Summer in Northern Michigan!

White Geranium

2011-06-30T08:08:00.000-05:00

White Geranium Demonstration

This is a journal page done in last week's Watercolor Sketchbook Journal class. It was to done to show how to make the white blossoms stand out by painting a simple background color. The petals were also kept simple with just a few shadows.

Yesterday's quirky weather changed my plans for the afternoon drawing class. We had to find a warm place (it wasn't!) and do indoor-type drawing. The weather prediction was for 71 degrees - and it was that warm in nearby areas. It was 53 degrees here all day!!! We should be getting used to the low fifties, but come on - don't promise us seventies and then roll in the fog off the Bay that drops the temp by twenty degrees. Who's responsible for that anyway? The morning watercolor class stuck it out and did some great paintings. They had no choice - there was nowhere to go - we were committed.

Here in the USA we have the Fourth of July weekend coming up! What are your plans? How about doing a grid of small squares in your sketchbook and recording a few of the long weekend's happenings? Only a couple of minutes of commitment at a time makes it easier to tackle.

Pansies

2011-06-25T08:57:00.000-05:00

A Demonstration Page from Our Bookbinding Workshop

This was done during a sunnier, warmer week. This week I was doing two watercolor classes and four afternoons of outdoor journaling. It poured rain continuously! The participants of the outdoor class were really good sports. We met on the porch of one of the buildings in Bay View and we worked on techniques and painted things like flower pots, watering cans, color mixing, and did manage to get in a couple of Bay View scenes between storms.

It is a little too quiet here now. The California grandkids are heading down to the Detroit airport today. It was a wonderful visit! The month went by all too quickly. It's so hard to see them leave.

Moving on. The sun is shining today. I'm anxious to get out in the garden and see how much damage all the rain has done - and the deer. I have put out repellent things and sprayed liquid fence which has probably washed away by now.

I have a painting I should be working on, and with this sunshine, it looks like a good day to set up a little temporary studio on the back porch. Here I go.

Take your sketchbooks someplace this weekend!

Beverly's Lunch

2011-06-19T09:25:00.001-05:00

Painting Our Lunches at the Bookbinding/Journal Workshop

Beverly's lunch was more colorful than mine, and my salad was not conducive to a good composition. I should have followed my instructions to the students to bring a "paintable" lunch. I thought it was okay while I was packing it, but then I saw Beverly's. The lunch is always greener . . .

Our second two day bookbinding/journal workshop was a lot of fun, and there were some beautiful journals constructed. On the second day there were some great little watercolor sketches painted.

The Traders Joe's green tea mints box is my newest tiny palette. It has a see-through lid, which doesn't give me much in the way of a mixing area, but it sure is cute. It has seven half pans in it.

This coming week I have three new classes starting (which means six class meetings), a granddaughter's birthday party to attend, and the visiting grandchildren will return for a couple of days before they head on home to California. But, I'm not thinking about the "heading on home" part yet. With three new classes starting, I am feeling just a tiny bit stressed, but as my husband says, "If you aren't a little stressed, you're not trying hard enough".

Cathy's Birdhouse

2011-06-16T06:21:00.000-05:00

Bookbinding/Journal Workshop Demonstration

This birdhouse is in the garden of my bookbinding workshop partner, Cathy. Someday I'll go through my sketchbooks to see how many times I have painted it over the years. It makes a good subject for the journal painting part of our workshop. It is a good example of how contour drawing (continuous line) can simplify a complicated subject, and how to paint colorful neutrals.

We had a fantastic group in our Monday-Tuesday workshop, and another group begins today.

We've been having so much fun with the grandkids! Things have been relatively calm - no more crashing through window panes. Yesterday we took a tour through the new candy factory! The kids are at the other grandparents for a few days. I think I'll be okay with the quiet - I have to get ready for three new classes starting next week, and begin and finish a small painting. All fun stuff, and if it weren't for deadlines, I'd probably never do a thing. Well, maybe I would.

