Second Plein Air Painting Day at the Pumpkin Patch And My Scarf~~

This morning Karen picked me up at 8:30 and we headed back to the Suisun Valley Pumpkin Patch.

We had a beautiful sunny warm day in which to get out our paints and get to work.

I asked Karen if she'd mind modeling the scarf I made this weekend so you could see how it turned out.

Here it is draped around twice with the long ends hanging down the back.

 Remember it is made from recycled T-shirts. The cotton ones curl up the best when washed and dried.

 I think Karen is making quite the fashion statement, don't you?

 She chose a group of red pumpkins to paint in oils and here she begins...

 and this is her painting as far as she took it today. She said it needs a little more work.

But isn't it stunning!

 I chose this wonderful metal sculpture of a scarecrow, by Phillip Glasoff to draw and paint.

 And here he is again in my watercolors and ink today.

 I had some time left so I quickly sketched and splashed some paint on these pumpkins below!

I gave the owner a card of thanks of one of the drawings I did on Friday of his Pumpkin Patch, and asked if he might be interested in selling some of my cards there next year. He said: "Sure!"

:-)

 In the early morning we decided to take a walk around the vineyards and I snapped a few photos to share with you here.

I hope your morning went as well as mine did!

I came home with a few squash to cook and some decorative corn.

Happy Halloween!

Saturday Was A Busy Day

I spent the morning running errands and shopping!

With a clutch of coupons from Michael's and a mission I set out to find specific stuff.

I was NOT expecting to find this gold mine of brand new never used wool French yarn in a jar

at the thrift store (well over $100 worth/I Googled it) for $7.50! There are 75 skeins!

I can see it used on knit sweaters, hats, scarves and fabric art quilts equally.

 Then I came across this set of watercolor paint brushes at Michael's so one coupon went for buying them at half the cost. You squeeze the base pushing paint up into the brush. Vibrant colors explode on paper! Another amazing way to paint!

 My purpose for going to  the thrift store was to buy three large sized men's T-shirts. Two black and one gray.($2 each) I came home and cut them into long 70" strips sewing pieces together to get that length. And in graduated widths of 9", 7" and 5". I layered them from smallest down to largest and sewed them together. Then...

 I cut them like this on both sides of the sewn line in the middle. I found this "pattern" in my Spring 2011 GreenCraft magazine from Somerset Studio. It will make a very funky scarf for my 18 yr old grand daughter for Chanukah. It's in the washing machine now. I will show you how it turned out in another post.

 Then last night DH and I had a DATE NIGHT OUT. Felt like it had been a while. We drove to Winters, CA where we ate out at the Mexican Restaurant on the corner. I had a huge Fajita plate of  sauteed chicken , onions,  green and red peppers, with rice and beans. DH had a huge pork burrito. It was all delicious.

From there we mosied up the street to The Palms Playhouse. Where we had tickets waiting for us to see and hear Tom Russell. You can follow this link to learn more about Tom's career.

 It was a full house in Winters! It's great that this tiny town brings in big name entertainers for us to enjoy.

 Russell is a a great showman who can tell a good story, crack jokes with the audience, and sing the fantastic songs he writes himself. He has written for movies and for many famous singers whose names you all know well. His accompanist, Thad Beckman played that guitar like crazy! Wow! An amazing evening!

Came home to bed, happy and fulfilled...it was a good day.

Today Karen and I Drove Out to the ...

Suisun Valley Pumpkin Patch

in the early morning and drew and painted!

I chose to make Halloween cards for my grand kids and turned out three:

this metal sculpture by local artist Phillip Glasoff was just begging

to be drawn and painted for my dancing grand daughter!

 I thought this guy (whose face I added with artistic license after drawing and painting the gourds sitting atop the barrel) was perfect for my grand son.

 Not sure who will get this card. I painted directly on card stock but if anyone wants/needs Halloween cards I could get these copied on card stock quickly...just say the word.

I used graphite pencil; black and brown artist Pitt pens; watercolors; and some Tom Bow brushes.

 We took a break and went to lunch which I'll post about on another day as there was scrumptious art to see where we ate...then we returned to the pumpkin patch around four pm and painted some more. This time I did this wild woman metal sculpture (also one of Glasoffs art) and all these gourds and pumpkins. This could be a saleable card too.
I really enjoyed all the little kids in costume who came up to ogle the art making. I hope I inspired them all to go home and draw their own pictures!

 Karen worked in another part of the patch with her oil paints and easel. She turned out one painting in the morning and the other in the afternoon. She said they are not quite finished yet. But aren't they grand already?! I think so!

 We had such a fun day. Lots of laughs...I have to say with all that art time I got a little giddy!

What are you doing to get ready for Halloween?

Art by Lynn While Traveling To and From Portland, Oregon

While I was in Portland I did some drawings.

