Miss Ethel

@mozarts_ride has inspired another drawing with his photography.  On Instagram, he says:

"1929 Dodge truck... I spotted "Miss Ethel" while driving on Route 66 and traveling through Oatman, Arizona. It's an old mining town, that was once famous for all the gold that was mined in the area.. Now the atractions are the wonderful wild mules that walk and roam the streets of Oatman. They are so sweet and love to be petted and fed. If in the area, I would say stop by...It's not a destination, but a nice stop on the way to somewhere else.. Have a wonderful weekend 🌟

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,"Dodge launched a half-ton pickup for 1929 just after its acquisition by Chrysler, the last truck designed by the old Dodge Brothers company. Three engines were available - two Dodge engines with six cylinders (63 and 78 hp), and a Maxwell four cylinder that produced just 45 hp. The trucks had four wheel hydraulic brakes, a major safety feature unique among pickups....Beginning in 1933, Dodge trucks abandoned the old Dodge Brothers engines and used Chrysler Corporation engines instead, modifying them for durability. The six cylinder engine was the flat-head six used in Plymouths, which continued through 1960." (All Mopar, "History of Dodge Pickup Trucks, 1921-1953") Now you know the rest of the story.."

 

Big Red

 

Here's what @mozarts_ride has to say about this tractor:

1940-48 Farmall "Model B" Tractor. I spotted "Big Red" resting next door to a local winery cabin, located in the wonderul town of Fredericksburg, Texas.... "She thinks my tractor's sexy...It really turns her on...She's always starin' at me...While I'm chuggin' along...Kenny Chesney
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."The Farmall B was built by International Harvester from 1940 to 1948 in Chicago, Illinois..The new McCormick-Deering Farmall B was closely related to the Farmall A. The main differences were the B's narrow front (tricycle) design with a standard single front wheel or optional dual wheels, plus an extended left rear axle. Moving the left rear wheel outward put the engine and transmission in the center but the driver was still offset to the right for a good view of the ground and crop below the tractor. The B had the same power as the A and was also rated as a 1-plow tractor but it was designed to cultivate two rows vs. one for the A." (Fandom, "Tractor & Construction Plant Wiki. Farmall B")..Now you know the rest of the story...)

Flat Brush Grasses

 

Our homework assignment last week was to play with flat brush grasses.  Violet is such a good teacher, and you can follow her on Instagram.  Search @v.smythe to see her marvelous calligraphy and painting.

Miss Hazel May Not be Going to Church

 

Once again, the photo inspiration for this drawing came from @mozarts_ride on Instagram.  Cary says:

1928-32 Ford Truck... I spotted "Miss Hazel" while driving through the Texas Hill Country, near Fredericksburg. She's a nicely restored Ford truck, and has a load of wine barrels on the back. Miss Hazel is only used for advertising the winery, but she does appear to run... 😎
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."Henry Ford envisioned a chassis that could accommodate third-party beds, cargo areas and other add-ons to deliver the increased functionality needed to get work done. It was a formula for success. By 1928, Ford had sold 1.3 million Model TTs before replacing the truck with the more capable Model AA with a 1.5-ton chassis.🌟

.Henry Ford marketed his early trucks heavily in rural areas, according to Bob Kreipke, Ford historian. “Model AA trucks in particular had a certain class to them,” he said. “Customers could use them on the farm, yet still take them to church on Sunday.” (Media Ford, "Ford Celebrates 100 Years of Truck History -- from 1917 Model TT to 2017 F-150 Raptor", Jul 27, 2017 DEARBORN, Mich.)

Miss Nellie

 

My hero of truck photos, @mozarts_ride, has inspired me again.  Cary says that he "spotted "Miss Nellie" while at a local car show, back in 2019...She was proudly owned by a nice guy, named Brad, but was later sold to a happy new owner. Such a beautifully restored truck that anyone would be proud to drive down the road.. If she had a radio, you just know she would be playing "Take It Easy" by the Eagles..

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."The 1938 Ford Half-Ton Pickup came with an L-Head V-8 delivering 85 horsepower with the 221 cubic displacement engine and 60 horsepower with the 136 cubic inch version. Ford came out with a 95 horsepower V-8 with the 1939 models. All of these Ford flathead engines had a two barrel carburetor....A 1938 Ford Half-Ton Pickup in pristine condition could sell for anywhere from $15,000 up to $40,000 or more." (Auto Museum Online, "1938 Ford Half Ton Pickup,")"

Thanks again, Cary!

Allium

 

This is my homework for Week One of Fabulous Flat Brush Flowers #5 with Violet Smythe.

Miss Lucy

 

This is inspired by another photo from @mozarts_ride.

