The olive oil from Fattoria Bacio (the estate that hosts my workshop in Italy) is the best I’ve ever tasted! During our week at the villa, the students and I sloshed it over just about everything at dinner each night: bread, pasta, salad, meat, and vegetables. And by the end of the week, we all […]
Category: Sketches
Italy Sketchbook — Travel is NOT for Sissies!
I always have such high hopes when I head off on a trip, thinking I’ll be able to share lots of great stuff with you here on my blog while I’m away, but it just doesn’t seem to work out that way. Things get very busy when I’m teaching a workshop, and there just aren’t […]
“Sketch Your Life!” Workshop at Summerhill
Last weekend I hosted my first three-day “Sketch Your Life!” workshop here at my home, and we all had a great time exploring the possibilities of sketchbook journaling. I injured my toe when I was rearranging furniture for the workshop. Ouch!! I ended up with a nasty infection, but it’s healing nicely now, thank goodness! […]
Sketches from Maine – Part 4
Andrew Wyeth painted hundreds of paintings in Maine during his life, and the Olson House was one of his favorite subjects. It’s now part of the Farnsworth Museum. We visited on a beautiful summer day and had a chance to sketch for awhile after touring the house and watching a documentary about Wyeth. The house […]
Sketches from Maine – Part 3 (Step-by-Step Tutorial)
During my June workshop in Maine, I waited all week for the perfect day to drive to the top of Mt. Battie and spend some time sketching. My patience was rewarded when we awoke one morning to abundant sunshine and clear blue skies. The view from the top of Mt. Battie is spectacular – deep […]
Sketches from Maine – Part 2
Picture yourself sitting in an Adirondack chair somewhere along the coast of Maine, water gently lapping at the shore in front of you and seagulls soaring lazily overhead. The sun is sinking low in the sky and there’s a stillness in the air, as if the earth is holding its breath, waiting for darkness to […]
Sketches from Maine – Step-by-Step Iris Watercolor
Merryspring Nature Center is an idyllic little gem in the heart of mid-coast Maine. The day we visited, we had the place entirely to ourselves. There was so much to draw that I found myself wandering around for awhile just taking it all in, waiting for something to “speak” to me. Should I do a […]
Sketches from Maine, Part I
I’ve been finishing up some of the sketches I did while in Maine earlier this summer, and it’s been a lot of fun reliving that special time that I shared with my mother and five students. Three of them flew all the way from California to be there! All sketches were done in a 9″ […]
Road Trip Sketches
When I taught my Maine workshop a few weeks ago, I had to do all the driving to Maine and back – 16 hours each way. I generally don’t enjoy driving on a long trip. It’s boring, exhausting, and sometimes frustrating, like the time I blindly followed my GPS into a traffic jam in the […]
Summerhill Sketching Hits the Road! (+ Corn & Basil Tart Recipe)
Every month I host “Sketching at Summerhill” here at my house. It offers an opportunity for my creative friends to get together, learn a little something, paint a bit, and enjoy some fun and fellowship away from the daily grind. I love having everyone come to my home in the summertime when the flowers are […]
