Capturing the Moment

Lani and I were outside for a little while and as we were about to go back inside to the Sunroom, a dark shadow caught my eye.  I looked to see it was a Brown Anole sitting on our air handler's condensation drain pipe that extends down from the attic outside the house.

I don't know if this guy was just relaxing there or if he was headed to the drip of water at the end of the pipe.

This year we have seen green and brown (mainly brown) anoles at every turn.  They are everywhere on foliage, on the house, and even scampering across the lawn.  We've never seen this concentration of anoles in the seven years we've been here until now and wondering if it was due to the warmer winter we had this past year.

We've also taken notice of the larger number of geckos this year as well.

Handsewn journal with Fabriano Cold Press paper / TWSBI 580AL w/#41 Brown ink.

Playing With Color - Ink Drawing from Jan 2021

Taking a break from a couple major projects I'm working on, I decided to play a bit with color.  I chose to use a pen and ink drawing I had worked back in January when my youngest son sent flowers to help brighten my day after a major family upset.  

I decided to make a print of the original on Stonehenge watercolor 140 lb cold press paper so that I could apply watercolor while maintaining my original as a pen and ink only drawing.

Once painted, I decided to play with some paper I had added only watercolor swatches to for possible backgrounds.  One with the original pen and ink and one with the watercolor version layered overtop for comparison.

Variation of Bees

My eldest granddaughter decided to go in with me working a challenge through the month and we agreed on sketching bees.  So far I have worked four different types in four different mediums.

This has not only been fun but very educational as well....even at my age :-)

 

UPDATE:  My granddaughter's bees (09/22/21)

First is using Procreate and the second is in her sketchbook.  She makes her "Mammaw" proud!!!

Various Sketches Through July

Catching Up with July's sketches...

The monthly theme is Sketching a Mess or Cluttered Area.  I just haven't been inspired or motivated enough to work this theme.  Maybe another time.

Fortunately, I did manage to fulfil my other goals with regards to the various medias I try to keep up with on a monthly basis.

Digital

Rosehips using Procreate and my favorite brush tool - Gouache

Christmas Cactus using Procreate and Gouache brush tool:

Seascape using Procreate and trying out two very different brush tools - Organic/Spires for rocks and Organic/Rainforest for clouds.  Worked this while waiting for Elsa to pass by us here in Florida back the first week of July.  This was a lot of fun just playing around with the brush tools and letting the scene develop along the way.  I had no idea what I was going to do.  Added the quote that fit the specific time with that storm coming.

African Red-headed Agama using Procreate and the Gouache brush tool for the Agama itself.  Used BJD/Spots for the ground and Touchups/Old Skin for the subtle pattern on the body of the Agama.

Pen and Ink

Trumpet Tree Flower using TWSBI 580ALR / #41 Brown ink.  Fabriano Artistico HP

Pen and Ink with Watercolor

Yellow Bellied Slider using QoR watercolors; Fabriano Artistico HP; TWSBI 580ALR / #41 Brown Ink.

This guy showed up on our front porch a couple days ago.  No idea where he might have come from as we're a little distance from any water source unless there's a neighbor who has a pond.  My husband said it's possible a bird might have had it and dropped along the way.  This is the second turtle that has shown up on our front porch.  A few weeks ago we had a large Gopher Tortoise show up.

TWSBI 580ALR / #41 Brown in Fabriano Artistico HP sketchbook.

Hibiscus

Was in the mood to sketch some flowers and I chose the sketch what's blooming right outside our kitchen window.

We have several hibiscus, most of which have the orange flowers.  Also have a Hawaiian Hibiscus my youngest son gifted me with and also a double peach hibiscus.  What I love is the fact these flowers basically bloom all year long.

Fabriano old stock Hot Press watercolor paper with TWSBI 580 (EF) and #41 Brown ink.  QoR watercolors.

 

Continuing with Monthly Theme - My Diet

Lately I have been craving fruit and fortunately, it's the time of the year when some of our favorites are in season.  

