Upside-down Fountain Pen Doodles

Got a wild hair to turn my fountain pen upside down to see what kind of line it made. Fountain pen users may cringe at that statement because that is a big no-no. It can ruin a nib. Meh, I used a Lamy Safari nib. I'm not too concerned.

Discovered it made a rillyrilly fine line, about half the width of the normal extra-fine line. It was great for tiny crosshatching lines. Woot!

Obviously I doodled this guy out of my head but I knew a real guy who looked just like this. Spittin' image.



And who among us doesn't know a lady with a hairdo like this?



Well, down here in the South there are lots of 'em. And usually the hairdo has a strange purpley tint.

Girl with Turban

Ever had something so very fleeting spark an inspiration? I did tonight. I saw a girl walking down my street in the dim twilight. I couldn't see her very well. All I could pick out was the turban and the purple shirt.

I knew I had to draw. Raced back inside and started flinging ink and paint with big, fat brushes. The real girl probably looks nothing like this but this is how I remember her in my mind's eye.

Thank you Girl with Turban, whoever you are, for the inspiration.

Daydreaming

Another late-night doodle, working on drawing hair for an upcoming Every Day in May challenge. Hair is hard to draw.

At the Oil and Brine Museum

Out Urban Sketching again today with Miz Dee and Dee's #1 Son. It was a cold and icky day weatherwise so we took shelter in the museum.

I started with this drawing of an oil well drilling bit.

Wandered upstairs in search of something interesting to draw. Looked over the balcony railing and found #1 Son down below absorbed in drawing an old truck.

My spot on the balcony was in almost complete darkness. I could barely see my sketchbook, much less the lines I was drawing. This little sketch took no more than five minutes to draw and paint. I was trying to be very, very quick and quiet so #1 Son wouldn't notice me up there.

I thought the sketch turned out amazingly well for the situation. It taught me that I obsess over details too much and that I should trust my instinct and hand more than I do.

I finished off the day with a sketch of this old Republic Truck, circa 1924.

I seem to pick a lot of all-black stuff to draw. Makes it kinda boring to paint. One of these days I'll get the courage to paint something like this using bright purple and orange. That would be fun.

And I picked up a postcard for a penpal in Pennsylvannia.

A good time was had by all!

Taylor Mali - Poet - Teacher

Journaling:
Discovered the joy who is Taylor Mali today. Watch his YouTube videos over and over and got happier at each viewing.

A lawyer once asked him, "Mali, you're a teacher, what do *you* make?" (This was during a conversation about occupations and salaries.)

And Mali replied, "I make a difference. What about you?"

---

From one of his poems:

"When two boys are fighting, I break it up. When two girls are fighting I wait until that shit's over then drag what's left to the nurse's office."

On The Patio

Out on a sketching adventure with Miz Dee today. We were sitting outside the restaurant where we had just eaten lunch and Dee had to make a phone call.

I whipped out the Little Red Emergency Sketchbook while I was waiting and started to draw two ladies lunching on the patio. They, of course, got up and left right in the middle of my sketch. Isn't that always the case when sketching people in the wild???

Harumph! Some people are just so rude! Don't they know they should sit still whilst I'm covertly drawing them without their permission????

Bad Lids of the Garden Club

Sketching with Dee in the genealogy room at the library. We chose the location because we both thought there were fancy moldings and a highly carved fireplace mantle in there. Alas no; faulty memory x 2.

Had to find something to draw besides stacks and stacks of books. Poking around in the shelves I found a scrapbook of the local Garden Club, 1953 - 1965. *LOVED* all the fancy hats. Had to draw.

On the left, from a local newspaper clipping:
Sunday, April 11, 1965 - "Life membership in the Arkansas Federation of Garden Clubs was conferred upon Mrs. Warren S. Riley at the recent convention in Little Rock. Mrs. Riley is currently serving as President of The Council of Garden Clubs."

This hat was just too outrageous. It's drawn exactly as it appeared in the photo. The altitude of that bad boy is not exaggerated. The curlicue thingy on top is hilarious. I'm sure it was the height of fashion at the Garden Club and Mrs. Riley was the bee's knees.

Mrs. Riley appeared in a number of photos throughout the scrapbook. She had quite the collection of architectural hats.

On the right, from "The President's Message" column in a statewide newsletter:
Mrs. Bruce Anthony, President, Arkansas Federation of Garden Clubs, 1953. Apparently Mrs. Anthony was a local girl.

