Day 374 Key West Food Tour

July 17, 2015July 17, 2015Leave a comment

led by our fearless knowledgeable Annlise.

A very quick Pentel brush sketch done while we were enjoying our conch fritters with lime aioli sauce at Camilles. The fritters had just he right amount of hot. And a tall glass of ice water to keep us hydrated on our journey. Annlise is a font of info about all things Key West from the local food scene to the history and stories and even real estate pricing. You can not go wrong with her southernmost food tour.

Colors : cad red light, yellow ochre flesh, mineral Violet, cerulean, cobalt, Inathradone blue, alizarin, Burnt sienna, Andrews turquoise. Hair is Inathradone blue and burnt umber. Drawing done with Pentel brush pen.

More about the food tour tomorrow.

Thanks for reading.

Margaret ️xxx

Day 373 – Carolines and the Key West Ghost Hunt tour

July 16, 2015July 16, 2015Leave a comment

The best shrimp Bamboozled salad. Super wait staff. We were in a hurry to go on the Key West Ghost Hunting tour http://www.keywestghosthunt.com and they did everything they could to accommodate us and get us out the door on time.

The view from our table. It was contour sketched in ink in a hurry because we had less than an hour to eat and get to our tour.

Then we were off to the Key West Ghost Tours. http://www.keywestghosthunt.com

Our starting point at Kelly’s.

Jan ready for the tour.

This is our guide Michael in front of the Cosgrove House. Michael did a super job guiding us on our ghost hunt.
One of the tour members holding an L-rod which supposedly finds ghosts.

These houses are on Eaton Street where the nanny hung herself after accidently poisoning the two children in her charge. They both died. The sparkly lights are supposedly orbs or spirits.

There are more orbs in this photo but the wierd eat thing is the fish shaped blotch to the left of the door on the left house. It was not there when I went back the next day to look but it was in both photos that I took simultaneously of the houses.

The orbs also moved around though the photos were taken one after the other. And the black blotch is in both photos. No idea why. Believe what you want.

The episcopal church supposedly haunted by Captain Fleming who donated the land to the church.

Another orb in front of the cemetery.

In the old Scottish Mason meeting room on Eaton which is supposed to be the most haunted street in Key West. I thought this was a huge orb till I realized that it was Michaels flashlight lol.

It was a lot of fun and a great price point $20 with the code on their webpage. We both recommend it highly!!

Day 372 Hog Fish Grill

July 15, 2015July 16, 20152 Comments

Yum. They do a great hogfish taco. No idea if their other food is good because that’s what we always get. Just like we always sit out on the dockside.

This is the 180 view from our table. Still in the awful moleskine. Only a few pages left. Thank goodness. Then back to my super bee.

I think I ended up with two separate paintings though they are the whole view from where I sat. A great shot down the wharf from where I sat and then out into the marina. Also where I was sitting.

Wanted to add a note about the color.
The green is Daniel Smith green apatite a granulating primatek. Love the way it granulates.

I added Quin gold to it to simulate sunshine on the tree and darkened it for the fir with Inathradone blue. The palms are down with it too. Yellowed with Winsor yellow a transparent yellow.

The marina side from our table. Colors cerulean Yellow ochre mineral Violet burnt sienna and burnt umber to make the greys. The sky got way to dark. This paper just seems to suck the color and not let you add water to it to make it sheer. Most annoying.

Here’s the whole double page spread. This really is what we saw from our table when we looked to my left. The reason we always try to sit here even though it’s Hotter out there on the deck. They do have huge fans to cool you down. Thanks goodness.

I hear from a local, Pam Hobbs of hobbsart2015.com that their shrimp tacos are divine as well as their calamari topped Caesar salad.

Off to watch the sunset. Thanks for reading.

Day 371

July 14, 20154 Comments

a year and 6 days of consecutive daily blogging. Not easy when u r on vacation!!

My sis in law while we waited for the concierge so we could book some tours. Right now we are going on the ghost your Tonite and the food tour Thursday.

Lettering done with my Noodler Creaper Ahab and Carbon Black Ink in my moleskine Wc sketchbook.

Colors either Holbein or Daniel Smith. Ultramarine blue and burnt umber in the chair with yellow for the couchins. Cerulean and burnt sienna for the magazine, shorts, light, the table and the background all done wet on wet. The light is burnt umber, Quin gold, burnt sienna and ultramarine blue.

The blouse is cerulean and Winsor yellow which is a transparent yellow.

Skin Quin coral and yellow ochre. This usually makes a really pretty skin tone but NOT on this darned paper.

Ok next up. Rant about that moleskine I am trying to finish. So skip it if you don’t want to hear me froth.

Wishing I had brought another sketchbook. Really LOATHING the moleskine Wc sketchbook. It acts like Hotpress paper. Very annoying. Colors act oddly on it. Thinking of ordering an S&b zeta or a strathmore ASAP from amazon.

