After thirty years of visiting Maine, I finally took the ferry from Rockland to Vinalhaven last summer and spent a day exploring the tiny town of Carver’s Harbor and some of the walking trails that wind throughout the island. Of course, I took my sketchbook along, and I thought you would enjoy seeing the creative layout I came up with to showcase some of the scenes I saw that day.
This sketch was done in my Maine Favorites sketchbook, where, year after year, I sketch all the things I love about Maine. (Look for “Maine” in the sidebar search box to see other sketches in this series.) I don’t think I’ll ever run out of subject matter, because I pretty much love everything about being in Maine!
While my friend, Karen, and I waited for the ferry that day last August, we chatted about sketching and came up with the idea of using sea creatures as frames for mini paintings of island scenes.
So I dove right in and sketched the seashell, crab, and jellyfish outlines while sitting at a table on the ferry during the ride to the island. That way, I was ready to start filling them with drawings throughout the day.
The scene of pine trees and water was a view from the ferry as we neared the island. The harbor scene painted on the crab was the view looking toward the village of Vinalhaven.
The stately Victorian house was one we saw on our walk around the island. It looked pretty spooky, so we made up stories about it to keep us entertained while we meandered down the road.
With no restaurants open for lunch, we were forced to buy picnic fixings at the local grocery store, then we walked to the outskirts of town, looking for a pretty spot with a view where we could eat our salads. We ended up at the local cemetary, where we perched on a wall and ate our lunch in the sunshine, looking down a grassy hill to a beautiful inlet. In the cemetary, there were headstones dating back to the 1700s. I ended up looking up some of the history of the island on my phone to learn more about who these intrepid people were who chose to live so far out to sea.
We walked by this fishing shack during our meanderings, and it was so cute, I just had to add it to my page.
The various fish swimming around the page were drawn from reference photos of fish commonly found in Maine waters.
Although I got a lot of this sketch drawn while I was in Maine, time did not allow me to get everything painted. I did that months afterward. I had roughed in all the lettering on the jellyfish tentacles during the trip, though, so I wouldn’t forget about what I experienced that day on the island.
After everything was drawn, painted and lettered, I added one more touch, the soft watery washes surrounding each of the sea creatures. The soft colors help to unify the page and draw attention to each individual sketch.
Even though our family has been visiting Maine for as long as I can remember, I still discover new places each time I’m there. We drive the back roads and take the route less traveled by when we’re going to our favorite spots, and we almost always find something new and interesting. Last year’s trip to Vinalhaven was just one more exploratory adventure for the record books. And one more page for my “Things I Love About Maine” journal.
8 Comments
Thanks for sharing. I also love Maine after several months long summer family vacations on Matinicus Island. Your sketches are wonderful. They capture this unique region.
Thanks, Donah. You were so lucky to be able to spend so much time in Maine over the years. That’s my dream, to spend a whole month there sometime. Maybe some day….
Your sketches are delightful and so personalized. One of my favorite places is Booth Bay Harbor, so beautiful. Fingers crossed 🤞🏻that you might plan a retreat in Maine.
That would be fun – I was just talking to my mom about that this morning. We had such fun doing those retreats. I’ve never been to Boothbay – it’s on my list of places to visit. I’ll let you know if I decide to do a Maine retreat again. We could just about fill a workshop with you and your pals!
Loved that day! and what you did in the sketchbook <3
I want to see yours finished, too. Send me a pic when you get it done. That was such a beautiful day. I miss Maine!
Thank you for sharing this beautiful memory. It’s incredibly inclusive in the most inventive ways. You continue to amaze me with every sketchbook you share so kindly with us
Thanks, Connie.I had fun doing it, and it certainly does capture memories of the one day we had there.