August 13th Sketch

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"Sketch and Eraser" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/8, 1/25 sec, ISO6400
 “Sketch and Eraser” Cedar Park, 2017

こんばんは。Today’s sketch was one I made to try out a new expression. I had a lot of fun playing with the eye-shape, and the exaggerated triangle face. Also, I learned that I have no idea how to render hair. 😮 I need to work on that!

I also used a new eraser today. The Sakura Arch foam eraser is really great. It’s so soft but lifts up the pencil marks like magic. I love it!

Below is the finished sketch. I could work on it some more, but I’d rather keep it as is so I know what I need to work on.

"Today's Sketch" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/105 sec, ISO6400
 “Today’s Sketch” Cedar Park, 2017

To see all the sketches I’ve been working on, you can check out the Flickr album “My Sketching Journey”, or my Instagram account barron.sketches which I created just for posting sketches, watercolors, and stationery items.

I hope you had a nice weekend!

おやすみ

Sketch from a Photo

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"Nounen Rina Sketch" Cedar Park, 2017
“Nounen Rina Sketch” Cedar Park, 2017

Here’s a sketch I did while looking at a photo of Japanese actress/model, Rina Nounen. The past few sketches have been portraits from straight ahead, so I wanted to draw a slightly different angle. I think I learned some of the differences in angles, such as ear placement and face shape. But I think I need a ton more practice. Luckily, even the practice is pretty fun!

To see all the sketches I’ve been working on, you can check out the Flickr album “My Sketching Journey”, or my Instagram account barron.sketches which I created just for posting sketches, watercolors, and stationery items.

Happy Spaghetti Saturday

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"Spaghetti Dinner" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/3.6, 1/75 sec, ISO6400
 “Spaghetti Dinner” Cedar Park, 2017

こんばんは。How’s it going?

Today was a relaxing day, with a couple nice highlights. First was that my 16-year-old son and I made spaghetti sauce with meatballs and Italian sausage. It’s a recipe that I got from my Mom and everyone in the family enjoys it. But today, I had my son make the meatballs. He’ll be heading off to college in a couple years, so I think it’s good to get him familiar with the kitchen more!

The recipe is pretty simple but there is some room to add your own ingredients and make it to your own preference. For instance, I use less salt, but add some more spices to the mix. And I am sure that when Bay makes his own spaghetti (maybe for his own kids!) he’ll adjust the recipe to his own tastes.

As expected, the spaghetti sauce is yummy, and the meatballs were especially good! He did a great job mixing, forming, and browning the meatballs, only complaining about splattered oil 2 or 20 times. 😆

Earlier in the day, I watched the local High School marching band pass by our house as they marched through the neighborhood. My 13-year-old son is looking forward to joining the band when he goes to High School, but he still has one more year in Middle School. But he’s excited to see his friends who have become Freshmen marching in the band.

"Marching Band" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/5.6, 1/750 sec, ISO200
 “Marching Band” Cedar Park, 2017

I hope you had a great day!

おやすみ

Tasty Treats

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"Carnitas Taco Dinner" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/75 sec, ISO3200
 “Carnitas Taco Dinner” Cedar Park, 2017

こんばんは。Tonight I present to you two photos of some tasty treats. The first is of our dinner of carnitas tacos. One of my sons requested it, and I provided my recipe to my wife who prepared it. I ate maybe 4 tacos and was stuffed! When we eat out at Mexican restaurants, I often get carnitas and offer some to my kids. But they never really like it until lately. Now they love carnitas! 😀

Later in the evening, we met some friends at Texas Saké Company and enjoyed a saké tasting and tour of the brewery. It was a lot of fun, and educational too! If you are in Austin, stop by for a drink! 🍶

"Sake Flight" Austin, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2, 1/75 sec, ISO6400
 “Sake Flight” Austin, 2017

Pens with My Traveler’s Notebook

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"Kakuno and Traveler's Notebook" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/40 sec, ISO3200
 “Kakuno and Traveler’s Notebook” Cedar Park, 2017

Hi all! Here’s a quick post about how I carry my two preferred pens on my passport-size Traveler’s Notebook. There are actually loop attachments for sale to which you can attach a pen, but I read that most of those mark up the cover of the notebook, so I decided to see if there was another option. Plus I’m cheap and didn’t want to spend money! 😅

"Kakuno and Clips" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/50 sec, ISO3200
 “Kakuno and Clips” Cedar Park, 2017

I already had a bunch of these cool little binder clips on my notebook, and I positioned them so that the handles form little guides for the pen. This combined with the elastic band keep the Pilot Kakuno snug and secure. I also positioned a third clip (the pink one) so that the pen cap rests on it, and it centers the pen so that the top or bottom don’t stick out.

"Notebook and Pens" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/2.8, 1/100 sec, ISO2000
 “Notebook and Pens” Cedar Park, 2017

I think the Pilot Kakuno is a good choice to use with the passport-sized Traveler’s Notebook because it has a cap (no accidental pushes on a push-button pen) and it’s just a couple millimeters shorter than the notebook. The perfect size!

"Pens and Traveler's Notebook" Cedar Park, 2017
Photo info: FUJIFILM X100T, 23mm, f/4, 1/75 sec, ISO3200
 “Pens and Traveler’s Notebook” Cedar Park, 2017

If I want to, there’s also room to put my other favorite pen, the LAMY Safari, right on the front. It’s a pretty simple system, but I like it, and it’s free!

I really like this set-up and think I’ll be using it for a long, long time. 😌