232 entry

Nearly a year has passed since I last updated this blog.

I have spent a lot of time with my 'swatch' (8) - daily diary; walking log (3) and Random Garden log (1)

I love to record, in my walk log, flora and fauna over the years; to see the variation of life on the Purlieu (New Forest) 

In my swatch I record important days in my life - again over the years.

Just playing...carbon pencil & watercolours

A visit to Wendy Lady's house resulted in this little illustration.

My beautiful girlie chose two little kittens. Brother and Sister... SO gorgeous!

They are now a year old and still a delight!

Coach House Studio for the 9th year I believe.

Woodgreen

Fabulous!

My oldest niece got married. 💕

I have been walking with a local friend and her fabulous wonderful dog for nearly two years now...

This is a sketch in charcoal and watercolours; done as a memory.

Christmas card - 2021

My lovely friends birthday present. Framed painting in charcoal and watercolours.

A windy day on the Purlieu...

I'm out walking again! 😍

Valentine  2022

To my wonderful lovely boy of 43 valentines...

Cornwall 2022 

We made it!

💓What a great week we all had celebrating the life of my lovely Dads 💓 

26 family member went for the week.

Michael Ernest Bond 

1928 - 2021

In memory of our wonderful father, father-in-law, grandfather and great Grandfather

231 entry

A synopsis update from October 2019 to date 30 July 2021.

Over a year of COVID-19 (worldwide) with lockdown, isolation, social distancing and MASKS!; many people struggling in one way or another over the time! 

We are now coming out of it - slowly!

We have missed our family Cornwall 2019 and 2020. First in 55 years!

From this came my fifth book  'A baby comes to Cornwall' 

I wrote it to connect the family together, sending them a page a day, with my daughter adding photos. Thank heavens for WhatsApp groups with 26 of us....!

 

The little book is a log of each day we spend together each Easter week.

What we do and our love for each other! 

Copies are for sale

sarahorchard1@icloud.com

I started walking on the Purlieu nearly every day and recording the flora and fauna plus the weather, in an A6 landscape moleskin book. For me they are the best....

My platinum pen went with me and when home I added my watercolours.

I am still logging and love the fact that I have seen the seasons pass. Looking forward to seeing the variation next year!

I have made two fabulous new friends. I walk with one on Mondays and the other on Fridays.

I feel very honoured to have them in my life. We have shared sadness and pain and laughter.

Christmases and birthdays have passed with distant contact from family and friends. 

My beautiful son had his 30th birthday ... 

We had a quiet Christmas ,home alone. My lovely Dads had been transferred to a care home as the Alzheimers took hold! So demoralising for such a beautiful man, as with so many others. You wouldn't allow your dog to live like that! So cruel....

(Close up)

I made this board game (above) for my son as my secret Santa'

It depicts the route of one of our family Cornish walks. 

I think nicely appreciated.

Valentine 2021 came and went, isolated in our properties....

My boy and I have been together for forty-one years and I feel closer to him now more than ever. We had fabulous times together in lockdown although he was also working 'saving the world...'

 

My lovely Dads died on 15th February 2021. It was relatively peaceful, with seven of us around his bed. No masks, no social distancing. A happy time as we laughed, cried  and exchanged memories of him.  

He was out of that humiliating time in his wonderful life. Adored by everyone he met!

I painted and framed eleven of these watercolour and charcoal sketches below, for all of my family to put in their homes and feel Dads with them. 

I spent five days in hospital from 19th February - our thirty-eighth wedding anniversary 

- with a perforated bowel.

We then both had a week, for a well needed holiday, in Bude Cornwall the first week in May, to make up for missing our Easter Cornwall again and just life really!

As you can read, I needed to see the sea... it was very emotional and a fabulous week together.

I spend a lot of my time playing with pen and wash but different pen 

👏

My lovely son got married and I now have a beautiful daughter in law!

The wedding was SO full of love. They both did a magic job organising it!

We have revamped our garden and now have most of the lawn as 'meadow' to be more environmentally friendly!

Above is my wildflower log. 

Each month I am recording the wildflowers that appear, with 

flowering time; habitat; folklore or history 

I absolutely love doing things like this!

Its just for me but hey!

And finally for now, we have Hampshire Open Studio at Coach House Studio

Woodgreen New Forest

Do visit!

21st August to 30th August 2021

230 entry

We are now into October 2019 and Autumn upon us...
I am focusing more on my 'people' as, at the end of the day that is what I enjoy doing...
so here goes for the last eight months.
A random selection but I shall explain for each.

 Never approved of willow charcoal but this is what I used for this tonal sketch. 

Never say never...

 St Ives on the beach. We spent our holiday staying in a little cottage. 

St Ives is a delight. many crab sandwiches eaten...

 A walk over the fields to find the costal path. when found - wow how beautiful!

 Flower (Exbury)

 Exbury Gardens with next doors 

 Tutoring in Lymington where they all sail...

 Study of People.

 Not so good but I am happy to show...

 A couple of views (above and below) of St Ives beach from the coastal path.

St Ives - 2019

 People

 I really enjoy this sketch. watercolour with charcoal paint as mark

A commission.  He is down on his knee proposing...

 

 The three above are done at a botanical weekend at West Dean.

It was a lovely relaxing way to paint. 'Mindful' but I prefer my 'frantic' style...

 People - not bad..

People .. ok

 Above is a selection of my people. Done with a mixture of watercolour and pen.

 We went on a 'butterfly' walk. It was wonderful.

Went to a workshop. The paintings are of Bolderwood in The New Forest.

 

 My boy sitting in the sun...

 A flower by any other name..

 More Lymington boats for the Red Dog Gallery. Sadly no sales..

Four of us went to London but not to see the Queen...!

Saw the Summer Exhibition. We all agreed that it was VERY disappointing.

Next visit is to see the Christmas lights and the Courtauld Gallery which sounds much more exciting...

Above: I did a couple of fountain pen sketches for Inktober but that is as far as I got.

These are my latest trials. I quite like the simplicity.

I treated myself to a 'fude' nib fountain pen. An interesting experience as I 

thought that fountain pens all made one mark unless a broad nib which I do not enjoy.

This pen has many thickness of lines.

 I am so fixated by my watercolours and pen or charcoal but I do question to what purpose I paint.

My lovely husband says it is for me...so I move forward. 

I have two or three more books in my head - one being 'The New Forest'.

A book for tourists visiting; giving them an insight into this precious place that I am honoured to live in.

There we have it!