Modern Art in our Backyard

2011-06-12T15:47:00.000-05:00

My Latest Art Project

Looks a little like a Calder, doesn't it? Actually it is the collapse of our backyard canopy that we had put up for my workshop last Friday. A little rain and wind and this is what you get. You can do this too.

I am taking advantage of a little quiet time to finish packing up things for this week's bookbinding workshops. My husband and our son have taken all the kids to the KOA for a camping weekend. Friday night everyone was here and things got a little crazy - one over-turned coffee table, one lost cat who turned out not to be lost at all (the kids actually went around the neighborhood gathering up cats that looked like ours), one little hand through a pane of glass in the porch door - which thankfully did surprisingly little damage - to the hand, that is. Of course it totaled the window pane, but who cares. So, yeah, I'm taking advantage of this quiet time. Also looking forward to their return. Silly me.

Demo and Lunch

2011-06-07T07:39:00.000-05:00

A Demo for the First Friday Kick-Off

The page on the left started out as a demonstration of negative shapes. Someone in the class asked how I would handle this hanging basket. I was going to show them how I would handle the negative shapes, but when I put down the positive shape of the basket, I really felt that was all I needed to "say" in the little sketch. So the lesson turned into "try to know when you have said what you want to say, and then leave it alone".

Last night Bambi ate my orange petunias!!! Darn! In yesterday's comments Ginny suggested a deer repellant in bags, and one of my husband's library patrons suggested a repellent that comes in (or on) stakes that you put at the corners of your garden. I think I'll go to the garden center today and buy every repellent I can find. We live in the city. This is people territory, Bambi!

Early June

2011-06-06T15:23:00.003-05:00

Painting in the Garden

A beautiful day to sit in the back yard with a friend and paint, catch up on news, laugh, look through each other's sketchbooks, and look forward to a wonderful summer of painting. After a long gray winter, early June is SO promising!

The watercolor sketch on the right was done as a quick, ink, contour sketch. The one on left left was drawn in pencil first, then the watercolor was added, and the ink was done last. The sketch on the left took a lot longer to do than the one on the right, but I enjoyed getting lost in the slow deliberate process. I usually like to do my sketchbook watercolors quickly, but there's a time and place for slow and deliberate.

The deer have been devouring the asters in my cutting garden. The hoof prints barely miss the other plants. I'm afraid what they don't eat will get trampled - although from the looks of the prints they are being careful. Gee, thanks.

Summer Kick-Off

2011-06-04T18:05:00.001-05:00

This is a Demo from my First Friday in June Summer Kick-Off

Watercolor Sketchbook Journal Workshop

We had a great group - such fun. The weather was fairly cooperative - a little bit of everything from one extreme to the other, but not bad. From past experience, I think I can accurately say that the first Friday in June is always QUIRKY.

This page in my sketchbook is showing how to just let the colors mix on the paper without mixing on the palette at all. When working with a very small palette, sometimes we run out of space for mixing and may not have extra water for cleaning off the palette. So besides giving interesting and pleasing results, mixing on the paper is convenient. I was using very basic colors - ultramarine blue, hansa yellow, quinacridone red and a little manganese blue and cobalt violet. There is a little bit of a learning curve to figure out how to have enough water to let the pigments float around and mix without flooding the sketchbook page.

So here we go - that was the Kick-Off - the beginning of a very busy summer full of classes and workshops. I am soooo looking forward to it.

At the top of this blog there is a tab that links to my classes.

Orange Orange Orange

2011-05-26T08:41:00.003-05:00

Ink and Colored Pencil on Strathmore Drawing Paper in my
Hand Bound Sketchbook

I'm done. Colored pencil is just too labor intensive for me. Every time I use acrylics or colored pencil, I remember what it is about watercolor that I love so much - you swoop through with a brush load of color and there, you've got it. It's the swooping.

