#54 Draw Something You Love

#54 Draw Something You Love
Originally uploaded by Connie Vickers

The top corner of this page was an excercise in getting the right side of your brain working. Sometimes a short warm up helps me get over the "white page" thing. It certainly didn't hurt. This particular EDM Challenge was to draw something you love and I do love flowers of all kinds.

This drawing was done earlier but not posted and since I got home late tonight and had family here, I didn't have time to do anything new. The family included Mom and she brought me soup and pie. I just added had sandwiches and we had a wonderful meal. Love is good.

Astor

Astor
Originally uploaded by Connie Vickers

I saw this stringy blue/violet flower on my way out of the drive this morning. Beautiful. Pulled off a piece of it as I came back in to add to my journal. By the time I could get in into the house, the flowers were folding up. Nothing I could do changed that fact. I looked through my North Carolina wildflowers book and finally decided that it must be an Astor. Opposing leaves, star-like petals, multiple varieties...Maybe...Maybe Not...

I felt I caught the feeling of the flower if not the detail. I gave myself an "atta-girl" for at least doing something!

Journl Practice

Busy busy day and sad to say I did not have time for any art of any kind today. Meetings and classroom preparation left absolutely no time. This picture is from several weeks ago when I was taking a watercolor pencil workshop with Kate Johnson (and I'm ready for her to start another class!) Tomorrow...

Queen Anne's Lace

Between the heat and trying to enjoy every last minute of summer break, I haven't been outside to weed or to draw. I found this picture from earlier this summer of the field that attaches to my yard. Weeds and nature combine and this particular Queen Anne's Lace was at least 3 feet tall. My Mom always told me they were full of chiggers. My DH's mom told him a chigger lived in the very center of each one. True?

Black-Eyed Susans

Yesterday I decided it was really time to pull up what was left of my Black-Eyed Susans. They were beautiful this year - all volunteered from last years two tiny surviving plants. Oh the wonders of God's world. Well most of the seeds had fallen and the plants were stringy and dying from the heat - so time to move on. This is a watercolor pencil sketch I did of them for a class with Kate Johnson (she is a great teacher!) I really enjoyed investigating the different stages of the plants. Drawing really really makes you look.

Oops! Too!

This morning I copied and painted the broken geranium stem from last night. The stem actually survived the night. It seems to make the painting easier to start if I have a pencil value image for reference. Wait! Isn't that what all those art teachers told me all those years. I seem to be a little slow catching on! Good point...Listen to your teacher :~) !

I tried using artist tape for the edges of the image but for whatever reason the tape really stuck this time. I've used this tape before and never had a problem. ??? No idea.

This painting actually completed a journal. I got really excited because I seem to start lots of journals and never finish any of them. Well this makes #9. YEA!

Oops!

Every afternoon I try to walk around my yard and check on my flowers and plants. One of the things I always try to do is "deadhead" my geraniums. Today I accidentally broke off a flower in my struggle to deadhead a particularly stubborn dead stem. Maybe it wasn't that dead after all! Anyway - oops!

Lily Pads at Duke Gardens

This is the watercolor resulting from yesterday's value sketch. Finally had to just leave it alone before it turned to mud. It was a wonderful day and this small painting will remind me of how incredible it was to spend a day outside painting with a good friend. What more could I ask!

Duke Gardens

Wonderful day painting with my friend Lin in Duke Gardens and then a long leisurely lunch and talk! You can see her work at "View From The Oak" http://viewfromtheoak.blogspot.com/. She is such an inspiration to me! You will love her paintings!

I started with a drawing. It seems to get me started when I feel overwhelmed and surrounded with that much natural beauty - I was totally overwhelmed. After the sketch, I started a watercolor. Wasn't really happy with the result, so I stopped before I totally made mud of the work. I will look at it again tonight and see if it can be salvaged. Salvaged or not - it was an incredible day!

Echinacea

Just spent a wonderful weekend with four other girl cousins in Sparta, North Carolina. We stayed in an old home named "Bald Knob Farm House". The house is surrounded by Christmas tree farms and filled with antiques. Each day I found time to do a quick sketch to remind me of this incredibly peaceful place and the wonderful women I shared it with. For the next few days I will share those sketches.

Hot Press (smooth) watercolor paper is not always easy to find in journal form, but I love the texture. This is a spread from a small journal I made using that paper. In May everything in my yard seemed to come alive at the same time. The two flowers in this journal spread were particularly vibrant at that time. The purple iris are flowers that I grew up seeing in almost every yard but the weigela is a small shrub brought home by hubby. Stays green all year and blooms twice in the summer. Gotta' love it!

Virginia Spiderwort

Early in the morning in my backyard, my Virginia Spiderwort opens for a short time. For most of the summer months I can count on the beautiful periwinkle color to stay with me. This pencil sketch is in preparation for a small watercolor I want to do. Hopefully soon!

Tulips

Yesterday I tried to catch up on my scrapbooking, so today's work is an older piece. It is a watercolor woodcut and was created just like it sounds. The drawing was done on a piece of birch plywood, cut, and then instead of the regular printing process - watercolor was used as the printing medium. It's a time consuming process but I always like the soft effects it creates.

Day Lily

My day lilies have not done well this year at all. They probably need to be separated - I got only a few blooms this year. That is really discouraging since you see them growing wild in side ditches all over the state. What does that say for my gardening skills? Oh well, another day...

The wonder of weeds...

Did you ever stop and really look at a plant? A flower? A weed? Any kind of plant growing in nature? They're amazing. I settled on this particular weed because of its ties to my childhood. Detach the long stem and head of the plant, wrap the stem around itself once, tighten the loop, pull forward toward the head - and wham! The head pops off smashing into whatever (or "whoever") you're aimed at! Hours of fun back in the day!

Now I'm happy to sit quietly and draw it. What does that tell you? What energy kids have!

Cat's Whiskers

My cat's whiskers are not very large this year - only about a foot tall. This contour line drawing of one of the larger ones gives you a good idea why they are called "cat's whiskers". And if you make the mistake of just grabbing the stem of the plant you will get a good "clawing" from the stickers!

Geraniums

My geraniums have been off and on with their blooms. Right now they are doing well and surrounded in the pot by my spotted nettle. This painting was also done with the water-soluble oil pastel and I like the way it forces me to keep the work loose. Really loose as a matter of fact. It reminds me of coloring with fat crayons!

Sweet Williams

Years ago I threw out some wildflower seeds along my driveway. The soil there is not very hospitable and only a few of the flowers ever can up. Each year, however, one or two will make an appearance. This is one of the Sweet Williams - the seemingly most hardy of the original group - painted with water-soluble oil pastel on watercolor paper.

Flower Study using NuPastel

This pastel began and ended as a flower study using NuPastels. These pastels were harder than what I was used to and I liked their consistency. I reached a point where I didn't care enough about the landscape through the window to continue, but still didn't consider the work finished. I am leaving it as is for now. Maybe later...