sketchbook challenge

If you’ve followed my blog at all this year, you’ll know that I participated in the Sketchbook Challenge. It’s been great for me. I enjoy working with a theme. I love looking at all the artwork from other participants’…really great talent out there. It really motivated me to keep drawing and painting on a regular basis.

This year, I decided to do my sketches on watercolor paper. I like the thickness and that it can take water, ink, collage, whatever. I cut the paper to 4.5 x 6 inch sheets so that each picture would fit nicely in a photo box.

I never anticipated that I would do so many sketches. Here’s a pic of Josh…he wanted to look at all of them.

I’m looking forward to participating again this year. If you haven’t already, please join in!!

Hope everyone has a Happy New Year. See you in 2012!!

journal

I had hopes of spending lots of time in the studio over the break. That didn’t happen. I did find pockets of time here and there but there are just not enough hours in the day when my grandson comes to visit.

The weather has been nice so we spend more time outside than in. Very unusual for this time of year.

We went to the art museum and to a house concert. We went to see Hugo yesterday. Today we made homemade ice cream. My jeans are never going to fit again!!

Yesterday we each made a journal using Diana Trout’s video as our guide. So easy! I can’t wait to start making doodles in it.

christmas

Well, all my gifts are wrapped. Cookies will be baked tomorrow…I saved those for last so that I will actually have cookies to take to our family get-together. Instead of crumbs.

Abby will be spending the weekend at the “spa”…I think she now has figured out that spa is actually “boarding at the kennel” but we try to make it sound happier than it really is.

I’m looking forward to our family get-together. As we’ve gotten older and our families have grown, it’s become necessary to find an alternative to Grandma’s house. We have 39 of us this year, so we rented a hotel meeting room!

Of course, we made sure that we could bring in our own food. (Oh, my jeans will never fit after this weekend. They were tight already.)

Each year, it is one sibling’s job to pick a theme for the gift exchange. This year the theme is “international”…I thought it was easy finding a gift for this theme. The only rules are: keep it under $35 and it can’t be a gift card. Oh, and no booze…we have teenagers in the adult group who are under age.

All the gifts are put in the center of the room and we pick numbers to see who goes first. Number 1 selects a gift. Number 2 can choose a gift from the center or steal the gift from Number 1. This goes on and on until there are no gifts left in the center of the room. A gift is only allowed to be stolen 3 times and then it’s out of the running.

Some years, it gets crazy with all the stealing going on! Just when you start to think about enjoying your gift when you get it home, SNAP, it’s gone! But it’s all good fun.

I can’t wait to see everyone. We are all so spread out now that we don’t get together very often.

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas. Stay warm.

(Images are from an animation I did for work)

holiday cheer

The stockings were hung by the chimney….by Josh. We have a rule at our house, whoever decorates the mantel gets to pick the word. Josh spelled out NOEL. When my husband decorates, he generally goes with LEON. Decorator’s choice!

Since we have had cats in our house for as long as I can remember, we have chosen to decorate with either a) a large tree with no decorations on the lower half or b) smaller trees that are out of the reach of paws and teeth.

The past few years, we’ve done these small artificial trees (creating a small forest) high up above the TV. Every year, I add a new figurine. Here’s a doodle of Santa and Snowman.

I used my new markers that I won over at the Sketchbook Challenge earlier this month!!

still out of sorts

Sorry for staying away so long in between posts. My back is still giving me fits. By the end of the workday, I’m usually hurting so bad that I can’t even think about sketching (or cleaning or fixing dinner. I think I’ll milk this sore back for all its worth!!)

I did a couple of doodles yesterday. Took a long walk in an attempt to unkink my back. Later in the day, I started wrapping Christmas presents. I didn’t get very far though.

Hope to be back to normal soon.

BTW…these are supposed to be cats. They are a set of 3 plant holders I have. They sort of turned out like wolves though. Or dogs. I don’t know…definitely not cats. Oh, well.

one of those weekends

Ok, I have to complain for a minute. I had a terrible weekend.

I had to work most of Saturday because my work projects are never ending. (I hate to complain about work because I love my job. Really I do. I just like it a lot more when it’s Monday through Friday. I don’t like when it cuts into my paint + play time.)

After I worked for several hours, I was vacuuming the carpets and put out my back! I am literally a walking question mark!! (This is my back = ?) Oh, it hurts.

I went to the chiropractor this morning and after she beat me up, I felt pretty good! For a while anyway. Now the pain is back. Ooooohhhh.

Anyway, thank you for letting me whine. I’m done now.

Hope your weekend was better than mine.

full moon bridge

I painted this watercolor based on a photo I took on a trip to Hot Springs, AR. The bridge is really the only thing that I took from the photo though. The trees are completely different. They are more forest-like…not circular, cartoon trees! No people are in my photo either…so I added a few faceless beings. They may not look excited but deep inside I know they are enjoying their day in the garden! I sure did.

When I paint in the studio, I fix a cup of tea or a latte. That’s step #1. I turn on some music (for me, I like to listen to movie soundtracks) and just paint the day away. Sometimes I forget to stop and eat!

Never once have I spent all day in the studio and then at the end of the day said, “Oh, shoot, I didn’t get any laundry done today!” No regrets. Studio time is never wasted time!!

What about you? What is your routine for painting or drawing?