Cordelia's Sketch Book

Nuthatches

2012-01-08T15:21:00.001-07:00

In my back yard is an old weathered tree branch. For some reason, the branch grew in a circular formation. Birds, especially the smaller ones like chickadees and these red-breasted nuthatches love to perch on it. It's full of cracks and crannies that are perfect for hiding seeds and other treasures in.
Nuthatches are distinctive because of the way they perch upside down on the trees, and run down the trunk rather than up it. That way they can find insects in the cracks that the right-side up birds miss. (That's the definition of "win-win situation" in the bird world.) They are very lively, friendly little birds who aren't afraid of people or cats.
Watercolor in Moleskine sketchbook.

They're back!

2011-09-06T19:23:00.001-06:00

While I'm always sad to see our short, sweet summer come to an end, I do welcome back the chickadees. I heard their melodic and soft songs as I drank coffe on the deck the other morning. They were greeting me and each other in the big spruce tree where they hid and ate sunflower seeds all last winter.
Research has shown that chickadees can remember over 6000 hiding spots for their seeds. That's pretty remarkable for a tiny bird.
Watercolor and pen in Moleskine sketchbook, from a newspaper photo.

Big Prairie Sky

2011-08-21T15:28:00.000-06:00

I live in Alberta which is prairie grassland that has been planted with commercial crops. When we drive from the city where I live north to the city where my parents live, I am always struck by the enormous sky that stretches all around, and the vast fields where you can see for miles. As the old joke goes, you can watch your little brother run away from home for three days.
The early settlers to this land were often nearly undone by the long distances between water sources and the lack of any kind of sheltered spaces. It truly was the land where the buffalo ran free and could stampede for days with nothing to stop them. This is a field of brilliantly blooming canola flowers under a dramatic sky, with few stands of planted trees called windbreaks, whose job was literally to break up the wind and prevent the seeded crops from blowing away. This is my world and welcome to a glimpse of it.
Watercolor

New obsession

2011-08-15T13:16:00.000-06:00

We've had a lot of rain this summer, and I've spent a lot of time on the deck after the rain. I've become obsessed with water droplets and how they look on the petals and leaves of all the plants around me. For such a simple thing, a water droplet is amazingly complex to paint realistically. I've painted them every which way I can and it's been lots of fun.
These are how water droplets look on the Red Morn petunias. Next to the roses, these are the prettiest.
Today my deck is covered with hail - small, and not very damaging but still...
Watercolor in the Pentalic Nature sketchbook.

Getting my mojo back

2011-08-05T11:47:00.000-06:00

Awhile ago, I did a project for my university's 100th anniversary, but it had to be done in acrylic paint. It was a new medium for me, and I had to learn from scratch. If you've painted with both, then you know that shadows and hightlights are done completely differently. And that messed me up big time! Nothing I did in watercolor from that point on seemed convincing and real to me. I just couldn't make watercolor work for me. I decided to go back to the drawing board (so to speak) and got some instruction and demo watercolor books. This is a demo from one of them. I learned a lot, especially about highlights and shadows. Although I didn't have much emotional connection to this painting as I have never been to Italy, it was lots of fun. The bricks, the reflections in the window, the shadows - the whole idea of suggesting, rather than shouting was really interesting to do. It really helped me get a handle on how much detail to put in (like the weathering at the bottom of the door and the moss on the wall near the water) and how much to leave out (not every brick needs to be painted). It boosted my confidence enough to do some more.
The title of the book is "Painting watercolour landscapes the easy way" by Terry Harrison.

The Good Life

2011-08-01T13:45:00.000-06:00

What could be better than sitting on your deck in the hot sunshine and painting the flowers blooming all around you? I've spent a lot of time doing just that, and enjoying every minute of it. My favorite part of this painting was letting the colors flow and mingle in the leaves.

These are Matha Washington geraniums - two different plants in the same container. They are very showy and exuberant.

Watercolor in the Moleskine watercolor sketchbook.

Hope you are having a lovely summer.

Summer Gardening

2011-07-11T10:51:00.000-06:00

During this past long dreary winter, I discovered that there was a community garden a few blocks from my house. I emailed them and asked for a a bed there, expecting to be on the waiting list for a year or more. Community gardens are very popular in my city. Early in June, they contacted me and said I was the proud renter of bed B8.
I grew this radish in that garden and I'm proud of it. Every year, we plant radish seeds in a container on the deck, and every year we yield nothing. This year, as I planted nasturtiums in the radish container my beloved said "No radishes?" "No" I said, "the seeds are old and we never get any radishes". So when we planted the community garden, we decided to just throw all the (probably dead) radish seeds in and see what happened. An explosion of radishes is what happened. Hundreds of radishes! We've been eating spicy, peppery radishes every day for two weeks. They were simply waiting for the right place and time.
This is also one of the first sketches I've been happy with for a long time.

Daisies

2011-07-06T10:46:00.000-06:00

I bought these Gerbera daisies to plant in a large container on the patio. They are quite flamboyant and spectacular. The stems have a tinge of purple, and the new blossoms are green and ripen into a deep yellow. The leaves look quite a bit like dandelion leaves (on steroids!) and also have a touch of purple. They are actually from the sunflower family. They bloom nonstop, too.
Prince William and Kate are coming to town to attend the Calgary Stampede. People are lining up overnight to get a wristband that entitles them to stand on the street in the hopes of getting a glimpse or a handshake. They seem like a very nice young couple, but I can't see sleeping on the street just to see them. The media frenzy is insane. I want to go downtown to the river park to draw the ducks, but I think I'll wait till the insanity is over. For now, I'll stay home and draw what's blooming in my back yard.
Ink and watercolor pencils

Back yard drama

2011-06-26T13:32:00.000-06:00

I have a contract with the universe to care for the birds in my corner of the world. I live in the end unit of a condo block, and the back yard is surrounded by a fence and a high, thick hedge. There are also some big dense trees. In the winter I put out a bird feeder and in the summer a bird bath. It's a perfect place for small birds - robins, sparrow, chickadees, finches, nuthatches. The bigger birds like magpies and crows don't come in much because it's small. The sparrows build nests under the hedge and the robins in the spruce tree. There are plenty of fat worms in the garden for food.The pets are all well-fed and belled.
This year, a baby robin fell out of the nest before it was able to fly. It flopped and hopped in the long grass. The parents were, we think, trying to build a nest on the ground to protect the little one. My tabby cat, Holly, walked out on the deck and sat down to survey her kingdom as usual. The robins began to screech and dive bomb her. She crouched down and backed up to the door, wondering, I'm sure, how she lost her position as supreme ruler of the back yard. We put her inside and the birds calmed down. But the crows and magpie got word that there was a tender morsel available and they came in, once more causing the parents to go into safety mode. That little robin went right after that big crow and chased it away. I flapped the rug at the rest and they flew off. Eventually the new nest was ready, predators were averted, and they herded the little one into the bushes to safety. A few days later the big robins spent lots of time in the birdbath, which is usually what they do once the little ones have found their wings and left the nest. So I hope they all survived and left to start their own lives. And Holly can reign supreme over the yard again.
Pen, ink. watercolor pencils in the little sketchbook

A Fresh Start

2011-06-19T12:38:00.000-06:00

It's been long, cold, sunless winter and its left me feeling discouraged and disheartened. It seemed that everything I attempted went wrong - colors smeared under a second layer of glaze, paper buckled unattractively and left ugly blotches, my wireless network was under relentless attack and so on. I started many things and abandoned them.
One day on a routine mission to empty the garbage, I stood in a rare and unusual bit of sunshine (Ouch, what's that bright light?), and noticed the tulips blooming in the front. I mean, I really noticed them. I saw the voluptuous brashness of the yellow tulip, the graceful curves of the red one, the slender pointed petals of the purple ones, the tall straight stems, and the graceful leaves. And I heard again that quiet, still voice that said "I could draw that". And so I did, and determined to make a fresh start against the discouragement. Start with what I've always loved to draw - flowers, birds, nature. Maybe with that simple start, my soul can stand as straight and bloom as bright.

East Gate

2011-04-10T15:25:00.000-06:00

The university that I work at is celebrating its 100 anniversary. In the library, we have a small art gallery where we showcase local artists and encourage members of the university community to contribute. For the centennial, we are highlighting art work that celebrates the University's history.
I've always like the east gate entrance to the main building. It's tall and elegant and full of windows that reflect the wide open sky. The spacious walkway in the summer has huge pots of petunias that lead up to the entrance. This is an exploratory draft of a painting that, if all goes well, I would submit to the gallery in the fall semester for the September celebration.
I really like how the sky is reflected in the windows, and the close up of the flower pot.
Ink and watercolor.

New Library

2011-04-02T14:42:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, I attended the grand re-opening of my local public library branch, also known as my personal library. It had been a long renovation, and they remained open throughout, but most of the books were in storage for the duration. If you wanted a paperback you could find it, but if you wanted a particular title, you had to place a hold on it. Our book club had to meet in other places, and arrange for our own books. Sometimes you'd get them in time to read them for the meeting and sometimes not. There was no place to sit and browse books or magazines. It was trying times.
But now it's open and it's beautiful. They expanded the back of the library into the green space. That back wall is now a curved expanse of windows, with a nice padded seating all around. This plus a skylight means lots of natural light. This is me standing in front of the new display shelves. To the right is a beautiful fireplace, and in front of me are soft, buttery leather chairs. We were offered coffee and cookies. It was nice to see the staff smiling again. This is a good use of my tax dollars.

Winter Cheerup

2011-03-13T16:33:00.000-06:00

Last weekend, my beloved bundled up in all his winter gear to go to the grocery store across the street. He asked me if there was anything else I wanted besides lettuce and milk. I glanced out at yet another gray, dreary day in a long succession of gray, dreary days and said wistfully "Orange tulips?" He nodded sadly.

There were no tulips to be had, so he bought a big, lovely bunch of orange lilies, hoping they would do. As they are my other favorite flowers, they would indeed do nicely.

I spent a lovely week watching the lilies go from pale buds, to glorious full blooms. And the weather improved so much that we were able to skate outside this morning.

I did these with my new box of 36 yummy Faber-Castell watercolor pencils. 4 shades of orange!

