Apple-Pine

January 2011: Cold and Windy

2012-01-26T12:39:00.001-08:00

January 2011: Cold and Windy, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Niji waterbrush filled with diluted Noodlers ink and Faber Castell chisel pen.

My interview for the "Artists' Journal Workshop" Book by Cathy Johnson

2012-01-26T12:35:00.000-08:00

Interview # 14--Meet Nina Khashchina!

Hi all! This interview's been derailed a couple of times...both Nina and I have been busy, and she traveled in between there! Believe me, it was worth waiting for...

Let's jump right in and let Nina speak for herself!

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I started drawing very early and had a lot of support from my parents - until I stopped. I also kept a diary of sorts since I was a little child - but never consistently. There was a period in my life when I did not draw at all, I became a graphic designer and got completely computerized. Drawings were on little post-it notes, napkins, separate pieces of paper. And then the whole hand-made painting and drawing thing came back and I discovered a pleasure of keeping it all in one place - my sketch book.

Since summer 2005 I filled 57 journals - large and small, some I made myself (my favorite kind of
journal). Some I love for the paper, some for the cover. Some journals were filled in one breath, others took a long time, some became my friends as we went through life together, others I conquered with time :)

Another of Nina's wonderful sketches of her little boy in the park...

I draw in the park while my son unwinds after a day in preschool, while taking a breather when hiking, when chewing my lunch, while cooling down after the jog, in doctor's office, waiting in long line, waking up before everyone else does - the perfect time is right now :)

I seldom have time to finish things to the perfection or even correct mistakes but I enjoy the process – mistakes and all. This way I see time, I feel alive, feel the changes and notice beauty everywhere.
Drawing things helps me understand, slow down and see what's important for me and make choices. I think about sketching as a way of life. Way to travel. Way to think. Way to explain.

The purple ink makes a wonderful, colorful vibration in many of Nina's sketches.

It would be impossible for me to choose one medium as my favorite, mostly because they change a lot. Anything works if I NEED to draw, but I often have cravings for certain things to try. Just like with food - you can stop the hunger with ... WHATEVER but some food combinations work better with each other and a little variety always is an adventure ;) Right now I am a lot into a purple ball point pen and a diluted ink in Niji waterbrush plus some dip pen experiments.

Little watercolor set and brush pen are always in my backpack :)

I just came back from the Roatan island in Honduras. This trip came when I was in the middle of a power struggle with a sketchbook I liked at first sight and hated later. Store purchased 8.5 x 11 soft cover spiral bound book with some glossy paper. Surface very much like illustration board – smooth and slick. Pens and Markers were fine.

Paper was refusing color pencil after just two layers of application.
And working in watercolor was very frustrating since there was no chance for color to flow – only paint with brushstrokes and color was changing dramatically between the moment of application and when dry.

My first thought was to take different sketchbook but after some consideration I took this situation as a sign to try different things and it worked out great!

First – I decided to take more supplies with me than I usually do (the good thing is I can share it with my son – so it does not look like I took THAT much:)

Here are examples of what I usually take:

This time, I took a nice large palette of watercolors with a couple of real brushes, a tiny set with gouache with 2 waterbrushes, about 20 color and watercolor pencils and 10 Pitt color brush pens, plus my regular pens (purple ballpoint, Pentel Brush Pen, UniBall Vision Micro pen and Niji waterbrush filled with the diluted black ink). Plus tiny spray bottle, scotch tape and an old film container. This all fitted within a small first aid bag :) In retrospect I think I could have done without pencils and markers – but my son used them a lot – so I think this was the right choice!

Second thing I did to conquer this sketchbook was to take some small cold press 100 lb watercolor sheets, place them in an envelope on the back of the book and try to incorporate them whenever I could. This allowed me to work on several pages at once (humidity is very high on Roatan so there was a lot of waiting) and gave me a break when I wanted to enjoy real watercolor washes.

Third thing was that I had a little Moleskine Cahier book with me almost at all times – I was drawing at any opportune moment – while waiting for dinner, waiting for boat to load, sandcastle to be finished… This provided me with sketching time without interrupting activities of other company members. And every night I was tearing filled pages and posting them in my main book with some comments if needed. This way my tiny book was almost always empty and I was free to take it with me even when I knew it might get wet: I’d put one pen, gray waterbrush and my book in zip-lock bag and be ready for anything :)

Many of my pages are scanned and can be found here:

One of the projects I am working on continuously is a Badger Log.

