Swazi father in gouache.

Yesterday I decided it would be a painting day and what a painting day it was. Dark clouds rolled over in the afternoon and soon rain clattered against the windows and the ensuing crisp coolness made it an ideal painting day. With some lamps on and Athena at my feet, I painted away. It wasn't easy. I hadn't done it for a long time but the brushes and new tubes of paint were so enticing I couldn't wait. Forget about the laundry and ironing. It was painting day.

I painted the family in sequence from father to youngest son and that is how I will post them. Pencil sketch painted with gouache (opaque watercolor, the medium I have used most since I can remember). Tools: homemade stamps of pins in cork and also a tiny stamp made with Staedtler Mastercarve which they say is "como mantequilla" and so it is. Very small stamps are better made from erasers because Mastercarve crumbles. I do think it will be great for larger stamps. I also used a 0.5 Micronpen for the outlines, giving the drawings a more cartoonlike quality.