Almost a New Year

I haven't posted as I have been in bed with a cold. Have felt very yukky. Feeling like I might live but still not over it. Hope to get some strength back soon. No artwork done and nothing exciting here, just reading, sleeping, and blowing my nose. Ready for that to end.

Merry Christmas

Have a very Merry Christmas everyone!

I spent Christmas Eve with my nephew, his wife, and their 2 yr old. Great fun watching a 2 yr old playing and opening presents. We had wonderful tacos and rice. So nice that Cece is learning to cook. Doing a great job too.

And then on the way home, I went to my church's Candlelight/Communion Service at 9 pm. Such a nice way to finish up the night.

Now I'm on my way back to bed to get warm, to read, and maybe even a little more sleep.

Remember the reason for the season.

Me and my Portrait

This is a photo of me holding the portrait that my portrait swap partner did for me. His name is Dave (or Journeyman from Wetcanvas). I took it to our plein air group lunch and painting today and they all loved it. Sorry for the unclear photo. I had one of the ladies take the photo and we couldn't tell it was blurry on the camera.

Dave's Portrait

Dave's portrait from the Annual Portrait Swap on Wetcanvas has landed in Wales. I received a photo of him holding it. I will ask for permission to post it here. He was happy with it and the two sketches I did as preparation for the painting. Both were sprayed with fixative and signed so he can frame them if he wants. He liked that I sent it with a mat. Since a lot of people don't know that the watercolor paintings need a mat, I don't like to leave it for them to do. Then I only have to tell them to frame it with a frame that includes glass.

I'm so happy the portrait made it safely to him. The one of me that he did is in the mail. I look forward to seeing it in person.

I have finished everything I had on my list of "to do" things. Things that had to be finished before Christmas. Nice to have those things pretty much off my mind and shoulders.

I even finished my Sketchbook 2012. I hope to post it in the mail today. Nice to finish up that too and get in the mail. And I am a month early.

Now off to scan the pictures in the Sketchbook 2012 before I pack it up for mailing. And of course it's almost time for my soap opera. Life is good.

River, The Dock Diving Dog

This is my latest pet portrait. My groomer/friend's black lab River. This is her Christmas present. Watercolor, pen and ink, and a touch of white Conte pencil. 11x14 size on watercolor paper.

Bye Bye Bakersfield, Hello Wales

Dave's portrait will be leaving here tomorrow. Not sure how long it takes to get to Wales but hopefully before Christmas. I sent both graphite sketches and the watercolor so he will have plenty to look at when he opens it. It was so nice of him to ask me to trade with him. I still haven't heard from the other partner so he apparently isn't going to trade. At least now I will get a portrait in exchange. I would mail the other partner's to him but don't have his address.

I took my 2 plein air paintings to the Art Assoc. gallery yesterday. The show is for plein air artists who at least did part of the painting outside. It is ok if they finished it in a studio. The reception for the show is on Friday evening.

Now I need to get busy with a couple other Christmas gifts which will be paintings. I know what I want to do, I just have to get them going.

I sketched several more celebrities for the Art House Sketchbook 2012. Tom Selleck (as he is in the new show "Blue Bloods"), Claudette Colbert who has been my favorite actress since I was in grade school and saw one of her movies, Sean Connery (my favorite actor), Bill Cosby, and and Cat Stevens the way he looks today. tom Selleck is getting color put to his face now. I only have a couple more on the covers and the book will be finished.

I'm posting some photos I took at a local park a couple of weeks ago. I love watching the ducks and geese. They are so comical.

Dave Finished

I just finished Dave's portrait. Several times I thought I had lost it and would have to start over. I am happy with the finish now. I didn't plan to add the blue in his hair but I am glad I did. Watercolors on Arches Watercolor paper. A little pen and ink and white Conte pencil. 11 x 14 inch size. This will be getting mailed to the UK.

Dave's Portrait Update

I have started to add the color. I'm probably not finished working tonight so maybe another update or two.

Dave Start

This is the drawing of my Wetcanvas Portrait Swap Partner. Since I had not heard from my other swap partner, Dave volunteered to do a second and swap with me. I did one sketch and worked it to death. Couldn't quite get his eyes after much erasing. So I decided to do a little basic outline transfer of a few vital details and then went to work. This one is much better. I have it transferred to watercolor paper and will get started today on the watercolor.

Here are the first and second sketch. I will have to ok with Dave before I post the original photo. Or you can go here and see it on the Wetcanvas Portrait Swap Thread.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

More to come.