Both the idea and inspiration came from my wonderful family and they support this log from the very first thought till today’s drawings.

Badger Log is about my interactions with a little badger I know, who happens to be related to me - how he is looking at the world and how I look at things because of him. I keep it as a sort-of a diary but only a few drawings so far made it to the scanner – so I am thinking about collecting a whole bunch together and making this log more public - how - I'll tell you later! :)

-----------------

Nina, thanks much for this wonderful, useful interview! Can't wait to see more of the badger's adventures--and yours!
-----------------
It seems I never posted this interview here - and now found this topic in an old "to do" list - so here you go - better late than never ;)

January 2012

2012-01-24T23:05:00.001-08:00

What can I say... some days are like that.

January 2012, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Good evening though :)

January 2012: Kids in the Park

2012-01-19T22:47:00.001-08:00

January 2012: Kids in the Park, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Before the rain (wish I hope is coming!) we had come very sunny days worth spending in a sand box - building cities with fortifications, planning and implementing natural disasters upon it and then rebuilding it all back.

January 2012: Hiking in Edgewood Park.

2012-01-17T21:43:00.001-08:00

January 2012: Edgewood Park., a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Wonderful place and a very bright January morning. Too many GREAT trees - I could not choose which one to draw and ended up with just one 3 minute sketch - below.

We saw a very strange metal construction on a tree - what might it be?

Sketchbok #60: Looking Back

2012-01-13T22:45:00.001-08:00

Sketchbok #60, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Working in this book was very interesting. Sometimes challenging more than fun, sometimes crazy (more than normal :) I usually fill one sketchbook in a month-month-and-a-half. This one lasted exactly three month. Lots of things happened, lots of experiments failed and not, holidays flew by, guests came and left. Great opportunities to collaborate. I am glad I have it on my shelf :)

January 2012: In the Park

2012-01-12T22:16:00.001-08:00

January 2012: In the Park, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Kids around me grow - these days game usually takes them far away from me and this was a rare opportunity to catch some action close to me. They were working on THE HOLE!

January 2012: Early Morning

2012-01-06T21:46:00.001-08:00

January 2012: Early Morning, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Days are much longer now!

My Heroes: Ronald Searle

2012-01-04T22:45:00.001-08:00

January 2011, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I learned about recent death of Ronald Searle today. His amazingly moving lines and characters, unstoppable will for life and drawing inspire me to draw - now even more.

How I started my 2012 :)

2012-01-04T22:29:00.001-08:00

January 2012: Hidden Villa, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

With pigs and chickens, with lots of light and fog on the shore line.

Light was changing very rapidly and I was not able to catch any of it in it's true color but I definitely had fun splashing colors on little card of watercolors (my resting place form a wonderful craft tone of my current sketchbook :)

December 2011: Wunderlich Park

2011-12-30T22:21:00.001-08:00

December 2011: Wunderlich Park, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

We had a great hike but forest is very dry, even dusty in some places. Great mushrooms in some places though. I hope New Year will bring more rain, more green, more fog to these woods.

December 2011: Treasures

2011-12-29T09:38:00.001-08:00

December 2011: Treasures, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

We found a few very colorful trees in a neighborhood which we thought we new pretty well: pomegranate and persimmon :) Persimmon tree is in someone's yard do I got a chance to draw it - but no fruits were close enough to draw them individually (or eat them ;) And this little pomegranate was on the ground - though it's so tiny that we use it as a new year decoration :)

December 2011: People

2011-12-26T21:51:00.001-08:00

December 2011: People, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Drawing people listening to a lecture - great lecture, great chance to draw :)

December 2011: Pine Trees

2011-12-23T23:09:00.001-08:00

December 2011: Pines, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Pine trees continue to be cut to pieces :( I tried to console myself by spending some time drawing the process but it was very hard to hear the sound of broken limbs. Street looks foreign.

