OH DEAR!

Oh dear another blip in the health of yours truly.  But all is well.  Now to get back to some normality. Sorry if I have ignored my blogging mates, I haven't even been on facebook either!!

Now then, here is what I have been faced with at my U3A group (University of the Third Age), Drawing and Painting group.  Really they draw, and they are really good,  but me, can't not splosh on the colour!  The organiser sets up these utterly boring still lifes of anything he can find in the building.  I don't have to paint them, but you know me, I like a challenge. They are on quarter imperial.

Not your usual subjects!  Anyone else faced with these kind of ideas?

Have a lovely week wherever you may be.

BLACK TURNS INTO GREEN

I go to a U3A group (a youth club for the over 50's) a drawing and painting group.  Each week the person who runs it sets up a still life (getting bored with them now my have to rebel)  Anyway this week was Christmas theme.  Was going to just painting the bauble but I can never resist painting the whole thing (a big fault of mine).

It was a black tree with blue and white decorations, not bright enough for me!!  I turned into a green tree with a multitude of colours.

Also I went into our lovely Victorian town to shop and came across these two Christmas things that I thought you might like to see.

Aren't these Cinderella's slippers?

Victorian Arcade with verandah and Santa's hut.  He must have gone for lunch.

Hope you are starting to feel in the festive mood.  Have a lovely Sunday and week.  I will be wishing you Seasons Greeting later, but for those who won't be looking in again, have a lovely Christmas and a Very Happy and Healthy New Year. xx

EASTER CHALLENGE

Well I have been overwhelmed by the interneters who have given me subjects to paint over the Easter.  And here are the ones and whipped through yesterday.  The hardest ones, though, are ready and waiting for me.

Helen H Trachy - Woman cleaning windscreen with broom.  This is no ordinary woman it is Me Grand Friend Annie Arkwright.  No ordinary broom for her!

Carol Davidson - Horse.  Actually it is Polly Panicking Painting Peoples Pictures

Beverley Wells - A banana that doesn't look like an ordinary banana painting - took ages thinking about this one, and created a kind of stained glass window. Brusho.

Rita Vaselli - she had seen on facebook a picture of real sheep but they had been coloured and also online there is a page about William The Lurcher, so asked his owner if I could paint him and here is the combination.  William dreaming of sheep and sheep having nightmares about William

Carol Hodge - Cream cake (no calories in this one)

Gill Fox and Martine Weare - I combined one here.  A nighttime scene with the moon and a painting in one colour - here I used Indigo.

There are a mixture of sizes from postcard size to 15 x11" and the challengers are from Blogland and Facebook Land, so thank you all for taking me out of my comfort zone.  All except the bananas are in Watercolour, the Bananas are in Brusho!

I'll be back with some more of these challengers.

Happy Easter everyone

OIL - YUK and YUK

You see I don't particularly like using oils, but boss teacher wanted us to do a still life in oils. Yuk and yuk! Not struck on painting in oils nor ordinary still life.  But like a good little girl I did as I was told (this time) Outcome not as bad as I thought. These are water soluble oils.

This was done over two weeks classes.  Patience I didn't know I had, as I like to go whoosh and have a painting done in one session, if possible.  Oh and the round pot didn't have a square opening,  this huge error has only come to light looking at it on screen.  Won't be altering it though, as this will go in my 'not like' box.

Will I use oils at our last class this year,  or will I rebel?


Have a wondrous weekend!

LAKE GARDA & VERONA VIGNETTES (THE END)

Finally, here are the end of my memories of the art holiday with Hazel Soan to Italy. A peek into my personal sketches done at night using my camera as reference and sometimes from life.  When I go on these courses it is like someone switches me on, and I go crazy, painting every hour I can, then when I get home I am drained! Not even attempted a watercolour since I came home.  It's as if I burnt my watercolour self out!!!

Thank you for following my progress and for commenting too.  It has been quite an experience sharing this special holiday with you.  Has brought back recent memories and made me assess the work I have done. Here goes.  I am opening  my khadi pad (8" square) so you can peek inside ............................

