Inktober Sketch 14 - Statue of Mary

This is a sketch of the statue of the Virgin Mary on the side of St. Luke's Church.  Done from a photo in my 9 x 12 Flexi-Sketch sketchbook.

Inktober Sketch 13 - Planting Irises

Sletched on 10/15/16 in 9 x 12 Flexi-Sketch sketchbook, before planting some iris bulbs in my garden bed.

Inktober Sketch 12 - Cemetery

A sketch of the "old" section of St. Luke's Cemetery.  There are a lot of interesting tombstones there.
10/14/16 in small moleskine sketchbook.

Inktober Sketch 11 - Scarecrows at the Whistle Stop

These are some cute scarecrows on display at the Whistle Stop, a fun place for a quick breakfast, lunch or ice cream.  In my small moleskin sketchbook. 

Inktober Sketch 10 - Pinecone

I was doing a little decluttering this morning and found a bag of pinecones that I had looked for periodically for several years.  Surprise! 

Inktober Sketch 9 - Red Roses

A couple of red roses that I had pulled from a bouquet and photographed for a future watercolor.

Inktober Sketch 8 - African Violet

A sketch of my friend's African Violet, done from a photo. 

Intober Sketch 7 - Glass Animals

A sketch of some of my glass animals - elephant, cat and bunny. 

Inktober Sketch 6 - Abstract Oak Leaf Design

This was a fun one to do, kind of like doing a puzzle. 

Inktober Sketch 5 - Laguna, CA

Ink sketch of Laguna, CA from a photo I took several years ago.

Inktober Sketch 4 - Trees, Trees, Trees

I took my small moleskine sketchbook on my walk this morning.  So many trees that I had trouble focusing and ended up with a panorama. 

Inktober Sketch 3 - Floral Bouquet

Floral Bouquet sketched from photo of Mothers' Day flowers. 

Inktober sketch 2 - Pumpkin Patch

Day 2 of Inktober, and a sketch of a pumpkin patch from a photo on my iPhone. 

Inktober Sketch 1 - Sea Shells

I haven't sketched for a while, so I'm joining the Inktober challenge with a simple sketch of some of my seashells.  Pen in my Flexi-Sketch sketchbook. 

Andrew

Close, but not quite a likeness.  I think I might be making the heads too long. 

Mom

Today's sketch is from a photo of my Mom, taken on Mother's Day sometime in the late 50's. 

Brandon

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I can see some things that I would fix on this one.  And I'm not fond of drawing teeth.  LOL! 

Face a Day

Last month I participated in the International Fake Journal Month.  My "character" was a shut in who sketched characters from her favorite TV shows.  I enjoyed this so much that I decided to keep sketching faces this month.  Using photos, at least for the first few.  I took a photo of Jadyn in her white hat a couple of summers ago.  I thought it would make a good painting.  It might end up in a painting at some point. 

Pen and Ink in my Square Aquabee Sketchbook

My sister Joan gave me a square Aquabee Sketchbook for Christmas, and so far I am reserving it for ink sketches.  Here are a few that I did in March in South Carolina, and two barn scenes from Orange County, NY done from Joan's car.

Sketching an Amaryllis As It Grows

A few weeks ago I purchased two amaryllis bulbs.  They were packaged in their own pots.  I opened and planted both on the same day.  One started growing a stalk almost immediately, and I did a couple of sketches of it.  In fact, it started growing two stalks, and one of them is starting to open into the flower.  I was expecting a red and white one, from the picture on the box, but it seems to be more pink.  I did a few sketches of it in various sized sketchbooks.  The other didn't show anything until a couple of days ago.  Then I saw a leaf poke it's way through, and then a bud appeared.  I decided to sketch both plants together, which required a tall, narrow format.  This is in my Handbook Journal done with my new Preppy pen.

Digital sketching

On the way home from a trip to California in July, I discovered a free digital art app, and entertained myself on the trip sketching beach scenes from memory.  I played with this app occasionally, doing about 20 sketches.  Then my sister Joan told me about Artrage, and today she showed me how to get started using it.  First I painted the white rose.  I would have been very happy with it if all my black ink lines hadn't smudged.  Just like real ink.  LOL!  Then she showed me how to use layers.  That would have solved my problem.  Must try this one again.

Next I experimented with layers on a sketch of an angel Christmas ornament.  What fun!  I know what toy I'm going to be playing with the next few days.