Ink is Water Soluble

Ignore my spelling please.

I spend a lot of time waiting for things. In this case, as with every Tuesday and Thursday, I spend time waiting for the Lotus Health Clinic to open in the morning so I can go for my appointment.  I usually park across from the door and wait. While I wait, I have my coffee and get caught up on my reading on my iPod. I use the Instapaper app to capture web articles I want to read then read them offline when I have time.

This day I had my sketchbook and pen with me so I started by drawing one of the icons on my iPod. I quickly got bored with that so I drew the building and entrance to the Lotus Health Clinic.

When I got home I decided to colour in the image using my water soluble coloured pencils. Imagine my shock when I discovered the ink was too water soluble! (I checked the carton the ink comes in and it does not say "permanent" on it anywhere, but I had not noticed this before).  Well, now that I know it "runs" when water is added I will have to be careful never to drop my sketchbook in a puddle, bathtub, toilet, or sink.  Also, I can use the runny quality to my advantage.

Doodle

My son had asked me to come up with an idea for an album cover for an upcoming music release. I was waiting somewhere and I doodled this. This is NOT the idea that I came up with, but it got me thinking and it helped me come up with the final idea (which I cannot share until the album is released).

Sometimes I use my sketchbook to sketch out ideas for final projects and sometimes to work out or on ideas for larger projects. This is an example of that.

This, particular, sketchbook is a catch-all sketchbook. There is no theme to it. I draw it in when I feel like it, when I am bored, when I am waiting, or just for the heck of it. It is a small book that fits easily into my pocket or purse. I originally got it with the intent of carrying it around with me.

The above, rather cartoonish, image is a bit of a nightmare scene. There is a snake eating itself, disembodied mouth and eye, floating in the sky, some bombs (mushroom clouds) going off, and a man, dressed like "the invisible man" in the foreground. It is all a bit cliché.

On the Road Again

October 14, 2011

My terrible scribble says "Driving home from Cambridge where we went to Phidon Pens again. (I picked up black ink and a new Lamy)".  This was quickly sketched along the miles and miles (or in our case, the kilometres and kilometres) of our drive home. As soon as I started to draw, I realized I was not in the mood to draw so I scribbled this quickly and then went to sleep.

You can see the next page bleed through this. Ugh. I added the colour digitally with picnik.com effects.

Anthony and I had gone to Phidon Pens in Cambridge, Ontario to pick up a new nib for Anthony's pen. While there I picked up some black ink because I was not thrilled with the blue-black I had been using. I also picked up an extra-fine point Lamy pen for myself.  We took advantage of being there and picked up a Sailor Music Pen for our son as a Christmas gift.

It is always a pleasure to go to Phidon Pens and seeing Mano. She is interesting and pleasant. The shop is small but well equipped and full of delightful treasures.  It is such a treat for us to go to Cambridge and to Phidon Pens shop.

Phidon Pens Limited
63 Dickson Street
Cambridge, Ontario N1R 7A5
Canada
Tel. : 519 624 8787
Fax : 519 624 2044
Email : phidonpens@bellnet.ca



After we got back to London (Ontario) we picked up our son and went to Smoke 'n Bones for lunch. I quickly sketched our son with my new Lamy. I also scribbled the Smoke 'n Bones logo.

We had a lovely, rare, lunch together.

All-in-all, it was a good day!

Quick Sketched Tree

While waiting for Anthony to get off work at the London Health Science Centre, Victoria Hospital Campus, I started to draw the tree next to my parking space. I did not get to finish it as Anthony came out.

It is basically just a quick scribble, but you get the idea.

Waiting

This time I started drawing the building as I waited for Anthony to come out after finishing work. It is a relatively new building. This section is new (last year or so).  There is a lot of glass, concrete and steel.

It is actually quite attractive. I wish I had added colour.

Merry Christmas!

Wishing everyone a very merry Christmas or whichever holiday you celebrate at this time of year. May you have a joyful and peaceful holiday season.

Sketchbook Project 2012 Slideshow

EDM 15 - Draw a tree or trees, leaves or branches

These are more doodles than realistic representations of a tree, leaves, and branches.  I had two pages left in my Sketchbook Project 2010 sketchbook and some time to kill so I started drawing the above doodle.  I liked it in the simple pen & ink lines but decided to add colour to it with coloured pencils. I had an idea in my head, but it did not translate into reality, as I saw it in my mind's eye. I immediately regretted adding colour and hated it. So, I redrew the image (more or less) on the last page of my sketchbook, as you see below.

