I forgot my sketchbook, and I had time to kill before my haircut…so I doodled people at the Kirkland Farmers’ Market on my phone. I’m going to be sad when the market closes at the end of this month. Goodbye, summer.
Farmers’ Market phone doodles
3 States of Doggo: WIP 2
Guys Night Out
An idle thought that I actually said out loud in real life.
Take your dog to work day
My husband took the dog to work for National Dog Day. Meanwhile, I continue to be the smelliest, laziest person during my sabbatical.
Lola’s 90th
My aunt, who’s coordinating my grandma’s 90th birthday party reunion, requested a drawing of my grandma playing the piano that would be used for the tote bag party favors. The piano has always been a big part of my life, and my grandma is a huge contributing inspiration. She would tell stories about WWII, when her town was occupied by the Japanese, and how even the Japanese soldiers would stop to listen to her play. To this day, she still plays the piano, and from memory to boot!
Thanks for always being an inspiration, Lola, and I hope I can keep playing like you when I am your age!
3 States of Doggo: WIP 1
Work-in-progress of a little animation loop I’m doodling. My dog in his 3 states of napping: liquid, solid, gas.
Home Sweet Home
I drew my family’s house, my childhood home, for my mom for Mother’s Day. It reminded me of some gift art my 7-year-old self drew for another occasion… It’s still hanging up in the bedroom my two sisters and I shared as kids!
It’s neat to see what sort of details I noticed as a kid. The garbage bins (screen left side of garage) and drain pipes were so important to me! I remember hearing the empty bins scraping along the concrete as my dad brought them in after garbage day; that’s how I knew he was home.
As I was drawing my family home as my 31 year old self, I noted particularly the landscaping. My mom assigned me the chore of watering the plants during summer breaks when I was a kid. I remember how time consuming it was, but never appreciated it as much as I do now. Maybe it’s because Karl and I are in the middle of redoing our own front yard…but I can’t stop admiring the hard work my mom put into planting and maintaining her flowers.
It’s amazing how perspective can change over 24 years. Here’s hoping that Karl and I can make a home as inviting as the ones we grew up in!
Barnegat Lighthouse State Park Sketches
When I went to visit my hometown a couple weeks ago, I had the pleasure of shadowing my youngest sister, Lauren, a wildlife biologist. She’s spending her summer surveying piping plovers, an endangered bird, along the NJ coast. Every day, she visits different beaches and counts plovers and their eggs, which are found among broken shells and sand.
We went to Barnegat Lighthouse State Park, known for “Old Barney”, the historic lighthouse that’s on the northern end of Long Beach Island. Originally, I was going to paint the lighthouse while Lauren worked, but I realized this is an amazing opportunity to record a “day in the life” of my sister. She pointed out shorebirds as we walked together.
Later, Lauren met up with 3 other biologists to put up an exclosure, a wire mesh fence that protects plovers’ nests from various predators. They had a small window to set this up, as setting up the exclosure prevents the plover from warming their eggs. I was so impressed by the whole process I couldn’t help myself from trying to capture it.
We ended the day with chicken wings at Chegg, an awesome way to end “Take your Ate to Work Day”! Thanks again, Yowen, for a fun day at the beach, much needed for this Seattle transplant. 😉
Center for Wooden Boats Sketch
The Center for Wooden Boats in Seattle is a neat place to wander around. It sits in Lake Union Park, a gorgeous park right on the lake. A few weeks ago, I biked from our house to visit my husband who works downtown. On the way back, I made a pit stop to paint at the park. I love looking at all the wooden boats parked there, and hearing the sound of the water lapping against the docks is very nostalgic for this Jersey Shore girl. 😉
Anniversary at Port Townsend
A couple watercolor sketches from our 3rd wedding anniversary trip back in March. We celebrated it in Port Townsend, WA, a charming historic town on the water. Port Townsend not only had a bustling downtown waterfront decorated with Victorian buildings, but they also served food using ingredients from the rich farmlands surrounding the port town.
The 1st sketch is from the patio of a cafe named “Sweet Laurette”. It was a beautiful day, so we had brunch and hung out with our dog. The 2nd sketch was from brunch the next day from the window of “Point Harbor Cafe”. The cafe sits right in the harbor across the water from the “Wooden Boat Center”.
I highly recommend visiting the town. It reminded me of Savannah with its waterfront and historical buildings, but with a PNW spin to it. It’s not too far of a drive from Seattle (about 2 hours or so) and worth a weekend visit.