Day 1028 More Flowers

May 16, 2017Leave a comment

My best of the three attempts I made painting this bouquet. I thought painting white flowers was hard till I did this one. Those yellow flowers were a pain.

Funny story. When I showed it to Joe Miller aka Cheap Joe he quipped if I asked Charles Reid to sign it I would have TWO charles Reid flower paintings.

So I did. Darn he didn’t do it. 🤗He did laff when I told him Joe told me to do it.

I do have this very tiny Charles Reid sketch in my class notes where he explained to me how he would paint the yellow flowers.

Unpacking almost done. Now I have to go to the grocery store for something healthy to eat. All I have in the house is a couple of apples and I want to paint them BEFORE i eat them.

And I want to paint this great Mother’s Day bouquet before it does so off I go.

I did collage the cover of my notebooks from Charles and Peggi Habets class. It’s a Strathmore Mixed Media 500 sketchbook which has such a dull brown cover.

Ttyl xoxox Margaret glad she’s more unpacked than packed.

Day 1027 Pistol Pete

May 15, 2017Leave a comment

Such fun to paint this.

Pistol Pete (22×15″) aka Frank Eaton was a fascinating western character who became the Oklahoma State mascot where most of my dads extended family went to school.

Painted on Fabriano 300# cold press

Frank was a Marshall, sheriff and gunslinger who was faster on the draw than Buffalo Bill Cody. He was also a story teller participating in the Oklahoma land rush where he arrested the outlaws who would hide in the Indian lands and dragged them back to Fort Smith Arkansas to face the judge and often hang when it was Indian territory and probably the original person the movie True Grit was based on.

These are Charles Reid’s paintings of Frank Eaton.

When there is no model available he paints from old copyright free photos.

Margaret sneezy and worn out from driving all over NC TN and SC. so much unpacking to do but think I will sofa hug today. Xoxoxo

Day 1025 Its Saturday

May 13, 20172 Comments

But I am not home. Still on the road in Sapphire Valley. The painting of Andrea and Harley the Freisian will have to wait til I get home to finish but I am really tickled with it so far.

Paper Arches 300 paint mostly Holbein and Daniel Smith.

She took 2-3 hours to draw. Thought she would never show up. The horse was comparatively a piece of cake. Initial wash of flesh-Carmine and yellow ochre. Burnt sienna and cerulean shadows.

I decided she needed some more pink on her cheeks and added some carmine. The shadows of ultramarine blue and the flesh color are looking SCARY.

The red hair helps but still a little scary. Carmine cad orange pyrrole mineral violet and burnt sienna. A few ultramarine shadows.

Her top is mineral violet alizarin and ultramarine blue. I let it dry and brushed some washed out cerulean to knock back whites.

Harley painted with ultramarine blue and burnt umber. Pants ultramarine blue , cerulean and mineral violet.

I just slapped ultramarine blue and burnt umber on Harley with bits of mineral violet to get that splotchy look on his face. Mane is same colors just not as heavy and a bit of cerulean near the ears.

Bridle Quin gold, Quin burnt Orange and burnt sienna. The gems cerulean and cobalt violet. The last two colors were also used for the shading on her foot plus burnt sienna.

I also added some masking fluid to save the water drips.

Added oxide of chromium to make water reflections on his side and used cerulean ultramarine blue plus burnt umber slapping them on to cover his chest and sides.

Really liking this painting but going to have to wait til I get home to finish them.

Margaret hanging out with my grandkids. Xoxoxoxo

Day 1024 Some Charles R class!

May 12, 2017Leave a comment

Mari Mac aka Mari McMillan all the way from Hawaii! But used to live in Aiken SC.

Christine and Brenda. This is our fourth class together. We are the see you in May in Boone at Cheap Joes girls. I think there were seven people we have had class with every year the first week in May – Fealin Lin Ted Nuttalls and now Charles Reid.

Off to paint. Let’s see if we can get this one done today. 22×30! What was I thinking painting that big?! Too late now. No going back.

Margaret sitting on top of a mountain in Tennessee wondering what adventure we will have today. Xoxoxo

Day 1023 Raisin and her horses

May 10, 20173 Comments

Visiting my friend Raisin in Bristol TN where she lives on top of a mountain. She has two Freisians.

This is her daughter Kendal with her horse Bo and her tiny miniature Pomeranian when the ferrier was her yesterday.

Raisin and her horse Harley while he’s getting shod. Just the most beautiful horses.

