Now sometimes things do not go to plan, I start on one track and end up on another ...with something quite different. So I left you in Process : From the top! Part 1 just after pointing you to a Pinterest collection of inspirational images, and short deviation on how inspiration works for me. I thought lace, and after a bit of fiddling in Coreldraw came up with a vector image of a lace snowflake which morphed into the image below. In part this was inspired by a previous desi

Or how I created my latest fabric design for Spoonflower. I read the contest brief – Using at least two of the colors from the palette provided (#2B061E, #5A001C, #AAB5A8) & optional accents of black & white, create a repeating design inspired by a sophisticated winter dinner party. Don’t forget to think about how your design could be used to complete a picturesque party on Roostery’s finished goods. Color variations and colors outside of this palette will not be accepted. –

Indulging in more Bootcamp loveliness with Lilla Rogers over at Make Art That Sells, and this month's mini assignment had us drawing/painting sewing accoutrements using three different media. So I sort my sewing drawer and basket and take some photos to sort of get me in the mood. Well I admit right now that I got out four types of pen – I know it should have been three – and started doing line drawings, and that is where I stopped! Here are the initial drawings: Lilla also g

Bootcamping again with Make Art That Sells, and this months assignment was Suffragettes. I was given Madeline (Madge) McDowell Breckinridge, from Kentucky, to draw for an imaginary Magazine. I went down several rabbit holes whilst researching her, and the suffragette movement: Google, Wikipedia and Pinterest, before finding the the Kentucky Digital Library with some lovely sepia photos and the Kentucky Kernel with some interesting newspaper articles, including a great quote

The brief was to create an animal for a small child's T shirt. My first idea was a giraffe saying Hi! and the second was an elephant in a swimsuit with painted toenails ...well why not?! I decided to go with the elephant, she had more instant appeal, and drew her using a dip pen and gouache. Neither of these were working for me, the colours were all wrong — the first version too dark and heavy, the second too bright and bold — for a small child. I decided to draw her again, s

Part of a Global Interactive Art Library which contains over 36,000 sketchbooks, from more than 100 countries, within the walls of the Brooklyn Art Library. Their exhibitions and projects are interactive, allowing anyone to participate and creating an approachable museum setting that inspires creation, discussion and education and my work is now part of it, at least it soon will be as today I finished filling my sketchbook ...and it is ready to pack and post. Here are some o

Week four: The next decision was which part of the book I should illustrate, and I did these rough sketches of a scene where Eleanor slides down a giraffe's neck, has a bath with a sea lion, and looks out of the window of the apartment and watches swooping swallows. I went with the double page spread with Eleanor and the sea lion. I'm particularly pleased with the two vignettes on the left. Week five and the cover. I went with the plain background, but afterwards thought that

Weeks two and three I drew Eleanor some more and got to know her and how she would look when she laughed, smiled, cried or when she was in a temper! What next? Hands and feet! A little known fact - I LOVE drawing feet! I still wasn't feeling too confident about drawing Eleanor so I got a leaflet out of the bin and drew the children in it ...very quickly. I thought "That's more like it!". I drew Eleanor again several times really quickly. The image on the right is when I felt

It seems ages since I told you all I was taking an online course with Make Art That Sells in Children's book Illustration, it was in October, and some of you may be thinking "OK, what did you do?" Week one and I drew... and I drew, and I drew ...first I drew some things: Next came some animal drawings. Zoe Tucker who wrote the book - Pet Problems - mentions that Eleanor loves animals. Here's my very first drawing of Eleanor with her favourites things. I feel quite squirmy lo

I'm picking out one present from my annual stash for special mention: 'The Illustrated Dust Jacket, 1920-1970'. A very much appreciated gift from my little sister, she really does know what I love. It includes, by the most amazing coincidence the dust jacket for 'The defeat of the Spanish Armada' by Garrett Mattingly. I saw this book in the local Cancer Research shop, Watergate Street Chester, the week before Christmas and thought "What a great cover!". I very nearly bought