Early June

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

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

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

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

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

 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

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"

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

 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

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

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

 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

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

 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

 

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

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

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

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

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

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.

New Journal

A New Journal and More Thumbnails

I am so into doing little thumbnail sketches right now.  When I've had enough of that, I'll start painting with a vengeance.

Yesterday my friend, Ellie, was trying out Yupo for the first time.   I wrote her comment on my sketchbook page. "It almost gives you the freedom you desire."  Pretty profound for painting on plastic, huh?  No, I'm not pushing Yupo  -  not a huge fan.

This is my newest journal, on the left. It is a different size this time.  I started out making them kind of square, and I liked that.  However, I do like to make them in a size that doesn't waste any of the 22 X 30 sheets of Aquarius II watercolor paper.  It dawned on me that this 5 1/2 by 6 size would work.

So if we have all this fresh, new, fluffy snow this morning  -  why doesn't it feel FRESH?

Composition

What Goes Where

I was playing around a little bit with composition.  I just grabbed a photograph out of my photo reference  (reference photo?) box and simplified and rearranged some of the objects.  We need to remember that photos are only a starting point and no more.  If I'm working from a photo I usually work out the composition and a value sketch, and don't look at the photo for reference as I paint.

The pencil sketches are some things we were working on in class.  I was trying to stress the fact that objects take up space, and the placement they are given on the page, or painting surface, has to reflect the volume of the object.  Drawing objects as transparent helps us to see how much space they really need.

There is no serious painting going on here. As I mentioned in a previous post, I'm just kind of puttering around, reading some art books, going over old lesson plans, and Friday I did make a text block for my next journal.

Now it is time to get serious with spring and summer class promotion.  We have had some sunshine here now and then.  That helps.  The Bay is frozen solid.  That doesn't help.

More Orchid Studies

Orchid Blossoms in Pencil (left) and Watercolor and Ink (right)

I'm loving the way orchid blossom petals fit together, and how subtle the shadows have to be to keep them white, but still show the gentle curves.  Fun.

In my state of "unmotivation", I can't seem to complete anything serious - anything larger than a sketchbook page.  So I guess I'll just stick to my sketchbook for awhile.

Now I am off to set up a still life for my afternoon class.  We will be working on simplicity and draped fabrics.  I even ironed the fabrics!

Orchid

Orchid 

Sketched in pen and Prismacolor colored pencil on Strathmore 400 Drawing Paper in my hand bound sketchbook.

Yesterday one of my students brought me a BEAUTIFUL orchid!!!  We had fun painting it in class, and last night I did this contour drawing.  You can see the patch on the right side of the drawing where I glued a piece of drawing paper over a botched try at that blossom.   I've had people ask if it's okay  (ethical) to patch, cut out, rip out, whatever, something you don't like in your sketchbook.  Yeah, of course.  Unlike life, you don't have to live with your mistakes in your art world.

I have been terribly unmotivated lately.  I have tried to turn this unproductive time into something positive, so I have been going through old sketchbooks, scraps of painting demos, and lesson plans written on pieces of paper here and there.  Organizing and sorting  gets me geared up for the next round of painting and upcoming classes and workshops.

Life is not maintenance free, and sometimes I have to look back at what I have done in order to figure out what I need to do  -  or want to do.  But what I want to do today is sketch that orchid some more. 

Tomato Gorgonzola Soup Recipe

Marj has posted her recipe for tomato basil Gorgonzola soup on her blog.  Just click on it to enlarge.  I just made it and it is yummy!  Thanks, Marj.  While you're there, check out her happy and colorful watercolors.

Salt and Pepper Shakers at Applebee's 

I thought I might paint my dinner, but I ordered a messy looking, delicious  salad, and we had to hurry to make the 7:00 show. We saw The King's Speech.  Great movie. And it was ladies' night  -  $4.25!

Today in class we worked on loosening up and letting the painting paint itself.  We painted with clear water and then put in color.  Even though it was a simple geranium stem and blossom on a small piece of paper, it is still hard to relinquish control and let it happen. Watercolor on its own usually does better than I do, so I try to stand back and see what happens.

Sooooo cold here.  The wind is blowing, the Bay is frozen, the sky is gray.  Every year I complain about the cold, but I'm not going anywhere.  I like the slow pace of winter here  -  then I like the fast pace of summer.   Perfect.

Tomato Basil Gorganzola

Taking My Sketchbook to Lunch Again

Tomato Basil Gorgonzola soup.  Wednesday's special  -  I love it!!!!
It's a good day for soup with friends.  It is very sunny and very cold here.  While the rest of the country (a good portion of it, anyway) experiences terrible blizzards, we have blue skies and sunshine. 


