#7 Crab Shell

I have a feeling, but I can't be sure, that this crab shell is from the crab we had for my birthday this year (12th of July in case you were wondering!). I saved it thinking it would be small enough for last years series. It wasn't. So, I made a drawing of it for this years series. This is actually the third drawing of a crab shell I have made today, I will let you in to a secret, apart from the cactus drawing, I have made multiples of all the drawings this week. Which is probably due to the fact I am making the drawing part without looking at the drawing. Which gives the drawings a lovely immediacy but sometimes just doesn't work! I reckon by this time next year I will probably have drawn well over a thousand drawings. The problem is two thirds of them won't be very good and you will never see them! Watercolour and pencil 19cm x 14cm click here to bid.

#6 Trainer

I went up in to the loft today and put a pair of trainers on that I haven't worn for a while (right one pictured) and it felt like they had shrunk! Anyway, I was up there to get the box of Christmas stuff down so I could start to set up a little mini project I have planned for Christmas. If you liked the oil paintings and you like Christmas you will want to visit my new blog, 'Painted Avent' . watercolour and pencil 14cm x 9cm click here to bid.

#5 Shoe

Its brilliant to be able to draw all of those marvellous things I didnt paint last year because they were too big, this is one of Debbies shoes which has lovely holes punched out of the toe area. Watercolour and pencil 14cm x 9cm click here to bid.

#4 Cactus

I am pretty sure this is the only picture I have made in the portrait format in well over a year. I got quite used to dismissing things that were tall and thin (unless I could lie them down) last year. So, I chose this cactus for todays subject. Unsurprisingly it has an interesting story! It actually fell out of it's pot years ago and all of its root ball was knocked off but the top bit of the plant stayedpretty well intact apart from a loss of some spines which can be seen around the 'waist' area. When it died (we have referred to it since that fatefull day as 'the dead cactus') what is now the skinny waist of the cactus was the top which is where it landed and why it has fewer spines there. It also became skinny and thin because the poor little plant was putting all of its energy into growing roots. Which is has now done and is very healthy, apart from a little bit of a lean. Watercolour and pencil 24cm x 19cm click here to bid.

#3 Wind up Snail

This the smallest size for this years drawings at 14cm x 9cm. I wanted to blend the two years together by using a similar format and make a drawing on the three different sizes for the first three days. This snail was so nearly painted a few times last year but something else always won out so here he is, catch him before he exits stage left! watercolour and pencil 14cm x 9cm click here to bid.

#2 Oil Paint Tube

Maybe I am missing the oil paint, or maybe I like the juxtaposition of painting a tube of oil paint using watercolour paint. I definetely like orange in whatever form it takes, This painting of a tube of cadmium orange is a good opposing picture to the oil painted tube of turquoise oil paint from day #129 of year one. This painting is the middle paper size, 19cm x 14cm watercolour and pencil click here to bid.

#1 Birthday Cake

Right then here we go, the start of a new painting year. I feel a little bit like you feel when you start a new school or a new job! I thought it would be nice and neat if I painted another slice of birthday cake. I have always used a 'blind drawing' warm up exercise both in my own studio and as a way of warming up groups of students. So, I have started this year of drawings with a similar idea. The drawn line was done without looking at the paper just focusing on the object. Through doing this I hope to excercise my hand eye co-ordination and get my eye and hand to work as one!! I have then (because I am colour freak) added watercolour paint but I did allow myself to look for that part! Watercolour and pencil on paper 28cm x 19cm click here to bid.

I intend to use three different sizes of paper over the coming months, this being the largest size at 28cm x 19cm the other two sizes are 19cm x 14cm and 14cm x 9cm. This means they should fit in standard size frames, I will give out some framing idea as we go through the next 365 days. There is also no drying time for these drawings/paintings so there wont be as long delay in sending them out once the auctions have finished .