I happen to be a pretty big fan of orange, and I have never come across orange geraniums or petunias until this year. The Calendula is actually my favorite shade of orange, but I'm pretty crazy about the others too.

Starting on the left, I worked my way across the page doing a contour (continuous line) drawing. I really don't know the techniques of working with colored pencils, but since this is my journal sketchbook - no masterpieces allowed - I'm not worried about technique.

There's a long weekend coming up. I hope you find time to have some fun with your sketchbook.

Oregano

2011-05-24T12:39:00.002-05:00

A Pot of Oregano and Some Planning

I wanted to do a quick little sketch of this bright pot before I planted it. I know it's better off in the garden, but it sure was cute in its bright red container.

This past weekend we did a lot of yard work and the weather was great. It's in the 40s today. We built some raised garden beds for my cutting garden and a small herb garden. I did a ton of weeding, "staked out" my birdhouses (shown in the previous post), planted my perennial herbs, bought a truck load of garden soil . . .

I'm getting things crossed off my summer to-do list.This morning I went over to the Terrace Inn and we planned the second annual "Afternoon Tea" with watercolor journaling. The place is beautiful, the food is delicious (and pretty!), the service is wonderful, and we all take just a few art supplies and paint up a storm. I will be posting the details very soon.

Now I think I'll go paint my ORANGE petunias. I know, a purist would say petunias shouldn't be orange, but I say Wow! - fun! - orange petunias! Just don't be altering my food!

Birdhouses

2011-05-14T15:22:00.002-05:00

Colorful Little Birdhouses

What fun - I got to paint them twice. Once to really, you know, paint them, and then illustrate them in my sketchbook. They were a dollar apiece. That's pretty cheap entertainment. And see, they gave me something to blog about to make up for the previous post's glass of water.
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I may put them on the fence - maybe the side of the garage - or maybe plant them in the garden on a stake. Maybe that's a little tacky, but . . .

It's raining again and in the 40s. I am craving sunshine and color!!! I keep plugging away at my to-do list, getting ready for summer, and those birdhouses were actually on my to-do list. I have a fun list, don't I?

Jesperson's

2011-05-13T15:53:00.001-05:00

Lunch at Jesperson's

I know. You'd think I would have more than a glass of water to show for all this time of non-blogging.

In class this week we worked on small still life compositions. Everyone was feeling a little "off". I'm blaming it on the barometric pressure or the thunder storm. We were all talking about how much we enjoy a good ol' Michigan thunderstorm - however, it struck a house down the street and started a small fire, and across the Bay it actually hit our granddaughter's classroom!!! No one was hurt, but it knocked a small hole right through the cinder block wall!

Next week we will get back to the small still life compositions. The whole idea is to zoom in, zoom out, zoom left, zoom right . . . keep them simple with strong shapes and values. Maybe I will set a time limit - if we can't fuss with it, we do a better job. If there isn't a raging storm, we can concentrate on the composition. But we are a bunch of artists - we really do enjoy a good distraction.

Giorgio's

2011-05-03T11:45:00.001-05:00

Giorgio's Salt and Red Pepper Shakers

Giorgio's in San Jose is a California tradition with us. We make it a point to walk down there with the family for dinner once during our visit. We went on a Tuesday night, and it was very crowded and very noisy, and the food was wonderful. I had risotto with baked salmon. Risotto was another first for me. I am not a picky eater, so how could I have missed risotto, salade Nicoise, and tiramisu - all firsts on this trip.

It is in the thirties here in northern Michigan today. I am getting things ready for a new class to start tomorrow, and we are going to be working with various ways of mixing color. I HAD to have some colorful flowers, so I made a trip to the greenhouse - the first of the season - if you can call this a season. It is way too early to buy annuals, but I bought some pansies and primrose - they'll do okay in the cold.

