Self Portrait 2010

Since my husband's passing, as you might expect after 39 years, I feel as if part of me is missing. So here is my self portrait for 2010.

More Windows

Lately I have been trying to finish a few of my Windows cards. That would be easier if I would stop looking for more windows on Google Street Maps. But that "toy" is so much fun. And of course educational. I was traveling thru the streets of New York last night, then hopped the Atlantic to Scotland. Nice old rock buildings there. And quite a culture change from New York. It is so nice to travel while I sit at my desk.

Terra Skin

Several months ago I read on Jeanette's blog about Terra Skin Paper. Well I'm not too sure it's still called paper. I got some samples to try and had never used it. Today I decided to try my little ceramic Lady B on the Terra Skin.

I like the surface and the way it holds the color. I did find that my mechanical pencils seemed to dig in and make indented lines. Also in one spot a sharp pencil chipped a piece out of the surface. I was able to cover it but I was surprised that it did chip.

The thickness and the "feel" of the Terra Skin is like those flexible magnets. Bendable and a nice thick feel. The surface was quite nice with the colored pencils. Not sure how many layers it would take as I tend to go in dark right away. I don't have the patience to do 24 layers or so.

All in all I like the Terra Skin but I would have to use it a little more before I would do something I wanted to keep long term. I would have to see if the chipping is something that would happen often. It was nice to have the opportunity to try the surface.

The Virtual Paintout

I finished my Virtual Paintout picture of the Canary Islands. I cropped a picture of a house that had curved steps with a hand rail. I left those out. I didn't feel like having a perspective nightmare tonight.

One More

One more person was added to the Sunset Trade so I made another card last night. Today I have a doctor appt. Last week was my mammogram, and Thursday is my eye test. I have to get it all done before the end of the month as I don't know if I can keep the insurance.

Sunsets Finished

Here are all my sunset cards for the Drawspace Trade.

Sunsets

Drawspace forum has an ATC trade once a month with a different theme each month. This month is "Sunsets". Here is my first one finished.

End of the Week

Well here it is Friday and the end of another week. I enjoyed the plein air outing yesterday. It was a beautiful day; cool in the morning and warmed up as the day progressed. After our painting time, critique, and lunch, we had a tour of the ranch for some picture taking. We had a really nice time.

I was exhausted when I got home and my ankle was really painful, so the babies and I had a nap. Dizzy is still recovering from her spay operation and still needs some extra attention. And of course Penny doesn't like the extra attention for Dizzy and pushes her way in. In fact I have gotten head butted in the nose, and a scratch mark on the face from her extra special love for me while trying to get closer than Dizzy. So if I get two black eyes, I will know where they came from.

Today I am taking a slow restful day. I need to buy a couple things at the grocery store but won't suffer without them if I decide not to go. I am picking up around the house and a few other chores. What happened to the woman I was who put art first and housework not even on the list? Maybe/hopefully she will come back.

Have a great weekend.

Rural Mailboxes

Last Thursday on my group art outing, I took photos of some mailboxes grouped together. Always a good find for a picture.

Last night I printed the photo, took supplies to bed, and drew in the basics. Then about 4 am the dog had to go out. I couldn't go back to sleep so started to put some color in. Here is where I am at the moment. 8x10 on colored mat board with colored pencils

Windows Trade

I have already mailed 4 of my Windows cards. 2 have been received so far. I need to get busy and do some more. I have quite a lot of photos saved from Google Street maps. I just have to get my "want to" in gear.

Tomorrow my baby Dizzy goes in to be spayed. She is just over a year old now and we have already struggled thru one time in heat. I don't want to do that again. She is a feisty little thing and didn't like wearing her diaper. And I can't catch her if she doesn't want me to. Plus I have a mammogram so I guess we will both be in misery.

I'm still dealing with all the changes and things you have to deal with when you have lost a loved one but we are doing fairly well. The dogs' routine didn't change much so they are still happy. They still listen for the pickup to come home. That was very obvious today when someone took it for a test drive. When the pickup pulled into the driveway, I saw my lab Penny's head snap to attention listening. As long as I don't leave and they are fed and loved, they will be ok.

Loss

The loss of a loved one is hard enough but when it is a spouse of 39+ years, it is pretty devastating. That's why I needed a break. There are still a lot of things to deal with and get thru but I am doing a little each day.

Today I went out with my art group up into the mountains looking for wild flowers. I'd much rather draw animals, people, buildings, but the wild flowers will all be gone shortly as it gets hotter. It's at the end of their season already.

We found a shady area to pull off and took a bunch of photos, did a little sketching, went to my friends house on a cattle ranch to have our lunch and make a pit stop, then made our way home. The day was beautiful, sunny, a little nippy in the shade but just about a perfect day to be out and breathe in the fresh mountain air.

I fit all my sketches into the categories for the scavenger hunt. Here are my sketches for the day.