Why?

What tattoo do you want and where would you put it?

I’m not sure I want a tattoo, I’ve managed not to get one so far in my life, but I might be persuaded if someone could give me a good argument to get one?

So what should I get an image of and where should I have it….? Perhaps a discrete one on a hidden part of my anatomy, my upper arm, back or leg? I’ve got no one to hide it from though, and they are much more beautiful than the old fashioned love and hate words on peoples knuckles. I know people with sleeves and huge tattoos on their backs or legs. I’m not afraid of being tattooed but I would rather design something for someone else..

A tattoo for me? My hubby always says I have eyes in the back of my head….

Need more….

My craft stall

I’m running out of minature paintings, I’ve sold a few and given some as presents. They are all different and I need to paint some more. What to paint? I’ve done anything from a Morris minor car to the planet Jupiter. I’ve also painted the moon, birds, flowers, hearts, patterns and giraffes in the sunset. Cats of course and stained glass windows.

They are more craft than fine art I think, but if someone wants a tiny painting, matchbox sized, they don’t need much space to display it! It can go on a shelf or a bookcase, or anywhere else. They are not expensive despite the time it takes to paint them. I just love sharing art.

One word?

What is one word that describes you?

How to choose? I have a few in mind, but I guess the main contender is Creative. That’s because of all the art I create and things like this blog. I love experimenting with images and working on them in different ways, I am quite eclectic, I might never have used a technique before, but I will go through different stages and steps to come up with a fresh idea. My mind thinks about all sorts of things all the time so it could also be the word Chaotic, but I have discounted that because I do plan things sometimes. I am not totally disorganised.

Hot

Today’s #bandofsketchers prompt was hot. I drew flames and then use photodirector to add texture and pattern. I liked imagining the different colours in flames. I think this has a watercolour feeling to it. The app gives it a more even look, as without it the felt pens I have used look a bit rough because the tips of them are wearing out and getting broken and the ink is drying up.

Waiting for coffee

Hubby yesterday, we had gone over to Middleport pottery so I could draw with the Stoke on Trent Urban Sketchers group. We decided to grab a cup of coffee but the cafe was very crowded and I’ve just got over a cold and didn’t want to catch another or worse. I decided to sit at one of the big round tables outside and so took the opportunity to draw my hubby and the canal and view behind him. The pointy thing about a third of the way in on the right is a church steeple but my ink brush wasn’t thin enough to get a point on it! Anyway I was pleased with the results.

Middleport pottery urban sketch

The felt pens came out today for a drawing of the chimney at Middleport pottery. Stoke-on-Trent Urban Sketchers were out at various places around the factory grounds and across the other side of the Trent and Mersey canal.

It was a warm morning, and there were some brief glimpses of blue sky through the bold grey clouds. I could have drawn Middleports iconic bottle oven, but I wanted to sit down on a bench so I drew the chimney and the roofs instead.

I liked using layers of felt pen, I started with a pale blue pen to outline the buildings but then used black to indicate bricks and worked dark to light, with horizontal and little vertical lines to indicate the brickwork. I even used some silver pan for the sky because my grey pan has dried up. A lovely couple of hours spent in good company.

Happy St Patrick’s day

Here’s a little green abstract to wish you a happy St Patrick’s day.

I once found a four leaf 🍀clover, so it feels like a lucky day. St Patrick was supposed to have cast all the snakes out of Ireland 🇮🇪 and to this day there are non there. I guess it could be that Ireland is an Island?

St Patrick’s day is celebrated in Ireland and in the USA where they have been known to colour rivers green. Its not unusual to have parades of marching bands and floats. The predominant colour is green, even green coloured drinks! The symbol is an Irish man with red hair and a beard wearing green clothes and sporting a shamrock ☘ (which I think is similar to clover, but a perennial plant). Much fun and hilarity is enjoyed by the population on St Patrick’s day.

We don’t celebrate St Patrick’s day as much in most of the UK, I think because Ireland is a mainly Catholic country and mark saints days more than we do.

The green abstract was drawn with felt pens then filtered through photodirector to add texture, and an app called layout to add symmetry.

Drawing and painting

Digital art

What activities do you lose yourself in?

I have always drawn and painted. Hours can disappear and I don’t notice them. I think that’s called ‘flow’, I’m immersed in it. Even now when my left arm shakes I can’t stop. I end up with shake lines or I have to put things on an easle to stop it. I now have golfers elbow in the same arm and gout and trigger finger in my right hand. But I keep being creative. I really think its my reason for living. When I stop drawing that will be the end of me. Even if I can’t hold a pen or paintbrush I can doodle on my phone and finger paint as in the digital drawing above.

A few years ago I was in hospital. I made my hubby bring me a sketchpad and pencils, I think that was proof I was getting better!