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Getting Settled In A New Place

It’s been such a long time since I posted here on my blog. We’ve all been through quite a lot the past two years haven’t we? Well to add to my stress and at the same time happiness, we’ve moved from England to the Scottish Borders! Moving during a pandemic when they kept closing the borders was so stressful, but we’re moved now and getting settled in.

This is one of the first paintings I did at our new place, while standing in our back garden looking at the hills and sky. It’s a very small watercolor and I wrote the names of birds I could hear at the bottom while I painted.

We are still discovering just how beautiful our new area is, the Borders are wild and quiet, just what we like. The whole process of moving and settling in and creating new garden beds has and continues to, take lots of my time.

I unpacked paintings I hadn’t seen since I moved to England, has it been 6 years? More? They are like old familiar friends, and now many are hanging up where I can see them.

I will be focusing on getting a new printer set up and organizing proper selling of my prints and originals from my website. I’ve never had the chance to really do it right! Now I also have the fun little needle felted characters which I look forward to making available to buy soon.

Some new friends! I love creating these one of a kind characters, totally posable and unique!

I have a YouTube channel that has been sitting waiting also, so lately I’ve been adding videos so I can get back into it. Now with the house, gardens, new studio set up, new lands to explore, I’ll have lots to share there! Please go look, “Like” and hopefully “Subscribe” to follow my endeavours! Here’s the link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnrD9rYXZ6KWYeDRElAvGyw I’ll get better at it as I go, I’m learning a new video editor called “ShotCut”.

Here I’m sketching along the river near our house, just up the valley. I need to get out to do this more often, the garden has been keeping us both busy!

I have really missed sharing here and can’t wait to get back to it. I have lots of new artwork to add to the Gallery too. What’s been holding me back in many areas is just figuring out how I want to redesign my website Galleries. I’m also having trouble receiving email notifications when someone leaves a comment! I need to find help for that issue with Word Press.

Finally I got my watercolors and color pencils set out, here I am working on an illustration for my new granddaughter, I’ll share more about that later!

So, has anyone missed me? What have you kept busy with during this pandemic and are you OK? I miss talking to the great people who leave comments for me here, you always inspire me to keep creating!

I’ll share some pictures below of our area and some more studies.

Sketching “Rubers Law” from the top of “Bonchester HIll”, and boy was it windy and cold! Very hard to draw, but look at that view!
This is a small unfinished gouache study of our back garden and byre (barn).
One of my illustration studies, I love the ‘old style’ like this and find drawing bugs really fun!
On a cold day, the sun is lighting up the hills far to the west. This is looking over our garden in the front where we are creating a small orchard.
There’s also new wildlife to discover here, this is a Green Hairstreak butterfly, with metallic green wings! It flew up out of nowhere when I was by the byre and settled on the Honesty I had planted. I was so excited!

Well that’s all for now, so much to share! Please don’t be shy, leave me a comment and I’ll check back here to reply to all. I hope you’re all keeping well, see you soon with another post or YouTube video!

Time for Mushrooms!

(This post was written on November 19th, 2016, but I never got to post it. Since we’re at that time of year again I guess it’s ok to share it now, better late than never!)

It’s the time of year for mushrooms! Whether you like to forage to eat (not me) or just admire (me), they are popping up everywhere. Now that we’ve had some rains and the ground is getting cold and soggy…I’m seeing them so much more.

Huge old Sycamore (Maple) I admire.

Huge old Sycamore (Maple) I admire.

At the top of the lane I like to walk up most days, there’s an especially old huge Sycamore tree I admire. At it’s base are what I think are three different kinds of mushrooms. I tried to go up to draw them the other day but got side tracked with the Brown Trout painting adventure. So this time I went right to them and found a good seat on one of the huge roots.

Drawing with mittens on!

Drawing with mittens on!

It was really cold just sitting there so I had to do the entire drawing wearing my mittens! I think I did pretty well with that in mind. Also to save time I did not do a pencil sketch first but drew directly with the permanent ink pen. That went ok too!

Look at all these lovely mushrooms!

Look at all these lovely mushrooms!

I love this new (to me) type of mushroom, I like imagining how the top split apart as it grew and expanded, kind of like how the continents split apart a long time ago! Each crispy looking brown shell part tops a bit of the mushroom flesh, making a great three dimensional subject to study.

