Joyful Music

One of the highlights during the month of December is the special music…

Last weekend, I heard a trumpet solo and today at church, I listened to a violin soloist.

I like to close my eyes and listen, it brings my heart JOY!

What special music do YOU enJOY during the month of December?

I hope you share it with me.

Cheers! 🙂

Exploring Landscape

I recently completed an online class from Anita Lehmann called, “Translating Landscapes.” The class was hosted by Carla Sonheim.  

I am still learning so much from this class!! Anita is a wonderful teacher.  She is also a licensed architect in Washington State.

Exploring the elements of design in landscape has helped me to SEE my subject in a different way.  I am learning to see more abstractly as “shapes.”

We warmed up with a favorite subject of mine, PEARS!  I enjoyed experimenting with a variety of art materials using the design elements on a 6 x 6 inch paper:

Next, I applied the design elements to my photo from the lake:

Here are my favorites from this exploration:

“Motive” combines several design elements into one design.

If you’d like to learn more about Anita H Lehmann and view her art, please check out:  Anitahlehmannartist.com or ahldraws on Instagram.

Cheers! 🙂

Her Heart Overflowed

Her heart overflowed with love…

She felt grateful for this gift…

So she gave it away freely!

I think LOVE is a gift that I can give away “freely”…  How about you?

And the funny thing about this gift, the more I give it away, the MORE I get in return!

Cheers! 🙂

Matching Outfits

I remember how my grandma made my sis and I matching outfits as kids.  My sister is two years older than me.

Sometimes these memories come to me when I’m making art.  Does this happen to you?

I created this art in my sketchbook last night. I started by glueing a stocking hat and sweater for a dog from one of my Gelli-plate printed papers.

I then drew my girl’s face.  Next, I glued her vest and pants to the paper.  Kind of reminds me of paper dolls… I drew her arms and boots around her collaged “clothes” and the dog around his “sweater” from my imagination…

The proportions are a bit off on my girl but I like the dog! Lol! ☺️  And the poem I wrote reminds me of my childhood and how much fun we used to have playing in the snow.

I have always thought it would be fun to have a little dog to dress up in matching outfits! 

Cheers! 🙂

P.S. The child in me wishes it would snow but the adult says, “Please, only in the mountains!  I don’t want to drive in it!” 😉

A Rare Sighting

This weird bird was recently spotted in a jungle somewhere…

A Crawfish-Bibbed Spear-Head Bird

It is so hidden in camouflage…

That it takes people time to recognize it.

Yet, if you are patient you will be lucky to see…

A rare sighting of this bird!

I hope it gives you a smile today…

Happy Weird Bird Wednesday!!

Cheers! 🙂

A Woodland Fairy

I have found new JOY with pencil sketching lately.

It has become a relaxing activity in the evening and my day does not feel complete without a quick sketch!

I find myself focusing on faces yet I am also “drawn” to nature.

This woodland fairy combines a face and nature into one sketch:

My inspiration came from the cover of this book and an oak tree in my yard:

It is one of my favorite books for learning to sketch and paint fairies.  It has so many wonderful ideas to spark my imagination!

These are the supplies I used for this drawing:

From top of the page to bottom:  A Faber-Castell Graphite Aquarelle 8B pencil, Pentel waterbrush, Pentel Graphlet 0.7 mm mechanical pencil, shading stump and a kneaded eraser.  I used a Stillman & Birn Zeta Series sketchbook.

I started with the Graphite Aquarelle pencil and added shading with the waterbrush.  I finished adding details with the 0.7 mm mechanical pencil and shading stump.  A kneaded eraser is wonderful because it doesn’t damage the paper and can be molded to erase small spaces.

I encourage you to draw every day!  Try different pencils, papers and subjects.  It will change how you see the world around you!

Cheers! 🙂

Drawing Faces…

I continue enjoying drawing these quirky faces…

Experimenting with different drawing materials such as a Pentel Sign Pen:

I messed up her neck a bit so I gave her a high collar.  Hehe! 😉

I used same pen over watercolor for this gal – I like how this pen bleeds a little with water:

When I went to my local art supply store recently, I met Linda Schneider (LindaSchneiderArt.com) who does beautiful calligraphy.  I used to do calligraphy when I was in college.  Linda self-published a book using calligraphy flourishes to create women’s hair, hats, etc; called, “Designing Faces, Figures, Florals and More!”

She inspired me create the faces I’m showing you today.

I used a Pentel Pocket Brush Pen for this drawing:

What I like about this pen is the ink is permanent.  It is a little harder to control than the other pen however.  This pen also comes with refills.

And here is a mixed media piece that is a bit wild:

I started with a light background in watercolor, added her face with the outline using a black Micron pen, added Neocolor watersoluble crayons and more scribbles with the Pentel Sign pen.

Who knew that drawing faces could be so fun!

Cheers! 🙂

The Feckenham Family…

The Feckenham family had similar features…

And could easily be found in a crowd!

Hope these funny faces give you a smile today!

Cheers! 🙂

Autumn’s Display

Fall was in the air this last weekend at the lake!

I always like when the wild rose hips turn a blushing reddish-orange:

I did a pencil sketch of them in my journal:

I enjoyed taking these photos of Autumn’s Display to share with you:

 

I hope they brighten your Monday!

Cheers! 🙂

 

“Berry” Quirky…

We were challenged to make a quirky character on any surface using any material from my online class, Drawing Quirky Characters…

This assignment was just what I needed to get my creative juices flowing again!

I started with a previous drawing and folded the paper in half vertically.  Using the white gel pen sketch as my guide, I cut out my quirky gal with scissors:

I don’t think I could have invented this hat without my scissors… (It reminds me of a hat that Wilma from the Flintstones might wear!) 😉

Lucy Cooke suggested I use it as a stencil so I did in my sketchbook with fluid acrylic paint:

Next, I drew details with pencil, added watercolor pencils, pan pastels to soften her features, black pen, white gel pen and color pencils:

I think she is “berry” quirky!  How about you?!

Note:  This was a fun way to create my own stencil.  I look forward to using this idea with other subjects too.

Cheers! 🙂