Thank you notes

September 24, 2019September 24, 2019Leave a comment

I have a sweet friend who is always doing wonderful things for her friends like organizing a Downton Abbey tea party in a wonderful old Victorian Bnb in North Aigusta Rose Hill so I drew Downton Abbey for a thank you note for her. Right now it’s under a heavy book flattening out. I HOPE not that she will care.

Downton Abbey is a lot harder to draw than you would think. It took about an hour to draw and it’s only about 4×6″. For once I actually used a pencil before I inked it.

Painted it in layers. Quin gold with burnt sienna on the left half and layers of burnt sienna dioxzine purple and cerulean on the right side of the building also known as Highclere Castle. The cerulean made great greys on the building and drive.

Pen is an ultra fine uniball on superaquabee paper.

Margaret whose ready for bed. Xoxoxo

Eaton Street #1

September 22, 20196 Comments

If you ever go to Key West you really should go to Coles Bakery on Eaton Street. Great food amazing deserts and breads. At least half the restaurants on Key West use Coles Bread. Delicious.

I drew the view out their windows at least three times and various houses in various arrangements. You can always suit yourself since you are in charge and draw one or two houses add people chickens cars and do it in the air conditioning while you enjoy those delicious lunch.

Stillman and birn Zeta uniball micro because I keep ruining clothes with my Lamy splatter is permanent ink. Sadddly. I do love my lamys but the uniballs are waterproof and a nice change. So annoyed I ruined a nice red and white striped linen shirt from LL Bean with my Lamy vista.

Funny story. A couple of guys were sitting at a high too between the scene and myself so I kept craning my neck to see around them. One guy actually thought I was drawing him. Came over to see how it was going. I did tell him I often did but today I was more interested outside the windows- a theme of mine in this miserable heat that keeps giving. Glad I am heading to the mountains later this week.

Margaret off to Goldfinch but glad she finally got painting. Only about thirty sketches to go. Eeekk. Xoxoxo

Washington DC and the Marine Corps Museum

September 17, 2019September 17, 2019Leave a comment

Visited the museum on my drive home yesterday after we buried Dad in Arlington Friday.

This is his quote on the wall of the Marine Corps Museum. You can read more about it on my old blog.

Dad was 96 and ready to fold up his tent and go home so the funeral was more of a wake than a sad time.

He was the first lieutenant in an amazing, terrible battle called the Battle of Fox Hill during the Choisin Reservoir campaign during November 1950.

Mom listened to the news back home saying he and all of the two regiments of the first Marine division -10000 men- were lost in frozen North Korea surrounded by 100000 Chinese.

His Marine rifle company Fox Company – about 220 men – was holding the retreat at Toktong Pass all alone, surrounded by 10000 more Chinese. Everyman was wounded but half of them survived the vicious five day battle to fight their way out on the coldest longest retreat in US Military history and enter the legends of which Marines are made.

To this day Marines and West Pointers study Dads battle plan on how to set up a defense using a small rifle company against overwhelming enemy numbers.

According to Dad one of his gunners Hector Cafferati killed 3000 Chinese but dad only wrote him up for 500 when Cafferati got his Medal of Honor because Dad thought no one would believe the real number.

You can read more about Choisin here or buy the book The Last Stand of Fox Hill on Amazon.

Rest In Peace Major Dad. Margaret xoxoxo

Another Ibis

September 10, 2019September 11, 2019Leave a comment

My friend who joined me while I painted. Did I tell you he tried to eat my Charles Reid Holbein palette. He likes expensive food. Rofl.

And then there was the poop. What is it with birds and their indiscriminate bathroom habits – aka go wherever. On my table. All over the floor. Yuck.

The green is made from cad yellow light and peacock blue. Makes a spring green. The reverse painting aka background makes the ibis pop. If I darkened it he would stand out even more.

Margaret packing to head for DC in the am. Xoxoxox

Good Morning from Daytona Beach Shores

September 8, 2019September 8, 20192 Comments

Sad to hit the road soon. Beautiful morning here in Daytona Beach Shores where there doesn’t seem to be any damage from Mr Dorian.