Drawn on location with a Lamy Safari on arches cold press 280#

Colors used cerulean, yellow ochre, burnt sienna and umber, ultramarine blue, cad red light and Quin rose. Off to paint. Ttyl Margaret xoxo

Day 1021 Fealing Lin

May 9, 2017Leave a comment

Fealing Lin is the next teacher at Cheap Joes. She’s so adorable and such a terrific teacher. We would have been in her class except she was booked back to back with Charles Reid first.

Watching the demo on the big tv at Cheap Joes during class.

This morning there was a little knock on our door about 7:20 am. It was Fealing. She asked us to come by and see her so we did!! What a treat!!

She started her painting while we were there. This is the initial washes. She had already drawn the painting before class.

Her palette. Her two favorite colors are Cheap Joes American Journey Hot Mama and Andrews Turquoise.

Her paint brushes. I have the same paintbrush folder and have been trying to keep it clean. Scratching that off my list.

A few of her portraits.

Always liked this old guy.

A lot of great ladies.

This is from an old photo.

Love her great old men.

What a smile. Beautiful portrait.

Margaret off to dinner with Fealing Lin and Cheap Joes. Xoxoxo

Day 2019 Urban Sketching in Boone

May 7, 20172 Comments

Well if sketching in the Wild Craft Eatery counts. Painted my sketch last night. I should have eaten my leftovers. Our third visit there and I still have some of the most amazing ravioli with tomato Gouda sauce and shiitake mushrooms leftover plus some of their delicious garden salad with pickled green beans, pumpkin seeds and cilantro lime dressing in the minifridge.

But I decided to paint instead of eat. Been eating TOO MUCH even if the food in Boone is delicious.

Should have taken more photos but was tired from hiking all over Valle Crucis.

The original sketch. Off to Charlotte to the Raptor Center for a six year old birthday party for my niece Potter.

She’s six today. Should be fun!!! HAppy Birthday Potter.

Margaret off to shower. What it might be snowing?! Xoxoxo

Day 2018 Its Saturday

May 6, 2017Leave a comment

And we decided to spend another nite in Boone.

Did I say I bought this Charles Reid painting. Best thing that’s happened to me since I got Beatle tickets with the possible exception of my grandchildrens birth.

Charles Reid wearing his new “happiness and security hat” as Judy Reid called his new hat that she bought for him at the Mast General in Valley Crucis.

Mike Gant and I wearing our Charles Reid happiness and security hat at the Mast General in Valley Crucis.

The original the Mast General in Valley Crucis.

A good looking gentleman was sitting at one of these empty tables ar the Wild Craft Eatery today. I just had to draw him and he almost busted me. He also kept moving his hands so I messed those up.

Here’s a picture of where he was sitting and the sketch.

The sketch. Not the best. Took maybe five minutes. I was so afraid he would catch me. He was sitting less than six feet from me.

And a bit of its Saturday done by

My friend Drew Murphy back in Aiken. 2×3′ acrylic alla prima.

Day 2016 How many flowers

May 4, 2017Leave a comment

Was thinking I would NEVER paint another flower when I did this one yesterday. I guess til you get it right. Painting like crazy!!! This one was wrong … well at least the flowers. Had no clue how to paint yellow flowers.

This is what I was looking at!

So I moved things around and tried again. Charles pronounced this one a great success. Thinking it needs some more splatters and where’s the chickens eye. Great paint brush apple tubes and teapot. I can nail that fruit. Why did I think I wanted to paint that yellow bouquet.

Enough for tonite. Worn out so BED time.

Ttyl Margaret having too much fun in Boone. Xoxox

Day 2014 I am HERE!!

May 2, 20175 Comments

In Boone NC at Cheap Joes. Hanging out with Charles Reid and his adorable wife Judy. And Joe Miller aka Cheap Joe is here too. Such great people. And my friend Mike and her husband Alan.

In the class of 18 we have had the first of May class with at least the same 7 or 8 people now for three years so we are all getting to be friends. Several of them were in my class in Charlotte too – a small world of watercolor painters.

So what did we paint today?! FLOWERS AND more FLOWERS.

This is Charles’ painting from today. He takes a break every 20 minutes. It took him maybe two hours to paint this. Down by 11:30. Sigh. One day.

This is what he was painting. Judy said they had large decoy collections at their house in Nova Scotia. No surprise there. He always paints his decoys.

His paint box. This box costs about $500. He finally bought it because he was going thru $80 Holbein palettes like mine every two years. This one will last him forever.