This top one was inspired by a photo I saw on Rosemary's blog here.  You'll see a lot of beauty on her blog. You may have to scroll down a few posts to find the picture she took at a farmers market. I used black ink, my Tom Bow pens and water brush and a black calligraphy pen.

This next one I did at the air port on my way out of town. These guys posed so nicely for me.

 And this group of women got my attention too.

 This gal was sitting right across from me, but I don't think she ever caught on that I was drawing her.

 My son said I did not exactly capture his wife's beauty, and he is right, but I think I got the pose of nursing pretty well. Again I used Tom Bow pens and water brush on this and the ones to follow, plus black ink.

 Nor does this really look like my son, but still a sort of close rendition??? Maybe? Oops, I added an extra finger on the clicker. Well, you know MEN and their remote controls!

 Finally at the airport going home while waiting for my shuttle ride I liked this pot full of colorful leaves...and one woman sitting behind it. I really could not see anymore of her than her head as seen here.

It was such a good trip and visit. I've got tickets to return in December already! I think I'll be going a lot.

I really like painting with these Tom Bow brushes.

No mess no fuss and instant color and blending.

By using a water brush I can squeeze a little water forward and clean it off on a blank page

 before adding the next color!

(So all you pack is a sketch pad, ink pen, Tom Bows, and a water brush!)

How easy is that?!!!!

Allie on Animal Wednesday

Since I was in Portland

I bring you Animal Wednesday with

Allie:

#1

Allie and her bear!

 Allie and her Ellie-phants!

 Allie's Mommy's Cat

 Allie's Daddy and a Giraffe!

 Oh dear I think we put Allie to sleep again!

Happy Animal Wednesday!



You Are Going To See A Lot of Baby for A Few Days!

I am home but I am definitely going through

baby with drawls. I sketched Allie while there and shot hundreds of photos of her too.

Each morning either my son or DIL would bring her into my bedroom and leave her with me. I could feed her, rock her, talk to her, sing to her, dance with her...and I did all that and more.

It was such a delight, a warm peaceful bonding for four days!!!

I am making reservations NOW to return in December!

 Jackie loved the diaper bag I knit for her. She used it right away...

 and it held a lot! Here it is hanging from the back of the stroller. I hope the handles hold up!

More about this trip later...now I guess I'll go pet my cat, Henry. I think he missed me.

Joy Is Being Grandma!

Can you tell?

big eyes

Grandma Lynn is having fun in Portland, Oregon meeting baby Grand daughter Allie Bel.
I have held her, rocked her, walked her, changed diapers, changed clothes, fed her, burped her, talked to her, read to her, everything but make arts and crafts. That's for tomorrow!!!!

Joy! Simcha! Toda L'El. An Israeli Soldier Is Home After Five Years in Captivity.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgkkGUI-fog&feature=player_embedded

Animal Wednesday: Blessings, Beauty, And His Highness Himself!

On Monday as I left our painting session at Karen's house this Praying Mantis was waiting on my windshield of my car for me.

S/He felt like a significant symbol of our early morning Plein Air painting session.

A gift of sorts emphasising the blessings that were bestowed on me that lovely lovely morning.

Friendship, Peacefulness of Painting, Beauty of Nature.

He flew away before I got out of the driveway...

safely back into the courtyard I hoped

where Karen would see him too.

***

Last Friday when my two grand kids and I walked down & down and back up a long long hill

(my calves ached for three days afterwards)

we counted spiders and the beautiful webs they wove

along the way.

 I hope you can overcome any fear of them you may have to appreciate the beauty of their art work.

 ***

At home King Henry V reigns supreme!

And joins me in wishing you a

very very

Happy

Animal

Wednesday!

Monday's Painting Day

Monday I went to paint Plein Air with friend, Karen Lee.

We met at her home for a morning repast of fresh melon from the farmers market, homemade cottage cheese, honey that her husband gets from his bees, and wonderful tea. After which  we went out to the court yard where she lives and I chose this scene to paint. But I didn't use regular paints.

I used my set of Tom Bow Brushes that look like marking pens with one end  fine tipped and the other pointed and thick almost like a brush but not a brush. Continuing something learned Sunday in the art class I took from Terry Banderas. Only this time I used two shades of brown and orange and green; after wards going over it with a water filled paint brush to bleed the color across the page. I followed up with brown and black ink pen for more detail.

I am still struggling to learn how to make water look like water. There was a slight breeze that made the water look like beads and sending it in criss-cross directions down and off the fountain.

These are the Tom Bows. I got the set at Michael's and the black one in Davis at the

art supply store. They had tons of colors there too.

After painting (we were there from 9 a.m. till 12:30!) I ran some errands and then came home. I am reading this book:

It's by the same guy who wrote "The Wire" a TV series that was excellently acted about the same Corner and drug life in Baltimore. The book is non-fiction. It's hard to say I am enjoying it as it's a desperate life; but interesting to learn about.