Sketchbook Gift Tag or Christmas Ornament

I made this for a card swap. It's the first time in a long time that I invented one from the ground up. I usually look through books and internet pages to get ideas and inspiration. This one was inspired by the cute little watercolor set and the swap theme "Gift Tags." I was compelled to use the party favor in some way. I kept waking up in the middle of the night with ideas. It feels silly to lay awake at night working on something in my head, but it feels good too. Worrying never helps, but being creative does . . .

Evening Entertainment

While in the motel in the evening last week I entertained myself by sketching a flower I picked in the parking lot and painting the painted hills from memory. This landscape is one I seem to always play with when I want to try any new media.

Trapped in a Meeting

I was in a long meeting one day last week and sketched these while I listened: some imaginary flowers and a few pens from my bag.

Crayola and Derwent Watercolor Pencils

Just some samples here. Crayola on the left and Derwent on the right.

Polka Dot Plant - EDM #76 Showy Foliage

I had the best time mixing this green!

An Ear - EDM #79

This was such an interesting ear ring. She was very kind to pose for me.

Coffee Cup - EDM #4

This is a coffee cup I drew at a meeting I went to recently. EDM #4. I think I overworked it but it was fun to play with the hightlights and reflections. It may be the first time that I really saw those. I remember seeing the reflections of the people sitting behind me and suddenly realizing that I had never really looked that close before.

My Bag - EDM #3

This is the bag I carry with me everywhere. It is my EDM challenge #3.

My Watercolor Sketch Kit

This is the watercolor sketch kit I am using now. It is a Koi Field Sketch Box. It measures 4 1/2" x 3 1/2" x 7/8". I added a piece of a Monolith 2b pencil, a piece of a while vinyl eraser, a sharpener and close it with a half of a paper towel folded in the top. I also carry my sketchbook and any one of a number of black pens. Sometimes I use a permanent pen and sometimes I want the ink to run. I like the way these colors mix, they seem higher quality to me without the high cost. I have the Cotman Compact Set but I kept fighting to get the lid open, it's too bulky to fit into the pocket of my purse where this one lives, and it didn't hold the extras. This one is just right.

EDM #29 - Draw something architectural or anything else.

How about a bridge? Today my husband and I rode our motorcycles to a local state park and found a nice quiet picnic table across this bridge where we sat down to sketch.

We had been silently sketching away for less than 10 minutes when this group of people wandered over and stood right in the middle of the bridge to visit. It struck us as very funny and we laughed as we tried to get looks at parts of the bridge while they stayed put, very much enjoying their time together. We enjoyed it too -- twisted perspective and all.

A photo of the bridge with all the people is here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dawnabelle/233463168/

Somewhere New - Landscape on a Business Card

I was out of town last week so I was sketching somewhere new all week, but sketching somewhere new had a different meaning for me with these little projects.




And, here's the real "Draw somewhere new" challenge - my favorite bus driver of the trip. She chattered away entertaining us and was completely sweet and helpful to a young man who was lost and late for dinner with his dad. It was a bit of a chore to draw this on a moving bus without getting queasy. I kept having to look out of the window for little bits at a time.

Trees and Fence

I penned some of this while waiting for a ride outside work. The next morning we sat at breakfast with crayons and scribbled away.

Sketch-a-Day

Here is my sketch-a-day for August so far. This is more fun than I expected it to be. I'm using Prismacolor markers that I bought on Ebay. It is an interesting exercise to draw a chunky picture in a 1 5/8" square. It's true that even when many aren't good, together they are fun. Even better when I squint :-)