Avast!

To celebrate yesterday's "international talk like a Pirate" day, I took up my pencils last night and drew this!

Avast!

Love, Actually

A little while ago I made a pencil portrait called Manifestly, Love. 
It was a portrait of my friend, Lynne and her dog, Ben.

Today I show you the other half of the portrait, which features Stuart and Ben.

I'm going to frame these two pencil drawings and give them to Lynne and Stuart as their wedding present.

Eminently fitting for  Manifestly, Love and Love, Actually.

Love, Actually

Manifestly, Love

I don't think this pencil drawing needs any explanation .. it is....

Manifestly, Love

This picture will have a permanent place in my Gallery Site, 

Pat Elliott Paintings (click to visit)

Pencil Portrait

Sharon, who I went to the portrait demo with, posted a picture of her sister on the Painting Friends forum.  I liked the look of the photo and fancied making a portrait.
Every now and then, I feel the need to flex my fingers with pencils - so a pencil portrait it is:

Sisterly Smile

Its not perfect, I can see a couple of improvements I could make, but they're minor and I'm reasonably happy with the overall effect :)

Jellyfish: Black and White

Because I was in the drawing mood, this painting is actually pencil.

I hope you enjoy it.

Jellyfish I: Black and White

Pen and Pencil Sketches

Enjoying the good weather sitting outside in the garden, the little black book of sketches comes out again, and two more blank sheets are drawn upon .
The first, a pen sketch copying from a book - there are no firemen in my garden !



The second a pencil drawing of one of my garden ornaments. She is currently lying on her side and already, the weeds are trying to claim her.
It reminds me of the poem by Rudyard Kipling "Letting in the Jungle"

Here We Go...

Here we are, all ready for the off!
Today we go visiting a friend who is at home, leg in plaster.
Sketch book, pencil and darling Missy are all coming too.

If the weather is kind to us, we may all sit in the garden - where there are some beautiful blooms to sketch.

Its a lovely way to while away a few hours.
Good company, funny dog and laughter.

We wish you the same for your Sunday xx

Four Square Otter

I am sometimes asked if I paint in anything other than watercolour.
The answer is usually no - other mediums aggravate my asthma.

But with this otter I did use a few different techniques.
The first is in coloured pencil, the second, pen and wash, the third ink only and the fourth a true watercolour.

It is interesting to see which people get drawn to, as I have all four on display, in a square. Luckily for them I have absolutely no psychology training, else they could be revealing untold mysteries about themselves!

I wonder if you have a favourite?

Pencil drawings

Some days I only make pencil drawings.
This keeps my drawing skills fresh - and black and white can be more evocative than colour.
The two pics above are of a friend's cat. The first in her younger days, and the second, her sunset years.

Both done from photos - because as anyone who owns a pet will tell you, they don't stay still for long! All part of their charm.

Pencil drawings sometimes take me much longer to create than paintings.
I think its because with pencil I am more likely to do a defined representation rather than the suggestion of the animal - as in the Chicken painting in the earlier post.

I love drawing. I spend hours at a time drawing. Its not unusual for me to look up and five hours will have flown by and I will have been in a world of my own. Very relaxing. Everyone should give it a try .