Chickadee Pair

I love sketching this sweet pair during the golden hour!  So many chickadees visit the feeders all day, bringing many other friends with them.  Surprisingly warm on this day before a winter storm advisory, I've been out tending the gardens, covering cabbage, kale, Swiss chard and lettuce!  I was so surprised to see a new little bunch of gourmet lettuce - in February!  I'm sketching today with my new TWSBI Diamond fountain pen loaded with Nutcracker ink. Instead of mixing inks, I simply went over the lines I wanted darker while they were still wet, allowing the ink to mingle.  I read some articles today about some bad chemical reactions that can happen inside a fountain pen when mixing inks willy nilly, so I think mixing on the paper best. I have so many blends I want to try with my favorite black... maybe I should buy the very inexpensive TWSBI Go just for that purpose!  If I melt the insides, it would not be a loss of one of my favs.  And, that pen is exceedingly easy to load and unload!  Painting number 2950 in 2950 days. 

Grazing Cows

Unseasonably warm, it was a perfect February day to get outside!  It is always a treat to escape from my chores for some time well spent with nature, inks and watercolor.  I remember the days when my grandparents ran black Angus cattle here for many, many years.  When my mom was young, they had dairy cows and the endless milking morning and night.  Cattle in the pasture links me with my past, and I can't even pass them on the road without wanting to pull over and paint them!  Perhaps this weekend I can paint these darlings with snow on the ground! Painting number 2948 in 2948 days.