Orchid Isle

I live on the "Orchid Isle". At least that's what the tourism authority says. To tell you the truth, there are only three native orchids in Hawaii and all of them are pretty rare and not very showy. So, I suspect we're called that because orchids from all over the world grow really well here.

I was feeling a bit nostalgic tonight. This type of cymbidium flowers grew in the front lawn of a house I rented in Volcano and they always take me back to a simple time. What better medium to capture their simplicity than a plain ole pencil.

More cymbidiums here.

Mistake masterpiece

I am still learning ... and still making mistakes. I posted a snippet of this painting a little earlier to hide my embarrassing mistakes with perspective and probably a few other things. But I'm sharing this entire painting as a lesson to myself that developing skill involves trying, making mistakes, and improving. There's no embarrassment in that! : )

Rooting around

I had been "rooting" around the pantry for some tea (sorry, couldn't help myself) and found some ginger and decided to make some ginger tea. For some reason, it settles my stomach and after two weeks of holiday feasting, I really need it! Plus, it is supposed to be good for motion sickness and to ward off colds.

If you'd like to make your own tea, just slice up an inch or so of ginger root and boil it in a couple cups of water. I drink mine plain but you could add honey and lemon to taste.

This is my pen and ink tribute to my favorite cure-all.

Pepper Study

Tonight, I celebrate my almost-completed chicken coop (stay tuned for pics) by getting back to my drawing! It feels so good to have my pencils between my fingers again! So this evening, I busted out my colored pencils and took a stab at creating shadows using complementary colors. Mheh, it's okay, I guess. Gotta love goofy shaped peppers!

Thank you Siggy (I think)! I've been tagged!

Very talented and utterly amazing artist Sigrid Frensen tagged me and asked me to share 7 facts about myself. If you don't know Sigrid's work, you MUST check her botanical drawings, which make me totally envious!

Ok, these are the rules:
1. Link to your tagger and list these rules on your blog
2. Share 7 interesting/random facts about yourself on your blog
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post, leaving their names as well as links to their blog
4. Leave a comment on each of their blogs to let them know they've been tagged!

1. I was born on Easter Sunday. That has always made me feel special.
2. I suffer from shortness. I'm only 5'2" so I wear heels to compensate.
3. I wish I could design and build houses (hence the "chicken house"). When I was in grade school, I designed a 4-story home with an indoor pool and all the amenities a young girl would want. I probably would have painted all the rooms pink if it came to fruition.
4. I don't like being hot. I've actually plan where I live to ensure cool breezes year round.
5. I am grouchy on only three occasions, when I have not had my morning coffee, when I'm hungry, and on occasion, when I'm PMSing. Other times, I'm rather pleasant to be around.
6. I am studying Greek language at the moment (Yay, Rosetta Stone!). I totally realize that Spanish is a more practical language to learn but ... I still have dreams of backpacking through Greece.
7. When I sit with my little fluffy chickens they make me so happy that I worry I'll be one of those "chicken people" that call their hens "girls" and talk incessantly about them. (It's already happening! Yikes!)

This is a little artcard that I drew earlier and is now in the possession of a dear friend, Mariana Musa, in France.

A birthday wish for Kate

This is one of my favorite drawings, which I did last year. I love it because it's just a little glimpse of things I saw while on one of my weekend walks, reminding to stop from time to time and enjoy the simple things around me. I'm posting this again in honor of Kate Rietz who celebrates her birthday today. This drawing is one of Kate's favorites too. Happy Birthday gurl!!! *party horns blasting* *confetti thrown about* *balloons and streamers floating around*

Creative, nonetheless

I've been decidedly absent from the blogging world recently, not because I haven't been wanting, needing to draw, but because I've been needing to take care of my recently acquired additions of two little hens. So, if you're a spoiled hen in my household, what do you need? A spiffed out, two-story condo complete with nesting boxes, roosts, and a flower box! I've been tempted to add a sound system but that would be overdoing it, yeah?

The coop will be raised on legs with a little ladder going down to the lower fenced "yard" where they can lounge on grass and sip MaiTais. The roof is removable to make the coop light enough to move around in case the chickens need a change of scenery. As you can see, I have a lot more work to do, including painting and adding trim and of course, the roof. Maybe I'll add a sun roof ... Hmmm ... Whatever I decide, I'm hoping the good life will inspire my hens to lay lots and lots of eggs!

If you want to see pics of the coop in its development and pictures of my hens, check out the coop construction page on Backyard Chickens.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Ok, I really didn't mean for this to be a sarcastic post at all. Despite the fact that I missed my Thanksgiving lunch with family and my Thanksgiving dinner with friends and despite lying in bed all day with a terrible cold, I am thankful. I am grateful to God for giving me life and for blessing me each day with all that I need. I am thankful for my friends who bring me joy every day and who love me despite my faults. I am thankful for my family; my brothers and their families who are so dear to me. I am thankful to have a job in this difficult economic times. I am thankful for a roof over my head and food in the fridge. I am thankful for Robutussin DM and Ricola and Theraflu and for the other medical and natural wonders that are getting me through this cold. I am thankful to those I meet everyday on my blog and in person and for those I've yet to meet. Thank you all for being a part of my life! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Yes, I'm beautiful!