Side view of one mushroom.

Side view of one mushroom.

Above shows the side view of one mushroom, you can really see the texture on it’s cap and see it’s ring around the stem like a little collar!

Below you can see how I progressed along, feet getting colder all the time.

My drawing is getting there, just one more mushroom!

My drawing is getting there, just one more mushroom!

I was definitely feeling the cold chill by now, but I really wanted to add one more mushroom behind these.

Mushrooms, brown permanent ink

Mushrooms, brown permanent ink

This is how far I got in the field, I got that last mushroom in! Now when I have time, I’ll add some more details of leaves and grasses…digging into the dark areas a bit. Then I’d really like to add the reddish brown color of the mushrooms using watercolor. We’ll see if I get that far.

Beautiful, I'm guessing at "Shaggy pholiota?

Beautiful, I’m guessing at “Shaggy pholiota?

Above is a picture of another mushroom cluster growing under that tree, I’m guessing it’s “Shaggy pholiota” (totally guessing from my small field guide!). It was so wonderful looking in it’s neat little cluster that dispite being very chilled to the bone, I decided to do a quick pencil sketch.

Very quick pencil sketch of mushrooms.

Very quick pencil sketch of mushrooms.

This also was done wearing mittens, it was really hard to do like that and to be very cold at the same time! But maybe I can find time to do up a little watercolor study with it? I loved the texture of these mushrooms, shaggy on top and stem.

Here you can see them growing in the root area.

Here you can see them growing in the root area.

Here’s a picture of the cluster growing in the root area, and I believe those on the root below it are more mature individuals.

A bright "Yellow Brain Fungus"

A bright “Yellow Brain Fungus”, (Tremella mesenterica)

This Yellow Brain Fungus I found growing on a stick broken off of the tree. The branch was heavily damp and covered with lichens and dead leaves. When I turned the stick to look at all it’s sides, the fungus flopped about a bit; it was so cool! I laid it back down on the ground, hoping to observe it each time I come back.

Do you see any mushrooms growing where you live? Post me a comment about them and where you are located, you don’t have to know what kind they are, I usually don’t know them either!

 

Ancient Ash Tree at Edlingham Castle

This is the ancient ____ tree at Edlingham Castle.

This is the ancient ash tree at Edlingham Castle.

I love really old trees. Living here in England I am rich with so many of these wonderful trees. This tree is one that lives at the corner of Edlingham Castle, growing upon what looks like a very old part of the castle. I think some many years ago when the castle was left to ruin, a sapling must have grow up there. The oldest part of the castle was built in the 1300’s and saw many changes over time. I wonder what might be concealed in the rocks all tightly held by this tree’s massive roots?  You never know! One thing I know it does have is a geocache that someone hid there, it’s been there years! (oops was I supposed to keep that a secret? 😉 )

My drawing of the tree done in ink and wax crayon.

My drawing of the tree done in ink and wax crayon.

As I approached the tree, on this sunny May morning, I found a spot in front of it and just plopped down in the grass. I liked the form of the ‘scar’ where a huge limb must have been years ago, I think it was cut off because the area of the cut is so flat. I first sketched it in with an permanent ink pen then used a grey wax crayon to shade in medium values. I like how the two mediums worked together, and they’re easy to carry about in your pocket.

This shows the tree in relation to the castle.

This shows the tree in relation to the castle.

That’s the tree on the left (above), you can see how large it is!

Another view of the castle and the tree, taken in December.

Another view of the castle and the tree on the right, taken in December.

This view of the castle I took in December, on a cold grey day, standing near Edlingham burn.

I hope you enjoyed this brief look at Edlingham Castle and it’s old Ash tree! Please leave me a comment below, love to hear if you have any special old trees in your neighborhood!

 

Tiny View of Edlingham Church

Ink drawing of Edlingham Church

Ink drawing of Edlingham Church

In the morning I like to get out for a quick, short walk before I eat my porridge. Sometimes I wander down to Edlingham Castle and the view I sketched above was the view of the church (St. John the Baptist) as you return up the path. I love the way a fenceline can add an elegant curve and show perspective, even when just indicated by little lines like toothpicks.

These are the notes I put on the back of the drawing.

