Written by After a month of being a kid again in January, I decided to go all the way back to the beginning with a little alphabet adventure. I’ve been wanting to doodlewash some animals so it made me think of an ABC Book. My first plan was a month of animals, but I paused. Much of what I find enjoyable in these little adventures is the randomness of the images that end up getting made in a single collection.
I also like the ability to just jump to anything I want to paint while roughly staying in a theme (even a toy or two I may have missed last month). So instead of a book of animals, this little book will be just as crazy and random as you’ve come to expect from me.
Also, I rather like it when you make suggestions and give me ideas of what you might like to see, so feel free to shout out thoughts as we go to the next letter of the alphabet. Tomorrow we’ll begin with A and move through to Z. I have no idea where this one will take us, but we’ll just take it one letter at a time and find out together!
About the Doodlewash
M. Graham watercolors: Pyrrol Red, Azo Yellow, Azo Orange, Sap Green, Permanent Green Pale, Burnt Sienna, and Neutral Tint. Lamy Safari Al Star pen with Platinum Carbon sepia ink in a 5″ x 8″ 140 lb. (300 gsm) Pentalic Aqua Journal
I was just about to write “awesome,” in regards to your post, painting and ideas. I use this word a lot. Is my Gen X showing? I’ve been thinking about this word, and I would like to come up with a new word(s) to express appreciation, impressiveness, and admiration. I think along with your first “A” day, I will start by working on not using this outdated slang so much. Great post Charlie 🙂
Haha!! I say awesome too!! So, yeah…I say let’s just let our Gen X flag fly! Lol The new slang is for kids. 😉 Thanks Jessica! ❤️
Oh I can’t wait for the surprises of the alphabet adventure! What will “A” be??? Alligator, Aardvark, Anteater, Antelope…. something AMAZING I’m sure! 🙂
Hehe…could be any one of those!! I actually haven’t a clue but love seeing what people suggest and am curious to know myself what will jump out and say…”Doodlewash Me!!” 😊 I like it real-time and random it turns out! Lol
the beauty and joy of your blog indeed! 🙂
Astonishing idea. Mmmm, letter ‘A’ an ancient ancestor, anatomically accurate Australopithecus!! I couldn’t resist, sorry, bit of a big suggestion 😉
Haha! Awesome suggestion Rebecca… once I looked up Australopithecus to see exactly what it was. 😊lol I never remember the big words very well!! Hehe
OK, then…what is it?!!
Like an early ape! Lol A distant ancestor of humans I think
We WERE separated at birth!! This is how I started my blog last year!!! I’m dying to see what you do with this!! Love your blocks, Charlie! 💜💜💜 What’s cool is to go with adjectives or even adverbs, no need to stick with nouns at all! You could take this on so many different directions. Looking forward to it, bro!!
Hehe… We were!! I swear it!! 💜💜😃Lol Yeah…I don’t know what direction this will take. I’ve been more of a noun illustrator so far but who knows?! I really do just decide what I’ll paint on the day that I post! 😊Lol
I understand totally. Great adventure you’re on! 😀
They look so real!!!! Love them!
Thanks!! Hehe…Glad ya liked my blocks! 💜😃
Love the realistic blocks.
Here’s a thought…. Use the alphabet to teach us a new foreign word associated with an animal, toy or whatever you want.
That’s really an interesting idea Teri! I should really be giving the French word for everything as I’m supposed to be learning French since Philippe and I are heading back there later this year. 😊😊hehe
Oh please do! Going to France has been on my bucket list for YEARS!
I was actually going to do it today, but forgot…ugh…I’m just feeling rushed lately! Hehe…winning the lottery is on my bucket list so I have more time to paint and post! 😊lol
Of course the first word that pops into my brain is “astrology”–and why not? Aries, anyone?
Great blocks too. (K)
Thanks Kerfe!! Haha! I’m an Aries! And I also love astrology! This is going to be harder to choose than I thought 😊
That’s an interesting bit of intuition, isn’t it? It’s all a mystery to me.
Abracadabra oh how I love a surprise! Your blocks are a great start!
Haha! Great word Cathe!! 💕😃 Glad ya liked the blocks!
Absolutely Brilliant Charlie! 😃 And your blocks are awesome! I’m doing an alphabet journal too but I have all year. 😜💕 Look forward to this month’s adventure, my friend! 😍🌟🎨
Hehe…it was funny because I pulled back and decided not to start this when I hated my doodlewash yesterday and then saw your B is for Buttercup! 😉 hehe… And was like yay!! 💕💕😃I was going to do all animals and realized I’d get bored so I put a halt on things to think it through. Random stuff wins instead! Yay! And I’ll have the weirdest ABC book ever by the end of the month! 😊😊
Weird is wonderful and I agree, much more fun! 😄💕🎉
Great idea Charlie, this gives you lots of room for exploration. I love today’s doodle wash.
