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paulnicholson.bsky.social
Two Scoops 🍦🍦 🏉🎨🖋
@paulnicholson.bsky.social
680 followers 460 following 730 posts
You're only limited by your own imagination! And your own stupidity.

#vss365 #QuickQuill #ThePenFlows #MoonMystic
#ArtAdventCalendar

Micropoet✒, artist 🎨

Allergic to stupidity

The thing we have in common is we are all different

🏉 Harlequins +NRL
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paulnicholson.bsky.social
More from my sketchbook and my "sketch what's in front of me" series in the same hotel bar near #Haxby, #York, #England in early December.
Artwise had a no mojo summer.

#ArtAdventCalendar Day18
#Art #AmPainting
#Watercolour #Painting
#EnPleinAir (though indoors again 🙂)
#ArtYear
My Pic 📸
My Art 🎨
Again I used permanent black pens, a water-soluble black calligraphy marker and a water brush pen with some of the black marker giving off green tints instead of grey. Depicts my view from the quiet seating area in the hotel bar, 2 tables along from last time, through a different doorway to the other end of the main hotel bar. The edge of the mantelpiece on the right goes out of the picture to span a fireplace and join up on the left of yesterday's picture.
December 18, 2025 at 10:33 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
More from my sketchbook and my "sketch what's in front of me" series, this time sat chilling in the evening in a hotel bar near #Haxby, #York, #England.

#ArtAdventCalendar Day17
#Art #AmPainting
#Watercolour #Painting
#EnPleinAir (though indoors 🙂)
#ArtYear
My Pics 📸
My Art 🎨
Used permanent black pens, a water-soluble black calligraphy marker and a water brush pen with some of the black marker giving off green tints instead of grey. Depicts my view from the quiet seating area in the hotel bar, through a doorway to the main hotel bar with 2 slushie makers behind the bar counter and some beer pumps on the bar counter
December 17, 2025 at 10:34 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
More from my sketch what's in front of me series, this time recently in a local pub, #TheForestersArms in #Bagshot, #Surrey, #England.

#ArtAdventCalendar Day16
#Art #AmPainting
#Watercolour
#Painting
My Pics 📸
My Art 🎨
Black pen sketch as the basis for the best picture. View is from my seat in the local pub seating area past another bar table and chair through a doorless doorway into the main bar. Black pen and water soluble black ink washed with a water brush to pull out greeny greys in different tones. View is from my seat in the pub looking past another bar table and chair through a doorless doorway into the main bar.
December 16, 2025 at 10:48 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Pen + watersoluble ink sketch of the water mill used to ground flour on sale in the museum shop.

Today en plein air, if sitting in the warm café looking out counts 🙂

#WealdDownMuseum
#Sussex #England
#ArtAdventCalendar Day14
#Art #AmPainting
#Watercolour
#Painting #EnPleinAir

My Pic 📸
My Art 🎨
Pitched roof over a stone building housing the working water mill. Before the mill is the millpond with the sluice gate mechanism to the right of the mill. The Lurgashall mill, probably dating in parts from the 17th century, grinds corn for flour and animal feed. The overshot waterwheel provides power for two pairs of millstones, a grain cleaner and a sack hoist. Sketch book on the café table looking out at the watermill subject of today's sketch.
December 14, 2025 at 11:03 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
#Aldershot Bandstand.

From the nearby park bench.

Permanent pen and water-soluble ink.

Part of my paint what's in front of me approach.

#ArtAdventCalendar Day13
#Art #AmPainting
#Watercolour
#Painting #EnPleinAir

My Pic 📸
My Art 🎨
Empty Aldershot Bandstand with a pointed roof, on a grassy area, and two trees for background contrast, leaving out the concrete jungle behind it.
December 13, 2025 at 3:15 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Now that's what I call a Window!

The Great West Window of York Minster, dating from 1338 but photographed today.

#AlphabetChallenge #WeekWforWindows (a day late!)
#BlueSkyMonday
#EastCoastKin
#York #Minster #Windows

My Pic 📸
Stained glass window with ornate stonework filling the arched part including the stone outline of a heart, the Yorkshire Heart. Zoomed out showing the stained glass window and the Yorkshire Heart masonry over the main visitor entrance bordered by multiple masonry arch shapes.
December 8, 2025 at 10:22 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
York Minster today in clear blue skies.

#York #Minster #England

My Pic 📸
York Minster against a blue sky, with a foreground tree, devoid of leaves and decorated either some lights.
December 8, 2025 at 12:48 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
This one 🙂!
Nesting box on a post amidst vegetation in a watercolour diorama in a cardboard box, painted by Linda Hamilton.
December 2, 2025 at 6:48 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
As it's already gone midnight here in England, let's get the party started.

#Watercolour sketching en plein air, this weekend 🙂.

View from a park bench in #Aldershot up a grassy hill to some trees, a church peeking round them.

