To Susan LeBarron

This is my reply postcard to Susan.

Susan was another person I couldn't find much personal information on so choosing a subject took some consideration.
I decided to continue her meditative theme and painted her something from my imagination. I always find this relaxing, my mind can just drift as I don't have to concentrate on anything.

Hope you like it Susan.

To Shevaun Doherty

Here is my reply postcard to Shevaun.

I couldn't find a profile or blog for Shevaun to do my investigations into her preferences which is part of the reason this reply has taken a while...What to draw?
In the end I decided to 'doodle' with my sepia pen and used a beautiful photograph from a shooting magazine as my reference.

Hope you like it Shevaun, sorry for the delay...Hope to have it posted tomorrow!

From Susan LeBarron

Namaste By Susan LeBarron

This beauty arrived from Susan a couple of days ago and I finally got around to scanning it this morning.

Susan believes that she and I are one, that she is the procrastinating, less accomplished side of me. I think we can all see, from this fabulous sketch, that Susan is wrong!

I love it Susan, thank you!

From Shevaun Doherty

These two beauties arrived from Shevaun this week, a coloured pencil piece and a watercolour.

I love them both!

Shevaun was kind enough to include a little information with each and I learned that Egyptian coffee is brewed in a small pot called a cannaca and served in a small cup or glass. Often flavoured with cardamon, it is very strong and aromatic...YUM!

The camel's name is 'Nandu' and he spends his days under a plam tree on the beach. His obliging character makes him a huge tourist attraction and Shevaun's Daughters often clamber on his back, stroking him and feeding him cucumbers and carrots.

I love little bits of information such as these Shevaun especially when they arrive on the back of such beautiful artworks...Thank you!

To Cindi Bessent

Doddington Clock Tower by Anita Davies

Cindi sent me a beautiful pen & wash painting of a local chapel, so I thought I'd go with this theme and paint our local church....However, just recently, every time I try to park in a decent spot to sketch from someone has beaten me to it...Hence the delay with my reply.

So, instead I decided to go with the 'local history' theme and this morning I parked outside The George public house and sketched the clock tower in my village; Doddington.

The clock tower was erected to commemorate Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee in 1897, costing just £80. The spire and weathervane were added later in 1911, but in 1937, the county surveyor suggested it should be removed from the middle of the road to its present site.

Hope to post it out today Cindi, sorry for the delay!

From Cindi Bessent

'Wedding Chapel' by Cindi Bessent

Wendy sent me this gorgeous pen & wash postcard of a wedding chapel on Elkton Main Street.

Apparently Elkton was once known as the wedding capital of the East because of it's short waiting time of just 48 hours. In 1936 Elkton issued 11,791 marriage licenses and chapels lined Main Street. This is the last remining one.

It was such a wonderful bonus to have this snippet of history included with such a lovely painting.

Thank you Cindi.

To Margaret Hunt

Margaret sent me the most beautiful fabric postcard, hand stitched from back to front with tender care. My Dad does all my sewing, so a similar creation in reply was going to be a little difficult!
Then I remembered the quilt I sketched, from imagination, back in October 2007 and realised I could send Margaret my very own 'handstitched' postcard using a pen and a little coloured pencil.
Above is the result. A magical, imagination quilt that can take you anywhere you wish to be with one simple hug.

Enjoy Margaret!

From Margaret Hunt

This beautiful card arrived this morning from Margaret, completely covered in fabric and deep, luscious red!

It is just gorgeous Margaret, thank you so much!

To Lyn Feudner

'Sunset' by Anita Davies

It has taken me a while to create a reply card for Lyn, I had planned to return a landscaped sunset of my own to her but the weather has made it difficult, if not impossible.

Then today, while playing with a new idea in my sketchbooks, I finally came up with a compromise...My interpretation of a sunset in the female form.

I'll post it after the Easter break, hope you like it Lyn!

To Leslie Brasher

'Fresh & Juicy' by Anita Davies

When Leslie's card arrived the first word that popped into my mind was 'FRESH'.
As I caught sight of the fruit bowl, while watching a film with my youngest this weekend, the same thought passed through my mind and immediately knew what my subject would be for her reply. These pears looked so fresh and juicy that I couldn't wait to finish my painting so I could ravish one!

I used gouache in this piece with a flat brush and challenged myself to create a watercolour effect with them, working quickly and with very little preliminary pencil sketch.

I'm pleased with the result, hope you enjoy them Leslie.

From Leslie Brasher

Daffodils by Leslie Brasher

This beautiful, uplifting card arrived from Leslie this morning complete with cute little lady bugs surrounding it and crawling all over the reverse side. She folded it like a card, so I now have it siting proudly next to my jug of daffs on my sideboard.

