cut flower

pencil & gouache

dreams of green and blue

ink, watercolour and gouache

Snap too...Lotty napping

up close and personal

Some recent mandalas

Here's a snap...

...of the first two of four charcoal studies I'm doing in preparation for a painting

More blooming tulips!?!?

All in a day's play...

I spy...tulip-hearts / tulip-parts / tulip art

Do you see what I see?

(Ink & watercolour)

Faded bloom...another work in progress

Painted tulips

So here's the "finished" painting of the tulips. The end result doesn't feel quite right to me, but I'm not sure why and I don't know what to do to fix it. But I'll let it be for now and maybe one day it will come to me. Any constructive criticism is welcomed!

Having a go at painting - work in progress

After not having used my acrylics since painting a picture for my friend Vicky in October last year, I was inspired to try again. So I bought myself some more flowers and pulled my easel out of its dusty box and just started. This needs work until it's "done", but here are the first stages. I'm also going to be starting a painting course soon, done by correspondence with OCA again, the same people I did my drawing course with. The thought of learning to paint scares me, but it's all the more challenging and thrilling for it. I just have to focus on how much I'll have learned by the time I finish the course, and remember how far I've come since I started drawing just 18 months ago. Anyway, I'll be blogging about my journey here.

Drawing dried flowers

Pastel study for a portrait

Self-portraits

The top two are blind contour, the second has colour added later courtesy of oil pastels.

mandala time again...

Getting to know Lotty & Jakey

So, Lotty & Jakey joined our household a few days ago and I got to know them a bit better today. Jakey is easier to draw as he will stay still in one position for a while, and doesn't mind being watched. Lotty on the other hand will either be hiding or, if you're looking at her, she'll come to you for a cuddle and a stroke, so not so easy to draw.

Above are blind contour drawings of Jakey - the first one is in ink with watercolour added later, of him sitting on my computer table as I worked, the second is a blind contour drawing in pencil as he comandeered my chair for his nap - and Lotty (blind contour in pencil, drawn as she was sitting in my lap, the watercolour was added later), and a normal sketch of Jakey in pencil.

To read more about them and to see photos of what they actually look like, go here.

Wired

Billy hated it when his wife wired him up to her home-made lie detector. It always ruined his hair.

Hide for IF

Sometimes, he liked to hide his kisses amongst the folds of petals...

(I know, I know, this is very sappy. I apologise, I got carried away. If it's too much for you then please look away now.)

Ink & watercolour on textured paper