Moose On The Loose!

On our way to the lake a couple of weeks ago, a large female moose trotted out on the highway in front of us.  Luckily, it was further away than this close call that I recorded in my art journal last year, here.

I decided to create a mixed media page in one of my larger watercolor journals.  I started by gluing a page from an old book on trees to my page.  I then painted it in watercolors.  I added a stencil to create a pattern.  (Excuse the rocks weights in the photo…it was a windy day!)

Next, I drew a pine tree branch with needles using Tombow markers, Neocolors and color pencils.  I also drew a pinecone:

I glued a few pieces of my gelli-printed paper to the page and added a little more watercolor:

Then I drew my moose and an upside down owl with Neocolors:

I like the look of watercolor on the paper but when I applied the collage papers, I lost some of the watercolor.  I’m still happy with my finished page.

May your Sunday be sunny without any moose sightings…  🙂

Dance

I have been noticing several yellow butterflies in my yard lately.  So when one landed in my oak tree the other day, I decided to take a photo of it so I could identify it:

I couldn’t get real close to it before it flew away.  Yet, I was able to identify it as a Western Tiger Swallowtail.

It is considered an active butterfly, rarely seen at rest.  I was thrilled that I was able to see this one land!

I needed to look at a better photo in order to draw it in my sketchbook.  I was so excited to see that Kathy at Backyard Bird Nerd recently posted several AMAZING photos of Tiger Swallowtail butterflies on her blog!  Be sure to check them out here:  https://backyardbirdnerd.com/2016/06/21/ten-tiger-pictures/

Kathy generously gives me permission to use her photos in my artwork – Thank you Kathy!  🙂  I used her first photo to paint this butterfly in my art journal using gouache and color pencils:

I added a little collage to the bottom of the page with matte medium and watercolor on top.

Whenever I see a butterfly, I am reminded of the song, “I Hope You Dance,” by Lee Ann Womack:

I hope you will dance like a butterfly this weekend!

Cheers!  🙂

One Bad Beetle

I discovered my cat, Jack playing with something in the yard the other day and found this beetle:

At first, I was excited to see it.  It had a metallic reflection in the sunshine and I thought it would be fun to paint:

Upon further research, I discovered it to be a “Large Flathead Pine Heartwood Borer Beetle.”  It is the beetle that I believe is destroying a nearby forest of pine trees.  According to the internet, the larvae of the beetle bore or dig their way through the heartwood of the tree.  The tunneling tends to destroy the tree’s cambium tissue which water and nutrients flow and can starve a tree to death if it’s infested.

It is hard to see these trees dying in the forest.  Trees take so long to grow.  I’m saddened that a beetle can quickly destroy it.

What worries me further is this beetle attacks other trees too.  I have many trees in my yard and now I worry that they may be at risk.  I need to find out what I can do to protect my trees from this bad beetle…

Nature often teaches me lessons about life – appreciate the beauty today because it may not last.

Peace Friends!

Yellow Daylilies

I love these dwarf variety of yellow Daylilies that I have growing in my yard:

I decided to sketch them with a brown Micron pen before I painted them in watercolors as you see in the photo below on the left.  I then cut simple shapes from paper that I previously painted with watercolors to create a more freeform design on the right:

I had fun experimenting in my art journal on a cool Sunday afternoon.

Happy Painting!  🙂

Painting Peace

Scattered rain showers at the lake on Saturday so I sketched a wild rose in pencil.  I forgot to bring my watercolors so I had to wait until I got home to complete it:

I identified this rose as a Baldhip or Wood rose.  You can see rain droplets in the above photo against a “temporary” blue sky.  Rain is good for many things – a long walk, a good night’s sleep and time to sketch.

After my pencil sketch, I decided to try a looser format in my art journal.  I started this sketch on Saturday evening and finished it the following night with a black Micron pen:

I was upset and saddened by the recent, senseless shooting violence in Orlando, Florida.  So I decided to paint my roses yesterday in the colors of a Peace Rose.

I don’t know if it is possible to paint peace but I gave it my best try.  🙂

Peace Friends!

An American Robin

I found a dead Robin on the sidewalk in front of my home today.  I’m not sure how it died but I decided to include it in my nature journal today:

I see them everywhere here in the Pacific Northwest so I often take them for granted.  I enjoyed remembering my feathered friend today as I did a sketch in my journal with pencil first and then pen.  Finishing it with a loose watercolor painting and including a feather or two.  🙂

I did a collage of a Robin last Spring that you can find here.

Happy Friday!  🙂

Tomato, Potato…Petunia?

I plant a variety of Petunias in flower pots in the Spring so I can enjoy their colors all summer long.  Here are some of the colors I planted:

According to Wikipedia, the petunia plant is described as, “Herbaceous, generally hairy, and the flowers are funnel-shaped, with petals joined together.”

The photo below on the left shows a close-up of its hairy appearance from the flower on the right:

So I clipped a few blossoms from the plant below:

And did a quick sketch in my art journal with a black micron pen and painted it in watercolors, layering the colors to create depth, as you see in my photo on the left.  On the right photo, I did another version and tried to paint looser without a sketch:

I think I like the painting on the right best.  What do you think?

Happy Painting!  🙂

A Nature Journal

I have always wanted to keep a nature journal so when Charlie at Doodlewash invited us all on a Nature hike for the month of June, I decided this would be the perfect time to start that journal in watercolor sketches!

I purchased this book last year and it has TONS of ideas!  Always great to see how others keep their journals too –  I’d highly recommend this book:

I started sketching these flowers in my journal last week with a black pen and watercolor pencils.  They were identified as Himalayan Fleece flowers or Knotweed.  I decided to go back to my yard in search of a second flower for my art journal yesterday.

The Yarrow is spreading its sunny blossoms in my front yard right now and seemed to be saying, “Pick me, pick me!”

So I picked a small bouquet.  It helps me to really study them before I draw them:

Did you see the spider in the photo on the left?  An added bonus!  🙂

Here is my journal page:

I enjoyed creating this second sketch in my “Nature” journal and I hope you join me on the many new discoveries I find in June!

Happy Creating!  🙂