I love it Leslie, thank you so much!

To Meinhild Selbach

'Afternoon Cuppa' by Anita Davies

Meinhild was very brave and used coffee to paint my postcard, so I decided I'd be brave too! I've used Sharpies for the whole piece here, first time I've done that and only my 2nd time using Sharpies at all.

I also decided to keep coffee in the theme and sketched my afternoon cuppa, complete with Lamy pen and Canson sketchbook.

Hope you like it Meinhild!

From Lyn Feudner

by Lyn Feudner

This wonderful sunset arrived from Lyn.

Lyn chose the scene after reading my column on The Fens and realised she too shared in the luxury of a huge sky and long vision, as well as many animal visitors.

I love it Lyn, Thank you!

From Meinhild Selbach

Meinhild's postcard(s) arrived and they are painted with COFFEE!
Not only are they painted in my favourite beverage but, just as I thought I might be tempted to lick them I realised Meinhild had attached my very own cuppa to the back of one.
How thoughtful is that?
It tasted wonderful, thank you so much!

I love the postcards, so personal and so very original, a truly unique addition to my growing collection.

To Menekse Guven

'Doddington Church' by Anita Davies

Menekse braved the outdoors through strong winds to send me a beautiful plein air, I wasn't as brave.

I did produce a plein air, of sorts, but I took refuge in my nice warm truck to sketch our local village church this morning after dropping Harry at school.

Hope you like it Menekse, I'll be popping it in the post in the morning!

From Rita Cleary

This wonderful surpise from Rita arrivd in my mail this week..a SECOND postcard from her!

Rita's little teddy travels everywhere with her tucked into the grip bar infront of her passengers seat so I imagine travelling all the way here to the UK without her was a little scary for him.

Don't worry Rita, he's quite safe now...Thankyou!

From Menekse Guven

'Dalyan, Lycian Tombs & River' by Meneske Guven

This wonderful scene arrived from Menekse yesterday morning along with the explanation that it started as a plein air painting and, due to high wind, soon became a view from the window.

'So what was going to be a happy Turkish family picnic became one man battling the wind with an ever hopeful stray dog!'

Wind or not, it is a beautiful scene, painted with a wonderful depth.

Thank you Menekse!

To Dana Whitney

'Moonlight' By Anita Davies

This is my reply postcard to Dana.

After quite some time browsing Dana's blog, I came across her profile. Listed under the title favourite music, I saw Dana had chosen Beethoven, among others, so that was my inspiration for this piece.

I printed out some sheet music, tore it and covered the postcard with it. I 'aged' the paper with some watercolour washes, then sketched a portrait of the man himself using pigment liner.

Hope you like it Dana!

To Kate Muhlstadt

'Pen Friend' by Anita Davies

This is my reply postcard to Kate.

Kate sent me the most beautiful flower painted onto a section of text and mounted onto a deep red card. Her creativity inspired me to attempt something similar for her reply, so I took a copy of my first weekly illustrated column, printed in the Cambs Times & Wisbech Standard, and covered a postcard with it. I then took my new Sharpie pens and added one of my favourite art tools to the composition..My bright red Lamy Safari fountain pen.

It was the first time I used my new markers and I'm quite pleased with the results, I hope Kate is too!

To Nel Jansen

'Beach Hut' by Anita Davies

This is my reply to Nel.

On reading the comments on previous postcard entries I noticed this comment from Nel:

"This is so sweet and charming, I wanna go there. I think it's my favorite postcard to date!"

Nel was referring to this postcard I made for Deni from my imagination. So, armed with a rough idea of Nel's taste I set about making another beach scene from imagination and I ended up here. None of it really makes alot of sense, I have no idea where the stilts came from or why it appears to be stranded in the middle of some vast ocean. However, if I could just work out how to get inside, I'd love to take my art materials on holiday there some day.

Hope you like it Nel.

To Wendy Shortland

'Saraswati' by Anita Davies

This is my reply postcard to Wendy, although it hasn't scanned exceptionally well the red is a litle stronger than shown here.

After doing a little detective work on her blog I discovered that Wendy loves Bali and has been travelling there for 20 years, it's her second home. So, I painted her a Hindu Goddess.
Saraswati is the Goddess of knowledge, what I didn't know is that she is also the Goddess of music and the arts.
Perfect!

From Nel Jansen

By Nel Jansen


'White Tulip' by Nel Jansen

These little treasures arrived from Nel this morning...TWO postcards...How lucky am I?

Nel said she sent both because the tulip didn't turn out as she had hoped, personally I think it's beautiful and am so pleased she sent it.
The sepia landscape is painted so simply and yet, says so much I love monochrome paintings and I love sepia, so this couldn't have been a more perfect gift.

