DRAWING MOSS #2 AND POPPY

MOSS

Thelma's dog at northstoke.blogspot.co.uk

POPPY

CT's dog at countrysidetales.blogspot.co.uk

These two dogs have been more of a challenge than I was expecting. They both have shaggy fur which is always more forgiving than a sleek hound with no room for extemporising. They have very distinct characters and, particularly with Moss, the first AND the second time, I had to do the eye twice. Thank goodness for the invention of the metal rubbing shield, at least that's what we called them at architectural college; they allow you to rub out very specific and tiny areas without smudging or affecting anything surrounding the mistake that needs removal. I took all these on my phone, and not that many (you may be glad to read) so apologies - some are absolutely terrible. Moss first.

I decided to do Moss bigger this time, and without the grass he was standing on. Big mistake on the time front because I needed to do much more detail but, with the unusual blessing of hindsight, thanks to the damned postal service, it was the right thing to do. As usual, I started with the eye, rubbed it out and did it for what was now the FOURTH time. Sketching in dark areas and the nose....

Moss has very white areas, which I find really difficult, and some really dark areas, which I like doing much more. I always stick with the head until I'm happy I've started to get the character right. BAD photo:

Some colour goes in and I start the dreaded white patch down the chest. How to define it with a grey pencil and not spend eight hours doing so?

Move on to easier bits and come back to it........

Still avoiding it.........

I can't avoid it any longer......too much grey though

Out with the rubbing shield....I'm happier. Sign it. 

I stand back and take a longer view and I realise the black patches on his head aren't dark enough.....

That's better.

And here's the final scan

And here's a strange photo of the one that went missing. It makes the pencil lines blend together into what looks like paint. Looking at it now, A VERY tiny part of me is glad I had to do it again. Do you agree?

Why was Poppy so difficult? I'm not sure really. CT wanted her head rather than the whole body so I had nowhere to hide. I think the amount of white fur was a challenge again and the transparency of all the stuff around the muzzle. 

Getting the colour involved helped a lot......

I can't tell you how many times the rubbing shield came out on this one!

Finished eventually:

And here's the final scan, for my reference and just in case the original ever goes missing or gets damaged.

Thanks so much to Thelma and CT for trusting me to draw them. 

I had a conversation with a few friends last week who were asking me how much I charged to do a drawing. They were outraged when I told them and berated me soundly. I suppose it's about confidence in your own worth, of which I have little. They made me work it out properly and the hourly rate is often below the minimum wage, so, I agreed I should raise it to £50 which has nearly killed me. I may never get another commission, but at least I'm not underselling myself as much, something Thelma has mentioned to me in the past funnily enough. 

So, until next time, here are my boys at sunrise a couple of days ago. Yes, the snow remains, despite sunshine and supposedly rising temperatures. The stuff in our garden is going nowhere and I nearly came a cropper on the ice sheet on the drive this morning. Have a great week. 

SKETCHING TEDDY

One of the three commissions I've had recently was to draw CT's dog Teddy, often to be seen on her great blog: http://countrysidetales.blogspot.co.uk/ . What a great subject he was; the scruffier the better I find. It's been so great to actually work at something I really enjoy. We won't be installing a swimming pool any time soon, but it doesn't matter - I feel like I've achieved something at the end of the day for the first time in ages. So....thanks to the three of you who have put your trust in me!

Welcome to some more followers too; it's been a bit of a bonanza over the last week. Thank you so much and It's wonderful to have you all.

Here are some photos from the last few days. First, a Mohican Chaffinch:

Not very sharp, but I loved this little Blue Tit on the fading hydrangea:

I can't remember which foal this is but it's grown a lot and definitely isn't black any more. So much for them all turning grey:

Back to fungi.....and those found on the endless gorse, both dead and alive. I've never seen this strange, flat and slightly pitted one:

I think this is an older version of the last:

If you have a brilliant memory, you may remember the black Witches' Butter fungus I photographed last year. This, I now realise, having photographed it many times, is the yellow version, also known as Yellow Brian, Golden Jelly Fungus and Yellow Trembler:

Does anyone know what these TINY little red fungi are? About half an inch wide, if that:

  

Very strange.....

  

These look like tiny Chantarelles but I'm just not sure:

Three ponies in the rain:

And then there were four....

Stormy clouds:

Most of the Beech leaves have gone from the trees on the fringe of the moor:

We've had a couple of days without major rain, but more is due tonight. I'm back wearing wellies walking, which isn't good for my feet, but the alternative is trench-foot from boots that just aren't up to the job. Fine in a shower, but once the ground is saturated, rubber is the only option for me unless I have some kind of miraculous financial windfall and can buy those boots whose price make your eyes water. Anyway, the fire is lit and the smell of smoke and autumn leaves is in the mist outside. The dogs are out of the habit of their evening walk now until spring comes and are asleep in their baskets. Until next time, here's Jack in the grass. I love the second one.