Food recipes

Friday, December 25, 2020

Armadillo on a tricycle.

Pen&ink, watercolor and color pencil on Handbook Watercolor Journal 8 in x 8 in

Christmas Day and toys go together, so today I sketched a toy, a curiously cute armadillo on a tricycle made of carved wood. There are hundreds of inventive and creative pieces of art handcrafted by talented Mexican artisans exhibited at the the Museo La Esquina del Juguete in San Miguel de Allende. This extremely cold but sunny day was perfect to bring a little bit of color to this weather. Primary colors never fails. I had fun using the Sailor Fude Fountain Pen  to do the quirky lines and Faber-Castell Polychromos color pencils to do the detailed patterns in the head, the body and the tail, even the light color pattern on dark watercolor washes worked well. 

Wednesday, December 23, 2020

The Christmas tree of Shorewood.

Pen&ink and watercolor on HP Watercolor paper 10 in x 7 in
The wind was moving the car, it was a new experience while sketching! We sketchers, at some moment, have dealt with mischievous wind, but even though I thought that I would be protected, the wind was rocking the car at times, ha! 

This is the Hall of the Village of Shorewood. That tree on the right, is the chosen one by the city to decorate it with Christmas lights every year. 

This is my Christmas card and with it, I’d like to send to all of you a message of peace, prosperity and health for these Holidays and wishing we hold on the hope of a better future wherever you are.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Shorewood, IL.

Sunday, December 20, 2020

Downtown Morris, IL

Pen&ink and watercolor on HP watercolor paper 10 in x 7 in

It was sunny today I but stayed in the car comfortably sketching this view of downtown Morris. There was certain activity for a Sunday and still in the middle of the pandemia. The ground floors of the old buildings have business open. These towns are known for having a great variety of antiques stores. I know that people who live in the city of Chicago and Chicago area come to these towns to surprise themselves with great findings. A great place for shopping antiques, if you are into that, or just to sketch this beautiful town.

Monday, December 14, 2020

Cross stitch coin purses


Pen&ink, watercolor and color pencil on Handbook watercolor journal 8in x 8 in

I finished one of some project crafts I’ve been doing and finished weeks ago. It was until today that I sketched it. When I was in San Cristóbal de las Casas in México two winters ago, a town know for its textiles, it was impossible not to get colorful skeins of thread, which I knew they would come out handy for projects like this. I made 4 coin purses from scratch, some neat old fashion way to keep little  things organized, I like to cross stitch and well, here they are. Handy, beautiful and sketch-able.

Before sewing them.


Friday, December 4, 2020

Pencil sharpeners.

Pitt oil Base pencil and watercolor on Handbook watercolor journal 8in x 8 in
I’ve never found the perfect portable pencil sharpener besides the electric one I have at home, but of course it is not portable. I’ve gotten some pencil sharpeners since I started sketching and now I have a small collection. Some sharpeners make such beautiful points, like the Steadtler, but it is a little bulky and it doesn’t have the size for my jumbo koh-I-noor hardmuth magic pencil. Others are so bad that they not only mess up the tip but the wood is also rough. I don’t know why I haven’t got rid of them yet. I even tried a make up pencil sharpener! Ha! I draw them today, and noticed many of them have blades made in Germany, it’s like it is one of the specialties of the manufacturing industry in that country, who knew! Well, after some research I found this cuttie M+R (Mobius+Ruppert) made of brass with the two pencil sizes I need. It’s small, sharp, heavy and steady and for sure it will last for a while (replacing the blades of course). It makes a beautiful sharp point, not too short that the tip won’t last and not too long so the tip of color pencils will snap or break. Yes! It just right! I think this is the end of my long search. Thank you Germany! 

Saturday, November 7, 2020

Celebration.

Pencil and watercolor on CP Arches 8 in x 8 in
The news put me in a very good mood. I have to say that I went to bed on the night of election day feeling down and hopeless but the next day, when I understood how votes where being counted and that we needed to be patient my soul came back to me. I felt the need to do a colorful sketch after the projected winner was announced. But why on earth did I sketch a dragon fruit or pitaya to reflect my joy? Well, it was there next to the bananas, celebrating color, just as I was! 

