Category: Life drawing

Day 2116 Court reporter part deux

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These were such fun to color with the tombows whilst I watched tv last night. Four tombows flesh green and two blues one of which was light. The other was so dark I could use the blue on my brush for shadows.

Think the color improved him greatly.

Page two colored. Just used two tombows flesh and a wierd green. Then added water to the green. You never know what will happen with tombows. Sometimes good sometimes not.

This is before. I think it too was improved by color even though it’s simpler.

These are my friend Ruth Pearls. You can follow her on Instagram at Britpeach She used Derwent watercolor pencils and a copic market.

Her second one. I think the bottom sketch somehow is perfect of Mueller. Such expression.

Margaret who wants to finish her book called. The Irressistible Blueberry Bakeshop and café. I think I have gone Blueberry crazy baking too many blueberry pound cakes. I discovered I am NOT a lover of big wads of cooked blueberry. However I have friends that LOVE it.

Day 2113 Court reporter time!!

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Best thing about congressional hearings is getting to draw the talking heads. My dear friend Ruth Pearl and I would LOVE to be court reporters of any needs us. Too much fun. Will share a couple of hers with you after I ask her.

Page 5&6

AND I finished this hahnemuhle journal. Now I can go back to stillman and birn. The hahnemuhle hated the tombow markers. When I tried to brush them out the paper peeled. WHAT?!!

And the spine is totally broken and falling apart. Last time that happened was when I first used Stillman and Birn. They sent me a stack of four to replace that one book. WHAT was I thinking changing even if it was to try out a nice non plastic covered journal. Sigh.

Page 1&2

Tombows. Always fun not as messy as watercolors BUT I think I will paint the other two pages I drew today. 11 heads all together.

Have to say he’s DIFFICULT to draw. Not sure why.

One tip. You can draw these guys in 5-10 min. If u start where he’s looking right and don’t finish wait. Sooner or later he will resume the same position and you can finish. Try it – it’s a lot of fun. That’s how I did the big one. Every time Schiff or Nunez questioned him I worked on the big one some more.

Page 3&4

Page three. Especially like the one on the bottom right.

Ink ones are my Lamy Ef a sweet writing pen with noodler brown ink.

Margaret who might have to listen to more news. Xoxoxox

Day 2114 Done done done

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Think this one is done. I added shots of burnt sienna to the gold and a few wet splatters softening the edges w water. Added a few washes out cerulean strokes mixed w palette mud here and there for shadows. A bit of flesh to the people.

Before the quin gold and cad yellow was over powering the sketch. So when it’s messed up there’s nothing to lose playing with it.

The original sketch.

Lamy EF Noodler Eelskin Ink stillman and birn Zeta.

Margaret who really needs to contact wordpress to get rid of the annoying popup in the ap. xoxoxo

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 2103 Another Day Another window

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You would be surprised to see what you can get drawn in line at a chic fil a. The line during lunch moves so slowly though they try their best to make it move quickly. Sooner or later I bet there will be a wreck between impatient customers waiting in those lines.

I was stopped in line when I drew the cars in roughly. And the stop sign the trees girl in the stand. That line took quite a while. As I was heading to home aka getting my food I was done.

Noodler brown Ink Lamy Ef hahnemuhle journal which is almost full.

Margaret Xoxoxoxo

Day 2101 -Something about a dog

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When the family dogs visit my house they love to stare out the front windows lusting after squirrels, other dogs, maybe a quick chomp on a passing neighbors leg as they stroll down the street?! Who knows what they are thinking. But the dogs hold still and just stare making them perfect subjects for a sketch.

This is my nieces dog Scooch a lab chow mix whose recently went over the rainbow bridge. It’s nice to have sketches of him to remember this great dog that traveled the world with their family and watched over the kids as they grew up.

Superaquabee sketchbook Noodlers pen with Deartrementis document brown ink. Tomboy pens.

Margaret off to Atlanta to see the new grandbaby. Xoxoxoxo

Day 2089 Chelsea

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15×22″ Spent two and a half hours chasing Chelsea as she would turn from full frontal to the right. As soon as she relaxed a little she would loose the pose because she was twisted in her seat.

First break. NO pencil. 😵😵😵Rough block in on Co fluid watercolor paper. 140#. The paper is really a bargain for great paper. Six full sheets for $24 on amazon. Always dries just about flat no matter how soppy wet I get it. Second break not making a lot of progress. Adding more darks and the blouse. Lack of progress I think that was due to the continually rotating head. No excuse for that left eye. But an easy fix on this hp. Most hot press would not let you move it at all. One shot and you are done. Last break. That left eye shoot me. But I brought it around. Add more darks to the hair which was ultramarine and burnt umber or van dyke brown. Also I didn’t want to get the shadows dark since that would age her. She has quite a very young face. Deep shadows age people in portraits especially babies. For now. I have a to do to her list. May or may not do them. BYTW her blouse was painted in two shots with my size 16 Cheap Joes sable. First was a glaze of very watery cerulean and burnt sienna. Then after it was dry lines of the black hair mix.

