Loose Flowers

Inspired by other posts of glorious , loose watercolors, I again tried my hand at "letting go" . Strangely, this defies practice or so it seems. I forced myself to do a quick PEN sketch of a small vase of daisies and then a quick splash of watercolor. Then of course the challenge is to stop fiddling around and leave it alone. All in all I do not hate this and it is actually better than I expected :-) I am not thrilled at the values I achieved but I post here in hopes that someday I will look back and laugh and feel I have grown in looseness .

stone stairs

Another, more traditional stab at the steps challenge. This sketch is taken from the cover of a town brochure. Once I had completed the steps the back ground seemed so blank and white and unfriendly, I tried filling in with a hint of the tree lines street behind and only a hint of sky - but scanned here it looks rather odd. I would appreciate suggestions on how to "finish" this while still keeping the steps as Key?!?

EDM #155 Stairs

In 1976 we built a house in Maine at the foot of Sunday River Ski Resort, nicknamed "the Chalet". There are three floors and the only interior stairway is circular. I have always loved the open airy look of these stairs although they have their drawbacks. 1) moving furniture between floors is most difficult (luckily we have open lofts) and 2 ) dangerous for children and 3) Dogs frequently refuse to climb them at all. But I consider them a work of art! Our Chalet stairs have oak treads but I chose a more rustic look for my sketch. Artline Pen and watercolor in W&N journal.

18 and -0- only one to go!

Ok this one is for my hubby - born and raised in New England and a die hard Red Sox and Patriot Fan - while he watched the game I sketched from a photo in a magazine. January has limited inspiration for me ;D

EDM 154 Lemon x 2

Second try, a bit better I think, although I still did not achieve the glossy cellular interior of the sliced lemon. I simply cannot achieve a loose -free effect I love. Pencil and watercolor in Winsor & Newton journal.

EDM 154 Lemon

First try at Lemon challenge - still cannot achieve my desired results in watercolor alone. This lemon scanned a bit greener than real but overall it still looks more like a papaya or some such?? My pen sketch to the left is a bit truer. I will give it another try.

Bye, Bye Eye Drops

Thank God, today I am done with a week of eye drops (for a fabulous case of pink eye ) . I could not wear my contacts and I HATE wearing glasses every day. Happy days are Here Again!

Coffee Time

Inspired by sketchalina's "center of our Universe" post http://www.flickr.com/photos/93526285@N00/ I decided to sketch My "coffee in action" not nearly as high tech but this good old french press makes a fabulous - never bitter- pot of Joe. A few years ago when our kitchen was remodeled I had bead board installed on the wall under the cabinets - With white cabinets and a deep taupe stone counter I found the dark turquoise color amazingly rich which I attempted to recreate here. The color is not quite right but the sketch was fun and so was the coffee (although I had to leave the pot and carafe unmoved for two days to complete the entire sketch :O ) Pen, watercolor in W&N sketchbook.

Others have posted sketches of family china which I found intriguing. I decided to join in. (I would post links to their posts but I do not know how) This plate is old although I know nothing about it. This was done in WC pencil - the background is not what I expected. Watercolor pencil in W&N sketchbook.

More plastic wrap

Another try at wrapped in plastic - this time it is a whoopie pie in a plastic container. I am happy with the container but not so much with the chocolate portion - still more study required (and eating I am afraid)

EDM #153 Wrapped in Plastic

First attempt at "wrapped in plastic". This subject is one fraught with possibilities to advance and understand, color, shape and value and all things Great about Watercolor.

I choose a major pet peeve of mine , plastic bubble wrap. Why oh why do the sick (me) have to struggle with thick plastic wrap - resort to knives and magnifying glasses and Power tools to open one simple pack of life saving pills??? And don't get me started on the thick wall of plastic, wire and tie-wraps encasing children's toys these days !!

At any rate, this subject deserves more study and practice and I will search for another subject (easy in this Plastic world of ours) I must also search for better paper to have any hope of relaying real transparency ;0

EDM #152 Nut

OK - does coconut count?

Not as fun to sketch as I thought it would be. Now should I try to open it?

EDM #151 Free Choice

Christmas Day evening, as we headed home I reflected and could not ignore the gorgeous full moon shining over us all.

Even though we headed to our Maine ski house after Christmas I did manage to continue sketching. Seemed the perfect post for my "free choice" challenge and to complete the year's worth of

challenges.

With a week from Christmas to New Years the house was FULL with my three children and spouses, all 6 Grands (ages, 5, 2 and under!!)and FIVE big dogs - it was Chaotic for sure- fun and exhausting, and alas sickening as I and several others contracted yet another bug (stomach variety and cold/flu like) One for the record books, but Maine had 6+ inches of snow fall every day we were there - It was a beautiful sight, and quite a memorable week.