I was in St. Louis early in July on my annual sister baseball trip (see the last blog post), but of course I found a little time to paint in my favorite park as well. I did all of these with my tiny watercolor kit and water brush pen. It's handy to not have to set out multiple cups of water to just do some quick sketches. I didn't have a lot of time that trip, but I always try to paint at least a little bit in Tower Grove.

I usually go with my sister to St. Louis once a summer to take in some Cardinals baseball. It's a fun time, and I look forward to being in Busch stadium, since mostly I just listen at home on the radio. This year I was pleased to be asked because her wedding anniversary fell on the weekend where the Cards played the Padres, which is her husband's rooting team. They made an anniversary trip of it and took in four games, but they very kindly and warmly bought extra tickets to the second two games and asked me to come join them partway through. I was delighted, and it was a lovely weekend with the two of them.

I mostly watched the games, but I did one sketch at the beginning of the game each day. The second day I restricted myself to a Stabilo fine liner and one grey Faber Castell marker, which was the sketching equipment I was handing out to teenagers on a retreat later that week where I would be teaching sketching. (I'll write about that soon. I am SO behind on this blog right now.) I wanted to do a couple of demo sketches and also just think about the best ways to use those materials. Mostly, though, I just had fun and enjoyed two Cardinal wins and hung out with the siblings.

This craze is sweeping the Urban Sketchers online, and I have completely fallen for it. I made my first tiny watercolor tin in a mini-sized Altoids tin, and I have used it incessantly ever since. When I was in Amsterdam this spring, I was delighted to find that one of the huge items for the Dutch tourism industry is tiny mint tins. I bought several at different museums. At 1.75 x 2.25" they are slightly larger than the Altoid tin, but about a quarter of an inch. Six empty half pans (which I ordered in bulk from Cheap Joe's) fit inside, as oppsoed to five in the Altoid tin, but I have the same number of colors. I just put the ultramarine blue in the bottom right directly into the corner of a tin instead of in its own half pan.

I can get almost my full regular palette into the tin, missing only yellow ochre and viridian green. I don't have as much mixing space as my full one, which I still get out to do finished, stand alone watercolors, but this is delightfully easy to use with a water brush (a pen-like contraption with water in the barrel that you squeeze gently as you use the brush) for quick sketches. It's perfect also when you're standing up or working in your lap at the theater and don't have space to set out cups of water for dipping.

Here are the colors I squeeze into my tiny kit. The first one I made didn't have the lemon yellow, and I missed it, so I've got three colors in that section. Everywhere else only has two. The purple fits along the side in the Altoid tin and at the bottom in these new ones. I usually use Windsor and Newton professional grade watercolors.

I had a sketching dinner with Elizabeth Alley last night. Every once in a while we go out to sketch together, talk about our travels, talk about materials, techniques, teaching, and whatever else. I usually sketch solo at places, so it's fun to have a meal with someone else who's doing the same thing.

I'm continuing to do website work and add sketches to my site, since they are so much a part of what I do these days.

I drove up to Kentucky on Thursday and spent that night and most of Friday at Shakertown with my sketchbook (and banjo) for company on my way to meet friends and sisters at a dance weekend. Shaker Village at Pleasant Hill (to give it its full name, though the locals and highway signs all say Shakertown) is one of my favorite places in the world. The buildings are mostly early 1800's, and they have been beautifully restored. It sits on a ridge with a view out over the blue Kentucky hills, and it's one of those places where nature and craft have combined in complete and beautiful harmony.

I'm posting the rest of these on my sketching page, where you can also read more about the place and my time there.

We got a marvelous welcome in Enschede. This city had a textile economy that made it a trading partner with Memphis for decades. Memphis helped rebuild her partner after WWII and sent cigar boxes from all the children of Memphis to the children of Enschede stuffed with things they couldn't otherwise get.

My great grandfather helped spearhead that effort, and my family participated in an exchange in 1982. In March, some leaders of the Memphis Heart and Sould festival came to Memphis to find musicians and renew ties. They had a newspaper clipping from 1947 that had a photo of my dad as a boy. The mayor recognized him and called Dad, and he had lunch with the Enschede folks. We decided to come over for the festival and got a warm welcome.

There was a documentary shown the first night about the link between the two cities, and Dad was in it. He was introduced at the reception afterwards and said a few words about his grandfather. I was proud of him and touched by the warmth of everyone who has welcomed us so kindly.

Here's dad being introduced at the reception.

The documentary was marvelous. They had done a huge amount of research and went everywhere in Memphis and its surroundings that I would have recommended for their cotton and blues double focus. I hope we can get it shown on public tv when they get it fully subtitled.

We spent yesterday at the festival and also wandering around the center city a bit. It was Saturday, market day, and I was entranced by the cheese stalls at the market with the big rounds of cheese.

Today we get to go visit our two hostesses who had our family to stay in 1982. It was a special trip, and I'm looking forward to seeing them again.

Probably the number one reason I've fallen in love with this city is the coffee shop around the corner. They have kind and welcoming people, a charming interior filled with fresh flowers and good light, a garden patio, and freaking amazing food. I've been going twice a day, and I'm already plotting a painting trip here with the understanding that I have to be within about three blocks of this place. Around the corner is perfect.

There is some seriously good hot chocolate there as well. Plus house-made salmon salad. This morning I had a melt with Brie, chorizo, and fresh tomato jam that started with whole tomatoes as I watched. Everything is marvelous.

They also have a charming cat. The best shops and restaurants have four legged greeters. America is so behind the curve on that.

I've been off dancing this weekend and am on my way to a week in the Netherlands with my parents, so there will be sketches later. In the meantime, I haven't posted this yet. It's the first color proof of a new print, another one of my favorite tree in my local park.

I've done some more carving and am two days into a second proof. It has to dry overnight between each color. I'll pull the final round of the second proof when I get home and see how it's looking.

Here it is with the original ink and watercolor sketch and all three blocks.