Holidays begin #65

Daily painting #65  6"x8" oil painting on primed canvas board

It was a good feeling this morning to wake up to holidays (read "long summer vacation"dear American friends out there)!!  I am an early riser, the early morning is my best time of day, so of course I was still awake EARLY! I could enjoy the morning...no morning school rush! There was time to enjoy...go slow...drink an extra cup of coffee and ease into what the day had to offer. Early mornings are always full of anticipation for what the day may bring.... right now I am anticipating a good summer holiday with loads of quality family time...my best!

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A row of red #64

Daily painting #64  4"x6" oil painting on primed canvas board

Sorry to bore you with more cherries....but I just can't get enough of these juicy little crimson gems! They have taken centre stage again today...an upright leader setting them straight...another raised in applause ... one turning shyly away ... and others taking their final bow....a royal show of crimson!

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First cherries #63

Daily painting #63  6"x6" oil painting on primed canvas board

It must be nearing Christmas....cherries are on sale again at the market and the food stores! YUM!!! I love cherries! Fresh, juicy little treats that even look like Christmas.... like shiny red Christmas baubles...good enough to eat!

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I had to share these sweet little images with you ....

My daughter Amy, who is 10 years old and loves spending time pottering around in my studio, decided to start a little daily drawing in one of her sketch books. Tomorrow she will do daily drawing #30 and I am so proud of her! Every afternoon she finds an image in one of her picture books and focusing mainly on shape and spatial relationships she does her little drawing completely independently...no help from busy Mom! She is self motivated and so enthusiastic....daily completion of an image takes dedication...I am so proud of her commitment and passion...long may it last!

Paintbrush #62

Daily painting #62  4"x6" oil painting on primed canvas board  SOLD

It is the end of the last full week of studio classes for the year...WOW... how fast the year seems to have flown by! Hope the paintbrushes aren't left to go hard over the holidays...

Keep those paintbrush miles ticking over ladies... keep those brushes working!
Happy holidays....

Shelly #61

Daily painting #61  6"x8" oil painting on primed canvas board

One of my furry children have been sick! The other morning we realized that my rather fat old lady Shelly cat was nowhere to be found...she is normally under our feet at breakfast time, crying for water out of the fridge (she only drinks cold water!!!) And generally demanding cuddles, scratches and attention from whoever will show interest! She is a homely old girl and so panic set in when we realized she was nowhere to be seen! A massive hunt followed...my husband eventually found her in the thick bush in the public garden adjacent to our house ...she was limp, fatigued and something was wrong!

We wrapped her in a blanket, sped off to our vet and the poor girl spent the night in "kitty hospital" on a drip and antibiotics. We are still not sure what happened, at first I thought it could be a snake bite but couldn't find any puncture wounds...so we will never know! But she is home ....and it is so good to see her sleeping in her favorite spot on the carpet in the lounge! Hope she is on the mend!

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Threatening rain #60

Daily painting #60  5"x7" oil painting on primed canvas board

From one extreme to the next! Yesterday we were sweltering in the heat....today we have been running for cover as short bursts of rain fell! Yesterday the light was so intense in the afternoon, I struggled to paint outdoors...today it was gloomy and dull! As hard as the sun tried to make an appearance, the rain clouds just kept hovering, threatening more rain!

60 days of daily paintings today...thank you to all of you who send me messages of encouragement and comments....I love hearing from you all and your feedback is much appreciated!

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends and family!

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Summer light #59

Daily painting #59  6"x8" oil painting on primed canvas board

Today has been a sweltering hot, sticky summers day! The typical Durban humidity was testing our resistance for the months ahead! My children came straight home from school and jumped into the swimming pool! I settled in the breeze (what little there was) on my bedroom veranda which overlooks the pool, so that I could paint...and be a responsible Mommy watching my kids swim at the same time! 

However the light was so intense that the colours were awful, the painting a flop and I was getting hot and bothered!!! I picked up a new canvas and looking out over the tree tops, our house is high up overlooking a public park dense with trees, I decided to stop fighting the light and paint it! The sky was so bright it was almost white....but not quite! So today's painting is a quick sketch with paint...I had fun making marks in the paint, I worked quickly and captured a fleeting image! After my quick sketch I headed straight to the pool to cool off!

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