Greenbank Farm

There's something for everybody at Greenbank Farm. Being lazy and comfort seeking, I just drew what I could see from the picnic table out front where I was enjoying an al fresco lunch from the Whidbey Pies Cafe. We got in trouble for feeding the ducks, but it served the purpose of keeping them hanging about posing for sketches. This colorful mallard had a white ring around his neck, but I lost it in the frenzy of trying to capture a duck in motion. The flower bed next to the restaurant is called "Margaret's Garden".  I  don't know who Margaret is, but apparently she has taken on the job of maintaining this cutting garden for use in weddings at the farm. I think the purple flowers I drew were Campanulas, aka bellflowers.

Greenbank Farm

This is my first Sketcher's post!  I found a sunny bench in the Master Gardener's area at the Greenbank Farm with a view of a lush rose arbor.  At home I finished with white acrylic to add some highlights, as the Titanium white watercolor wasn't enough.  

Sketching at Greenbank Farm

When we first got there I thought it was a bit chilly to sketch outside, so I chose to sit inside the Whidbey Pies Cafe. Beside it was lunch time, and, well, you know. So, because I felt guilty for taking up a table during their rush hour, I ordered a fabulous lunch and enjoyed every bite. Oh, and got this sketch inked. The color came at home. I loved the outfit my waitress was wearing. She looked like a gypsy. 

Greenbank Farm with Ducks

Changing Colors at the End of Summer

This morning while walking through the Greenbank fields of tall grass and deeper into the tall treed forest, I collected a handful of dried grass, weeds, beautiful deep red leaf salal, green leaf salal with the large purple berries still on it and other weeds I could not identify. I brought all of these home for a fun afternoon sketching the changing colors of plants with the end of summer.

Whidbey Sketcher's Block Prints at Gallery

Owl Love

Whidbey Island Sketcher, Kris Wiltse, has a new show of recent block prints at the Rob Schouten Gallery.  Opening night is Friday, November 5 with a reception 5:00 - 8:00 pm in the gallery at Greenbank Farm. 

The show runs October 29 – November 24, 2010.  Gallery hours:  daily 10am–5pm 

Congratulations Kris from your fellow Whidbey Island Sketchers!

October

Hats and wine in the Greenbank Farm Wine Shop. Coming soon, Betty Rayle's wine shop sketch.

Bits and pieces of colors as the food loving farm ducks came and went...No, they don't pose like this.

Finished the day at Holmes Harbor with a glass of wine, watching the bright moon rise.

Wednesday Sketching at Greenbank Farm

I hate drawing buildings. I hate all the tedious structural details you have to get just right or it won't fit together properly. I have 4 mistakes in this one. But I wanted to sit and chat with my buddies at the picnic table and it was either this view or the antique tractor, which looked even more complicated.

Sorry about the extra 15 years, Cathy. It's always a mistake to sit directly across from me. You're new. You'll learn. Apparently I won't, but I keep trying. I've been trying to get a flattering sketch of a fellow sketcher for almost a year!

China City reader & 1904

I loved this guy sitting in the late afternoon sun reading a Catherine Coulter book.

The big barn at Greenbank painted while sitting in the back of my truck.

A Really Big Shew!

I couldn't resist sketching a bit of our show on the walls of  Whidbey Pies Cafe this Wednesday. It looks great! We were excited to learn we had our first sale on Wednesday morning before we arrived! Congrats to Sherryl on the sale of  "Beach Cuddle."

The Greenbank Farm ducks seemed pretty excited, too!

The China City bar patrons, not so much.

On Wednesday we all got together at the Whidbey Pie Cafe. We had several interesting and enjoyable guests while drinking coffee and drooling over the pie! Here is the result of my afternoon.

Sketchers' Group Show Starts Today!

Our first show! Whidbey Island Sketchers are the featured artists during the month of October 2010 at Whidbey Pies Café at Greenbank Farm. A wide range of original sketches and prints will adorn the café walls and will be available for sale all month. We couldn't be more excited!

A huge THANK-YOU to Jeanne Rust and Jan Gunn for inviting us to show our sketches at the café and Sherryl Goldfinger who took on the daunting task of organizing and hanging the show.

Stop by for a look and a piece of pie. Café hours 10 - 5 daily.

Here are a few of our sketches featured in the show:

Whidbey Pies - Looking In and Looking Out

Pretty 1st day of September and I headed to Whidbey Pies Cafe at Greenbank Farm (to sketch and eat last peach pie à la mode of the season).  Here are two views of the cafe - from the outside looking in and the inside looking out.

Greenbank Farm Fun

Sherryl had some fun with the Whidbey Pie Cafe logo and the heron sculpture at Greenbank Farm.

Greenbank Farm Pond by Julie

Sketch by Julie Pittis

Julie sketched this iconic Greenbank Farm scene. I'll bet this one will be in our upcoming show in October at the Whidbey Pies Cafe!

Greenbank Farm Pea Patch

Dan's Pea Patch

I got one sketch in this week at Greenbank Farm. I talked one of the pea patch gardeners into letting me inside the fenced pea patch area to sketch this joyful little garden. In addition to veggies, this gardener is growing an extravagance of flowers and provided a nice branch for the birds to perch on. You can tell this garden was made by a generous soul and a lover of beauty and nature. I was told it belongs to someone named Dan (not to be confused with my Dan).

Sketching a Sketcher

So much to sketch at Greenbank Farm and so little time.  Zeroed in on Whidbey Pies Cafe today as did Claire who you'll see in the foreground. 

Greenbank Farm Revisited

Stopped by Greenbank Farm on my way home from Coupeville this afternoon. I was planning to do more sketching back in the "secret garden," but there was a wedding going on. So, I found a picnic table under a big shade tree behind the Jim Davis house and tried to draw this scene with just paint. It was a wild sketching experience. Things got out of hand, the wind was blowing, I couldn't keep the paper flat, paint was drying before it hit the paper and I accidently emptied my dirty water on the sketch. Of course, I added ink in the end. My first experience painting in such windy conditions. I'll be adding clips to my travel art bag in future.

Secret Garden at Greenbank Farm

This is another quiet corner with a path leading to a view of the ponds.

Secret Garden at Greenbank Farm

The Master Gardeners have created a serene area behind their demonstration garden. This chair in the shade was inviting.