Colors used Quin gold French yellow ochre burnt sienna burnt umber ultramarine cerulean vandyke brown. A hint ifocad red light

Margaret ready for a nap. Xoxoxox

Day 2084 – the kid

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At this point. The Kid 15×22″‘hp Fluid. Forgot to ask his name yesterday when he modeled for us.

Started without a drawing. Drawing large shapes Like oil painters do.

Both light and dark. WHERE are his glasses?!! Took til almost second break before I notice oh wait I can’t see his eye because he has on glasses. Duh.

Started adding

And adding. How did I not notice his mouth was too small too forward?! 🤪

More shadows but that mouth. I am an idiot? The things you don’t notice when you have a live model. And YES I got up and walked off and looked at it.

Finally his mouth is where it belongs. Sigh.

When I went to bed last night.

And the way he looks right now. I moved his right eye up and widened it.
Burnt sienna cerulean cobalt burnt umber hematite burnt scarlet or other. Vlads neutral tint. White Gouache mixed w cad yw light. Ultramarine
Andrews blue Alizarin dioxzine violet vandyke brown indigo

Hmm is that all of them.

Paper is 140# hot press fluid which has stayed oh so flat despite my repeated drenchings of the paper. Love this stuff. Need to order MOH from amazon. AND you can even lift on it which never happens on hot press. Once it’s there it’s there on most hot press.

Margaret who just got a new grand baby today David Christoper 8.8 lb. A BIG boy just like his dad whose birthday was today. Super birthday present for my son Ben.

Xoxoxoxo

Day 2072 The Four Heavenly Kings

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Fell in love with these when I went to the Columbia Museum of Art last time. Today I returned to draw some of the statues and have one last look at the Pollock. It was 8×20’😳. Sadly it was gone but these cuties were still there part of the permanent collection right next to a gorgeous Botticelli. Do you think they would notice if I borrowed one for a while??! Too bad an art museum doesn’t lend art to their visitors like a library lends books.

While I am not a big fan of Renaissance art it’s hard not to appreciate this gorgeous painting which is about 4×5′ or so right next to the Lokapala.

I don’t know why but I just find these two guys charming. I am sure they were not meant to be charming but scary.

Bytw I drew two more figures before these. It was the fourth figure on the right before I started drawing well. I have a sketchbook full of Buddhas and saints now and a couple of Soda City street drawings. Now to get them painted.

I have to say the Columbia Art Museum was a lovely cool respite from the muggy 100 degree day outside at Soda City. You could have told me the queen of England was outside and I would not have left the cool museum.

Bytw the museum is only $5 on Saturday while Soda City is open (9-1pm).

Margaret ready for her cool comfy bed. Xoxoxoxo

Day 2070 Problems Problems

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Decided to add this lady to my sketchbook as a memory page.

She meets me at the back sliding door and peers thru the glass this way and that as if to say are you there. Where’s my breakfast??? It’s very funny.

Hahnemuhle Journal twisbee pen Charles Reid palette colors and Vlads neutral tint which is dioxzine purple indigo and burnt sienna.

Advantage of using his neutral tint or making your own is that you can shift it to blue purple or brown maki g it a flexible grey that Vlad never paints without it on his palette.

Miss squirrel earlier added some ground under her feet with the neutral tint so the nice highlights on them would show. And splattered it a bit with the neutral tint.

wouldn’t let me upload these pics yesterday. 😵😵😵

Seems I have run out of storage on WordPress. I either have to Del a lot of old photos which is oh so difficult to do or pay $200 more a year for unlimited storage. Groan.

wouldn’t let me upload this one either so added it today.

So while I am deciding I Del a lot of my friends nudes and I bet the pages look like Swiss cheese. Sorry friends and dear readers. I still love you.

Here’s the final painting again. Do wish I had left the metal strip on the side.

That freed up a little space.

wondering why I didn’t do this one but I think I will maybe on the opposite page.

Oh. Went to see Anne Hathaway’s new movie The Hustle. Funny well only occasionally. Best part was the French Riviera scenery the French music and Anne’s fabulous clothes.

Skip it and go see Poms. Much funnier.

Margaret In p189 of Redemption. Only 200+ pages to go.

Ttyl. Xoxoxo