I'm watching out for 'budburst', that magical time when as the name suggests, the leaves burst from the bud and spring (for me at least) officially starts. These past 11 months have involved a deep and through scrutiny of the plants and animals I have in my immediate surroundings, hence my journalling and drawing practise. … Continue reading Lime buds
Nature Notebook II
For this journal entry, I decided to draw a bullfinch and some more alder twigs. I copied a male bullfinch from an Instagram account @mmerryts and painted him in gouache. I have my aunt's original typewriter, which I used to create some text about the bird, copied from my Illustrated Book of Birds. I mixed … Continue reading Nature Notebook II
Catkins and Siskins
Today started off looking immensely promising with snow forecast, and a pink sky. Sadly, the forecast didn't follow through, and it soon began to rain. Earlier in the week I had noticed the hazel catkins on one particular tree had descended in the warmth of the sun; clearly the spot was perfect for an early … Continue reading Catkins and Siskins
New Woodcut
I had a go at a woodcut now that I have my beautiful new Pheil tools and a birch blank. I used a photo from Instagram as my main bird focus; a herring gull by Steve Evans: I added some companions to balance the composition, but realised as I was carving the block (which was … Continue reading New Woodcut
Nature Notebook
In the absence of being able to travel, or visit even other places in the county to take in some nature, I really want to squeeze what I can from my local patch. I enjoy journalling and lettering, so I have decided to adopt a bit of creativity with recording some of the wildlife I … Continue reading Nature Notebook
Frost
The weather yesterday was spectacular, and as mentioned in my previous post, I am really enjoying the shapes and colours of the January landscape. I am fortunate that I can walk through some fantastic countryside without having to travel, and there is a route I enjoy if I have a couple of hours which takes … Continue reading Frost
Finding my way
I am feeling in a bit of a quandary as part of me is loving the cold quiet season with its fabulous light and beautiful vistas of silhouetted trees and stark hedges, but I am also aware of the preoccupation of 'what's going on out there' beyond my rural existence. First things first - cleaning … Continue reading Finding my way
New Tools
I was so thrilled to be given a new set of carving tools for Christmas - especially as they weren't even on my list. I have a set with a plastic handle and interchangeable heads but they wobble around a bit, and these are just b.e.a.u.t.i.f.u.l. I am a real process artist so the materials … Continue reading New Tools
Ringed Plover
I have painted two Ringed plovers but my first attempt got smudged (always a hazard with me...) so although it has been cleaned up in a scan so useable for digital items such as stickers and mini cards, the original original is stuck in my drawer waiting for me to decide what to do with … Continue reading Ringed Plover
