Pencilvember Finale: Museum Aquarelle

Slightly exaggerated smiles for Bug and the first cat below.

As with all art challenges, it was rewarding to participate in Pencilvember again, but I’m happy and relieved to be done! For my final week, I used my favorite watercolor pencils, Caran d’Ache Museum Aquarelles. Even in their dry state, their ultra-softness and thick cores were ideal for the fast and loose quality I was going for with these 20-minute sketches. I thought adding light washes to intensify values would help me in my quest for speed. However, as much as I like using watercolor pencils for foliage and urban scenes, I don’t like the way applying water takes away the texture of fur when I’m drawing animals (unless I have time to wait for the water to dry so that additional dry layers can be added on top). I ended up using water very sparingly.

This is a good time to talk about the Bee mixed media sketchbook I used throughout Pencilvember. It has a lovely tooth that takes colored pencils beautifully. Although I didn’t use enough water to really test it, the paper had no problem taking the light washes that I did apply. I also appreciated the 8-by-8-inch square format, which was ideal for pet portraits.

It’s too bad the paper seems to come only with a wire binding, which is my least favorite to use (this book was given to me by ArtSpot of Edmonds when I participated in the store’s benefit for PAWS last summer). At my desk, it was fine, but I don’t like carrying a wire binding on location or the way the pages rub against each other (especially with pencil usage).

On the other hand, a wirebound sketchbook has one benefit that I hadn’t thought of when Pencilvember began: Several of my subjects were pets of friends. If I had made the portraits in my usual hardbound sketchbooks (or even a staplebound Uglybook), I would have been reluctant to tear pages out. The spiral binding made it easy to pull sketches out and send them to those friends as a surprise (and it always makes me happy to imagine the recipient’s delight).

Mona Lisa smile for Whiski

See notes below on how I experimented with color to help me sketch the raccoon's black fur. 

Here are a few more things I learned toward the end of Pencilvember and in my final week:

• While still using photos as my main references, I tried giving imaginary touches to some of these. I used to think drawing from imagination meant that I had to pull everything directly out of my head; I now know that’s nonsense. Pros use lots of reference images, and so can I.
•  One of the challenges of mixing imagination with realism is maintaining light logic. When I used multiple reference photos with varying light sources, I had to choose a single light source and imagine how it would light the imagined part so that it would be consistent with the rest of the image.
•  The raccoon (my own reference photo of a visitor to our back deck a couple of years ago) gave me an opportunity to try an experiment on the fly. One of my challenges with black fur is showing the distinction between the local dark color and shading on that fur. As a quick shorthand, both in execution and in helping me identify the distinctions quickly, I used green first to quickly indicate the local color. Then I used dark blue to shade the black fur. I like both the effect and the ease of thinking this through in a limited time. I know I could also do this by varying the values of plain ol’ black, but somehow that requires more thinking! (Besides, a green and blue raccoon is just more fun, don’t you think?)

I deliberately used unnatural colors for this challenge to keep myself from getting
fixated on trying to "match" reality, but in Mookie's case, she really did have pink ears!

I can always use more practice, but these two solid months of drawing animals during InkTober and Pencilvember have given me the confidence to get back into commissioned pet portraiture much more quickly and efficiently – and that was my ultimate goal with both challenges. Win!

 Although my intention was to show the pencils I used each week, I kept forgetting. So here they all are. It always feels so good to have pencils in hand! Thank you, colored pencils, for an enjoyable and instructive Pencilvember!

Derwent Lightfast

Caran d'Ache Luminance

Caran d'Ache Museum Aquarelle

Faber-Castell Polychromos

Vintage and contemporary Prismacolor

Matching Mugs

 

Seattle Marathon

 

11/30/25 Olympic Sculpture Park and Seattle Marathon route near Pier 66

Seeing the map of the new Seattle Marathon route in the Seattle Times last week made me realize that I had never sketched at a marathon before. I knew that Gabi Campanario, illustrator of the map, was also running in the marathon. It all seemed like an excellent opportunity to organize a sketch outing there!

Had I known the temperature would be 31F that morning, I might have hesitated, but the expected 15,000 runners probably didn’t mind the cold. Putting on my brand new, extra-long down coat and boots, I was ready, too.

Meeting up at the Olympic Sculpture Park, which was near the end of the route, USk Seattle had a good view of participants on their last mile. I made one sketch near Calder’s Eagle sculpture (above) in silhouette against the brilliant sun while runners streamed by.

Around the time Gabi expected to finish, I walked down to Western Avenue to get closer to the excitement. Despite the crowd of cheering onlookers, it was surprisingly easy to find a spot with a good view. I had an app that indicated when Gabi would be close to the finish line, and I was watching for him carefully, yet somehow I missed him! When I next looked at the app, he had already finished!

