277. Drive to the LHS

Pilot G-Tec and C4 pen in
re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5" (x2)

This scene has to be seen to be appreciated - I can't do it justice! This is part of left hand side of the gorgeous view that meets anyone driving up to my cousin's home.  Actually, the plants at the base of the tree trunk should be larger as they grow around the tree, surrounded by the rocks. (I did this in one 'sitting' during the night as I couldn't sleep.)

That's it folks! Challenge over! Thank you everyone for your support, encouragement and friendliness. Now for Inktober!

(Day 30 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

276. And Finally...

Pilot G-Tec and C4 pen and white Derwent Coloursoft pencil in
re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5" (x2)

The lower half (foreground) of the picture has now been finished and I've decided to leave it as it is and not add any colour but who knows...

(Day 29 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

275. Tone Added At the Side of the House

Pilot G-Tec and C4 pen and white Derwent Coloursoft pencil in
re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5" (x2)

Gosh! Look at the difference the addition of tonal values makes to the entire image and I haven't even finished the lower half! I always advocate the use of tone yet am still pleasantly surprised every time I compare the before and after images.

(Day 26 image)

My cousin (who owns this house and land) has told me to add colour but we've had a very busy couple of days so the challenge had to take a temporary back seat.

Thank you Leslie Saeta; I'm far from 30 pieces but I've done many more than I would have made time for had there not been a challenge this month! Added to that, and no less importantly, the encouragement from my fellow '30 in 30' artists has been wonderful. Thank you very much everyone!

(Day 29 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

274. At the Side of the House

Pilot G-Tec and C4 pen and white Derwent Coloursoft pencil in
re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5" (x2)

I thought I'd just knock out a very quick sketch while my husband was out at band practice. Three hours later…..

(Day 26 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

273. Road Back from the Supermarket

Pilot G-Tec and C4 pen,  Hybrid Gel Grip pen and Winsor & Newton

watercolours in re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5" (x2)

Can't get enough of this super view. My cousin's house is only one minute on from that bend on the horizon and my late parents' house is a further two minutes. Bliss!

I get my new glasses today - yippee!!

(Day 24 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

272. Dotty and Scratchy

Pilot G-Tec and C4 pen in re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5" (x2)

I thought you might like to see my first marks on the page when I'm sketching. I learned many years from a video by Charles Reid to put little dots on the page in order to  map out the image and recently heard Marc Taro Holmes (Urban Sketchers) say exactly the same thing. If you look closely, you'll be able to see where I changed my mind a few times about the placement of the sea edge, wall, etc, before actually settling on the final shape of it. To dot out a straightish line for the horizon, I anchor my little finger under the sketchbook and run the pen from left to right. (I do the same up and down for my street poles - see post 273.)

It's helpful that the pen is water-soluble so a little of it dissolves into the paint. If it starts to look muddy, I just lift it out with kitchen towel but most times I actually like to see those marks on the page, as in the clouds.

(Day 23 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

271. Smashing!

Pilot G-Tec C4 pen, Derwent Coloursoft pencils and

Tombow Brushpen in re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5"

We had a garage sale at my late parents' house when I was in Jamaica and this set was part of it. Unfortunately, someone dropped and smashed the gravy boat which was sad because we'd had it in our family since I was little. Losing it drove home the fact that, at the end of the day, these are just things; nothing could take away the love of my parents and all our lovely memories.

For a change, I tried to start out with a pencil but very soon realised that nowadays I just prefer to go straight in with pen and ink.

Again, thank you for your lovely comments - today I'll be replying and catching up with your blogposts too. Happy art-making everyone!

(Day 22 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

270. Test Colour Sketch

Derwent Coloursoft Pencils, Faber Castell brushpen and

Pentel Hybrid Gel Grip on photocopy of sketchbook drawing

Thinking about this before actually committing to my sketchbook. I think the foreground green is a little intense but, apart from that, I'll probably go for it!

(Day 21 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

269. Insomnia!

Pilot G-Tec C4 pen on re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5"

That seat is made of concrete but looks like faded wood. This was the view from my bedroom window whilst staying at my cousin's house. Bliss!

(Day 20 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

268. Desert Rose (Adenium)

Winsor & Newton Designers' Gouache and Pilot G-Tec C4 pen

in re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x7.5"

This beautiful plant (which is much lovelier than I can portray) grows outside the bedroom I stayed in. The plant is a huge, tough structure with 'gnarly'-type branches and an amazing trunk but the flowers are very delicate and come in various colours.

(Day 19 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

267. Supermarket View from Upstairs

Winsor & Newton watercolours and Pilot G-Tec C4 pen and
Hybrid Gel grip pen in re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x7.5" (x2)

If you go upstairs at the supermarket, where there are more shops and businesses, this is the view that meets you! It really has to be seen to be appreciated; I haven't done it much justice here. Have a great weekend everyone!

