First Strawberries

That's first EVER strawberries that we have grown in our own garden. Less than a month after planting they are ripe. I don't want to pick them, they look so pretty. I should have painted them in watercolour. I'm regretting using this Fabriano Artist's Journal as my Garden Journal because it doesn't take watercolour very well and coloured pencils, which is what this is, always takes me ages.

I'll probably have to try them in watercolour before I eat them - sweet little things.

Sketching En Plein Air

I banned myself from surfing other people's blogs this morning and headed out with my sketching stool. I only got as far as the corner, where I sketched our main street. The perspective is a little out. You may play 'spot the errors', but I'm rather pleased that I actually did this.

Yesterday I drew the garden tools I bought for HWEM on my 'sketching' trip to Florence. I used this as EDM Challenge #103 Draw Some Exercise Equipment - what you use to stay fit. Well, I am planning to use them - one day.

Linocut Print - Torre del Cassero

I'm obsessed with the tower above our garden wall. Perugians built the original structure in 1330. It houses an 18th century weight clock that strikes the time each hour (before and after the event) but never on the hour. Il Cassero gives its name to our neighbourhood in this little historic town. Under its blue and white flag we fight off various challenges throughout the year, culminating in the annual Palio dei Rioni (horse race).

This is my first linocut. I printed it first on 90lb watercolour paper, then not liking the naive cloud, I eliminated that and printed on Chinese rice paper. Belinda del Pesco, I'm not! But she does inspire me and I'm sure many others.



I have worked out how to do this without making too much mess.


I tried rubbing the paper against the inked lino block with a spoon, but the best baren turns out to be an Italian scaloppina hammer I bought for HWEM. I haven't told him yet!

Scaloppina hammer come Baren