Sometimes life throws a lot of Big Things at you, and it seems like doing anything at all is beyond you. That is when you need to do little things. I have been doing little things for awhile now, and they are keeping me sane. (I do not use that phrase lightly.) The tapestry of the Queen of England, above, is a very little thing! It is postcard size, about 5x7". It was woven for the ATA postcard exchange, and sent to England last summer. I share a birthday with the queen, and was, in fact, born in the year (on her April birthday) that she became queen. So I loved making a tapestry of her in ..read more

These are the final sketches from July's 30places30days Sktchy challenge. I enjoyed doing them all; trying media and techniques I'd otherwise not challenge myself to try. I especially loved doing the looser sketches, which usually were done in watercolor.  Details about each of these are on my Instagram feed. Poe, watching 3 young hawks on roof, through the window This past couple of weeks, we've had 3-4 fledgling Cooper's Hawks trying our their hunting skills in our old evergreen trees. They have provided much entertainment for us, and for our cats! They seem to be splitti ..read more

Telly at Stonehurst Eight or so years ago, I painted regularly, as I was in a gallery and needed to keep my space filled. I sold fairly well, which was also motivating. After leaving the gallery (which was intended to be a short leave) I quit painting. Recently I decided to re-educate myself a bit, by going through my large library of art books, and gleaning what I can from them, and then I will donate the books to the local Art Center. I began with a book about painting like the Impressionists (I have an early version of this book.) The first example/challenge was to paint a landsc ..read more

I'm still doing the 30 day challenge to sketch a different place, in a different style, with a different artist every day for a month. The sketch above was of a duck pond in England, done in gouache. Although this style was nothing I'd ever tried before, I really enjoyed doing this scene from DUMBO, in Manhattan, NY this way. I think it's a great way to sketch overly busy urban scenes. This watercolor sketch is of a Quebec City street. This style is the one that I am most familiar with. This is also one of the few places we've sketched so far where I've actually been! This watercolor ..read more

The Tapestry Arch Just a year ago, in February of 2021, my husband and I drove to the Arches National Monument, a few hours away from us, in Utah. We have been to the Arches a number of times, over the years, but had never taken the hike back to the Tapestry Arch, because it was either too hot or too populated (usually both) when we were there before. This time it was not hot, and, due to the pandemic, we were the only ones on the trail. A tapestry weaver, at the Tapestry Arch! Watercolor sketches I did at the Park that day As a tapestry artist, I was really excite ..read more

After doing 21 Inktober sketches, three weeks of this year's challenge, I decided I was done with it. The later prompts do not inspire me, and I am wanting to use my limited creative time weaving or sketching and painting with other media. Several of these sketches I believe would have been better if done with something other than ink. The prompts for the sketches above are Compass, Moon, Loop, Helmet, and Open. They all were done with ink and Intense paint or pencils, often with a bit of ballpoint pen ink as well. This sketch (above) was done with liquid acrylic inks, with ballpoint ..read more

It has been hot here.....No, It has been H.O.T! here! We have never had multiple days over 100* in June, but a week ago, we had a full week of days, plus a few more, above 100! It was record breaking heat. I do not like heat like that. To top it off, tourist season has begun here, in spite of the fact that COVID is winning the war here, due to stubborn, misinformed, and selfish people who will not be vaccinated. Yes, I did say that out loud! I am having to be tested twice a week now to continue to be my Dad's caregiver, because the Delta variant has been spreading rampantly through our valley ..read more

  Prompt: Stuck It is that time of year again! The time when I pull out ink and pens, as well as the Inktense pencils and pan paints, and create daily sketches based on the official Inktober prompts. We’re just about halfway through the month, and I’ve done all 14 of the sketches, so far. Prompts: Vessel, Raven, Spirit, Fan, Pressure, Tick Prompts: Suit, Pick, Watch, Sour, Knot, l A few of these sketches are based on photos from the Sktchy app, but some are based on my own photos and memories. I always look forward to Inktober, not only because I enjoy being ..read more