If anyone comes across a great tomato basil Gorgonzola soup recipe, would you let me know?  If you make it, paint it  -  it's a great color.

Painting from Photographs

  The Old Lansing City Market

This is a demonstration I started in class, and they asked if I could finish it next week, but I don't think I can keep my hands off it.  I could hide it so I am not tempted.  Kind of like sending the potato chips to work in the trunk of my husband's car.

I'm working from a photograph that I took a couple of years ago before they tore the old (beautiful  -  to me) buildings down and rebuilt. With the photograph as reference I did a contour sketch including only the things I felt were necessary to say what I want to say about this particular scene.  I scanned the sketch, enlarged it, printed it out and traced it onto my watercolor paper.

I'm using the sketch as my reference now, not the photograph.  I have pretty much blocked in my lights and darks, and those are more important to me than the colors.  At this point, the photograph has more information than I want.

It's Friday already!  Who has some sketching plans for the weekend?

Another Salt Shaker

Salt Shaker at the "Sugar Bowl" Restaurant

A few posts back  Michelle asked what the five colors are in my little palette.  The palette pictured here is my seven color palette. I use a very limited palette anyway, so using only five or seven is not a big deal.  Here I have cobalt violet, quinacridone rose, ultramarine blue, hansa yellow, manganese blue, thalo yellow-green, and thalo green yellow shade.  If I were to suggest a very basic palette for sketchbook journal painting, I would say ultramarine blue, lemon yellow, quinacridone rose (or permanent rose), hookers green, and burnt sienna.

Do you find it odd that I am discussing color along with this image using one color?  I do too.

Green Paint Chips and My Favorite Chair

Green Paint Chips and a Pencil Sketch

This is a sketch of my favorite chair in the world.  It is glossy black, slender looking and sculptural.  She (don't you think it's a girl?) had been in my family before I could remember  -  so long, in fact, that no one could remember what branch of the family she had belonged to, or how old she might be.  Just a few years ago, I came across a picture of my father, about seven years old, posing for the picture on this chair - maybe about 1924.  Back in the 60s I painted it glossy black, made a pink and orange striped cushion, and glued hot pink ball fringe along the edge of the seat.  It was great.

It is COLD COLD COLD here today  -  in the low teens.  It has finally reached 65 degrees in the house and I am wearing several layers  -  and a down vest and wool scarf!  Maybe if I did something active  .  .  .

I am sitting around reading a book about painting figures, sketching the chair, and making notes about painting with, and mixing, greens.  That "fear of orange" comment a few posts back triggered something in my brain about painting greens.  Makes sense, doesn't it?

For anyone reading this who has been in one of my drawing classes, you might be glad to know that I STRUGGLED with this drawing today.

Coffee Table Pencil Sketch

 not TOO serious

Feeling the urge/need/desire/obligation to do a halfway serious drawing, instead of the cartoon-like contour drawings I have been doing, I challenged myself with the foreshortening of this table.  The top book and bowl got a little floaty, but oh well.

We have a winter advisory warning here this afternoon.  It's a nice day to be working on sketches and lesson plans for my new classes starting this week.  This week we are going to be working on breaking up shapes to keep things interesting and, at the same time, cohesive.   We'll be breaking them up with lines, softened edges, variations in value, additional shapes .  .  . Fun stuff.  Stay tuned.

Still Life Shelf and a New Plan of Attack

Contour Drawing of Classroom Shelf

This is a small painting of about half of the high shelf that runs the length of one wall in my classroom. I keep my still life props here.  The walls really are orange  -  I know  -  very inappropriate for a studio/classroom.   It makes us happy, okay?

I'm still going through a stack of papers that I piled up as I weeded out things a couple of weeks ago.  Some of the things are inspiring, some are loose ends, some just need to be filed, and some could really just be tossed.  The problem is I never get to the bottom as I sort, so it all gets stacked up again if I get interrupted.  So, I see something here  -  the organized way of sorting into categories of action is not working for me.  Now I am going to take one paper at a time and do whatever needs to be done with that paper, right then and there.  Okay, we'll see how this new plan of attack works out.

Drawing Table

A Very Quick Contour Drawing of my Drawing Table

Trying to pay attention to the negative spaces  -  the spaces between things.

This drawing looks as if I wasn't paying much attention to anything, but, hey, there is a lot going on with this table.

I decided to paint my drawing table semi-gloss black, and I love it.  It was a little tricky because there are a LOT of pieces to it, and I was afraid if I took it apart, I wouldn't get it back together.  So, I took off one part at a time and didn't paint its corresponding part until it was painted and replaced. Yeah, I know, a little nutty and time consuming, but it worked.