EDM 307 - Draw something raw

2011-02-27T16:35:00.001-07:00

I started this drawing last summer, when I brought home my latest coup from the Farmers' Market. I loved that Market, and the highlight of my week was going there on Friday mornings and wandering through the bounty of gorgeous vegetables and fruit. But I had to break up with them. They became less and less of a "farmers" market and more of a boutique type of market that sold trendy mustards and upscale teas. But I stuck with them to support the local farmers. Then they lost their lease in the center of town and moved to the far southeast corner of the city where both of the other farmers' markers also are. The final blow (and what led to the actual breakup) was that they didn't invite a lot of the local farmers to have space there, deciding instead to go with the imported boutique type shops. That's unforgivable and they should forfeit the right to call themselves the "Farmers' Market" since very few of the vendors are selling locally grown produce or even locally made products. A few of the disenfranchised farmers set up a make-shift market in the parking lot of the casino, and I'll go there to support them if they are allowed to continue outside of the umbrella of the "official" market. Sad but true.

Sparrow Cafe

2011-02-21T15:37:00.001-07:00

These cheerful, resourceful, little sparrows hang around the bird feeder in the back yard. It's a small, enclosed space. The big birds don't come around, so the little ones have taken over. Sparrows and chickadees, mostly, with a few nuthatches. Occasionally, a family of Grey Partridge shows up.
The other day we noticed that the large white rabbit, the model for the previous post on the Year of the Rabbit, was also back there. It was eating the corn that is too big for the little birds to eat. Nice how they all share. The good news that the rabbit had to share was that its ears are turning from white to brown. That means spring is just around the corner! That's welcome news. The sparrows were all gossipy about it.

Year of the Rabbit

2011-02-10T19:32:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Year of the Rabbit, which will usher in a year of peace and moderation. It will be a chance to rest and catch up after the tumultuous Year of the Tiger.
Last year was quite a rollercoaster with lots of unrest in many areas of the world - rioting in Europe and clashes in the Middle East. Floods, hurricanes, avalanches, and volcano eruptions proved that even the weather was in discord.
So welcome to the Rabbit. The world could use a return to manners, civility and good taste.
I wish you all the best in this year.

A bit of sunshine

2011-02-06T17:17:00.000-07:00

My beloved bought me these beautiful miniature daffodils as a way to banish some of the winter doldrums.

They did make me smile and feel that maybe the cold weather and snow will end, maybe the sun will shine again, maybe the breezes will be warm and pleasant again.

Many years ago, I heard an interview with a woman who lived in northern Scotland where it got cold and dark early. She said they coped with it by "Drawing the drapes against the dark, lighting a fire against the cold, and having a wee dram to warm the heart".

I have daffodils and a shot of Kahlua in my coffee. Yeah, that's better!

Snorkeling at Isla de Ixtapa

2011-01-23T15:51:00.000-07:00

Enough whining about the cold. Nothing ever changes due to whining alone, and besides the weather is much warmer and I like winter now.

This is a sketch I did to remember our times snorkeling at Isla de Ixtapa. We took the little bus to the marina. The bus was lots of fun, blaring salsa music, windows (and sometimes doors) wide open, stick shift grinding through the gears. At the marina, we got onto a little shuttle boat to go over to the island. Sometimes we got on several boats, changing from one to the other in open water, for no discernible reason. There were two beaches on the shore side of the island. The water was warm and calm and lovely, but due to traffic, there were very few fish. Walking a short distance across the island led to Playa Coral and this beach was snorkel heaven. Tons of fish, a small coral reef that was wickedly sharp if the waves nudged you too close. There were white snappers that liked the shallows and brushed around your shins, little sergeant-majors, yellow and blue tangs, angel fish, and may more that I have not identified.

We claimed a table on the beach under the umbrella and ordered cerveza nestled in an ice filled bucket, accompanied by a dish of limes. After snorkeling several times, we had lunch. The first day we had grilled shrimps and rice, the second time we had mahi-mahi, and the third day chips and salsa. It was very crowded that day so we didn't stay as long. All three days were wonderful and I'm grateful to have those memories on a cold, snowy day.

EDM 303- Frozen

2011-01-16T16:38:00.000-07:00

Draw something frozen. Well that would be me. This past week has been brutally cold here. Windchills have been down around -35 Celcius which is approaching dangerous level.s Exposed skin can freeze within a minute.
Time t get out the serious winter gear and not take any chances. Double layers of everything. When I bought those shearling lined boots, I thought they were expensive, and it's not often cold enough to wear them more than about 10 times a year. But this year, they justified themselves.

I wanted to draw in my journal the steps I take to keep warm when outside. It really is an issue when it's this cold and becomes sort of all-consuming. Doing anything outside when it's this cold requires time and forethought, even taking out the garbage or walking pets. And it's way too cold to do fun things outside like skating or tobogganing. So here are the eights steps required to go outside.

Ixtapa sketches 2

2011-01-11T20:36:00.000-07:00

On Dec 11, we borrowed bicycles and a guide. Ixtapa has a very nice bike path, known as the ciclopista, that is about 8.5 kilometers long. It starts in downtown Ixtapa and dips down into the forest reserve, and ends up at the pier at Playa Linda.
Along the way, we stopped to help that turtle cross the road, and watched a roseate spoonbill feeding in the swamp while another one took flight. Near the marina, we stopped at the Zona de Cocodrillas. It's a natural crocodile habitat that has simply been fenced off so the crocs don't wander out into traffic and frighten children and tourists. They are small, as crocs go, only about five feet long from snout to tail and they looked pretty indolent and sleepy. But those teeth are long and the eyes are prehistoric and predatory. We also saw lots of those white egrets and iguanas. The ride was long and hot but lots of fun. Round trip was nearly 20 kilometers, including the sidetrips.
When we got back to the hotel, we saw that during the morning they had planted pointsettias amongst all the palm ferns and pothos in the lobby and grounds. It looked lovely.

Ixtapa sketches

2011-01-06T19:49:00.000-07:00

This is the sketch of my memories of our bus tour through the towns of Ixtapa, Zihuatenejo, and the surrounding countryside. We visited a coconut plantation and learned about how all the parts of the coconuts are used for something - from fuel, to food, to skin creams. The yellow coconuts are not quite ready for harvesting. There are many plantations in this area, and the trees are all planted in neat, perfectly straight rows. For those of us used to seeing haphazard palms leaning over the beach, it was a revelation to see them so cultivated.
Then we went on to a brick making...well, place, I guess. I want to say "factory" but both the shaping and the baking areas were outside. No buildings at all. The hand-shaped tiles or bricks dry in the sun, and then are fired in an outside kiln that is heated by burning coconut husks. That quintessentially Mexican sun and moon piece was bought there. It will hang on my garden fence in the summer.
We drove on to the coast where we boarded a small boat and toured a huge mangrove swamp. There were many species of birds and tons of fish. The birds feasted well. I think that is a cormorant that I saw sliding a pretty sizable fish straight down its gullet. We humans feasted on freshly caught and grilled Spanish Mackeral on the beach, along with salsa, beans, and icy cold Coronas.
Back at our hotel, just as the sun sank in the ocean, we guests and the hotel lifeguard released the baby turtles (a.k.a tortuguitas") that had hatched that morning in the protected area of the grounds.

Happy New Year

2011-01-01T17:02:00.000-07:00

Happy New year everyone and welcome to my blog. I wish you all much health, happiness and creativity in the coming year.
In December, I spent two weeks in Ixtapa/Zihuatenejo, Mexico. It was absolutely beautiful there, and we had a fabulous vacation.
One of my intentions for this new year is to draw more in public. I want to record the things that make up my life, the things that ignite my passion and curiosity, and the things that reflect the beauty of the world we live in. What better place to start that than on vacation in a place where everything is new and beautiful and wondrous.
We sailed and snorkeled and zip lined and walked and I tried to record the things I saw - everything from sunsets over the ocean, to crocodiles. I had to draw some of it from my memory, as some things, such as sailboats and bicycles are not conducive to drawing!
So here is the first sketch, drawn while reclining by the pool with a margarita close at hand. The perspective on the chairs is way off, but it did serve to get me over the nervousness of drawing in public.
Thank you for visiting my blog. The artistic communities I've discovered on the Internet are the most creative and supportive groups I've had the privilege to belong to. You are all wonderful!

Going to Ixtapa

2010-12-06T20:18:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow I am going to Ixtapa/Zihuateneho in Mexico. There's a margaria with my name on it waiting for me. I'll be there for two weeks, basking in the sunshine. This photo was from the brochure for West Jet vacations. It promises us warm butterscotch sands and chrystalline blue-green water.
There are 14 beaches here, all with some of the best snorkeling on the Pacific coast.
Hasta la vista, amigas!

EDM 299 Draw a corner

2010-11-23T19:38:00.000-07:00

This is where I should have been last Sunday afternoon. Sitting in my new leather recliner in the corner beside the window, with a cup of hot tea, a good book, and a tabby cat purring on my lap. Maybe with a fire burning merrily in the hearth. It was a bitterly cold winter day, with wind chills hovering around 24 degrees below the freezing mark. This is where I should have been.
Instead, I was bundled up like a snowman watching the CFL western semi-final game in an outdoor arena. It was so cold that every time there was a stoppage in play (which in football happens about every 30 seconds) the players would jump up and down to keep warm. The super tough Saskatchewan Roughriders team didn't even have long sleeved shirts on under their jerseys. We Canadians are pretty stoic when it comes to winter, and some (me included) actually like the chill and the snow. But it was simply too cold and we left in the fourth quarter, even though it was a good, close game and Calgary/Saskatchewan games are always hard fought. Alas, the home team lost and next week's Grey Cup will be between Saskatchewan and Montreal. Go Riders! And now, my poor, aching knees are burning with the fires of a thousand suns to remind me of it.

Seashells

2010-11-14T20:17:00.000-07:00

These are some shells that we picked up along the beaches during our vacations in Mexico. We are heading back to Mexico in a few weeks for our fourth vacation. This time we are going to Ixtapa/Zihuateneho, along the Pacific coast. We have been to the Mexican Riviera and the Caribbean Ocean is lovely, but I think I prefer the Pacific Coast. The weather is just as temperate, but the ocean has a lot more personality. There are waves and currents and if you're a person who loves being in the water, as I am, then the Pacific Ocean is much more fun. The waves are big enough that you can interact with them. If snorkeling is your thing, and I like that too, there are plenty of sheltered areas where the waves are calm enough not to swamp your breathing tube. In fact, Zihauteneho has some of the best snorkeling on the Pacific coast. This may be the perfect vacation, as Mexico has not been as battered by hurricanes as it has in previous years. Here's to the perfect vacation!