#ArtAdventCalendar Day1
#Art #ArtYear #Painting
My Pics 📸
My Art 🎨
Pen and water-soluable pen sketch, trees atop a grassy hill, trees partly obscuring a chuch, and the hill obscuring most of the buildings below the church. My sketch in a sketchbook poised on my knee in front of the plein air scene, in failing light after sunset. Which was trees atop a grassy hill, trees partly obscuring a chuch, and the hill obscuring most of the buildings below the church. A black cat, not shown, jumped up on the park bench beside me whilst I was sketching, so perhaps next year will be better? The scene I sketched from a park bench, before sunset took away the light, of trees atop a grassy hill, trees partly obscuring a chuch, and the hill obscuring most of the buildings below the church.
December 1, 2025 at 1:21 AM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Remembering connects us

#7SyllableSentence #connect
#remembrance #poppy
#AmWriting #WritingCommunity
#quilting

My Pic 📸
Quilted panel with a poppy red border framing a poppy made for Remembrance Day
November 11, 2025 at 9:38 AM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Step 1. Old dog's mattress, vacant.
Step 2. Cat takes possession.
Step 3. Dog curls round cat.
Step 4. Cat stays put.....

#cat #WritersLife
Elderly dog's mattress, with cat on corner first, then ten times bigger dog joins her on the remaining three-quarters of the bed.
September 23, 2025 at 9:51 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
When you need an #umbrella, but you can't quite reach one ...

Taken this morning in the rain in the centre of #York, #England
Lots of open colourful umbrellas strung in fours between the sides of a wet pedestrian shopping zone paved with stone flags. The city council removed many flagstone pavements from the old suburbs (replacing them with concrete) no doubt to make the centre more touristy.
August 3, 2025 at 9:54 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
#BlueSkyArtShow #vibrant
#EastCoastKin
#Norway 🇳🇴

Vibrant blue lake, getting its #turquoise hue from the glacial meltwaters of nearby Briksdal Glacier
YriNeset, Oldedalen, Norway in 2024

My Pics 📸
Turquoise lake, high mountains behind with a correspondingly high waterfall going all the way to the lake. Sunny grass and a few trees this side of the lake. Turquoise lake, mountains behind and the name of the place (YriNeset) in ironwork in a flower tub as a silhouette against the mountains Lookkng up the turquoise lake, mountains in the background, clouds above. Flower tub on a rock in the foreground with vibrant red and yellow blooms.
June 7, 2025 at 11:23 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
#BylandAbbey
#Yorkshire #England
#EnglishHeritage
#BlueSky

My Pics 📸
Tallest ruin viewed through an original arch now adjoining a nearby present day farm Tall ruined corner, circular steps into a wall's opening in the foreground. Deep blue skies on the background. Tall corner tower viewed through an arch in the main facade, blue sky in the distance. Tall corner tower viewed through an arch in the main facade, with most of the facade visible in a wide angle format (so verticals all angling towards each other) and blue sky in the distance.
May 28, 2025 at 9:04 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
#BylandAbbey
#Yorkshire #England
#EnglishHeritage

What a difference #sunshine and #BlueSky makes over cloudy conditions within the same 1½ hours!
Main ruined abbey, cloudy grey skies Same main ruined abbey, but with blue skies and some small cumulus clouds. Tall corner ruin and cloudy sky Tall corner ruin and deep blue sky
May 28, 2025 at 8:51 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
#HelmsleyCastle, #Yorkshire, #England

#EnglishHeritage

#MayBlooms
Building on grassy plateau inside Helmsley Castle's defences Remains of square main tower, seen front on, with daylight through most of the windows, inside the castle's defences on the grassy plateau Main square tower seen at 45° to its faces. Dark clouds behind. Ruined walls in foreground with small purple flowers growing in some crevices. Pretty pink-purple flowers growing on low ruined walls, with the main square tower out of focus in the background.
May 28, 2025 at 8:37 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Looking across a well-kept garden in Yorkshire this week.
Tidy grass, a pond, shrubs and flowers sit in front of the hedge.
On the skyline is Sutton Bank, and the famous White Horse of Kilburn, turf-cut to reveal limestone.

#WhiteHorse #Kilburn
#York #Yorkshire
#England
#BlueSkyMonday

My Pics 📸
Garden lawn, flowers and shrubs around a pond, all bordered by a hedge. Beyond the hedge lies farmland, fields edged by dry stone walls in the middle distance. In the far distance, perhaps 2-3 miles away, the Sutton Bank plateau forms the skyline, and just below the top of the plateau there is a sideways on white horse looking to the left. All of this is below a May blue sky with some cumulus clouds. Closer view of the pond and the 100m wide white horse just below the horizon.
May 26, 2025 at 8:30 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Brimham Rocks in Yorkshire today.

#BrimhamRocks
#York #Ripon #Yorkshire
#England
#NationalTrust

My Pic 📸
Brimham Rocks outcrops under a changeable grey sky. The rocks dwarf the humans clambering on and around the outctops.
May 26, 2025 at 5:47 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Fountains Abbey looking glorious in Yorkshire today.

