Choices

22-11-10a
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

A quick trip into Ramsey and a visit to Choices Cafe for an Italian Blend...Yum!

Peacocks Tearooms of Ely

18-11-10a
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

After popping in for a natter with Emma-Jane at her home in Ely yesterday, I indulged in a cream tea in my favourite tearoom...Peacocks. (With coffee...of course!)
Delicious!

Despicable Me

27-10-2010
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

Took Harry to the cinema to watch 'Despicable Me' in 3D, my first time using the 3D glasses...Very impressive!
There is a while when the lights dim for the promos before they go out completely for the feature film, during that time I sketched!

16-10-10 - WW SketchCrawl 29

16-10-10 - WW SketchCrawl 29
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

Joan and I took the Park 'n' Ride into Norwich Cathedral and headed straight for their cafe for a nice long latte and a slice of cake.

Time For Boots

12-10-2010
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

Chilly here recently, had to dig my warm boots out from under the bed to go shopping. Grabbed a quick sketch from the supermarket carpark and then sketched my boots back at home with a hot cuppa!

Skylark Cafe

11-10-2010a
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

A quick sketch while Harry and I waited for our fried breakfast to arrive at the Skylark cafe in Wimblington.
The table was actually flat, my error not the carpenters! LOL!

Tesco and Harvest Close

03-09-10b
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

The woman is a sketch while taking a latte at the Tesco cafe and the buildings are a view into Harvest Close in Doddington, Cambridgeshire from the graveyard layby the following day.

An Afternoon in March

01-09-10
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

The Griffin Hotel and March Museum.

That's March, Cambridgeshire, UK not the month of March.

Saturday With Sue Pownall

On Friday my good friend Joannie came to stay for the weekend.
On Friday evening we did some sketching from DVD stills of Italian architecture, that have yet to scan, in preparation for our Italian trip next year.

On Saturday morning we drove into Haddenham Galleries, to see my exhibition, before going onto Upware to The Five Mile Inn where I had arranged to meet fellow art blogger Sue Pownall for the very first time.



We spent a wonderful day together, eating, drinking chatting and sketching. Sue is such a lovely woman.



We all hope to meet again in Coltishall, where Joannie lives, when Sue returns from overseas next year, and Sue invited us to visit her in her new appartment in Southern Italy as soon as renovations were complete....How exciting is that!

A great day with fantastic company!

Weekend in Wells-Next-The-Sea

07-08-10-Wells3
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

The carnival was on during our stay in Wells and on Saturday various stalls lined the square in the Buttlands. I popped out of the cottage, when the rain paused, to grab a very quick sketch of the pork pie stall. Since there was no where dry to sit, I leaned against the back of an ice-cream van.

The Griffin Hotel

Griffin-25-05-10
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

Ink and Watercolour in sketchbook.

A quickie while sinking a latte at The Griffin Hotel, March, Cambridgeshire, UK back in May.

Didn't get a moment to work on my art house project until midnight last night, when I became totally engrossed for over 2 hours trying to perfect no less than 4 self portraits!!!
I'm hoping to find time to complete the pages along with the design elements later today.

Pymoor Show

03-07-10
Originally uploaded by Anita Davies

Daily Journal

Sketched at the Pymoor Show, where Harry and I finally purchased two white ducks. We have been after white ducks with orange beaks and feet for a while now and they are just wonderful!
I named mine 'Marmalade' and Harry named his 'Cadbury'.

5 Miles Inn

More catch up!

This was my first visit to The 5 Miles Inn in Upware, Ely in Cambridgeshire, suggested by my Dad, and what a wonderful spot.

The latte was superb, the service was friendly (they even filled my waterbrush for me behind the bar....sadly with just plain water!) and the scenery was simply beautiful.

I stopped just long enough to finish my latte and mint chocolate but I hear the food is fantastic so I shall deffinately be going back soon!

Snettisham Weekend - Saturday

Woke on Saturday morning and, after a long coffee, got started on sketching the cottage for Tony and Ruth as a way of saying thank you for their kindness. I took a matt and frame with me and framed it for them before leaving, so the photograph is a little wonky and poor quality I'm afraid...Sorry!




We had lunch on the newly built landing deck; sothern fried chicken breast strips, salad, wine, chocolates...all splayed over various rugs and cushions, and finished by dangling our feet into the warm lake.




A quick stroll along the beach, where the colours changed every second...stunning! I produced all of my sketches with a size 12 brush and with the hot sun drying everything so quickly and the brush size I found it quite a challenge.




On finishing my quick sketch I had just enough time to capture Joannie in all her beautiful colours, looking ever radiant.




Early evening I popped our lasagne in the oven and while it cooked, and Joan went out to find more wine supplies, I captured this guy appreciating the wonderful view.

Our dinner was delicious...as was the wine!

I'm Back!

I had the most wonderful break with my friend Joannie, we chatted, lunched on the deck over the lake, ate dinner on the patio with the sea just infront of us, walked a little, talked alot, drank wine by candlelight, paddled in the sea, dipped our toes in the lake and even managed to find time to sketch! I will upload my efforts as soon as they are scanned.

For now, I give you my last sketch session from Tesco supermarket cafe, created, rather quickly, over a latte before beginning my weekly shop.

Sunday and Monday Journal Pages

IFJM - April 24th

I met fellow sketcher Michael Bailey at Houghton Mill, he recognised me from both my blog picture and my Lamy Safari fountain pen, LOL! He introduced himself and we spent a while chatting about our art beside the river and, of course, shared a coffee together before leaving.

Michael doesn't have a blog....yet....so I can't show the wonderful work he was doing with a brush pen. (hint hint)

Great meeting you Michael.

My Weekend In Norfolk - Horning

The Swan Inn Garden

Joan and I spent Saturday in the small village of Horning. We had coffee and cake in a quaint cafe garden, lunch and a tipple in an elegant pub garden and all just yards from the river Bure. The sun shone, the laughter flowed and we even managed a few sketches.

Little thatched cottage next to the swan Inn

Horning Sailing Club

This final spread of our day was created in just a couple of minutes (approx 30 seconds for the boat sketch before colouring) I was surprised at how it came out...A good example for all those 'I didn't have time to sketch' moments!

My Weekend In Norfolk

As you may have read in Alphonse's journal, I recently visited my good friend Joannie at her home in Coltishall for the weekend. Here are the journal pages I created on the Thursday and Friday of my stay.

Tesco Cafe

It's been ages since I took a coffee and a sketch in the Tesco cafe before doing my weekly grocery shop, it's satisfying to fill another page in this little watercolour moleskine.