For The Love Of Custard

For today’s doodlewash, I saw the prompt of “eggs” and, of course, thought of dessert so we have a custard tart. I adore painting edibles, so I’m going to squeeze them in whenever I possibly can and stick with what I love most this month. As many of you know, this is my birthday month, so I’m going to celebrate each day during this challenge with something I’d love to have. In this case, I quite purposely painted a raspberry tart to tempt Philippe into taking me to the pastry shop. He walked by as I was sketching it and said, “Yum!” and I said, “I know, I just wish we had some” while attempting to look perfectly innocent, which isn’t easy when you’re scheming. But I’m happy to report that it worked and we visited our neighborhood pastry shop for some yummy things that we’ll be enjoying after dinner tonight. Before I started painting, I would have had to drop verbal hints, but they don’t seem to work quite as well, and it’s rather easy to start sounding like a whining baby. No, far better to paint my dreams into existence. Ahhh, the sheer power of watercolor!

I’m of the mind that any treat is good as long as everything is in moderation. There’s no such thing as a healthy dessert. That’s hardly the point. When recipes claim to do so, it’s quite clear what you end up with is something else entirely. Food that dressed up in dessert drag in an effort to give you the illusion of a treat. Visually, it may be convincing, but what’s underneath is full of unexpected surprises. So, I just stick to desserts made in the classic styles, though, I do prefer the European sugar levels as opposed to the American “sweet tooth” versions. Some of those have so much sugar it’s like we’ve forgotten that it’s supposed to simply be an ingredient and not the actual flavor itself. But give me something gently sweetened to enhance every flavor present and I’m in heaven. Though, as much as I paint and talk about desserts, they’re still pretty rare in my diet. That’s probably what causes this obsession in the first place.

It’s still cloudy and cool here today, making it devilishly tough to get into a proper spring mood. I’d love to sitting outside and enjoying a glass of wine, and hopefully those days are coming soon, but tonight I’ll be hiding out indoors. Cold weather is always fun when it begins, but by the end of the season, I find myself willing it to just give up and go away already. For now, I’m content painting my little dreams on paper. Perhaps I’ll dream of something from a specific location that I’d like to visit. I keep trying to get Philippe to take me somewhere for a long weekend, but he’s always reluctant as he hates leaving the dog behind. Perhaps, subtlety painting the idea into his head would work for that too. I’ll have to try that. In the meantime, I’ll enjoy sketching edible fantasies and relish in the victory of today’s little game played for the love of custard.

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About the Doodlewash Sennelier L’Aquarelle: Opera Rose, Sennelier Red, Quinacridone Gold, Phthalocyanine Blue, Phthalo. Green Pale, Burnt Sienna, and Payne’s Grey. Lamy Safari Al Star pen with Platinum Carbon black ink in an A6 Hahnemühle Watercolor Book.

Charlie O'Shields

Creator of Doodlewash, founder of World Watercolor Month (July), World Watercolor Group, and host of the Sketching Stuff Podcast. Sharing watercolor illustrations and stories while proudly featuring talented artists from all over the world!

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