#365 Birthday Cake

Well, this is it the last painting of the year, I have now painted a complete oil painting every day for the last year. I decided to start this project the day after Debbies Birthday so that it would end on her birthday this year, but strangely I only thought about making and painting her birthday cake relatively recently. This particular gooey and unctuous specimen is a strawberry gateaux and was barely able to stand long enough to paint, towards the end the strawberry mousse on top started to fall off.

I think cakes have been some of the most popular objects throughout the year and I have found there are sonme fabulous textures and colour within the cake and patisserie world, with cream, glazed fruit and crumbly cake all suggesting different ways of using paint to describe them. I have a little plan I am hatching which will see me paint lots more sorts of cakes so, keep an eye out here for more news in the in the coming months about that. Meanwhile, I will begin next years daily project tomorrow which is very exciting mostly because I don't really know how it is going to grow and develop.

I would like to extend a huge thanks to everyone who has been following this project for the entire year, or even if you have only just found it. Rest assured that on those dark days when I didn't feel like painting or didn't know what to paint it was the thought of all your faces looking at my blog expecting a new painting that kept me going. I hope you will all continue to follow me and my daily offerings for the next year! Oil on gesso is 16cm x 12cm.

#364 Car Keys

Only one more painting to go now, this painting of my car keys completes a mini series of personal effects I have painted recently, including my wallet and watch. I wanted to include the car keys because it was just over a year ago I passed my test and I think it was fitting the time to learning to drive into my life made me think about what I could do with that time. Part of the answer became this daily painting project. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#363 Pencil

This isn't just any pencil, this pencil has been used to sign most of the last 363 paintings including this one. Thats why you can just see a little blob of white paint on the tip. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#362 A Model of the Colleseum

Nope unfortuantely I haven't just got back from Rome, worse luck! I brought this back for Debbie a few years ago as a partner to the leaning tower of Pisa model we got from, well, Pisa! The tower is too tall to fit so I plumped for the colloseum. I almost can't believe I am on day 362 and very nearly finishing this years paintings. I will let you all in on what will happen next over the weekend. For now, release the lions! Oil on gesso 16cm x12cm.

#361 My Watch

I think I have probably worn this every day that I have been making these paintings but never been moved to paint it. So far I have painted my wallet, now I have done my watch, i've been toying with car keys and am also wondering if I am brave enough to try to paint my glasses, not because they are particularly difficult to paint more that I wont be able to see them if I take them off! Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#360 Wind up Robot

You may recall the painting I made on day #231 of a wind up monkey which was also my birthday and the monkey was a present! This robot is from the same set of wind up characters and has been wound up a few times as he sits in the studio begging to be painted. Tonight I obliged him, and I hope to find some things over these last few days like this that have been hanging around waiting for the right day. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#359 Lime

This is a week of endings, my final evening class of the year was tonight and I stop making daily oil paintings next Monday so, this is the last tuesday and tomorrow is the last wednesday and so on! Anyway, I chose this lime from the bag of fruit and veg my students had to choose from this evening. The difference with their painting is they were using egg tempera which behaves slightly differently to oil paint, but that story belongs to a different blog. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#358 MIxed Nuts and Raisins

I had a bag of mixed nuts this weekend and just finished them off, well after I had picked out the best looking ones to paint. But even these have gone now. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#357 Clementine

As I near the last week of painting these paintings I have started to think about things I havent painted and really should have done! I painted a bitof orange peel a while ago bit haven't done a whole orange style fruit, which is unusual given my love of orange (colour as well as fruit). Oil on geso 16cm x 12cm .

#356 Cinnamon Stick

Sorry but there is no 'witty' story or any other reason for painting this other than it smells nice and was in the spice drawer. They are also an important ingredient in winter things like mulled wine and maybe cinnamon biscuits , they have a good crumbly/flakey texture to paint. Okay so there are a lot of reasons! Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#355 Ginger bread with Head

This poor little ginger bread man had a horrific accident on his way home from the market today as you can see. but that is nothing compared to what has happened to him now! This is the first (and probably last!) diptych in the series and the head painting comes free with the body painting or does the body come free with the head ...not sure, you decide! Oil on gesso body is 16cm x 12cm and the head is 10cm x 7cm.