Great care was taken in the making of this Ice Cream, it looked like a rose when it was finished. Bought in the market square in Verona, and very delicious it was too.

My little room in Lake Garda was a bit run down, which included this dirty light switch area.  They had even put a plastic panel around the switch but there were many old dirty marks underneath.  You might see this better if you enlarge the photograph. We christened the hotel, Hotel Faded Elegance (Hotel Laurin). While the main rooms were really elegant and stunning, most of our rooms were passed their sell by date!

Saw this bike in Verona with a polythene bag on the seat, to protect it from the rain.  Well it was red, so out came the pyrrol scarlet. However, this bike has ended up with square wheels, not a very comfortable ride!

View from my window in Verona, I just had to paint the terracotta pipe things and the old carvings under the gutter. Hotel Palazzo was a fabulous hotel inside, old building but modern furnishings and unusual works of art.

The painting I am most pleased with from the whole holiday.   I thought this metal key fob for my room in  Verona was so lovely that I felt compelled to get it down in paint.

And not to leave out the hotel in Lake Garda, decided to paint that key fob too.  This one weighed a ton!



Thank you again for bearing with me and taking the time to come on holiday with me, I hope you enjoyed my journey.

Now I will have to get back to painting with my watercolours before the inspiration disappears.

THE END OF RED!!!!

Boy did I have a good time painting things in my new vibrant semi opaque Daniel Smith Pyrrol Scarlet. Thanks people for your challenges.  Here are the last of them. Will it really be the last of my red subjects ........... for now yes.  So here they are with the names of the challengers.

 Scarlet Woman from Lyndi Lou Lou I have named her Scarlett Pyrrol the Prima Ballerina

Then you get one bright spark that says something odd like Blood, and this is what I came up with. Thanks Keith Hornblower!

 Red Shoes (chickened out and did only one) Sharon Whitley and Joan Violet Stretch

 Tomatoes, Beverley Wells

 Red Wellies, yep done this week and it's not really worked, but I don't mind showing you any way.  My challenge as I suddenly thought of something red that I hadn't done.

These were included in the nickers challenge from naughty Beverley Wells.  

Well this shows you what fun you can have with just one colour.  I was experimenting along the way with layers, mixing slightly with other colours, dropping a little of another colour in, using it neat and trying to assess the strength and opacity of this delightful colour.  Now I am redded out!!!!!!!!!  Now I need a glass of red wine (oh no haven't painted that, but then it isn't this bright red, oh dear what am I to do).

RED PERIOD PART 2

Here's the next batch of red challenges that I received, when I was pondering what to paint with my new Daniel Smith Pyrrol Red. I call it my bright red period, as the colour is a really hot red. Semi opaque and very like Cad Red really.  The subjects that people came up with were a real challenge as you will see.  So here are the next few for your perusal and cogitation.

 Red knickers challenged by Beverley Wells (who did a super pair if you check the next but one blog to this)

 Red Poppy also by Beverley Wells, and Carol Hodge.  I think this is the best flower painting I have ever done.  I surprised myself with this one and actually enjoyed painting it too.

 Slightly muted red post box from Carol Hodge.  This is from a photograph of mine from the Lake District.

Red Rose, not my favourite, didn't like painting this at all but here it is for you to see.  Challenge by Ngaire Magalotti from Australia, who thought that the roses in my garden would be lovely to paint at this time of year.

One more batch to bore you with later.

Have I finished my red period you may hopefully ask? Well maybe .......

No comments required, I am just sharing my challenges with you.

Have a red hot weekend everyone.

DANIEL SMITH PYRROL SCARLET

Boy have I had fun, with a little help from my virtual friends.  I got this new colour and on facebook I just mentioned that I had pyrrol scarlet and wondered what to paint.  Yes, you guessed it out of the blue got some great suggestions, and I managed to do every one.  I will post them in two batches for your perusal!  I found it very inspiring to have these suggestions and I painted subjects that I would never have thought of myself. Hope you enjoy sharing them with me ........

