Left: This was as far as I got on location. Right: The finished spread. Watercolor and Ink

Kathy, from Catching Happiness, and I went sketching the other morning to take advantage of the um, cooler* weather, here in Florida and the fact that it's pumpkin time! It was 79º instead of 89º at 10:30 in the morning. Woohoo.

Sometimes, you gotta go when you gotta go and it doesn't matter what the thermometer is reading.

Still, it was fun and when a breeze came by, it's was sweet. We don't have too many of the large pumpkin farms in Florida like they have further north and we don't have the huge change in temperatures either. Obviously.

This was as far as I went while on location—it was taking too long and there were too many other things to draw and paint!

Finished at home, in the studio!

They had all kinds of pumpkins and gourds in all shapes, colors and sizes along with harvest corn, cornstalks, hay bales and some croton plants on display.

A purple pumpkin?! Actually, a happy accident! I meant to pick up the gray watercolor brush pen and accidentally picked up a violet instead. I was a little shocked, but then decided to go with it as the color wouldn't lift anyway.

The image above was originally going to be just gray watercolor along with pen and line but things went awry...in a good way! Sometimes, we find ourselves in new places because of "mistakes." After I got past my shock of the violet, I decided I kinda liked the look and continued. Now, I'm planning on exploring this style with other colors as well.

It was worth it to put up with less than autumn-like temperatures...well, scratch that...that was autumn-like temperatures for Florida! I think this may turn into an annual pilgrimage, perhaps as a way to shepherd in the change of the...calendar...even if it does still feel like summer outside.

How does the changing of the season effect your sketching? Do you do more or less? Change styles?