nanke's stuff

I spent a good bit of today at the doctor and running errands, then came home and did some much-needed laundry, changing sheets, etc.   The time I had for drawing was limited, so I  only did 2 noses .... well, 1 nose and 1 nose with bit of a face attached.  For me noses are a challenge in part because they don't really have many lines the way eyes do - they seem to mostly be formed by shadows and inference.  Proportion and placement are also hard for me, which is why I decided to do one with a face.  I'll do more of them, but for now, it's a start! 

I'm trying to draw everyday, but I must confess, I'm having difficulty with it.  Who knows why?  I sure don't.  But, tonight I did manage to do another EDM challenge and draw a few eyes.  I  love eyes, even though I find them a bit difficult to draw.  But, the really hard facial part for me is noses .... notice I haven't drawn any of them!  Maybe tomorrow .....  

In an effort to do something with art every day, no matter how small, today I did another Everyday Matters drawing.  This is a sketch of a small pitcher (only 3 inches high!), that's been in my husband's family forever.  I love it because it's quirky and fun.  It sits in our bedroom on a shadowbox that hangs on the wall (along with the horse button from a previous post). 

I'm not thrilled with how the drawing came out, but to be perfectly honest, I got tired of fussing with it.  Also, my electric pencil sharpener that I was using to sharpen my colored pencils kept breaking the lead in them, causing me to have to take it apart and clean it out.  It proved to be more annoying than it should have been (I needed more patience which I probably would have had if the drawing had been going better!).  So, in the spirit of honesty, here is a so-so drawing of a really cute pitcher.

Everyday Matters is an art group I belong to which celebrates making art everyday.  There is a list of things to draw in the file section  that has many, many, ideas of someplace to start.  For someone like me who gets stuck with some regularity, this list is most helpful.  Some time ago I printed out the list and pinned it to one of the bulletin boards in my studio.  The list is much longer now, but I haven't come close to doing all of the drawings on the one I have, so I haven't bothered to update it.

Anyhow, the drawing I chose to do is "Draw something old, antique, or vintage".  What I've drawn is a button.  I bought this button for my sweetie almost 40 years ago (I can't believe it's been that long!).  I was in an antique shop in Birmingham, MI, saw it and just had to have it.  The owner of the shop told me it was about 300 years old, hand carved in China from ivory, and was probably the button from a "briefcase" belonging to someone quite wealthy.  It measures about 2 1/4 inches high and can stand on its own.  I've tried to  do some research about it, but I've never seen anything resembling it in any antique button book or online.  I still love it every bit as much now as I did then.  So does my sweetie .... I think!  lol