Tonight we are attending Middle Granddaughter's Christmas program at school.  That's what I love about living in snowy northern Michigan  -  you never know when a scheduled event will actually take place.  Cancellations because of weather definitely keep things interesting.

Are you sketching?

Drawing, Planning, Creating

 The first drawing of the year. 

I didn't say it had to be good  -  I just said I have to keep 

that pen moving.

I've been hibernating

and it really felt good, but enough is enough.  I've been de-cluttering, cleaning, and rearranging my studio space.  Now I'm ready to start painting again, and I feel like doing some acrylics.

We have all of our Christmas things put away  -  some kind of a record for the Careys.  Because we live here in Winter Wonderland, no one takes down their Christmas decorations until as late as February.  Christmas trees stay up until at least 12th Night, and wreaths don't come down until Valentine's Day.  But this year, just like my hibernation  -  I'm done.  Moving on.

I hope you had a great holiday, and you're rarin' to get into the new year with plans and goals for drawing, painting, creating!  What are your creative plans  -  we want to know.

Little Cube Salt and Pepper Shakers

Lunch at the Twisted Olive

This is the journal page from yesterday's lunch. My little palette is so handy.

Tomorrow I will go to the grocery for a couple of things I want to make sure I have before the stores close at 6:00.  For some reason, knowing that the grocery stores close at 6:00 on Christmas Eve makes me a little nervous  -  more than a little nervous.  What if I have forgotten something???!!!  I'm not even the one feeding everyone.  Calm down. 

Here's wishing you all a very Merry Christmas, and a nice weekend just the way you like it  -  peaceful and cozy or bustling and crazy.  Have a good one!

Blue and White Table Arrangement

The Table Arrangement for our Pretend Christmas Eve

Because of various commitments, we do a family Christmas Eve (and then get together again on Christmas day) a couple of days before Christmas - Christmas Eve Eve.  This year we are doing it Christmas Eve Eve Eve.   That's tonight.

About a month ago the local granddaughters  ( six and nine years old) saw a picture in a magazine using blue and white china vases for a center piece table arrangement  -  so here is their version.  They came over last night and set it up.

The California  kids and grandkids will be spending Christmas at their cabin in the mountains with plenty of snow.  If they can't be here, it is nice to think of them all Christmas-y in the mountains.


It is beginning to feel festive here.  Friend Karen and I went out to lunch today and took our sketchbooks.  After lunch I said how festive that was.  She said, "It must be you  -  there was nothing festive in there."  So - wow - there it is  -  I have the Christmas Spirit! Fun!

Take your sketchbooks to lunch!

Lunch After Class

Another "Take Your Sketchbook to Lunch" Journal Page

After this morning's class we went to lunch at the City Park Grill.  This is a contour drawing and watercolor of the salt shaker, my biscuit, and butter.  I had a roasted vegetable sandwich with goat cheese. Yum.

This is the last week of classes until after the New Year. I like the structure of a class schedule, even though I only have two classes a week in the winter.  It's not like I don't have anything to do  -  a little Christmas shopping and baking wouldn't hurt.

Sketching, painting, baking, wrapping, listening to Christmas music. Nice!

Family Weekend

Going from One Extreme to the Other

A couple of salt "shakers" from the weekend.   In my quest to sketch the salt shakers or pepper grinders everywhere I go, this is my journal entry from Sunday.

We had a fabulous brunch at the hotel.  I mean fabulous - appetizers, prime rib, cheese cake, and everything imaginable in between.  It was fun! Then after a fantastic afternoon with more family, we headed out into the blizzard.  Because of the weather, the trip that would have normally taken us three and a half to four hours, took six. 


Our kids have a great family vacation vehicle and we stuffed it with seven people, gifts, dishes to pass, overnight bags, and everyone had a pillow, blanket, and at least one personal electronic devise  -  some as large as a laptop (which may not seem so large under other circumstances).  With cell phone calls and texting, we were able to tell our friends and family what it was like out there in the cold, slippery dark.  It is nice to have someone rooting for you.

In these days leading up to Christmas, I hope you'll carry your sketchbooks around and sketch a few memories!

Persimmons and Tea

Hachiya Persimmons and Mint Tea

The angle of these persimmons doesn't really show their elongated shape.  Apparently, there are two commercially available types of persimmons  -  the kind of round, flat ones, and these that are wider at the top and narrower at the bottom. The color is fantastic.  That is what I bought them for  -  the color.  This shape is edible when it is very soft.  I guess. I've never eaten this kind.

In class tomorrow we are going to play around with these colors.  Using different triads (variations of the three primaries) we will mix the fruit and the stem color from the same three colors.