#FountainsAbbey
#York #Ripon #Yorkshire
#England
#NationalTrust
#WorldHeritageSite

#BlueSkyMonday

My Pics 📸
Fountains Abbey: 3 storey window frame, no roof over the remains, with grass foreground Fountains Abbey: same tall 3 storey window from outside, with even higher square tower next to it. Fountains Abbey: more ruins, with mill stream in the foreground, grassy area and ruined walls next to the stream Fountains Abbey: Mill stream, grassy banks, low walls and a wide angle view of all the remains of high walls
May 26, 2025 at 5:42 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Rievaulx Abbey in Yorkshire's glorious weather.

#RievaulxAbbey #York #Yorkshire
#EnglishHeritage

#BlueSkyMonday

My Pics 📸
The ruins of Rievaulx Abbey near York, England, with blue skies above and a few fluffy white clouds. Some low remains of walls with and grassy areas in the middle ground, and a garden bench in the foreground flanked by low stone walls adorned by shrubs beginning to hang over the walls.
May 26, 2025 at 4:53 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Blue skies, high clouds
Early Spring sunshine
Dominates the day
The #vineyard clads
South facing slopes
Patiently waiting some #rains
From which vine buds can #bloom
Countered by anxieties and hopes
That the summer
Does not rain to excess
To spoil this year's vintage
Too soon

#ThePenFlows
My Pic 📸
Acres of vines, prepped and pruned for the season, strung along wires, planted regularly, sometimes just a mass of shrubs others lining up in lines away from the viewer, perspective lines disappearing to the distance. Between the lines of vertical vines are long strips of grass. Greyfriars vineyard, on the Hog's Back ridge, Surrey, England, at a latitude of 51° 13' N. In perspective this is further north than the southern end of Hudson Bay in Canada, most of Canada's population, and all of the USA other than Alaska. And yet it is south of London, England.
April 15, 2025 at 8:23 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
English winter's noon looking down to the mouth of #Langstone Harbour, #Portsmouth on Portsea Island to the right and #Hayling Island to the left. My picture taken from #Farlington Marshes.

My Pic 📸
#BlueSkyArtShow
#peaceful
Flat wide harbour, the water is still, and a low, watery, wintry sun hazy in the sky and reflecting off the sea. Portsea Island on the right and Hayling Island on the left separate the sea from the sky. Green and brown grasses make the foreground, with dead thistle-like shrubs silhouetted against the flat sea.
April 12, 2025 at 11:17 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Calm and peaceful evening in Portsmouth Harbour from Gunwharf Quays.

Masted yachts moored in front of Spinnaker Tower, and a bright red superyacht, no mast to be seen, moored on the open side of the pontoon.
Reflections are gently rippling at high tide.

My Pic 📸
#BlueSkyArtShow #peaceful
Grey evening, mirror-like water, silvery grey except in the foreground and in reflections where its greeny nature shows through. 4 or 5 yachts tied up on a pontoon in front of the landmark Spinnaker Tower, originally to be the Millennium Tower, but construction only started in 2001. On the right are the shops and restaurants of Gunwharf Quays, and on the left a big red 52m superyacht (the Akula) moored on the open side of the pontoon.
April 12, 2025 at 10:49 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
As I was looking in
You were looking out
A thorny barrier between
But it’s more than I thought
The thorns are tearing you without
The barrier tearing you up within
Lacrimation now in full flow

#QuickQuill QQ5ER8 #Ekphrasis
#PoetryCommunity #Art
“Maze” Art By Hiroko Sakai, Japanese Artist in SanFran
Art by Hiroko Sakai. It’s a powerful inspiring surrealism oil painting of a green eye looking up the sky out of thorn, shedding tears. This painting "Maze" is an "Emotion" themed one-of-a-kind piece of art, has been one of the best selling Art prints of Hiroko Sakai's artwork. Hiroko Sakai is a contemporary Japanese artist who has lived and worked in San Francisco, California since 1999. The intense passion that she conveys in her art has inspired deep expressions of emotion in viewers over the years. For more information about her artwork, visit Hiroko Sakai's official website : www.hirokosakaifineart.com
April 12, 2025 at 6:01 PM
paulnicholson.bsky.social
Seven or eight hundred years ago
Someone thought it’d be good
To use arch technology,
Build a stone bridge,
And forge a dry crossing
Over the River Thurne.
So there it stands
To this day
Boats now designed
To pass beneath it.

#QuickQuill QQ5ER2 #Imagery #bridge
#ArtYear

MyPic 📷
MyArt 🎨
Watercolour painting, one of my first, dating from circa 2002. Depicts Potter Heigham Bridge in Norfolk, England, a medieval arched hump-backed bridge reflecting off the river water, a large tree behind it and summery blue skies and clouds behind.
April 12, 2025 at 4:01 PM