EDM 297 - Draw a water bottle

2010-11-07T15:51:00.001-07:00

This is one of the water bottles we used when we took a guided tour through the Yucatan Peninsula. We selected the option that did not include having chilled bottles of water in a cooler in the van for the princely sum of an extra $100 a day. We thought that we could manage our own water and then have extra money for food, excursions, souvenirs, etc. So I searched and found these water bottles that included a zippered insulated sleeve. We could "undress" the bottle, fill it with free bottled water from the hotel, freeze it overnight, and then in the morning "dress" the bottle in the insulated sleeve. The also had nice shoulders straps in case your backpack was too full.
When we reached our first, somewhat rustic hotel, I discovered that there was no fridge in the room and the bottled water was $7.00 US for a small bottle. I may have miscalculated this badly. It may be that away from the major resorts, bottled water is rare and expensive. After supper, we went out to the town and found that the little bodegas sold bottled water for prices much cheaper than even at home. We stocked up, and although we couldn't keep it very cold it was fine for our needs.

Deep Water Workout

2010-10-31T16:42:00.000-06:00

I go to Deep Water Workout, usually twice a week. I like it a lot. I love being in the water, it's easy on my joints, it's a great workout, and I get to meet new people. But sometimes it's a struggle to get through the class. I drew this journal page chronicling my journey through the 60 minute class. There always comes a point when I think I absolutely cannot do another minute or another repetition. I have to tell myself that nobody dies of getting too much exercise, but they die of not getting enough. And I always make it to the end. But it's hard enough that I always get to feel a tiny bit proud of myself for sticking it out, and doing my body and my heart some good.
Pentel brush pens in the day journal.

My new best friend

2010-10-26T15:36:00.000-06:00

This innocent, even sweet, teaset is what's held up my drawing and posting for several weeks now. The university where I work is turning 100 years old, and we are partying like it's 1999. One of the many events is the creation of a mural mosaic depicting 100 years of our history. A mural mosaic is a large painting that is made up of many individual paintings. In our case, there are 180 small paintings that create the larger painting. The mural is designed by a professional artist, and many of the flagship portraits are done by professional artists, but they wanted most of the panels done by members of the university community - including amateurs. I have panel #112, and my reference photo was of this little tea set. It was painted by a student in the China Painting section of the Fine Arts Faculty in 1931. Her son has recently donated the set to our Archives. This is my draft sketch done with watercolor pencils. The curves of the plate gave me no end of trouble, as did the lack of tonal variation in the photo. I'm sure I'll have to do several more sketches before I'm comfortable with it. My panel needs to be primarily blue to fit in with the overall picture, and needs to be done in oils or acrylics. That's the next challenge - learning to use acrylics. Gulp! This could be either the dumbest thing I've ever attempted or the most fun thing. But I really am thrilled to be involved in this kind of project.

You can check out mural mosaics here http://www.muralmosaic.com/

They really are quite amazing.

The Remains of the Toast

2010-10-17T16:16:00.000-06:00

This is left over toast from breakfast. I'm telling you that because, as I look at it now, it doesn't look like toast. I'm not happy with the way it turned out. I've gotten out of the habit of daily drawing due to a steep learning curve in my new duties at work, and it shows.

I make my own bread, this loaf was shaped by hand which accounts for the odd shape. They say the test of good bread is how it tastes when it is toasted. And this toast tastes very good. But clearly, there is no substitute for daily drawing practice. Time to make time to draw.

Colors of Autumn

2010-09-28T19:21:00.001-06:00

We have come to the end of the coldest, wettest summer on record here in Calgary. To add insult to injury, the rest of the country sweltered through one of the hottest summers on record. Due to surprisingly cold overnight temperatures, the leaves turned early, in some cases causing odd things to happen. Take these leaves for example. They are poplar leaves, which usually turn an even smooth yellow color with little variation. These however, got slightly frost-nipped before they were ready to turn, giving some really interesting colors and patterns. The inside yellow color actually mimics the shape of weeping birch leaves. The pay off for the summer that never was is that the leaf colors are the most brilliant I have seen in many years. The trees glow as if lit from within. It's especially dramatic against the gray, brooding skies.
Do you remember starting school in the fall when you were a kid? In elementary school almost the first thing we did every year was gather leaves to draw and color. I still love doing that, and it still reminds me of being a child when every thing was beautiful and everyone was an artist.
Watercolor pencils in Moleskine.

EDM 280 - Draw a teapot

2010-09-19T16:26:00.000-06:00

I call this teapot The Persian Princess teapot. The combination of the rich, jewel-toned colors always makes me smile. The actual teapot is the green part. When the tea is ready, you lift up the teapot and pour tea into the bottom cup. It's a cute invention. If you are called away from your desk, put the teapot back on top and it will keep the tea in the cup warm. Very handy! It's fun to drink tea out of, and very fun to draw, but sadly there's not much else to say about it. Watercolor pencils in the Moleskine sketchbook.

Whooping Cranes

2010-09-12T20:28:00.000-06:00

This whooping crane lives at the zoo here in Calgary. They are still an endangered species, although they have returned from the brink of extinction. In 1941, there were only 16 of them. Now there are 200 in the wild and that many again in captivity, thanks to carefully managed breeding programs. Their breeding ground is in northern Alberta and the Northwest Territories, then they migrate down the coast to North America to the Gulf of Texas. That's an amazing journey.
Pictures and more info at National Geographic
http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/whooping-crane/

Watercolor on Canson 140 lb paper

EDM 1 - New shoes

2010-09-07T19:29:00.000-06:00

I thought I'd share my cute new shoes with you. They are pink suede shoes, and the sides are open mesh, very cool on so many levels. They are Merrills and offer very good arch support. That's important whether you are coping with a 3 hour shift at the library circulation desk, or a day trip to Zihuatenaho on your next visit to Mexico. (I like to think ahead!)

I believe that, whenever possible, you should start September with a new pair of shoes. That's what most of us did when we were kids and that laid the foundation for the rest of our lives. New shoes, new school year, new start.

Happy September!
Watercolor pencils in Moleskine sketchbook

EDM 284 - Draw your downtown

2010-08-30T19:34:00.000-06:00

This challenge was a true challenge for me. Urban sketching has been my goal for a while, although I am very intimidated by it. It's not only the perspective, and all the lines and angles that can, and often do, go so very wrong. There's also the whole "drawing in public" dilemma. I decided to ease into it by taking photos of the buildings and then drawing from the photos at home.
I chose to draw these buildings because I really liked the red windows and plants in the boxes, and the curved window on the right side building. But mostly, I was completely charmed by the way the sky and clouds were reflected in the windows.These buildings really are side by side and are on Stephen Ave right in the heart downtown. Most of the buildings along here are historical and original, and protected. During the day only foot traffic is allowed, which opens it up to cute kiosks that sell everything from sunglasses to bratwurst on a bun. All the many restaurants place tables and chairs outside, and the business people sip their lunchtime beers under umbrellas. On this day, I sat on a wrought iron bench in the sun and listened to a wonderful jazz trio playing. That's why they say "Summertime, and the livin' is easy".
Pigma pen and watercolor pencils in Moleskine. It took me a long time to complete this drawing, but I'm quite pleased with it.

EDM 286 - Something colorful

2010-08-17T19:19:00.000-06:00

These colorful begonias are in riotous bloom on my deck right now. The flowers are quite showy, but its the leaves that I think are the real beauties. The spiral shape, the luxurious ruffles, and even the soft fuzziness are really beautiful. They were born to be sketched.
As I was preparing to draw, a small bumblebee landed on the table. It crawled along the edge of the table and then suddenly stopped as if it were too exhausted to go on. I grabbed the pencil and quickly sketched it, noting the placement of the stripes of fur, the shape of the legs, the curve of the thorax. It stayed for about 20 minutes, long enough to study it well and add some color. I added it to the sketch of begonias. See it there on the darker leaf on the left? It was a tiny little bee, maybe just hatched or popped or however bees become bees.
I'm always in awe when I get the opportunity to see a bit of nature up close like this. Bees are always in motion so it's rare to see one so close and still that I could make out the soft down and the brilliant colors.
Watercolor in Moleskine wc book.
Here's the bee sketch if you're interested. It's done using watercolor pencils. I made notes, too.

EDM 285 - Draw something that loves the sun

2010-08-10T16:39:00.001-06:00

Every winter, I put out seeds for the small birds that come to my back yard. Every summer, I get surprises where the the birds have redeposited those seeds. This sunflower came up in one of the small containers attached to the fence. At first, I thought it was a weed, but the more I looked at it the more it looked like a sunflower. So I left it alone, and planted fuchsias around it. Over the summer, it grew, in that tiny container, to be about 4 feet tall. It had only a single blossom, but it followed the sun every day. It was a true testament to the power of fulfilling your destiny or of the saying "Bloom where you are planted".

Watercolor on 140 lb paper. I tried to do this loosely and quickly and to let the colors be the focus more than the drawing. And besides, sometimes sunflowers are a little unkempt and imperfect. I think there's a lesson in that, too.

Roses are difficult here

2010-08-02T16:29:00.000-06:00

The title of this post refers to the title of a well-known book in these parts, and it refers to the difficulty of growing roses in a climate that has frequent winter drought conditions. I have grown many roses in my yard, only one of which has survived. It grows by the back deck and whenever it snows we sweep the snow onto the rose to give it some protection over the winter.
My personal difficulty with roses is drawing them. My goal during my summer off work was to learn to draw roses (and cats, but that's another story). There have been many badly drawn, unrecognizable roses here, lots of frustration and despair. But this one is OK, I think I had a bit of a breakthrough on the shape and curvature of the petals. I worked from a couple of books, and the actual roses blooming by the deck. And really, any day spent drawing roses on the deck simply has to be a good day.
"Roses are Difficult Here" by W.O. Mitchell 1990
Watercolot pencils in Robert Bteman sketchbook

EDM 183 - Draw something shiny

2010-07-27T15:24:00.000-06:00

We were at the zoo a while ago, checking out the new botanical and butterfly gardens. At the zoo, the peacocks are not penned in any way, and have free range of the park. They are quite tame, and quite large.