Red and more red and more red -  Batch 1

 This was my idea. To paint a red banana just because ............

 This is also was my idea and was found on Painting Colourful Birds for Fun on facebook

 Someone dared me to do knickers! Yes I dared.  Thanks Beverley Wells

 A Red Letter Day, thanks Ngaire Magalotti.  You will find out what the invitation was later.

Red London Bus, thank you Val Downie

I will put links to the above artists who have blogs on my last 'red' post to thank them for their help.

It's very much like Cad Red as you can see and is semi opaque.  I tried neat paint, running other colours into the paint, two or 3 thin washes.  Really trying to experiment with it's qualities.  And how often to we get to paint in red?  More to follow..................

END OF HOUSE TOUR

Well I have been painting 'something from each room in the house'.  We are upstairs now.  The back bedroom, where my hubs keeps his gym gear and his golf clubs etc. He usually sits in the room watching my husband clean his shoes, dry his clubs, but  when I go away on my art courses, I leave a note with this little fellow, telling him to look after my hubby.  I sit him on our bed so that when he gets home from taking me to the airport, he will find it.  I also usually write a stupid poem too.  So he is a special little bear.

Now come with me across the landing to the spare room, office,  art materials room.  With boxes, cupboards, drawers, all bursting with paintings, frames, paper,  mounts, bubble wrap, pastels, oils, acrylics etc. etc. etc.  This is a small selection of what makes this room the untidiest in the house!

Thank you for walking around the downstairs, and climbing the stairs to have a nosey upstairs.  I  hope you enjoyed joining me. Here's your coat.  You can leave now.  Come again sometime.

PIXIE DUST

Here's another from my 'something from every room in the house' challenge to myself.

Now we are upstairs and in the main bedroom.  I love to smell nice but I don't like heavy perfume.  My favourite perfume is this one and it is called 'Pixie Dust' I kid you not.  It's a Disney perfume.  Light and magical, you never know what I may do when I am wearing this ............. and like tinkerbell I can be a little mischievious, so be careful around me! I may make you use blue instead of green, or dry your washes too quickly, put a stroke in the wrong place, or make you have paint on your hands etc., ..........  So when things go wrong you can blame me .............

  

KITCHEN AND BATHROOM

Continuing my personal challenge 'something from each room in the house' now come with me into the kitchen which isn't brightly coloured. Light wood colour and terracotta cushion flooring. What could I choose, not a food mixer or pan, but some bright coloured  really sharp knives that I came across whilst staying with friends.  Well I had to find some, and got these in Marlborough. I love using them and looking at the cheerful colours when I'm doing boring things in the kitchen, or tears streaming down my face slicing onions!

Now come with me up the stairs and turn left into the bathroom.  A friend bought me these small natural soaps.  I couldn't resist painting them, it's a pity you can't smell them.  They last ages.  Wasn't that a nice thought.

Have a lovely week all of you and thank you so much for visiting my blog. 

ROYAL BABY

Welcome to the world, to the new royal baby.  So nice to hear some good news, these days, that makes people smile.  A feel good factor.

Here's my card to them (well not actually, was painted when my grand nephew Llewys was born, but thank you photoshop, for letting me slip in HRH, so my virtual card for the new family.

So what did my hubs and I do tonight, when the brand new family appeared on tv - toast them with a glass of wine and some chocolate.

So 'Cheers, good health little one'

BEST THINGS SINCE SLICED BREAD

Oh, I do suffer from bad feet, no not smell, cheeky!  The balls of my feet cripple me after an hours walking, as I have claw toes on both feet.  When I first tried crocs I couldn't believe how comfy they were. Summer is heaven, as I do not care what I look like, comfortable crocs are my friends, and I wear them when I can get away with it. These have been painted  for my 'something from each room in the house' series, and we are in the conservatory now.  I have several pairs of crocs and have some for the garden.  These are very splendid, having a (plastic) diamond stuck through one of the holes.  You don't need to hold your nose when you look at these, they are anti smelly!!!