Can you imagine going out in public with a cluster of plastic grapes attached to the top of your head? How awesome would you have to be to do that???

Process notes:
I love the way the brush pen made the ringlets of Mrs. Anthony's hair. Squee! Happy accident.

Sacred Space

I share mine with the world.

Budwiser Summer Concert

Chris Loggins was the opening act. Drew him then everything else on stage in great detail because there wasn't an interesting person in the crowd to draw.

Then, be still my little Ninja Sketcher heart, this family sat down to my right.

Pappaw Ponytail had the most interesting angular face. Also loved the way his ponytail fell away from his forehead.

Thought it was cute that his granddaughter had the same ponytail. I loved the graceful, delicate swoop of her hair from the nape of her neck to the ponytail holder. (She's wearing a light pink shirt, scanner lost the color, dang.)

Then I focused on the left side of the crowd. Saw the guy in the middle and had to draw. Drew the other folks because I liked the composition of the grouping.
I was sitting on the top row of a low bleacher, center stage. Most of the crowd was behind me. I sat up there in front of God-n-Everbody staring at people and drawing them like I had no manners or sense. It's a miracle somebody didn't call the law on me.

Excited about how these people sketches were turning out, I hopped off the bleachers and went to the back of the crowd so I wouldn't be so obvious. Things didn't turn out well back there. I was too far away from folks to see them clearly and I started making dogmeat of their faces.
Discouraged, I put the sketchbook away and rejoined Hubby. By now his hiney had gone to sleep and he needed to stand up and walk around. We went to the back of the crowd again and stood for a while. I wanted to draw, but not people.

Looked around and saw this Harley across the street. We took up a position on a park bench where I could see the bike and Hubby could still see the stage. A planter box was in the way and I was too lazy to stand up to capture the bottom details so I just drew the bushes.
I wanted to draw it simply with bold brush strokes so I broke out The Magic That Is The Pentel Pocket Brush Pen and had a go. Actually painted this on site.

Showed the drawing to the bike's owner as he was leaving. He told me this was a special edition bike and only 84 were made. He had to go to Waco, TX to get it.

Having had all the fun we could stand, we retired to the diner down the street for a late night breakfast, then home to bed. Hubby actually stayed out until 12:30 am. I was soooo proud of him, my little ol' man husband!

An Evil Dick Van Dyke Haunts My Dreams

Journaling:

Late at night, in a house way out in the woods, my father looks in the pass-through window in the kitchen. His eyes are glowing red (and he has a maniacal grin) and I know he is evil.



I try to call out for Mom but my vocal cords are frozen in fear. I can't get the word out. I whimper, whimper, struggling to speak.

Evil father has come in the back door and is headed down the hallway towards me. I whimper, whimper, still struggling to speak. In one last Herculean effort I scream just before he reaches me....

MOM!!!....

and I wake up.

Hubby is yelling from the bedroom, "It's just a dream, it's just a dream!"

It's 1:30 am and I had fallen asleep on the couch hours ago after eating a vegetarian pizza. I go snuggle up to Hubby so he'll keep the boogers off for the rest of the night.

What was so weird about this dream was that my evil father was Dick Van Dyke. Why on earth did he make an appearance in my dream? And why was he evil?

I wondered as I tried to get back to sleep if "Mom" had shown up to rescue me, would it have been Mary Tyler Moore?

No more veggie pizza for me. I'm going back to sausage and mushroom.

McKinney House

Went out sketching with Miz Dee all day today. We met at the Henry Crawford McKinney House in El Dorado, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is a magnificent old mansion built in 1925 just after the South Arkansas oil boom. It has expansive grounds with a carriage house, pool house, reflecting pool, pergola, vineyard and stables.

It sat vacant for decades and was taken over by vegetation. In the last few years it was given to a local historical society and they are slowing bringing it back from near ruin. The grounds are still rather decrepit but I think it makes them more interesting than if it was all newly manicured.

There are still traces of its former glory here and there even though the grass has taken over the tennis courts, the fountain is growing weeds, and the swimming pool has been filled in. There are several huge outdoor tables made from a single slab of flagstone. There are enough flagstone pavers on the property to pave a Wal-Mart parking lot.

The estate must have been magnificent in its heyday with roaring parties until dawn. I can imagine F. Scott Fitzgerald driving up in his yellow Rolls Royce.

So, enough about the history. Here are the sketches:

East wing,view from the reflecting pool
I was quietly sketching away when a big ol' bullfrog croaked right next to me in the reflecting pool. Scared the peedoodle outta me.


