sketchbook challenge

I have added more to the sketch I did on the 23rd of January.  lyric Kinard suggested some pen to the leaves of the tree.  As soon as I read her suggestion I realised what was missing from the sketch.

This is the original sketch.      

This is the updated entry

More definition in the tree really helped balance this entry.



Sketchbook challenge

Entry for January 21st

Highly prized: Peace and quiet

Entry for January 22nd

Highly prized:  Where I live....New Zealand

Entry for January 23rd

Highly prized: Trees

Entry for January 24th

Highly prized: Sea shells

Entry for January 25th

Highly prized: Making art

 Entry for January 26th

Highly prized: Love

Entry for January 27th

Highly prized: Nature



Skechbook challenge: 7 days of drawing

Entry for January 14th

Highly prized:  The veiw from my bedroom window

Entry for Jnauary 15th

Highly prized:  Corn on the cob by favourite vegetable

Entry for January 16th

Highly prized: Time

Entry for January 17th

Highly prized: kara my Dog

Entry for January 18th

Highly prized:  My washing machine

Entry for January 19th

Highly prized:  The bush

Entry for January 20th

Highly prized: Light and sunshine

Back again and ready to quilt

We had a lovely break away.  Not great weather but still a nice break.  It is always nice to get away from the everyday slog and do something different.  It is something we need to do as we live where we work and staying at home gives the hubby an excuse to work. 

I am all recharged and ready to quilt, do art and to get fit!  I am ready to face the world and to conquer all my goals. 

Going away

My family and I are going away for 10 days so I won't be blogging for a couple of weeks.  We are off to the family batch in Waihi,a holiday town on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand.  It is a beautiful place where we spend many hours through the holidays.  I am looking forward to the rest and relaxation but not to the packing.  I don't enjoy packing I find it very stressful. It always ends in a lot of fighting and me doing everything by myself while all the kids are off in bedrooms angry and Philip working to be ready to go.  Ah well they will all understand one day......hopefully.  

This is also my 100th blog today.   .  If you feel anyone else would enjoy my blog give them the details.  I would love to have more people to share it with. Thankyou to all my readers who take time to read my blog

Have a nice couple of weeks

Catherine

Photos from our Anniversary trip

We had a lovely time away for our 20th anniversary.  We went to this lovely motel.  Normally when I go and stay at one of these places the pictures in the advert always look better then what they are well in this instance reality was better than the picture.  It was a lovely spot overlooking the Hauraki gulf. The room was beautifully presented and very very clean. 

It had a lovely little kitchen and bathroom with a spa bath and a separate lounge area.   I felt very spoilt. 

I took some lovely photos while I was away of quite a few lovely spots.  Unfortunately there is some dirt on one of my lenses so some photos have marks on them that I will have to photo shop later.  These are a few of the photos that did turn out.

Board walk at Long bay

Vaughn Homestead:  original settlers of Long Bay

View from the homestead

 Rose

View from the motel unit

A beautiful peacock at Shakespear Point

A pea hen

 View of Auckland city form the bottom of the Auckland Harbour bridge.





Sketchbook challenge

Entry for January 9th

Highly prized: Beauty in fine details

Entry for January 10th

Highly prized:  Books

Entry for January 11th

Highly prized: Music

Entry for January the 12th

Highly prized: My husband.  We've been married 20 years today.

Entry for January 13th

Highly prized:  Birds...I love watch birds

blog vacation

I'm going to be away for a couple of days with my husband for our 20th wedding anniversary.  Yah!!We thought it was really thought it was a anniversary worth celebrating. We are going to a little beach on the Whangaporoa penisular just north of Auckland.    We are staying at a motel which is a real treat for us.

I am so lucky to be married to an amazing man who treats me like a queen.  The 20 years has flown by but yet I can't imagine ever having a life without him.

So I am taking my sketchbook and my camera and I am going to have a lovley childless 2 days. So I will leave a message for you all when I return.

sketchbook challenge

January 5th entry

Highly prized: My eyes, nose, skin, eyebrows, and hair

Entry for January 6th

Highly prized: Being a twin

Entry for January 7th

Highly prized:  My hands

Entry for January 8th

Highly prized: My beautiful family



sketchbook challenge

The theme for Januaray for the sketchbook challenge is Highly prized.  My mind started buzzing with ideas.  I wrote a list of 31 things I highly prized (1 subject a day) and made a start.

January title page

January 2nd entry

(we're a day ahead of America so I will finish on Jan 1st next year)

Highly prized-My lord and Savior

January 3rd entry

Highly prized-My home: a place of comfort

January 4th entry

Highly prized: Me.....the good and the bad

quilt challenge-52 cards in a year

Week 32

This weeks card is scraps from the last few cards zig-zagged together into a rectangle card shape.  I then did rows of running stitch over the quilted surface to create a veil effect.

I like the feel of looking through something.  I would like to develop this idea further.

I used coloured pencils to add to the feel of transparency.

quilt challenge-52 cards in a year

Week 31

I have been using a lot of pattern in my work.  Patterns taken from lines in nature.  Today's piece is a flower made from crayon,  cotton fabric and acrylic paint.

I felt the paint was watered down too much and was quite wishy washy.But when the stitching was added it gave a little more colour and definition to the flower and patterns.

I think I wouldn't water the paint down as much next time and I would try it in a different colour scheme.

sketchbook challenge

Tomorrow is the start of the 2011 Sketchbook Challenge.  This is a challenge for artists to develop and use a sketchbook on a regular basis.  I have decided to join this challenge.  So over the next year I will be trying to use my sketchbook more regularly and to also bring more meaning to my sketchbook. 

I have created an area to work from in my studio.  I have made a sketchbook kit filled with wonderful products.  Pencils, paint, stencils, pens, and many other wonderful supplies which I am just itching to use in my new sketchbook.

This first posting is of my title page I have designed for the years challenge.

It is created using a black ink pen and watercolour paints.  

quilt challenge-52 cards in a year

Week 30

Ladybugs would be my second favourite insect.  We had a lot of Ladybugs in my garden growing up.  I can remember spending many hours watching them and counting their spots.

I used coloured pens and inktense pencils for this weeks card.  When I painted the water over the pen and inktense pencils all the pen disappeared into the fabric and created a wash of colour.  It wasn't exactly what I had wanted but I actually like the result.

I coloured the ladybug with permanent pen to give the ladybug more definition.