Thank you Nel!

From Kate Muhlstadt

'Gerbera Daisy' by Kate Muhlstadt

This postcard from Kate arrived in the post this morning and in temperature of minus 6 I opened it in the frozen white landscape of the Fens. You can imagine my delight as this bold red flashed from inside the envelope, warming my chilled hands and brightening my day.

I love it kate, from the lush, vibrant colour and the text paper to the beautifully painted bloom that sits so perfectly upon it!!!
Thank you!

To Frankye White

'Lavender Soap' by Anita Davies

This is my reply postcard to Frankye.

It's a soap dish my Mother gifted to me one Christmas, purchased from Norfolk Lavender, a wonderful place we pass on our summer trips to Hunstanton beach.

In a recent email from Frankye I learned that lavender holds a special place in her heart so I knew one of my Norfolk lavender pieces would make the perfect subject for her postcard.

Hope you like it Frankye!

From Dana Whitney

'Fantasy Fibre Flock' by Dana Whitney

This postcard from Dana arrived today and brightened my morning with it's character and colour. I love all the different poses of the sheep, especially the intellectual looking one right at the back who doesn't seem impressed by all the attention.

Thanks Dana!

To Deni May

'Golden Beach' by Anita Davies

This is my reply card to Deni.

Deni sent me a beautiful sunset scene with palms and I've been trying to think of what to send her ever since. Last night I sat doodling with my postcard book and came up with this scene from imagination using ink and watercolour.

I hope you like it Deni, I posted it this morning!

To Becka Sharpe

'Fish Watching' by Anita Davies

This is my reply postcard to Becka.

After reading about her love of geese, brought about by Mike Inkpen's book illustrations, I decided to create her an illustration of my own.

Painted from imagination and dusted with a little humour I came up with this character doing a spot of 'fish watching' at the seaside, complete with polka dot bloomers and the all essential snorkel.

Hope you like it Becka.

From Wendy Shortland

Southrn Highlands, Sth Sydney by Wendy Shortland

This delightful little scene arrived in the mail today from Wendy in Australia. Wendy explains that she had to work from a photograph due to so much rain preventing her to paint outdoors, so she worked on this scene of her friend's property in the Southern Highlands.
It is such a pretty scene, a place to think and dream and the solitaire boat seems to add a privacy that makes this piece so precious.

Thank you Wendy, it's beautiful.

From Becka Sharpe

'Geese' by Becka Sharpe

This morning my postcard from Becka arrived complete with two geese, a pretty envelope and a letter explaining her obsession with goslings after reading illustrator Mike Inkpen's book 'Honk'.

This is such a delicate and dainty piece of artwork from Becka with a real feel of motion in the water.

Thank you Becka!

To Judy Lobos

'Little Teapot' by Anita Davies

This is my reply to Judy.

I know from investigation that Judy collects teapots so I thought our little teapot was the perfect subject for her postcard.
This isn't just any teapot, oh no...This belongs to my eldest Son Jake.
I purchased it for him when he was very small, he used to love a cup of tea and enjoyed pouring it himself, so I purchased this little white teapot just for him. It's about half the size of a usual teapot and we have a little creamer he used to fill with milk too.

Jake is 17 now and the teapot made it through the years in one piece, allowing me to treasure it and the memories it holds forever.

Hope you like it Judy, I posted it this morning!

To Joan Tavolott

'Cherub' by Anita Davies

This is my reply to Joan Tavolott.

Joan and I share a passion for architecture so I wanted to return something along those lines to her. Statues and sculpture, for me, fall into that category and allowed me the chance to share something very precious to me, one of my cherub ornaments.
This particular cherub sits on a delicately carved globe on my lounge sideboard watching the world go by, now he gets to travel to the other side of the world and watch over Joan too.

Hope you like him Joan.

From Frankye White

'Basket of sunshine' by Frankye White

Frankye's beautiful coloured birds arrived this week too!

I love the colour red and birds are a hot topic around our home after recently obtaining two pet budgies. This really is a 'happy' card, uplifting and strong.

Thank you so much Frankye.

From Judy Lobos

'Punch Teapot' by Judy Lobos.

I first saw this postcard on Judy's blog post HERE and commented on how much I liked it, so you can imagine my delight when it arrived in the post!

Thank you so much Judy, he is wonderful.

To Stacy Holst

'Favourite Things' by Anita Davies

This is my reply postcard to Stacy Holst.