December 2011: The Last of Persimmons

2011-12-21T22:47:00.001-08:00

December 2011: The Last of Persimmons, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I just finished my reserve - no more persimmons... and no more drawings of them ;)

Drawing Christmas Lights

2011-12-16T23:04:00.001-08:00

Drawing Christmas Lights, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

December 2011: SF Zoo

2011-12-12T22:27:00.001-08:00

Holiday Season is at large in San Francisco Zoo!
Reindeer, fake ice-skating, polar bears everywhere plus train with lights!

I had a great time - especially being quiet by koala and trying to draw cassowary while it's trying to find a best angle to look at me :)

December 2011: SF Zoo, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

And:
I saw how giant anteater was licking what looked like strawberry yogurt with a lot of enthusiasm :)

Hornbills were entertaining us with sounds and action!

Flamingos were asleep - all of them!

The most active member of the zoo this time was Hippo - playing in the water all the time - I got almost splashed, saw his grin about 10 times in 12 minutes and he ran a several times from the water and back just for the fun of it!

December 2011 - Tree Cutting Continues.

2011-12-09T21:07:00.001-08:00

December 2011, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Added pencil at home - wind picked up a lot of dirt and dust.

First Weekend in December

2011-12-08T16:21:00.001-08:00

Pictures will tell you all :)

December 2011: Home, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

November 2011: Park

2011-12-02T23:08:00.001-08:00

November 2011: Park, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

While I spent time sitting on the grass drawing this page a whole bunch of kids decided to position themselves on a tree nearby in a hope that I might draw them - with the tree. I was not able to fir them all on the tree - and show how fast they were moving - but here are some of my young friends - posing :)

Making stamps together

2011-11-30T09:21:00.001-08:00

Making stamps together, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

November 2011: Hiking in Wunderlich Park

2011-11-27T00:01:00.001-08:00

November 2011: Hiking, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I took my little moleskine with me to the trail - not a large journal. Lots of mushrooms, patches of dry forest though. Tasty persimmons for snack :)

November 2011: Day After Thanksgiving

2011-11-25T23:06:00.001-08:00

November 2011: Day After Thanksgiving, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Badger Log Update

2011-11-25T22:43:00.001-08:00

Badger Log, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Swimming goggles don't help badgers with chopping onions!

Dear Reader! If you come to this page for the Badger fun please note that I am moving all the badger stories to the badger log - here:
http://badgerlog.blogspot.com/
Please subscribe separately!

November 2011: 100 Views of Persimmons

2011-11-24T21:24:00.001-08:00

November 2011: 100 Views of Persimmons, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Five through nine.

November 2011: 100 Views of Persimmons

2011-11-23T22:23:00.001-08:00

November 2011: 100 Views of Persimmons , a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I am addicted. I eat them at breakfast, as a snack, with my tea and at any other excuse of a meal. And I am going to share my persimmons with you :)

November 2011: Hidden Villa

2011-11-17T21:27:00.001-08:00

November 2011: Hidden Villa, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Garden colors, bottomless creek and usual suspects - trip to Hidden Villa :)

Badger Calendar 2012

2011-11-16T21:54:00.000-08:00

Badger Year 2012 by Nina Khashchina | Make Your Own Book

November 2011: Point Lobos

2011-11-10T21:07:00.001-08:00

November 2011: Point Lobos, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Blogged here.

Hiking and Sketching at Coyote Hills Regional Park

2011-11-10T20:59:00.001-08:00

November 2011: Coyote Hills Regional Park, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Amazing amount of sky, birds and some very interesting creatures to meet :) We came pretty close to a group of turkey vultures, saw a stray cat hunting in the grass and dozens of egrets sitting together.

November 2011: Dentist

2011-11-09T22:40:00.001-08:00

November 2011: Dentist, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I love drawing our visits to the dentist - so much better than being in that chair...

November 2011: Sketching in Point Lobos

2011-11-07T17:00:00.001-08:00

November 2011: Point Lobos, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

This weekend I had a glorious sketching day in Point Lobos State Park. Above are two large color sketches which you can see together with my watercolor and gouache paint sets on the image below.

More drawings and notes, as well as identification challenges are coming in the next post :)

Badger Log

2011-11-06T16:41:00.001-08:00

Badger Log, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

So... what's next?

