tonight the streets are ours

It's really rubbish when your holiday ends, isn't it?

Here are some of the sketchbook spreads that I made on my recent stay cation. I'm enjoying drawing, in this way, so much at the moment. I was never really interested in journalling before, but I am now hooked. It has surprised me.

I was also surprised by how willing my visitors have been about adding their little drawings to my book. I though they'd put up a fight when I asked them to contribute. But no.

Oh, I don't want to go back to work tomorrow.

climb onto your seahorse

Spot the difference.

I'm still not sure if my extra work on this drawing improved it but I like it all the same. These are my favourite kind of drawings. Getting lost in all the little jewels and treasure. I could have filled the whole page. But, even up to this point, it must have taken over twenty hours. And, I've got other jewels and treasures to find.

This drawing is now for sale on Etsy HERE.

you've found some better place

Well, I guess like most of this country, I feel in shock right now. I'm not even sure how to express that anger, and the sadness, so I'll just keep on drawing.

It's all about the black pen at the moment. I'm finding it difficult to put it down.

This is another drawing from the graphic novel idea I have. The rest of the drawings from that book can be seen HERE. Anyone like to take a guess on what it's about?

turns the flicker to a flame

There is less than a week of my exhibition left, folks. If you are in the area (a long shot, I know) then GO SEE IT!

I feel a little sad that it will be ending, but so happy that I have had my first solo exhibition. It has been nothing but a positive experience, and the response has been amazing. I was there last Friday, doing a 'Meet the Artist' afternoon. While there I got the chance to do a bit of sketching at the Gallery. I'm getting a bit braver about doing that kind of thing these days. It seemed fitting to sketch one of the display cabinets that I'd set up at the exhibition. They are filled, to the brim, with the things that I have drawn over the years - and will continue to draw in the future. Amongst all the bits and pieces I have planted some of my Moleskine sketchbooks. Unfortunately, they can only be open on one page each! These are the ones in this cabinet;

Pens drawn in a Moleskine Diary.

Buttons from my sepia themed Moleskine

And a drawing about the rain, or trying to keep out of the rain, from my Spare Moleskine.

So, if you do happen to be in the area, please pop into the Buxton Museum and Gallery and check out my exhibition.

we took the town to town last night

For the first four years of blogging I was mainly a recluse. Which meant I had a lot of time to draw. But, the last six months have been a lot more hectic on the social front. So, no longer am I just juggling work and drawing, but also trying to fit in invitations to sophisticated soirees like this one.

Click on drawing to view.

it could be

I don't know about you other creative types, but sometimes I have no idea where drawings come from. There are clues and there are all of those things that have been stored away in that long term memory box marked 'for future use'. But, then there are other drawings where you can recall every little road, and side street, you walked down to get to it. This is one of them. This is the story of where this drawing came from;

1970s films - I love a good old 70s film. I don't care what they are about. I'll just watch them for the styling; the clothes, the homes, the decor, the design of the day. As long as they are drenched in corduroy, big flowery prints and bri-nylon I'm happy. I've actually sat through about three series of Man About the House (British 70s sitcom) just to get a better glimpse of the three prints they had on their kitchen wall (one was a green pepper). The other evening I watched a film from the 70s, in which the main character had her own advertising agency. In the background I caught a glimpse of some seed packets that the agency had designed. I immediately felt inspired.

Classic French typography - I love those classic French style fonts; from Bistro signs to wine bottles. I've been doing a bit of research for an invitation I am designing, for an upcoming dinner party, and I've gone down the French route. I ADORE the Metropolitan typography and have been practicing it.

Art Nouveau - I've also been researching (Googling) a lot of Art Nouveau stuff recently. Just for my own amusement. I love everything about it from the architecture, art and, again, the typography.

1960s and 70s recipe books - I've written about my love of these books before. It's the first thing I look for in a charity shop. In fact, I go in charity shops to look for them specifically. I have a rather lovely collection. They are always bought for the drawings although sometimes I'll dig them out for a mung bean and brown rice salad recipe.

Sweetcorn - one of my all time favourite veg. I bought this corn on the cob the other day. As I was choosing it I was thinking about how pretty it was.

