This weeks drawing......over the garden fence

Hello Lovelies, 

just look at these wonderful cottage garden flowers that I photographed last June. Aren't they just stunning.

They were in my lovely Mum in Laws back garden . 

Ooooh Lupins and Foxgloves , wonderful.

The reason I searched through my stored images this week was because I had started a sketch of this view, across the same garden .....

Not quite so lush and pretty. It actually wasn't as dark as my camera makes it look in this photo and I liked the roofs and chimneys just visible over her neighbours hedge.

This is the sketch I did sitting in the warmth of Mum in Laws lounge, looking out across the garden, fences and hedges.

 You can see I've copied the roof line as well as I could but  my imagination was already thinking of things I often see here, that I could add to the view for more interest and colour.......

When I started to do a neater drawing in my large sketchbook the ideas evolved , so though the fixed structures remain the same , the picture has even more going on...including people..........

as usual I've gone over the drawing with a fine pen before colouring as I like this effect . I got out a ruler to do the washing line and the clothes prop as I didn't trust myself to be able to draw such straight lines free hand :0)

When I start to colour in I like to work my way down the page as I've learn't that it avoids the bit you have already done getting smudged. And to avoid getting grease from my hands onto the bottom of the page I try and remember to cover that part with some plain paper........

 In this picture I'm trying to show you how I GRADUALLY build up colour. For a large area like this roof I use the side of the "lead" and hold the pencil away from the tip........

This was the first of about five colours I used on the roof, building up the shading gradually until I was happy with the effect.

And here is the finished drawing............

Ta- dah........

You can click on the picture to see it more clearly

I really love all the colour in this one, it's so happy and summery.

The people in this image are my Mum in Law, with her back to us, talking to her neighbour over the garden fence, as she often does..........

Rascal, her fluffy cat is asleep on the wheely bin 

And Snowflake , her other cat is walking along the top of the fence, while the washing blows gently in the breeze...........

There is a deckchair, ready for a little sit down among the flowers.

Here's a photo of Snowflake, these cats are about Eighteen years old now but still quite lively.....

I really love how the roofs and chimney pots turned out ............

Mum in Laws garden is such a pretty spot that I think there may be more drawings of different parts to come in the future...........

Thank you for all your super kind comments....I know I've said this before, but I really am touched that so many of you take the time to encourage me in this drawing adventure.
Jacquie x

My Garden :: April

Hello Lovelies, 

with the blissfully warmer temperatures we have enjoyed this past week my garden has suddenly burst into life.

There are not that many flowers yet but the ones that are in bloom looked so happy in the sunshine I couldn't resist photographing them.

I've played around making a mosaic of the prettiest ....Oh and a beetle :0)........

L to R from the top they are....

1.Grape Hyacinth 2.Daffodil 3. Pansy

4. Hellebore 5.Ladybird 6. Lung-wort

7. Hyacinth 8. Tulip 9. Kilmarnock Willow

 These are mostly pretty familiar to you lovelies I'm sure, but such a joy to see after a long, cold winter.

I'm planning to do a mosaic like this each month through the summer as it seems like an ideal way to record and share the changes in my garden  as we progress through the year.

My ( our ) garden is very much a family space , with lots of stuff....currently a trampoline,  a rabbit run, swings and a large slide. Not to mention the mess behind the shed , but it's well used and much loved. 

Here is how  my favourite border looks in mid April. You can just see my veg patch in the distance. There is not much in flower here yet, just Lung-wort and some miniature Daffodils,  but I thought it would also be nice to record how this part of the garden changes through the summer months and into Autumn ....

I hope you will enjoy seeing the changes and the prettiest bits of this little patch of earth that gives me so much pleasure.
Jacquie x

♥ 52 weeks of happy ♥ 15/52

Hello Lovelies , 

this week I've been on holiday from work and the boys were on their final week of Easter school holidays. We have been busy cycling , walking ,swimming and relaxing at home . It's all gone a bit too quickly for my liking but there have been LOTS of happy moments.

Here are a few more.........

1. Growing things.

How could I resist trying to grow some Zinnia flowers after seeing the stunning displays of them over at Sweet Birdy Love.....do pop over and see Claire , she is super talented at machine embroidery too........

In my little plastic greenhouse there are already green shoots, just sunflowers and marigolds so far.........

In the veg plot I've planted Carrots, Spring onions, potatoes, Garlic and Lettuce ( under the juice bottle " Cloches")

not pretty at the moment , but hopefully it will be productive.

2.Warm sunshine and signs of spring at our local country park..........

 Cowslip

Larch

I was particularly interested to see this Swan on his/her huge nest....

The boys cycled , I ran , but only just....oh dear, I need to try and get back into a routine now the weather is getting better.

3. Yummy cake :0)  this is Easy Banana Cake.... recipe HERE , be warned, it's very moreish. There's none left now........

4. Blossom trees beginning to flower....I LOVE pink trees ..........

Finally, finally spring is really getting going ...hurray.

Hope you all have a great spring / autumn week.

Jacquie x

April Flowers

Hello Lovelies,
just this week the Daffodils, usually a common site along roadside verges and in gardens in March, are starting to bloom in earnest.
As the week has progressed there have been more and more appearing and it's a wonderful sight :0)
I couldn't resist stopping to get some photographs close up on more than one occasion......

 Bright yellow with huge trumpets

 Pretty pale yellow

and these with gorgeous orange centres.

They are such a happy sight when the countryside still looks like this...........

It all looks pretty dormant but if you look very closely there wild flowers beginning to bloom

 Middle son spotted this teeny Speedwell at the edge of a field.

