Happy Valentine's Day

Wishing you another year of love, laughter, and joy.

We have out phone and internet service with Telus. Each year they send us a calendar with gorgeous photos of animals and birds. This was the one for February. I couldn't find a photo credit and I suspect these are computer generated images, rather than real photos. But they are cute.

I have like flamingos all my life, and a few years ago, I went to Rio Lagartos on the north coast of the Yucatan. It is a great gathering place for flamingos and other shore birds. The waters are shallow and warm and the food plentiful. In fact, the water was so shallow that our little tour boat got stuck. We all got out of the boat and pulled it out to deeper water. While there, we also saw a Roseate spoonbill suddenly stand tall and spread its wings. It was a spectacular, magical day. You can see more here http://www.riolagartos.com/

Watercolor, wc pencils in Moleskine sketchbook.

Clementine for VSD

I painted this from the photo for the last Virtual Sketch Date challenge. I didn't like what I had done at first - it seemed a little dull and uninspired. Then I realized that I had forgotten that I had carefully saved the white pith areas wth masking fluid. Once I removed the masking fluid, it brightened up considerably. I deepened the shadows and got more contrast. I'm still ambivalent about it - I think the shadows are not quite believable. Suggestions and ideas are welcome. Maybe it would look better after a few of these:

The Absolut Ruby Gem
1 1/2 part(s) Absolute Ruby Red Vodka

1 tbsp. Brown sugar

3/4 part(s) Clementine Muddled

3/4 part(s) Cranberries Muddled

Ginger Ale

Shake first four ingredients with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Top with the splash of ginger ale.
Credit
Absolut Vodka

EDM 208 - Draw a shadow

And shoot the shadows through and through with light...

I had bought tulips to ward off the worst of February dreariness. As the week went on, they drooped lower and lower and opened wider and wider. On Thursday, the blooms lay right on the table. The ceiling potlights created these odd double shadows as they shone through the petals. It seemed approorate for this week's EDM challenge. As does this lovely poem by Ella Wheeler Wilcox.


Let the dream go. Are there not other dreams
In vastness of clouds hid from thy sight
That yet shall gild with beautiful gold gleams,
And shoot the shadows through and through with light?
What matters one lost vision of the night?Let the dream go!


Watercolor and micron pen in Moleskine watercolor sketchbook.

San Francisco Victorian House

I have been looking a blog called Different Strokes for Different Folks. The site host puts up a photo and invites others to draw or paint it. She then places all the results on her blog. The variety of media and compositions are astonishing. Last month the photo was of this San Francisco Victorian house. It's quite beautiful and fell right in line with my year's intention to learn to draw buildings. I'm having difficulty with this intention, but I really want to learn to do it. I'm actually pleased with the way this drawing turned out. I learned a lot about following the lines and the way one line relates to the next one. The best piece of advice I got was to pick one vertical line and draw it with a ruler. Then place all other lines in relation to that original one. That works! Now if I could just speed up a bit. If I had been drawing this on site, I would have needed to pack a cooler and pitch a tent! I'm sure that those who draw swiftly and surely while standing on a street corner have been doing it for many years. I'm sure that they are so familiar with the structure of buildings and the rules of perspective that they don't need to consciously think about every line. Hopefully, with practice and patience, I can reach that goal. While I worked hard at getting the lines down correctly, I really had fun doing this and especially coloring in the windows.

This is micron pen and Pentel brush pens in the Moleskine journal.