EDM #3 – A Bag or Purse

If you are following along, you know that I’m negotiating my attempt to do the Everyday Matters list with a student artist in the house. We’ve had a hiccup here and there getting started, but here’s #3.

I have to admit I have a ton of “bags” and “pouches.” I like nothing better than something new and perfect for my pens or for knitting supplies or for a current applique project. (Anyone remember OamyOamy bags? Crazy that I don’t have one?)  I like “little” bags and totes, and drawing bags… is nice. (Yep. I think you can draw most any pouch and find it a rewarding experience… I can remember a number of others… a broken Hello Kitty pouch, a favorite pink pencil case, etc.)

After looking around the room for a current bag-in-use to draw, I momentarily considered my Here2There tote. It should be documented, in truth. It’s looking really worn out. But as soon as I thought it, I knew that a drawing of it would become a “real” drawing (as opposed to a quick sketch). I have a well-documented love for drawing quilted pieces, so drawing that bag sounds like a really good idea and way to document it as it nears its functional end. It’s tempting, but it wasn’t right for the daily drawing at hand.

After deciding that wasn’t a good idea for EDM #3, I decided to draw a boxy “tote” that is printed with an assortment of Kaffe Fassett fabrics. It’s bright. It’s got great patterns. It’s made out of some kind of sturdy vinyl-type fabric. And we use it right now to carry things in and out of the car, to the library, to the beach, and so on. It seemed perfect. I positioned it hanging on a chair back, swiveled the chair around to get a quirky angle on it, and got ready to start. Then, watching me, my drawing mate decided he was going to draw it, too, and after a few minutes consideration, he decided he really didn’t relish the idea of all the yellow polka dots visible on the boxy sides of the bag. (It’s a mostly pink and black bag.) Drawing all those dots really didn’t jazz him.I, on the other hand, had thought the dotted side looked like fun. But see, we differ on our affinity for pen and ink — and our willingness to just go with our line!

Since I’m trying to support the process for him–and instill something about process and routine and the value of simple sketches rather than finished pieces–I’m willing to make concessions to make it work. I was happy with the bag, but he wasn’t. So I said I’d find another bag. I was thinking of a specific small bag that holds pens. I knew which bag, but after a few minutes of searching where I thought it might be, I couldn’t find it. (This is the story of my life right now, sadly. I can’t ever find what I’m looking for!) Instead, I spotted this coin purse on my dresser. It’s one of many Vera Bradley pieces I have, even though they don’t really seem much like me these days. (I’m more a Timbuk2 kind of gal.) The coin purse is a bit vintage in styling, I think, and the pattern is interesting (even in black and white).

So, here it is–Everyday Matters #3. Tradio Stylio for one; Pitt Pen S for one.

(We had very different vantage points on this one, as you can see from the sketches above. I kind of think he was tired, but his perspective was different than mine. He says he couldn’t see the pattern other than what you see above from his angle. It’s always interesting how two people drawing the same thing from even a slightly different space will see it so differently. It makes side-by-side drawing really awesome!)

(EDM Posts)