Rainier Cherries are a favorite and they show up in Publix for only a very limited time.  I limit myself to only five a day.  

Another favorite is the Golden Kiss Melon.  It's the sweetest of the cantaloupe type melons.  Then there is the Watermelon and fortunately the season lasts for awhile.  Both of these I weigh in at around 50 gr each a day however, I will eat up to 100 gr of watermelon if that is all we have on hand.

Normally I would get Strawberries about now but we haven't had a lot of luck purchasing sweet strawberries or with any real flavor to them.  We feel we waste money on them more often than not.  This is one fruit I can eat more of when I do get lucky enough to purchase a good batch.

Gala Apples are my go to apple variety and I get them regularly throughout the year.  I only eat a quarter of an apple each day with just a little peanut butter for added flavor.  They are normally an evening snack for me.

Taking notice of the low amounts I eat, I have to watch my sugar and carb intake so rather than do without, I allow myself small quantities just so I don't feel deprived.

And besides zucchini, kale, cauliflower, and broccoli, which I eat regularly, I've been in the mood for tomatoes.  Our favorite being the ones sold still on the vine.  Even though technically tomatoes are considered fruit, I view them as vegetables.  

I like eating sliced tomato in a wrap or between bread with salt and pepper with a little mayo as it mixes wonderfully with the juice making a wonderful dressing.  

Page worked in the handsewn journal made with old stock of Fabriano Hot Press watercolor paper using the TWSBI 580 fountain pen with #41 Brown ink.

Grapefruit Buds and Early Formation of Fruit

For ink and watercolor this month, I chose to do these two pages first showing the initial buds and early fruit on our grapefruit tree.

Worked in handsewn journal using old stock of Fabriano Hot Press 140 watercolor paper, TWSBI 580 with new EF nib and #41 Brown.  I decided to use other than Sap Green for my greens...all Daniel Smith pigments.

Note about the TWSBI 580:  After working with the 580 and a F nib for a while, I purchased the EF replacement nib and definitely prefer the EF nib.  The TWSBIs I have all feed wet compared to other pens and the F nibs were feeding ink that took too long to dry.  With one sketch I worked even after 20 minutes smudged when I went to erase the pencil lines.  

Ibis, Dessert, and Orchid

After the big disappointment with the Magnolia, I decided to redirect my interest in other things to sketch.

One of the days I went out to check on the Magnolia, these Ibis were in the back near the tree.  I was able to move around a bit without scaring them taking pictures.  These guys seldom come to the back yard so it was a surprise to me to see them there.

Terry went to get some ice cream for us and knowing I'm trying to watch my calorie intake, he found these mini cones.  Nestles makes mini drumsticks and I have always loved their large cones but Publix was out of them.  So he decided to get these from Blue Bunny for me to try. 

Last month I worked a watercolor sketch and a digital sketch of my orchid at the bud stage.  I wanted to work another digital with it in full bloom and got a bit carried away.  This took me hours starting yesterday morning at 10 a.m. and worked it off and on until 4:30 this morning.  Then I picked back up on it at around noon and finished this afternoon.  Today's work was fine tuning after a few hours of sleep and fresh eyes adding deeper values, blending and smoothing edges.

Big Disappointment - Magnolia Flower

So far I have seen and monitored two buds that opened and went through the stages up to all petals turning brown.  There was another bud ready to open as of last night I was so looking forward to seeing as there were no limbs or bunches of leaves to hinder the flower from opening completely.  

When I woke up, I went outside and took a picture of that bud and knew that sometime through the day, it would definitely open.  And I was right.  UNFORTUNATELY, sometime during the day, something attacked this flower leaving petals on the ground exposing an entire side of the center.  Chances are it may have been squirrels as we have an over-abundance of them this year eating up our growing avocados and causing havoc at our bird feeders.  Neighbors are also complaining about how bad the squirrels are this year.  One neighbor in particular has already trapped over two dozen (just from his yard) relocating them to the National Forest near us.

Last page in journal from Fay.  TWSBI 580ALR w/#41 Brown / QoR and DS watercolors.

