Dachshund Pics Galore

 There are a lot of pics of Truman and Pippin in this post, but first, I shall get the art stuff out of the way.

The Zoom sketch practice group met FOUR TIMES this past week!  Goodness.  The first photo we chose to draw from was a scene of colorful pots, which I did in pencil and watercolor:

The next day, I was late to the meeting due to technical issues, and by the time I got sorted out, the group had already chosen a tree photo.  I remembered drawing the same tree a few months earlier, but the others did not recall doing it, so decided to go ahead and do it again.  

I did not enjoy drawing it back then, and didn't like the result.  So I opted to do it the second time using Adobe Fresco on the iPad just for fun.  

Here is the first drawing from a few months ago, done in colored pencil (messy, if you ask me!):

And here is the digital version (a bit more colorful!):

I really do not enjoy drawing trees.

Another drawing from last week was of a Notre Dame gargoyle.  Everyone else drew just the statue, but I like to put in everything in the photo, and over-achieve.  It wasn't entirely successful, but not too shabby.

I typically use pen and watercolor or pen and colored pencil for these practice sessions, but this past week it was mostly watercolor alone.  My absolute favorite drawing, not just for last week but probably over the past several months, was done with a very simple pencil sketch and then just watercolor.  It was of a doorknob -- though it was a fabulously fun doorknob.  

Here is the intriguing photo we worked from:

Challenges all over the place!  The reflection on the knob!  The hard lines of the wood next to the soft fuzzy reflection in the glass!  The white spaces and lines!  Whee!!

I totally loved every minute of painting this piece, and of meeting those challenges.  I used dry-brush watercolor technique for the doorknob, wood, and icy white-blue frames of the window, and then used wet-in-wet technique for the landscape reflection.  The result made me very very pleased:

So that was a full and formative week of art!

And now here is what you've been waiting for:  WIENER DOGS!

Recently, I bought new beds for the Hounds.  Most of the time, they sit near me on the sofa, but at times they like to use an actual dog bed.  Pippin's new bed arrived a few weeks ago and he has been enjoying it (much softer and plumper than his previous one).  Truman somehow knew it belonged to Pippin, and left it alone.

This week, Truman's new bed arrived.  He immediately claimed it as his own:

Pippin, however, decided perhaps he needed a second bed, and went on the attack:

His attempt at a takeover was momentarily successful:

But Truman soon wrestled him out of the bed, and defended his new territory:

In the end, Pippin backed down, and has since acknowledged that this bed is Truman's.

They have achieved detente.

In other adventures, we visited our favorite new walking place, the Columbia Point natural area, twice last week.  

On one of those visits, I spotted a winter-plumage Common Loon on the river!

Here is what the Hounds typically look like when I announce that we are going for a walk:

Full of tail-wagging joy!

And here is what they look like halfway through our walks:

This is their "CAN WE GO HOME NOW?"  pose.  Yay.

They are always twice as eager to go back to the car as to walk away from it.  Go figure.

Our second outing to the Point was on a cloudless day, and though it was only 40 degrees out, the brilliant sunshine made it feel much warmer.  

We spotted several groups of alert Canada Geese trying to hide among the sagebrush.

Because it was so lovely out, we went farther than usual, and found a pleasant viewpoint.

The Hounds enjoyed the trails.

This area is close to where the Yakima River empties into the Columbia.

Truly a beautiful spot.

Here we are heading back towards the car, which is parked just on the other side of that overpass.

Pippin is eager to go home!

That's all (and quite a lot, I must say) for now.

Have a great week, and stay safe out there!