Initially, I liked the black and white one better.  However, when I scanned these onto my computer a month had passed between the time I had created these and the time I scanned them in.  Now, I like them both. I like the coloured one just fine.

Neither of these are in my usual, realistic, style. They are more whimsical than I normally draw. As it is, most of the work in this sketchbook, although fairly accurate representations, are not in my usual "finished", "tight" style that I use for larger pieces and commissioned work. I purposely decided to keep things "loose" and casual in this sketchbook.

For the most part, most of my sketchbooks, are filled with loose lines and raw drawings. I use my sketchbooks to work out ideas, capture moments, and relax.  I leave my more detailed, finished, work for larger pieces that are either commissioned or are meant for display at an art show and for sale. My sketchbook work is not normally meant for public display or art shows (although I do use this site to show my recent sketchbook work)

This is the 3rd to last post about the Sketchbook Project 2012. I will have one post showing all the work together, and then one last post when my sketchbook is up on The Art House Coop site, with tour dates.

Lotus Health Care Clinic Physiotherapy

Near the beginning of 2011 I woke one morning with the feeling that I slept on my arm funny. There was stiffness in my left arm, radiating to my jaw and back.  I did not think of anything of it.  I often wake up with stiff joints that get better with movement in a few hours. However, as time went, my arm was in more and more pain. It got to the point, a few months later, that I could no longer move it.  I went to emerge and urgent care a few times and was told I had a torn rotator cuff.  Pain medication was not having much effect. My doctor sent me for ultrasound. The ultrasound showed my rotator cuff was fine. I had what is known as frozen shoulder.

The frozen shoulder joint
and inflammation.
Medical Multimedia Group

Yes, I know I should have had my arm checked out sooner, but at this time my husband was going through some pretty serious health issues, himself, and it did not seem the right time to be out of commission, myself. I also kept hoping it would just get better on its own.

I started physiotherapy with Pan at Lotus Health Care Clinic. Pan is amazing. He is a very pleasant person too. He laughs at my corny jokes. The physio is extremely painful, however, it is working.

We had a set back when I fell in the kitchen two weeks into the therapy. I had been carrying something into the kitchen and my ankle gave out. I fell hard on my arm. Pan was very patient with me and quickly got me back on schedule.

I now have full mobility back, although it is still painful. I am working on strength now. My arm is still weak, but getting better and better.

The drawing of the building was done one morning while I waited for the clinic to open. I usually get there 15 minutes before they open and I sit and have a coffee and get caught up on my internet reading (using instapaper on my ipod). This day I happened to have my Sketchbook Project 2012 sketchbook with me and decided to do a quick drawing while I waited. This was done in about 15 minutes, while sitting in my car, parked across from the door.

Lotus Health Care Clinic
1225 Wonderland Rd N
London, ON N6C 2V9
(519) 473-5911

EDM 134 - Draw a familiar person place or thing, but from an unusual angle

This self portrait was created by looking at a mirror in my lap. I drew it upside down just to make it that more unusual. This was just a quick sketch done with a few scribbles of my pen.

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You can see the image better when it is right side up.

Here they are together so you can see them better.

This is not the best drawing I have ever done, but it was fun to do.

EDM 56 - Draw a Self Portrait

As much as I hate to admit it, this pretty well looks like what I look like right now.  I would have loved to draw me young, svelte, and beautiful, however, that would have been an illusion at best and a lie at worse.

One of the inevitable things in life is that we age, and our bodies change as we age. Some people age better than others. Me, I look younger than my age, but I certainly look matronly now. I joke that I look like a Portuguese mother now. Of course, I am a Portuguese mother!

The colour red goes beautifully with my olive skin tone. It is a colour I enjoy wearing.

The background is organized chaos. That is more or less what my mind and life is like: organized chaos, with little dangler bits to grab a hold of, now and again.

Generally speaking, life is good.

EDM 17 - Draw a Musical Instrument

Here is my son playing one of his bass guitars. My son has been compared to the wonderful Victor Wooten (whom he admires) in his playing.