February Hearts, Part 2

3" x 3", Prismacolor colored pencil

Here's the second in my new series of little drawings.

(Scroll down for the first.)

And here's another of my vintage Valentine postcards
sent to my husband's grandfather in 1910.

 (I've included this one more for the charming message than for the front image.)

It reads (uncorrected):

Mr. Adams,

Dear friend, rec your card and was very much surprise too hear from you and
 I appreicate being remember very much. Yes; Henry doesn't like me any more. 

Sincerly, Ida

Illustration Friday: Forward

3" x 3", Prismacolor colored pencil

I've been looking forward to February for a while now. (Okay, I know that's a stretch for the topic of "forward", but I hated to miss another week of Illustration Friday!)

. 

Why? Because February is the perfect month to post this first piece in a series of little drawings that I've started. I'll be posting more this week. Hopefully, you'll start to get the theme as you see more of them.

Also, I have a treasure trove of vintage postcards that belonged to my husband's grandfather, and since many of them are Valentines, I thought it'd be fun to share some of them with you throughout the month. Here's the first one, from 1911:

Can you read the message? It's written on the back of the heart embossing and says

"Can you guess. SWAK" (sealed with a kiss)

Happy February!

Illustration Friday: Prepare

 Pencil (HB) on Fabriano Artistico watercolor paper

For this week's topic of prepare, here's a little sketch of a bird's nest that we found in our yard a while back. Nests are fascinating to examine—this one was completely lined with mud, in preparation for its important occupants. 

I'm hoping that the nesting box on my front porch that I showed you here last spring will have a new resident soon. When I wrote about that one, my son was staying with us briefly before heading out to study spotted owls in the Sierra. He's now part of the California condor study program at Pinnacles National Monument. But  our daughter that graduated from college last June will soon be ending her dietetic internship in Houston, and preparations are underway to welcome her back home for a while. You just never know how long an empty nest will stay empty! 

Illustration Friday: Grounded

Prismacolor colored pencils on Strathmore Bristol, vellum finish

When I saw the Illustration Friday topic "grounded", I started thinking about botanical things underground. It's interesting to me that, while many roots and bulbs that grow underground are white or brown or something in-between, a few—like carrots, radishes, and red onions—are richly colored. 

It seems that most still-life artists, or botanical artists, have a number of onion pieces in their portfolios. It's easy to see why: they're great fun to draw—with their papery, translucent skins, and layers of color.

I just bought a new scanner (my techie husband is going to be setting up a different computer system and it's not compatible with my old scanner), so I will be curious to see how it does with colored pencil and pencil drawings. I'll keep you posted!

A new leaf

Two of my New Year's resolutions at work here: (1) Draw something every day and (2) Post more often. So, even though this is a rather humble drawing, I'm sharing it.

I adore cyclamen, with their heart-shaped leaves. The white of the flowers is the whitest, freshest white there is, and the way they bloom sort of upside-down and inside-out makes me smile. In fact, this was just a drawing to sort of "get acquainted" with the shapes and structure; I'm thinking that I could have some fun doing some close-ups of the blooms and/or some detailed color pieces.

 It took about an hour, including the time I had to go outside and calm my chickens down. (The squirrels find it amusing to sit in the trees above them and shower them with leaves. Clearly, squirrels rank a bit higher than chickens on the intelligence chart.)

I'm never quite happy with how pencil sketches scan. I tried taking a shot of it with my camera, but my photography needs work (another resolution). If you scan pencil and colored pencil artwork and feel like sharing what scanner you've had success with, I'd love to hear from you!