I was perched on a bench eating a hot dog. You know the kind of hot dog you get at these places - the ratio of bun to weiner is way skewed. Usually I pull off the excess bread and throw it out. But a young girl was trying to take a photo of this magnificent peacock who was strutting around like he owned the place (which he does). I suggested to her that I try to lure the peacock nearer with a piece of bun (one without relish and mustard on it). The bird darted forward and snatched that morsel so quickly that she wasn't able to get a shot. No problem, there's lots of extras bun bits. So I threw another, and the peacock obliged nicely, coming forward more slowly. I threw another piece. The girl clicked madly, exclaiming in delight. But... now the peacock has figured out the source of the bits and has the entire hot dog in his sights. He advanced confidently forward and showed no signs of stopping. He and I were beak to nose before I finally decided I should stand up and move before he grabbed the whole bun right out of my hand. He followed me! I shoved the last bit of hot dog in my mouth and threw the last of the bun his way, as I moved in the opposite direction. He still followed me, until I threw up my empty hands in surrender. The young girl photographed the whole episode, and as I left, I heard her excitedly telling her mom about it. Glad I could help out a budding photographer.

Landscapes of Celebration

2010-07-20T17:07:00.000-06:00

Today I went to the museum to see the Painter as Printmaker exhibit. While downtown, I wanted to visit my favorite park in the city. It is Olympic Plaza where we presented the medals during the 1988 Winter Olympics. Now it is an established, beautifully landscaped park with a pool and a fountain. But not today. Today it has "temporary gardens designed by local artists" to create "Landscapes of Celebration". I had my camera, so I can share these with you.

This one is titled "We're not gophers". Yes, those are pink, cement prairie dogs heads sticking out of the planter openings. The other openings are filled with prairie grass. What used to be filled with gorgeous flowers spilling down the sides is now filled with pink, cement prairie dogs.

This is the bottom of the pool. Usually, on a hot summer day, the pool is full of children running through the fountain. Today... no children. It's hosting the garden called "Big Sky". It's a series of circles in various sizes and shades of blue painted on the bottom of the pool. And did I mention, there are no children here today?

"The Centennial Garden". Each of the orange posts has the name of a city park printed on it. I believe that the height of the post corresponds to the size of the park. Below the posts are wild prairie grasses. These are under the magnificent arches that proclaim the Olympic virtues of Citius, Altius and Fortius.

This is "Picnic". Platforms of wooden slats painted a very loud shade of pink and red have been placed over the flower containers with various cutouts of prairie grasses. There are slanted risers so you can sit and rest your back against them. There were many people napping on them. But no flowers.

"Come Play in my Garden" . Green wooden pine air fresheners, complete with little holes at the tops so you can hang them from your rearview mirror, nestled there among the real trees. At least there was no cheap piney woods smell permeating the area.

So what do you think? I think that I would prefer the beautiful plantings that usually appear in this park. It's not that I don't like these. I think they're quite creative and imaginative. I just wish that they didn't replace so much of the annual plantings. Our growing season is so short here. I think this would have been a great fall exhibit.

Poppies

2010-07-14T15:25:00.000-06:00

We're renovating in our house where we have lived for almost 20 years. We've pulled out the old carpet and put down new hardwood laminate flooring. It's been a tad stressful, what with all the dust and moving things from one room to another. When it gets to be too much, I go outside and look at these poppies, and it all gets put into perspective. They are spectacular (and the new floor is too), with flower heads the size of a dinner plate. They are almost too heavy to hold their heads up and the one on the right had the most graceful dip and sweep to its stem. I love the simple, ruffled shapes of the petals. Many years ago someone told me that to learn to paint one should paint pears because they have the perfect shape. Once you can paint a pear, you can paint anything. I would add poppies to that statement as the perfect flower to start painting. They are simple but elegant.

Watercolor in Moleskine wc sketchbook.

EDM 278

2010-07-08T19:49:00.001-06:00

Draw something that starts with the first letter of your first name. Nice! I love to draw fruits and vegetables so of course I had to do lemons and limes. I love their colors and shapes and this lemon had an odd shape with a high hump. And the lovely little key limes that reminded me of Mexico...

We went on the Sierra Madre tour near Puerto Vallarta. We drove in a Unimogg, which is an open-sided jeep type vehicle with a canvas canopy designed for cross-country travel. And cross-river travel, too. We arrived at a working cattle ranch and had a nature walk with our guide who told us all about the flora and fauna of the semi-desert area. As we walked, we were followed by some gaunt, sad-looking long horn cattle that were the lifeblood of this ranch. The guide gave a vigorous shake to a small tree, and several bright little limes fell down. We put them in our pockets, and when we got back to the Unimogg we were greeted with icy cold bottles of Sol beer. Our guide cut up those limes with his pocket knife and we squeezed them into the beer. In the hot, dusty shade of the trees it was the most refreshing drink I've ever had. When we turned to go back to the vehicle, we saw that the cattle had followed us and were now standing in a complete circle around us. It was a little disconcerting at first, but they were just curious. They were free-range cattle and didn't see many people. We drew quite a crowd.

Art and Nature

2010-06-30T16:27:00.000-06:00

Here they are all grown up and blooming.
I get such inspiration and rejuvenation from the garden.
What could be better than sitting on the deck, in the sunshine, drawing the flowers blooming all around you?
Nature and art seem to go together so naturally. Even the original cave paintings show nature - well, usually man conquering nature as they show people driving mastodons over a cliff. But still, art is a way for us to make sense of the world around us, to capture a part of nature forever.
In the dead of winter, when I look at this little sketch, I can remember the sunlight and the birdsong and know that nature renews itself as it renews me.
Watercolor pencils in the Pentallic sketchbook.

Welcome back, my lovelies.

2010-06-26T15:28:00.000-06:00

These are the promises that greeted me on the morning of the longest day of the year. We've had a lot of rain this year and many days of grey, sunless gloom.

Then, there were two or three days of glorious sunshine, just in time for Solstice. The perennials took that as a sign and wasted no time putting up buds. This is what, as gardeners, wait all winter for. The perennials always know when to send up their buds as a solemn promise that summer really is on its way.

These superstars are (from left to right) Japanese Daisy, Siberian Daisy, and the always lovely and graceful day lillies. Welcome back!
Pen and watercolor pencils in my lovely new little Pentallic Nature Sketch sketchbook. The paper is divine and takes water really well. I like it a lot.

EDM 276 - Draw your grocery store

2010-06-23T11:33:00.000-06:00

Home renovations and a monstrous cold have left me little time for drawing. This is our neighborhood grocery store near my house. It has recently gone through a massive renovation. I think it's finished now, but it remains a singularly uninspired piece of architecture.

What did inspire me though, was the dramatic sky that was transitioning from ominous and threatening to blue sky and fluffy clouds.

I don't think this is very successful - I'm not happy with it for a lot of reasons. With skies it seems that you have to wet the paper, drop in the paint, walk away and hope for the best. I think it requires lots of practice so that you know how much the various paints will spread and how much water to apply. I will keep practising and next time I will try add lots of paint and then blotting clouds out. That might give the softer, more nebulous look that I want.

For better or worse, I always post the EDM challenges that I do.

Creative Every Day - Bliss

2010-06-15T11:02:00.004-06:00

There are so many things that are blissful in my life. I am fortunate that way. The beginning of gardening season is one of the ways that my soul renews and rejuvenates itself. We've had lots of rain over the last two weeks, but I managed to plant the bedding plants and tomatoes and seed some lettuce in between showers of rain. It was blissful. With my hands in the dirt, and the sun warm on the back of my head, all seems right in my small corner of the world. Nurturing the small plants, watering, fertilizing, coaxing them into being the best they can be is blissful. Listening to the birds splash in the birdbath, squabble amongst themselves, and sing the sun across the sky is blissful. Sitting on the patio, viewing my garden, with a soft pleasant ache in my muscles, sipping on a Wild Rose WRaspberry Ale is blissful.

It doesn't get much better than that, unless of course, you add in drawing what you planted. Now that's bliss.
This is also my 250th post. That's also kind of blissful (and amazing).

Harbingers of summer

2010-06-09T11:23:00.002-06:00

The irises are blooming in my yard right now. I planted these many years ago, and they are the plants that made me believe I could be a gardener. They are hardy and cheerful and low-maintenance. When they bloom, I know that summer is not far away no matter how cool and rainy the weather is. In fact, they are one flower that often looks better in cloudy weather with raindrops glistening on their petals.

Watercolor in the Moleskine watercolor sketchbook.

Mat showers and flowers

2010-06-01T12:10:00.003-06:00

My tulips came up and budded out in April when we had some nice warm weather. Then the weather turned cold and they stalled. These ones I rescued from the snow that threatened to crush and break their stems. They bloomed inside and were such a sunny, cheerful hit of spring I had to draw them. And this poem is the perfect description.

Tulips
by A.E. Stallings
The tulips make me want to paint,
Something about the way they drop
Their petals on the tabletop
And do not wilt so much as faint,
Something about their burnt-out hearts,
Something about their pallid stems
Wearing decay like diadems,
Parading ﬁnishes like starts,
Something about the way they twist
As if to catch the last applause,
And drink the moment through long straws,
And how, tomorrow, they’ll be missed.
The way they’re somehow getting clearer,
The tulips make me want to see—
The tulips make the other me
(The backwards one who’s in the mirror,
The one who can’t tell left from right),
Glance now over the wrong shoulder
To watch them get a little older
And give themselves up to the light.

Step Class - EDM 173

2010-05-24T16:00:00.004-06:00

This is me taking my first step class. It always seemed to have complicated choreography, and routines that no one without formal dance training could hope to follow. And I worried about the impact on my knees. The class I am taking is called 20-20-20 and includes 20 minutes each of cardio, strength training, and stretching. Last week our cardio portion included the dreaded step. And it wasn't so bad. Not very complicated, not very choreographed. Simple and effective, and a great workout. It was low impact, and I was able to follow the steps and keep up. What more can you ask from a fitness class.