Watching and Documenting Growth of Magnolia Flower

When we moved into the house we first rented and then purchased, we cut down all but about 6 feet of trunk of a scraggly looking magnolia we didn't think was doing well.  Our plan was to place a bird house on top hoping to attract Blue Birds.  We never got around to building the bird house and the next thing we knew, we had new growth growing from this trunk to include side branches.  Here a few years later we have a nicely shaped magnolia tree.

The type we have is an evergreen variety (Southern Magnolia??) that is showy with dark green leaves on the front or top surface and a gold/bronze color underneath.  The leaves are large and waxy.

We noticed the last two years the tree had actually produced a few flowers only because we saw the seed pods.  We kept missing the flowers themselves.  This year I was determined to see them and starting around mid April, I started locating a few flower buds.  At first I could only find three but have since noticed several others...mainly up higher.

At first it was hard to distinguish between leaf buds and flower buds but didn't take long to notice the difference.  The flower buds are fuller at the base looking like a bulb compared to the leaf buds.

Over the weekend we saw our first flower open in a cup shape.  Come evening I noticed the flower closed up.   Next morning I found the flower was wide open spilling stamens that would catch on the cup shaped petals.  By evening, the petals were turning a Burnt Sienna like color of brown.  My understanding is that the flower life is basically two full days before turning brown and petals finally dropping leaving a cone shape that continues to develop into seed pods.

As of yesterday we had two fully opened flowers - both at the point of petals turning brown.  There is one bud that is getting close to opening and have found several others at the point in this first sketch.

First two using sketchbook with Fabriano Hotpress paper.  TWSBI 580ALR (F) w/#41 Brown ink.  QoR and DS watercolors.

This one using same sketchbook but using TWSBI Eco (EF) w/Urban Grey ink / same watercolors.

Didn't feel like messing with watercolor so I worked this rough sketch in Stillman and Birn Alpha sketchbook using mechanical pencil .7

State of flower as of last night.

Something Totally Different

No idea what prompted me to look into family crests but I spent awhile looking at those, wedding crests, and mono crests.  I was intrigued by those not traditional with shield and armor and started thinking about what I could come up with that fits me.  And rather than designing all new content, I decided to go through my previous sketches and paintings and use some of my favorites.

This would be classified probably as mixed media digital since I used both digital and watercolor sketches to make this up and designed it in photoshop elements.

This represents my favorite bird which is the hummingbird.  It includes my favorite colors which are greens and golds.  Green represents nature and life and golds represent warmth and comfort.  This "crest" represents my love for art, fishing, gardening, and includes my favorite sketching model, Opal.   And the quote is how I live. 

Printed and placed in a magnetic acrylic block using old stock of Arches Infinity Museum Quality Digital Art printer paper (I found another box I hadn't used yet).  My go to for ATC cards before Canon partnered with Arches and that particular paper is no longer available.  This was always my favorite before finding Red River papers.  The one thing I like about the Arches was the texture of the paper.  Red River Aurora that I purchased is more like a hotpress surface but is bright white and makes your prints pop.  Arches Infinity is a softer white with a coldpress like texture.

Monthly Theme for May 2021 - Items I Tend to Collect

Alexa chose the number assigned to "Items I tend to Collect" which covers quite a few ideas I can sketch this month.  I have quite a collection of pens, various trinkets, and stuffed animals to include my miniature bears.  One of my biggest weaknesses is collecting various cases.  

Most normal women get into buying/collecting dozens of shoes and/or handbags but then no one can call me normal.......ha ha.  I find a handbag I like and I'll use it for every occasion until it falls apart.  And shoes......I have two pairs of dress shoes (navy and black), pair of sneakers until they wear out, and pair of flipflops ... given the choice, I go barefoot.  I never got into matching shoes with clothing or handbags like many women do.  And as for clothing, my wardrobe is very simple with maybe a dress or two, t-shirts, a few blouses, and jeans.