Old fountain with vineyard behind.
The only thing growing in the vineyard now is poison oak. That little figure thingy in the top of the fountain is a pudgy little boy holding a goose. The goose's head is broken off.

Miz Dee Painting
The Ninja Sketcher strikes again. After I finished the fountain I turned to talk to Miz Dee who was, as she said, "spraddle-legged" on a bench. She thought I was sketching the pool house behind her. I was, kinda sorta, but that wild looking orange sketching hat was begging to be drawn. It had a personality all its own. I need me one of those.


This is the sketch she was working on. She had just started blocking in the first color washes in this photo.

And here is the final


Off to lunch for an hour to cool down, then one more sketch for the day.

The Pergola
I probably should have sketched this from a different angle to show the striking architecture and shadows, but in the humid Arkansas summertime you have to pick the view from under the big shade tree.

This was a wonderful, wonderful day!

Lunch Bucket - EDM #20 - Draw Something "Dad"

Journaling:

I love this old school photo of Daddy, circa 1934. He's so cute with his big, innocent eyes and faded overalls. I'm guessing he probably doesn't have on shoes.

I have Daddy's eyes, a babypoop brownish-green color.

Daddy always signed cards and emails like this--> DaD; big D, little A, big D.

Daddy's Lunch Bucket, 1950-1982

Daddy carried this lunchbox with him every day for 30+ years. The finish on the top and around the latches was worn shiny from use.

The black plastic handle broke so he milled a new one from a strip of aluminum.

His ID badge was riveted to the end. It was lime green with his ID# engraved in red numbers.

The lunch bucket lived on the dryer by the back door for my entire lifetime.

Daddy always called this his lunch bucket, not lunchbox. That's probably a throwback to his childhood when he took his lunch to school in an actual bucket.

Lee Michaels 1971

Been 14 days since I don't know when
I just saw her with my best friend
Do ya know what I mean?

-----------------------------
Up late at night reading blogs. One had a link to a music video on YouTube. I never can watch just one YouTube video. I have to watch lots and lots and re-live the halcyon days of my misspent youth.

Ended up singing along and dancing in my chair until dawn.

sigh

There's four hours of my life I'll never get back.

One of my favs is Lee Michael's "Do You Know What I Mean?" from 1971. I have to listen to it several times with the volume cranked up to 11. Dude knows how to rock a Hammond organ.

The most memorable lyric:

woo

Comes right in the middle of the song surrounded by total silence on either side. That little quiet woo speaks volumes.

Jeanne Louise Calment

Jeanne Louise Calment is a French woman who had the longest confirmed human life span in history. She lived 122 years and 164 days from February 1875 until August 4, 1997.

At age 85 she took up fencing, and at 100 was still riding a bicycle. She lived on her own until just before her 110th birthday.

She attributed her longevity and youthful appearance to olive oil, which she poured on all her food and rubbed on her skin. That and a steady diet of port wine and one kilo of chocolate every week.

Her photo was on the front page of the hometown newspaper to accompany an editorial on how to live longer. My little Neanderthal, reptilian brain saw it and thought, "Oog. Face. Must draw that."

Look Ma! No Cavities!

Journaling:

Most dental hygienists I've ever been to were rather timid when working in my mouth. But not Grace Ann. She looks sweet, sounds sweet and smells sweet, but that's where the sweetness ends.

She got me in a headlock and pulled out about six inches of my bottom lip to get to my teeth.

Heyheyhey! Waitwaitwait! That thing's attached!

She had a death grip on it and wasn't letting go.

My immediate thought was "That's the very same maneuver they use on horses to get them to stand still while they're being groomed."

I'll be still Grace Ann, I promise! You can let go now!

My second thought was to wonder if she has a pair of six-inch stiletto thigh boots at home in her closet laying right next to her whip collection. I'm calling her Mistress Grace Ann next time I get my teeth cleaned. Dang!

(Above the plane)

Model of the Wright Brothers plane at Kitty Hawk
(on top of the file cabinet in the front office)

I drew part of the plane before my appointment and finished it as they were locking up the office for the night. Painted it at home.

Process notes:
It was tough trying to figure out the perspective on this. How exactly would a six-inch pulled lip look from overhead? Made my brain hurt to think that hard.

Pencil Portrait, Lady Bowler - WIP

Journaling:

I'm working through yet another how-to-draw book - Lifelike Portraits from Photographs by Lee Hammond. It recommends practicing faces using cover girls from magazines.

