More exercise on a sunny day

I have started the year off well with lots of exercise.  My Tai chi class and then a yoga evening class and now a long walk around the village with the up hill section that always gets me puffing and results in a red healthy looking complexion.  It was a lovely day and so we set off in the sunshine and I thought it was a chance to find something for my next page.  It seemed quite strange hunting in the hedgerows as I spent last year on the shore collecting my objects.  I saw so many snail shells, lots of  different colours from pale blues to dark brown and many fragile broken cases with holes pecked  by the birds.  One made its way into my drawing.  The hedgerows were all very neat and tidy, someone had given the whole village a good cut and so I didn't find many red berries.  I did snap off the little branches with the green lichen from a favourite tree near the shore and you can see the berries are now suffering, no more bright red glossy berries on this tree.  I was amazed to see some pretty pink campion flowers still flowering through the winter.  One of my favourite plants, Lords and Ladies, was growing fresh green healthy leaves and as it is a plant  I love to draw when they reach the red berry stage I will try to   remember where I have seen them.  I passed the big oak tree which spreads its branches across the road, and resisted collecting the leaves as most were stuck in the muddy verges.  I found the sycamore leaf in one of the muddy banks by the road,  the minute I saw it I knew it was going in my page.  It was so interesting with all the torn and eaten areas and I immediately picked it up along with other remnants of leaves attached to it.  It was very fragile and it lost little pieces onto my mitten as I carried it home. I have always loved drawing aged and worn leaves.

Along the way we passed the old flattened ruins of homes,  this is where my parents first lived when they were married,  this is another place we can find pieces of china as I saw several in the field by the muddy gateway.  Our village is made up of many different little hamlets, clusters of houses,  and in days gone by I guess everyone just discarded their old broken pots in the fields or rivers or at the bottom of their garden.  There were village rubbish tips where people took the household and garden rubbish but no collections at this time.  It seems we have china in our little rivers, in fields near the houses and on the shore.  We actually have one little river that runs downhill past cottages and eventually to the shore that my husband and I have nick named China River.  I think England has many similar villages and towns where china can be found.  I must photograph my collection to show you!

So here is my finished page.  The leaf was so lovely to draw and paint and I am really pleased with it and the shapes and  patterns it contains. The berries were added next and the snail shell to finish the page. I have added the colours of ink I used for you to see.  I have bought some dip in pens and a variety of nib sizes, so hoping to have something in sepia ink to post next week after I have experimented with them.
Yesterday was such a beautiful day that we  could not resist a long walk on the shore, even more excerise,  and  of course I collected  lots of objects so I might try them in sepia.  Watch this space.  Hope you like the page for this week.

Thank you for all the lovely comments on Week 52.  The winner of my give away is Martinealison. Please can you send me your address.
Due to my lack of technology ...I am sorry to say I did not receive the emails that were sent via the contact!  if you did sent me an email please could you  send it again.  (the link is not live,  so using your own provider.)   Thank you.                                                Millyx