I added to my menagerie this weekend! Lily, a white Japanese Silkie Bantam chick, is just over 3 mos old and already showing off her spiffy doo! Isn't she beautiful, ... in a Solid Gold dancer kind of way?!

Yep, it's stew

Mom and Dad's Beef Stew Recipe

1 lb beef stew meat
2-3 cloves garlic
1 medium onion
3-4 russet potatoes
3 celery whatchamacallits
3 carrots
2 small cans tomato sauce
2 bay leaves
optional: 2 beef bullion
salt, pepper to taste
sugar to offset acidity of the tomato sauce
2 T flour

Brown meat with smooshed garlic. Add chopped carrots and celery and cook a little but not too much. Add onions and cook some more. Add water to 3/4 to top of stuff in the pot and bring to boil, cover, and simmer for an 1 hr 30 min. Sometime along the way, add the potatoes, tomato sauce, sugar, salt, pepper, beef bullion cubes and cook a bit longer, say, for 30 min. Make a paste and slurry with the flour by adding water. Add to the stew to thicken. Dat's it!

Dinner time!

Hmmm ... can you guess what I made for dinner last night? It's not quite done but I think you might be able to guess what it is. I'm drawing this for friends of mine who tried to make it themselves but felt they didn't quite get it right. So, when I finish this drawing, I'll include the recipe for them ... and for you. :)

Ernie and my 50,000th visitor

Ernie was just lying around the house today. My Godson was over and I found this on the living room floor, under a chair and figured what the heck, I'll draw it as is.

Thank you everyone for all your visits. I'm having a glass of wine to celebrate my 50,000th visitor. Whoever you are, thank you! This one's for you.

Wise words

"The best way to destroy an enemy is to make him a friend." - Abraham Lincoln

A blessing

Once in a great while, we are blessed with the truest of feline companions. Mamo, my friend for over 14 years passed away on Friday. She was the sweetest cat ... but she was no pushover. She managed to survive the loose dogs on Molokai, traffic on Oahu, and lived the rest of her life in peace on the Big Island. I buried her under a large `ohi`a tree in Volcano, under flowering gingers ... in a warm afternoon shower.

A Smart Computing Interview!

A few months ago, I was approached by a writer from Sandhill Publishing and invited to be interviewed for the November issue of Smart Computing magazine that featured art-related websites! I was so thrilled to come home from my vacation to a package that held a couple copies of the magazine with this Drawing on Nature Artblog featured in the "That's News to You" section (green box) on page 41! You may read the article if you subscribe or just google "Joan Yoshioka" and "Smart Computing."

The article shows three drawings, my tropical flowers in colored pencil, Shaggy the dog in watercolor, and my Star Wars figurines in pen. I was quick to call my friend to let her know that her dog is featured in a national magazine! Of course, the world is now privy to my little-known Star Wars obsession, but I figured that is just a small price to pay! LOL.

Thanks Kris Glaser! (the very professional writer who was so generous to send me the magazines and so pleasant to deal with).

Garlic, anyone?

While sitting at the kitchen table with Kate on my last night in Illinois, we began drawing potatoes and garlic that we had saved just for the occasion. It was fun but also bittersweet, knowing I had to leave bright and early the next day. I finished up the drawing on the plane back to Hawaii and you can see what Kate finished later, here. This special time was such a nice way to cap a very, very special trip.

Chicago waterfront

Chicago is gorgeous in September! I had some time to myself so I stationed myself at the end of a walkway, sat with some gulls, and drew for a bit in my moleskine. I added the color after I got home. Looking at this drawing, I can practically smell the ocean, er, uhmm, Lake (heh heh, thanks Kate), and the sound of the waves lapping the sides of the boats and gulls flying about. :)

More images from IL

Splat!!!

... a smidgen of images from my trip to Illinois. There was so much to see and do that I wish I lived there! More photos and drawings can be found on Potluck Sunday and on Kate Rietz's blog.

A smile that lights up a room

I was able to capture Sunshine's sweet repose with this quick sketch as she lay at Kate's feet while Kate worked on her latest illustration project late one night.

Kate and me in Chicago

I am back home after a wonderful two weeks in Illinois where I stayed with my blogging friend, Kate Rietz, and spent the time exploring her incredible city of Chicago and drawing together. It is something we've wanted to do for a long time and we finally got our chance! Kate is as wonderful as I knew she would be and we shared many, many laughs together. It was so difficult to leave!

Kate and I have been posting our drawings from the past two weeks on our blogs so check them out! We also have a joint blog, Potluck Sunday, that we started back in Nov 2007 so there are postings there from time to time. Some are related to art, some not, but always a bit of ourselves.

P.S. Kate is selling her prints now so check out her professional website for more info.