Thanks so much Sharon!! 💕😃 Yeah, I was getting too narrow in my approach to this idea and it freaked me out! Lol This will be much more “me”
Ooh, this is so exciting!
Thanks Annie! 💕😃Hehe…for me too! I have absolutely zero clue what will come next!! Lol 😊
Love the way you’ve incorporated an ant and an anchor in block A, and similarly with blocks B and C. Were these just blocks you dreamed up or did you have a set like that?
I am not a doodlewasher, but I can draw fairly well. As a grandmother living in China with my first grandson living in the USA, I wanted to build a relationship with him through skype. I made a set of A4 drawings with a letter of the alphabet and a word he would know. When he was 2yrs old we began with 15minutes each day, I would hold up the drawing and he would say the word and we’d repeat the alphabet letter. I showed them in random sequences – he knew his whole alphabet before he was three, and numbers up to 20. It was a fun game. I’m now doing the same with his little brother, your proposed series would be perfect for long distance grandparents to do the same thing.
What a wonderful story!! I loved that you did that and it sounds like it worked wonders. I’m sure it was also really a blast for him to interact with you like that! Love it!! ❤️😃 These blocks were from a couple references I found, though I have similar blocks. I made up some of the characters on the side as they were on the references but just things I wanted to include. 😊Hehe
Love the finish on those blocks. I think your rest paid off!
Exciting stuff. This is always a fun concept – recently I’ve been trying to put together a fun A-Z set of cards for my niece, but have found myself stumped by a few troublesome letters. Perhaps your work will inspire me to actually finish it! I’ve no doubt you will make the alphabet even cooler than it already is (hashtag nerd).
A is for Albatross! Acropolis! Aeroplane! André the Giant!
Hehe…thanks Jacob!! I really needed the posting break although I actually did post I guess to tell people so it wasn’t a break. And I drew three things that I didn’t share so I didn’t really break from sketching. But they were so bad! Like I forgot how to draw suddenly. Turns out I just wasn’t inspired with the direction and freaked myself out because it was too specific (baby animals). I need room to play and do weird things!! Lol Though yeah…I will definitely need help when we get to X. 😊
X = xylophone
Yep! That’s probably where I’ll land. At least it’s could be colorful if it’s a kids one! Hehe
Yeah, I have those spells too – lots of offensive stuff you don’t see! It’s quite worrying at the time. It’s not good to force it, but I usually find that switching to a fresh subject and focus helps you to work through it, as you did.
Ha, I actually really enjoyed xylophone for X! It was the ones where there were too many to pick that I got flustered!
Yeah…that’s why I like people just throwing out words that come to mind. Then I can just pick one and go for it. Hehe
Great! I am looking forward to this Adventure!! 🙂
Thanks Susan!! 💕😃 Appreciate you coming along for the ride! Hehe
Hey, how about abstract! My challenge to you after doing mine hehe.
Hehe…I don’t know what it is about abstracts, but I just can’t seem to get into them. I only tried once though…hehe…so perhaps that wasn’t a fair test! 😊lol
Ooh the world’s your oyster with this one, can’t wait to see what you come up with 😊
Hehe…yeah, I think it could be too broad but we’ll see. When I tried to limit it I got freaked out though! Lol I imagine a theme of sorts will develop as I move along.
I love to see anything you doodlewash, so I’m no help in deciding. LOL! <3
Haha!! You’re too sweet…and I’m just fishing for ideas because I haven’t a clue what I’ll doodlewash next. I never know what I’ll feel like until the day I paint though. 😊lol
Lucky for you, your other blogging friends are full of good ideas to inspire you. I’ll just be your uncritical friend who adores you, okay? 😉 x
Hehe…you can be whatever you like and long as you keep adoring me, because I adore you too!! 😉❤️
You are so sweet, my friend! <3
Great painting, love how you were able to get the wood grains of the blocks to look so real. Your adventures are always wonderful and am looking forward to this jaunt through the alphabet. Peace.
Thanks Haunani!! 💕😃 so glad you liked it and I hope you’ll like this month’s adventure! Hehe…no idea where we’ll be going with this one!
This is such a fun doodlewash! I did get a chance to see your first entry.. Hehe. I really look forward to the rest of the letters.
Thanks Kari!! 💕😃Will be interesting to see where this one leads! Hehe