Paint Party Friday - Week 26 Who lives here? WimW Journal

I'm back from Victoria, leaving my daughter behind to start 2nd year university. (Sob - bittersweet.) Where do the years go? While we were there I didn't have much time to paint, so this week I thought I'd show you another page from my Walking in my World journal. 

This year I have seen 2 fascinating hollow trees on my walks - still alive and prospering. This is one...

Who lives here?

I wonder. It looks like it would make some fairies a great home! Do chipmunks reside within? Or maybe this is the tree that Alice fell into?  So magical to see such a hollow tree.

Hope you all have a great time at Paint Party Friday. I will try to be more timely visiting this week (though I am writing a paper so I may be focused on that... then again, I may need distractions because of that...)

Paint Party Friday - Week 25 - Travelling Sketchbook for July

Hi PPFers!

I'm away in Victoria, B.C. getting my daughter settled for her 2nd year of university. I'll visit everyone when I have time and internet access but it may not be until next week...

I still wanted to play and party at Paint Party Friday and I finally received the July Travelling Sketchbook! Yay! (Canada Post may not technically still be on strike but their service is atrociously inconsistent and Stephanie's Sketchbook has been in limbo for far too long. Thankfully it is here and about to go on it's way to Nicola in Australia soon - I'll mail it from the West Coast - maybe that will speed things up a bit!) I had just enough time to paint my entry and will write the explanation page on route.

My Julys usually include a fun, al fresco Lobsterfest party with close friends, and fireworks on Canada Day. (My journal paintings last week were based on this year's Canada Day party on the beach.) Those are what I chose to (try and) capture in my pages.

July spread

Right hand page with words/quote

"Live in each season as it passes: breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit." *

Left hand close-up

Background spread for writing about July - simple to make me think of a clear summer day. 

Have a great time at the party, a super long weekend (if you have one) and I will visit you as soon as I can!

*Yikes!! I just discovered I attributed that quote to wrong writer/philosopher!!! It wasn't Emerson it was Thoreau.  :(  D'uh! So sorry Stephanie. I think if I try to fix it I will make a huge mess. :(  

(Note to self - do not hurry, you can mistakes that way!)

Paint Party Friday - Week 24 - Walking in my World

Happy Paint Party Friday! The summer is almost over here and back to school season is fast approaching. Next weekend I will be away, taking my daughter back to university in Victoria, B.C. Not sure if I will have a post then or if I will have to sit out my first PPF. We'll see. 

This week I'd like to show you a few more pages in my "Walking in my World" journal where I am trying to capture sights I have seen while out for a stroll. Last week was based on the rocky river bed and this week, the sandy beach!

Shadows in the Sand

Tracks in the Sand

Beach Bonfire

I hope you have a great last week of August and a fun time at PPF! I look forward to seeing your paintings!

ICAD - Playing with Pens, Watercolour Brush Pens and Office Supplies

I've been trying new tools and supplies lately in creating my ICADs. For a few days, I decided to play with pens and zen doodle and create a few more "Girls with Funny Hats".

Zen Doodling...

 

Girls with Funny Hats...

Then I decided to switch tools and try some using my watercolour brush pens (which are really more like ink than watercolour, and I'm not yet convinced that I like them much). Here are the pens...

And here are the ICADs I created using them...

Chickens...

Squirrel eating my pears!

Flowers

Zebra

Pear on my tree...

Mouse

And then I switched to using more office supplies...

Ballpoint Flower

  

 Highlighter Flowers

 

Highlighter Hearts

  

Highlighter Butterfly

 

Highlighter Carrots

I can't believe August is almost over and so is the ICAD challenge. It's been fun so far!

Paint Party Friday - Week 23 - Walking in and Rocking my World

Thank you all for your wonderful comments last week on my heart shaped rocks! I think it is so cool that so many of us enjoy beach-combing and especially finding interesting rocks! Fabulous!! And even funnier some of the places you find heart shapes in nature or as "gifts' from pets! Great comments! LOL

On our road trip last weekend, I took my paints, waterbrushes and some photos that I have taken on some of my summer walks with me. I started sketching and painting in the car (as a passenger!) and am now almost halfway through my 30  page "Walking in my World" journal. 

Here are a few more on the rock theme:

Another heart shaped rock (@ 12 inches across) in the river - too big to bring home!

One of my silly/fun goals this summer was to build an inuksuk in the river, using river rocks... and I did! Such different rocks were there and the top one was of a much darker kind than most.

Hope you have a great weekend and a wonderful time visiting all the Paint Party Friday participants!

Paint Party Friday - Week 22 -Artist's Way Journal page and Frame within a Frame

Not the most productive painting week, I'm afraid! Oh, well. At least I have one thing to show for PPF!

I love finding heart shaped rocks! Two!

Over the summer I have slowly been working through The Artist's Way and I am now on Chapter 6 where one of the exercises is to go rock hunting and find 5 (ish) stones that you like. (I'd started ahead of Paula and Ileana et al and haven't really been talking about it much here so far.)  While I am having a bit of a love/hate relationship with this book, I am still working through it with a friend. I finally figured out where in town I might possibly find some nice rocks and went on an Artist's Date looking for some to take home. And I thought it would be fun to paint them too! (Not part of the exercise.) It's always a thrill when I find heart shaped rocks. 

And speaking of heart shaped rocks.... I noticed that Kat at Kat Eye View, for her Exploring with a Camera series this week, has the theme of a Frame within a Frame. It made me think of this photo I took in Mexico through rough coral. 

A few minutes later I found a big heart shaped piece of coral just as a bride and groom were walking by! So I gave it to their parents (the bride and groom had gone on already) to give to them.

I'm away this weekend so I probably won't be visiting until after Tuesday but I will try to visit you all then! Have a wonderful weekend and a great Paint Party Friday!!

(P.S. My ICADs this week are mostly zen doodles and aren't painted - I'll post them when I have more free time.)

Paint Party Friday - Week 21 - Index Card Paintings

This week I again went back to creating index cards for my ICAD (Index Card A Day) project and had a mini Paint Party (holiday Monday here) with my daughters Katie and Ruth joining in, and my friends Deborah and Scott as well! They came over to have a swim, saw the paints and started to play too!

Freeform Flowers

Flowering Branch

I still have red on my mind and paintbrush...

My pears are getting a little colour...

Imagining a sunset...

Imagining a moonrise...

Imagining the beach on the river...

If only my apple tree hadn't died...

July ICAD Collage

And from the other paint party players

By Ruth

By Katie

by Scott

and Deborah took her cards with her so I don't have them to show. 

A lovely, relaxing, unexpected Paint Party this week! Happy Paint Party Friday!