Getting ready for a new class gets me grounded after a vacation. I have so much trouble with re-entry. I always blame it on jet lag and use it to my advantage for awhile, but I think my time is up.

View from "Cherry Park"

2011-04-29T13:08:00.000-05:00

Purple-blue Mountains

As the sun moves, the colors of the mountain ranges change from bright green to blue gray to purple. The tall palms are so huge and oddly shaped, they're almost comical. I'm a mid-west girl - these trees and mountains are a novelty to me.

I did this sketch about a week ago, and now I am missing the sunshine and warmer temperatures of California. We have no leaves yet in northern Michigan, but the grass is very green today. The Bay is very blue - ultramarine blue. It is only 45 degrees. This might be a good day to go to the green house. I need some of that warm dirt smell.

Menlo Park, CA

2011-04-28T11:49:00.002-05:00

Allied Arts Guild in Menlo Park, California

We met a Michigan summer friend at the most beautiful place - Allied Arts Guild. The gardens were gorgeous, the cafe was charming, the food was delicious, and it was such fun to catch up with a Michigan friend in California. Wisteria, roses, and everything else are blooming here.

Lunch was fantastic. I had salade niciose with baked salmon and tiramisu - both a first for me. Where have I been, huh?

That evening we went to the elementary school science fair where our granddaughter took first place for the fifth grade. What a treat for us to be there for the award ceremony.

All in all, a great day.

If you are in the area of Menlo Park (very near Palo Alto), it is a perfect place to take your watercolor journal. Is this too far for my Michigan classes to take a road trip? No, I don't think so.

At the Cabin

2011-04-26T13:33:00.001-05:00

Still Life at the Cabin

Snow, sleet, and rain all weekend. It was fun to be SO lazy and cozy. Now we are back in the city and the sun is shining. We can still be lazy.

I want to find a good bunch of calla lilies to sketch. It would be nice to find some near the street so I don't have to be too intrusive - but no one seemed to care that the homeless guy was sleeping (?) in a yard, and I think I look pretty harmless (not homeless) with a sketchbook.

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T14:11:00.002-05:00

Happy Easter from Viola, California

It's just a little cold and snowy here. Really - it's a lot cold and snowy here. We are having the perfect holiday "cabin weekend". Looking outside, we are just not sure which holiday it is!

We really are having a great time - reading, cooking, eating, playing games, decorating eggs, hiding eggs, sketching and painting, drinking cinnamon tea, and watching the snow fall. It's wonderful!

Viola is in Northern California in the Redding/Mt Lassen area. It is just beautiful here, and the family togetherness is soooo nice! If you're having a warm and sunny Easter, don't feel sorry for us - we made a conscious choice to come here.

Chi Latte

2011-04-20T20:28:00.001-05:00

A Chi Latte and Other Crazy Stuff

From San Jose, California -
To those of you back at home - I may just stay here. I think I like this life. This kind of stuff just doesn't happen at home in Northern Michigan - not all within a few minutes anyway.

I mean, how many times, at home, have I been sitting on the corner, drinking a chi latte at Starbucks (NEVER) and had a dog sitting next to me actually BITE two people? It bit the Starbucks guy on the hand, and then when the mail man walked through, it bit him on the leg. I was afraid to get up to leave - I let the dog leave first.

Two guys a couple of tables over were arguing about who was going to take the blame for something. The louder one, naturally, had nothing to hide and the other one would have to take the blame. The dog didn't pay any attention to them.

The homeless guy I saw wandering around the neighborhood was curled up on a beautifully manicured front lawn, right at the edge of the sidewalk. Sleeping?

And . . . there is bird banging his head against the living room window for days on end now.

Ya can't make this stuff up.

Down by the River

2011-04-15T12:05:00.008-05:00

Sketching by the Bear River

We had a nice, warm, sunny day this week ~ perfect for taking watercolor journals out to paint. I started a new journal, which, for some reason, is always fun.

