grandma's sketchbook.

i don't remember how i came to possess my grandma's sketchbook (it probably involved me stealing away in the night, rooting through my parents' hiding places - sorry mom - and stuffing it under my shirt to get it out of the house), but it is one of my most treasured possessions. i've already gushed about how talented and inspirational my grandma was, and now i can put my money where my mouth is and share with you one of my favorite things.

this sketchbook is nearing a state of "decrepit". the pages are yellow with age and the paper is so very brittle. inside the front cover the year is handwritten - 1938. my grandma was 24 years old that year.

some pages are feature studies . . one page is just eyes . . one is just lips:


then there are portraits of lovely ladies. their eyes are so beautiful. and their hairstyles. i love it. one page had a pressed flower - she was fond of pressing flowers and keeping memories:

the girl with the braid - i love this drawing. the look on her face is amazing. she's so serious, i love it.

she also did a self-portrait, and it's so lovely:



but these are my very favorite pages in the book . . because they are so unusual. i look at them and wonder what she was thinking, why she drew these, and i remind myself that it was 1938. amazing:


it's so interesting to see what she writes on these pages, how she signs her name, which is completely different on some of the drawings (using her given name, Marguerite, or her commonly used nickname, Billie). i'm so happy i have these.

that's a good start to monday.