Ambulance Lane Water Tower

The Patchogue Sketch Club met to sketch the water tower on Ambulance Lane. In orderto get the entire structure I sat far back in the parking lot across the street. We were there for about an hour or so when it started to drizzle. Everyone gathered up their work, scurried to their cars, and left. I decided to stay and finish my sketch from inside my "mobile studio." I moved the car so that I was in about the sme spot I had been sitting in earlier and finished the sketch. I was rewarded with a lovely sunset that just kept getting better.

Look at the sunset reflected in the raindrops on my windshield!

Marina View

 Along Argyle Lane in Patchogue is a small area and building for the Fire Island National Seashore Headquarters. From there you have a view of the marina for Week's Boatyard. Here is a little of the view.

Terry Street Garden

The Terry Street Garden in Patchogue was our meeting location last night for the Patchogue Sketch. It was a wonderful night to be out sketching and the plants and flowers inside didn't disappoint. 

Patchogue Farmers Market

 I enjoy going to local farmers markets to see the different items they have and find things to sketch. This was my second visit to the Patchogue Farmers Market this summer. It is at the Long Island Railroad Station in Patchogue. It is set up nicely and has some tables in the center that are shaded and perfect for sitting and sketching.

I was sitting at a table planning to sketch a floral display across from me when I noticed that in the other direction there was a woman holding a pilates class. Yasmine from @flowhausbyyaz and two students were doing all kinds of stretches that made me ache just watching. I sketched a few of the poses. When they were done I met Yasmine and one of the students. They were so nice.

In the opposite direction Peach & Bloom had a lovely booth. I loved the idea of a bouquet bar. I stopped to show the vendors my sketch and they loved it. They were really so nice.

Sketchwaiting

My iPhone hasn't been holding a charge for very long and I decided to have the battery replaced. I headed over to Best Buy because they are an Apple authorized location for repairs. When I handed the phone to the repairman and he entered my info into the computer, he told me that Apple considers my iPhone X to be "vintage" and they will no longer replace the batteries. (Giving the consumer a push to buy a new phone?) He did tell me that I could probably still get the battery replaced...just not by Apple. He recommended a nearby shop called Tech Boys. They told me it would take about an hour, so I left and did some shopping before I returned. The phone wasn't quite ready so I pulled out a piece of paper from my purse and sketched a bit. Unfortunately the one battery they had wouldn't hold a charge and they had to order a new battery that would be delivered the next day. They put the old battery in the phone but now that wouldn't hold a charge any more. I was without a phone until the next afternoon. It is funny when you don't have your phone how much you rely on it all day. Luckily the following afternoon they replaced the battery and all is back to normal. The tech person did suggest that I replace the phone some time in the next 6-9 months. Because it is "vintage" it may not support updates or new apps for much longer. I know that is true...so maybe I'll be getting a new iPhone for Christmas. lol

Starbucks and Cinco de Mayo

The Patchogue Sketch Club was meeting, but the forecast was once again for rain so we moved to an indoor location. I brought along some fruit to use for sketching and Mark and Teresa sketched it too.  

For the sketch above I used a sketchbook I had bought in Venice. It is leather and had paper that I was told was watercolor paper. It is a bit textured and absorbs the watercolor as well as the ink. Some of it shows on the back side of the paper. I don't think it has a lot of sizing like our paper here usually does. 

Jerry and I celebrate Cinco de Mayo with tacos from The Fat Boy Burrito Company in Patchogue. Luckily I decided to do take-out and called ahead. There was a line outside. The food is very good!

Patchogue Starbucks

Last week the Patchogue Sketch Club met at Starbucks. The theme was paper airplanes, which I had absolutely no interest in doing. Luckily there is always a view to sketch at Starbucks, even if most of them all look the same. This one has a drive-thru so I was able to catch a barrister with headphones by the window. 

Marina View

 There are a few marinas in Patchogue that are fun to sketch from outside the fence like this one.

Fantastic Gardens

 

On  another of our drizzly days I was looking for a place where I could park and see something that felt like spring. According to the sign that was hanging over the flowers, Fantastic Gardens in Patchogue has a Sunday market inside and outside some of the greenhouses. I will have to check it out, but for now I was happy with the assortment of flowers on the tables.

St. Patrick's Day in Patchogue

I would love to sketch the St. Patrick's Day Parade itself, but the barricades along Main Street in Patchogue made it impossible to see what was coming next long enough to sketch it. Instead I foucused on the crowd across the street from where I was sitting on my stool. There were some mighty big hats that were calling to be sketched. I was hoping some bagpipers would be around after the parade ended, but that didn't happen. 

Snow Piles and Boats

The boats at the marinas are mostly wrapped for the winter, but I did find this one in the lot by the Tiki Bar in Patchogue that was uncovered. I liked this scene with the melting snow piles and assorted marine materials around. I sketched from my mobile studio so the cold outside didn't phase me. I believe this is the Sunset Harbor Marina.

By the Pier

 I'm always looking for views to sketch. I love how the gulls pose on top of the pilings by the dock. This one cooperated and stayed in one spot for a long time. This was done by Mascot Dock in Patchogue.

View to the Marina

 We have a lot of canals and marinas locally. This was across the water in Patchogue.

Bits and Bobs

On Memorial Day Weekend there were "No Kings" protests all across the country against the attacks by our president on our democracy. I attended one locally in Patchogue. It was raining when I arrived there and I saw that I had a bit of a view from where I parked my car. I did a quick sketch, pulled on my rain poncho, and joined the crowd for the protest. It rained the entire time but that didn't deter the crowd.

Meanwhile I've been participating in the Creative Spark Scavenger Hunts. One of the items was a mailbox. This one is located up the street from me. I've wanted to sketch it before, but it is hard to park along the street there. I love the dolphin...or is it a porpoise?

Fantastic Gardens

Fantastic Gardens in Patchogue is a source of many good views to sketch. 

Patchogue Lighthouse View

 Recently the Patchogue Sketch Club went to the Sandspit Marina in Patchogue for our sketch night. Right off the end of the parking area is a small lighthouse that we all sketched. 

Dublin Deck

The Dublin Deck over in Patchogue has some fun things in their parking lot. 

Who wouldn't like a pirate and a giant chair? 

Island View Marina

 Near the Sandspit parking lot in Patchogue you can see across the canal to the Island View Marina. Sometimes there is a lot going on, but this day it was pretty quiet...perfect for sketching.

Sketch Club at Starbucks

Rain changed the plans for the Patchogue Sketch Club recently. Instead of sketching outside we had to find an indoor location and ended up in Starbucks in Patchogue. We had a theme of "Trinkets." Apparently trinkets covers something small that is inexpensive. I brought along a mermaid ornament, a tiny rubber duck, a ladybug pin that I've has since childhood, and a small magnet from Santa Fe. 

I was there before the other sketchers arrived, so I sketched a man at one of the other tables. He seemed so deep into whatever was on his computer screen.

The Line for Coffee

 Rain was expected but I wanted to sketch. I headed over to Fantastic Gardens in Patchogue hoping I could get a parking space facing the tables of flowers, but no such luck. I checked along the fence outside but there were no spaces there either. I did notice that there was a coffee truck with a long line, but there was no parking along the fence there. I ended up driving down the street, making a u-turn and coming back in the direction of the nursery. Ahead I saw someone pulling out of a space heading in along the fence. Perfect! I was facing the coffee line. I started with the guy in the leg brace figuring he wasn't going to leave. Then I just continued to add people until I ran out of space.

Right after I finished painting the sketch it started to pour. Everyone vanished and the coffee truck shut down. I'm glad I was able to capture it before the rain came.