Anyways......for my first example for this theme, I went with a few cases I have sitting right here near me that hold mainly pens but also a few other art supplies to include drawing pencils.

Second to last page in the journal Fay made for me / TWSBI 580ALR with Urban Grey ink / QoR watercolors.

Chrysalis Two Different Methods

One of our neighbors with children raise Monarchs and while Terry was out walking Miya, he was called over to check out butterflies emerging from their Chrysalis.  He came back to the house to get his camera and went back over taking pictures and learning more about the process.

This family plants Milkweed in pots to attract Monarchs.  Eggs are laid followed by the caterpillars.  These caterpillars are fed the leaves of the milkweed to keep them around so they create their Chrysalis in the plants.  The family moves these plants inside a pop up screened housing you can purchase for this purpose and enjoy the time when the Monarchs emerge.  The wife also created a board with rope they hang under their outside porch light.  It's evident that the family takes a few of the Chrysalis by hand and tie to the rope where they stay until the butterflies emerge.  

How neat for those children to be apart of that experience!!!  I learned a lot from this as well.

Terry was told this continues until around October so we have plenty of time should Terry follow through with trying this himself.

From photos, I worked these both digitally and in my sketchbook.  I wanted the digital to be more like how I work in my sketchbooks rather than in depth or formal like I've been doing lately in Procreate (like the portraits and flowers, etc.).

This follows one of the photos Terry took - using Procreate and Gouache brush tool for color work and BJD's Standard Inker for line work and writing.

Then I decided to split between two pages as seen in my handsewn journal using old stock of Fabriano Hotpress paper (140lb).  One page worked with Urban Grey in TWSBI 580ALR and the other using #41 Brown in another TWSBI 580ALR foutain pen (both with F nibs).

Side Note:  When I started working on the hotpress paper with my fountain pens, I didn't like the feel of the nib moving across the paper.  I've worked on hotpress before and do not remember this at all even with EF nibs.  It felt like I was trying to draw or write on a paper with a coating somewhat like you'd find on wax paper.  And whatever it was appeared to collect on the nib and cause thicker lines and tiny blobs I didn't like.  At first my lines were real light and when I went back over them, it's like the grooves the nib made on the paper grabbed the next pass of ink and was really dark.  Was really weird. 

The first page I worked (out of three) was like this and I stopped what I was doing leaving the sketch unfinished.  I may return to that page later.  I decided to work on the next page for the above illustrations/writing and it was different.  I didn't have the issues on either of the next two pages.  I'm wondering if when making the books oil or something didn't end up on that one page.  Or maybe the old stock of paper I used is inconsistent with its sizing properties.  I won't know until I continue using this journal book.

Off Day - Watercolor Sketch Failure vs Digital

After working on my Ipad, I wanted to do some work in my journal.  This started out with a pencil sketch which was off a bit on the two right flower buds.  Instead of doing what I normally do by going over the pencil with ink (correcting proportions or lines), erasing pencil, and then adding watercolor, I proceeded to add color first..........BIG Mistake.

Working right to left, as soon as I laid down some color over the graphite, I knew I was in trouble.  The graphite muddied the paint and I tried to over compensate resulting in the two buds being over worked.  Then thought maybe adding the ink lines might help.  Nope!!!  I didn't have those two sketched in correctly and the ink lines magnified that fact.

The two left flower buds I took my kneaded eraser shaping it like a rolling pin and rolled across the pencil lines picking up excess graphite hoping that might work better, and it did.  My state of mind was already "ehhhh" with what I was working on but pushed through it and finished painting.  Then added the ink lines.  I do not care for ink and wash with ink after color because it's too stark looking to my eyes.  If I'm going to work ink and wash, I want the ink lines down first.  I also prefer to "slap" on color to give life to ink sketches as I don't tend to over work my watercolor.

Being totally dissatisfied with how things turned out, I decided to work this again in Procreate.  The results for me were much better.  I love the ability to stroke and blend like one would using oil paint.  