I LOVE the Cotswold Cottage Mint tea container.  My brother and sister-in-law gave it to me because of the colors.  They didn't know if I like mint tea (I do!), but they knew I would like the container. I can't hide it away in the cupboard  -  it sets out on the kitchen counter.

If you ever get to Greenfield Village in Dearborn, Michigan, spend some time in and around the Cotswold Cottage.  Bring home a container of tea to paint.

Onions and Vinegar

Yellow Onions in Ridgways Dish and White Balsamic Vinegar

This is done on Arches Cover Cream.
Couldn't seem to loosen up on this drawing, but I like the way it turned out anyway.  The painting was loose enough  -  I just swooped through with a big brush, using the same technique on the onions that I used on yesterday's plant -  painting them as one shape. I threw in a little red and yellow and softened it out a little lighter in places, and then went back with some shadow color.

I'm listening to Christmas songs and it's snowing.  Sooner or later I am going to have to bake a few Christmas cookies and shop! Maybe this weekend we will do our tree.  Maybe.  Don't want to rush into anything.

There's That Plant Again

A Quick Little Demo for Class

I painted the leaves as one shape (not each leaf) and then went back in, when it was dry, and added some darks and detail.  I kept the detail simple  -  just enough to show that there is some pattern on the leaves.

Snowy, cold, windy here.  No, I won't say that every day all winter  -  just until I get used to it.  Actually, I never get used to it.  I need to embrace it! Get some snow shoes.  Drink more hot chocolate.  Buy some more candles.  Make more stew.  Bake more bread.  Do you notice how everything after the snow shoes is an indoor activity?  I don't think that's embracing winter  -  I think it's hiding out.  Hibernating. 

I have decided for the month of December I will sketch/paint dinner ingredients, bottles, jars, and labels.  Stay tuned.

Green Plant in a Blue and White Pot

Painted in my Sketchbook on Arches Cover

I may have mentioned before that Arches Cover is not a watercolor paper, but I often put it in my sketchbooks because I like the color and the way it takes watercolor.  Some of the papers I like to use for watercolor in my sketchbooks wouldn't necessarily work on a larger scale for a serious painting.  Sketchbooks aren't meant to be serious, right?

Tomorrow it is back to classes as usual.  We are going to be working on dominance and contrast of certain design elements.  I am anxious to see what the students have been sketching over the Thanksgiving holiday. Did they do their homework?

Horton Bay Road Again

A Re-run

I have posted this painting previously with the value sketch I worked up before doing the painting.  I thought I'd post it on its own  -  more of a close up.  Because, to tell you the truth, I am scraping here for something to post.  I didn't do any drawings today and it's not gonna happen now.

I spent the morning cleaning and de-cluttering  -  I'm on a roll!  This afternoon was our "Flowers for Friends"  thing, and then eighth grade basketball tonight.  I've had it, I'm ready for bed.  I guess the long Thanksgiving weekend did me in.

I told you this blogging every day would have more quantity than quality.

Quirky Cup

 

Very Quick. Very Lopsided.

This is the cup and saucer that is part of the set with the soup terrine a few posts back.

It is a very interesting shape, and I certainly didn't do it justice here.  It is really kind of boxy  -  if something round can be boxy.

In my hand bound journals, when I tie on more thread, I usually leave a little length at the knot.  It's waxed thread, and it resists the watercolor when I paint over the spot where it was closed in the book.  I mentioned in an earlier post that I thought that might be a good technique for saving a fine line of white on the paper.  However, it didn't work when I tried to do it on purpose. You can see the thread and the marks it made along the page center toward the bottom.

Tomorrow is Monday. Tomorrow is back to real life.  That's not a bad thing  -  I like my real life. I also liked having family around and eating every five minutes.

Filberts and Almonds

A Contour Drawing on Arches Cover Cream

The grandkids love to crack nuts.  Their mom says to  crack only what they are going to eat, but I think it's pretty cheap entertainment.  It keeps them busy for awhile, it is relatively quiet, and it's pretty easy to clean up.

It always takes me by surprise, that on Saturday after Thanksgiving, I have to think about meals again.  I mean  -  haven't we given that all the thought it needs for awhile?  Grocery shopping  -  you mean we really have to do that again!?

I think tonight it's gonna be grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup.  What kind of wine goes with that?

Happy Day After TG

This is what it looks like here today.

Some of our holiday guests have just left, and some more will arrive soon to help us finish off the leftovers. It's a day after Thanksgiving tradition.


The snowplows have been around and around and it is still slippery and the wind is very strong.  We usually get snow Thanksgiving weekend, and it will continue a little every day into April.

It was a very cozy day  -  we only ventured outside once to shop!

How are your leftovers doing?  Are they almost gone? Did you hit any of the sales?