Hope my blogging friends are having a wonderful weekend, and that those in the UK are enjoying this freak heatwave.  Best weather for 7 years!!!

WIMBLEDON WANDERINGS

WELL DONE ANDY MURRAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  (on the 7th day of the 7th month, and 77 years since a Brit last won the mens final - spooky or what).


I am a hermit during the tennis tournament at Wimbledon. Rarely leaving my abode, glued to the tv watching my heroes. One of them being Kenny Eckerslyke.  Now some of you will have met him on my other blog http://pollyluvspaintingetc.blogspot.com  along with my other northern England friends and their activities (if you would like to meet them and Kenny go to my blog and click on the label 'friends of mine' or click on my link at the top of the right hand column of this blog)

Now Kenny is an avid tennis player who reckoned he could whup Andy Murray at Wimbledon this year.  How, did he get on, well he lost on Monday. He reckons the linesmen, umpire and crowd were against him 'cos I'm a reet ordinary lad from up north and I'm not posh, eeh by gum.  I'll be back again next year and by ecky thump I'll be the first northern champ!"

Well I were in the crowd. Poor Kenny lost his rag at the end and threw his ball into the crowd, with such venom.

Followed by his shoes, one of which I caught!  I immediately threw it back because the smell was knocking me out.

Poor Kenny, he thought he could win, but can 'ee eckerslyke!!!!

He drowned his sorrows by drinking a pint of bitter and eating some lancashire hot pot and an eccles cake.

Let's hope he qualifies again next year.  Good luck Kenny

I'M GETTING REALLY EXCITED

I would never, ever have thought when I started a blog, that I would be saying this, but it's true.  Nearly 10,000 looks at my Watercolour Blog.  How wonderful is that.  So, may I say to you all out there what fun I have had, how much I have learned from you, and how much you have inspired me.  You see I had reached a safe plateau with my painting, never thought I could improve or find so many subjects to paint. My enthusiasm was waning.  You, yes you out there, have given me the joy of painting that I had when I first started. So a big and heartfelt thank you!!!

Right, back to the business of painting - here are some more of my 'things around the house'. I decided to find things around the house that were simple to paint.  I have already done a candle and some hand cream.  (See previous post)

Ok so it's a toilet roll holder, what else is there in the downstairs  loo?  And everything in there is white anyway so I thought that was a good challenge

This is from the Hall, supposed you would say it is 'retro' but it  is a family  memory item.  We used to have a red carpet in the hall but now it's neutral.  This doesn't really go but I just don't care!

Anyway, I again send you a REALLY BIG THANK YOU 10,000 times

Luv' from Polly xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

EACH ROOM OF THE HOUSE

I have decided to paint something from each room in the house, just something simple and just for a change.
So in effect, I have challenged myself!  So obviously I have made it not too challenging, so no flowers, no boats, no buildings, no portraits - Hooray. I am very kind to myself ..............

Living Room - My poor old hands get very dry, so I always have some hand cream nearby.  This one is pro age.  I haven't noticed my hands turning younger yet.  Should I sue the company?

Dining Room - Not knives, forks etc as you would imagine but a candle. A friend of mine bought me this lovely National Trust Candle.  It smells so lovely that I don't want to burn it yet.  What a lovely thought it was too.  Can you smell it?

Hope you had a lovely weekend.  Today we had sun and it was warm. Extraordinary.  Had to grab this day with both hands as it may be the only summer day we get!

GUESS WHO?

At the weekend I went to visit a good friend of mine.  He does have a bit of a chip on his shoulder but boy can he sing.  He really fancies this girl called Christine.  Haven't met her yet.  It's about time he met someone and settled down.  He spends all his time underground. He's very pale so I've told him he needs a good holiday in the sun. As he loves opera I suggested that he goes to Sydney Opera House.  I painted this while he was asleep.