These are the notes I put on the back of the drawing.

This particular sketchbook is very small, so it’s easy to hold and carry in my pocket. So for the small size I was happy with how the composition turned out.

St. John the Baptist Church from the castle.

St. John the Baptist Church from the castle.

This is the church as you approach from the castle. You can see the Butterbur is growing so tall, it loves growing there by the wall!

Here's a nice view of the church

Here’s a nice view of the church, St. John the Baptist.

Here’s a view of St. John the Baptist Church from July 2015.

Snowdrops in the Churchyard

It’s been a long time since I used my watercolor pencils, so I thought I’d bring them out with me on this day (in March). The snowdrops were out in a thick blanket at the “St. John the Baptist” churchyard, Edlingham and the view in the distance with “Edlingham Castle”, the Viaduct and “Corby Crags” was great; so I thought I’d try to capture a bit of it.

Beginning sketch I did while sitting on the wall of the churchyard.

Beginning sketch I did while sitting on the wall of the churchyard.

I took this picture with my cell phone as I sat on the cold stone wall of the churchyard, cold enough I was drawing with fingerless mittens on!

This is how far I got working outside.

This is how far I got working outside.

Above shows how far I got working on it outside sitting on the churchwall. I got most of the important things drawn in the right place and color for a lot of it. I was very stiff and cold so had to stop!

This shows a bit more color laid on

This shows a bit more color laid on

This shows a bit more color layers put on, more on the trees and background detailed a bit. You can’t see it but I also put some color on the castle.

Finished! In all it's vividness and rich greens!

Finished! In all it’s vividness and rich greens! That’s Edlingham Castle and the Viaduct in the background.

This little painting really tidied up nicely! The fence ended up being a bit different than I planned but I think it’s ok. I wanted to leave the whites to show the snowdrops; I mostly showed them by using the greens around them. When I was done I used a white gel type pen and touched here and there helped really pull the flowers out more. I’m also experimenting with using Doc Martin’s Bleed Proof White, a non permanent white ink, to add touches of white (tree trunks).

I hope your Spring is shaping up nicely where-ever you may be! Happy Spring!

Painting on Gummer’s How, Lake Windermere

This past summer my husband and I tried to pop out to the Lake District when we could. Unfortunately time slipped by and we only got out there a few times for the day, except of course when my son visited and I got to stay in Keswick two days with him! (but that’s another story). On this occasion we explored Kendal, then some small tarns but the best part was walking up Gummer’s How and having a picnic. (please click on photos to see larger views)

The Chocolate House, Kendal.

The Chocolate House, Kendal.

First we stopped in Kendal and had a quick run around, but lingered a little longer in the Chocolate House. It’s a very small shop filled with all kinds of chocolates and candies. To be honest I didn’t buy any this time, I just didn’t feel in the mood….I must have been NOT feeling myself! Well it’s a reason to go back again.

An amazing old door on a small church we visited.

An amazing old door on a small church we visited.

This is an amazing old heavy wooden door on a small church we visited.

A very scary ford to cross.

A very scary ford to cross.

This is a ford we came to, I’ve never seen one this wide! There was no sign saying not to cross it but I told Gary I’d get out of the car if he tried! It looked far too deep.

I'm so glad we decided not to cross this ford!

I’m so glad we decided not to cross this ford!

We drove around the long way and this is the ford from the other side. It was awful, the ground was all broken up from previous flooding, and it must have been 2 1/2 feet deep! There should have been a sign to warn people!

Gummer's How, waiting for us to come up!

Gummer’s How, waiting for us to come up!

This is Gummer’s How and you can just see Lake Windermere at its base. Time to get our boots on and get walking.

There were some really pretty areas on our walk up.

There were some really pretty areas on our walk up.

We passed small grassy glades and this one had a small stream that sounded so refreshing.

This is the path that curves around towards the top

This is the path that curves around towards the top

As we get near the top the path goes close to the edge and you get a great view of Windermere. I had to stop and take it in, though Gary said to keep on, he knew the view got better!

Now don’t get jealous of this next photo! It looks like a scene from the “Miss Potter” movie and I love that!

Settling down to do a watercolor of the view at Lake Derwentwater.

Settling down to do a watercolor of the view at Lake Windermere.