With this digital, I worked differently than I normally do.  Instead of working multiple layers, I only worked on one.  It worked out OK but I prefer stacking layers working each color on its own layer as well as individual components.

My Orchid as of 04/11/21.  It didn't flower last year after being repotted in 2019.  This year it's flowering but flowers are deeper in color and smaller.  I only ended up with four buds with one appearing it may not open.  While the buds were forming, I lost two leaves.

Watercolor Sketch in Journal:

 

Procreate Version:  The color is better with it leaning towards purple.... not as pink as the watercolor version.  I never have liked mixing purple watercolor as it always looks dingy no matter the mix combination I choose to use.  Gouache brush tool was used exclusively for this to include smudging.

The pencil sketch I had worked in the journal was scanned before adding color.  I uploaded that scan to my Ipad and used it as my reference for the digital version.  At the same time, I had the photo on my computer for reference which helped with how off I was on the two right flower buds in my sketch.

As much as I have enjoyed watercolor in the past, I am finding myself feeling really hesitant in wanting to use watercolor anymore.  This is one reason if I want color, I find myself grabbing my Ipad instead.  I am also finding I prefer NOT to mimic ink and wash but instead leaving ink out altogether when painting on my Ipad using Procreate.

Monthly Theme - April 2021

For April, the monthly theme chosen for me is "Things that Spray."  Rather than sketching your typical bottles or cans that spray, I chose my husband's pressure washer components, which include the nozzle, hand sprayer gun, extension wand, and two spray tips.

This takes care of the minimum requirement for the monthly theme (may work other ideas throughout the month) and my personal goal of minimum of one (1) Pen/Ink and Watercolor for the month.

Worked in journal with Fabriano Cold (old stock) / TWSBI 580ALR w/#41 Brown / Daniel Smith watercolors

Various Fruit Blossoms Budding

Right now we have lemon and orange blossoms showing on our trees.  We discovered our young grapefruit has also developed buds nearly two years after being planted.  The grapefruit we will not allow to fruit this year but look forward to next year when we can allow it to do so.

Another discovery is the avocado tree that sprouted near the one we had to remove due to a disease it developed soon after moving here has sprouted buds.  

Daniel Smith Watercolors - Fr Ultra Hansa Yellow plus Cad Yell, Bt Sienna, Bt Umber, Cer Blue

TWSBI 580ALR with Lexington Grey ink

Fabriano Old Stock in handmade journal by Fay

Using the same sketchbook and pen and watercolors plus Quin Rose.

Although not flashy like the buds and flowers of other fruit trees, it's a big deal for us being this is the first budding and flowering of our Avocado tree.  Flowers are a whitish/Green and very tiny.  The only color that stands out is the yellow in the centers.  These little flowers do stand out against the green of the huge leaves but chose not to include in sketch.  I was primarily recording the new buds and flowers that have developed.

Same sketchbook, pen and watercolors as mentioned in previous journal sketches.

Monthly Theme - March 2021

For March, the number chosen ended up being, "what's in your bathroom."  What is in mine can be anything from your standard bathroom items to bookshelf, free standing wood cabinet, books, stuffed animals, plants, and even my pet bird.  Plenty of variety to sketch.

To start out with, I decided to sketch a few standard items and chose to work in pencil.  This also takes care of my "one graphite" sketch for the month.  Worked in the Stillman and Birn Alpha sketchbook using a Graphgear 1000 / .7 mechanical pencil.

This next represents where I moved plants from the sunroom to the bathroom when we thought my oldest son and his family were going to move to Florida and stay with us for awhile.  After family deciding not to move, I decided to leave the plants in the bathroom.  

There is a very large window over a garden tub I never use that has a ledge around it.  The sunlight is from the south and not as harsh as it is in the sunroom due to the thick hazy glass (can't think of the proper word for the type glass).  I find the plants are liking it better in the bathroom.  I lost almost all of my Lucky Bamboo plants but after cutting way back and placing in the bathroom, they are showing hope for revival.  My other plants appear to be happier to include the succulents I grow.

