Beagle Puppy In Hat Watercolor Painting
By Charlie

Laying Low

Written by Charlie O'Shields

For our prompt of “Hats” today, I simply opted to place one on a quick little sketch of a resting puppy. It’s been quite a tumultuous week, and the world seems rather chaotic lately, so I’m glad to be heading home for the weekend to lay low and relax. And as I, along with much of the world practice a bit of physical social distancing during these times, it’s lovely to still be able to connect with each other online! Personally, seeing all of the awesome art that everyone has been producing each day for this challenge always makes me smile and gives me so much hope. I can’t thank you enough for the beautiful art that you’re creating and putting out into the world. It’s such a positive and wonderful thing to DO no matter what’s happening, but it’s even more uplifting to see during these current times. Keep safe, keep happy, and keep right on sketching and painting! The world needs beauty and joy in it now more than ever!

The one thing I can certainly say about current events today is that it’s wildly distracting. It’s really hard to focus on almost anything at all and I’ve never really been good with focusing on things in the first place. Tonight, Philippe and I had pizza and wine and decided to watch old comedies that we liked as a distraction. It worked well as I was once again transported into that lovely bubble of a world that’s just the two of us. It’s a fabulous place indeed. That space that you share only with the one you love most. And, yeah, also our dog Phineas who has no interest at all in current events and is instead just playing with his treat toys. These create a little challenge for him so he can exercise his brain a bit, and not beg quite as much. He initially just stares at us for awhile and refuses to touch it, setting off a battle of wills. We always win in the end, and now he’s rolling it across the floor in search of treats.

This is the place I love most and I’m so happy to be at home. But, I’m also just plain exhausted dealing with each and every dramatic headline and trying to understand hundreds of conflicting reports. There’s no center to the world that we inhabit today. It’s more of a spinning top that leans as it’s about to fall before the next person jumps in to pump it up again. Yet, even in all that craziness, I still have an insane amount of hope. Humans have always been rather resilient creatures and we’ll indeed figure out a way past even the most immediate issues. And, perhaps, we’ll maybe even be a bit better off as we learn important things along the way. I hope that’s the outcome at any rate. But for this very moment, I just find myself ready to take a break and spend a quiet and thoughtful weekend laying low.

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About the Doodlewash

Da Vinci Paint Co.: Gold Ochre, Yellow Ochre, Opus (Vivid Pink), Cobalt Turquoise, Terra Cotta, and Indigo. Lamy Al-Star Safari Fountain Pen (Extra Fine Nib) with sepia ink  in an A5 Hahnemühle Watercolour Book. Want to purchase a print of this doodlewash? Send me a note with a link to this post, and I’ll add it to my shop!
 Beagle Puppy In Hat Watercolor Painting Sketchbook Detail

 

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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30 thoughts on “Laying Low”

  1. Fantastically cute puppy with his hat! I hear you loud and clear about wanting to retreat from all that is happening. I stayed home today and spent a big chunk of the day in my studio listening to Irish music as I simply played with paint. It felt good.

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  3. Your beagle puppy with his safari hat looks like he’s plenty happy to nap this one out. Seems we’re all going to be hanging at home with our loved ones and hoping this minimal social contact will stop the Covid 19. Wishing good health to you and Philippe and to everyone out there. Be kind, folks, be smart, and give your partners and kids plenty of hugs.

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  8. Cute pup! We had a lot of beagles when I was a kid. They were the cutest puppies in the world. Those long ears and giant puppy paws made them just perfect for cuddling. And I’m hunkering down because that’s what I do in winter anyway, so being encouraged to stay home is not a huge deal for me.

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  10. Hi Charlie, well I gotta tell ya that your most adorable hat wearing puppy 🐶 sure made me smile 😊 first thing this morning. Once again thanks for your words that brought me out of all the worldly chaos and into a world of warmth. Enjoy your weekend with your family. ❤️

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