more apartment sketching

Still sketching bits of this apartment building when I find a bit of time . . . . things to remember when we leave it behind.

Originally the 1920 building had 4 one-bedroom apartments. We opened the 2 downstairs apartments into one large three-bedroom unit, removing a bearing wall between 2 dining rooms to create a large country kitchen in that space (plus an additional side room that has been an office & studio).

Where there had formerly been a doorway into a teeny kitchen, Bill built this oak sideboard --- the glass doors above hold glass from his grandmother's farmhouse. The former kitchen space is now a large walk-in pantry.

This table and chair set has been in the family 4 generations; we are giving it to our youngest son now as it will not fit in our new cabin. It has 6 chairs and 4 table leaves, held in their own oak crate.

livingroom sketching

Some of our kids were driving here to Kansas on Saturday, through some really nasty winter weather. While waiting for them, I did some random sketching . . .

All arrived safely, though much later than when driving in normal weather. Now our livingroom is carpeted in toys, dogs and dog toys, random mittens, and multiple electronic gadgets.

The mantel and built-in shelving, as well as the mirror and wood trim shows some of Bill's handiwork from when we gutted and renovated this apartment building. I will miss all the extra built-ins he added. In a little over 2 weeks we close on our new home in Texas.

a Missouri weekend

Visiting friends in Missouri over the weekend, we were able to stay in their new guest house next door. Actually it was a rehab project and is now an art gallery / meeting place / research library / guest quarters. A very comfortable, homey spot with lots of interesting bits to explore, especially the art and books! The bathroom is decorated with flamingos & palm trees so of course I had to sketch one. This cute car & camper salt and pepper set is from the kitchen

Saturday night, we went to hear The Copper Creek Band. We enjoyed this talented group, but the room was a bit small, making it hard to adjust the amps and speakers. Wish we could have heard the voices more -- they have a great sound!

Instead of trying to sketch band members, I tried to draw my husband, Bill, but he is VERY hard to capture.

Early the next morning, I drew the antique campaign table from the library; it forms a chair and has storage underneath for camping equipment. I thought that Bill might build one for our new tiny house since our dining set won't fit. The wonky sketch on the right are things that were sitting on the table.

comparing water-soluble inks

Recently I went through my art supplies with an even more critical eye, reducing them to "essentials". The cabin we bought is very small; I will have a "studio" upstairs in the loft but not a lot of room for extras.

On these pages of my art journal, I compared my Noodler's inks that are water-soluble -- meaning they "bleed" when watercolor is later applied. One is "la couleur royale" (purple) and one is red-black. I thought I would give at least one of them away . . . . but I still like the effects so I'll be keeping both. So much for lightening my load! (click on picture to enlarge)

This vintage Prang watercolor tin is refilled with artists' pigments and holds some travel brushes and a wee sponge. Very lightweight for a metal paint box and fits easily in my bag.

a Christmas cookie

Since we are decorating this year with cardboard boxes . . . LOTS of cardboard boxes . . . our Christmas cookies look a little different also.

A bit over-focused on moving to Texas???

an early Christmas gift

Our son, Matt, and his family won't be coming home for Christmas --- they will be spending the holiday at Disneyworld. So when we saw them on Thanksgiving in Texas, we exchanged a few gifts early.

This is one of my gifts, a necklace made by daughter-in-law Misty. Under the key is a tiny reproduction of my own pen and ink sketch of our 1920 apartment building we just sold. What a thoughtful gift!

Another gift they found for me: a gorgeous leather-bound sketchbook of hand-made paper! Our grandson, Quen, watched me draw this necklace and wanted to know why I didn't draw it in my new sketchbook instead. I told him that I like to completely fill one book before  beginning a new one. (The new one is so beautiful, I might feel a bit intimidated to actually use it!)

the original sketch

bigger on the inside?

For some of us, Thanksgiving was also an early Christmas. Our second son, Matt, and his family will be going to Disney World for Christmas. Since we won't see them then, we had an early gift exchange.

As part of his gift to our second son Jason, Matt hand-crafted this wooden box full of Jammie Dodger cookies. Jason is a long-time Whovian of the first order (a fan of the BBC series "Doctor Who").

I simply couldn't NOT sketch it. After all, I'm a long-standing Whovian also, having watched the show since the 4th incarnation of the timelord, played by Tom Baker.