Flying Bear Farm

The Studio at Flying Bear Flower Farm

The Flying Bear Flower Farm compound in the highlands of Langley is home to artists Molly and David. They graciously allowed us all the run of the grounds so we could sketch the beautiful flowers, the brightly colored out-buildings, and Moon, the sweet Catahoula chow hound. I spent a peaceful, lovely afternoon under a tree in front of their art studio/atelier, among the lavender and hydrangeas. This sketch is also a "two-fer", as it fulfills the assignment this week for Liz Steele's Kourse in Sketchbook Skool of drawing a building, paying attention to shapes and patterns. 

Sketching Alpacas at Pronkin' Pastures

Last week the sketchers went to visit Pronkin' Pastures, a wonderful alpaca farm in Greenbank. They raise alpacas and make wonderful yarn out of their fleece. A bonus was that there are several babies. One barely a week old, and a few who had been born in the past month. So fuzzy!

 These are the gals having lunch. The guys are in another pasture.

   This baby is only 5 days old.

 This one is standing next to her mom. She is two weeks old.

 This one was very sleepy, so I had time to sketch her in a couple of positions.

Back at my studio, I had more time to do layers of watercolor. This is of the 2 week old girl above. 

If you ever get a chance to visit, Pronkin' Pastures, it really is a great place to meet and learn about alpacas. You can find out about the farm, and dates and times for on visiting them here. Pronkinpastures.com

Sketching at Double Bluff Beach

A "Two-fer" today - Sketching with the gang, and also turning in my homework for Miguel "Freekhand" Herranz's Urban Sketching Klass in Sketchbook Skool. His technique for Spiral Drawing (a very enjoyable technique, by the way) involves drawing out from a detailed central focal area, spiraling out to the edges. You can capture a lot of detail this way, without getting confused. It was a perfect fit for my day of drawing down at the beach with the Whidbey Island Sketchers. Double Bluff beach was having a very low tide and people were out it droves to enjoy it. At one glance up I counted around 45 people on the tide flats! 
I am always drawn to the driftwood "huts" that people assemble and leave on the beach, and wanted to draw the beach scene outside of one, from inside it. Sketcher buddies Barbara and Mary put together a driftwood seat inside for me so I could sit and draw. It was a perfectly wonderful 2 1/2 hours in the shade and sea breeze. You'll notice I did not say SUNSHINE, as the skies are still murky and smoke filled from the fires. But it was glorious, nonetheless.

Wild Man Cooley

I've been doing some outdoor concert sketching this summer. Lavender Wind Farm hosted four free concerts during their bloom season. Mary C and I went to see Wild Man Coolely a few weeks ago.  Sitting outdoors on a sunny afternoon, sketching and listening to live music, surrounded by the fragrant fields of lavender in full bloom is quite an experience. Add the taste of lavender scones and lavender ice cream and you've got all the senses covered. The band was excellent, but I couldn't get all of them on the page of my little sketchbook. 

Al Anderson House

July 30, 2017, almost ready! Back door entry.

June 7, 2015, under repair! Side view from Langley cemetery.

It's been a couple of years since they started remodeling this historic old farmhouse. I painted the 2015 sketch while sitting in the nearby cemetery.

My dog and I watch the changes happening while walking in the morning. The early morning light makes the old trees have dramatic shadows on the grass in the Spring; the late afternoon light puts a spotlight on the new green house color.   Amazingly, the front door faces North and is small and unattractive and I never noticed because it faces the Pea Patch and flower gardens, which grew up years after the house was built. 

There are many apple trees on the property and three cows that love apples. My idea of fun is to collect apples in the Fall and bring them to feed the cows.  It takes getting over being squeamish to put it directly in their mouth!  They have very long black tongues!

This house will become a vrbo, for rent.  The upgrades in the kitchen are modern but look compatible with the rest of the house.  It is cozy, sunny, and reminiscent of the era in which it was built; whoever stays there will enjoy the atmosphere and the neighborhood.