There is a Ben Franklins here BUT no hard bound sketchbooks. Great clerk there. We chatted for a while about art quilts and sketching.

Don’t ask me how many new clean sketchbooks I have at home. At least four! Groan. Oh well. They keep.

I don’t know what it is about this paper but I DO NOT LIKE IT. NO more moleskines for me. At least til they start making them here again and improve the paper. I used to love them. Makes me sad when a product changes so radically. Greed will get you!!

Last nites sunset. First one is in the moleskine. The colors just don’t look so bright and clear as in the next one which

Is on a lovely piece of Strathmore 500 watercolor paper. GREAT stuff. Love it!!! All the usual colors with the addition of cheap joes Andrews blue, Holbein mineral Violet, and DS Orange which is transparent. Oh and any red I thought would work. Can u see how this one flies compared to the one done in the moleskine?!

Thanks for reading!!

Margaret xxx who needs a nap before the ghost tour.

Day 369 – the Long Road

July 12, 20152 Comments

216 more miles to Key West. Posting from the Florida Turnpike S.

Boone 300# cold press Half Sheet 15x 22″ Another one done earlier this year. Always fun painting mustaches.

A great summer time recipe!! Love tomato pie.

Only 115 days till we leave!! Meant to do one of these in the car today for Key West BUT everything is buried in the heap in the back end so maybe when I get to Key West?!

Thanks for reading

Margaret ️xxx

Day 360 – Island Dreaming 2

July 3, 2015July 3, 20152 Comments

I repainted it. This one is larger than the first one. 12×18

I am much happier with this painting than the last. If I could change anything it would to have used a light hand on the porch across the house. I would have liked to have done it more like the next picture. Maybe one more go round?! Probably not.

This was mostly painted with my Isabey mops. Next time I am putting up all my paint brushes but the mops so the small ones don’t call me. You paint a lot looser with the mops. Try them. You will love them.

Really like this glow. I should have taken a break and thought a while before I painted the bottom half of the painting.

Colors used : cad orange and Aureolin yellow, cerulean, mineral Violet, cobalt, every green I have, Inathridone, burnt umber and vermilion to make the grey on the Palm trunks. Some Quin red.

Here’s version 1 of Island Dreaming. I actually do like it just wish I had not gotten the tower as dark as it is. Which one do u like best??

Thanks for reading.

Margaret ️xxx

Day 359 a few more palms

July 2, 2015Leave a comment

Just thought I would trade you today with a few details of a redo on Island Dreaming. Who knows I may do a third one before I am happy with it. I do need to plan a little better. Ah the challenges of watercolor. Ultimately i lightened up the purple orange at the bottom and added some cobalt.

The beginning of the Palm trees. A mix of cad yellow light and Quin gold.

Juicy colors. The fun of watercolor is letting it do the playing. Of course the purple did not stay that dark darn it.

One more detail just to tease you. Will post the whole thing tomorrow. I think I used every green I own painting the palms and a few that I made.

Thanks for reading.

Margaret xxx

Day 358 Those Palm trees

July 1, 2015Leave a comment

been trying to paint Palm trees again not sure how successfully. I tend to get heavy handed with them or get too heavy with the darks. Then I have to lift some of the darks. No wait ALOT of the darks. Thank goodness this is on Fabriano.

I under painted a lot of the trees and the building with light yellow. The green is Daniel smith green apatite. The purple is mineral Violet.

My favorite detail because I like the way the colors blended and a lot of lights. Cobalt mineral Violet and cad orange blended for the darks.

Colors used. Lots of mineral Violet and cad orange a fun combo when painted wet on wet. There’s a lot of orange made with Quin gold and Quin red too. It’s not opaque like the cad orange is.

Thanks for reading.

Margaret xxx

Day 349- Key West Finale

June 23, 2015Leave a comment

The scourge of Key West. Iguanas ravenously devour the landscape on Key West. I do love this watercolor though.

B.O.’s Fish Wagon a shady place on the corner of a parking lot made from an amazing collection of found junk. Awesome food!!

Delicioso what else can I say about B.O.’s Fish Wagon?!

Love the look of Bo’s.

Blue Heaven Garden

Was my favorite sketch before I colored it with my watercolor pencils. I know it’s getting a redo when we go.

Thanks for reading.

Margaret xxx

Day 348- Key West Dreaming Part Two

June 23, 2015June 23, 2015Leave a comment

One of my favorite sketches. All things Key West. Chickens, motor scooters, Blue Heaven, palm tree, sea shells and a beachy drink. This was drawn in pencil and added to as inspiration hit starting with the scooter.

Zany celebrations abound in Key West. The dachshund parade which was around one square block followed by a chihuahua flash mob!! Next trip Hemongway look alike contest to celebrate his birthday. Can’t wait to sketch hairy old men and mustacheoed young men a la Hemingway.