100-3020 – 26 years

The other day we celebrated our wedding anniversary. These are the flowers I bought for my wife – lovely pink daisies (I think). I could always say more in my posts/blog but my biggest hang-up is not doing the actual sketches, but dredging up some enthusiasm to post…so I am keeping this short!

Mon-3-Mar-2025

98-2975 – African tulip tree blossom

I picked this blossom up near our apartment and thought that the colours are so beautiful that I had to try and sketch it. I used watercolour pencils, watercolour, a tiny touch of ink and a yellow Posca pen to do this one. According to Wikipedia the tree has been nominated as among 100 of the “World’s Worst” invaders – it is not native to the Philippines but is widely planted as an ornamental tree.

Tue-28-Jan-2025

97-2935 – Frangipani / Calachuchi blossom

Here is a quick sketch of a blossom I picked up the other day. There is a lovely Frangipani tree growing near where I take out our cartons for recycling and the blossoms smell wonderful, so I often pick up one or two for a good sniff! In the Philippines the tree is called a Calachuchi, but is more scientifically known as Plumeria (and is a genus of flowering plants in the subfamily Rauvolfioideae).

Sat-21-Dec-2024

85-2638 – Flowers are for everyone

Here is a sketch of the flowers I got for my birthday last week (from my daughters partner). Even the cats got excited with a new cardboard box (that the flowers came in) to play in. Not only did I get flowers but also cake (one with the flowers and one delicious homemade coffee-walnut cake – see next post – from my wife) and a bottle champagne! Thank you to everyone who greeted me and of course for the the flowers, booze and cake.

Wed-27-Mar-2024

83-2596 – Valentine rose

I like to sketch things that remind me of what happened each day, if I can (I have a useless memory). This rose was given to us by two young girls (now young women) who used to live in a nearby apartment and were good friends with our youngest daughter. We haven’t seen them for quite a few years but the other day, out of the blue, they rang on our doorbell and popped in for a quick hello, as they were visiting the Philippines. They brought this rose as a little gift – how very sweet of them, after all these years.

Thu-15-Feb-2024