Category: Dr Sketchys

Day 69 Havana

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Might be my favorite to date. Coming off the watercolor board soon.Paint along with Vladislav Yesileyev.

The photo. A wet day in Havana.

My sketch on 300 lb rough Fabriano

First wash with very watery yellow ochre alizarin crimson cobalt blue and a dab of cobalt teal.

Trying to fix my street. Was too choppy. Aka wipe it out with tape and a sea sponge.

And done. I added a bit more yellow ochre and cad yellow on the sidewalk and lower edge of the building because it is so yellow.

At some point I decided I hated my painting so I had lots of fun playing with my Loosey goosey dagger brush from Cheap Joes. Love that brush. It makes all those thin thin lines.

Ps sign up for a paint along with Vlad Yesilesev.

Margaret ready to find some lunch or is it dinner time. Xoxoxo.

Day 58 – En Provence

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A lot of egregious errors I thought and maybe a repaint when I finished but I really like this the more I stare at it.Things that bothered me yesterday no longer do. I think it has a great glow about it. I really love the tree. Who cares if I messed up the hard fought for dappled tree shadow on the right of the tree by misting it too much and it ran everywhere. 😫 and the roof line was not quite right. I no longer care and like it a lot. How would we take this no account ho hum picture and make a good painting out of it?! Hmmm.

Paint along with Vladislav Yesileyev

The value sketch.

First wash.

Background bushes and roof on.

Tree’s done. Goodness almost done. What?! Speed Painting.

Adding details and a few darks.

And here’s A tree in Provence Done. Don’t you want to buy it?!

Tomorrows paint along with Vlad. You should join us!! You will be glad you did.

Beautiful day yesterday.

Margaret who thought she had posted this yesterday. Hmm. Xoxoxox

Car Sketching Again!!

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Hoping you and yours are doing well. So far so good with all of mine. So here we will sit six feet apart for another month. It’s worth it if it saves even one life.

Never pays to grab a random black sketchbook without looking to see if it’s the right one. This one wasn’t. NOT fond of watercolor. And don’t make a mistake – it’s NOT coming off. No blotting lifting will do. Paper so thin it waffled badly.

This is the kind of sketchbook it is. Ink was fine but watercolor not so much. A birthday present supposedly ok for watercolor. How I mistook it for my black stillman and birn Alpha I will never know. The Alpha is covered with stickers. They look nothing alike.

Spent the day ripping apart filters to make facemasks only to find that I should have gotten the kind in the photo above. Ripping off all those gold plastic wires was tough on my hands. Six done. Still ok for masks but the one in the photo has about 6 times as much fabric. Will use it for my next go round because these will only make 25 or so.

And then there was the baking. Snickerdoodles yummm so crispy and buttery.

And easy no knead bread heading for the oven in an hour. Can’t wait. Usually it takes 18 hours on the counter but not this method.

Not much to see outside this morning. I was hoping doe a pretty sunrise instead it’s been overcast. Hmmm.

And that’s it from the river where the sun will set soon. Hmm still won’t be able to see it. First world problems right?! Xoxoxox

Margaret

High time

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I posted.

Found these sweet clementines in my sons kitchen this am. Far too cute to eat attached to the leaves and each other.

If my bag of painted weren’t out in the car on a very rainy day in Atlanta I would paint these. Maybe tomorrow?!

I think I like it better with the lettering than without. What do you think ?!

Drawn with a uniball micropen in a handprint journal. High time I fill this book up and be on to the next one.

Margaret in rainy drippy squally Atlanta not looking forward to the drive home in the same weather. Also ruined all my plans for arts stores and other Atlanta fun. Time to replace my old ancient beloved London fog which is no longer waterprood.

What I did today

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Drawing the impeachment hearings.

My friend Ruth britpeach on Instagram and I draw the talking heads and txt each other about the hearings and our drawings. Actually a lot of fun. I put up my Lamy after this one because the ink kept smearing.

No idea why. And I didn’t feel like dealing with it. Maybe because it was my Lamy joy the calligraphy pen and I didn’t wait to let it dry enough?!

And everyone needs a Jack Russel in their lap when they draw don’t you think?? She did take a break and sit in the sun for a little while then she was back.

Drawn in a stillman and birn alpha, my favorite stillman and birn, with watercolor pencils no ink no pencil to start on most of them.

Friday I will have to take pics to explain how I do this but similar to oil painting where u start with shadows using a burnt sienna watercolor pencil and slowly firm up the drawing.

