Day 43 - Palm Tree

Could there be a more predictable sketch for my first day in Hawaii than that of a palm tree? I couldn't help myself as I sat on the lanai watching night turn to day.

palm tree sketch

sepia pen in pocket cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy Rowan

After my sketching was done, we had a fabulous breakfast along the water then went to find Captain Cook's monument which we saw from the shore of Kealakekua Bay. Further exploring led us to the Painted Church. On our way back to town we bought some delicious macadamia nuts and coffee. Overall it was a fun and interesting first day.

Days 41 and 42

Here are the first two of my vacation sketches.

Due to an impending snowstorm - one of those biggies where the meteorologists were forcasting a foot and a half of snow - we left home a day before we were scheduled to and flew our first leg. This sketch was done in the pool area of our hotel while the kids were unwinding from the first day of travel.

sketch of plants

sepia pen in pocket cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

I was worried about completing my sketch on Day 42 since I knew we'd be flying for much of the day. I've seen other artists' sketches from the interior of airplanes, but the thought of that as a subject didn't thrill me. So instead I tackled the outside of the plane while we waited to board. I didn't quite finish this sketch because my party wanted to grab lunch before boarding. Faced with the prospect of being hungry for the next 9 hours, I decided I had better stop sketching and join them.

airplane sketch

pencil in cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Days 39 and 40

These sketches are from the last two days before we left on vacation.

I had recently purchased a couple of new brush pens. I decided to try out the raw umber pen for my Day 39 sketch. I tried several small sketches, but wasn't thrilled with any of them. It took me two pages of small sketches to realize that the culprit was the pen. I really prefer the warmer, darker sepia ink. (I don't think the color difference shows up as much here.) I may try this pen again for shading but I doubt I will use it for line work.

various sketches

raw umber pen in pocket cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

FYI: The top sketch is posting larger on my screen than it is in real life.

After giving my plants their pre-vacation drink I decided the watering can would make a great subject for Day 40.

watering can sketch

pencil sketch in cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Day 38 - Japanese Maple

Aloha!

You may have noticed that it has been a few weeks since I posted anything from my "Sketch-A-Day" project. Yes, it's true, I've fallen behind. But not with the sketching! Just with the scanning and posting.

You see, my family and I hopped on an airplane to escaped the cold, snowy weather we've been having. We split town and spent a couple of wonderful weeks in warm, sunny Hawaii.

Now we are back and I've started the process of scanning all of my February sketches. I plan to post them over the next few weeks.

Today, picking up from where I left off, I am posting the sketch from day 38. It shows a japanese maple and a small evergreen bush that can be found in front of my house. The bush is covered with snow that fell that day.

japanese maple sketch

sepia pen and colored pencil in pocket cahier sketchbook

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

I did the sketch in ink but wasn't in love with it, so I decided to try and add some color. I got out my infrequently used colored pencils and added a light touch of color. I didn't want to go too heavy because I still wanted the ink lines to be the main player. I was amazed at how the color brought the sketch to life. Now it is one of my favorites!

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Finished Watercolor Poppy

I know this isn't a traditional Valentine's flower, but I shared the WIP image of this painting earlier and I wanted to show you the final piece.

Red Poppy

watercolor on Aquabord

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

This is painted on Ampersand Aquabord. It is my third painting on Aquabord and my second floral. I am really starting to like working on this support and I love that it can be framed without glass.

I was attracted to the saturated pinky reds in this piece and am pleased that I was able to achieve that color in the painting. I also loved sculpting all of the different petal forms.

Once the weather starts warming up I will spray this painting and frame it, hopefully in time for a show I have in April. Between now and then I also have to title it. Any suggestions?

Day 37 - Chair

chair sketch

2B pencil in Cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Sketched from the comfort of my couch, this is a chair in my family room. It's a good reading chair especially when sun is streaming through the window. Of course there wasn't any sun on this day. This was drawn on the Saturday of the big snow storm. We were spared the bulk of the snow, receiving only about 8 inches, but still had a lot of gray, overcast skies.

Day 36 - Pear

After the fun I had with the clementine sketch, I decided to try my hand at a pear - another popular fruit in the Rowan house.

pear sketch

watercolor on paper

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Although I used the same sketch book for this sketch as for the clementine, for some reason I struggled against the paper. It didn't want to grab my dark washes and when I went back in to smooth the wash what was there lifted. I worked around this difficulty as best I could, but by the end I was feeling a bit frustrated with the process.

The only thing I can blame for the paper difference is the fact that I painted on the back of a page. Normally both sides of watercolor paper work equally as well, but maybe not in this case.

Days 33, 34 and 35

I'm covering a few days worth of sketches at once here.

iron sketch

sepia pen in pocket cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

First a drawing of an infrequently used small appliance - my iron. I remember that my mom ironed almost every night when I was growing up. Personally, I'm very happy for the invention of wrinkle-free fabrics, because I've been known not to wear an article of clothing that was too wrinkled instead of ironing it.

hand sketch

2B pencil in Cotman Field sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Day 34 I had trouble finding a subject for my sketch. When lacking a subject what's an artist to do? Draw herself of course - or at least part of herself. That's what I did this day when I drew my hand. One of the best things about this sketch was that it finished up a sketchbook that I've been working in for several years. This is only the third sketchbook I've actually completely filled up. I used to have a habit of starting sketch books without finishing the previous one. I think this challenge may break me of that habit!

sketch of candles on shelf

sepia pen in pocket cahier sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

This third sketch is of a shelf in my hair dresser's salon. I had a full schedule that day so I was determined to get my sketching in early. The waiting during my hair appointment seemed like the perfect time to tackle my daily sketch.

What I didn't plan on was someone striking up a converstion as soon as I started drawing. It felt rude to keep sketching while they were talking, so I stopped. But then by the time they moved on I had to change my seat, which also changed my view of the subject. In the end I only did about a third of the sketch while I was at the salon. I finished the rest of it from memory when I got back home.

Day 32 - Snowman

snowman sketch

sepia pen in cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

I drew this little guy the first day of February. At the time we didn't have any snow. I remember watching the weather channel that day and they gave the statistic that something like 75% of the country had snow on the ground. But when they showed the map, we were in a little slice that wasn't snow covered, even though areas to both the north and south of us were.

Day 31 - Clementine

clementine sketch

watercolor on paper

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Clementines are a new favorite fruit in our house. Sweet, juicy and easy to peel, we've been going through them pretty quickly. I managed to grab this one for a quick sketch before anyone else got to it.

I worked with a small set of half pans and a water brush and tried to stay a bit loose.

Days 29 and 30

cowboy boot sketch

sepia pen in Cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

A ceramic boot from a friend's house. It was a decoration in a highly cute bedroom.

pizza sketch

sepia pen in Cahier pocket sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

Pizza is one of my favorite foods. This night we got a veggie pie for dinner. The vegetables make it qualify as a healthy meal, right? Healthy or not, they sure made it yummy!

Day 28 - Stack of Clothes

sketch of pile of folded clothes

2B pencil in Cotman Field sketch book

copyright 2010 Stacy L. Rowan

This may not look like a very inspiring subject, but it was a fun challenge. I think the sketch would have more visual interest if I had done it in color, but by the time I got this far my sketching time for the day was up. Maybe I'll keep the colored sketch in mind for one of the remaining 337 days.