Happy Thanksgiving

It's a time for giving Thanks! Thank you to all who have commented, followed and encouraged me on my blogging journey and beyond! I sent this postcard out last week to my mailing list. Happy Thanksgiving!

journal brand

I was asked in a comment the other day what type of sketchbook I use...it's a square Holbein, spiral bound sketchbook. I have made my own as well..that's especially handy if you just adore a particular paper and want a specific size. I cut the paper to size and make a cover and back cover out of matboard. Then I take the bundle to a local copy store that does bindings and voila...a custom sketchbook. Make sure that they can handle a certain thickness to punch the binding through. You can then collage your covers or if you use a lighter colored matboard, paint right on there!

gobble, gobble

22"x 30" "Tea-time still life"

This week is going to fly by with Thanksgiving coming up...Time for turkey, stuffing and all that good stuff. Since I spent most of my childhood in the Netherlands, we didn't grow up with Thanksgiving, so therefore I spent many college breaks just hanging out by myself...which was perfectly fine...no roommates, the tv remote all to myself...ahhh peace and quiet. Now, however we do make time for turkey and the trimmings in some shape or form..cutlets, breast, whole bird..depending on how much left over we want!

adding to the list

"Savor the Season" 15" x 22"

It's hard to really declare a favorite flower like I did in yesterday's post. Don't get me wrong..the iris ranks up there at the top, but now that I see these delicate peonies...well I guess I just need to expand my top ranking flower list! They are all pretty and colorful and delicate and lovely. Which reminds me...I should hit the road and search out some amaryllis bulbs and paperwhites. 'tis the season for them after all...

favorite subject

One of my favorite flowers..the iris. I've painted a ton of them over the years...purple, violet, teal, lilac, yellow, white, etc.. They have those delicate almost see-through blossoms and then that angular, sharp leaf. If you want to do some negative painting...the foliage of the iris is just perfect.

Reclined

WOW! That's all I have to say after all the comments my piece received yesterday! Thank you so much. Such encouragement in this blogging community. Our Monday night figure session was cancelled again this week...I found out second hand, because I didn't go this week. Hopefully there's next week...I take some different paints with me to this class and give myself permission to experiment and try some new combinations...like here, the red and green. If you leave them alone and don't "scrub" and "fuss" too much, the pigments will get along fairly well on the paper!

"Muted Commuters"

6"x6"

The very quirky assignment for the latest Different Strokes blog. We had three weeks to complete this one and I went almost to the last day. I had printed the image up, but had it kicking around the house all this time. Well last night it felt like I could tackle this and really had fun with it. It seems I try to incorporate my splashes and droplets in all the DSFDF challenges. Or maybe it's just me and I just like them..

Winter bird

A taste of things to come around here. I've been seeing the bright red flash of the male cardinal for a couple days now...they are so skittish. I grab the camera and away he goes. I have yet to see him on our birdfeeder...they like to eat whatever has fallen off the feeder from the ground. I'll stay vigilant and keep trying to capture him...either with camera or paint brush.

less color, more sketch

Today I thought I would go for something a little less colorful and more sketchy. I still am not doing enough of these sketches, but if I look back at this past year, I am getting better at increasing my rate of sketch....on to 2010 and more, more, more. Setting goals, writing them down and trying to achieve them. In this case it's sketching them down..hee hee.

what ya doin'?

It's a sketchbook kind of week...I did the above painting this summer when there was a festival along the shores of Lake Champlain. Two huge tents and an old building behind them...it's funny how many people look at you and small children point and asking "what ya doin'?" I figure with all these Urban Sketchers across the world, a person painting in broad daylight wouldn't be such an unusual sight!

avoid the MUD

Another summery image from this past year. A small square peony sketch that was done to test some colors and work out some negative spaces. I always have a good time figuring out the layers of leaves..and sometimes I can get a bit carried away and keep layering and layering and layering...going from light....to dark...to darker...to darkest. Trying very hard not to get muddy!

look on the sunny side

"Sun Giants" 13"x13"

Memories of summer giants, sitting underneath looking up and through at the blue sky beyond. This painting actually started off quite painfully...You know when you have one of those moments while you are painting and you just want to throw in the towel..or the brush in this case. But there is this fine line of persevering and trying to apply everything you know about painting and hoping beyond hope to not come out the other end with a dog...This was one of those times..I ended up being fairly satisfied with this piece and my decision to stick it out!

Lounging figure

Last night's figure session was cancelled due to "sickness"...don't know if that was the model or the facilitator? But everyone is a little gun shy when it comes to the "sickness", be it flu or worse. It's all over the news, plus with the political ads...yikes. I might need to try some self portraits this week to make up for the missed figure class.