I was so excited I went home and iced my knees and journal led about it.

Prisma pen, and watercolor pencils in my day journal. I'll call this EDM 173 - draw something from memory.

Monthly Sketch Project May

2010-05-16T19:04:00.003-06:00

Flowers are one of my favorite inspirations for drawing and painting. This is the photo for the Monthly Sketch Project. I loved the ranges of pinks, but mostly the dark background grabbed my attention. It's very difficult to do dark in watercolor, but I think it's important to learn how. It's the dark that often makes the light work.

Sadly, once again I missed the deadline to post this on the Sketch Project site. But do click the link and look at how some others drew the project.

Painting Flowers

2010-05-09T19:17:00.002-06:00

Spring is coming and I am looking forward to painting all the flowers that grow in my garden. I've done this before, usually quick sketches in a garden grid. Now I'd like to paint more. I got this great book from the library called "Painting Flowers in Watercolor" by Trevor Waugh. He breaks down the complex shapes of flowers like roses and peonies into simple 3 step paintings. He makes it look easy, but I think it will take practice. My plan is to chronicle the life of the flower - from bud, to flower, to seed head. While these poppies are easy, simple shapes to draw, which is why the book starts there, we progress to more complex spiral shapes. That's where I need practice. No more procrastinating over tackling roses, masses of foliage, and ruffled irises. Ultimately, I would like to garden journal the way Edith Holden does in her book "The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady".

April is the cruellest month

2010-04-29T19:39:00.003-06:00

I'm trying to draw a bit quicker. You need to be quick if you want to draw birds, cats, sailboats and other moving targets. This was an attempt to let go of the details and capture the shape - the essential "birdness". I'm not sure that I like it.

I did it last week, when the robin was gazing skyward and basking in the sunshine, and I was contemplating breaking the capri pants and flipflops out of winter storage.

This week, we were visited again by winter with lots of wet, heavy snow, wind warnings, and barely above freezing temperatures. This afternoon the robin was slogging through the snow, probably wishing he hadn't let the travel agent talk him into taking the Early Bird flight back to paradise. For now, the summer clothes stay put, and I hope the robin's fluffy feathers will keep him warm. Oh, and any complaint about snow has to be followed by the obligatory phrase "But we need the moisture" Sigh...

Monthly sketch project

2010-04-25T19:36:00.002-06:00

This is for the monthly sketch project, photo provided by ffyrebird. It's a great photo. Don't they look like they are gossiping? I can hear the one on the left saying "And then ya know what she said...?" as the little one shakes her head in disbelief.

This is watercolor pencils in the Moleskine wc sketchbook.

The Monthly Sketch Project site is here

http://monthlysketchproject.blogspot.com/

EDM 75 - Favorite recipe ingredients

2010-04-22T19:22:00.003-06:00

Last weekend I made soup. Two kinds - roasted mushroom medley, and tomato vegetable. I washed the veggies in preparation for dicing, and laid them to dry on the green waffle tea towel. They looked so nice, that before I could create soups, I had to create a drawing. I liked the colors and the shapes and I really love to draw fruits and vegetables and fresh, growing things. I'm, not sure how that poor pepper got so lopsided, though. It was a creative weekend, as I now have a freezer full of cups of soup to take for lunch and an EDM challenge! Life is good.

Monthly sketch project

2010-04-14T21:07:00.002-06:00

This sketch is done from the charming photo posted on the Monthly Sketch Project site. It's very serene, and probably from a zen garden. I loved the photo and really liked doing the sketch, but because it's not my photo I don't have a story to go along with it.

However, I can write a bit about the flowers surrounding the temple. I think they are wax begonias of my favorite variety. It's the Cocktail series, the white flowers are called Whiskey. The red variety is called Vodka, and the pink ones are called Gin. They have those lovely bronzy-green leaves, and flowers upheld on stiff stems. They are my favorite shade plants for the patio. And such cute names!

Virtual Paintout - Canary Islands

2010-04-11T19:47:00.003-06:00

This is the urban sketch that I chose for Virtual Paintout this month. It has the angular lines, and the perspective that I need to practice. It's an easier one than the one I chose last month. I was able to get those windswept palms and dramatic grey skies that appealed to me so much (although the skies do not show up so well in this scan).

The perspective is still not great, but I'm learning a lot each time I try. And traveling vicariously with my Internet boyfriend, also known as Google Pegman, is a real treat. It looks like this time we made it to the literal "end of the road".

Virtual Paintout is here ; http://virtualpaintout.blogspot.com/

This street scene is at Calle del Mirador del Charco, San Juan de la Rambia, Canary Islands.

Signs of spring

2010-04-07T21:05:00.003-06:00

This is not the post I had in mind today. I think it was John Lennon who said that real life is what happens when you're busy making other plans. I can attest to that. None of the drawings that I wanted to post are happening the way I want them to. I think I need to lighten up and stop trying so hard.

So to switch my brain off, I noted the signs of spring that I saw on my way home today and then drew them as quickly as I could. But ture to theme, I chose a new, untried pen. It takes forever to dry, smears when I try to erase the pencil, and is not waterproof with the brushpens.

On the up side --- 4 signs of spring! Spring is most welcome this year. Now, back to the drawing board.

Stavanger Norway

2010-03-28T16:39:00.003-06:00

This is a street in Stavanger Norway - not a place I've been to in real life. I used Google maps and the little pegman. There haven't been any posts on this blog for two weeks and I'm blaming this for that.

In my heart of hearts, I very much want to be an urban sketcher. I also know that I am not going to magically wake up one day and be an urban sketcher without any effort on my part. Martha Beck, one of my favorite authors, says that we can all work miracles,and it is significant that the first word of that phrase is work. To that end, I found the website called Virtual Paintout. Each month, they choose a location and participants use Google maps and the pegman to get street views. It's not easy to find a place, I saw a great many warehouses in Stavanger. Secondly, moving the little pegman up and down streets is seriously addictive, and eats up great chunks of time. Thirdly, perpective is ridiculously hard for me which is why I keep procrastinating (and why I'm still not an urban sketcher). I have worked on this small sketch for two weeks! For better or worse, it's done.

Virtual Paintout is here

http://virtualpaintout.blogspot.com/2010/03/stavanger-norway-march-2010.html

St. Martin / St Maarten

2010-03-14T19:36:00.004-06:00

This is a hillside on the island of St. Martin/St. Maarten. We took a bus tour from the Dutch side of the island over to Orient Beach on the French side. The whole island is very hilly and steep and the buildings cling precariously to the slope. From the bus, it was not apparent how people got to these houses as the lush vegetation hid all the roads and paths from sight. Most of the houses were white with red or terracotta roof tiles. It was a very pretty sight against the green hillside and the brilliant blue sky. At Orient beach we had barbecued ribs and chicken at Boo Boo Jam's beach side restaurant, and played in the rough surf. Good times.

Watercolor and ink on coldpressed paper.

Monthly Sketch Project - March 2010

2010-03-09T19:07:00.004-07:00

Onions and garlic are the perfect marriage. It's lasted a long time, and has been the start of many beautiful dishes. Almost anything can be made to taste rich and complex using these two ingredients as a base. OK, maybe not chocolate cake and lemon meringue pie, but most savory dishes use them. Think of how bland food would be without them.

This blog celebrates the beauty in ordinary things and today I invite you to celebrate the humble garlic and onion. Look at their voluptuous shapes and vibrant yet delicate colors. Onion skins have also made contributions to ink and textile colorings, as well. These two vegetables are often reviled for their strength and aroma, but we still love them.

The original photo is by Gillian. Her website is here:

http://thefadingrose.blogspot.com/

and other links for VSD is here:

http://monthlysketchproject.blogspot.com/

I used watercolor pencils in the Robert Bateman sketchbook.

Happy March

2010-03-04T19:06:00.003-07:00

These brilliant red hibiscus flowers were blooming in front of the hotel we stayed at in Fort Lauderdale. We had left Calgary early in the morning and it was -16C. In Fort Lauderdale, it was warm and humid and rainy. And there was green grass and blooming things. It was such a treat for our winter-weary souls. When we returned home, it was again very cold and very foggy. Good riddance to February, I say, time to turn our thoughts to spring and sunshine.

EDM 260 An Olympci Event

2010-02-28T11:25:00.003-07:00

I hesitated to post this. Drawing people is something that scares me - really scares me. This photograph was wonderful, the sense of excitement and dynamic motion was very compelling. It also made my stomach clench and my hands shake so badly I could barely put a line down.

About 8 years ago, the teacher in my Watercolor for Beginners was confidetn we could do portraits. I had a gorgeous photo of my 2 year old nephew. He was adorable with his sparkling eyes and beaming smile. My portrait, however, bore a resemblance more to Stewie Griffin from Family Guy than to my nephew. I was mortified, and a bit traumatised. But I am committed to doing these challenges and it's impossible to draw an Olympic event without drawing people. So I gave it a try, telling myself that I can't ever get better if I don't try. The arms on these fellows are not quite right - they were foreshortened in the photograph. This is actually my third attempt. It took that long to get my hands to stop shaking. And the helmets and goggles helped because I didn't have to come up with a true likeness. One step at a time.

Happy Accidents

2010-02-20T14:28:00.002-07:00

One of the things I like most about watercolor is the unpredictability of it. You can add the water and the paint and guide it in the direction you want it to go, but the final effect is the reaction of the water and pigment and paper to each other. This is from the photograph provided for Monthly Sketch Date for January. I loved the photo and had the idea to use salt in the background wash to give that crystalline look of foggy air. I also wanted the background to be very dark to show up the edges of rime frost. But the salt in the wash did not give me the effect I was looking for. Instead the crystals just drew the paint into blobs that ended up looking messy. It was a far cry from the airy, ethereal look I wanted. So once again, I did not make the deadline for the sketch date. But I wanted later to give it another try, maybe make the background darker and smooth some of those ugly blotches out. When I rewet the paper, suddenly those lovely crystal blooms appeared! It was exactly what I had expected the first time around. I added a little color but really it was the water that did all the work. Don't you love it when that happens?

EDM 259 - Pet's Point of View

2010-02-15T14:50:00.004-07:00

This is a true story. I'm sure my cat Holly has this very thought every time I put out the art supplies. Of course, the final goal for all art supplies/cat toys is permanent exile under the stove, never to be seen again. If there are no more art supplies, then all the attention goes to the cat. Right?