So, there's the story of a drawing. And, the story of my life over the last few days.

i get away

Some more pages from this new Moleskine sketchbook, in which I am teaching myself to draw. It's really hard to get out of some habits, right? To leave your comfort zone and all of those other cliches. The drawings above are from the first full spread in this book. I couldn't give up on the those things I'm always drawing. Little things; the buttons, the tags, the scissors, the stamp.

But, I'm not learning from that. So, I'll keep on pushing myself in other directions. Cos that is the point of this sketchbook; no pencils, no perfect neat drawings, no same old same old.

And as each page goes by I feel I am letting go a little. As I become a bit more confident of drawing things that scare me. And there's a real sense of achievement in drawing something you would have previously avoided and it turning out okay.

Yeah, there are some that turn out pretty rubbish, but they always seem to be the ones I've overthunk.

my deep shade

So, when I made the colour ballpoint pen drawing for the Pen Addicts pen review, a few days ago, I knew I hadn't finished with them. I made my first drawing of colour pens 4 and a half years ago. I'm surprised that I haven't revisited this subject since then. Yeah, I've drawn loads of pens but not the colour ballpoints. Yet, they are the most delectable of subject matter. And, I am still not finished. In this drawing, I really like the parts where two pens, and two colours, meet. I want to continue playing with that and pushing to see where it can take me. And my pens.

This drawing is for sale HERE.

looking from a window above

Damn, it's good to be working in a Moleskine again. Most of my Moleys are in the display cabinets at my exhibition, but I kept a couple aside. I knew that I couldn't go three months without feeling that gorgeous cream paper, smelling those covers and (oh yeah) drawing in them.

This is another spread from the graphic novel idea that I'm working on. I have the story and now I'm just trying to bring those ideas to life through drawings. I'm most excited about this idea (I can't think of another word for 'idea'), hopefully, one day a publisher will be too. There's a couple more drawings from this story HERE.

ringing home so true

Here's a little something I've been working on, and meaning to do, for some time now. I've put a pen review on the Pen Addict's fabulous site. When it came to it there was only one way for me to do a pen review - draw it!

Check out my ballpoint review HERE and don't forget to bookmark that wonderful site (I say 'bookmark it' like I know what that means). I hope this will be the first of many reviews I do for the Pen Addict. I already have the next one penned (sorry) out in my mind.

I must say that it seems that pens have become my new shoes; in that I seem to be drawing lots and lots of them. I ADORED doing this drawing. I just loved drawing these pens, so I'm most definitely finished with them yet. It's also for sale HERE.

they're all wasted

A new oldie up for sale on Etsy. Take a look HERE.

It seems crazy that I made this drawing four years ago. I remember drawing it so vividly. I remember I was watching The Who at Glastonbury and wishing I was there. I love looking at a drawing and seeing all those memories.

rollin' over

Thought I'd give you a little update on the Jane Austen book that I illustrated last year, as I'm often asked about it. Jack and Alice is currently being printed in Portuguese by a Brazilian publisher. I'll update again when it is released. Unfortunately, no news on an English version yet, which is crazy to me. Because, with all those Andrea Joseph fans out there I'm sure it would sell. I believe Jane Austen has a few fans herself, too!

some of them like to tell a story that is long and old

I thought that I'd finished this drawing about three days ago, but I added a little more today. I say that I added a 'little more' when, in fact, what I actually mean is that I've spent probably another five or six hours on it. Believe it or not it had started out as quite a minimalist piece!

Plus, now that I see it on screen I can see a couple of places where I'd like to add something else. To make the composition flow more freely. But, for tonight, I am putting it down. And giving my mince pies a rest.

please be kind if i'm a mess

Some of the black and red ballpoints I am currently using. Simple as that, really.
You know the drill; click on the drawing to read all the nonsense that was going through my head while creating this one. Actually, I haven't actually read it myself. Now that's a worry.

This drawing is also for sale. You can buy it HERE.
Cheers, my dears.

in between tonight and my tomorrows

A few posts ago I told you about how I'd swapped the childish purse I'd been carrying around for the ever so grown up owl purse on the left. The childish purse in question was the cat one on the right. When my friend saw my new purse she said "so now you've had an owl and a pussycat". Then we both looked at each other and said "now, THAT would be a good drawing".

I don't know if it's any good, but I do know that these pair are the most delicious of subjects to draw. I love all the patterns and textures. And, I'm not sure that I've finished with them yet.