Breeze

Not much of a breeze just lately – more of a wild hooley! This probably describes the beautiful canine Breeze just as well on occasions. Here she is looking more serene.

The beginning and my little helper saying "don't forget my walkies"

Building up the layers of Indian ink with an increasing amount of detail

My not-so-little helper

Just squeezed a blog into June after spending the day at my easel for once – sanity restored! It was meant to be a weekend at the easel but the sun made a rare reappearance yesterday so we went outside to enjoy it. I’m working on a secret commission so I can't show it to you just now, but I do have a few images of my little helper........

A different easel, a different painting, but the same corner and dog - 18 months on

Pastels selected on an analogous palette  (note the mug)

Titus: "if I get in the way, she won't forget that I haven't had my walk yet"

Titus: "Don't just step over me, take me walkies!"

World Sheep Dog Trials

This week I was at the World Sheep Dog Trials in Tain followed straight after by a lino printing workshop. The house looks like a bomb’s hit it and my eyes look a bit like lino prints, so I think perhaps I may have over done it  – but I have had fun. The craft tent was a great success and I completely sold out of cards and prints and gave away all my business cards. Between sales I was working on a pastel portrait of a sheepdog. I become so engrossed when painting that I can be totally oblivious to what’s going on around me. On a couple of occasions the lady on the stall beside me had to tell me that someone was trying to buy something! When I turned round, there was not only a patient customer but another dozen eyes watching me paint. On the second day Henry and Titus arrived and succeeded in drawing a large crowd of giant schnauzer admirers. Consequently, neither of us had a chance to see any of the sheepdogs in action and I am now completely out of stock. Having just looked at the Creative Moray Firth  facebook page I realise what I missed - including Princess Anne who I hope wasn't trying to talk to me whilst I was engrossed in my portrait!

On Sunday I tutored a cabin full of creative souls in the first steps of lino cutting. Despite my dwindling energy levels, a roaring log fire, homemade cake (thanks to Louise) and the aroma of linseed and seaweed seemed enough to keep everyone happy all day. 

" What sort of dog is that ? Isn't he lovely "

Can you smell the lino warming by the fire?

Can you hear a pin drop? Or was that a dollop of seaweed?

Dog in hand

Back to commissions at last after a few weeks of diversionary activity! On the easel at the moment is lovely golden dog having a crafty tickle. The tickle is from his master's hand, which is also appearing in the painting – so an unusual (daunting) composition with a hand, checked shirt and chair leg as well as the handsome dog! Below is also Max – the surprise anniversary present I was working on a while back, which I believe is unwrapped today. That’s it from me – must get back to the easel, as waiting patiently in the queue are  2 gangs of sheep, another 3 dogs and a lamb with a blue door!

Initial drawing and my selected pastels

Max - another commissioned portrait

Mucky Paws

I think I’ve been going ever so slightly mad of late on account of an absence of art in my routine. It’s been a bit of a slog since Christmas, house building, job interviews and an adolescent dog. This weekend I managed to start a portrait commission of a very photogenic German Shepherd called Kai. I’m working from a lovely professional photograph for the pose and using my own photos to get a more accurate coat colour. As I drew the outline of Kai I was reminded of my childhood when I had a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle of an equally handsome German Shepherd – it took ages to put together with at least 500 pieces which all looked the same! My father made a special board so that the unfinished jigsaw could be shoved under the sofa away from the dog and the kitchen table. My unfinished portrait of Kai is raised to the highest position on my easel – so provided Titus keeps four paws on the floor, it should be quite safe till I have time to do some more. The winner of my Christmas prize draw to win a pet portrait arrived this weekend to have her photo taken. Misty and her pal were not so good for the camera as Kai, being more interested in our fearless cat than posing for a portrait! It was cold and wild, so when the dogs got bored with cat, the wind flattened their ears - I may have one good photo out of 125! Tonight inside, the Simpson household is comparatively calm and cosy. Henry is surfing the net after a hard day building a house, Titus is asleep on the sofa after an enjoyable run on the beach and I am feeling a little more sane after getting dirty at my easel.

Kai's outline

Mucky paws

Early stages

Misty & her pal planning to eat cat!

The sheep that came to tea

Perhaps last week’s blog was a bit too cryptic in places. The sheep who came to tea? Princess Neptune of course. I was at home, working away and trying to keep warm (with fingerless gloves, and a padded boiler suit hiding a lower layer of thermals and warm scruffs) when I was called to a film shoot on a nearby croft. I quickly removed my outer padding and threw on a respectable jacket and scarf to hide my under-layer of scruffs. I quickly did the best I could to correct a bad hair day and slapped on a bit of blusher and lip salve before heading off into the unknown.

