Sketching at Home

I am doing my best to draw every single day.
Sometimes at home, sometimes in public.

This particular day it was at home.
A Trader Joe's bag, beside the TV.

I smudged the journaling to protect the privacy of another.
No deep dark secrets about me (not today anyway).

Market Sketches

Here's another sketch that I did on Saturday morning.

This tent was right in front of us.
As the day progressed, the shadows did as well.
My sketch doesn't reflect that but I'd love to go back next week and do a series of sketches showing the changing shadows from the tree on the top of the tent.

As before, I added color after I got home.
I didn't work from a photograph (even though I had one) as I was away from my computer so I made up most of the colors...except the green cucumber.
And the tree colors.
Oh, and the tent...

Rainbow Row

I've been reading about the history of Charleston SC lately.
I love the book by Diane Hollingworth Gessler called "Very Charleston".

It's a beautifully illustrated book, just full of watercolor paintings by the author.
I couldn't help but paint one of my own based on her interpretation.

It's a quick watercolor with details sketched in with India Ink. My painting is almost identical to the one in the book but it really helped me to do this one before trying another on my own...it was a great way to loosen up and get the perspective right.
I am not (by any means) a watercolor painter so I needed all the help that I could get.
I have a ton of ephemera that I've collected from Charleston and I want to construct my own "Charleston" book so that I can include all my treasures.

Don't forget to check out the new theme on the "Sketchbook Challenge" blog this month!
Carla Sonheim picked this time.
Check it out, play along, win prizes!

Random Sketching

Hot days in the south
time to stay inside and draw.
Add a bit of watercolor paint
and what do you have?

A watercolor painting of your silly sketches...

People - Draw!
Paint!
Repeat PRN...

Weekend Art

I've been painting in my studio - not the walls but on canvas and watercolor paper.
I wanted to watch TV with my husband and I had to have something to do -
since I can't seem to sit still and actually watch the television...
So, I pulled out my trusty sketchbook, drawing pencils and compact watercolors.

A funky little tree with odd "plants" underneath it.
Actually, if you look closely (and use your imagination) you can tell that the plants are actually my interpretation of images from a nature book that I was thumbing through.
A fern frond...
A carbohydrate molecule...
and a weed seed head...
It's all in how you look at things.

One Last Thing

What do you see in this photo?

Just a weed?
Some scraggly old random plant?

(This one is blurry)

(sorry!)

But what I saw was a very interestingly shaped specimen.

I saw a dreamy vintage lace color on the tightly wound bloom.

I saw spiked leaves, not quite opposite but a little apart from each other on the stem...with delicate lines that were just a tiny bit lighter in color.

I carried my watercolor sketch book with me, along with my compact watercolors.

And this is all you need - oh, and a Pitt Pen.

I sketched out what I saw and then did a quick five minute paint job.

I took the pictures so that I could look at them after I got home...

that way I can grab a look at the plant again - see if I'm painting what I saw or painting what I thought I saw.

Try it - you'll like it!