Friday, October 23, 2020

Farmland grid road trip

Pencil and Finetec watercolor on A5 Handbook watercolor sketchbook.

Have you ever wonder what does it look like to drive the roads of those enormous farmland grids when you are up on a plane looking down from the window? I do visit those roads fairly often. My husband and I go out to drive on the roads of farmland, specially during the autumn because of the colors and the harvesting of crops. This time we wanted to get lost, no use of GPS or phones, we wanted to head the road the old fashion way. What we like about these trips is the lack of traffic which allows us to enjoy the landscape as slow as you want. Through the years we have had good and bad experiences. One of them, I remember on my first years of sketching, I wanted to sketch wind turbines, we intended to approach a house to ask permission to sit in the property and sketch the turbines on it, but an uncle Grumpy came to shout us out of his property. Scary, really scary. We ended up lost in the corn fields right under the blades of one of this towers. It's a humbling experience. 

Pencil and Finetec watercolor on A5 Handbook watercolor sketchbook.

We also have stopped on the side of the road to see up close one of those machines on wheels to harvest corn.  The driver suspended his activity, a man as beautiful as a Greek God came out to ask us if we needed something, we replied we were there to watch the landscape, he thought we were on trouble and wanted to offer help, what a kind man.

Pencil and Finetec watercolor on A5 Handbook watercolor sketchbook.

Illinois is known in the USA for producing corn and soybeans. Farmers alternate the crops every year. This past week we saw many corn fields, some fields already harvested and others not yet.  Every field in these grids always have a house, trees, some silos, farm equipment and barns. These sketches are all from this trip last week. It was a pleasant ride, very relaxing.

Tuesday, September 29, 2020

The popular store.

 

Pen&ink, watercolor, gel pen and color pencil on Handbook Watercolor Journal 8 in x 8 in

I had a little more than an hour to sketch in this area. This is a street mall with only three stores. The one in the center is a liquor store and it was the most visited by customers during the time I was there. A woman came out from the store on the right and went inside the liquor store as well, she killed two birds with one stone, ha! The pizza place didn’t have any sales, it wasn’t meal time to be fair. The weather was funny yesterday, it was overcast with sunshine at times and it also rained. I did the sky grayish and added later some spots of the blue sky, I’m not sure if I liked it or not but it is true to what I saw.

Winsor green is not a color I often use directly, I applied a wash of pure color for the roof, once dried I mixed it with Lamp Black to do the darker areas of the roof. Useful paint, the black that is, I DO LOVE using it, it gives the original color a depth so unique. I also used white gel pen. I used to use Uni-Ball Signo, but the less content of gel is in the pen, the drier and inconsistent the lines are.  It has happen to me with multiple Signo pens so I switched to Sakura Jelly Roll. I got a pack with three different sizes, 10, 08 and 05, bold, medium and fine lines respectively. I used 05 to highlight the frame of the windows, I worked fabulously for thin lines, it makes consistent lines on watercolor washes, but let’s be honest, it’s new. So I’ll see how it works with time. 

Thursday, September 10, 2020

The porch.

 

Pencil, color pencil and S&B Alpha Series 8 in x 10 in

We had a taste of fall weather today, overcast with rain. Still the flowers in the plant pot are bright and alive, the trees are still green. I don't want the summer to be over but the hours of daylight are getting shorter. Still ahead this week, we'll have beautiful days to sit and enjoy outdoors. We've seen many animals in our backyard, dogs, coyotes, fox, rabbits, squirrels, a good variety of birds, cardinal, goldfinch, grackle, ducks, hawks (yes hawks hunting) robin, sparrows, waxwings (Impressed so far? Ha!) and flying insects, bees, butterflies, dragonflies, lightning bugs and the less pleasant spiders, flies and mosquito. The suburban backyards are so full of life! I'll sure enjoy the rest of summer  and its little creatures.  

