Details of my hinge for the cigar box.

I get these hinges made by a copper smith in Mauritius, where I used to live.  Here is a picture of the hinge which opens flat.  I have two sizes, the length of the flat piece which screws onto the box is 2 1/2" then the knob then 2 1/2" other flat piece,  for my small cigar box.  The hinge for my larger box is 3 1/2", that too opens flat - it is heavier and the knob and thickness of the copper is larger.

Cigar box/Pochade Box

my little cigar box 23 x 18cm fits my 6 x 8" panels

The back showing my quick release plate on my Manfrotto Be Free light tripod

Cigar box front, elastic and copper clips poke in to hold painting in place

 clips coming in from the back, made in copper.

 My new palette I made which folds up and goes inside, corks on the corners stop the painting from smudging onto it

 Palette fits nicely inside

Palette (MDF 3mm painted grey) with a wooden batten on the left to stop wet paint from being 

squashed when I fold the palette in half) taped with duck tape to keep together and allow to be

folder in half.  Drilled holes on left for brushes.  I clip it to the box with a large clip

Detail of how the hinge works, copper

 Detail of plate which quick release plate screws into

 Detail of hooks to hold picture in place, copper

 hinge to hold box open

Back of plate which pops into hole, screwed onto back of cigar box

looks like this when placed in hole

Hankley Common, UK

Hankley Common 2016/2017

I have been walking my dogs here since I moved to the UK in May 2016 and love it here.  It is wild, quiet, hilly and has heather, pines, silver birch and many more wonderful plants.  I love watching the seasons and the colours change, everything goes from green to pink/orange/rust/yellow...my favourite colours.  I can be quietly painting in the bushes and nobody can see me,  it's wonderful!  The dogs have a great time running around chasing rabbits and deer (!) but keep coming back to me every so often.  Kelly, the female, sits down quietly and keeps me company, Spike, the male, goes hunting!

Everyone's happy!

With painting, I take a long time to get to know my subject, but that's ok.  I spend months just walking it, stumbling on things at different times of the day and with different weather conditions.

Getting it right is just a fluke...the right time of day, the right climate...the right mood - but that's the fun of it, you never know when you're going to do a good one!  

Below I did a nice watercolour, (third down) I haven't done watercolour for years, but it's nice and light for carrying so I packed it in my backpack and had a go. I also had a small box of (dirty) pastels for adding highlights, which can be quiet effective.  I like the dusky pink and orange in the watercolour, and as Christopher Cole, my teacher pointed out, I have soft edges in the watercolour and hard edges in the oil, something I must think more about...! In fact, in nature, all edges are soft.

I am now trying an abstract in oil, below is a small one, 6x8" but I have started a larger one in the studio.  I never know where I am going when I paint, I just try and see what happens.  I often feel very motivated in the beginning then I leave them for weeks, months not knowing what to do, then one day, I start on them all again and finish them...painting is really an odd thing, you just have to

wait for the perfect day when it all fits together and comes out.

Oil, 6 x 8" fits in my cigar box, nice and light for carrying

 Oil 14 x 11" done onsite 

Watercolour 22 x 18cm Fabriano watercolour sketch book (I always use a 'middle page' incase it's a good one and I want to cut the thread and remove it!  Good tip!)

8 x 10" Oil on MDF done onsite

6 x 8" oil done on site in July/August when the heather was in bloom,  looking at composition with the path going down.

 80 x 60 cm done from a small oil sketch 

8 x 10" oil on board, done from watercolour sketches trying to simplify the masses

120 x 80 cm abstract, done from sketches in the studio.