A history with birds

April 14, 2023April 14, 2023Leave a comment

Worked on the goose some more. Funny thought about my bird drawing. I remember in third or fourth grade making bird books. Probably traced the birds and copied the descriptions. All in pencil because god forbid the kid had an ink pen. She might be lethal then. Evidently the bird affair is a long standing one with me.

Funny the things you forget til something jogs your memory. The jog was an old paper my brother wrote about the brown thrasher the Ga state bird. It was in a bag of papers my mom saved for him that I need to mail to him along with his less than stellar report cards. His daughters will enjoy those. I for one would have loved to see my dads.

The goose before i worked on jt some more. You know i think the neck is too short. Odd. I watch geese alot. I should know better. This was not deliberate like the neck of the heron. Hmm the things u dont notice when u r in the heat of drawing.

Drawings are all done w watercolor, Caran dache neocolor ii,some prismacolor art sticks in an 8×10” stillman and birn alpha. NO PENCIL drawings aka direct painting. All done with a watercolor base first.

I have alot of trouble telling the difference in these two birds when they come to the feeder. So do others. Alot of people identify them both as flickers. Like my mom a bird nut if there ever was one. These two birds sure did get cute. Except for the ink smear. No idea where that came from.

In my dreams they would all be as good as this crow. Something to strive for right?!!

Anyway enough birdie thoughts. Nite note Margaret xoxoxo

My noodlers are clean!

April 5, 2023April 5, 20232 Comments

I finally broke down and cleaned my beloved old noodlers. Thats all I used to draw with. No Lamys ever. I like the Noodlers because the nib acts alot like a dip pen. They make much mode interesting lines than my Lamys do. HOWEVER they can be annoying. They quit right in the moddle of a hot sketching session. They Drip ink. They cover your hands with ink. But today i soldiered on.

Heres the link to clean your pen. Try it u will be so glad you did!! Now to clean my hmm 7 or 8 Lamys. My pilot my kwecko my two fudes. I never realized the paper lint could stop the pens up.

Heres my very fav red Noodler pen loaded w Carbon Platinum Black. This pen was my Valentines present to myself abt ten years ago.

A shot out my windows of the trees i was drawing. Good to sit down after another day of endless cleaning. I even used glass cleaner on my table wiped paint splatters off the studio tv the iPad the brush holders.

Heres where i was sitting drawing. see all my pouring cups?! Got to get back on that but company is coming.

Found all kinds of things. Bet u don’t know what this is. I had to think abt it for a few minutes it had beens so long since i have seen it. Paint tube wringer for oils and acrylics.

And lots of view finders and value gauges.

Best of all half the 68” island is now empty. all organized in my storage in the studio. Hurrah!

Beautiful evening on the river. Margaret putting her feet up for a well deserved rest. Xoxoxoxox

Day 101 tv Henry

June 10, 20202 Comments

Tv time. Always the easiest time to draw Henry. I think I forgot to finish his feet. Thought he would put his feet back in position but never did.

Sad he’s growing up. Eight in a few weeks. When did that happen?!

Does it count as urban sketching since the neighbors house is in the window?!

Lamy Ef, noodler eelskin Ink, stillman and birn Alpha.

Margaret packing up for home. Xoxoxox

Day 64 when u start talking

May 17, 20201 Comment

To an onion you know you have been alone too long. Told it I had drawn a really great picture of it before I copped it up for ratatouille. I even cried. Onions always make me cry when I cut them up. 🤣

Told you it needed paint.

Margaret watching As Time Goes By for the jillionth Time waiting for the bread to finish rising.

Day 59 My White Amaryllis

May 13, 2020May 20, 20202 Comments

And a quote from Reese Witherspoon. This white amaryllis has been blooming steadily for SIXTY days one stalk at a time. Thought I should commemorate its swan song. It has consistently shown up to do the work of blooming. Third year it has come back to bloom.

I journaled a bit about the amaryllis in pencil and painted it faintly in the background on the right page.

Namiki Fude Eelskin Black Ink

A sweet fat cardinal wallowing in bird seed on the back deck.