Drawing Point Lobos

2011-11-05T21:36:00.001-07:00

Drawing Point Lobos, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Last Days of October

2011-11-02T13:56:00.001-07:00

October 2011: Palo Alto Airport, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Somehow scanning was not my thing during last few days of October - so here is a quick dump of all leftovers ;)

October 2011: Two Very Early Mornings

2011-11-01T23:03:00.001-07:00

October 2011: Two Very Early Mornings, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

no birds. no light. highway far away. snoring of the fridge. my pen is loudest.

Last day of October.

2011-10-31T22:35:00.001-07:00

October 2011: Shoreline Park, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Loads of sketches to share - hope to organize and scan them tomorrow!

Badger Log

2011-10-27T14:44:00.001-07:00

Badger Log, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I wonder...

October 2011: Lunch at the Park

2011-10-25T21:44:00.001-07:00

October 2011: Lunch at the Park, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Weekend Reportage

2011-10-23T21:34:00.001-07:00

Grandpa's Pumpkin Patch:

Grandpa's Pumpkin Patch, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Waiting under a tree, counting birds and airplanes.

Pirate-Themed birthday party in the park:

October 2011: Garden House in my Neighborhood

2011-10-21T23:24:00.001-07:00

October 2011: Garden House, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I had a great time drawing this though I forgot my water bottle and ended up using the last drags from all the waterbrushes :)

Lady who lives in the house started watering plants when I was almost done - and asked to see the final sketch. She liked it a lot - it was a great morning - especially since I found some wonderful irises when I was leaving - will come back to draw them some other day :)

October 201: Early Morning

2011-10-21T15:04:00.001-07:00

October 201: Early Morning, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Drawing almost completely blindly - it's very interesting to compare my memory with the result I see in bright light later in the day :)

October 2011

2011-10-20T22:11:00.001-07:00

October 2011, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Sketching while waiting and in the park - after lunch. I am yet to add color to anything in this sketchbook - I think I love this color too much :)

Badger Log

2011-10-20T22:00:00.001-07:00

Badger Log, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

It's OK. Don't be afraid...

October 2011: University Avenue

2011-10-17T22:12:00.001-07:00

October 2011: University Avenue, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Drawing while waiting for a friend - some new lunch places to try on University!

New Sketchbook Cover

2011-10-15T22:19:00.001-07:00

October 2011: Sketchbook #60 - Cover, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Almost All About Sketchbook #59

2011-10-13T23:12:00.001-07:00

Almost All About Sketchbook #59, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Blogged at:
http://artistsjournalworkshop.blogspot.com/2011/10/experiencing-stillman-and-birn-alpha.html

October: Lunching in the Park

2011-10-11T23:06:00.001-07:00

October: Lunching in the Park, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

October 2011: Lunch Run

2011-10-09T22:20:00.001-07:00

October 2011: Lunch Run, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Drawing after running is always a bit of a challenge - but always feels great :)

This was a very clear, winter-like morning - after first rains of the season. Even smog over the valley did not ruin the feeling - only made everything else look cleaner.

Evening Progress

2011-10-06T21:55:00.001-07:00

Evening progress, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

October Colors

2011-10-03T10:55:00.001-07:00

October colors: yesterday in the park, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Badger Log: Mapping

2011-09-26T22:34:00.001-07:00

Badger Log: Mapping, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Did you notice anything?

2011-09-23T15:38:00.000-07:00

New season started on my web-page and is showing here too :)

September 2011: Spiders

2011-09-21T22:44:00.001-07:00

September 2011: Spiders, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

http://naturesketchers.blogspot.com/2011/09/september-2011-spiders.html

Badger Log

2011-09-19T20:45:00.001-07:00

Badger Log, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Now - where did that squirrel go?

September 2011: Treasures

2011-09-17T21:34:00.001-07:00

September 2011: Treasures, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

September 2011

2011-09-16T12:12:00.001-07:00

September 2011, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

September 2011: Park, People and Treasures

2011-09-14T21:06:00.001-07:00

September 2011: Park People and Treasures, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Badger Log: Grass Skiing

2011-09-12T20:50:00.001-07:00

Badger Log: Grass Skiing, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

recycling furniture cardboard never been better!