Of course my big plan was to do a watercolor study up top and I’m happy to say I did. Many times we walk and when we’re at the top of our hill I don’t feel like painting or there’s just no time.

The day couldn't get more perfect!

The day couldn’t get more perfect!

After our picnic of Ploughman’s sandwiches (cheese and pickle), various biscuits (cookies) and a can of apple cider we shared, I settled down on some soft mossy heather to draw.

This apple cider was nice at our picnic.

This apple cider was nice with our picnic.

It helps to carry a plastic bag to sit on, the ground is usually very damp so I always have one tucked in my field kit.

My small sketchbook and travel palette balanced on my knees.

My small sketchbook and travel palette balanced on my knees.

The difficult part is translating that huge expanse of landscape to your small pad, I focused in on several of the distant mountains and first sketched with pencil.

This shows how far I got while working in the field.

This shows how far I got while working in the field.

The above picture shows how far I got in the field. One of the best things about painting or drawing outside, is all the things you see as you sit there! We heard loud airplane engines and then two really big military airplanes flew right up the lake; it was below us and that perspective made it even more exciting! They must have been returning from an airshow?

Finished watercolor of "Lake Windermere from Gummer's How"

Finished watercolor of “Lake Windermere from Gummer’s How”

Here’s the finished watercolor (above). The most challenging thing (as always) was the changing shadow patterns on the hills. You can sit and gaze all day at the moving shadows from the clouds, picking out brilliant greens in one area then fading to appear in another spot. It helped me greatly to look at photos I shot when I finished up details at home. I had to pick a bit from many to fit what my painting was showing.

Click on this Wikipedia link to read more about Gummer’s How. I love the quote by Wainwright at the end, I guess I don’t have to hang up my boots just yet!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gummer%27s_How

The sunset as we drove home.

The sunset as we drove home.

The end of a very nice day, this was the sunset as we drove through the Pennines back to Northumberland.  I hope you enjoyed the extra photos today, though I know August is long since gone, I’ll always remember our hike and painting on Gummer’s How.

View from Lordenshaws, Rothbury

The end of May was very chilly here, wool sweaters and extra layers to peel off when the sun did decide to shine. Gary and I have continued our walks of course, especially when the rain holds off. Most of our walks are later in the day and we don’t have much time for me to sit and paint. But today we went with the intention that I’d sit and do a study of distant hills. Yay!

The view I painted was in this direction, looking up Coquetdale.

The view I painted was in this direction, looking up Coquetdale.

We had a ramble around on Lordenshaws, which is situated right next to the well known Simonside Hills, a favorite place for walkers. Lordenshaws is a much more gentle hill and an easy walk but still offering great views.

Here's the largest cup and ring marked stone at Lordenshaws with the marvelous view in the distance of Coquetdale.

Here’s the largest cup and ring marked stone at Lordenshaws with the marvelous view in the distance of Coquetdale.

I love that there are ancient cup and ring marked stones to see as you walk, made about three thousand years ago!

Here's more of a close up to see the rings and the 'holes' are the cup marks.

Here’s more of a close up to see the rings and the ‘holes’ are the cup marks.

This shows the markings or carvings a bit closer. It’s amazing to think of how long ago they were made and we always have a wonder about the people that made them. What were they like? What did they think of and what do the marks mean? No one can answer that for sure.

View I had of the hills and Coquetdale valley.

View I had of the hills and Coquetdale valley.

Though there are many views, I decided to paint this one, with Simonside being just to the left and the view of Coquet valley coming from behind it. I liked the distant hills with fields marked by lines of hedges and then the nearer farm fields just at the base of Simonside. (It’s very hard to see any detail in this photo, because the sun was in front of me getting low.)

Painting with cold hands as the sky constantly changed.

Painting with cold hands as the sky constantly changed.

I tried to get as much done as possible, then at home I looked at the photos I took on the computer, and tried to touch it up. It’s always best to get as much done in the field as possible, as the colors are never the same on the computer! The hard thing is when you work outdoors, especially in the chilly evening air, your hands get cold and your back aches…well mine does. So I try to work quickly.

Finished! "View From Lordenshaw's" watercolor, 5.5"x7"

Finished! “View From Lordenshaw’s” watercolor, 5.5″x7″

Here’s the finished painting, only 5.5″ x 7″, including the ring holes!