I don't often draw from my imagination. I'm not very good at it because I can never get the shadows right. I got the shadows right on the pencil and brush because I set those up in front of me. But for the first time since we adopted Holly, she did not get up on the table and reach her paw out for the brush. I even invited her to this time. The one time I actually wanted her to do it, she refused. So I had to guess at the where the shadow of her paw would fall.

Sharpie pen, Pentel brush pens, watercolor in Robert Bateman sketchbook.

February Monthly Sketch Project

2010-02-08T20:20:00.004-07:00

This is for the Monthly Sketch Project. The photograph is beautiful, and really made me want to draw and paint it. But it presented a few challenges, too. The photo is quite bright with an absence of strong shadows and contrasting colors. It was tricky to get the yellow flowers to pop against the green background.

The photo and the website are here:

http://monthlysketchproject.blogspot.com/

This is watercolor pencils in Co-Mo sketchbook.

EDM 258 - Draw your closet

2010-02-02T19:44:00.002-07:00

Draw the inside of your closet. Yeah, this one was a real challenge for me. Honestly, this is the kind of drawing that I have been know to cower before and run from. But I had made a commitment to do the challenges, especially the ones whose level of detail made me whimper. It took a long time, there's an awful lot of vertical lines that disappear and reappear. It's like that in the real closet too.

But I did do it, and I learned a lot from it. Although, I confess, there are a lot more striped and patterned shirts in this closet. Lest you think I only wear tops, this is only half the closet. Skirts and dresses and pants hang on the other side of the shelf where there is only one bar to accommodate longer items. The shelves hold sweatshirts, pajamas, purses and socks in the drawer with the scarf hanging on it. Once I had tackled the challenge of drawing this closet, I was so inspired I went through the closet, the dresser drawers and the storage boxes under the bed. I threw out everything that I hadn't worn for more than a year or that I currently don't want to wear. It was exhilarating to clear up so much space. And now I don't have to face those mocking size 8s that I'll never fit into again.

Pentel pen and watercolor in the Robert Bateman sketch book.

EDM 44 - Draw an animal

2010-01-27T19:13:00.003-07:00

One of the highlights of our recent cruise, was snorkeling with the sea turtles in Barbados. They were magnificent! They have such grace and elegance in the water. They were not afraid and came right up to us, swimming around and among us. At one point, I was kind of eye to eye with one. It was truly a thrilling experience.

Green turtles are an endangered species and are protected in most areas. They have a life span of about 80 years. The "green" comes not from their shell which is mostly brown, but from the layer of greenish fat beneath the shell. Unlike most sea turtles, the green is herbivorous.

This is watercolor pencil in Moleskine sketchbook.

EDM 257 - Draw a houseplant

2010-01-20T19:29:00.004-07:00

One cold, dark, winter afternoon I struggled through the snow to the grocery store to stock up. There by the entrance was a display of these beautifully blooming African Violets. They were waiting for people like me who were mourning the lack of fresh, blossoming things and sun-warmed earth to dig into. How could I resist? I brought it home and it has cheered my heart and soul, bravely blooming against a backdrop of snow drifts in the back yard.
Years ago, I heard a CBC reporter interview a woman who lived in northern England. She asked how the residents coped with the lack of sunshine and warmth during the very short days. The woman replied "We draw the drapes against the dark, we light a fire against damp, and we have a wee drop of Port to warm our hearts". I admire that woman's practicality and resiliance.

Pentel pen and brushpens and watercolor pencils in the Moleskine sketchbook.

St Kitts

2010-01-11T19:17:00.003-07:00

This is my second sketch from the isle of St Kitts. I took the photo from the Scenic Railway car, camera in one hand and rum punch in the other. I really liked all those charming little houses, painted in cheerful ice cream colors, with their corrugated tin roofs, and brilliant white shutters. St Kitts is building lots of small houses like this "low income houses" they are called. The goal is that everyone who wants a house will have one. That's the Atlantic Ocean in the background, much darker and wilder than the Caribbean.

Watercolor on 140 lb paper.

EDM 256 - Draw something bubbly

2010-01-06T19:46:00.002-07:00

This is my new best friend - um, I mean beer. We first tasted Carib in St. Martin/St Maarten. Whenever we travel, we try to sample local beer and wine. In the Caribbean, this beer is served all over but is usually made on the island that sells it. It's a good, crisp, cooling beer, perfect for drinking at a little sidewalk kiosk with a thatched roof to protect you from the sun. And it's way cheaper than Canadian beer is in Canada.

This particular bottle was bottled in Trinidad and sold at the liquor store in my neighborhood. It doesn't taste quite as good when I'm surrounded by snow and blizzard like winds. Maybe if I close my eyes...

Pentel pen and watercolor pencils in Robert Bateman sketchbook.

2010-01-01T14:48:00.002-07:00

One should, perhaps, be a bit introspective on the first day of a new year and a new decade. And also on the event of finishing the last page of the sketchbook.

Last year, I decided to focus more on drawing. I made the painful admission that a good drawing is the basis of a good painting, and that in order to be a better painter, I needed to be better at drawing. So my goal was to draw, and to pay attention to the object and really "see" it, to practice drawing until I could see some improvement. I think I succeeded in becoming better. I certainly feel more confident in my drawing skill.s

But my first love has always been watercolors. I want to be able to dash off quick, expressive sketches that reflect the way I see my life and the things around me. I want to chronicle the weird and wonderful beauty in this world.

A few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to be on a cruise in the Caribbean and wanted to take photos that I could paint from when I got home. This odd lonely palm tree was growing in a field of wild sugar cane on the island of St Kitts. I took the photo from the Scenic railroad car that traveled around the island. The narrator was talking about a hurricane that had hit the island ten years before, and I wondered if maybe this palm tree sustained a bit of an injury in that hurricane that caused its quirkky bent trunk.

This is my goal for this next year, as I open the new sketchbook. I want to do more sketches like this one - quick vignettes of life, and not get bogged down in the details. Celebrate the everyday wonder and beauty - live it, draw it, paint it, love it.

Festive Footwear

2009-12-24T14:13:00.002-07:00

This was fun to draw! These christmas ornament socks were actually in my christmas stocking one year. I'm currently wearing them - to honour the season, of course - but they are not very warm! But I will sacrifice comfort for beauty.

Watercolor pencil in Moleskine.

Thank you to everyone who has visited this blog - nearly 9000 in the last year. I wish each one of peace and love in the Christmas season and in the year to come. You are all wonderfu!

EDM 252 - Draw a fir tree

2009-12-20T10:16:00.002-07:00

Last week, I was a on a cruise to the Caribbean. It was fabulous! Mere hours after we left, Calgary was hit with a brutal blast of winter. There were recording-breaking cold temperatures and dumps of snow. For most of the 10 days we were gone, the city was virtually paralyzed. We were frolicking under palm trees and leaving our footprints in the sand, but at home it was snow on the fir trees and plodding through the snow. Fort Lauderdale, when we left, was approaching 30 Celsius, hot and steamy, and when we landed in Calgary it was minus 25 Celsius. I think I'll go and draw a palm tree now.

Winter vacation

2009-12-02T14:28:00.004-07:00

I am so excited. This is where I'm going. Well, not exactly here as this photo was taken from Aruba. But I am going to the Caribbean on a cruise that will take me to 5 other islands. But this photo from the brochure, had such lovely water and sky colors and I wanted to see if I could reproduce them. Here in landlocked Alberta I don't get much of a chance to paint the sea or use this combination of blues and greens. This is just a quick sketch, I don't do a lot of landscapes and the perspective is a bit wonky, I think. It's all about the colors!

For the next 11 days, I will be flying and cruising, and exploring other cultures and ways of life. See ya when I get back!

Watercolor paint on 140 paper.

EDM 250 _ Something for free

2009-11-26T20:29:00.002-07:00

Who doesn't love a fresh box of markers? These crayolas were given to me, for free, by someone at work who had a leftover box from a workshop she conducted. She gave them to me, because she knew I would give them a good home, and allow them to fulfill their destiny by being used rather than simply drying up. So of course, I did just that for this challenge. Because every day can be made a bit better by scribbling with bright, cheerful colors. There is nothing shy or retiring about markers!

EDM 249 - Draw a coffeepot

2009-11-22T19:33:00.003-07:00

My new coffee pot, I mean coffee maker, is actually potless. The coffee is made inside the top part. When it's done, the machine beeps discreetly. Then you place your favorite coffee mug on the little ledge, and push the grey bar. The coffee fills the cup. It's pretty good because the coffee never sits directly on a heat source, so it never gets that nasty burnt taste and odd greyish color that is so very unappetizing. The only downside is that the tall travel mugs don't fit in it. Best of all, it can be programmed to turn itself off (or on) after however many hours you choose to set it.

Technical details: watercolor pencils in the Moleskine sketchbook.

Fruit - how do I love thee?

2009-11-18T20:05:00.003-07:00

This is from a photo provided by the Monthly Sketch Project. Fruit again - how could I resist drawing that especially with my new dip pen nibs. Then I spilled water on it and the paper wrinkled quite badly. But--- good to know the ink is waterproof. I added color with watercolor pencils. I like the bright cheerful colors that the wc pencils create.

Monthly Sketch Project is here http://monthlysketchproject.blogspot.com/

EDM 248 - Draw a lock

2009-11-15T19:27:00.002-07:00

This is my combination lock hanging on my favorite locker at the rec center while I am in the pool. There's not much to say about this lock except that it's a very pretty blue and has an odd clear silicone cover. The sketch uses my Sharpie pen (the new kind that's guaranteed not to "halo" in a few years), my fabulous Pentel brushpens, and my new white gel pen, which worked really well over the black brushpen.

Remembrance Day

2009-11-11T16:35:00.002-07:00

In remembrance of all those killed in world wars.

And a special remembrance for the 133 Canadian soldiers who were killed in the struggle to bring democracy to Afghanistan.