I wasn't totally happy with the previous image (now below) and could not think what it was that bothered me until I had to fit it onto Leslie's '30 in 30' page then I saw it! I much prefer the cropped version above; what do you think? (NB. It's in my sketchbook so is still in one piece - smile.)

(Day 17 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

266. Rain on the Horizon (Road to Supermarket)

Winsor & Newton watercolours and Pilot G-Tec C4 pen

in re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x7.5" (x2)

The supermarket is about four minutes drive from the house and this is the view on the right hand side. The clouds are sweeping over the Blue Mountains.

(Day 16 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

265. Not Boring!

Pilot G-Tec C4 pen and Derwent Coloursoft pencils in

re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5"

My cousins and their cook took delight in creating a series of wonderfully tasty vegetarian 'clean eating' meals for me while I was there clearing my parents' house. They and some of their friends were also an invaluable help in the process. As always, they took great care of me, again making me feel so welcome and not once made me feel a nuisance (that I probably am!). I'm so privileged and honoured to have such lovely people in my life. This particular meal proved that tofu does not have to be boring!

Made a bit of a 'Horlicks' of the glass (below) - yuk! I've now gessoed over it - the paper buckled a bit (amended version above).

Happy art-making everyone and thank you for your lovely comments that keep appearing.

(Day 15 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

264. Monster Mango and Green Tea - Coloured

Pilot G-Tec C4 pen and Derwent Coloursoft pencils in

re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5"

Colour added yesterday evening.

Of the many benefits in doing Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30' challenge twice a year, one is discovering new artists and catching up with other fellow artists on the challenge. I love leaving and receiving comments and seeing the encouraging comments left on other blogs.

Another benefit is that I am forced to do more art than I would otherwise have done and sometimes to work more quickly - yesterday, for example, I could only create and post a quick ten minute sketch as I had to go to a meeting. Had the challenge not been on, I would simply have gone off to my meeting, art materials enjoying a lie in! Thank you Leslie and thank you to my fellow '30 in 30' challengers.

(Day 14 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

263. Monster Mango Sketch

 

Pilot G-Tec C4 pen on re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5"

Only time for a ten-minute sketch; no time to add colour; will finish later. Err… it really was this big and we were all able to enjoy a yummy piece!

(Day 13 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

262. Coconut Vendor

Pilot G-Tec C4 pen and Derwent Coloursoft pencils

in re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5"

I'm not sure what you call the spiky bits but that's how the coconuts look when cut down and the vendor cuts them free and will also slice off the tip and add a straw to your coconut so you can have instant refreshment!

(Day 12 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30'.)

261. Jamaican Patty

Brown Pilot G-Tec C4 pen and Derwent Coloursoft pencils

in re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5"

The dot on top of the patty indicates that it is vegetarian, containing either soy or vegetable. Jamaican patties are the colour of saffron. My cousins found it highly amusing that I ate mine with a knife and fork; seems as though it was similar to eating a portion of chips (fries) with a knife and fork. Hmmm, I don't eat chips but if I did…

PS. This is my entry for Day 11 of Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30' Challenge.

260. Electrolyte Refreshment

Pilot G-Tec C4 pen and Coloursoft Pencils in

re-cased Seawhite sketchbook, 7.5" x 7.5"

On quite a few occasions, I was presented with one of these. Coconut water is low in calories and is one of the richest sources of natural electrolytes; they also contain sodium and potassium. These were perfect in the 40C heat that we were working in during the day - even the nights didn't drop below 30C!

Sip, draw, sip, draw… yum!

The pen and ink drawing before adding colour.

259. Mo' Bay Luggage

Pilot G-Tec C4 pen and Derwent Coloursoft pencils in

re-cased Seawhite Sketchbook, 7.5 "x 7.5"

Waiting for collection from Montego Bay airport (Jamaica), I had time to observe my surroundings. What struck me about this scene was not just how much luggage these two older ladies had but how similarly dressed they were. They seem to be twins: same hat, glasses, shoes hand luggage but different clothing and they sat very easily together just commenting to each other from time to time.

258. Welcome to Jamaica!

Winsor & Newton watercolours and Lamy Safari fountain pen on

Daler Rowney Mixed Media spiral sketchpad, A3

Thank God for Leslie Saeta's '30 in 30' coming round again! (Day 3)

I've been in Jamaica clearing my parents' house and putting it on the market. Only time for one piece of art (I'll post it in a few days) while I was there as we worked almost non-stop all day. This was the lovely 747 that took me there - 'Hot Lips'! (I came home on 'English Rose'.)

Painted first then fountain pen added.

NB. My apologies for the lack of artwork since May. I have quite a few sketches to post, done during that time (including some in Manchester where the Urban Sketchers Symposium was being held). I'm slowly getting around to photographing them and will backdate them so everything is eventually in the correct order.

Happy painting everyone!