Long day

Posted on July 10, 2020July 10, 2020 Posted in Cat, Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Blogging, Busy, Cat, Covid, Lecture, Life, Meeting, Tired, Tree, vetsLeave a comment

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Well that was a busy day. I didn’t sleep because my female cat was having an inoculation this morning and I’d got to get up early. She’s sneaky, she doesn’t like cat carriers so we have a soft big bag that I can put the cats in. I had to hold her by the scuff of the neck while my hubby zipped the bag up. She yowled a lot on the way to the vets, but then settled down as I spoke to her quietly.

All was fine, she was inoculated and I bought her home. She was relieved and so was I!

Later when I went to do some college work she snuck behind me on the chair and went to sleep so I think I was forgiven.

We had an interesting talk about illustration online for a couple of hours. Looking at the use of collage and text in illustrations. Then later I met up with my two friends in the park. I sat and drew a tree and calmed down. I was so tired I could have fallen asleep in the sun. Sitting two meters apart on a roundabout. We gave it a few spins but I’m getting too old for things like that. Dizzy!

Then shopping, home, a bit of tidying and cooking. I have got a few more things to do. Not much of a diary entry. But it was at least busier than normal.

Old map of Lancashire and Morcambe Bay.

Posted on July 9, 2020July 9, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged 1950's and 1960's, 2 shillings and sixpence, Bartholemews, Blogging, Cloth covered map, Ctc, Cycling map, Height above sea level, Map, Navigation, North Lancashire2 Comments

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An old ctc (Cycle Touring Club) map, 2 inches to the mile. Paper on cloth. Cost 2 shillings and sixpence. Printed to show heights. As it is in ‘old money’ it predates decimalisation. Probably printed in the 1950’s or 1960’s but there is no published date on it.

The area shown is North Lancashire, sheet 5, Bartholemews, coloured. I’m amazed it’s still held together and the edges of each little sheet are only slightly worn. Some of it will be changed now, new or improved roads, villages sunk under reservoirs, that sort of thing.

Nowadays everything is on line, or people use satnav. But having the skill to read maps is useful. Having a compass helps you know what direction you are moving in. When I go places I have a big compass on my dashboard of my car and I use large scale driving atlas. We also use smaller scale walking maps that show more details. If you’ve never used a map buy at least one. You can find more interesting places on a map than you might on an online one.

Tips for drawing or painting faces

Posted on July 9, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedLeave a comment

selfex someone on Facebook was asking for help on how to draw faces. I replied that turning your drawing upside down can change how you perceive it…

I said that when you look at each bit of the drawing (an eye, or the nose perhaps), remember to stand back and look at it as a whole, so you can see everything in relationship to each other. Moving something by as little as a millimeter can make all the difference to how a face looks. Also turn the drawing and the image you are working from upside down. That way you don’t get sucked into thinking it should look this way or that. If a drawing is upside down you concentrate more on the shapes and their relationship to one another. It’s surprising but it works. When you turn it back the right way up you may see a difference…

Triangle

Posted on July 9, 2020 Posted in Sketching, UncategorizedTagged Art, Blogging, Design, Painting, Picture, Sketch, Sketchbook, Stoke-on-Trent Urban sketchers, Triangle, Urban SketchersLeave a comment

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Not my favourite challenge, but I looked out of the window and saw various triangles. I rearranged the clothes on the airer so they made definite triangles, and the coats on the cupboard were hanging down in a triangle. I left the standard lamp out because it didn’t help the composition. The acrylic paint I used is quite opaque and as the group I’m in is called Urban sketchers Stoke-on-Trent I felt the sketchy feel was OK. If I had been doing a ‘proper’ painting I would have done a more realistic, painterly I ture. But I was concentrating on the triangles….

Hubby cooking!?

Posted on July 9, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Brick, Cake, Cherries, Cherry cake, Cooking, Food, Fun, Help, Hubby, Humour3 Comments

For most of his life he’s not been interested in cooking. He doesn’t like me to explain what to do. When he roasted a chicken once he added a whole big bulb of garlic. He can cook poached egg on toast, he does cook bread, he tries to cook bacon by frying it for a minute then microwaving it.

Today he wanted to make a loaf out of self raising flour. With no yeast. I explained that would be more like pastry, and that you use self raising mainly for making cakes. I told him he could use about eight ounces of flour, four ounces of butter, four ounces of sugar, but as we had none he could use a couple of heaped spoons of sweetener. This is a granular one you can cook with. A couple of eggs, and milk, not water, which he was going to use.

I went upstairs on the computer while he went out to get butter.

