Stellenbosch acorn #553

Daily painting #543 pen and watercolour from my sketchbook NFS

Stellenbosch is a beautiful quaint little university town. My husband Andrew studied at Stellenbosch and so we spent the morning walking around the little town and visiting his old faculty. The pavements are lined with beautiful old oak trees and all the little acorns are starting to fall. My ankle is still a little sore from a few weeks ago so walking (slipping) over all the little acorns was interesting and I nearly landed on my behind a few times but more because I wasn't looking where I was walking....there are too many interesting little things to see. The whole little town is full of sculptures on the streets and pavements and an abundance of little galleries and quaint shops and eateries. 

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Cape protea #552

Daily painting #552 pen and watercolour from my sketchbook NFS

One of my favourite flowers and of course the Cape is home to the protea and fynbos that I love so much. We went for a long walk through the beautiful Kirstenbosch Gardens. It sits right at the foot of the mountain and I wish I could share a million photos with you, words just cannot explain the beauty!

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Cookie Monster cupcake #551

Daily painting #551 pen and watercolour from my sketchbook NFS 

We went to the famous Charlie's Bakery today and Amy ordered a Cookie Monster cupcake. Charlie's Bakery has its own TV show and is like the South African version of 'The Cake Boss'. It's a quaint little building and the decor inside is gorgeous! From the counter you can look into the back working area where novelty cakes are being assembled for various functions. Trying to choose from all the little cupcake varieties, novelty cookies and cakes is so hard....everything looks so delicious! I have to admit to needing a HUGE glass of water after all the sugar!

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One Direction Ticket #550

Daily painting #550 pen and watercolour from my sketchbook NFS

550 days and 550 little paintings shared.....wow! Another little milestone!

Today was without a doubt the most exciting day for my daughter (and a million other adoring fans). Over a year ago now I booked tickets as a surprise for my daughter to go to the One Direction 'On the road again' tour concert here in Cape Town. I was secretly dreading being stuck amongst a stadium full of screaming teenage girls shrieking and singing along to their favourite boy band! But over the months after hearing the songs repeatedly (I had no choice) and finding myself singing along in the car to the catchy tunes as my daughter played and replayed her favourite songs, I have to own up to the fact that I thoroughly enjoyed the concert! The show was brilliant and Cape Town as always makes going to big concerts just so easy. The organization was fantastic despite half of the country descending on the stadium! I have no doubt it will be a night my daughter will remember for the rest of her life and I am so glad I got to share it with her, her excitement was the kind that memories are made of!

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Seagull #549

Daily painting #549 pen and watercolour from my sketchbook NFS

We have arrived in beautiful Cape Town! Without a doubt one of the most beautiful cities in South Africa. We took my daughter straight down to the waterfront after we landed. She was amazed at how many seagulls there were...she has never been to Cape Town before. She kept taking photos of the seagulls! By the end of the week she will be sick of them!

I have left my oil paints behind at home and plan to do more sketching and little documents in my private journal. I will share one of them each day as my daily painting. I sat drawing on the plane yesterday and every time I looked up the lady across the aisle was smiling in my direction. I clearly provided her with 2 hours of entertainment for the duration of the flight. There is nothing more unnerving than a stranger peering at you while you draw. I could see she was dying to ask me if she could take a look but I was trying as hard as I could to ignore her and concentrate. While waiting for our luggage after arrival I saw her pointing in my direction in an animated conversation with her (I assume) husband. She must have been telling him about the crazy lady on the plane!

So a little share from my daily recordings today....I feel lost without my oil paints but it's good to get back to working in a little sketchbook again.

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Plum and a half #548

Daily painting #548 6"x8" oil on primed canvas panel

Making good use of the plums that were still sitting in my studio from yesterday and enjoying every minute of working with my oils. I am off to Cape Town tomorrow and have decided to not travel by air with wet oil paintings, so my oil paints and brushes are staying behind....I already feel a little lost at the thought! I will still be daily painting but will share pen, ink and watercolour images from my personal journal instead. So my last little oil painting until the 9th April.....Cape Town here I come!

I will share photos from my trip via my Instagram account. You can follow along too and will find me under the username heidishedlock....

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Three plums #547

Daily painting #547 6"x6" oil on primed canvas panel

Blue and crimson ...one of my favourite paint combinations! The rich, almost royal tones of the plum always catch my attention. Sadly though I have found them to be rather tasteless this season which is disappointing but they never disappoint with their vibrant colour!

We are counting the days until our trip to Cape Town! Not long now! I am taking my daughter to the One Direction concert while we are there so she is beside herself with excitement. It will be her first big concert experience. I can't say I am as excited to be amongst a bunch of screaming teenage girls but I am looking forward to the look on my daughter's face when they come on stage!

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(Click on the highlighted writing to view gallery of available daily paintings and for all purchase details)