Wednesday, September 2, 2020

Do you like orange?

Pencil and watercolor on Watercolor Handbook Sketchbook 8 in x 8 in

I made scones this morning. The aroma of coffee and something baking in the oven is so good! If you like orange, you may try this recipe (click on Food Recipes tab under the header of this blog). I'm ahead of Thanksgiving but this classic combination of flavors tastes good all year long. I used color pencil over the watercolor wash to add the texture in the orange wedges but the scanner masked it a little bit, if you zoom  in the image you will see it. The crumbling scones and the coffee latte was a hit!
 

Friday, August 7, 2020

Two roses

The two roses are so fresh and beautiful. The slim stems made them look so elegant. I used a glass for beer to put them in water, I like the dark background where they were put and the fact that the glass was suggested. The media choice was Procreate because I had my tablet near me, ha!

I’m getting used to play with layers in Procreate, that not necessarily means my drawings are better but the more I use it, the more comfortable I feel with it.

Friday, July 31, 2020

Pear and Ginger Muffins


Pen&Ink and watercolor on Handbook watercolor journal 8 in x 8 in
Clearly I haven’t going out to sketch on location these past months but that doesn’t mean I cannot sketch other things. I filled my flex nib Pilot Namiki Falcon fountain pen with brown De Atramentis Documented ink. The lines might not appear that different from what I normally do, but the joy of watching the lines going broad and thin is something I enjoy very much.  I used raw Sienna directly to paint the ginger root, just the perfect color. Pear and ginger is a combination of flavors I don’t find in stores. So when I have an appetite for something different  I  make it myself. These muffins are delicious, one of my favorites. A combo of flavors that deserves a sketch. 
Recipe can be found in the “Food Recipes” tab under the header of this blog.

Thursday, July 23, 2020

Zinnias

Pencil and watercolor on Aquarius watercolor paper 6 in x 8 in
They are in bloom, and my sister in-law couldn’t resist to cut some of them and bring these cuties to the interior of her house. The zinnias reminded her of Mexico, my country of origin. The color of the flowers are so beautiful indoors but in the sun they are striking. She told me she would like the see them in a sketch. So here it is. I hope this sketch reminds her of the warm summer in the the long winters we have here.

Sunday, July 19, 2020

Wednesday, July 15, 2020

My other blog.

Pencil, watercolor and color pencil on Handbook watercolor sketch journal 8 in x 8 in

I neglected it for 5 years, I haven’t post any food recipe on my other blog, I think I will give it another try. I publish recipes that I create or try from other sources. I make them and if I like them I share them. I was posting photos but now posting sketches  seem like a good idea. Today I made a potato and leek soup with curry, it was meant at to be eaten cold but I had it warm and it was delicious. If you care for the recipe click on the link Food Recipes, under the header. 

Monday, June 22, 2020

Upper Bluff Historic District

Pen&ink and watercolor on HP watercolor paper 11 in x 7 in
A beautiful neighborhood close to downtown Joliet, the Upper Bluff Historic District, has a lot of  architectural styles. It’s located in the West side of the Des Plain River. This District is well preserved and it’s known for keeping the integrity of the architectural styles built between 1850 and 1930. This house,  near the University of San Francis looks like a Dutch Colonial. The roof shape makes this house so charming and cute, I couldn’t help myself to sketch it. Old and well preserved is something many of us appreciate and enjoy.

Saturday, June 20, 2020

St John the Baptist Catholic Church


Pen&ink and watercolor on Hot Press Watercolor paper 11 in x 7 in
I stopped to sketch this church in downtown Joliet. Three people were hanging ornaments on top of the main door. The overcast sky this morning didn’t help to define the shade. I squinted my eyes with no solution. I was sited in the car in the shaded side, so that helped. It would be easier to figure out where North was if I knew where I was, ha! The promise of rain this afternoon is finally here, it’s raining now, almost night. Nice! Trees will be happy.