I was going to explain. He knew about Crumbling flour and butter together, then I told him to add sweetener, then the eggs and milk, then some de-stoned cherries if he wanted to.

I was upstairs, and it was terribly quiet. A friend rang so I came downstairs. Hubby was just about to put the cake in the oven. I looked around, he’d used about twelve ounces of flour (not weighed it out) three quarters of a tub of margarine. Two eggs a bit of milk and a teaspoon! of sweetener. To this mix he’d added half a bowl of cherries and then kneaded the mix! I tried to explain you need the mix to be more liquid and that you gently stir in the milk to keep the cake light.

Well he tried. The cake is cooking, gas mark 4,initially for 45 minutes in the centre of the oven. I’m worried it will be a bit heavy when it comes out.

Finished Lobster painting.

Posted on July 9, 2020 Posted in Fine Art, UncategorizedTagged Acrylic on canvas, Animal, Art, Blogging, Completed, Finished, Life, Lobster, Marine, Ocean, Painting4 Comments

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On the easle, I used a bit of gold paint in the background to give it a bit of sparkle. I hope the recipient will be happy with it. It’s acrylic on canvas, about A4 size. I did the background with very thin paint to start with and lots of water so the paint spread out and looks blotchy. Like a rough stone surface with bits of weed floating with it. I also tried to get the shadow underneath it to make the body stand up away from the ocean bottom.

February walk

Posted on July 8, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Blogging, February, Lake, Longport, Missing going out, Sad, Scenery, Staffordshire, Stoke-on trent, Unfit, Walking, Westport lakeLeave a comment

The year is passing, the last time I went for a proper walk was back in February. We’d started doing weekly walks, just a mile or so. But it made me feel fitter. Then March came and the sudden lockdown. Oh I’ve been shopping, and done a few visits in the car. But I’m bothered about going to where we used to walk as it’s very popular. My health isn’t good and I really, really can’t afford to get ill. I know this will have a detrimental effect on my strength, but what else can I do? Luckily I have the garden, I can cut things back and tidy things up. I can do housework…… But I miss my walks..

His eyes

Posted on July 8, 2020July 8, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Artrage oils, Creative writing, Digital drawing, Eyes, Face, Guide dog, Mystery, Picture, Short story, Sight, Very short storyLeave a comment

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He was staring across the restaurant. A hard stare. Eyes wide, looking directly at the woman three tables away. She had not seen him as she was sitting side on to him, but her partner caught the look. Who’s the jerk over there? He said to her. I don’t know, she said, glancing across. The man was still staring and she felt uncomfortable under his gaze.

The couple had their meal in silence. Neither knowing what to say to the other. And both of them kept checking what the wide eyed man was doing. He in turn was drinking a beer, then another one..

I’m going over said the woman’s partner. She grabbed his hand, please don’t, she said. We don’t know who he is but he’s big, he could hurt you! She glanced worriedly at the man.

Then she realised he had signalled the waitress for the bill. He might come over and say something, she said as the man paid for his food. Ignore him said her partner. But she couldn’t, who was he. Did he mean to say or do something?

The man stood up, picked up and put on some sunglasses. Come on Jess he said. His Guide Dog stood up from under the table where she had been sitting, her harness jingling. Home Jess, he said, and the dog led him out of the door.

His sister

Posted on July 8, 2020 Posted in Cat, UncategorizedTagged Brother, Cat, Chase, Dog, Egyptian, Fun, Love, Play, Sister2 Comments

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Now this cat is bright eyed and bushy tailed, she’s my boy cats sister. She isn’t above chasing him round the room, although she likes playing with a ball, knocking it backwards and forwards with her paws.

Cats have spirit, they have character, they are independent and aloof. Is it any wonder that they were venerated by societies like the ancient Egyptians. Even now they seem to have the upper hand when compared with dogs. While dogs have love for humans, cats seem to be more sneaky, they work things out to their own advantage. That look that says ‘you are under my spell’.

Cats.

I can’t live without them.

Doodles

Posted on July 8, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Art, Black and red, Black Red and white, Blogging, Cartoons, Design, Drawings, Pen and ink, Sketches, Teapot, Website, WordPressLeave a comment

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I did these a few months ago. The designs had to include red and black. I was going to send them off to a website but I forgot, got to involved in other things and lost track of time, so by the time I did remember it was too late. Adding more white to both images helped I think because you can see the images more clearly. I’ve always thought two cats would make a good yin yang symbol, and the teapot? Because we live in the heart of the potteries.

Mallaband-Brown

Author: artbychristinemallabandbrown