He says this about Miss Lucy:

1931 Ford Coupe... an "Around Town" shot...Spoted "Miss Lucy" at a local antique store, just down the street from where I live.. You just got to love her flax water bag, attached to the front bumper... 😎
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."Desert water bags were once a common sight on the highways of the American Southwest. Designed to keep water cool under hot conditions, desert water bags were available at service stations and general stores, where they could be filled with water and hung on the outside of the vehicle to keep cool. Desert water bags fell out of favor in the 1950s, but they are still made in limited quantities, and vintage desert water bags are valued by some as antiques." (Gone Outdoors.com, "About Desert Water Bags" by Richard
Corrigan)

Miss Leona

 

There are lots of great photos to choose from on  @mozarts_ride Instagram feed.  His descriptions are priceless too:

1958 Ford Flatbed Truck... I spotted "Miss Leona" while driving on Route 66, near Hackberry, Arizona. She's not going to roll down the road anytime soon, but if she did I'm sure her radio would be playing "Just Got Paid" by ZZ Top.. 😎
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."US Highway 66, popularly known as “Route 66,” is significant as the nation's first all-weather highway linking Chicago to Los Angeles. ... Route 66 reduced the distance between Chicago and Los Angeles by more than 200 miles, which made Route 66 popular among thousands of motorists who drove west in subsequent decades... The road is also known as "The Will Rogers Highway," "The Main Street of America," and "The Mother Road."... (NPS, "Route 66") ... Now you know the rest of the story

Double Loading

 

I began some practice of brush manipulation, but soon discovered some fun with double loading.

I loaded my flat brush in a puddle of watercolour pigment (rose or yellow) and then gently touched the chisel edge to a sticky pan of pthalo blue.  I was treated to some beautiful colour striations.

Sunbeams and the Enemy of Done

 

These are for my husband, who used to own a Sunbeam and who took the reference photos for these sketches.  

My sketches remind me of Goldilocks and the three bears - one is too short and one is too long.  But perfection is the enemy of done, right?

Making Prints

 

I didn't think my Epson WorkForce Brother MFC-J1012DW inkjet printer would be up to the task, but I was wrong.  I'm very pleased with how this print of one of my original watercolours turned out as a card.  I tried 4 x 6 paper in and 3.5 x 5 in paper

October 21, 2023 - Edited for new computer with Windows 11  

Feb  1 & 7, 2024 - Edited for new Brother Printer :

I printed the photo using Picasa Photos onto white cardstock, choosing to print a 3 x 4 inch photo.  My printer settings were:  the following settings:

• Orientation:  Landscape
• Paper Tray:  Cassette  Main
• Paper Size:  Japan L Photo 3.5 x 5 in  4 x 6 or 3.5 x 5
• Paper Type:  Photo Paper (4 x 6) or plain paper (3.5 x 5)
• Photo Size:  3.5 x 5 in
• Paper Margins:  Normal
• Fit:  Shrink to Fit
• More Settings:
• Quality:  High
• Borderless:  On

After printing, I trimmed the picture down to 3.5 x 4.5 inches.  I mounted the photo onto the card using foam tape, but I could also play with colored mats.

October 21, 2023 - While I was experimenting, I tested two different cardstocks.  Recollections (from Michaels) is slightly heavier cardstock but the print quality was pretty similar.

February 1, 2024 - I used inexpensive Forever in Time Matte Inkjet Photo Paper and it worked great.  I haven't tried any cardstock yet.  I think I may have printed on the wrong, less glossy side, but that may have been a good think.  I had put a note on the paper box that the ink pooled oddly when I tried it with my Epson printer.  The final output was more vivid and finer detailed than the cardstock I had tried before.  (Feb 7 I tried the glossier side and I found the ink pooled.  So, this paper can be used, but print on the wrong side!)

When loading the paper into the new printer, I use the 4 x 6 horizontal print guide but simply make the vertical guides a little narrower to fit 3.5 x 5 paper. 

Print quality, in order of highest, although all good:

1. Wrong side of Forever in Time Matte Inkjet Photo Paper
2. Cardstock Dianne sent me for colouring with Copic markers
3. Regular cardstock (Staples or Recollections)

This Little Piggy Goes to Market

 

Photo Reference by Talia2394, Paint My Photo

I was inspired by the reference photo because the tractor looked like a little pig to me!

Flat Brush Flowers

 

 I'm looking forward to the next session of Fabulous Flat Brush Flowers next week so I painted a bouquet of posies in my journal.  I'm happy to say that after some warm-up strokes I found I had enough muscle memory to pick up where I left off a month ago.

Violet, the instructor of the courses, starts each class with a page of  warm-up exercises, and I may have finally learned how important this is.  It isn't something that comes naturally to me, but I find when I don't know what to paint that making some simple strokes also gets the creative juices flowing!