EDM 247 - Draw something creepy

2009-11-09T20:32:00.002-07:00

My definition of creepy is coming home to my Mexican vacation hotel, and finding a huge black slug on the bathroom floor. The bathroom was beautiful, completely white. There were no windows only the wooden shutter high up on the wall. And there was absolutely nothing with which I could scoop up and carry out my unwanted visitor. No brochures, coffee filters, paper doilies - nothing. So I turned on the light and closed the door, thinking that the slug would crawl back up the wall and go outside. As I was drifting off, it suddenly occured to me that the slug would crawl toward the nearest dark place which was where I was! I leaped out of bed, opened the door, and there it was crawling under the door into the bedroom. Finally I rummaged around in the luggage, and found the paper envelopes that held our boarding passes and after several futile tries scooped the big guy up and carried him outside. He put up quite a fight, and I was thoroughly creeped out by the whole thing.

Micron pen and Pentel brushpens in Moleskine journal.

October sketch project

2009-11-04T15:43:00.002-07:00

I did this for the monthly sketch project for October. The photo (taken by Leslie) was lovely, and that rich background really caught my attention. My favorite things to draw and paint are fruits and vegetables. The problem with drawing fruits and vegs is that I rarely have a story to go along with them. I didn't finish on time - due to lots of out of town travel, but I wanted to do it anyways.

Its watercolors on 90 lib block paper. The background color is one of my favorite darks - a mixture of indigo and veridian - done in several rich, juicy layers. The veridian lifts off when it"s wet so it requires quick work and not much messing around with it. It leaves you with interesting patterns and blooms. And that to me, is what makes watercolors so much fun. The results can be unpredictable and very beautiful.

You can see the rest of the monthly sketch projects here:

http://monthlysketchproject.blogspot.com/2009/10/october-project.html

EDM 246 - Draw your glove

2009-10-28T15:00:00.003-06:00

My left glove. Almost reminiscent of MJ's sequined white glove, because in the middle of the embroidered snowflake is an iridescent crystal. The gloves came with a matching hat and scarf that have sequins instead of crystals. I bought the set because one day I came out of the rec center after my water workout class, crossed the street where there are no street lights, and was nearly hit by a car. After scampering out of the way, and catching my breath, I realized that it was dark and I was dressed in black pants, black coat, and black hat. No wonder the driver didn't see me! So now I have white accessories, a flashing light on my backpack, and a new appreciation for glitzy clothing.

EDM 246 - Draw "October"

2009-10-25T19:42:00.003-06:00

In my daily joural, I often do little cartoony drawings of myself doing my daily things. Or doing things that are not done daily, but that I want to remember. I don't usually offer them up for public consumption because they are very personal. But this one seemed appropriate for the week's challenge. It was my attempt to chronicle some of my favorite things about fall - the crisp, blue sky, the brilliant voluptuous pumpkins, my new beret that my friend bought me on her trip to France. And, in most Octobers, the fabulous colors of the turning leaves. This year, we had a record warm September which prevented the leaves from changing color. Then October plunged us suddenly into the freezing temperatures. The green leaves simply froze on the trees, and hung there soddenly. It's very weird looking. So this is me, walking home through the fall weather, wearing my new beret, and looking forward to flannel jammies and hot cocoa.

Pentel pen, watercolor pencils, Pentel brushpens, and charcoal in the Paperblanks journa.

EDM 244 - The oldest thing in my fridge

2009-10-15T19:12:00.002-06:00

This was a slightly frightening challenge. I found myself pausing in front of the fridge with my hand on the handle, wondering "Do I really want to know the answer to this question?" Rooting around in the back of the fridge could lead to some ugly self-realizations around hoarding and beliefs of wastefullness. But how bad could it really be? This fridge is only two years old and we did a major clean up while transferring things from the old one to the new one. The scariest thing then was a container of candied fruit - you know the stuff that you put into fruit bread or Christmas cake - that had congealed and hardened into a mass of sticky, crystallized nastiness. (And why do they tell me it's candied "fruit" when the first ingredient is "rutabega"?)

I felt more confident about checking the contents of the fridge. To my dismay, I found this jar of maraschino cherries. There was no syrup in the jar anymore, and I couldn't find a "best before" date on it. Does that mean I have had this jar since before there were "best before" dates? Surely not. The only thing I use these cherries for are an old family recipe for Cherry Loaf. The drawing came out kind of wonky - what's with the lid!? I drew with my new dip pen set using the B5 nib with the round end, which gives a pretty strong line, in the Moleskine sketchbook.

And because I have a secret desire to be a food blog when I grow up here is the recipe for this very pretty pink quick bread studded with red cherries.

Maraschino Cherry Loaf

1 jar maraschino cherries (10 oz. size)

1/2 cup butter softened

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Drain cherries and reserve juice adding water if needed to make 1/2 cup liquid. Chop cherries coarsely and pat dry. In mixing bowl cream butter and sugar adding eggs one at a time. Beat in vanilla or almond flavor. Combine flour, baking powder and salt and add to creamed mixture alternately with cherry juice. Stir in cherries and almonds if using. Place in greased and floured 9 x 5 inch loaf pan. Bake at 350F for 50 minutes or tested done in center with toothpick. Cool 10 minutes in pan and remove. Wrap and slice the next day. Bread freezes well.

3 years ago

2009-10-11T15:52:00.003-06:00

My blog is 3 years old.

It seems like yesterday that I held my breath and clicked the Publish Post button for the very first time.

3 years and 211 posts (and drawings!)

Thank you to everyone for all your support and encouragement. I wouldn't still be here without you. Help yourself to a cupcake.

These three cupcakes seemed an appropriate sketch to post for this occasion. The photo was for a monthly painting challenge over at http://differentstrokesfromdifferentfolks.blogspot.com/. I missed the deadline for that challenge, and I wasn't sure that I liked what I had done. The truth is that I don't like the extreme angle that the photograph was taken at. It made a great photo, but the sketch looks a bit awkward. Although those sprinkles were a lot of fun.

And it seemed serendipitous for the blog's 3rd birthday.

Watercolor in the Moleskine wc sketchbook.

EDM 242 - Draw a tzatchke

2009-10-06T19:09:00.002-06:00

These ceramic chickens belong to my mother, and to my childhood. They have been there forever. Several years ago, my parents moved from a 3 bedroom split level house to a one bedroom condo. The downsizing was ruthless to say the least, yet somehow these chickens ended up in the new condo. When I decided to draw them, I asked my mom about them. Obviously, they had a place in her heart and meant a great deal to her. I sensed a story. She told me that she had finished normal school and got her first teaching job. For the first time in her life, she had more money than she needed. She had enough money to feed, clothe and house herself and some left over. Money left over that she could buy something for no other reason than that she wanted to. One day she passed a store, and saw these chickens in the window. She went in and bought them, for no other reason than that she could and she liked them. An impulse buy, a silly purchase. But nearly sixty years later, she still likes these chickens. And isn't that really the definition of "tzatchke"?

Pentel pen and watercolor pencil in the Robert Bateman sketchbook

Back soon

2009-09-30T19:06:00.001-06:00

I am away for awhile.

There have been some recen bereavements in my family that have taken me away from both drawing and blogging.

I hope to be back soon.

EDM 241 - The view from my kitchen window

2009-09-22T19:01:00.002-06:00

This is the view, including the window frame. I'm not sure hwo successful this is because I sat on a chair which meant my eyelevel was a bit below the window frame. I actually could not see the ground - only the window box plants, the large fir trees across the sidewalk and part of the Co-op parking lot across the street. That's a truck parked in the loading zone.

And yes, the poplar tree on the left (the one with the messed up branch!) does have yellow leaves on it. Although we've had record high temperatures for this time of year, the nights are quite cool, and these trees are very sensitive due to an aphid infestation. Summer is going out with a bang this year.

I drew this in my Moleskine sketch journal using my new dip pens. I've been experimenting with trying to draw more quickly, and the dip pens seem to lend themselves to that - making quick, sharp lines, or long smooth ones. And it makes a very cool noise on the page. This particular pen (which was a bonus pen with the Speedball kit that I bought) has a very thin nib, that actually scratched the surface of the paper. So while I'm not sure that I like the final result, I really liked the process. Color was added with Pentel Brush pens and watercolor pencils.

EDM 166 - Draw a Fish

2009-09-12T10:21:00.003-06:00

After several medical tests earlier this week, I think I am about to be diagnosed with borderline high blood pressure. So goodbye to alcohol, salty snacks, ham and cheese sandwiches, and those extra 20 pounds. I will learn to love brown rice, bulgar, beans, and the varied species drawn here. I will swap fish for sausage (apparently it's better to die of mercury posioning than heart failure). Seriously, if I do everything the doctors tell me, I should live forever! And I'd also be perfect (and we all know how much fun perfect people are!) I wonder how many people can actually be the perfect patient - the one who only eats the right things, exercises the right way and never misses a workout, has no vices or weaknesses, practices perfect preventive hygiene. It seems to be an impossibly high standard to achieve. The whole thing has made me feel very self-indulgent and ashamed of myself for enjoying some of the finer things in life - like a medium rare steak and margarita. And I admit, I'm a little resentful of that. However, I'm hopeful that within a few months, I can again enjoy those occasional treats without guilt (or with only a little guilt).

These fish were drawn with my new dip pen and ink, a medium I've never used before but I think I like it. It takes a bit of practice to get a smooth line, but I like the effect. I colored them in with watercolors pencils, as this Robert Bateman sketchbook doesn't like water very much. The saying came from a T-shirt I saw.

EDM 239 - The gorilla that scared me

2009-09-07T15:41:00.002-06:00

When I was about 4 years old, I went to the circus for the first time. The ringmaster wheeled out an enormous cage with a gorilla in it. The gorilla roared and beat it's chest and shook the bars of the cage. When the ringmaster turned his back on the cage to tell us all how fierce and dangerous this particular gorilla was, the gorilla shook the cage furiously and broke open the door. He bounded off the stage and into the stands, roaring and howling. Further and further he came, closer to where I was. I wanted to leave, tugging on the adults' hands, pleading to go. But they wouldn't move. Closer and closer the danger came. I burst into tears and shrieked. The child-eating monster came right in front of me, reached up its hands - and ripped its own head off!!

That's a cruel joke to play on a small child. I'm sure the man in the gorilla suit thought that by proving he wasn't a real gorilla, I would be comforted. But for many years, I was haunted by nightmares of gorillas pulling their heads off.

This is watercolor pencils in Aquabee journal.