And in the wood more plants were making the most of the light conditions , flowering before the shade from the canopy of leaves appears.........

 Dogs Mercury.....not very colourful but what a great name 

Lots of yellow flowers near still water........

Colts foot

And in amongst the old fallen oak leaves.........

pretty little Celandine , with it's heart shaped leaves.

These miniature flowers may not be the showiest of species but, like the Daffodils, they herald warmer months and natures beauty to come.

 I'm very much looking forward to that and I'm sure you lovelies in the Northern Hemisphere will feel the same .

Jacquie x

This weeks drawing....Time Outdoors

Hello Lovelies,
thank you for all your comments on my previous post. Quite a few of you said that you recognised  where we had been, others enquired where it was .
  Bradgate park is somewhere we had not visited before but it does seem that it is much loved by  people who spend time there and I can see why. It's a huge park , able to offer a gentle stroll beside the river with a pushchair and youngsters on bikes, or an energetic hike in solitude. It also has an interesting history and wildlife.

But more than anything else I loved the open spaces and unchanged, natural landscape.
I loved the walk with a climb and the stunning view , it's a bonus that there is an interesting structure at the summit as well. The folly at the top of Bradgate park is called " Old John Tower" .

On Saturday it was a busy spot , despite the steep walk , and I imagine it's usually like that on any  pleasant weekend day.It's somewhere to wander around and take in the 360 degree views. Somewhere to sit and recover from your climb, sheltered from the wind.
There's a wider angle photo here
I really like the shape of the folly and decided I would try and draw it,with it's many visitors, because that's how it  was ...... busy and colourful and full of life.
Here's my initial rough sketch, just to get my ideas down on paper.........

I then worked from my photo to draw the tower and added the people from my memory and imagination.
Here is the neat pencil drawing.....



 Here it is in fine black pen, ready for colouring.....

here it is partly coloured.........

And here is the finished picture.........

click on the picture to make it clearer

Again I've tried to add light and shade to show that it was a sunny day. The colours of the tower were tricky. I build light layers of colour till I'm happy with the effect. In this case I started with grey as a base then added mid brown, dark brown. Yellow and a tiny bit of orange to warm up the sunny side. Black, dark blue and purple to darken the shaded side.
 I'm certainly no expert on drawing , but I thought some of you lovelies may be interested to read how I approach it.

I think  the sky was more important in this picture than in any of my previous pictures . I do that last ( not sure why ), so I was a bit concerned that I could ruin the whole thing if I got it wrong. I haven't tried to draw clouds before so they were " hanging over me" till I did them :0)
I could have drawn a cloudless sky but I wanted to try and draw the little fluffy clouds that were so beautiful on the day. I'm pretty pleased with how they turned out...PHEW .

To the right of the tower you can see the Toposcope that is also at this site. It's marked with lines that radiate out and indicate what landmarks are visible in each direction. It's also inscribed around the edge to the memory of Lady Jane Grey who was born here ........

This is the other corner...I'm pleased with how the fluffy dog turned out :0).....

In the middle a couple sit in Old John's doorway with their thermos flask, enjoying the view and a man looks up at the plaque on the towers wall..........

This is the plaque..........

It says.........

In grateful remembrance of

CHARLES BENNON

of Thurnby in this county

who in the year 1928 with the helpful concurrence of the heirs of the Greys

of Groby purchased from them this park

of Bradgate and presented it in trust

for the city and county of Liecester

that for all time it might be preserved

in its natural state for the quiet 

enjoyment of the people of

Leicestershire

His true memorial lies around

It certainly is a wonderful park. It was great to explore it for the first time with my growing family in tow and I really enjoyed drawing a memory of the day.........

Thank you for your continued encouragement :0)
Jacquie x

Time Outdoors

Hello Lovelies, 

it's finally happened.....a day with sun and relative warmth.....I had begun to wonder if it would ever arrive this year. 

Yesterday morning , while hanging out the washing , I realised I was outside , WITHOUT a coat, and it was quite pleasant.

Wow, this was a day to enjoy some fresh air, without the need for hats and scarves and gloves. Sorry if I'm going on about this a bit, but  this year has been so cold up till now that time outside has been fairly unpleasant .

After much cajoling (of the  boys, not Mr BM...he's always happy to go for a walk ) we headed off to somewhere new. A country park quite a distance from our home. 

It's not very hilly where we live and yesterday I had the strong desire to climb a hill. 

We parked in the valley , close to a pretty stream

And didn't really know where we were going, but fortunately there were well trodden paths to follow........

The ground was quite boggy and almost moor like.......

The old trees were wonderful...so gnarled and full of character.......

Getting higher now , we can see our destination.........

There are plenty of people up here ...no doubt they too are relishing the milder temperatures, lack of wind and beautiful sunshine ( though you can see that there is still a little snow on the ground ).......

I really love the short steep climb near the top , focusing on getting my reward of a sit down at the summit......

Ahhhhhhhhh........just wonderful, the far reaching views are spectacular...........

And we sit there for quite a while enjoying drinks and a little snack....I love milky coffee from a thermos on these occasions.......

Suitably revived we head off the explore the folly at the summit......

It's a popular place today. I had to wait quite a while to get this shot without lots of people in it.......

And the perfect spot to fly a kite in the gentle breeze.........

After a while we tore ourselves away and enjoyed a bit of solitude in the wide open spaces ......

The light was ever changing as clouds cast shadows across the landscape..........

Back in the valley we had a look around some interesting ruins..........

And looked back up at the route we trod.......

At last 2013 has given us a day to spend a few hours outside without getting frozen...it was positively warm down by the river..

Lets hope this weather sticks around for a while , it really is so welcome.

Jacquie x