LOL! I don't have any women's magazines with cover girls. The closest thing I could find was Hubby's US Bowler.

I got all my chores and errands done by 9:00 am this morning. I was looking forward to a whole day of zen-like drawing since Hubby wasn't due home until 10:00 pm tonight.

I poodle-dewed around and didn't break out the pencils until 4:30 pm, then Hubs showed up early at 5:00. Didn't get back to drawing until 11:30 pm. Got her face finished by 1:00 am, then called it a night.

I think it came out great! It actually looks like the photo! Woot! Still need to do a little bit of tweaking and finish the hair.

Oh yeah, almost forgot, I drew a nose too.
Beware the Cosmic Nose of Death.

Kitty Helps Daddy Read

Journaling:

Hubby has infinite patience with our little furry housemates, even if it means he has to read with a catbutt on his chin and a fuzzy tail up his nose.

He'll stay in an uncomfortable position for an hour just so he won't disturb the cat on his chest or in his lap. He'll do anything for the comfort and convenience of the kittehs.

He's a saint.

Open Studio Tuesday

Went to Open Studio today to show my progress and process to Miz Gay and ask for a few tips on gouache and acrylic. Whilst waiting for her to work around the room I drew the other folks.

I inadvertently picked up the wrong pencil so my sketches came out light. Didn't realize my mistake until time was almost up. Phooey.

Frank - Was just warming up with Frank. Hadn't drawn anything since Saturday and boy, could I tell. I shouldn't do that again. Need to draw every day.

Sylvia #1 - I missed her the last two times I went to Open Studio, so I wanted to be sure to capture her this time. She is *so* cute. She has round, thick-rimmed funky glasses and the cutest little chic haircut. I put 30 pounds on her in this first sketch and made her look like a tubby grandma. Sorry Sylvia.

Sylvia #2 - Consensus of the room was I caught her perfectly here. This is my fav of the day.

Tippy - Was concentrating on his nose and lips. Might have gotten his chin a little prominent, but otherwise he's recognizable. I think this might be the first sketch of a face where I've gotten all the parts in the right place and the right size. Microscopic improvement. Yay!

Sylvia #3 - She was leaning dreamily on her hand, about to doze off in the warmth and hum of the room. I thought the way her glasses and eyebrow looked at this angle were really cool. Oy, the mouth could use some simplification but otherwise I like it. I finally got the right pencil in my hand for this sketch. What a difference!

Books, Kids and Librarians

Got the book The Duggars: 20 and Counting! in the mail today from Uncle Buck. Had to sit down and read it right then from cover to cover. Velly interlusting. Something about that whole family seems cultish and it squicks me out a little. Buck knows this. That's probably why he sent it to me, he's just that kinda guy.

Karen Blados blogged about her first-grade son being excited about checking out a "chapter book" from the yellow section of the library. First-graders aren't allowed books from the yellow section. That triggered an ancient old memory and I had to rant. Spent the rest of the day writing and spewing in a long, rambling blog post, "Traumas at the Library Check-Out Desk."

Still haven't found my muse yet. Still drawing other people's photos dang it. The illustration today is from a photo by Mary R. Vogt, or "taliesin" on Morguefile.com.

Showed it to Hubby and he asked, "Why does she have a Band-Aid on her thumb?" Grrrrr. That's a shadow. Then he said, "Looks like that finger would be good for booger pickin'." Sigh. I can tell when he has spent the day with his golfing buddies. He becomes 12 years old again. (eyeroll)

Hubby Reading - Oil Pastel

(Oil pastel)

The Hubster, reading yet another Clive Cussler book in bed on a Sunday afternoon. Smudge wandered across his chest several times during the sitting making it difficult for him to read and me to draw. Yes, we have wildly exciting weekends.

I have come to the conclusion I have no idea what I'm doing with these oil pastels. There is probably some time-honored technique of using them that results in a decent drawing. I, obviously, have not yet found that technique.

I had bits of colored stuff all over my hands, the paper, and the dresser serving as my drawing perch. Ewwww! Retreated back to my desk and rubbed around on the drawing with Q-tips trying to make something of it.

Rubbed the bits of his face that should have been highlighted and the pastel medium lifted away leaving just a minimum tinting on the paper. Hey! Cool effect. I'll take that!

Even though this drawing ended up very goopy, I think it's kinda cool in an American Primative Folk Art kinda way.