RETURNED FROM A BUSY WEEK AWAY - ST. AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA

Just some photos of the trip - a week of go go go - condo unit was one of three only in the building (nice) and the beach was right at the end of our deck.  Beautiful.  Windy and cool some days with whitecaps and sufers and few people around (not a spring break area so we didn’t have a lot of people - walking on the beach was almost like it was just for us).

The sand is a golden brown color, lighter in areas with sparkles of gold through and the wind and tides carve the beach into great sculptural shapes.

Also went to the St. Augustine Alligator Farm which is for photograping the birds that nest in the trees all around the place (while they are protected by the alligators from other preditors, the alligators sometimes do get a fallen egg or chick).  

Saw roseate spoonbills, white egrets, little blue herons and about 3 other kinds of egrets and herons and the ugly large wood storks, all building nests and squawking over territority.  Some already had eggs and it was a treat to get to see mother getting up off the nest to stretch her legs a bit and see the eggs - all were robin’s egg blue in the heron and egret nests.

Visited the St. Augustine Lighthouse and Museum and walked the 219 stairs up to the top where the wind was so strong I was glad there was a strong metal railing around it!

I’ll share more photos next post.  And have plenty of photos as reference and inspiration for future paintings.

And Happy Easter!

LADY CARDINAL/RED BIRD

 Mama Cardinal 

BLUE

 

Just a bluejay on a branch in a wet, blue sky.

QUIZZICAL SPARROW

 Looking like he (or she) is asking a question - probaby, “Where is the bird seed?” 

SPARROW AGAIN

 Same little sparrow in a pine tree branch.  They hide in there by the dozens, waiting for their time at the feeders on the deck - a nice, save haven for them all to sit and wait out the bigger birds.  

WHAT KIND OF SPARROW?

 Don’t know these birds - they all look alike as they come to feeders - sparrows of some kind.  

I thought it needed some color around him (or her) so did that.  Not sure it’s better.

Isn’t it interesting how the color of the main subject (which wasn’t changed at all) changes in the way it looks when you put color around it?

With a background, I think the warm colors show up more and the darks look more muted.  

Still wasn’t happy with the bg so darkened it even more.  

Better.  Darkened the bird color, too.  

BABY BIRD

 Baby bird in a nest with a younger brother or sister still to come.  

JUST GETTING THE BRUSHES WET

 

Just a small angel statue in the garden - with sunflowers for Ukraine and their continued war with evil.  

SLUMP

 Well, here is the pre-spring slump again.

DRYING IN THE SUN

 

Some dried seedpods still on the plant from a photo taken last fall.

PORTRAIT

 On Stonehenge Aqua hot press 140# paper.  The paper helps “mold” the features in a portrait so I like it for that - and am getting used to the difference in it and the cold press paper I normally use.  

STONEHENGE AQUA HOT PRESS PAPER - DRIED BERRIES VERSION THREE

 Another version, this time on 12 x 16 inch Stonehenge Aqua hot press paper.  

DRIED BERRIES

 

Finished, but I think the shadow shapes are too dark (I admit, I took a phone call while I was in the middle of the shadow shapes and didn’t take as much care as I should have done).  So got a few splotches in what should have been a clean, solid shape down the middle.  Oh, well.  

Should I try again?  I probably would end up with something even better…but do I have the patience to start over on this one?  We’ll see.

PLANNING

 

I tried to paint this painting without planning - so started again with a sketch on tracing paper to work out in my mind where elements were placed.  Then, using the sketch as a guide (but not tracing onto watercolor paper), I sketched it all again (without the shadow shapes) onto a half sheet of Arches cold press watercolor paper.  

Started putting in the dried leaves and then the stems.  Added a light cobalt blue to the dried berries (which will be a dark blue-black when finished).  I will put in the shadow shapes when I’m happy with everything else.  

More planning on this is giving it a better chance of being a success.

DOES THIS SNOW MAKE ME LOOK FAT?

