What does any artist want? Sharp pencils! My new sharpener arrived today, and boy does it do the job! You can see the difference here, two have been sharpened and one hasn't, super sharp. It is mechanical, a bit like those we used at school, the one that was clamped to the teacher's desk. I was almost tempted by the electric sharpeners, only they weren't really electric, but battery operated, one review said they used a lot of batteries and that put me off. So a happy bunny, no more mess, or broken pencils.
Something else also arrived, my Zen garden, finally! I had a sneaky suspicion it was coming from China, though it didn't say so on Amazon. And yep, from China it came. I don't mind ordering stuff from China, but I prefer to know upfront. Didn't take long to set it up, not sure where to put it, living room or bedroom? Also confused as I swore that I ordered two of them... one for me and one for a friend.
The amazon order just shows one Zen garden. Not to worry, have ordered another one for my friend, but one that is being sent from inside the UK. Talking of gardens, I spent yesterday afternoon in mine. The weather improved slightly, so out I went. First job was replanting a bush, its planter had fallen apart during the winter, it took a while to free up the roots but soon it was safely in a new pot, with nice fresh soil and peat. Took out a couple semi dead plants, well two that haven't ever done very much in spite of my best efforts. Potted the new lavender, it should be nice and bushy in a year or so and will smell heavenly, oh and keep the bees happy. The long planter that I thought was bust, wasn't, so that will have some bedding plants in it come May. Need to repot a rose bush, its planter, another wooden one, is also in bad shape. And I got a few plants for the spare pot, plus a Jasmine bush, love those, had no luck with the last two clematis so time for a change. The rambling rose has benefitted from the severe pruning, looks much healthier now, and has sprouted two new branches.
And finallly, the still life, finished! There is a difference, honest! I did a lot more shading, needed to make it 'pop'. I got a mid tone grey, yes I did go to Hobbycraft, was hoping to get a frame for the sketch I did of my mum, no luck, but I can try another shop tomorrow. I did look at the DIY frames, and at some point I may have a go. I want to put something else in this drawing, but not sure what, keep thinking of a mouse.
Tomorrow, if the weather cooperates, it will be back in the garden for a couple of hours, or until my back gives out. As it did yesterday, ended up eating painkillers, hopefully it will be worth it come summer. Enjoy your weekend.
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