Today the wind is blowing and it is pretty cold. I am inside working on some more class and workshop ideas for the summer. I have posted my spring and summer classes ~ click on the "Classes and Workshops" tab at the top of the blog, just under the banner. I plan to be adding more as the dates are firmed up.

Click on the image to enlarge - I know you are just dying to see this thing.

Here is a pic of the finished model of a McCormick reaper (that I mentioned back on March 2nd) that our 13 year old grandson had to make of things found around his house - or my studio. To give you an idea of the scale, the black wheel is the cap from a gallon jug. Along with the model, his presentation, and period costume, he earned 205 points out of a possible 200. My reward was a couple of fun days working with him on this. I am so glad I get asked to do this fun stuff ~ no one ever asks me to help with math. Being horrible at math really pays off now.

Crocus

2011-04-10T13:04:00.001-05:00

My first Flower Sketch of the Season

It was nice and sunny and warm, and I found this crocus blooming in the yard. As I began my sketch, the sun started to go behind a cloud, and the crocus slowly closed. I didn't know they did that! So this was a very fast contour drawing and a quick splash of color.

A couple of days ago I played around with the fonts on my blog, and today the ones I had applied are gone. Okay. I'm not going to play with that anymore. The next time I look they may be back. I just don't care.

This is the last page of this sketchbook. The next one is a different shape - more square - and I am kind of anxious to try it out. A new season, a new sketchbook. Fun.

The Process

2011-03-31T13:06:00.036-05:00

Class Demo

This demonstration was to show the process I use to get from, in this case, a photograph to a finished painting. The top image shows the photograph I was using as reference. In the pencil sketch below that, I have sketched things pretty much as is - because I have to start somewhere. I'm keeping in mind the reason that I have chosen to paint this subject - the cluster of buildings and their rooftops, and the lights and darks of the sunlight and cast shadows.

The porches and roof lines on the left really complicate things and don't do anything to support my reasons for painting this. So I play around a little with removing the jumble of shapes on the left, and move on to a value sketch (figuring out my lights and darks) which is shown in the lower right of the top image. This is what I use as reference as I paint. I don't refer to the photograph again.

Eliminating some of the porches and roof lines has changed the "reality", but what I wanted was the "feeling" of the roof tops and shadows. This would never make it as a commission or a rendering of the actual scene, but we all have artistic license, you know, and we should use it. It's fun!

Value sketches can be done very small - a couple of inches square with no detail - just shapes to show light, middle and dark values. If you make them small enough and simple enough, you can do lots of them in a short time to play around with all kinds of combinations of lights and darks until you hit on the one you like. Once you've planned your lights and darks, your painting is half done. The process is pretty painless.

Lunch at Turkeys

2011-03-26T20:14:00.001-05:00

Yet Another Lunch. Yet Another Set of Salt and Pepper Shakers

I am always quick to say, "Oh, I never eat out." Looking back through this almost completed sketchbook at the salt shaker sketches, maybe I DO eat out more than I thought. My sister-in-law saw I was nearly finished with this sketchbook and she said, "Have you eaten your way through that whole sketchbook?!"

I am surprised at the variety of salt shakers in restaurants. How many restaurant supply places are there, and how many different styles could they have? At first glance you might think they are all alike, but when you start drawing them, you begin to notice the differences.

I suppose I could spend my time observing something - um -important? Educational? Challenging? Useful?

Small Painting - Keeping it Simple

2011-03-24T15:11:00.002-05:00

Small Watercolor Demo

Somewhere along the line, I have painted from this value sketch and posted it, but I can't find it to link to it, to compare the two.

In Wednesday's class we were talking about why we are attracted to a subject, keeping that in mind, and showing that as simply as possible. In this case I had taken the photograph (years ago) because of the shadows and the simple shapes of the porch and its roof lines. This was a section of a much larger house, but for the sake of simplicity I had chosen to paint this section as a small house. I didn't feel I needed the rest of the structure to support the simple shapes and shadows.

