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. 

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.

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.

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.

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!