Stacy sent me an 'I love snowmen' card so I thought I'd send her a few of my favourie things. One of the things I have enjoyed since childhood is creating poetry and little rhymes, so I made one for Stacy and printed it around the various sketches.
It reads:

Brushes, pencils, paints and shoes by the sack,
Fenland landscape and hot coffee, all black.
Raspberries, wild flowers, the Lord of the Rings,
These are a few of my favourite things!

Hope you like it Stacy, I'll be posting it first thing Monday morning!

From Joan Tavolott

'Arched Porch' by Joan Tavolott

This is my postcard from Joan Tavolott.

I have a huge love for anything architectural, so this arched porch was an absolute joy to find hiding inside the Monet card Joan sent with it. I love the light on the steps and could easily pass a lot of time in a place like this...I can almost hear the birds singing in tree blossom.

Thankyou Joan!

From Deni May

'Palm trees at sunset' by Deni May

This is Deni's postcard to me.

Deni already explained that the corners tore when she tried to remove it from the block after completing her painting, such a shame. However, she recovered it well and it doesn't distract at all from that glorious glow behind those palms.

Thankyou Deni!

From Stacy Holst

'I love snowmen' by Stacy Holst

This is Stacy's postcard to me, so cute and I just love his pink accessories.

I love snowmen too Stacy but it seems so long ago since I was able to make one, snow has been thin on the ground here in the Fens the past few years.

Still, I now have my very own and he's not about to melt in a hurry!

To Emma-Jane Rosenberg

'Spring Poetry' by Anita Davies

This is my reply postcard to E-J.

It is based on a slightly larger piece I did in my journal the same day.

In May last year E-J sent me my first handmade postcard. She used a blue paper to sketch on then stuck it onto the card to produce a layered design. So, I thought I'd use the paper the daffodils were wrapped in to do something similar for her.

Hope this brings a litle bit of Spring your way E-J!

To Joan Sandford-Cook

'Joannie' by Anita Davies

In a comment to a previous post here, Joan threw a proper hissy fit demanding her very own shoe design.
I love a woman with attitude...So, here it is!

I chose shades of green and aqua, colours I know Joan often wears.
It stands upon a tiled floor because Joan often puts them in her paintings of bars and churches.
It is feminine yet sensible in heel size, a MUST for such an active lady.
It was designed to resemble a shoe in a fairy tale; a glass slipper because Joan is a woman to admire, she is not afraid to work hard and her kindness and support for others remind me of Snow White and Cinderella. In my mind she is a real fairytale Princess.
Lastly, Joan is famous for texture in her paintings, so I just had to add a few sequins and beads, a little sparkle to match the one she brings with her into every room.

I hope you like them Joannie!

From Emma-Jane Rosenberg

'Hippocamp' by Emma-Jane Rosenberg

E-J's card also arrived this morning, complete with a little Moo card inside the envelope.

I love the green and aqua shades that she chose for this piece, so soothing and peaceful.
On her card E-J said she believed he was technically known as a hippocamp, she added:
'It could have been worse, I could have sent you a camp hippo'

Thank you so much for your beautiful card and for putting a smile on my face this morning E-J.

From Joan Sandford-Cook

'Strelizia' by Joan Sandford-Cook

Joan's monthly letter arrived this morning with, not one, but TWO beautiful postcards inside!
The theme of them both is very much dominated by her recent trip to Africa and remind me so much of the wonderful journal pages she made while she was there.

A gorgeous dose of sunshine to start my day...Thank you Joannie!


'My little African family' by Joan Sandford-Cook

To Margaret Storer-Roche

'Sketching the Fens' by Anita Davies

This is my reply to Margaret Storer-Roche, sketched in ink and watercolour.

Margaret's card was so creative I decided to send her a sketch of me being creative.
Hope you like it maragaret.

To Starr Daubenmire

'Star' By Anita Davies

This is my reply to Starr Daubenmire, sketched in ink, watercolour and gouache.

On browsing Starr's profile I learned that she can't go anywhere without her lipstick because 'It's the only thing that helps me think straight'.
Seemed like the perfect subject for my reply postcard to her.

Hope you like it Starr, I plan to post it first thing Monday morning.

From Margaret Storer-Roche

'Prickly Pear' by Margaret Storer-Roche

Margaret's postcard arrived this morning all the way from Arizona. Bold, creative, colourful and larger than life.
Margaret took her creativity over to the reverse side of the card too and tore the paper for a real 'arty' feel.
I love it!!!
Thank you Margaret.

From Starr Daubenmire

'Cucumber Spoon' by Starr Daubenmire

This wonderful card surprised me in the mail this morning. Such a delicate rendering of a most unusual and attractive object, Starr has captured the detailed piece wonderfully!

Starr you have the most beautiful handwriting!