EDM 8, 9, 10

 Not keeping up at all with Every Day in May. This sometimes feels like a freelance job that nobody's going to pay me for, especially with the "pack shots". Once I get going on shapes, shines and reflections on surfaces though I get drawn into the happy place of total involvement, and it doesn't feel like work any more.

Days 8 & 9 combined - Something with a handle, and an interesting label. My Brown Betty teapot (discovered it was called that in the facebook group) and Eleven O'Clock Rooibos tea, been around as long as I have judging by the fifties style label and my memories of my grandmother serving it. I loathed it then but love it now as a bedtime drink that won't keep me up all night.

Day 10 - Something you can switch on and off - my trusty Crazy Duck hairdryer. Other more stylish hairdryers have come and gone, but this guy keeps blowing hot air tirelessly over 30+ years and still makes me smile. I enjoyed painting him, strangely - and my son who doesn't often comment on what I'm doing said "Cool, mom, can I have this one?" Score!

Teapot and sweetpeas

I've deduced, I think, why it's been so hard to keep a sketchblog going when my painting is going quite well - I guess it's obvious... firstly there is not enough time, and also when one is spending six or seven hours a day in the studio, there's not much interesting to put in the sketchbook, of course. So here is a little painting I did a couple of weeks ago, to try and get my hand into gear again - my little brown teapot and the last of the sweetpeas. They are in a tiny little salt cellar, that's why they look so big, and the teapot is small too. The handle looks very wonky, but I am quite pleased with the shadows and reflected light in the foreground - some of which happened by happy accident.