I arrived to find Alan Jenkins from STV, a very large camera and a warm welcome. We had a civilised lunch of hot soup and buns then headed outside to do our bit for the camera. The jacket I had grabbed was a sheepskin, fake, but wholly inappropriate I realised – so I decided to expose my scruffs and froze instead. The wind finished off the salvaged hair do. Princess Neptune was very suspicious, but performed for camera by going up & down the stairs before being hand fed biscuits from the table. She went into the car, out of the car and ate about 3 bowls of proper sheep food before she would do her finale. Ellen (Princess Neptune’s devoted owner) and I were amused when Alan disappeared for a few minutes and came back nicely groomed in a smart jacket ready for his piece to the camera, indoors in the warm and out of the wind! When the excitement was over, we had a wee dram and laughed about our more than unusual day.

Here’s a link to the STV news item  (put up with the adverts then skip to 19.00) and below is my unedited version of the finale (you had to be there!).......… 

The roof did lift safely into place and the phantom photo flipper has gone.

Red Lorry, Yellow House

All is a little crazy of late....

On Monday I learnt that the lack of sugar in my coffee may have saved my laptop from certain death.

On Tuesday one of my contact lenses did a backflip in the night, stuck to the roof of it’s case and broke into three spikey pieces when told to get back in its dish.

On Wednesday a sheep came to tea, followed closely by a TV camera.

On Thursday I went to Inverness and stayed the night with someone I had only met on Facebook (all above board!) 

On Friday it appeared that ,whilst I was away, a big red lorry delivered a yellow house.

Yesterday I sat on the floor of my new studio and imagined what it would be like with a roof and walls........

......today the phantom contact-lens-flipper is inside Henry's computer playing with my photos - most will only upload upside down.

Tomorrow I hope that my laptop comes home, the phantom-flipper moves out and the roof lifts safely into place.

Christmas trees and woolly bows

December has arrived and I have already decorated and undecorated the Christmas tree 3 times – only a little one for my stalls! This weekend I was at Bettyhill munching delicious homemade truffles and sipping mulled wine behind my stall.

No doubt I shall be eating something festive next Saturday at Caithness Horizons Christmas Market. I shall be selling my cards and prints plus a special line of bottled surplus energy from Titus.com. At home the preparations are underway - the cake’s soaking in brandy, I’ve found some 3 year old alcoholic mincemeat in the back of the cupboard and there’s a hunk of venison in the freezer – so what more do we need!

A few weeks ago I shared the progress of a commissioned pet portrait of Princess Neptune the pet sheep. Her loving owner was tearful when she first saw the finished painting and pleased that I had captured “that look”. She presented me with a bundle of Scottish bank notes beautifully tied in a bow of Princess Neptune’s wool. I put it on the table to photograph, clicked the camera and then it was gone – Titus caught a wiff of the wool and stole it! I squealed which caused Titus to run round the room in delight. I cornered him under the table and rescued the hard earnt cash – but the woolly bow was gone in a rapid gulp and lick of the lips!

Dust & Fluff

I didn’t do too badly with my over-ambitious list of things to do last week – the house is full of blind, but mended furry animals and there is a half-done sheep on my easel. I had kept all my drawing materials out of harm’s way with the arrival of Titus – since the tiny house we rent necessitates the sharing of one’s makeshift studio with a bouncy dog. By the time I had set everything out again, and reintroduced myself (and Titus) to the hoover, half the day was gone. It’s surprising how much concentration is required to do a commission – much more than any other painting because I am so keen to make sure I achieve the likeness my clients expect. My little helper didn’t appreciate this, so not much was achieved on day one. Today, day two, was much more successful, thanks to Henry’s assistance with both domestic and dog duties! I remember trying to work when Ned was a pup – he secretly stole a yellow pastel stick from my box. This would have remained undiscovered had he not then knicked a pair of black tights from the washing line and covered them in tell-tale yellow saliva! I consciously arranged my pastel box higher off the ground than usual, but subconsciously I approached my painting process of Princess Neptune a little differently as well. I feel more aware of colour temperature and didn’t start with the nose. I don’t know what her nozzle did to put me off, but I think perhaps my choice of colour has been influenced by my pochade practice.

My little helper - waiting for me to open that interesting box!

