Tupare Light.

Last year we went to Tupare to sketch. I sat in the sun and did a pencil drawing of one of their lampposts. Then I had a play with watercolour. I liked the sketch, but I thought I could do better with the colours in the background. I have been fiddling about with this sketch for a while. Yesterday was pouring rain and not fit for sketching. I decided to finish my new version of my sketch. I love the effect of letting the watercolour run and look like the painting is melting off the paper.

Here it is:

Making time for fries

I've been busy this month with lots of extra jobs. As a result, I haven't made time for sketching. One day, I did have some extra time when I was in town and saw a sign that said "Curly French Fries". Oh, aggressive marketing... you win again! So I sat at a table with a street view and did this one.

55th World Wide Sketchcrawl Day.

Maurice was in Hamilton for Sketchcrawl Day. He still wanted to participate so he slotted this sketch of the Fairfield Bridge into his busy schedule:

55th World Wide Sketchcrawl Day

Mary hid herself away off the path to get a better view of Te Rewa Rewa Bridge.

Here is her sketch:

55th World Wide Sketchcrawl Day.

Today was the 55th World Wide Sketchcrawl Day. Some of our group members were away or not well, so we only had a small group this time. We still got out there though!

The theme we decided on after a bit of thought and discussion was 'Bridges'. We Hoped this would mean the members of our group that weren't here could still participate.

It was a glorious day today. Perfect weather for going out sketching. Before lunch I went to the East End Reserve and walked from there along the Te Henui Walkway to the second walking bridge across the Te Henui Stream. I set myself up beside the path and began to sketch. It was rather an interesting location to sit, as a lot of walkers and their dogs came past. People were constantly coming over to have a look at my sketch and a chat. One couple posed on the bridge and waited for me to look up. I'd just been talking to them about whether to put people into the sketch or not. We had a good giggle over that. One man even told me I'd drawn his house.

Here is my sketch:

Te Henui Walking Bridge.

In the afternoon I went to Te Rewa Rewa Bridge. Another walking bridge over the Waiwhakaiho River. I went there last weekend and got rained out, so ended up sketching in the car. Today the weather was the opposite to that. Hot and sunny. There were heaps of people there. So many I couldn't see the bridge at times! I had no choice but to put a couple in.

Here is my sketch:

And here's some photos of Te Rewa Rewa Bridge and the Waiwhakaiho River:

Lake Rotomanu and Te Rewa Rewa Bridge.

Saturday Sketching on a rather iffy day. In the end we opted for this view across Lake Rotomanu of Te Rewa Rewa Bridge.

NZCB Apprentice Challenge

Three Apprentices spent the day at ITM hard at work constructing an elaborate table each (to be donated) - they worked from dawn till dusk.

Congratulations to Tom who won the day.

Regatta in the distance.

What a glorious afternoon for sketching after all the rain we've had. The sea was blue, blue, blue and sparkling in the sunlight. I walked along the foreshore walkway and saw the view looking back to the port. There was a sailing regatta underway just visible in the distance.

I decided to try less drawing, more painting, and this was the result!