 

Another little fat Northern Cardinal.  They aren’t really fatter during the winter, but fluff themselves up to keep warm.  The males are redder during the winter - apparently, the females like their males with a bit of flash :)

ABSTRACTIONS - REACTIONS TO COLORS AND SHAPES

 A bit strong in shapes and color - another abstracted piece while listening to Angela Fehr’s Watercolor Bootcamp online course (just 2 days but full of good stuff, especially if you’re a new painter).  

I realized that I posted this in this position but I didn’t paint it this way.  I painted it in landscape view - like below.

Is it a good abstract if it works in any direction?

Or does it work better in the portrait view so it’s more like a tree trunk shape?

ABSTRACT PLAY

 An abstracted bit done while listening to Angela Fehr’s Watercolor Bootcamp day 2.  I never just put color down and play but she does recommend it and she is so loose, you want to try :) 

We are getting quite an ice and sleet and freezing rain storm in our area.  No snow yet but it’s coming.  Whew!  Sounds like it’s in a swatch throughout the US right now.  

BUMBLE

 Bumblebee on a fourth sheet Arches rough 140# paper.  Added Chinese White to the wings.

WISHING WELLNESS

 Just a card painted for a friend who is ill, wishing her well.  Not my initial idea but revised from a card I saw in one of my stacks.  I liked the yellow and red ones so left out the pale violet ones on the original card.  Strathmore watercolor blank cards come in handy but, for some reason, I always end up with more cards than envelopes and I don’t know how that happens.  

BUMBLE

 A bumblebee - from a photo taken this past fall at the Campbell County Extension Center garden.  This is a small piece of coldpress paper - less than a postcard size.  Thought it would be cute to add it to a letter or card sometime.  

REDPOLL

 A few mess-ups with this one.  Did it without drawing and then it needed something so put the tree in but messed up her/his legs so added Chinese white watercolor straight out of the tube with my fingers to make it look like snow.  These are Redpolls and we don’t have them here in KY but saw this one in a bird magazine and liked it. 

Could be a lot better and maybe I should lightly draw the birdies before trying to paint them.  Would really like to get looser with my bird paintings but not there yet.  

Had our first real snow (1.5 inches or so) and now I know it’s really winter - not that it matters as I cannot walk anyway (I mean, not much and certainly not for a mile or so walk) but the leg is healing.  It just hurts at the ankle and swells up so having to ice it and do my PT exercises often to build up the strength in that leg/ankle.  Not there yet.  I wonder how long this will take to “recover” from the broken bone? 

CAROLINA WREN

All puffed up for the cold weather, a little Carolina wren on a limb.

CUDDLY-FISH?

 Little postcard sized painting on Stonehenge Aqua hotpress paper.  Not a cuddly-fish but a cuttlefish :) 

Think I will buy more of this paper - another block - because I am liking the way it lifts and you can move the color around (plus it really emphasizes the granulating colors).

Have you ever tried it?  

I am having problems commenting on some blogs - especially Debbie’s blog.  I am reading and watching your posts but, for some reason, I try to post and it gives me an error message.  I imagine, like most things with Blogger, it will “fix” itself one day - but I wanted you to know if you haven’t seen me posting it’s not because I’m not trying!!  

HANDSOME BOY, OTIS - TAKE TWO

 

Painted this one on the Stonehenge Aqua hotpress paper and I like it better because I could shape the hairs better by lifting off color.  Still just using Lunar Black except for the eyes and nose - and the background.  

Didn’t use the whole sheet (it’s in a block) so painted a little something else on the “scrap” piece - but you’ll have to wait for that one to be shown!

PAPA RED

 Papa Red is all puffed up to keep warm on this winter day.

On our drive to Physical Therapy Monday morning, I saw over a dozen in a driveway along the way - so many Cardinals and not sure what they were doing there.

