Rainbow Snouts!

Rainbow Pigs, Marilyn Allis' style.

Wild animals

We're going to the Zoo, Zoo, Zoo,
You can come too, too, too......to see the Meerkat!



Tiger, tiger, burning bright.

Contrasting Giraffes

Whilst drawing this Giraffe the other day I was reminded of another project which also included a Giraffe. It took many more hours to create than this little fellow!


This is a needlework sampler I made, as part of my City and Guilds course in Hand Embroidery, almost fifty years ago. It was based on cave drawing designs and included a wide variety of stitches.

Autumn Colours

Autumn leaves are falling,
Floating to the ground,
Colours are magnificent,
Reds,
Yellows,
Golden Browns.



I painted these leaves, after Steve Cook demonstrated the technique.

MacMillan Coffee Morning

Rainham Bowls Club once again supported the annual MacMillan Coffee Morning fund raising event. Dennis and I went in support and this picture is of Dennis, together with my friend Pat Brown, who has raised a huge amount of money for the charity through organising similar coffee mornings. Well done Pat!

A new technique

I'm practising watercolour skills, that are new to me, using David Webb's book 'Still Life in Watercolour' I feel it is also an appropriate time for me to do more still life pictures.
I'm hoping by doing this I shall become more aware of composition and the importance of including shadows.



This apple is my first effort and I aim to improve!!

Healthy Eating?

'This is a great book that shatters so many of the nutritional fantasies and facts of the last twenty years. Read it and prolong your life!'. So says Clarissa Dickson Wright.
If you practise 'healthy eating', eat five portions of fruit and veg. each day and shun fats then you could be doing exactly what is most harmful to your health.
Read this, to discover why, it's enlightening!

Needlework

I started this picture of the Highlands three years ago. Thanks to having a 'broken leg' and with time to kill it is finally completed! Cross Stitch is so slow compared to Watercolour painting. (Says she as one who is always in a hurry) I'm sticking to painting in future.

A Golf Match

I'm a member (non-playing at present, due to the knee problem!) of Warley Park Golf Club. This picture is of our Harris Team, together with their caddies. Last Friday the team played their quarter-final match against Theydon Bois at the Warren Golf Club. It was a tight game, played in good conditions but there were a lot of bare lies, making it tricky for both teams and I'm delighted to report Warley Park emerged the victors! A 3 to 2 win. Well done girls.

A workshop painting

I painted this picture, of St. Andrew's in Hornchurch, at one of Steve Cook's Sunday workshops. My watercolour class with Steve begins tomorrow and I'm so looking forward to it, having been confined to the house with my broken leg for the past eight weeks.

My Orchid in all its' glory.

It took a while to decide which colours I would use for the Orchids, then I was unsure about the background. After talking things through with Pat, I decided to develop the shading, to create a subtle background which complements the flowers and I'm pleased with the end result. It was fun to do!

Using Inktense Pencils

I copied this parrot in order to try improving my drawing skills. It is only the second time of using the Inktense pencils and I found them easy to use, also found that the colours could be faded out by pulling them out using a damp clean brush.
This was the first attempt using Inktense pencils, I need to use firmer strokes to get the full effect. Quite pleased with it though.

Orchid first stage

I have always been particularly fond of Orchids and chose to wear a corsage of Orchids on my wedding day, many years ago. This year I've been feeding the Orchid plants weak tea, with great success. Three plants are in bloom and this is the first stage of my water colour interpretation of one of them. The plant has seven blooms but just three are used today.

Abstract two

My second attempt, done in my own kitchen, with more care than the first Abstract, also with greater accuracy to avoid flicking the paint to the four walls!!
I am pleased with this picture and named it 'Misty Images'

Abstract One

On Bank Holiday Monday my friend Pat and I decided to try creating an abstract water colour picture. It was the first time we had done anything quite as 'free' as this. The attraction was it's a quick method!
Typically I got over enthusiastic and also painted the tiles in Pat's kitchen, so the first thing to remember is to let the paint drip, no need to flick it! We chose four colours, using them liberally on paper that was already wet, scattered rock salt in abundance over the whole painting and retired for coffee and chat for a few hours until our creations dried. The salt had done it's work as it soaked up the wet paint leaving fascinating crystal patterns.
This is the result once the salt had been removed. We aim to improve, but I'm pleased with this for a first effort.
I call it 'Mysterious Movements'