Painting no. 30

Painting no. 30 

Little Pink Slip

and here they all are together - phew!!!  Some I like, others not so much but I did it!!

Painting no. 29

Painting no. 29

Little Black Slip

I had very limited time to paint last night, and was really tired after a day's work so looked around for something simple I could paint so as not to get left behind at the last hurdle in this painting a day challenge.. I wondered if this little black slip on it's hanger would work as a painting so gave that a go - and I quite like the result - nice and simple but hopefully effective.  I may do another for painting no. 30 as I've got limited time again to paint this evening as we're out for a meal.  Oh to be able to not have to work and paint during the day more!!!

Day off tomorrow and hoping to get a good Winter hike in but the weather's looking a bit dodgy to say the least - this reminds me that we haven't been keeping Two Pairs of Boots up to date.  The last post was in September and we've been on lots of walks since then so must start posting there again!

Have a wonderful evening whatever you're doing!

Painting no. 28

Painting no. 28

Crested Tit

When I first started seriously painting birds I told myself I would only paint birds that I have seen and experienced, starting with the birds in my garden - remember my garden bird series?   I still try and do this as I do prefer to paint birds/animals/landscapes I've actually studied from life and would preferably like to paint them from life!  However I've not got the skill yet for that - and probably never will - they just won't keep still long enough and I'm in awe of artists who sketch wildlife in the field.  I will give it a go at some point  but the next best thing for me is to use the photos taken (or rather Gary has taken) when we're out and about in the mountains, at Nature Reserves, in the garden, at the zoo etc etc.   I don't think it really makes a difference to the finished painting in my case - can you tell from this painting whether I've seen a Crested Tit? Probably not!  And unfortunately I haven't seen one ...... yet.. but hopefully when we go to Scotland later in the year I will get to see one .... but I've studied many other birds and hope it comes across how much I adore them!   Anyway the reason I've painted this little cutie is because it is the current theme on Paint Colorful Birds for Fun on facebook and I couldn't resist it.  After painting him I can't wait to see one for real (fingers crossed) when we visit Scotland in June

Paintings 26 and 27

Painting no. 26

Koala - painted for Australia Day

Painting no. 27

Red Fox

from a photo by Nicke Reeves

Did anyone watch Winter Watch last week?  Love it and can't understand why it's only on for a few days - it should be on for a few weeks just like Spring Watch - in fact it should be on all the time!  Anyway I enjoyed following the antics of the urban foxes so thought I'd paint one.  The cute Koala was painted especially for our Aussie friends as it was Australia Day at the weekend!  I've not seen a Koala in real life - thought I was going to when we visited Edinburgh Zoo but the enclosure was closed for some reason when we went :-(

Only a few days left before the end of the painting a day month - so many things in my head I want to paint though so no idea what I'm going to choose from the list over the next few days - feel free to throw some ideas at me!

Painting no. 25 Sasha

Painting no. 25

Sasha

Painting No. 25 was painted as a birthday gift for a special friend of her gorgeous black labrador Sasha.

Paintings 22, 23 and 24

Painting no. 22

Grey Crowned Crane

The lovely Polly Birchall suggested a paint a crane for the challenge and I presume she meant the feathered kind so here it is just for Polly - they are spectacular birds - I had run out of watercolour paper so this one is quite small, done on a scrap piece as is the Panad for Painting no. 23 (Panad is Cuppa in Welsh in case you were wondering)

Painting no. 23

Panad

Painting no. 24 is one that has been on the back burner to paint for a while - Arctic Terns are such graceful birds but they don't half give you a pecking when you dare walk through their territory - as I discovered when we visited the Farne Islands - the reference photo was taken by Gary at the Farne Islands.  It's great to be painting birds again and must do some more!

Painting no. 25 will be a special one as I'm painting my friend's black labrador as a birthday gift.  The photo she's given me is gorgeous and I really hope I can do her justice! 

Thanks for popping in - hope you are all well out there in blogland!!!!

Paintings 19, 20 and 21

Painting no. 19

Red Sandals

from a photo by Sue (PMP)

Painting no. 20

Boy and his Dog

from a photo by Freda Austin Nichols

Painting no. 21

Rusty Old Campervan

from a photo by Katrina Mac