‘Towards Leafield’ 8” x 10” oil sketch

Today had been set aside for a short car drive and a spot of Plein air painting as the weather forecast had been for a warm, sunny day - what a joy for February! Well, warm it certainly was (a mighty 17 degrees this afternoon), but lovely hubby and I woke up to fog which showed absolutely no sign of being in a hurry to shift. We waited in vain until lunchtime and decided to go for it anyway - even though the sky was still pretty murky looking - as I’d got all my painting gear ready. 

So, flask of coffee made, we set off in the car in the hope that the promised sun would break through the murk. We drove through the Wychwood forest heading towards Leafield looking for a promising scene, but with the softness of the day nothing really looked interesting. In the end I settled for the view across the rolling fields towards Leafield, with its broad Church spire on the skyline peering out through the mist. 

On a sunny day this view is glorious, but today it just looked flat and uninspiring. Even so, all practice is good and, as the murk started lifting a little and the light started changing, the fields became slightly more interesting and I started to enjoy myself. 

I only spent an hour on this little oil sketch, but the pleasure was in being in a quiet spot, and experiencing the sights, sounds and scents of the countryside around me. Of course, as soon as I had finished painting and packed away my painting gear, the sun finally decided to come out and the whole scene before me was transformed! That will be a painting for another day. . .

‘Chinese Pots and Daffodils’ 8” x 10” oil on board

Like so many in the UK I’ve been laid low with a chest infection the past couple of weeks, which has left me feeling very out of sorts. But today, when I took Boo for his morning walk, there were so many early signs of Spring I couldn’t help but feel better! As we went up past the fields along Church Road the tractors were out cutting the hedgerows in the fine, warm weather - the scents of all that freshly pruned green wood were so fresh, and so evocative of the Springs of my youth.

Further along our walk we saw lots of snowdrops, a lone daffodil by the bus shelter, and even brave daisies in flower on the village green opposite Cafe de la Post.

My husband had bought me a bunch of daffodils, and I placed them in my Dad’s old ginger jar where they looked so pretty against the blue and white glazed pot. I made an arrangement with another little Chinese bowl from my collection, and placed them on the floor by my easel to paint from my chair.

I have a real problem with getting ellipses right and often tend to feel that I have failed when they aren’t quite perfect, so I have to constantly remind myself that every painting I do will take me one little step nearer to to finally - hopefully - getting them just right. . . As someone once said, “There is no such thing as failure, it’s simply another step towards success” (or something like that!) 😊

We are promised another couple of unseasonably warm and sunny days so I hope you are able to get out and about and enjoy them too.

We finally had a smattering of snow overnight, and it’s been so cold that it has stayed on some of the rooftops despite the lovely winter sun.
I have a lovely, very old, pochade box which was given to me by a friend after her elderly father, who was a well known local artist, sadly died. It is only tiny so I don’t use it often, but it is very special to me. . . I thought it would be ideal to use today and painted a little 5” x 7” oil study of the snowy rooftops with it.
As I type this now the sky has changed and it now has a lovely yellowy hue as the afternoon draws on, I wish I could do another painting looking at it, but there’s always another day.

‘Snowdrift’ 6” x 8” oil on board

We have been very fortunate in Oxfordshire not to have had any snow yet this winter (though we may get a little before the week is out), but I well remember last March and our village being completely  cut off by huge drifts for a couple of days.
My lovely husband Phil had cleared the snow in our drive so I was able to get to the roadside with my pochade box on my lap, and I sat and painted in the -4 degree temperature with a hot water bottle on my knee and several layers of clothes under my coat! The oil paint turned gloopy in the extreme cold and after 45 minutes I couldn’t stand the freezing cold any more - but at least I had a little painting to show for it.
Today I stayed snuggled in the studio, with my assistance dog Boo fast asleep in his bed, and painted this small snowscene, all the while remembering how cold I had been painting the last one!

As you can probably tell, this is my very first post as a completely novice blogger. . . .a very big step for me as I absolutely haven’t a clue as to what I am doing! But way back in the early 2000’s I was a completely novice painter too, having picked up a brush and some watercolours after I had found myself disabled in a wheelchair, with extremely weak arms and double vision. Before I had become disabled I had been an avid walker, and loved nothing more than walking across the fields, taking in the breathtaking views where I live, on the edge of the Cotswolds. . . but with my horizons now very limited, I have broadened them again with my painting. I love nothing more than painting ‘en Plein Air’, but equally, I love to paint in my cosy studio, where I can enjoy spectacular winter sunsets in warmth and comfort! I look forward to sharing my adventures and challenges with my pochade box (I now paint in oils), and hope you will enjoy following them!