EDM 246 - Draw your glove

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"

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

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

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

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