recent Etsy sales

Amidst all the activity of searching, then buying property, and preparing to sell the cabin, I have pretty much been ignoring my Etsy shop. I seldom mention the sketches I sell on this blog anyway — just post things for sale and leave them be.

So what a surprising couple of weeks it’s been! In 1 1/2 weeks, I have had 7 orders! Some prints, some original ink & wash sketches, mostly wildflower sketches but also some vignettes. With each sale, I mark it in this ledger, print a postage label which is then taped to a mailing envelope, then drive it to the nearest post office.

Add another item to my to-do lists: I need to find the nearest post office to our new home out in the country! Maybe in the nearby community of Field Store?

at Freebird’s

We’ve been so busy lately, we haven’t always been home to cook meals, nor have we found time to buy groceries on a regular basis.

On this day, following a longer-than-average dental appointment, we stopped to eat at Freebird’s in College Station. Mostly they sell custom burritos; we ordered burrito bowls which is all of our chosen burrito stuffings served without a tortilla.

A place we found in Fredericksburg called that a “naked breakfast taco”.

BTW, the watercolor was added in the car while Bill  drove on a very bumpy farm road —- not as much value as I would have wished but at least I didn’t splotch much!

we got it after all!

After our daughter and son-in-law made a bid on a country property last weekend, they were told that the sellers decided to go with one of the other bids instead. So we went back to looking at other available properties, planning to see two of them today.

Then began a mad rush of phone texts between their realtor, the sellers’ realtor, our kids, and us. Apparently the chosen buyers decided to back out and our kids got the house! And Bill and I will be selling our cabin and converting this sheep barn into a barndominium house plus woodshop!

So we never got around to looking at these two properties today. I’ve been sketching bits of each place we look at in one of my sketchbooks, to keep the details straight in my mind. As we look at them, I jot down our thoughts or measurements  next to my sketches, then later mark an X through those we decide are a definite “no”.

Bill has been drawing up some ideas for a little house, with lots of wood touches and keeping as much ranch (and barn) style as possible. I think he’s having more than average fun!

the Flint Hills

I’ve been slow at finishing these sketches . . .
We returned to Kansas last week for a friend’s funeral, held in Emporia, KS. As our son Jason drove us up the Turnpike, I snapped some photos with my phone, to be sketched later.

These are the beautiful Flint Hills we used to live near. When I used to meet with friends in the Kansas City area for monthly sketch crawls, these are what we drove through. Though I seldom actually sketched them while I lived in Kansas.

After grueling cattle drives from Texas, cattle were brought here to fatten up on the rich tall bluegrass before heading for the trains. We have seen them in every season, drenching rain and drought, and even during the yearly burning of the Flint Hills. Always beautiful, always a bit mysterious.

waiting to hear . . .

We have been looking at country properties with our daughter and son-in-law since last autumn, hoping for a down-sized house for them and and in-law cottage for us. An early one we looked at was a “no” but I did this sketch of the sheep farm next door — I liked that barn with the longhorn cow sculpture!

Last Saturday, the sheep farm went on the market and we checked it out on Friday. Loved it so much that our kids put in a bid on it. As did several others, 2 of them strong contenders. So we are waiting to see if our bid is accepted or not.

If our bid were to be accepted, this barn — which has been painted barn red sometime between last November and now — would be remade into a small house and woodshop for us. Bill is sketching some plans as we all eagerly wait the sellers’ decision.

UPDATE: We just heard, the sellers decided to go with one of the other offers instead of ours. So back to looking . . . 😏

UPDATE TO THE UPDATE: The first buyer has backed out and our kids’ offer was accepted. Looks like Bill and I are going to build a house out of a barn!

pain relief at last!

While at church this morning, I wrote down some Bible verses from the lesson, and randomly sketched this tin of pain relieving salve from an Amazon photo. Our daughter heard about using hemp preparations for nerve pain from a friend of hers. She researched to find the one most recommended by consumer reviews, then ordered this brand, Rosita Hemp Salve, for Bill.

He has suffered chronic nerve pain (neuropathy) for 5 1/2 years, since a few months following his first bypass surgery. It seemed to get better after other surgeries but returned after a month or so, often worse than before. Steroid injections and oral medications gave no relief at all.

But the past week he has been using a very light application of this salve a couple of times a day and he’s had amazing results! Some underlying pain is still there, but not enough to keep hm from doing whatever he wants to. And he’s finally able to get some real sleep! Before, he could only manage about 2 or 3 hours total sleep per night due to pain. So thankful for some real relief!

I recently put together a mini gouache set using metal pans from Expeditionary Art and a Flip Case card holder from Wellspring. I would have added a couple more colors but ran out of the smaller pans.

I thought I’d try using gouache in my purse-sized sketchbook, using it thinned out for washes similar to watercolor and thicker when I want a more bold approach. Just playing, really . . .

absolutely my best pen!

My birthday isn’t till next month . . . but the price of this Pilot Namiki Falcon fountain pen dropped by $50 so Bill bought it for me early.

The soft extra fine nib is wonderful! So much easy flex!

I’m almost out of my favorite ink, De Atramentis Document black, so I’ll need to order some soon.

Sketch with Me: travel

This month’s virtual sketch crawl with the Sketch With Me group is focusing on travel. A good subject for me, as I have been traveling a lot lately, and will be for the next few days as well as we drive to Kansas for a friend’s funeral.

We celebrated our 47th wedding anniversary a few days early, choosing a local bed & breakfast out in the country, away from just about everything. We planned on grilling our own steak dinner out on the balcony of the tree top room . . . but Bill moved up his dental appointment and had just had 8 teeth pulled. So nix on the steaks; we grilled cheese quesadillas instead!

 The next day, we headed for Magnolia, TX to look at another property with our daughter and son-in-law. This property had a lot going for it, but the traffic nearby was a nightmare! We were warned that FM 1774 through Magnolia was horrid during Ren-Fest weekends in the autumn . . . But it is crazy-slow every day with the lunch hour and school getting out!

I used another sketchbook page to jot down notes on each of three properties we looked at — the next two were a definite “no” so we are continuing the search.

Texas dandelions and evening primrose

As much as I love wildflowers, I seldom see any in my own large yard (3 lots, around 3/4 acre) except for the occasional crow poison or rain lily which literally pops up overnight. Bill can’t stand to let the yard look “shaggy” and keeps it mowed.

So I was surprised to find bits of yellow sunshine all over the yard one morning. Texas dandelions look much more like tall, pale yellow daisies — and they are not nearly as invasive.

I brought these inside before Bill mowed, along with a tiny evening primrose I found as well.

in my bag

Does a 16 year old really need a granny-nanny?

Mikala’s parents are on a trip so I’m hanging out with her this weekend. Along with Bradley, Mocha, Pumpkin and Reece’s (her dog and 3 cats).

Plenty of time to sketch but not really inspired at the moment. So I drew the art supplies in my bag. I bought this lightweight bag because it was large enough to hold this 7 x 10” ring bound journal. It’s a Stillman & Birn Zeta sketchbook. The small journal I keep in my bag is from the same company but is from their Delta line.