I "swooped" through with a mixture of manganese blue and a touch of cobalt violet, painting everything that would not be left white, or that I wanted to keep very bright. As I started putting in the dark green foliage, the fence just kind of painted itself, so I went with it. I put in the dark shadows along the roof lines and in the porch with manganese blue and cobalt violet again, with some indigo added to get as dark as it needed to be. I had left the areas on each side of the steps white so I would be able to get in some bright flowers. I added a washed out warm color for the roof, some neutrals smushed around in the foreground, and that was it.

It moved along from start to finish pretty quickly, and I feel I captured what attracted me in the first place.

If you have some photographs around that you have taken with the thought of someday doing a painting of them, this is a good time of year to get them out and play around with them - while we are waiting to get outside and paint. Take a good look at them, decide what it was you liked about the subject, and paint THAT, and only that.

It was 11 degrees here this morning!!!!

Salt Shaker and Mustard

2011-03-21T11:26:00.001-05:00

Another Salt Shaker and a Bottle of Mustard.

At the Mitchell Street Pub

We could use a little color here today - it is DARK. It is officially spring now, so sooner or later we're gonna be okay.

Last week I started to get classes, promotions, lessons, events, etc. organized for spring and summer. The only (probably not the "only") problem is, we had a weekend thrown in there, and it doesn't take much to get me off track. Actually, I planned to be off track. I didn't intend to work on it over the weekend, but it always surprises me how much I forget from Friday to Monday. I use Google docs to keep track of EVERYTHING. However I spend a lot of time going through everything because I don't remember what "docs" contain what. Oh. I think I get it. On the sidebar there is information referring to each document. Mmmmmm - has that always been there?

Saturday night we went with my brother and sister-in-law to the Mitchell Street Pub for dinner - downtown just a few blocks from us. I honestly don't think a thing has changed on the menu in twenty years. That's a good thing - we need consistency in some things. It was a nice cozy place to sit and talk. Everyone has left town. Seriously. No one comes to Northern Michigan the end of March through April, and a LOT of the residents leave. If you want to get away from it all, have all the restaurants and grocery stores to yourselves, and find a parking place anywhere - this is the place.

Our 13 year old grandson came over yesterday afternoon for help with a school project. He has to build a model of the McCormick Reaper! Are you kidding???!!! Is this what happens when they get past the poster paint and glitter stage? Well, no, he never did do glitter. But, really - we have to build a reaper from things around the house!!!??? Any suggestions?

Pencil Sketches

2011-03-14T09:31:00.002-05:00

Thumbnail Sketches on Steroids

I pulled a handful of random photographs to do some thumbnail sketches. These were intended to be small value sketches - just planning shapes and lights and darks.

I hadn't done drawing just for the sake of drawing in a long time, and I got a little carried away with the size and complexity. Such fun! These aren't necessarily the value (darks and lights) patterns I would use if I were to do a painting of these subjects - the whole idea of doing thumbnails is to give you several choices with the composition and values.

Drawing from photos is not my favorite, but there are lessons to be learned from every attempt at drawing and figuring out what's what. Besides - it's all fun.

Color mixing

2011-03-12T11:51:00.001-05:00

Clay Pots

This was Thursday's class demo. We were mixing terracotta colors on the paper. We're thinking spring and summer here - have to be ready to paint flowers and pots.

We were using different variations of the primary colors - reds, yellows, and blues. Some were allowed to mix on the paper, some were mixed on the palette, some wet into wet and some on dry paper.

I used to paint these pots of flowers by the hundreds and sell them matted up in 10 X 10 white mats. They are fun to do, because no two are ever alike. This kind of makes me want to do them again.

It is snowing here and overcast. A couple of grandkids are making forts under my classroom/studio tables, so it is bright and cheery inside. The Christmas carols they're singing are kind of getting to me, but I'll keep my mouth shut.