Brookhaven Farm

 Down along Main Street in Brookhaven there are a few areas of farmland. This one is behind a farm stand, but I focused on the farm this time.

Maine Visit - Heading Home

 We were only up in Maine for a few days. Sitting in my sister's living room I did a sketch of her dog, Toby, relaxing on "his chair." It was done with a simple digital program I downloaded to my phone while I was sitting there. I knew if I moved to get up and get my sketchbook Toby would be off that chair in a second. lol

For a Creative Spark scavenger hunt I sketched an indoor scene. This is part of the bedroom I was sleeping in which was my nephew, Christopher's room. He now lives in Japan. 

We left early enough to make a stop at the Cape Neddick Lighthouse in York, Maine. There wasn't time to do any sketching, but I took a few photos.

Then there was the last obligatory lobster roll for lunch at Bob's Clam Shack in Kittery, Maine.

Maine Visit - Day 2

 We lucked out with our trip to Maine and had really nice weather. On our second day we headed down to the Boothbay area. We wanted to see how the storm had affected that area, and I wanted to sketch. Michelle was more interested in going into the few shops that were open. We were a few days early for the start of the season. That meant no crowds and free parking.

We drove out to Ocean Point. Almost the entire road down along the point had to be completely replaced after the winter storms, and they are almost finished. There was a section that had beautiful pine trees, but all of them were knocked down by the waves.

There is a foot bridge that crosses the Boothbay Harbor which had been repaired recently, so we headed out there to sketch. There were benches which was nice, but the top railing ended up being right in our line of sight. It was foggy and what we were sketching kept disappearing. lol

Chris and Michelle went to go into a few stores and I sat outside what is one of my favorite stores there. They have nice t-shirts. Usually it is a difficult spot to sketch because of the cars and trucks coming through, but it was quiet when we were there. I did go into the store when I finished, but I didn't buy anything.

Just in case you were wondering about our meals up there we made sure to fit in the required fried scallops and clams.

Maine Visit - Day 1

Last week I picked up my sister, Michelle in NJ and we drove up to Maine to visit our sister, Chris & her family. Michelle hasn't been up to Maine for quite a few years, so we decided to visit a few places near Tina that are special. The first day we drove down to Pemaquid Point where the Pemaquid Lighthouse is located. The landscape changed a lot after the strong storms that hit the Maine coast back in January. Huge boulders were knocked off the rocky ledge, smaller boulders moved up near the lighthouse, and the bell house was damaged. Luckily the lighthouse itself wasn't affected.

Both Michelle and Chris sketch, but not to the same extent as I do. They both sat and did one sketch, and left me alone while they explored and chatted a bit while I did two.

This sketch is of some of the trees and rocks between the lighthouse and the rocky ledge.

I also did a small painting of the Pemaquid Lighthouse.

Here is a photo of the three of us...left to right are Chris, myself and Michelle.

Down Bellport Avenue

One of my favorite streets in Bellport is Bellport Ave. It runs straight down from Main Street all the way to the Bellport Dock. There is a guard gate, a social club, a parking area for residents, a parking area for visitors (like me), a playground, a small beach, and assorted docks for private and town boats. 

Continuous Line Sketch & Gelli Prints

 For the Creative Spark Scavenger Hunt I did a continuous line sketch of fruit, a bowl, eyeglasses, and a vegetable peeler.

I have been doing some gelli prints using leaves and flowers that I've found outside. They seem to work best on a light colored preprinted page.

 

Gondola Prints

 The Patchogue Sketch Club has continued with our ink printing at the library. I had some success with my prints.

Some of the members working on cutting their plates.

Laurie inking her koi.

The second night we worked with adding several colors to make a print from our plate that we had carved.

Each color had to be printed separately.

Nissan 112

 Last week I had to have some work done on my car. While it was being worked on I sat in the waiting area with my iPad and did a Procreate sketch of one of the new cars in the showroom. I haven't done much digital work lately so this was good practice.

Beach Day

 We recently had a day where the temperature reached the mid 70s...definitely a beach day! I headed over to Robert Moses State Park and of course I sketched the Fire Island Lighthouse.

I needed to sketch people relaxing for the scavenger hunt on Creative Spark and this was the perfect location. I took my beach chair and went down on the sand for a while. I had a perfect view of these people who had no idea they were my victims...I mean subjects. lol

Tiki Joe's

 While I was out in Hampton Bays I stopped to sketch this view of Tiki Joe's beach house at Meschutt Beach. I loved the way the building was decorated with beach themed items.

Hampton Bays Bridges

 I like wandering all over Long Island and one of my favorite places to visit is the Hamptons. I rented summer houses with friends in Hampton Bays many years ago. I still have a fondness for that town. These bridges can be seen along the Shinnecock Canal in Hampton Bays.

Last of My Pinks

I'm pretty sure this is the last of the pink cherry trees that I painted this spring. I miss seeing their colors. Now everything is back to green.

Fifth Avenue Blooms

A few weekends ago the NYC Urban Sketchers met across from St Patrick's Cathedral to sketch "Fifth Avenue Blooms," an exhibit of colorful sculptures and live flowers stretching 12 blocks along Fifth Avenue. It was designed by French artist, Alexandre Benjamin Navet with Van Cleef & Arpels, and there are arches, benches, pergolas and other elements in bright colors. In addition there are activities and music for the public to enjoy.