Sketchbook with old stock of Fabriano Artistico paper / TWSBI 580ALR with Lexington Grey ink / Daniel Smith watercolors.

Takes care of my pen and ink plus watercolor for the month of March.

This next is my digital for the month of one of several Beanie Baby Bears I have on hand.  The shelving unit (Secretary) is in the bathroom which holds bears, DVD cases, and books.

Procreate using BeeJayDel's pencil brush tools 2B, 4B, and 6B

Good thing my bathroom is large.  Another subject in my bathroom is Mango who's cage is quite large on a wrought iron rolling base.  I have it sitting near the Garden tub I never use with plants lined up all around the ledge of the tub.

Mango seems much happier although it took a few days for him to adjust to being moved.  Eventually, I'll return him to the sunroom but as long as I have wood burning projects going on, it's best I leave him where he is.

Procreate using Painting / Waterbrush brush tool and BJD's Standard Inker

Although I have a lot more I could sketch from my bathroom, this more than fulfills my monthly theme goal.  I may do more during March that fits the theme but for now I can relax knowing all my goals have been met.

Honeybell Oranges

One of the sweetest oranges we've ever tasted and by far the juiciest is the Honeybell.  It's surprising the time of the year they are ready to harvest starting around the end of December / beginning of January.  And even after a couple freeze warnings we've had, they are still going strong.  What is left remain inside the tree canopy and they are huge and very orange.  

We have several neighbors we share these with so not to go to waste.  One lady uses them in her fruit cakes, which is the best we have ever had.  Terry bags several for Madison's bus driver and neighbors who are unable to come pick their own, Terry will bag and take to them. 

Honeybells are a cross hybrid of tangerine and grapefruit.  They are very easy to peel and only have minimum seeds.   The one tree we have is very productive and here soon fruit will be replaced with an abundance of flowers.

QoR Watercolors / TWSBI 580ALR w/Lexington Grey ink / 6x8 Journal with old stock of Fabriano Artistico watercolor paper.

February Monthly Theme Continued - Fishing

To continue with my monthly theme "Hobbies - Materials/Supplies", I worked this page with fishing in mind.  A recreational activity I sorely miss but find it difficult to participate in....at least in the way I prefer to fish.

Fishing from a kayak is my top choice as I can maneuver in places a boat cannot get to, plus, I can go where I want to go at any given time.  Unlike if sharing a boat with someone.

Going out in a kayak living in Florida is a bit more unsettling for me.  While living up north, we didn't have alligators to worry about sharing the waters with.  Even with the added stability and security of a sit-on-top kayak, that constant concern seeing a gator was always on my mind.  Made it a bit difficult to really relax and enjoy being out on the water.  But for the first several years living in Florida, I would go out with Terry and Travis.  Unfortunately, the issues I face with back and leg make it even less enjoyable going out, so I haven't been fishing in the last couple of years.

TWSBI 580ALR / Lexy Grey ink, Journal with Fabriano Artistico (old stock), QoR watercolors.

Sketched in ink 02/07/21 and added color 02/10/21

Monthly Themes 2021 - A Yearly Personal Goal

Finally, I have decided on a few art goals for 2021.  One is to work a monthly theme.  The idea is to create a minimum of three to six illustrations or sketches in my journal that would fit the theme throughout the month.  Unlike a daily challenge, this might be a little easier to accomplish....especially during those down times when the motivation is lacking.

I sat down and listed a page full of theme ideas (so far 19 ideas).  My plan is to have Terry or even ask Alexa to choose a number between 1 and 19 (or how ever many I end up with as I continue adding to the list) and then match the numbered item on my list.  For February, Alexa chose #7 which is Hobbies - Materials/Supplies.

Although I hadn't come up with this until recent, if January had a theme, it would probably be flowers since that was the primary subject I leaned towards sketching after my son gifted me with flowers.

What I like about this particular theme is the wide range it covers providing quite a number of sketching subjects.  

Although I have gone over and above the minimum early in the month, I still have several other hobbies I can sketch about between now and the 28th of February.