Busy, Busy Day

The 2 year old is arriving in about an hour and she will be accompanying me to the chiropractor at 10. Her first grade sister will be arriving by bus around 1 pm. It is an early release day. We have a full afternoon planned.

We will be visiting our lovely next door neighbor who just lost her husband of 56 years and then will be driving to the school where I used to teach to tutor an Algebra student. I will be taking large pieces of paper and pencils and crayons and the girls will lay on the floor and make art while I am working.

Then we will be driving into Jackson to relieve Papa (the hubster) who is doing a 2 day craft show. He will take the little one and go find some dinner. Meanwhile, the first grader and I will be in charge of his booth.

Finally, we will go to their house to settle in, play, get baths, get into jammies and await their Mom who works until 9.

Somewhere in there we will have to eat lunch and dinner.

I remember hauling my two kids around on busy, busy days when I was about thirty years younger than I am now and how tiring it was. I have a feeling I am going to be exhausted at the end of the day, but what fun we will have.

I did a real quick beginning sketch this morning of a daVinci painting. It is definitely a WIP and I will have to work on her for awhile. I chose it because it appeared so simple, but it is certainly not a simple thing to copy.

Here she is for now:

 

She needs lots of refinement, but at least I got to put pencil to paper today. The hubster has "borrowed" my art table (actually it is his and I borrow it long term until he has a show) so I am left to either work on my lap or on the drafting table he made for me.

My daughter will be here momentarily, so I am going to go put some coffee on and mentally prepare for this jam-packed day.

Hope you have a great day and a wonderful weekend!

xoxo

Lamb Stew and A Couple of Quick Sketches

I made the lamb stew for dinner last night. It was the first time I've cooked with lamb and I was pleasantly surprised. I used Alton Brown's Lamb Stew recipe as my model, but made some changes. Here is the recipe:

And here are the changes:

-     I used 1/2 pound of lamb stew meat (it was plenty)

-     I used table salt

-     I used barley (couldn't find barley grits)

-     I purchased a lamb leg bone and made 4 cups of broth from that

It was delicious and made about 4 servings. I served it with warmed Garlic Naan that I purchased at Meijer's. I will definitely make this again.

Today I am going to try a recipe for lamb stuffed pita and I'll let you know how that turns out.

After dinner, I spent two hours with a new tutee. It was fun and she was a fast learner (my favorite kind). She is coming over again this afternoon.

Late last evening before going to bed I did a couple of quick sketches. I didn't refine them at all, but think they are alright for now. The first one is from a Degas.

 

I see lots of areas that need refining, particularly her right leg and right shoulder, but for my first figure sketch, it'll do. I tried holding the pencil a bit further back than writing position and that seemed to help with the curves and the lightness of the pencil.

I also tried a quick sketch of a stamp of a man's face and like how it turned out.

 

I am having such fun and thanks to you and your wonderful, helpful comments and suggestions, I am learning to put the inner critic in the corner where she belongs.

I have a less busy day planned today, but the hubster is going to take my work table (it is really his) for a show he is doing tomorrow and Saturday, so I won't be doing any painting today. I am hoping to get a bit of mail out today. I made a pretty envelope to send a note to my Mom. I'll show it to you when it is ready to go. 

For now, I'd better have a banana and then get on the treadmill. I'll decide what I am going to do today while I walk. It is a beautiful morning, but only 11º F.

I hope to see you tomorrow!

xoxo

Last Try on the Rubens and a Tree Trunk

First of all, I want to thank all of you for your wonderful comments. The specific suggestions were so wonderful and I am thankful again that I am a part of this wonderful online community. I tried to incorporate all that was suggested in making changes to the chin and the fullness of the face. Here is my final attempt, for I am moving on:

 

And here is a completely different sketch for me. I saw this tree trunk in an old book that I found at a second hand store and felt compelled to sketch it. I don't usually sketch inanimate objects. I have nearly always chosen birds or people. I don't think it is bad for a first try and think I might venture outdoors as these days get warmer and the quality of the light improves and try my hand at drawing something in the yard.

 

I have a full day planned today. I need to workout on the treadmill, go to Sam's, finish the grocery shopping at Meijer's, make a never before tried dinner recipe, and make time to do some art.

I went to Hollander's yesterday to pick up the papers I'd left behind after the Sunday class and decided to go to Sparrow Meats to purchase some lamb. I've never cooked with lamb before, but have loved any of the dishes I've tried either in Greektown or in other restaurants. I left there with 1/2 pound of stew meat, a leg bone (for the base), and 1/2 pound of ground lamb. I am planning to make Alton Brown's Lamb Stew with Barley for dinner tonight.

I was also a lazy butt and didn't arise until 8:30. That is really sleeping in for this usually early riser. I love to get up just before sunrise, but apparently needed the extra shuteye.

Gotta go! I hope to see you again tomorrow.

xoxo

Rubens Copy 2nd Attempt

It is the wee hours of the morning and I am still futzing around in the art room. I have been attempting to improve on the nose and mouth of the Rubens boy child that I showed you in yesterday's post. I am still not completely satisfied, but think they are a bit better.

I am supposed to have started a watercolor class through the Artists of the Round Table Yahoo! group to which I belong, but have not yet received lesson 1. I am hoping to add some color to these drawings as I progress.

So here is my latest:

 

And here is the original again:

 

And here are the first attempt (on the left) and the most recent fix (on the right) side by side for a better comparison.

 

I see right away that I am missing a tiny bit of face between the lips and the hair. That will be fixed in the next iteration.

I would like to know if my second attempt is an improvement or not. I think the lips are in a better position compared to the nose, but I think I have compromised the shape of the nose a bit.

Your input is appreciated and is invaluable in my tinkering.

I'd better get to bed. Morning comes mighty early.

xoxo

February is Behind Us; Welcome March

And so it is March 1. I am beginning to be hopeful that the longest, snowiest winter I can remember is drawing to a close. It was warm enough yesterday to melt quite a bit of snow and today promises to melt more.

I have some errands to run today and then am hoping to meet my daughter and my little darling, Momo, for lunch. Later this afternoon, I am meeting a young man for a tutoring session in Algebra. I am hoping it will be a fun and productive day.

Meanwhile, I would like to share with you the product of my Found Book Concertina Workshop that I took with my good friend, Nancy, at Hollander's yesterday. I'd first of all like to tell you that this was the best one day workshop I've experienced to date. Chris Reising, the instructor, was very well organized and explained the process very well, beginning with an overview and then walked us through the process step by step. An added pleasure for me was that her friend and partner who co-taught the class was David Burkam, an old friend from my days of grading AP Calculus exams. David is a professor at the University of Michigan. Chris and David make books together as well as cards and other arty goodies. They brought many of them for us to look at and many of them took my breath away. They are unique and spectacular. You can see their beautiful products at their etsy shop, Moon Moth Press.

Here is the book I made.

And here is the spine.

I can't wait to try another one and will, of course, share it with you.

Earlier this weekend I attempted to sketch a portrait from a picture. This one is by Rubens and I think might be one of his children. Here is his sketch:

 

And here is my pitiful amateurish first attempt:

  

I am afraid I am a bit heavy handed. I have been using a 2B pencil, but think I'd better switch to a 2H or harder so that I can make lighter lines. I have a hard time making light lines. I think I will have to try this again maybe later today and tomorrow morning. 

As usual, I welcome your comments and am so pleased with your suggestions and insights.

Meanwhile, I'd better get this old body onto the treadmill and then get in the shower so that my errands can get done today and I will still have time to do some art.

I hope to "see" you tomorrow.

xoxo