We started out sitting in front of the statue of Atlas which is in front of one of the buildings that are part of Rockefeller Center. With the flower sculpture in the foreground I had a bit of St Patrick's Cathedral as my background.

Next I crossed Fifth Avenue and sat on the steps of St Patrick's Cathedral looking back at the statue of Atlas holding up the world. When I was in college I worked part-time for a company that was in that building, so I brings back some memories. I was able to include a few sketchers at work.

After lunch I left the group and ventured a little further up toward Central Park. There was a sculpture of arches that people could walk under straight ahead in my view.

The group gathered once again for our "show and tell" near the fountain across from the Plaza Hotel.

I almost forgot to include the sketch I did on the Long Island Railroad going into the city.

Smithtown Buildings

 These buildings were near the Smithtown Historic Society. I don't think they are part of the property but a lot of the buildings up there look historic. 

Berry Tart

A while back we were invited to dinner at a friend's house. I asked if I could bring dessert and went to a French bakery,  Mademoiselle Patisserie in Patchogue where I bought this delicious berry tart.

 

Twin Cherry Trees

 Two more cherry trees in Yaphank.

Blue Point Pinks

I still have a few paintings of cherry blossoms to post even though the blossoms are pretty much gone here. The greens have taken over. This was painted down by Corey Beach in Blue Point. 

Planting Fields Arboretum #2

There were so many views with the cherry trees at the Planting Fields Arboretum in Oyster Bay. These were flanking the trellises that will be covered with roses soon.

 

Planting Fields Arboretum #1

A few weeks back we had great weather and I visited the Planting Fields Arboretum in Oyster Bay a few times. The azaleas were starting to bloom. 

Salt Shack Sketches

My friend and I planned to meet at a car show at Tobay Beach along Ocean Parkway to sketch. By the time I got near the beach, the backup traffic was at a standstill and I had been sitting in traffic for more than an hour and still had a long distance to go. I called her to let her know I wasn't going to make it, and as soon as traffic inched along enough for me to make a u-turn I left. 

As I was heading home I came near Cedar Beach, and I noticed people entering the parking lot. I decided to check and see if the beach building was open. I was surprised that not only the bathrooms but the restaurant (Salt Shack) and bar were open too (but with limited food). It was a beautiful, sunny day and a lot of people were enjoying the outdoors. I sat on a fence by the dunes to capture this view of the building.

When I finished I grabbed something to eat and headed back outside. There was a live band playing on the outside deck and everyone was enjoying the music and the sun. Right in front of me was a couple with a lady in a wheelchair. From their interaction I assume that the older lady was the woman's mom or grandmother. As the music played they held hands and moved to the music. It was a really sweet scene, and I couldn't pass up sketching it. I may have missed sketching at the car show, but I thoroughly enjoyed the day!

 

Return to the New York Botanical Gardens

After sketching the cherry trees at the New York Botanical Gardens one weekend, one of our members asked that the NYC Urban Sketchers also visit there while things were in bloom. The daffs, the tulips, the cherry trees, the lilacs, the peony trees and the rhodies were all in bloom when we were there so it was arranged that we would go again. Since I had been painting so many cherry trees I decided that my first stop would be the lilac garden...oh, what a lovely smell. They were in bloom in various shades of purples and lavenders, as well as whites. It was beautiful!

Across from the lilac garden is the actual cherry tree location. Last week we had been to daffodil hill, but this was another area of the gardens. Right at the edge overlooking a small hill was this massive, wonderful cherry tree, the thought of painting anything else went right out of my head. lol

This is the sight that was before me.

By the time I finished this painting I knew I needed to get back to the Conservatory where our show & tell would be. I took the tram, but I only had a short time before we were starting. I started a sketch of some of the potted plants in the area, but didn't get to finish them. I did take a photo so hopefully I will be able to complete it at home.

Manorville Sketches

Last week I stopped at Waterdrinker Farm in Manorville. Their tulip festival was going on, but I had no desire to walk out into the field of tulips. Instead I found a wagon filled with flowers. 

After sketching the flowers I headed up the road to see if there was anything different in that direction, and I found this rusty old car by a barn. I guess it has been there a while since the tires don't look like they would roll anywhere.

Between the Houses

I love the pinks and purples that separate these two houses... 

Printmaking

The Patchogue Sketch Club has been doing some printmaking when we meet. I'm not sure what our project will be but this year our group project for Arts on Terry will involve printmaking. We did these on styrofoam plates and they are about 4 x 6. We drew our designs with ballpoint pens and then flattened the areas that we wanted to have stay white. Most of us were able to do 2 good prints and 2 ghost prints. The hardest part was getting the lettering correct because it has to be the reverse of what the word will be. 

Cherry Tree & Fence

I'm still coming across cherry trees in bloom. I just can't help myself. 

Orlowski Hardware & Anchor

 I took a ride out to Mattituck last week. I'm always looking for interesting buildings. This is Orlowski Hardware store along Love Lane. I like the wires and the fact that you can see into the store windows and the front door. 

No, the anchor below wasn't at the hardware store. It was one of the items on the Creative Spark Scavenger Hunt. It is actually located in West Sayville right before the entrance to the dock.