Italy Travel Sketchbook 2014

Just back from 17 days in Italy - Milan, the Cinque Terre, Florence and Italy.  Lots of sketching and  journaling on this trip (such great cafes to stop in for wine and sketching!).  Ciao to Italy - but just for now.

 

 

Trip Prep: Italy 2014

Now that we're under 3 weeks from leaving for a trip to Italy, it was time to begin the Italy travel sketchbook.  Prep has begun - 1st step:  pick the palette & make sure all the pens works!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Week in Paris

Just spent a week in Paris.  Managed to get a few sketches in my travel journal between seeing new sights, sipping wine in cafes and trying new restaurants!

First day:  sites around St. Germaine where we stayed.  Love the 5th arrondissement!

 

Ventured to several small museums we hadn't visited before and also managed to see the stunning interior of L'Opéra for the first time.

 

 

 

What a fun time I had sitting outside a café sipping rosé while sketching artists in Place du Tertre on the top of the butte in Montmartre.  Mikolo (middle) sketched my portrait while I sketched him and his fellow artist friend, Luigi. 

 

 

 

Delay leaving Heathrow so plenty of time to sketch my view out the window and hubby to my right.  Au Revoir Paris!

Visiting Salt Spring Island

Managed to get in a few travel sketches while spending a long weekend on bucolic Salt Spring Island - part of the Canadian Gulf Islands. Loved the goats with the insatiable appetites!!


A few of the places we visited - Sand Dollar Beach, the Harbour House Farm goats & Ganges Saturday Market

A local salty dog sketched waiting for the Fulford ferry

Road Trip to Northern California

Just back from a 10 day road trip to the Bay Area. Soaked up sun, beautiful scenery and a big dose of urban San Francisco.  Like visiting an old friend.  Managed to get some sketching in on the road and on the sidewalk.  Some highlights:

From the passenger seat - on the road driving through Southern Oregon

 

The Driver - in Northern California



  

Giant redwood, Big Sur, CA

View from top of the hill at Hearst Castle, San Simeon, CA

Mission Dolores, San Francisco.  Built 1776.

London Sketchbook

A wonderful Christmas in London - 10 days at least partly captured in sketches.

The Travel Sketchbook Begins

We're off to London for Christmas.  Paint box is filled and ready to go. I couldn't resist getting a jump start on my London sketch journal even before we get on the plane!  Happy holidays sketcher friends.

Belle France

Just back from a wonderful trip to the Beaujolais Region, Southern Burgundy and Provençe, France.  Lots of sketching.  These are a few of my favorites, starting with hubby's luggage packed 5 days early!  Then to the long flight on Icelandair with a quick plane change in Reykjavik before heading to Paris. 

Loved sketching the vintage Citroen and several French delights such as white asparugus!  Then on to our gite in St. Saturnin-lès-Apt from which we spent 6 glorious sunny days travelling to nearby villages, taking in an antique fair and pottery market, and just loving life in the French countryside!
 


The Long Flight

 

 

 So Delightfully French

 

Our Gite in Provençe

En Visite en France

Next week we leave for a long-planned trip to Southern Burgundy, the lower Rhône Valley and Provence.  Getting my sketching gear together, I just couldn't resist sketching our itinerary and of course with a map!!  À Bientôt.

Mid-Winter Sketching in the Desert

As luck would have it, I was in Arizona for work and family visit the whole week Puget Sound got walloped with snow.  Here are travel sketches from Wickenburg and Scottsdale. 



Seen around Wickenburg, AZ



Smokey's cowboy boots.  Saguaro against background of the blanket on my bed.



Cactus downtown Wickenburg.  Our Lady of Guadalupe from blanket pattern.

Watercolor Saguaro



Saguaro skeleton at The Saguaro Hotel in Scottsdale.

Winthrop and the Methow Valley

My birthday usually falls at the peak of fall foliage season. This year we headed for the Methow Valley for my birthday getaway to find some fall color and sunshine. It was our first family trip with Duncan, the dog, and we found a cabin on the Methow River that was perfect for us. Duncan did great.

I only had one day of sketching, but could have used several more. I was uber-inspired by everything around me. Everything on the other side of the mountains is just breathtaking this month. And Winthrop is so kitschy. I'm inspired to organize a sketchers' retreat in the Methow Valley next October as soon as the shoulder season rates go into effect. 5 nights, 4 days. Seriously.

The Methow River, right behind our cabin

Pearrygin Lake State Park

Sherry's Sweet Shop

Shafer Museum

Old Schoolhouse Brewery

For those of you who just can't get enough of my birthday (I'm milking it for all it's worth this year), Dan posted some photos of our trip on his facebook page.  http://www.facebook.com/#!/media/set/?set=a.304971256186811.91835.100000218183963&type=1