Day 2095 Crud that keeps giving

June 17, 20192 Comments

Or is it just stopped up sinuses. Either way. Yucky. My bird drawing craze goes back at least six years or more. Some early ones.

Parking lot seagulls probably in a Strathmore mixed media. I draw better birds now. All these were drawn while watching the birds.

Chicken chasing Parrot rescue in Pigeon Forge Drawing pelicans before we eat at Key Largo – Buzzards Roost. May be there soon hurrah.

Key west ibis from the Key West Wildlife Rescue. Love

These guys. They magically show up in droves when Lloyd the bicycle tour leader comes because they know he has snacks for them.

Love the ibis hmm and the chickens and the parrots and hmm I love drawing birds. Parking lot seagulls were lots of fun too.

Margaret year Xoxoxoxo time for Endeavour.

Day 2086 D Day Invasion

June 6, 2019June 7, 2019Leave a comment

When we went to France we went to The Normandy Invasion Sites. Aka Operation Overlord aka D Day.

The French in Normandy seriously love Americans because they know we saved them. This is a sketch of one of the Canadian cemeteries at Birn Sur Mer. We were there on Veterans Day and many of the people on the tour had uncles buried there leaving roses on their graves. The Canadian DDay Museum a fascinating place that looks like a maple leaf from above. It’s made with aluminum sheathing that glows in the light.

Arrowmanche which still has implacements from the invasion in their harbor. I almost got left behind by the bus while I was drawing this sketch. 🤣 We suffer for our art.

Ranville. The first city the Allies freed in Normandy also a site of another allied cemetery. The church is still pockmarked with canon shell holes.

Mushrooms outside another museum we visited. Pegasus Bridge Museum where the British paratroopers landed BEFORE the D Day invasion. Out of the 600 that parachuted in only 165 survived the nights shooting.

Another page I just dug up. The leader of the British paratroopers.

The invasion maps. – The la song sites -Utah Omaha Gold Juno and Sword Beaches – among rh coast of Normandy near Bayeux home of the famous tapestry and Areowmanches where the Bristish established Mulberry harbor a temporary port for the allies. Remnants of it can still be seen today.

Memorial at the American cemetery at Omaha Beach.

More Omaha beach pictures. One thing you can say about France sunny one minute cloudy and raining the next.

The bravery of these men was amazing and we and the French will all be forever grateful. The stories of them abound still in Normandie.

Oh bytw several shows on tonite on the National Geographic channel with actual footage from the invasions tonite. Have my dvr set.

Margaret getting ready to eat her chicken noodle soup. 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 1056 – the View at Breakfast

June 12, 2017June 13, 2017Leave a comment

We always stay at the Country Inn and suites when we take a class at Cheap Joes. The people are lovely even if the breakfast is not so great. The view from the breakfast area and the staff make up for the lack of the great food. After class Mike and I frequently go prop our feet up and rock the afternoon away drinking a glass of wine and looking at this view of Howard’s Knob the mountain in the painting.

Of course on a good morning we got to share our breakfast with Charles and the ever adorable Judy Reid. Always a morning treat. They are so lovely! Judy will regale is with stories of the adventures of Chuck and Judy.

There are quite a few after 60 plus years of marriage. Like the time they almost were lost at sea helping a friend sails 50 foot Chesapeake bug eye catch when a storm hit them off of Charleston. Judy and Charles were the only ones who knew anything about sailing. So glad they survived!!

Painted with Charles Reid’s palette.

Off to hem those long overdue curtains. Wonder if my sewing machine still works?! Margaret xoxoxox

Day 1057 Mike

June 11, 2017June 13, 2017Leave a comment

Finally getting around to posting my friend Mike. Been crazy busy cleaning house and pitching junk out – stuff not even worth good will donation.

We had a draw off at Cracker Barrel one Saturday or Sunday morning when we were in Boone. Here’s Mike drawing me. Eeek!!

Ttyl Margaret who had to go shower and get rid of the dust!!

Day 1054 St Comey? WIP?

June 9, 2017June 9, 2017Leave a comment

Should have stuck to the hot press fabriano I started to draw this on. HOWEVER a I have more Bristol Board than Hotpress so opted for Bristol. NOT next time. And I may redraw.

I could not loose an edge to save my life on this paper. And it took forever dry. Maybe I should have put it on Stonehenge. I do have some of that. Next time. Or maybe hat Fabriano. Fabriano hot press is the loveliest paper and I know Cheap Joes has more and so does Dick Blick.

Inked with my Lamy Safari and Lamy Fine point.

WIP because I may do it over and also may add a bit of mixed media like what about a gold paint pen halo edge!? Could be fun.

These ideas pop into my head and I keep a list of them on my cell phone. Check back by or check my Instagram feed MaggieinSc for an update because Rachel Maddow is on soon and it’s time for a shower so I am ready.

Wonder what she will unloose tonite. an ongoing spy novel.

Ttyl Margaret xoxoxo

Day 1053 – Politics

June 8, 2017Leave a comment

Hard to avoid it today. It’s all over the tv the radio Facebook twitter. I don’t know about you but the last few days have been riveting. THIS IS WATERGATE!! 14×20 Mixed Media

Enough to get Rachel Maddow back from her sick bed where she had been for almost two weeks.

I got the brilliant idea to do this one on arches #140 cold press. BIG a mistake. Hard to write on with any ink pen or marker I had.

I finally picked up a Japanese brush pen I thought had permanent ink. I tested it on a scrap of paper. It didn’t run.

Fast forward to all the heavy lines in this sketch are done with that brush pen especially on Dan Coats.

When I started painting him he turned into a gray runny mess. This was supposed to be a watercolor. EEEKKKK.

I dug into my mixed media art supply grove. Caran d’ache Neocolor ii to the rescue. I started coloring. I lightened him up. The only person that didn’t have some runs was Comey. 😳

A lot of the letters ran. The names!! Eeeekkk. On this rough paper there was no clean edge. Tried a grease pencil which works great in my sketchbooks. NOPE TOO rough.

Got out a white gel pen on the letters. Better!! Got out a paint pen. Even better. More outlining with the Lamy Safari.

Done. Whew. Not what I had in mind BUT finally pleased with it.

Margaret planning another but it will be on hot press paper. Xoxoxo the news is calling.

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 198 – Fixing Mistakes & a giveaway!!

January 19, 2015January 19, 20152 Comments

To celebrate my 200th consecutive blog post and my new blog leave a like and a comment on my blog between now and Wednesday midnite. I will randomly pic three winners for a small original watercolor – one of the three Watercolors at the end of this blog post!!

Good luck!!

Now back to how I fixed my mistake.

I did this great sketch at Key West.

As usual I had to write on it. WHAT was I thinking?! The original lettering got lost in all those great Palm fronds. So brilliant me decided to try a red Tombow. Green and red complimentary colors so red letters would pop. Uh yes they did. They popped TOO much. Tried to black them out with my Pentel brush pen. Nope that wasn’t working either.

Then another brilliant thought use some gouache on the letters. Anything was better than that red. Well better yes but still NOT great. I got out an old accounting register that I have and decided to glue some ledger paper over the offending letters.

I tore it using a ruler. I like the rough edges. Glued it down. Painted the palms over it. Redid the letters and

ThAnK goodness it worked. Lapin who I have been following on Instagram uses ledger paper in his watercolor sketches. He’s right it paints just as well as watercolor paper.

I am pronouncing this one done.

Thanks for looking!!