Margaret who is Tahred again. Xoxoxox.

Day 2126 Motor Supply Bistro

August 8, 2019August 8, 20192 Comments

In Columbia is hard to beat for food or ambience. I met my sister in law there for her belated birthday dinner.

Had delicious wild caught SC shrimp for a Sunday brunch with a bed of Anson grits and a blood orange cocktail. Think it was a martini. Did I say this place never disappoints. So yummy.

Cocktails are also interesting and off beat. Blood orange anything is hard to beat.

I was sitting in the bar area drawing this as people drifted to and fro at the bar.

Drawn with my Lamy Ef loaded w Noodlers Brown Ink. Maybe I will paint it. Maybe I won’t.

Margaret xoxoxo who has been schleepping all over town for safflower seed. Evidently the squirrels hate it. Who knew. Thanks Miss Mike for the tip. Xoxoxox

Day 2075 Back at the Museum

May 28, 2019Leave a comment

I loved these slightly primitive statues. So old.

Sketch in Deartrementis Brown with my Twisbee. The inks almost gone so next I will be using a Noodler Brown recommenced by Brenda Swenson.

Hahnemuhle journal yellow ochre cerulean cad red light cobalt burnt sienna ultramarine and a dab of quin gold.

I used a 2B pencil to write the info from the museum all over the background of this page to add texture and lightly erased it before I painted it.

Margaret who is book club tonite. Xoxoxo

Day 1061 -how many more?! And a beach party!!

June 17, 2017June 17, 2017Leave a comment

Still quite a few!!! 🤗We have no shortage of talking heads in this country. They offer great drawing practice. If you can pause your tv it even takes the pressure off of trying to draw them quickly.

And all they do is talk. And talk and talk.

And pass a lot of laws that half the country don’t like no matter which side you are on making the other half is unhappy!

The Decatur Businesses Beach Party in downtown Decatur on the square. Ponce de Leon became a giant beach!! Free beach buckets, beach balls and balloons oh and washable tattoos for all!!

An amazing stilt walker. The kids had no idea how he could be that tall! Several people on top of each other was their best guess.

And there he goes legging it down the block or should I say stilting down the block?!

And a rare shot of the old Decatur Courthouse with sun on its face. It usually sits in the shade. Bytw this is now an art gallery.

Off to play with my grandkids. Hugs!!

Day 1052 – Take a Hike Mr President Key West #3

June 7, 2017June 7, 2017Leave a comment

Found a few more that I hadn’t posted. The Shark cruise. Guess they won’t be around. No clean water. It’s already pretty bad in the Gulf.

All this would be underwater.

And this fun whacky restaurant on the waterfront.

And my favorite wacky restaurant Blue Heaven. Such delicious food and awesome chickens. never tire of the crazy chickens in Key West.

And my other favorite spot Louie’s backyard eatting on the water enjoying delicious Caribbean breezes. All gone with global warming.

Sad that it would disappear.

My sis in law who doesn’t believe in global warming would be very said at Key Wests submergence beneath the waters. Here favorite spot in the world.

One of my favorites too.

Busy day. Off I go. Setting up for a flower painting. If only they stay alive long enough.

Margaret xoxoxo

Day 982 Dr Sketchys 2

March 31, 2017March 31, 2017Leave a comment

Love the Chinese dresses Foxy wore at Dr Sketchys Wednesday. Gorgeous fabrics and they fit her like a glove. Classic Chinese dresses probably from her home in Taiwan.

This is my favorite sketch I think though the next one is nice too.

Both 11×14″ Super Aquabee tablet. Noodler Konrad WN colors in a whiskey painter box with a Cotman travel box full of Daniel Smith quinacridones. I used a gold Wink of Stella marker to sparkle these.

This was a challenge to add origami elements. I have folded thousands of those cranes and a few of the frogs. As a kid I loved doing origami since the first kit I received for Christmas. I think she’s slightly out of proportion. Head to big. Legs a tad too short but I like her anyway. A lot to draw and paint in 20 minutes!!