Spetember 2011: New Class

2011-09-11T21:25:00.001-07:00

Spetember 2011: Class, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I have a very interesting opportunity - to draw in front of a large mirror with lots of students changing their poses every 3-10 seconds :)

Badger Log

2011-09-11T21:20:00.001-07:00

Badger Log, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Quiet Weekend

Badger Log: New Life

2011-09-06T21:53:00.001-07:00

Badger Log: New Life, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

See you later!

Badger Log

2011-08-31T21:45:00.001-07:00

Badger Log, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Listen - about this fish...

August 2011: Wunderlich Park

2011-08-31T21:44:00.001-07:00

August 2011: Wunderlich Park, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Badger Log

2011-08-30T22:21:00.001-07:00

Badger Log: Hi There!, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Hi There!

All of My Roatan Travel Sketches

2011-08-25T21:51:00.001-07:00

Set of my Roatan Travel Sketches, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I finished scanning and uploading my Roatan sketches - you can see them all here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/23173190@N07/sets/72157627505663972/

More scans from Roatan

2011-08-24T22:27:00.001-07:00

Roatan, Honduras - 2011, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Roatan, Honduras - 2011

2011-08-23T20:54:00.001-07:00

Roatan, Honduras - 2011, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I spent a wonderful week in Honduras - sketching the island of Roatan :) More sketches to come ;)

August 2011: Drawing with Kids - Strawflowers

2011-08-10T22:20:00.001-07:00

August 2011: Drawing with Kids - Strawflowers, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

As posted before I am going through a process of conquering my sketchbook paper through making a series of drawings and paintings of these fiery strawflowers. Today a bunch of kids joined me in the process and here are results:

August: Another Herb Garden

2011-08-09T22:06:00.001-07:00

August: Another Herb Garden, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

August 2011: Strawflowers

2011-08-08T21:47:00.003-07:00

August 2011: Strawflowers, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Marker version.

August 2011: Strawflowers

2011-08-08T21:47:00.001-07:00

August 2011: Strawflowers, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Watercolor version.

August 2011: New Sketchbook - fighting with paper

2011-08-06T20:49:00.001-07:00

August 2011: Herb Garden, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I got a new sketchbook and it's... different. Watercolor looks bleak and paper buckles, it also retains blotches of off-color after you add even smallest amount of water. And it makes lots of inks act semi-not-waterproof. Of - and many markers bleed like crazy on it. Overall - a challenge :)

Here is a link to the little story behind this sketch:
http://artistsjournalworkshop.blogspot.com/2011/08/august-2011-straw-flowers-and-paper.html

Badger Log: Meeting

2011-08-03T22:04:00.001-07:00

Badger Log: Meeting, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

You see - I live here :)

July 2011: Two Museums

2011-07-30T13:53:00.001-07:00

July 2011: Two Museums - Picasso, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Wonderfully foggy day in San Francisco: Picasso in the De Young and Snakes and Lizards (and penguins ;) at the Academy of Sciences. I love drawing with pencil but smudging drives me nuts! I stopped in the middle of the museum to apply some watercolor over penguins as my sketch was getting obliterated by all the people passing by - yes it was crowded. As usual.

Badger Log: Hiking is Hard Work...

2011-07-27T23:06:00.001-07:00

Badger Log: Hiking is Hard Work..., a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

July 2011: Yosemite

2011-07-26T21:40:00.001-07:00

July 2011: Yosemite, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Lovely Cabin close to the lake. Click on the image to see it larger and look at other sketches from this trip:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23173190@N07/sets/72157627166553959/

July 2011: Yosemite Trip

2011-07-25T22:14:00.001-07:00

July 2011: Yosemite Trip, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

We stayed overnight in a nice cabin which had two really cool things: this chair (with a mirror and drawer) and a large oak tree around which deck was built - with a raccoon family in it :) (not pictured :)

Badger Log: Are They Alive?

2011-07-18T22:43:00.001-07:00

Badger Log: Are They Alive?, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Badger Log: Watching Airplanes Together

2011-07-17T23:38:00.001-07:00

Badger Log: Watching Airplanes Together, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Badger Log: Frisbee

2011-07-15T23:03:00.001-07:00

Badger Log: Frisbee , a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

July 2011: New Web-Site

2011-07-14T11:02:00.001-07:00

July 2011: New Web-Site, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Please visit, browse, link to me via different networks (I need to add google+!!!) and let me know what you think :)

June 2011: Forest

2011-07-11T21:35:00.001-07:00

June 2011: Forest, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

June 2011: Trip to Ukraine and Austria

2011-07-10T13:32:00.001-07:00

June 2011: Trip to Ukraine and Austria, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Just uploaded all scans from my trip to Ukraine and Austria - take a look:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/23173190@N07/sets/72157627038740779/

Badger Log: Cherries, More Cherries!

