Time is ticking away and I need to get this colored pencil piece done in time for a show! It's slow going and lately my shoulders have been giving me problems. When I do work on it, it's always so enjoyable. I just listen to music, sharpen my pencils and go...go...go.


And just for the fun of it, here are some older in-process photos:

I have long been fascinated with all things tiny. I used to collect 1/12th scale miniatures and built structures to house them. Painting in miniature was something I had long admired. It was another challenge I wanted to tackle "eventually". I thought I'd never have the patience. Well, yesterday I was itching to paint something and found a reference photo by madmum on WetCanvas. So I dove in.


You know what though? I had so much fun! I'm definitely going to try this again soon. Preferably on an easel next time so my neck doesn't ache from hanging my head down for so long. ;)

Also, a big thank you to Susan and to Rena for their recent comments. I truly appreciate such encouraging comments that readers leave behind. Now, back to that big project I'm working on.

I love all this warm weather. It makes me eager to be outside, dragging my paints around and capturing whatever is out there. Before all that though, I was contenting myself with painting from photos. This one was courtesy of looseart2011 on flickr who kindly allowed me to paint from her gorgeous photo.

Okay, so it's only one orange and one banana. But still, along with the apple I sketched a few weeks back, it feels like a fruitful bounty to me. My watercolors are definitely getting a workout!

First up, a bit of citrus:


Next we have a...um...hmmm. You know, I'm not sure what family a banana belongs to! Regardless, here's the banana:


And just for fun, some process photos for the orange sketch:

It seemed like an innocent little project at first. I wanted to gather up all the journals, sketchbooks and notebooks that I have in progress. Mentally I calculated how many there would be. "Eight," my brain said confidently. Fine, eight. I can handle that! And wouldn't it be nice to snap some photos of my eight current journals?

Commence gathering them up.

Realize a short while later that you have MORE than eight. Quite a bit more than eight. How did that happen? I mean, I know I really like notebooks and journals, but...twenty? Yes, I said twenty. They've in various stages of completion. Some are still in the beginning stages, one I found tucked away in the back part of the bookshelf, forgotten. It has nice paper too. Hmm. That one deserves a second chance!

Well, one thing good about having twenty of them is that there are more ways to shoot photos of them. Welcome to my journal addiction. I am hopelessly addicted and truly don't want an intervention.


And for the curious, here is a listing of what they are from left to right:

1. Strathmore Recycled sketchbook - fast sketches, ideas for illustrations, a catch-all book
2. Cotman Watercolor Pad - to mess around in and play with color charts
3. Toccata brand journal - the current "art journal" where I can play in mixed media
4. Cheapy spiral notebook - for writing all the stuff that has no place in the other journals. :D
5. Rag and Bone journal - used as my official sketchbook for my Botanical course
6. Canson Montval watercolor pad - sturdy, usually taken on trips
7. Canson Drawing sketchbook - sturdy and yet hardly leaves the house
8. Rag and Bone smaller journal - also known as "Travel Journal A", but has other stuff in it
9. Canson Montval watercolor pad - a small one to toss in my purse
10. Spiral notebook bought in the Philippines - was pretty, I had to buy it to keep words in
11. Paperchase dotted and lined journal - where I attempt to improve my penmanship
12. No name - old and forgotten, but the paper seems nice!
13. "Marbled" cover - for taking notes in workshops.
14. Cotman Watercolor pad, small - testing colors, color strips, old and yucky now
15. Cheapy National Brand notebook, green pages - to-do lists, rides in my purse too
16. Lama Li journal - very lightweight, Travel Journal B, ideal for taking on hikes
17. Moleskine Planner - paint every other day (or so)
18. Moleskine regular 3" x 5" - my regular purse sketchbook.
19. Lama Li tiny journal - for times when I have a VERY small purse. LOL
20. Handmade ATC sized watercolor book with purchased cover - for when I need a little bit of watercolor paper and I'm on a long hike.

If anyone asks why I have so many, I am going to stick to an answer that the lovely kuroba mentioned: "Seriously, those little guys seem to breed overnight." That's a good enough story for me. ;)

I've been a busy bee, despite this blog being silent. I took a trip to see my father for a few months at the end of last year and saw some fantastic islands while I was away. But, that post is for another day.

Lately, I've had the urge to play with watercolors and it's been entirely too much fun! I got myself one of those Moleskine planners at the beginning of the year. Despite its thin pages, it handles watercolor well enough, only ghosting slightly on the back of the page. It does wrinkle, but I've gotten used to it and consider it part of the charm of working in this book.

Some paintings in the planner:

There are more, but that means I have to haul the scanner out again. Which I will - after I get a few more paintings done. It's so much fun to be surrounded in paint again!

Though my best-laid plans and intentions didn't come to pass this week, at least I had some time to sketch in between running around like a confused and terrified chicken. But, a little bit of art is far better than no art at all. Besides, it keeps me occupied. Every new sketch is a learning experience on the regular moleskine paper. I do think that this paper is trying to keep me on my toes.


Also, despite the fact that most of the time the washes don't bleed through on regular Moleskine paper, I sometimes get carried away with my washes. See how it bled through to the other side? You can see it in the middle of the "paper" on the examination table sketch. I normally try to sketch things I can do quickly while waiting, but sometimes they shove you in a room and then leave you there for a while. I was waiting long enough to get most of the exam table down. Funky lines courtesy of a shaky hand. And I didn't even have caffeine that day!