More posts to come, it’s been such a busy summer I am far behind! Please sign up your email (upper right) to recieve notification of new posts.

Cheers!

Garden Plant Studies

It’s gardening time again! I started a variety of seeds on the window sill and we’re really looking forward to the sunflowers! The spring has been so cold that I waited a bit to plant, but we can hope for warmer weather. Now the sprouts have been moved outside and a few are planted. Fingers crossed, we’ll see what happens!

Sunflower seeds sprouting.

Sunflower seeds sprouting.

Above are two very small studies of the sunflowers sprouting; I LOVE when seeds sprout! After messing around with my sunflower sprouts, I decided to get outside, now that the sun is actually shining!

Photo of the plant I did the watercolor study of.

Photo of the plant I did the watercolor study of.

I wanted to do a small study of some plants and decided on this one. I liked how the tips of the leaves at the bottom of the plant are reddish, a good alizarin crimson red. I’m almost positive it’s a weed, but who cares? It looks good for a study.

My sketchbook and paint kit, where I sat in front of the garden.

My sketchbook and paint kit, where I sat in front of the garden.

I sat on the grass and the plant was about eye level in a low bed. I clipped my sketchbook and the tiny paint kit onto a stiff peice of cardboard, then I could hold it in one hand. I used a waterbrush to paint and the tiny white bottle is water that I can squirt onto the pan for extra wetness, I also use it to wet my colors.

Close up of my kit and sketchbook.

Close up of my kit and sketchbook.

Here it is a bit closer. The sketch of the bird was done from a dead wren that my husband’s cat killed. 🙁 I would usually like to do a study from it but just didn’t have time, so I traced it’s outline. Poor sweet little thing. Happily though, the wrens are nesting behind our house, under the seat of an old bicycle! We keep the cat well away from there!

Coming up soon, a post about an adventurous hike and some watercolors that were inspired by it. (it involves little mice!)

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Watercolor of Edlingham Castle – July 2015

Here’s a post I wrote from July, never too late to enjoy a bit of sun I guess!?

July 16, 2015

Did I tell you how much I LOVE living here in Northumberland? I did? Well I won’t get tired of saying it or doing my sketches out in the field.

7-16-15 havin a rest (3) (460x345)

Taking a rest, enjoying the day, in my barn boots of course!

I went up in the field near Edlingham Castle, I had it all to myself, no sheep or cows about. It was just that kind of day that I sat on the ground to think, listen to the birds and enjoy just living. Then I just lay back and put my straw hat over my eyes and let time slip by, and it was ok.

7-16-15 havin a rest (4) (345x460)

Trying to take a selfie with a 35mm isn’t easy!

Laying down amongst the clovers, it made me feel like a kid again. Isn’t that funny? I should go lay in the grass more often! Maybe we could start a national “Lay in the Grass Day”! haha.

Below is a picture of what it looked like, my view from the grasses, the clouds were so beautiful.

7-16-15 mouse eye view (3) (345x460)

My view from the grass, my mouse eye view.

And below, this is what I saw near me, a Ringlet butterfly, a very common sight in the fields here in summer. I’m really enjoying learning the new butterflies and bugs here in the UK.

7-16-15 butterfly (3) (460x345)

A Ringlet butterfly on a clover head.

Well I didn’t just lay around all day, after a little while I went down the field, found a spot to stand and did a small painting. Below is a picture of Edlingham Castle, this was what I drew. You can see by the photo, the lighting never stays the same when you’re painting outside. My painting ended with nice blue skies and sunshine!

7-16-15 drawing the castle (7) (345x460)

Edlingham Castle view from field.

Below is the ink drawing I did first. Sometimes I do an ink drawing then paint with my watercolors, especially if I don’t think I’ll have time to paint it. The other way is to do a light pencil sketch and then paint, drawing with ink a little for details on the pencil before or after painting.

(c)7-16-15 drawing the castle (9)

Ink drawing of Edlingham castle, over the gate.

Below is my finished watercolor painting, only 4.5″ x 6″. You can see how bright the colors are, the day really was so bright, unlike the photo! The ink drawing makes it look more like an illustration than a painting to me. Kind of like all details are picked out at once, but that’s ok.