Pretty as a Princess

This week I was commissioned to do a portrait of a pet sheep – that’ll be a first! I love to meet my clients and subjects face to face and to take the photographs – it’s not always possible of course. But this time it was and I now know all about my next subject. This sheep was very small and sick when she was born, and would certainly not have made it through the night had she not been rescued and taken indoors to be nursed and hand fed. She was born on the day of the Grand National and named after the winner – Neptune, but (being a girl) is known as Princess Neptune. For 3 months she was bathed and blow dried every day, allowed to sit on the sofa and showered with lots of love. She has since moved back outdoors to the Croft where she was born, but refuses to acknowledge the other sheep, and keen to get back indoors whenever she can. When I arrived she was waiting in the yard having had fer face washed and her fleece brushed. She is kissed a lot, so often has red lipstick on her face ! Beneath her thick fleece, marked with two purple hearts, lurks a lot of sheep – the result of being fed biscuits (she prefers Digestives!). Princess Neptune also likes to ride in the car, and knows exactly where to find the travel sweets. I took 168 photographs under the careful watch of a very jealous sheep dog. Whilst looking at the photos on my camera, the sheepdog quietly lifted his leg on my shiney red boots as if to show his disgust at the disproportionate amount of attention given to a sheep! I think I fell under the spell of Princess Neptune so I may ask her to model for some Christmas cards when the commission is finished!

Sketchbook Project, Subject: Titus

My painting hours are suffering due to the little puppy – so far since his arrival a week ago I’ve managed two ink drawings and a sketch! The little boy had a strange introduction to life with us – 4 days on the road and a different house every night – but he’s now adapted to his permanent surroundings and has even adopted his crate as his own nest without too much hassle. This means I can now go out with my pochade box again, knowing he’ll be content for an hour or so and not eating his way through the soft furnishings! Since the little beast is growing so fast, I thought it would be good to capture his progress in my sketchbook, so I’ve signed up to the Sketchbook Project and opted for the Australian Tour. Subject matter: Titus.

MS Secret Art Show

It’s that time of year again, the Multiple Sclerosis Trust’s Secret Art Show submission date has been and gone – I only just made it. Why is it that when you have lots of notice for something, you end up doing it at the last minute? I’m a day or two behind at the moment and can’t seem to keep up with the date – so I thought I had a day to do my submission, and then realised I only had til the post left that day! I finished my painting and marched the mile or so off to the post office, only to find that it shut half an hour earlier. So, since the post office doesn’t have a postbox, I then had to march back (uphill) towards home, and another mile in the opposite direction to get to the post box before the last collection. This was Thursday and I still have aching legs! Lesson learnt – don’t leave it till the last minute next year and memorise opening hours of post office! This week’s commission, was in contrast, completed and posted without feeling like I’d run a marathon in the process.

A pet portrait in ink

The ACEO production is going well, and the restaurant sign is finished at last. To make sure I don’t pile on the pressure I need to build up a small body of work in miniatures before I start my mailshots so they will be starting in May – plenty of time to subscribe! I’ve had a little dabble with ink for my latest commission. The client wanted a hand painted birthday card of a black labrador – unusually, any old black lab would do! I used water colour paper and Indian ink to create an image of a handsome doting Labrador. To give the painting some colour I applied a light wash of turquoise watercolour, allowing a few sploshes on the dog’s face where the fur reflected the light. I then applied layers of ink at varying dilutions to build up the form of the glossy black beast. A hint of pink for the lolloping tongue finished him off and a little dab of white gouache to put a sparkle back in his eye. Voila

Networking on the nightshift

My paints have arrived, but I hid them so that I wasn’t tempted to stray from an important commission! I’m so inspired by the new landscape around me that I’m easily distracted from my commissions. I’ve been working on a racehorse known to his friends as Derek. The weather has been a bit gloomy the last couple of days, and I’ve needed to do some long hours to finish this one. I invested in a daylight lamp which sheds a fantastic consistent light in my “corner” studio. Whilst hunched up at the dining room table I asked myself why I wasn’t painting at my easel – it’s so much easier standing up and I can hold my palette like a proper artist! Unlike the rest of Britain we are without snow, despite frequent blizzards. I’ve recently met a new arty chum (who not only moved here at the same time, but is also at a similar stage in her artistic journey as myself) and we ventured out together in such a blizzard to meet and join the Caithness Artists. Thanks to a list of contacts from another arty chum I was invited to have a stand at an equestrian show at the North Highlands College on Wednesday evening– an opportunity to look the part and get out my floaty skirt and shiney boots. Well, that’s what I thought, until I read the directions which made clear reference to a farm. The venue was actually an indoor ménage, complete with damp sawdust, freezing temperatures and a bit of light snow thrown in. I was glad I had opted for thermals and walking boots instead! I’ve developed a chillblane and burnt the midnight oil this week, taken a new commission and sold a few cards, but more importantly I’ve begun to make some new friends.