2011-07-08T16:10:00.001-07:00

Badger Log: Cherries, More Cherries!, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Badger Log

2011-07-05T17:44:00.001-07:00

Badger Log, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

July 2011: Organizing

2011-07-05T16:37:00.001-07:00

July 2011: Organizing, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Food and Drink folder:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/23173190@N07/sets/72157627094611426/

July 2011: Organizing

2011-07-05T16:21:00.001-07:00

July 2011: Organizing, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Organizing seems to be much more time-consuming than I planned - but it takes me to interesting places :)

Here is my folder with people:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23173190@N07/sets/72157627094411898/

May 2011: Pinnacles National Monument

2011-07-02T00:21:00.001-07:00

May 2011: Pinnacles National Monument, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

We had a great time at the Pinnacles despite the fact that we came to the wrong entrance and had rather cold and wet night. It's a beautiful place!

Lots of flowering plants, very colorful rock formations: all sorts of orange-red with turquoise - at least that's how it looked early in the morning. We had to go through some rock passages that made me a little nervous but as soon as I realized how cool it will look when I sketch this place some the other side I ran ;)

June 28, 2011: Rain!

2011-06-29T21:21:00.001-07:00

June 28, 2011: Rain!, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

Rain in June? Well, it was really cool! :)

Look What I Got! :)

2011-06-22T21:03:00.001-07:00

Look What I Got! :), a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I had a special treat today: a copy of wonderful book by Cathy (Kate) Johnson www.flickr.com/photos/cathy-johnson just came out and I am one of proud participants! Thank you, Kate! And happy reading and drawing to all!

June 22, 2011: Lunch

2011-06-22T12:21:00.001-07:00

June 22, 2011: Lunch, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

June 2011: Back from vacation

2011-06-19T09:54:00.001-07:00

June 2011: Back from vacation, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

I am back form vacation with many sketches and treasures to sort through and share some here - but for now - fruits under the grape :)

Feeding Iguana

2011-06-04T22:30:00.001-07:00

Feeding Iguana, a photo by apple-pine on Flickr.

May 2011: Park Update

2011-05-30T23:15:00.001-07:00

May 2011: Park Update, originally uploaded by apple-pine.

Local park gets a new water play area :)

May 2011: New Flower Identification Challenge

2011-05-27T22:50:00.001-07:00

May 2011: New Flower Identification Challenge, originally uploaded by apple-pine.

http://naturesketchers.blogspot.com/2011/05/may-2011-new-flower-identification.html

May 2011: Digitalis

2011-05-25T21:18:00.001-07:00

May 2011: Digitalis, originally uploaded by apple-pine.

This front yard is a real forest - overgrown with all colors of roses, digitalis and many other plants.

Here is a picture I took while sketching on the spot (twit-twit: http://twitpic.com/52eki5)

April 2011: Trip to Spain - Madrid

2011-05-23T23:11:00.001-07:00

April 2011: Trip to Spain - Madrid, originally uploaded by apple-pine.

Last image from my trip to Spain. See them all here: http://tinyurl.com/3apnd93

April 2011: Trip to Spain - Museums

2011-05-22T22:48:00.001-07:00

April 2011: Trip to Spain - Museums, originally uploaded by apple-pine.

This is a collage of my museum impressions from the recent trip to Spain.

I enjoy going through museum redrawing things in my own way :)

Previously I had a few cases when I was told it's not allowed, but in Prado, where people are not allowed to take photos but many are still trying to, my sketchbook attracted a lot of positive attention :) Some kids were following me discussing if they are allowed to take a picture of my sketchbook with that painting :)

April 2011: Trip to Spain - Toledo

2011-05-19T22:43:00.001-07:00

April 2011: Trip to Spain - Toledo, originally uploaded by apple-pine.