BERRIES OR SEEDS

 Another winter berry plant - not sure what this one is.  Guess I’m enjoying the reds and oranges during these cold days and nights.

NOT A BIRD

 Winterberry pods and seeds.

BLUEJAY WATCHING

 Just a pretty bluejay.

MAMA FLAMINGO

 Mama flamingo with a new egg.

No rhyme or reason why I’m painting these - just printed out a bunch of bird photos I had and am going through them.  

Posted this on FB and it sold :). I did fix the shape of the egg, signed it, getting it ready to mail out as soon as the check is in my hand.  Haven’t sold anything in ages and it feels pretty good.  

10 x 14 inches on Lanaquarelle 140# cold press watercolor paper.  

RED AND YELLOW WING ON A BLACK BIRD

 Blackbird singing in the dead of night…

Love the bright, colorful flash of a redwing blackbird’s wings just before they take off.  

HAPPY NEW YEAR - 2022 HERE WE COME

 Shake your tail feathers! 

 Happy New Year!

WHO’S A HANDSOME BOY? OTIS

 

Our dentist got a new dog.  His name is Otis.  He is an old soul, totally chill and so people friendly that  everyone who meets him loves him - he’s great for hugs and attention when you need a therapy dog at the dentist!  The dentist posted a photo of him (he posts one every so often so we Otis fans get our fix) and I liked it so much I thought I’d try to paint this mostly black dog with the pretty golden brown eyes.  This is on a block of Arches 140# coldpress using only 2 colors - Lunar Black and a bit of Cerulean Blue.  

CHICKADEE ON STONEHENGE AQUA HOTPRESS PAPER

 Made a few changes and I think I like it better now.  

STONEHENGE AQUA HOTPRESS PAPER - ANOTHER CHICKADEE

 This one is on Stonehenge Aqua hotpress paper.  I purchased a block a long time ago and only use it rarely but wanted to try to do the chickadee and berries loosely.  No drawing, just painting. It may need something else but maybe okay for now, although now I’m looking at it, I see I didn’t think about those hard lines of the branches.  May be able to soften or change them so they aren’t so straight. 

BIG RED

 

 About fourth sheet Arches cold press.  Big Red.  We have a few come to our suet feeders and they are loud - but I love ‘em.

Painting a few holiday cards for next year, but in between cards, I’m painting a few birds.  Trying to stay loose and light.  Next one will be on hot press (I don’t use it often).  

Sweetie and I got boosters this afternoon.  Hope we do well with them as I have a recheck with the ortho tomorrow morning (hope to be able to leave the boot behind although walked with both shoes on today and it was painful and my right foot is swollen so much…hope I don’t have to have a bigger size shoe as then I’d need 2 pairs all the time to fit both feet right!!).  

BIRDS

 

Well, made a mess of the cardinal but it was the first thing I’ve done other than small cards in weeks.  I became less heavy-handed with the second one - the little chickadee.

Have another to share and another in the drawing stages.  Just fourth sheet paintings for now.

Still in the boot and have had one physical therapy session (with exercises to do at home on my own until I can get a second session later this month).  I should be out of the boot and walking (without a limp, I hope) before Christmas.  

A FEW MORE CHRISTMAS/HOLIDAY CARDS

 

Just a few more cards…

SEEING RED - BUT IN A GOOD WAY

 

Walking in the boot to the back deck and finding lots of reds all around, so took a few photos.

HOLIDAY/CHRISTMAS CARDS

 

Used the silver Schminke dry pigment on the flower.  Some of these may turn out to be Christmas cards this year and some will not make the cut.  

FINALLY IN MY ART ROOM

 

Finally made it into my art room - had the inclination and the ability in this boot (slow going down the stairs but I can do it).  So made up some Christmas/holiday cards.  Some will make the cut this year and some won’t, but at least I’m getting out the paint, pigment and paper after weeks of doing nothing creative.

Used the gold dust dry pigment (Schminke) on his star but it’s so heavy it tilts his head :)