A Canterbury ‘Tail’

Recently we visited the City of Canterbury in Kent. We stayed in a nearby Caravan and Camping Club site and walked in to the City each day to explore the ancient streets with beautiful old buildings, including Canterbury Cathedral. However the Cathedral didn’t allow dog owners and was also being renovated so that’ll be for another day. I always do a sketchbook log of our motorhome trips but decided this time to make up a handmade sketchbook zine of our trip complete with collaged found objects made into little Canterbury houses and shops as bookmarks. A little different, I know!

The Canterbury Tail Sketchbook zine by Janet Peck

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A splash of colour

I posted a week ago this painting emerging. It is still work in progress, however as the days get shorter and cooler as autumn advances , every day I have looked at the bright jewel coloured flowers, wet with new rainfall and glowing, however soon they will be gone. So I have picked blooms which have fallen and taken them into my Studio to paint them. The result as I work is serendipitous because the blooms have chosen to be part of my painting. It will take a few weeks to complete, but I am happy with it so far. The paint is very wet do I will be continuing with watercolours and prints.

Hedgehog watercolour completed!

My apologies for only showing you the early stages of my watercolour painting. As you can see, this fellow is completed! Well out of hibernation!

Sketching in the garden: woodland in spring

The weather has been amazing the last couple of days, too hot for working in the Studio so I’ve been sitting outside at a little table sketching with watercolour was crayons, called I think Neocolour. They are quick to work with and I love blending the colours. I used the above reference from a walk in the countryside yesterday and imagined the feeling of walking into a magical Blue bell wood.

Serene tree

Recently I decided to do a series of very quick sketches inspired by my local walks with the dogs. Next I thought about translating a serene feeling I always have when walking at that location, the trees dangling branches in the stream and the winter light. The result was my oil painting above, painted in 3 hours. I hope you enjoy looking at it and the sketches.

Enjoy your day.

Love hedgehogs

The light wasn’t great when I photographed the early stages of my watercolour painting of a hedgehog. I will build many transparent colour layers to create this little hog. I’ll aim to capture an essence of his character. I’m waiting for the paint to dry before I carry on.

I’ll update you soon with how my little hog painting is coming on!

It is a joy to be making puddles of colour again, adding water and letting my brush drop colour onto the paper.

Whilst I’m waiting, I’ll make a hot chocolate or chamomile tea to warm my hands.

Have a lovely evening.

I couldn’t resist taking this shot from the courtyard, such a colourful sky!

Warm wishes to all

It’s been a very strange year of many ups and downs and I apologise to everyone who follows me, likes my blog and enjoys reading my posts. I promise to make 2019 the year when I pen my poetry and get painting again. After one of our beloved Border collies died suddenly last year, the arrival of our Slate merle pup in early spring and Skye, our surviving blue merle having a Stroke, I wondered whether life would ever become calm again.

However, Storm is a year old now, pictured above, and has a lovely nature; she gets on really well with Skye and has helped Skye get over her Stroke by assisting with her physio!

We’ve had lovely holidays in North Norfolk walking along the Coastal path, across the salt marshes and on Holkham beach and I have enjoyed a few hours here and there to paint.

I hope you like my photos and my watercolour painting of the cheeky robin who visits my bird table every morning. I have designed a Christmas card, so he can be enjoyed by friends and family.

I wish you all a warm, peaceful and jolly Christmas and the best of luck for 2019!

XxX

Dahlia magic!

Autumnal breezes forcefully tore petals from the

Adored dahlia,

Settling on

Dead leaves: a musty floor.

Tattered frailty, melted magical

Majesty,

Glowing like a gold fae star.

Autumnal breezes, ripped this beautiful dahlia from its stem. I rescued it and watched it, as with lots of water and paint, I created an image which will last…I want to say forever. As sunshine warmed us all, tiny golden sparkles glowed on its shiny petals. I love dahlias.

Inspired by Squash

I love growing squash, but this year, I reckon because of the drought, the harvest was disappointing. The squash were much smaller. However they have made a very good Still Life subject. I feel inspired by their textures, colours and those fabulous stripey designs. I actually like the dried slightly mouldy wizened stem!

My painting is work in progress, in oil on canvas gesso board. The oil is quite damp so I’ve got time to think about any changes I want to make.

The weather is warm here, the light fabulous for showcasing autumnal colours everywhere in nature. I’ll miss the swallows though!

I hope you’re having a good autumn.

Tulip Art workshop

Yesterday was a great Art for the soul day, painting almost non stop for 3 hours in a lovely Studio gallery location in the buzzing Hertfordshire market town of Hitchin. I have never painted in Oils before and found them quite a challenge but I will get mine out at home now because they are such a tactile, vibrant medium. I love them. I hope you enjoy my painting. I tried to capture the light and different colours in a photo of the ‘black tulip.