Bailey

I met Bailey at a local obedience show. Her owner, Sue, won a silent auction prize for a pet portrait from me. I just finished packaging up the portrait to send on its way. It was such fun getting to meet Sue and Bailey and taking my own photos. And a pleasure to paint such a beautiful dog.

Scavenger Hunt #246

I did 4 of the Scavenger hunt items this morning as ATCs. They are available for trade.

#1 it pivots - it's a tiny little kitty whose head swivels and it is maybe 1 1/2 inches tall
#2 something on my fridge - refrigerator magnet
#3 fits in my palm - A little clay animal I bought last week at Goodwill store
#4 with a crack in it - my hand with wrinkles/cracks
#5 sugar bowl - another Goodwill purchase I got a couple weeks ago. Just last week found another piece of the same set.

And I think it is a miracle that I was the first to post. I am usually about the last these days.

I did finish the doberman that was a commission for a silent auction at a dog obedience show here locally. I can't show it yet but I am waiting for approval from the owner and permission to post it. I am happy with the way it turned out and hope that she is too. To me, it is finished. Just needs my signature.

I still have one more silent auction portrait to do but the lady hasn't decided yet which pet. It will probably be her now deceased horse. I will contact her soon and get started on hers next.

Hitchcock

My latest in my Sketchbook 2012 Project book. Alfred Hitchcock.

Nickels Ranch

Working on the plein air painting I started yesterday when out with my art group. This one and the one from Majestic Palms (the statue) will be in a plein air show at Bakersfield Art Association in December. We went to Nickels Ranch yesterday which is beside the Kern River. Nice day except for the wind and the tiny, irritating flies.

I am taking photos as I work but haven't uploaded any of them yet. I have darkened the background trees and putting the color on the trunks.

November Drawspace ATC Trade

The signups haven't even ended but I got busy last night and this morning and finished the 5 that I need at the present time. If no one else signs up, I'm done.

"What I'm thankful for" is the theme and these are the reasons for my cards:

My hand for my marriage that lasted 39 years
Baby Kylie my great-niece (not a good likeness but....) for family
Teddy bear for friends
Art supplies for getting a gift from God for using and having them
My Bible for being able to worship my God freely

Barney Fife

Don Knotts as Barney Fife. I'm glad the sketchbook is getting done. Next up is Alfred Hitchcock.

Half Pint

Another face finished for the 2012 Sketchbook. Melissa Gilbert - Laura Ingalls - Half Pint from "Little House on the Prairie".

Coffee with Cream

My painting "Coffee with Cream" is now hanging with 12 others at Dagny's Coffee shop downtown in Bakersfield.

Sketchbook Project 2012

I finally started working on my project book for the Art House Co-op. It is due in January. I changed the paper to watercolor so don't have as many pages to fill, but at least I can use watercolor.

My theme is "I Remember You". I am doing celebrity portraits. So far I have Vickie Lawrence as Mama Harper from Mama's Family, Elvis which is not my best but I seem to have trouble with Elvis, and the latest Lucille Ball. I am working on Melissa Gilbert as Laura Ingalls from Little House on the Prairie.

A list of other celebs will/may be Ron Perlman, Cat Stevens as he looks today, Andy Griffith as Matlock, Barney Fife, Shemar Moore, Michael Landon, and maybe even Michael Jackson.

Since I am actually sketching them from scratch using no grids or outline transfers, some look more like their celebs than others. I am not trying to get a carbon copy but just a general likeness. If I make a hit, that is good too. Drawing directly on the watercolor paper is a little harder than smooth paper but I wanted to do the sketches directly to the book.

On the cover I decided to do something different. There is an old song called "I Remember You". I have printed the lyrics out and will fix that to the front cover.

It took me awhile to figure out how I wanted to go with my theme. I'm sure I had an idea when I chose that theme but I am going in a totally different way from my first thought. Now that I have made my decision, it is going smoothly. I have several photos saved and am anxious to get on with the next one.

Adella

I went out with my plein air group today. It was my first time in a very long time. We went to a Nursery/Statuary/Landscaping place. I decided to paint one of the statues they have there.

In person it is a very clean, pretty white with wonderful gray shadowy areas, I couldn't get the grays just right so I used a blue and gray color. Some mixed, some not.

This statue had the name Adella. I don't know where that comes from but it does seem to fit. I keep wanting to add some pen and ink or graphite on top to give it more definition, but I don't want to ruin the softness of her. This is just about as loose as I paint. I do much better with detail.

Autumn Leaves

We had another person join the Fall Trade at Drawspace. I will stick her card in the mail tomorrow.