Well Fed Hummer

This year has proven to be the best for hummingbirds at our location.  Years ago we were tickled to have a couple showing at our feeders.  Then it was half a dozen to a dozen........seldom ever seeing more than one at a feeder at the same time.  This year it's unreal how many hummingbirds are around us. 

All day we watch them zoom from trees to feeders with several hummers sitting on the feeders at one time.  Mainly female but a few males seem tolerant of others or maybe they just give in because there are so many to chase off.  Love the sounds they make between chirps and their wings as they zoom across the front yard.  Our trees are full of them  :-))

This little guy is a pudgy little thing and tries his best to guard the feeder outside my window.  

Worked in the Stillman & Birn Alpha journal

Uni-ball Signo UM-151 brown-black pen (.28) used on illustration

Sheaffer calligraphy pen used for writing on pages.

Daniel Smith pigments

Something Old - Rustic

Every now and then I pull out my small 14 well palette that has various greens and Lunar pigments.  I keep them separate as they are highly granulating (well, at least most of the pigments are).

One thing I notice in this journal book and painting this small, the pigments really don't granulate as they would on other watercolor paper.  Maybe it's the vellum surface?  I'm not really sure.  Maybe if the illustrations were larger, the pools of pigments would have a chance to granulate.




Stillman & Birn Alpha Journal

Uni-ball Signo UM-151 0.28 pen with Brown/Black ink

Daniel Smith pigments

Lunar Earth and Daniel Smith's Burnt Sienna are very close in hue but the Lunar Earth seems not to be as strong or lively as the Burnt Sienna. 

Today's Accomplishment - Watercolor Sketches

This sketch is one of those "just because" with no real rhyme or reason for choosing the subject.

Worked in the Stillman & Birn Alpha 4 x 6 journal

Daniel Smith watercolors

Uni-ball Signo UM-151 Gel Ink Pen - 0.28 mm Brown Black






This next sketch was inspired by our breakfast.  Instead of the traditional breakfast foods, Terry decided to make Corn Fritters.  Normally he makes them without sugar dipping in syrup; but, he added a little sugar to the batter for my sake since I didn't want the syrup.  They were wonderful.

Same journal, watercolors, and pen used on the fritters (hand writing was using a different pen).

Rainier Cherries - YUM

These are the best cherries I've ever had and look forward to them being in season each year.

I find regular fresh cherries to be ... hmmmm, not really sure how to describe it.  The Rainier just seems to have a perfect balance between sweet/tart and a wonderful flavor!

Sketched these as I was eating a handful early hours of the morning.  One of those nights where I just couldn't sleep.


Stillman & Birn 4x6 Alpha journal

Dip Pen with Noodlers #41 Brown ink for lettering only.

#8 Round and 3/8" Angular Flat

Daniel Smith:  Cobalt Blue, Bt Sienna, Bt Umber, touch of Indigo for brown mix, New Gamboge, Perm Aliz, and Perm Red.

Cherries - Watercolor and Pen/Ink

Today's accomplishment:

Still working in the small 4 x 6" Stillman & Birn Alpha journal.

Grandmother's Barn

Going through photographs, I came across a picture of my Grandmother's barn that has some sentimental value to me.  She passed many years ago and her property sits with first the barn collapsing and the old home-stead house condemned due to deteriorating structure but so far still standing.

The barn is where my dad and I would hunt from if we were a bit under the weather or if the weather itself was nasty.  Dad would sit up in the loft and I stayed down at the back end where all the hay was kept.  I think I slept more than hunted all snuggled up in the hay to stay warm  :-))

Used my Platinum Carbon pen with black ink (water proof) and a Davinci 3/4" Flat brush applying watercolor.

Stillman & Birn Alpha journal (4x6")

Marigolds Pen and Ink

I worked this sketch late last night.  Flowers like marigolds, zinnias, carnations, etc. are difficult for me so I thought I would practice a bit.

Using the Platinum Carbon pen with its black cartridge ink in my Stillman & Birn Alpha (4 x 6") journal.

Pen and Ink Sketches

Here are two sketches I recently did using the Pilot Prera with Namiki Black ink.  Had I used the Lexington Gray ink, I might have taken a wash to these.  The Namiki will bleed so decided not to use a brush on these.

Stillman & Birn Alpha journal (4 x 6)

This first sketch is one of two young woodpeckers that mom is teaching to find food on their own.  We've watched as she's taken seed from the flat feeder and fed her youngins.  They are now doing so without her help.

Second sketch is of a couple pears growing this year on one of the two small pear trees in our back yard.  There are two peach, two apple, and two pear trees. 

Tigger in Pen and Ink

This time I chose to use a Pilot Prera with Black Namiki ink.  The pen has the same F point as the other I use with Lexington Gray but each look different for sure on the various paper surfaces.

I also notice that using the Namiki ink flows better on paper.  Not sure if it's the ink or the nib or combination of both.  I'm hoping my other pen's nib hasn't been damaged.  Maybe it needs cleaning.

Here is a 2-page sketch of Tigger from Terry's Pooh collection.  This stuffed toy is about six inches high.  The background was just something I added from imagination.

Stillman & Birn Alpha journal (4x6")