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.

Hanging basket

Posted on July 8, 2020July 8, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Back yard, Bargain, Blogging, Colour, Farm, Flowers, Fun, Fushia, Gardening, Hanging baskets, PlantsLeave a comment

A few weeks ago, we had so many plants in the boot of the car we had to fit a hanging basket on the back seat. They are all doing well but it’s rained so much since that I haven’t been able to set them up as I would like. I also pulled a shoulder muscle picking them up so I can’t lift my left arm up above my head. It’s frustrating me. It meant my hubby had to reach up to pick the cherry crop while I pulled the branches down. I’m hoping we get some breaks in the weather. Then I can get the stepladders out. Even if I don’t climb them, I can direct where they should go.

The baskets are beautiful, I was told about a farm a few years ago that do baskets for half the price of garden centres. You order in advance and they make up whatever size you want. I chose colourful plants. Sometimes they last into the winter. I even have fushia plants that have over wintered in the yard and are growing again now. And are in full flower! I think our small back yard must have its own microclimate. I have courgette flowers growing there at the moment.

Who’d think, cherries in coleslaw.

Posted on July 8, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Cherries, Cherry, Cherry tree, Cooking, Crop, Food, Fun, Gardening, Jelly, Life, Poem, Poetry, Salad, TrifleLeave a comment

With such a large crop,

bowls full to the top,

I tried-

To decide-

what to do with them?

Each cherry on a stem!

Salad with cherries

fills my belly.

Coleslaw with cabbage

with cherries added.

Now I’ll make jelly

with added cherry,

summer fruit,

so much loot.

Birds are merry

They have cheery

Cherries too!

🍒

Almost finished Lobster

Posted on July 8, 2020 Posted in UncategorizedTagged Acrylic on canvas, Art, Blogging, Commission, Lobster, Painting, Picture, Water, Work in progressLeave a comment

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Work in progress, about A4 size, acrylic on canvas. I’ve got to work on the background. It’s now a commission as someone saw the start of it and liked it. I’m not sharing this on my Facebook page because I want it to be a surprise. I don’t think I will do a lot more to it. I want to resolve the head though. The photo I’m working from has a lot of dark rock and patterns around its head and its hard to see what’s happening. That’s why a lot of the surface is on is light so the lobster stands out a bit more.

I’m trying to make it look like it’s almost floating. I might add some light and dark bands, like ripples of light and shade being reflected down from the surface.

Mallaband-Brown

Category: Uncategorized