remembering violets

Bill once gave me a beautiful African violet plant which was very special to me. But when we moved from San Diego to Bremerton, then on to Portland, I had to fly (being 8 months pregnant at the time) — our things were moved up by friends. The plant probably would not have survived so I gave it to a neighbor.

This is another drawing exercise from a library book, “Pen & Ink Techniques” by Frank Lohan. I chose to add a bit of purple watercolor. Ink lines were drawn with a Kaweco Liliput fountain pen filled with Noodler’s green El Lawrence ink.

recent sketches

Early one morning a couple of weeks ago, I took my corgi outside and found these gorgeous white blooms. Last year, the turban-shaped cactus only put out a few babies. I took a photo of the blooms . . . and the next day they were gone.

The tiny sketch of apple blossoms was also done from a photo; apples have since developed. This week I was trimming back the purple basil to dry some for next winter; two leaves fell off so I sketched them “live”. I didn’t get around to painting them right away . . . and our sneaky cat, Scottie Dubh, must have eaten them! So the color is from memory.

random sketches

Just a few random sketches of interesting things seen in the past 3 weeks . . .

The American Beautyberry plant was growing in the Sam Houston National Forest we camped in — great for keeping mosquitoes away! I saw the rooster perched in a wheelbarrow at Bill’s sister’s home in Kansas. And Bill brought me the small rose-colored mushroom because he knew I’d like to draw it.

red rocket

Although our crepe myrtle tree has been blooming steadily all month, it hasn’t been as full of color as previous years. Our newly planted lantana shrubs are also suffering. This year has just been too wet! These plants thrive in hot, dry summers.

We had an old fashioned pink crepe myrtle in Kansas. But years ago while visiting Houston, I saw this deep red flowering variety planted along Eldridge Parkway — and knew I would one day plant one of my own.

(Oddly, one or two white flowers have popped up on the tree this year, hidden among the red.)

aloe vera, Texas sized

Two years ago, we bought a small aloe vera to place in this special terra cotta pot. Mikala, our granddaughter, had decorated the pot with shells from Galveston. When we lived in Kansas, I kept an aloe vera in it but it was an indoor plant.

Here in the warmer climate of Texas, we planned on putting it outdoors. On a whim, I planted it directly in the soil instead of the pot. When winter nights might get too cold we wrap the plant in a protective sheet and it seems to be surviving. In fact, it’s thriving with new patches of growth added each year. The pot would have been too small.

Today I planted a small succulent in the pot instead.

another wee succulent

 

This is another of the tiny succulent plants living on my kitchen window sill. I’m not sure what it’s called; the “stripes” are thick ridges and it’s beginning to turn red in the sunlight. The plastic pot it came in is a perfect fit in the enamelware coffee cup.

I jotted down the quote from Corrie Ten Boom after we rewatched The Hiding Place, a true story of her family’s time in Nazi-occupied Holland and later in a concentration camp. In this case, the movie comes close to being as good as the book.

window gardening

 

We have a very wide window sill, 3 windows wide, over our kitchen sink giving me a wonderful view of the farm. Even though it faces north, the light is very bright and consistent (except heavy fog mornings like today!) so I’ve put together a wee window garden — succulents, mini cacti, some pinch pots our kids made when they were in grade school, and a few “pet rocks”. I think this fuzzy plant is a vertical leaf senecia. So soft, I caught myself petting the gray-green leaves!

Sketched with a Fude nib pen and turquoise ink in a continuous line.

the last cactus bloom

This sketch is from a photo of the last bloom on our prickly pear cactus last month. Buds were a deep rose when they began before opening up to a brilliant icy yellow. Then as they began to wilt they once again showed a rosy tinge around the edges.

Never having been around these plants before, we are now wondering when (or if) we can expect the fruit to show up.

cactus bloom

We were wondering what color of bloom the many prickly pear cacti on the farm would flower . . . or if they would flower at all. Last autumn small buds appeared but they just dropped off.

Now they are covered with buds again, and bright lemon-yellow flowers open up, one at a time.

Though we were married in Arizona and visited the Mesa area many times in the past, I was never able to see the desert in full bloom. My mother-in-law often told me about it; I’m sorry to have missed it.

first fruits

Where there was once a horse arena here at the farm, we have planted fruit trees. One day we will be enjoying homegrown peaches, pears, oranges, grapefruit, limes . . . and even avocados (though they are in large pots on the back porch instead).

The peaches and pears are already loaded with fruit — much more than the baby-sized roots can handle. So yesterday Kristen prune out some of the fruit to allow the others a chance to grow.

Then she brought some in for me to “doodle”.

So I did.


“In the same way, my brothers, through the Messiah’s body you also died as far as the Law is concerned, so that you may belong to another person — the One who was raised from the dead — and may bear fruit for God.”
Romans 7:4

on my window sill

There is a small planting bed running along the side porch of Bill’s woodshop, added to cover where the foundation was leveled off on our slightly sloping ground. Bill put in a couple of Purple Heart plants to see if they would grow in this area.

They thrived! So when he trimmed their straggly overgrowth recently, we brought some bits in to root. Eventually we’ll fill the bed with this purple-leafed plant — much prettier than my sketch captured.

revisiting my potted plants

I had planned on adding watercolor to this sketch, especially since I love mingled colors on terra cotta pots. But after a comment on Facebook about the drawing's "clean lines", I decided to leave it just ink. . . . . but niggled it a bit anyway by adding some of the quilted cloth's pattern and darkening the dirt.

yesterday, I sketched!