Margaret And I am already getting hot and sweaty. Not even 8!!😵😵😵xoxoxo

Key West Snow Patrol

September 6, 2019September 7, 20195 Comments

If I am not painting palms I seem to be painting chickens. And an ibis or two. I borrowed the name but the chickens really do patrol Key West. On the docks. In the streets at the crosswalks in the restaurants under your chair or even on the table.

TIP!!

Next time I am only bringing superaquabee paper unless I break down and make a sketchbook from strathmore mixed media paper. Both papers LOVE watercolor. They don’t Waffle while you are painting and they tend to dry flat. Always a plus. Plus the watercolor paint looks gorgeous on the paper.

Going to bring my long skinny one. 6×12 and either a 5×7 or and 8×10. Then I am going to sit on a corner and sell the sketches. Lol. Aka pay for our dinner and our

gas.

Try them you will love them.

Margaret off to Hogfish for some grilled hogfish salad. Sooo delish and no chickens. Just fish dockside. They stay in the water rofl.

A chicken a day

September 5, 20192 Comments

Will keep the doctor away. Painting by the pool today. Just playing with my Vlad Yesilev sword brush. Makes great wonky chickens. Burnt sienna cerulean cad yellow cad red light dioxzine violet. Alizarin and opera rose.

And the daily palm. I know I have painted this same palm at least three times. I may be getting addicted to palm tree painting. I ran out of cad yellow so this one may not be quite finished.

Same colors as above. Superaquabee tablet.

Margaret back reading her book. Xoxoxo two more days in the Conch Republic. 😒

I hurt myself

September 3, 2019Leave a comment

Hogfish w Gorgonzola sauce spinach and artichokes and mixed veg a mango martini and Pinot noir. And my sis in laws cheese tortellini with sweet sausage and bolognese sauce. OH MY so delish.

Topped with Tiramisu and a view of the Atlantic with various joggers and skaters floating by. A sailboat or two.

Best food ever in Key west at La Tratorria. AmAzInG!! That tiramisu best I have ever eaten and I have eaten a lot of them. Expensive yes but who cares food was perfection the view perfect and all divinely lickable!!

Margaret who hurt herself xoxoxo

Waiting for the storms from Dorian

September 3, 20192 Comments

Going to repaint him with a tail poor thing. Why didn’t I think to paint his tail curving behind him?! Duhh. And he needs a shadow under his body. Duh.

Already have the new sketch drawn. Since it’s suppose to pour all day tomorrow and most of Wednesday hope I will have time to paint.

In the meantime more ibis. Such funny birds. I need to go down to the Key West Wildlife rescue and draw some more. I did find some living in the Publixs parking lot under a palm tree there. They seem to like shade. So do I.

Spent the afternoon down on Key West Bight at Schooner Wharf Bar having a drink with my feet propped up enjoying the view and the breezes.

Chickens abound at most of the restaurants and Schooner Wharf was no different. Down here the chicks are brown not yellow. Can I please take one or two home. But no protected by the federal government. Only in Key West will you see a hen on the table finishing somebody’s lunch. Bytw she liked the lettuce a lot. Another hen tried to steal it from her and so began a wild chase between the chickens fighting over the lettuce.

Funny!!!

Margaret Xoxoxox waiting for the rain.

Another day another palm

September 2, 20194 Comments

Didn’t mean to make the ocean so rough. Maybe it’s an inadvertent portent of Dorian out in the Atlantic. Poor Bahamas. So relieved it’s not us.

Same colors as yesterday. The straits of Florida are painted with peacock Cheap Joes Andrews Turquoise and Dioxzine purple. I also splattered with some of those colors. Soupy brush and tap the brush NOT the Ferrell.

I took advantage of the opaqueness of cad red and yellow light to tap some flowers over the foreground greenery.

Sky. Cerulean and fab off some of to make clouds add dabs of Dioxzine purple and dab them odd again with a dry wadded Kleenex.

Painted with my saber brush a size 8 isabey sable and my 10 Charles Reid Sable.

Superaquabee paper. Really love that paper. It dries flat when you close the sketchbook. You can also lift mistakes a bit.