(c)Edlingham Castle wc

Edlingham Castle, Northumberland. Watercolor and Ink 4.5″ x 6″

I hope you enjoyed a little look back into summer! If you don’t want to miss any of my posts, just put your email in the box at the top right column. It’ll send you an email notice and you just respond then you’ll get my posts right in your inbox. Remember though, it’s best to click to come here and read the post, it lays out better on the page (and you can leave comments here).

Northumberland, Land of Distant Hills

As I was looking through my small sketches and watercolors from this spring and early summer, I found I have many that are of distant views of the hills. Scenes that are all around me here in Northumberland England, just drive anywhere and you will always see some far off huge hills in the distance that all the locals can tell you the name of. Yes, all have names, very old names! It’s fun to learn the silhouettes and names of them.

Our favorite thing to do is walk up any of the high hills and see into the distance; can you believe we can see all the way to Scotland!? You don’t have to climb a high hill to appreciate the views though, even walking on the upper lane out of our village gives you views across Whittingham Vale or up to Corby Crags.

(c)view of Cheviots + Glanton

View of the Cheviots and Glanton area in the Whittingham Vale.

The tiny watercolor sketch above is from one of my morning walks along the upper lane of our village. The blue hill in the distance on the left is actually two hills in the Cheviots, one being “The Cheviot” itself. The hill in the center I’m pretty sure is Low Pyke in Glanton, the next village that you can see across the valley. It makes you realize that all the way back to bronze age man, people must have named the hills and used them for direction.

Study of Corby Crags in watercolor pencil.

Study of Corby Crags in watercolor, March 10, 2015.

This little study above is of Corby Crags, as seen from my side yard in spring. It’s just a quick watercolor sketch to practice clouds and colors, but I remember standing there doing it on a sunny day in March, when winter was breaking.

(c)April 2015 Burning Heather on Brizlee 2

“Burning Heather on Brizlee”, watercolor field study, April 6, 2015

This one was done while walking along our upper back lane, I saw smoke from a fire in the distance and stopped to record it. I leaned on a big field gate as I looked past the buildings in the foreground to the long hill in the distance. My husband told me they were burning heather on the moors up on Brizlee, this is to promote new growth of heather shoots for the grouse and partridges (all for the hunting season). This hill I realized later when I looked on a map is all the way in Alnwick, the next village about 6 miles away!

(c)5-26-15 view of Demesne Farm + Thrunton Woods

“View of Demesne Farm and Thrunton Woods”, watercolor, May 26, 2015.

One of my favorite things here is to watch the clouds cast shadows and patches of sun creep across the face of the land. Where the sun goes the greens and golds of the land come alive, it’s so dramatic! The little 5 1/2″ x 7″ watercolor above I did while sitting on the side bank of the road out of our village looking towards Thrunton Woods and Demesne Farm. It’s one of my morning walks that is relatively short but always windy when you get to the top. I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of this view!

"View From Edlingham Lane" watercolor, July 21, 2015.

“View From Edlingham Lane” watercolor, July 21, 2015.

This 4 1/2″x 6″ study was done on the same lane but just a week ago. I was near the top of the lane where you really get hit with all the wind sweeping across this valley. It was a misty day and my hands got cold and stiff, yeah even in July! As I painted this it started to rain (see the approaching clouds?) so I quickly put my kit away…then it stopped….so unpack the kit again! The weather here is just like that, dress in layers because when the sun comes out you’ll get so hot and start peeling off jackets, but as soon as the clouds come it’s cold and there could be a surprise sprinkle in that cloud. I usually bring more than the average walker because I end up sitting or standing still a lot and it gets cold when you don’t move around.

 Next post I’ll share more photos of my surroundings, but still so many sketches to share too! Besides sketching I’ve been busy testing watercolor paper so I can dig in and concentrate on my illustrations, I also got a new watercolor field box that I’ve been using and love. I’ve been recording (with photos and sketches) the local flora and fauna (would you expect anything less from me?) So far I have positively identified 51 birds, 46 different wildflowers, 10 butterflies, 3 moths and any number of unidentified insects, moths, plants etc. It’s exciting to be in a new country with all these new things! I’ll share more of this coming up, stay tuned!