Lately, as Bill goes through convalescence from surgery, still with severe pain down his arm (the surgery was supposed to fix that), I have not felt like sketching as often. Bill's surgeon is mystified about the pain but the discs have to completely fuse together before another MRI can be done. 

But yesterday I managed to sketch the plants on the table, in my new "burnt sienna" ink mix. Messed up a bit with the quilted cloth pattern underneath since I was drawing directly in ink, no pencil. I will probably add watercolor later.

Then I drew my shoe during church, barely hanging on my foot. It reached 85° daytime high -- and my car's air conditioner is broken. Got a bit sticky-hot. Drawn with a Pentel Pocketbrush pen, gouache added later at home.

and yet more granny-nanny silliness

Normally, 4-year-old Judah is in daycare and he loves attending his "school". But I keep him home with me during Eagle Week for some grandma-time. Sometimes he feels sad that brother and sister get to go to school but he doesn't --- so we usually plan to take him out somewhere special during the week.

Yesterday we took him to Five Guys hamburger shop where he loves eating all the peanuts he can shell while waiting for his cheesy hot dog.

He brought me this wee doggy of his to draw . . . not much color to little "No Name" but he sits in what seemed a praying / supplication stance. So I added some text I once saw on a Facebook post.

Doing these fast etegami-like sketches is fun! They seem to loosen me up from my normally tight, detailed drawing. And they are fast enough to do in bits and bobs as I keep busy with household and childcare stuff.

I drew this potted plant sitting on the fireplace mantel ---I think it is a poinsettia left from Christmas. There are reddish-purple leaves or petals dropped off all around it and new green leaves are sprouting.

The sample papers in this hand-bound journal, while alright for use with watercolor, aren't really anything special . . . except this India paper from Legion Paper online. It has a slight woven texture to it and is made of 100% cotton rag. I think I will definitely bind some journals of this paper in the future!

garden work

Weather has been gradually warmer and sunnier, though some nights are still a bit cold. But we went ahead and bought our replacement rose shrubs --- we can always throw protection over them if nights get down in the 30's. The roses from the nearby Antique Rose Emporium are always so healthy, many of them grown from roses found on abandoned farmsteads all over Texas, and many still retain the original scents. I hate the newer hybrids that have lost all scent.

I had one overgrown pot of aloe vera also. When we gently pulled the plant out of the container (after a couple of rounds of fire-ant killer as they had taken occupancy) there were enough starts to fill SIX pots, four of which were larger than the original!

The original aloe plant was grown from off the house plant our son-in-law Michael took to college with him in the 1990's. I kept it alive as a house plant but it never grew beyond 6 to 8" high with very thin blades. After moving to Texas, we left the pot outside in the sun (covering during cold snaps) . . . and two years later, it is thriving as a huge, healthy beast!

early morning eye appointment & Blue Bell

This morning I had an early appointment to have the pressure in my eyes rechecked. Two weeks ago, it was running a bit high for my normal levels so Dr. Horton added an additional eye drop prescription. Good news: it is working to bring the pressure down.

I sketched the obligatory office potted plant while waiting to see her. Overheard two ladies discussing a message one of them received on her phone that HEB (local grocery store) had run out of Blue Bell already . . . at 8:30 in the morning!

Today is the first day the locally-based ice cream company has been allowed to sell their product following  a total shut-down of several months, during which they totally dismantled and cleaned all equipment in their creameries. There had been an unknown source of contamination found in a small number of product.

Following my appointment, I went to HEB to make sure, as Bill was expecting me to bring some home. Turns out it was just a rumor and they had plenty --- being handed out personally by the company's head executives who were thanking everyone for supporting them through their crisis.

a mother's day gift, well spent

I was given a gift certificate yesterday to spend on e-books for my Kindle Fire. One of my choices was Danny Gregory's new book that has been on my wish list for quite a while.

It inspired me to grab the nearest thing to me this morning and sketch it NOW. I used Noodler's red-black ink (water soluble) and my granulating earth colors palette. Letting ink run a bit fits today's rainy day and I love playing with these paints!

Our multi-talented son Matt made the wooden bowl for me years ago (there is a plastic liner in it to protect it from the terra cotta pot's water seepage). The African violet plant is a descendant of a cutting my mother once gave me. Seems a fitting choice as I think of her on Mother's Day.

weekend sketches

While driving to Brenham, we always enjoy looking at the gorgeous Texas Longhorns raised around here. Awesome beasts!

This past weekend Bill saw one sitting in the pasture like a dog --- such a funny sight! So I drew one in a similar position later.

Wichita Spine Hospital

 

Yesterday Bill had a repeat procedure at the spine hospital, to ease severe back pain. Both the doctor and the nurses agree that this will only provide short-term relief --- the effects of the first one lasted just a bit over one month. Unfortunately, our insurance company will not pay for the correct procedure that they are sure will provide long-term relief until he has undergone this particular type of injection twice. Stupid insurance companies once again think they know more than medical personnel.

The newly built hospital is all curves, chrome, and glass -- I wanted to catch the sunlight's patterns in this sketch. Level of care here is top quality -- he was treated very well by all.

"dead" bay laurel tree

. . . or so I thought when I set it out on the porch months ago. Then one morning this week, I noticed a fresh green sprig popped up.

Is it trying to teach me something?