Nature Treasures and a Nature Journaling Class!

My studio is chock-full of twigs, feathers, acorns and other natural treasures picked up on walks.  Eventually, these bits get dusty & crumbly, so I return everything to the wild.  

When I collect drawings of these treasures, I get to keep them tucked away in my nature journal in their fresh, dust-free state.

I also get the experience of slowing down, immersing myself in nature, and drawing in my nature journal.

I made this sketch on a recent hike in Raccoon Creek State Park.  It's lovely to open my nature journal and bring back memories of that day and of making discoveries in the woods.

Would you like some inspiration and instruction on nature journaling?

I hope you'll join me for an in-person Nature Journaling class at the Raccoon Creek State Park Wildflower Reserve on Sunday, April 12th, 2026, from 1-4 PM. Cost is $15.

You can register here:

https://events.dcnr.pa.gov/event/nature-journaling-3974

Osher Figure Drawing with Model Amelia

We kicked off our Osher at CMU Spring Figure Drawing class with model Amelia.

The variety, creativity and strength in Amelia's poses inspired us to draw quickly to capture as much as we could before the timer sounded and we moved on. 

Something magical happens when a model engages their creativity and works as a co-creator in a drawing session.  Everyone is uplifted.  It's a rare experience, and one we, the artists, are grateful for.  It leaves me feeling sparkly.

Here are some of my 2- and 3-minute gesture drawings.

We did a series of 5-line drawings, allowing ourselves only 5 lines to express the entire pose.  I always find that assignment challenging, but it pushes me to explore new ideas.  I like my abstracted 5-line drawings the best.

We took a break, and then moved on to 20-minute poses.

My sincere thanks to model Amelia for her hard work and creativity!

Early Spring Nature Journaling

I recently loaded up a knapsack with some colored pencils and my nature journal and hiked to a local waterfall to sketch.  

There's nothing like sitting outside and drawing the beauty of nature.

  I enjoy drawing from reference photos, but prefer observing the details in nature in person as I sketch.  I can react to the parts of the scene that really inspire me.

After an hour sitting on a rock on a chilly afternoon, I decided to snap a photo and finish the last details in my studio.

When I got back to my studio, I noticed my sketch needed more contrast.

Sometimes it's hard to discern the areas that are darker or brighter when you're looking at a color photo.  

I converted my reference photo to black-and-white to make the values more obvious.

I added a bit more contrast between the water and the rocks around it.

I noticed I had made the waterfall too broad, so I narrowed it down a bit and added more bright values with a white Posca paint pen.

Here's the final page spread in my nature journal.

The beauty of drawing outdoors is that you get to be still and calm in nature, hearing the thundering of a waterfall or the music of songbirds as you create.  

Time stills as you observe the beauty of nature around you.  

When you're done, you have a sketch that will remind you of your experience every time you flip to that page.

I hope you find a quiet spot in nature where you can relax and sketch.

Happy Creating!

Trying Tonal Drawings

Last week in my Figure Drawing class, we studied how value creates depth in a drawing.  We saw how using just 4 values in your drawing, you can create a sense of dimension. 

Start with a quick line drawing, marking in areas of shadow.  

Choose 4 values: 

darkest darks, 

lighter shadows, 

mid-tones and 

highlights.  

Lay in the tones, using a light hand on the highlights -- they're easy to overdo.  Step back often to see the larger effect of your shadows. Finish by blending the tones and adding finishing touches.

You can see the 4 tones I used in the top left corner of the drawing below.  I used vine charcoal and white NuPastel on toned paper.

As much as I love line, I love the depth that values create.  

I hope you give this process a try! 

Happy Creating! 

Weekly Planner: Spring Flowers!

Snow was falling as I created this new planner page. Our weather had turned from warm and spring-like back to winter, so I was hungry for some spring petals.

In Art World, you can have any season you like!

I created loose watercolor florals in the style I learned from Wendy Solganik of Willa Wanders. You can see her Teachable classes here: 

https://willa-workshops.teachable.com/l/productssortKey=recommended&sortDirection=asc&page=1

After the watercolor paint dried on the page, I played with line work around the flowers in ink, and added the dates & days. Later, I wrote in the events of the week. It's refreshing every time I open my planner and catch a glimpse of the colors and energy of spring.

What is your heart hungry for right now? I hope you create it with your art supplies.

Happy Creating!

Spring Nature Journal: Tiny Things

Out hiking in the state park, I noticed some little green plants that had emerged from the spring earth.  Dutchman's Breeches are an early spring wildflower.  Even though these plants aren't blooming yet, the newness of their growth inspired this watercolor sketch.

After a long winter, what a relief to see little green signs of spring!

I love to zoom in on little details in nature.  Tiny things can tell a bigger story.

What's new in nature near you? I hope you'll make a sketch of whatever small details that capture your eye.

Happy Creating!

Nature Journal: Signs of Spring!

Spring is beginning to dawn. 

Birds are singing abundantly, spring peeper frogs are chirping in wild ponds, and the very first blooms are opening. What a relief!

I have a little pond off our front porch that I made years ago out of a mortar pan. Every summer, I put a goldfish in the pond to eat algae and mosquito larvae.

Last fall, as the first cold snap approached, I was catching the goldfish to put into deeper water for the winter, and was surprised when a frog kicked against my hand in the bitterly cold water. 

 I figured the frog knew what it was doing, and I left it there, but thought about him all winter long, especially when the temperatures bottomed out at -10 degrees F.  I read that frogs can survive being frozen for a short time. Was he still alive?

From the little sketch above, you may guess the answer to that question!

I was scooping dead leaves out of the mortar pan pond the other day, and that frog surprised me again!  

It inspired me to make art.

A friend gave us some very old photo printer paper designed to go to an outdated system.  It's shiny and smooth like old photographs.  I used a fountain pen to make some sketches, but it kept getting clogged by the shiny finish material on the paper.  Colored pencil worked well, and watercolor worked surprisingly well!

Sometimes when you have upcycled materials, it frees up your creativity.  Often the materials were headed for the trash can, and you are saving them.  They may have properties you're unaware of, so it's natural that you'd experiment with them.  You can take on an attitude of "I'm just testing this stuff out."  No pressure. 

That's a magical attitude to have, and you'll find it releases you to make free art.

Keep an eye out for materials that could be used for art in a thrift shop, yard sale or other second-hand source.  Look for "trash" that could become art. 

Happy Creating!