EDM 23 - Draw your foot

2009-08-31T19:31:00.004-06:00

Aah, summertime... and the livin' is easy.

At the beginning of summer, I bought myself some flipflops. Now I don't believe in paying a lot for these bits of plastic foam that by the end of the summer will be worn flat and misshapen. Most of the time you can't wear them the next summer because they and your feet are no longer compatible and they feel hard and ugly. So I buy a couple of cheap pairs - this year turquoise and pink - and they match most of my outfits. At Michael's they sell strips of adhesive that have sparkly beads or sequins on them in just the right shape and length to glue onto plain old flipflops. And now my $3.99 shoes look like a million bucks!
Because what's summer without a little bling on your shoes? Life's too short to wear ugly shoes.
I wore these to Expo Latino on Sunday. I sat in the shade and watched the salsa dancers, and the mariachi bands, ate tamales, and freshly made corn tacos, drank an icy cold Corona, and yes, I admit, I danced in my chair. Later that evening, I wrote in my journal that this was a perfect day. And it was, but it occurred to me that I had written that ver same phrase about a lot of days this summer. Maybe I'm easy to please, or not very discerning, but I'm pretty pleased about that. Yep, life is good.

The Garden's Second Wind

2009-08-27T19:32:00.006-06:00

The first two weeks of August were cold and grey and rainy. It was so gloomy that my solar-powered fiber-optic glow light didn't even come on at night. The tomatos were shivering and sulkily refused to ripen.
But the last two weeks have been gorgeous and hot and sunny. The tomatos are feeling much better, and the roses and nasturtiums have found a new reason to bloom again.
The symbolic meaning of this pink rose is simply "happiness". What could be more perfect?
And the meaning of nasturtiums is "victory in battle and conquest" which seems odd for such a short-lived blossom.
This post has taken me 45 minutes to do, mostly because I can't figure out how to first of all add a second picture, and secondly, how to arrange the pictures. And preview looks nothing like the real post. Aaargh! (Technology can sure blow away all the serentity you get from both art and nature, can't it?) So Iwill leave you with a poem, and go and do some yoga to rebalance my chi.
Namaste
Kind hearts are the garden,
kind thoughts are the root,
kind words are the blossoms,
kind deeds are the fruit
Anonymous

EDM 235 - Draw a butterfly

2009-08-22T12:26:00.002-06:00

This is a white admiral butterfly, native to Alberta. Their wings are beautiful - a shiny, irridescent black with orange and blue touches of accent.

As I was recently looking through the list of EDM challenges, I noticed that I had quite an emotional reaction to the ones that I had done. I could remember what month the challenge was issued, what the weather was like, other things that were going on that week. It was like the challenges anchored that particular week in time and all the things that happened were attached. My sketches were like little keepsakes boxes that held the story of my life. Even if the sketches did not illustrate what was happening in my life, they seemed to hold the memory and the sequence of events. Has anyone else noticed this?

Sketch is watercolor in the Aquabee Co-Mo sketchbook. The dark color is a mixture of Indigo and Veridian.

EDM 232 - Draw a recent purchase

2009-08-07T19:04:00.002-06:00

This is a new garden ornament that I purchased because of its cheerful countenance. The pierced petals are made of metal, and the face is translucent yellow plastic. It looks very fun in amongst all the green of the garden. The lettering was done with some alphabet stamps that I also recently purchased.

Most of this drawing was done outside on the patio, a fact of which I am quite proud. The weather was beautiful in July and my back yard was lush and fragrant. I spent a lot of my drawing time there, doing this and the flower series (from my previous post, and some future posts). I am far behind in posting my drawings, because it was often too hot upstairs in the computer room, and I didn't want to waste one minute of sunshine. Life is good.

Where it all began...

2009-08-03T15:24:00.004-06:00

This is my 200th post - a milestone. When I began to draw, it was my garden that gave me both inspiration and courage. I wanted to simply draw the flowers that were blooming each week during our short growing season. These were just done in my day journal using some old colored pencils that I found in a craft box. I also wanted to try using simple line drawings to illustrate my journals. Flowers were generally willing to stand still and pose, they were non-judgmental, and forgiving. And as I began to draw, I began to see, and then I began to look - to really look at shape and form and pattern. I discovered the rhythm and flow of looking and drawing, looking and drawing. The more I looked, the more I saw. That was in the summer of 2006.

In 2007, I joined the EDM group and began doing the weekly challenges. I began that summer to draw garden grids in an actual sketchbook.

This summer, the garden is spectacular and lush. It stills the clamor and soothes my soul and inspires my drawing. Between the garden and the drawing, I find peace and rejuvenation.

EDM 233 - Your favorite drink

2009-07-29T10:40:00.002-06:00

Once again, I couldn't decide. I drew two of my favorite drinks. The morning one which is, of course, coffee. But not just any coffee. The product discription states that it is a "bold, assertive coffee" with a "heady aroma" that comes from "an exclusive blend of the world's finest arabica beans including the very rare Indonesian Sumatra Mandheling". And they allow mere mortals to drink this coffee!

My new favorite evening indulgence is Copper Moon Pinot Grigio wine. These writers are just as enthusiastic about their product. Copper Moon comes by its name because the grapes are "harvested under the light of the moon" and the wine has "a cool fresh taste that captures the mystery of the night itself, its spirited individuality exudes citrus, green apple and melon". Obviously my palate is not sophisticated enough to discern all that! I just thought the label was pretty.

I think I'll read the label descriptions more often. Clearly, I'm not getting the full value of the item through my own devices and I'm not appreciating it as much as I should.

EDM 72 - Draw somewhere new

2009-07-23T11:29:00.002-06:00

Last week, I went to Red Deer to visit my parents. While there, I went across the river to Bower Park - a lovely little park with walking pathways, a pond that is stocked with fish, paddleboat and canoe rentals. It was so nice that I did what I hardly ever do - I pulled out my sketchbook and quickly drew what was around me. So much of what I saw is typical around this part of the country, things that I see everyday and I have seen every summer since I was a child growing up in Red Deer. There were crows perched on a bench looking for all the world like they were gossiping about the fat little Mallard ducks. The wild roses were blooming and are the official flower of Alberta. The pond is stocked with trout each spring and there is a platform for the kids to fish from. It was a very hot day and the Canada geese waddled over to the shade of a large tree to groom themselves. The seagulls were swaggering around giving everyone attitude, and chasing those beautiful blue dragonflies. It was a perfect summer day.

I drew these in pencil in the Moleskine sketchbook, then added pen and wc pencil later.

EDM 232 - Draw your junk drawer

2009-07-15T11:02:00.004-06:00

This is a sampling of what's in the junk drawer. At least these are the useful things in the junk drawer. There is a lot of junk in there that isn't used and probably could (should!) be thrown out. I have for the last several years waged warfare against the clutter that has accumulated over the last decade or so. Over the winter vacation, I shredded a drawerful of household bills that dated back to 1996. Earlier this spring, I shredded decades worth of old insurance and investment papers, and threw out manuals for appliances that hadn't been here for years. The junk drawer is the next step in Operation Clutterbusting. But the junk drawer, I discovered, has a lot of emotional baggage attached to it. "Look there, that's the plastic orchid that was attached to the birthday cake when I turned 40. How can I possibly throw it out?" A Google search for "clutter" proved that this is not just my problem, but a universal issue. We are drowning in paper, and useless junk. There are millions of websites dealing with it, there are people who make their living helping others get a handle on their junk. The late great George Carlin did a classic monologue on people and their "stuff". Why do we have so much trouble throwing things out?

Staedtler pen and watercolor pencils in Moleskine sketchbook.

EDM 230 - Draw a map

2009-07-10T13:46:00.002-06:00

This is the way I walk to work every day. Here are some of the highlights of that walk:

1. My house.

2. Pearl Express Takeout - love their Salt and pepper Squid!

3. Two big dogs live here. They can put their paws on the top of the fence and look over.

4. This house had to be completely renovated when a crane that was fixing the overhead power lines tipped over and smashed into the front of the house.

5. This house has been for sale for a whole year in a neighborhood where houses usually sell within days.

6. There is an enormous apple tree on this corner whose owners let the fruit fall to the ground and ferment. The birds get tipsy.

7. This house has rock garden with a lot of cute little rock sculptures.

8. This is the bike path to and from the park.

9. This house has the best rose garden in the neighborhood.

10. A little grey Schnauzer lives here and watches out the window every morning. When his people put the Christmas tree up in front of the window, he has to go underneath the tree to see out the window. I wonder if his people know this.

11. This house has a glass front door so their dog can lie down and look out. That's luxury!

12. This retaining wall was hit by a car and smashed. The owners then created a pretty little rock garden filled with poppies and pansies instead of just a plain wall.

13. A day home for little kids right across from the playground.

14. Down the steep hill of 46 Ave and then up the short hill of Richardson to my workplace. Half an hour listening to the iPod.

Comin' up roses

2009-07-08T11:12:00.002-06:00

The roses are blooming! These are Hansa roses in my back garden. They've been there for many years, and this year they are quite spectacular. I wanted to draw the promise and potential of the buds, as well as the glory of the full blooms. Shortly after I did this, they exploded into blossom, perfuming the air. Their color this year is very intense, as is the scent. They sure attract the bees, which is good because the bees are also visiting the nearby tomato plants.

I'm trying to draw all the perrenials as they come to bud and then full flower. Right now it's happening so quickly that I can hardly keep up.

"The only difference between an extraordinary life and an ordinary one is the extraordinary pleasures you find in ordinary things"

- Veronique Vienne

Take my advice

2009-06-30T15:16:00.003-06:00

This is my journal page for Advice. It made me think that everyone wants to give you adviceon everything whether they are an expert on the topic or not. Even advertising is all about advice:

- if you invest here, you'll be a billionaire

- if you use this product, you'll live forever

- if you look like this, you'll be successful

The media is always giving us advice on how much to weigh, how to dress, how to entertain, and who to emulate. It must be hard to be a young girl nowadays (and you know you're not young when you use words like "nowadays") when the media promotes role models like Lady Gaga and Gossip Girl as "real".

So "take my advice" and look to our mothers and sisters and aunts for the "real" people to learn from. They're the ones who know right from wrong and can steer us through the minefield of constant advice out there.