Disappointed that I couldn’t cheer him on, I still had fun cheering random runners. A large team of marathon supporters called out encouragement to runners at various points: “You got this! Almost there! The last mile!” Some carried signs with the names of specific runners they were cheering for. Although I’ve never been a runner myself, I felt the exhilaration they must have felt after all the months of training and commitment to their sport. Congratulations to Gabi and all Seattle Marathon participants!

Better Than Shopping: Gab & Grab!

 

11/28/25 USk Seattle Gab & Grab at Northgate Branch Library

It’s become our annual thing: Instead of shopping on Black Friday, USk Seattle members happily swap art materials they don’t want for others that they do! Held at the Northgate branch library this year, our popular Gab & Grab was well-attended, and lots of grabbing commenced. It’s a fun way to de-stash, share with friends, and try new materials without spending a dime.

Despite last year’s major studio downsizing (see this post for images of some things I brought to the last Gab & Grab), I still managed to find quite a load to bring. And since I was committed not to take anything back home, I had time to step back (or actually step up onto a chair) and sketch the fun.

(Incidentally, with all the art materials I’ve de-stashed, I’ve been meaning to do a post about which products survived my massive cuts – the things I kept and why. It might still take me a while to figure out the best way to approach the subject, but it’s on my list.)

Let the grabbing commence!

Curated

 

The current exhibit of art from generous friends

Making use of a narrow space

As you might guess, I have lots of arty friends. They have given me many small art works and handmade cards over time, and it has bothered me that I’ve simply stashed them in a box. They should be displayed and rotated regularly so that I can appreciate them and think about their makers’ love and generosity.

I finally found a solution I like: It’s similar to a cork board in execution, but the material is a modular set of felt-covered boards. I have several more square modules and a little more wall space in my studio, but I don’t want to invite visual clutter. I might leave it like this for now (top of post) and see how I like it.

In a small, narrow space between a studio window and the closet that was otherwise being wasted, I put up a couple of the felt modules vertically (at left). Although the vast majority of my work is in bound sketchbooks where they will stay, clearing out and moving my studio last year turned up a surprising number of sketches on loose paper. I’ll put some of them into rotation in this space. Currently on exhibit is the Gage Drawing Jam promo poster from a couple of years ago that features my life drawing. I also found the original drawing I used to print a Valentine card for the spouse guy way back in 2014.

Bird Day at the Zoo

 

11/26/25 Chilean flamingoes, Woodland 
Park Zoo

Red-legged seriema

White-naped crane and red-crowned crane

Aside from the obvious reasons to visit, Woodland Park Zoo is a scenic place for fitness walking. To beat the chill, first I hoofed briskly around its 92 acres, taking circuitous trails to increase my steps. Eventually I slowed down to sketch a few residents. After beginning with a few flamingoes and cranes, I decided to stay with the bird theme that day.

The most exotic and beautiful bird I sketched was a Victoria crowned pigeon (below). With a headdress like a peacock’s tail, it strutted around in the Conservation Aviary, where many birds are free-ranging. Because I was still and quiet, it walked very close to me, looking for feed.

I can think of very little that I enjoy more than drawing animals from life – except maybe drawing animals from life on a warm day.

Victoria crowned pigeon

Exotic and free-ranging!

Reverse Downsizing

 

11/25/25

When we were on vacation in New Orleans decades ago, Greg had picked up a jester alligator – exactly the kind of thing New Orleans is full of. Made from an actual preserved tiny alligator and about a foot tall, the figure is wearing a glittery jester’s outfit. It still has all its tiny, sharp teeth. Although it had always disgusted me a little, it was exactly the kind of weird thing that my spouse guy is attracted to. It had been displayed in his office all that time.

Last year during the peak of my downsizing activities, I did not hesitate to include the jester in the boxes of junk I was putting out on the driveway for my neighborhood’s  “free” garage sale event (like a regular garage sale except that everything must be free). A good friend had stopped by to “shop” at my house, and one of the things she left with was the alligator. I told her how we had acquired it, we laughed about it, and she said she knew someone who would love it.

Strangely, as little as the alligator appealed to me, I felt a pang of regret seeing it go. Although I had no problem getting rid of most of my spouse guy’s old junk, some junk seemed emblematic of his loveable quirks.

The jester now occupies a space on the mantel next to
my bronzed baby shoes and Greg's family heirloom clock.

Fast-forward to a few days ago. That friend is now downsizing herself to get ready for a move. I was helping her pack when I spotted the jester alligator, which I thought she had gifted. It was in a pile of stuff that was destined for giveaway. I took it back!

Sometimes reverse downsizing happens, and I roll with it.

Happy Thanksgiving!