A Paper Bag Family?

18" x 24"

Prismacolor colored pencils on Stonehenge Kraft

As I explained in this recent post about my drawing of two envelopes, I have a habit of imagining inanimate objects as people. Well, I was sifting through a stash of paper bags, looking for my next subject (after drawing this one back in April), when a little grouping caught my eye: it looked just like a couple with a baby to me. Go ahead and laugh, but just look at them!

Interestingly, this week's topic on Illustration Friday is people. I'm guessing that no one else drew paper bags for this one!

I feel a paper bag series coming on, but I think I need to lay off the Stonehenge Kraft for a while; it's addictive stuff.

Oh, and apologies for the less-than-perfect photo quality. This was too big for my scanner, so I just shot it with my iPhone.)

Hillbillies, squirrels, and the drought

"Hillbilly" heirloom tomato

Prismacolor colored pencils on Stonehenge paper

Between the drought and a pair of brazen black squirrels, it's been a tough summer for my vegetable garden. Everyone's tomatoes are late this year, and I think the vines are finally producing more tomatoes than the squirrels want. This is an heirloom variety called "Hillbilly". They are deeply lobed, and are gorgeous colors. This first one that I picked—before the squirrels got it—weighed in at around a pound:

The one I used for the model for my drawing seemed to ripen and change colors before my eyes:

There are loads of green tomatoes out there, just waiting to ripen; the fact that it's supposed to be 100 degrees here today should hasten that process!