Macaw Feather

Another little watercolour study.

Feathers & Sketches

A couple of days ago I tidied my desk...that's a bit of a misleading statement as it will never be 'tidy', but I sorted it out, cleaned it up and found a few things I had mislaid.  One was a bag of macaw feathers that we filched from Bird World last year, scrabbling with our fingers through the wire amongst the poop & dirt.  I love macaws, and even their feathers inspire me with their irridescent colours.  I painted a few of the smaller fluffy ones in watercolours, just for fun.

I also came across a couple of sketchbooks which had a few memories hidden away - here's a selection:

 Alderney...

 Alderney...

 Fuiggi, Italy

 Our old dog, Jasper, & an agapanthus, both sketched one summer in our garden.

 Jasper asleep on the armchair.

 Parrots - no idea where or how I did these but I am loving the central one's expression of bliss as he scratches his head!

 An experiment...

 St. Lucia

 A hibiscus painted in St.Lucia and a hummingbird came to feed as I painted - not a great painting of him, I was too excited and trying to gt it down on paper as fast as I could.

 St. Lucia, Rodney Bay

 St. Lucia

 St.Lucia

 Another experiment in watercolour

Some vase of flowers or other!

I often say that I don't do sketchbooks, but that's obviously not true - I think it's that the sketchbooks are never finished, I just have numerous half filled ones.

And now all my equipment is set out where I can see it - better do something!

Found.....

Inbetween painting horses I have been having some fun with a little drawing exercise. Using very sharp pencils and working true to life with the objects blu-tacked to my drawing board, I have been trying to make some highly detailed drawings of found objects. The feather was good, the shell was quick, and the sea-urchin? The phrase 'never again' comes to mind although I am glad to have attempted it. It's always useful to challenge yourself with your drawing once in a while, keeps it all fresh and makes you glad to get back to what you are comfortable with!

- 0 -

This was in today's paper......

.... a quiz to find out if your dog is an optimist or a pessimist. I had to do it for him as he can't hold a pencil...or read (to my knowledge!)


Despite appearances, he is an optimist...........yeah, OK.....

First Feather

I just couldn't wait any longer - the horse went on hold for an afternoon and I drew/painted this using very sharp pencils and a brush with about three hairs in it. Great fun but not as perfect as I would like, but I guess you can't run before you can walk with things like this! The drawing is about two inches long, slightly bigger than the actual feather.

Now back to the horses as commissions are starting to stack up - woo-hoo!

Horse Feathers!

I took my son up to the town today to pick up his photos (yes, he came back from Borneo safe and sound with tales to tell) and went with him into the bargain bookstore. I didn't intend to buy anything but found this book I had been eyeing up in an art magazine a few weeks ago and it was half price - say no more!


At lunchtime when I was poring through it, I was most impressed with the pages on how to draw feathers - something I lack the patience to draw or paint in such fine detail. After lunch, I took the dog for a walk and found this........


I wonder if the universe is trying to tell me something? Unfortunately, today I have to get on with this.......


It's not unfortunate at all - I'm really enjoying it and getting paid into the bargain. The universe will have to wait for it's feather painting.....