#354 Daylight Bulb

I have painted this tonight because I went to the studio to prepare for painting and turned the light on and it blew 'damn' I said and re-placed it. Luckily only last week I ordered replacement daylight bulbs as I knew the one that was in had been in for a while and it was bound to go just as I approach the last couple of weeks of the painting year probably on day #364. But no, it went on day #354. Keen observers of my yearly painting escapades may have noticed a lack of glass objects being depicted, and and they would be right, I have run scared of glass all year, apart from a Marble on day #107 I think. I felt I had to face my demon and have another go tonight. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#353 Rubber Band Ball

I dont have many palm size objects in my home/garden/office/studio that haven't been painted yet. This rubber band ball is one that I just havent got to yet. So today is the day, I collected most of the rubber bands by picking up discarded bands as and when I saw them, mostly the red ones that the postman leaves behind. But there are a few non post office bands in there too. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#352 Spinach Leaf

This spinach somehow escaped the dinner plate by jumping off it while still in the kitchen. I found it whilst hunting for objects this evening, you don't escape me that easy Mr Spinach. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#351 Potato Wedges

Fortunately I cut four potatoes instead of three so, I had some left over to pick the best ones to paint. They were grilled with chargrilled spice sprinkled over them towards the end of cooking. Served with a fillet of haddock a lemon mayo sauce and broccoli. lovely. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#350 Mince Pie

I just couldnt help it I have seen so many mince pies in the shops I had to have some! So, I stretched my pastry muscle and made a batch this afternoon. Keep an eye out for some paintings of the rest of them, I feel the need to push my cake painting ability as well as my cake making abilities so again, watch this space for more cake painting news in the coming weeks! Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#349 Lip Balm Pot

This well known petroleum jelly product might not be used every day but certainly most days I apply some to my poor dry cracked lips! Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#348 Daffodil Bulb

This is another visual reminder to 'pull yer finger out in the garden', we have a big ole bag of daffs to plant, which will either look fantastic in the spring in full bloom or look awful and rotten in the bag. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#347 Two Mini Sparklers

Happy Bonfire Night! These indoor sparklers have been hanging around for years I nearly painted them on New Years even last year but plumped for the second hand from an old clock. Which might or might not have been a conscious decision so I could paint them tonight I cant remember. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#346 Garden Knife

We will definetely do something in the garden this weekend ...before it gets too cold and kills things in pots. trouble is half of the old kitchen is still in the way so a mini battle might have to be waged against that first. Might need a bigger knife. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#345 Cake Crumbs

I have to admit, I came as close as I have come to forgetting to paint tonight! I had my evening class tonight so, I got home later thanm usual, ate my lovely pie dinner, opened a bottle of wine, watched something on the tv, I cant even remember what it was, then suddenly at 11 oclock I suddenly remembered!! I had also decided to paint the same thing I made my students paint this evening, which was various autumn leaves. But, I forgot to select one to bring home. 'Tiddley pom' I said to myself, and proceeded to eat a cup cake (you will remember them from sundays post!). I have also been painting a series of 'cake crumb' paintings a bit smaller than these so I thought this would be a good opportunity to paint a bigger one. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#344 Lollipop

We got ourselves prepared for hordes of trick or treaters this halloween with a big bag of lollipops. However, we only had one very small four year old announce his scary statement 'trick or treat'. Good, that means the rest are all mine. including this half sucked strawberry flavour lolly. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12cm.

#343 Cupcake

I made a batch of cup cakes yesterday and iced them up this morning I wanted to go for a manly, macho theme. I think I have achieved this as you can see with this example. Oil on gesso 16cm x 12m.