Margaret whose tired. There are SIX more of the these, three bad ink sketches and two partially finished ones. I can finish those Friday. Xoxoxox

Day 2108 Rachel remembered

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Saucing it up at Dr Sketchys a few years ago. I carried these around in the hold of my car to give to her and kept forgetting them. I finally gave them to her family today at a memorial at Le Chat.

She was quite the Burlesque dancer. At today’s memorial at Le Chat we got to see old burlesque with Dirty South YouTube’s of some of her performances and outtakes from the movie Old Man of the Rocks she and her daughter made a couple of years ago.

Marian the Librarian from her favorite musical the Music Man. Her fans were many and her talents were legion. Her grandpa called her Marian the librarian.

Vamping for the Dr Sketchys crowd. Not my greatest sketches but they are now owned by her family. I hope they enjoy them.

Pentel brush pen superaquabee sketchbook caran d’ache neocolor ii. Tomboy markers.

Margaret tucked in for the night Xoxoxox

Day 2106 In Memoriam

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Of our dear friend and fabulous artist Rachel Miller who left this earth Sunday far too early. A sketch of her as our model at Dr Sketchys. Her she is as Marian the librarian. One of the founding members and first director of the Augusta Burlesque group Dirty South.

Rachel was a talented linguist with NSA fluently speaking multiple languages including French Libyan Somali and three others. Do you know to be an NSA linguist you have to be able to be fluent in a new language within six weeks! She was brilliant. She was retired Air Force, a gourmet cook and caterer, terrific watercolor artist, a twin, and above all beloved mother and wife. Those are just a few of her many talents.

She was a bright star in our lives and will be greatly missed by her legions of friends too. 

My fast take on Rachel as Marian the Librarian. Probably a five minute sketch.

And here we are jamming it up at one of the Doctor Sketchys. The lovely Ilaina short me and outrageously fun Rachel.

Her memorial is tomorrow at 6.

from her husband Frank.

A memorial stop-on-by, share-your-Rachel-moment service for my wife Rachel M Miller will be held Wednesday, 3 July, starting at 6PM. Because some friends are still flying in, it will probably go beyond 8PM. It will be held at River Place Condominiums in the clubhouse. This is where her sister Jessica Yu lives and where we’ve had some memorable parties. There is no dress code so come as you are. Some are bringing food, some their own liquor to toast her, others want to share some of her paintings, but I’m sure all have a story.

There are two guest-access parking levels at River Place Condos. There’s also some parking lots nearby open to the public after hours.

Her candle burned at both ends it will not last the night but ah my friends she cast a lovely light. – My rewrite of The Edna St Vincent Millay poem.

Margaret Xoxoxoxo

Day 1309 Dr Sketchys

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hard to believe it’s already Dr Sketchys time.

Started off great. A five minute gesture sketch done with a pentel brush pen and watercolor.

Stephanie was our model. Such a hoot. She’s the mistress of the Augusta’s Chat Noir Burlesque troupe- also very funny. The burlesque ladies have a show coming up July 21 22nd. Hope to make it.

Stephanie is as Frida Kahlo. Then it went downhill for a while. I am blaming painting all afternoon. I was tired!

Stephanie the vamp.

Thirty minute final pose. Quite pleased with it!!

Finally I tossed my pentel brush pen and drew with a stadler B pencil and voila got one I liked.

Here’s the sketch before I painted it.

I used my Holbein Metal Palette with Charles Reid colors. Ordered a new one from amazon because this one is getting rusty and crusty. I lust for a Craig Young Palette at $480 🤪. When I am rich and famous right?!!

Drawn in my super aquabee tablet. 11×14″

Margaret xoxoxoxo off to run errands before I head to The western North Carolina mountains for the weekend of the fourth.

Day 1114 one more Starbucks.

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These two guys were just chatting away in Chinese or Korean. Could have been Japanese for all I know. Their conversation was very animated. The guy on the right actually noticed I was drawing. He was really sweet and asked me if I had finished before he left.

Strathmore 400 sketchbook Lamy Safari Ted Nuttalls transparent palette plus Daniel smiths piemonite.

Margaret who had a busy day xoxoxo

Day 1098 More Dr Sketchys

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Ten minutes

Five minutes

Five or Ten minutes. Add texture contest which I won. The feather is done with glitter pens.

A contest. Add a beast to a sketch. Added the Chat Noir cat. Kinda wished I hadn't. Liked it better before oh well. Always another sketch. 10 min then 10 more to add the cat. I think. Mask is done with wink of Stella glitter pens.

Done in a superaquabee tablet 10×14 or 16. W pentwl brush pen and winsor newton travel palette colors plus all the Daniel smith quinacridones.
Ttyl off to run errands in Atlanta
Margaret xoxoxox