Coats and 'ats

I like these ladies looking elegant in their coats and hats. Probably because winter tends to make me feel more like a toddler in a snowsuit. (Especially when you're wearing so many jumpers your arms turn into unbending woollen sausages.)

Coats and 'ats was what my mama, and plenty of other people I'm sure, used to call C&A. Obviously we wouldn't be dropping the 'h' for any other reason.

Sunday Sketchblog #47

No EDMs this week, have some hares instead.

I mentioned hares yesterday as well... Clearly the universe is trying to tell me something...

Oh, look! January!

New year's resolution: I'm going to try and do one of these towards the end of each month this year, rather than just when I remember...

So, this past month has included...

The ballet // Lots and lots of boxes//

Coming home in the snow // Real fire!

And some lovely arty links:

Ian Sidaway's sketches of Vienna appeared just as I was reading The Hare with Amber Eyes. Apt.

John Hendrix on how to find your voice as an illustrator.

Kate Bingaman-Burt has drawn what she buys everyday since 2006... (via lostateminor)

A little bit eery, but beautiful - images from Daniel Danger.

Illustration Friday: Myth

Another nixie! I didn't really mean to go back to drawing fish-ladies but I've been reading Philippa Gregory's Cousins' War books featuring the family of Jacquetta of Luxembourg -  rumoured to be descended from the water fairy Melusina. Hence this week's Illustration Friday topic, myth, making me think of her.

Melusina tends to be depicted with two tails, rather than the single traditional mermaidy one, so I decided they could well be a bit foot-shaped at the end...  She was probably also the inspiration for the original Starbuck's logo.

Puss...

not in boots.

Boots

It's all snowy-slushy-freezing-slippery here. What we need are big boots. And plenty of sock.

Sunday Sketchblog #46

Visit Emma and a new joiner-inner to our very exclusive Sunday Sketchblog club, Hayley at Pogle Paints, to see what's emerged onto the pages of their sketchbooks this week.

Illustration Friday: Ocean

'Ocean' is this week's Illustration Friday topic. Rather than a mermaid or some fish, I ended up thinking about Aphrodite being born, fully grown, from the sea. Which must be quite a nice way to be born, I guess. 

With a little bit of inspiration from Botticelli, obviously.

Snowy?

It's super-cold here at the moment. Not much snow in London yet, but certainly cold enough for several pairs of socks and constant hats.

Luckily I'm a big fan of hats. And coffee. Every chill has a silver lining!

Back of an envelope...

Sometimes the clean, crisp pages of a notebook are just a bit too intimidating. Sometimes it's best just to scribble on the back of an envelope.

Sunday Sketchblog #45

I've just realised the date on this sketch is from November! There will be some newer sketches soon, I promise...

Anyway, EDM #31 is 'draw something you collect'. I'm not a great collector of things just for the sake of having them, so all I could spot that seemed to fit the theme was this change pot. I guess we all collect money (unless you're some sort of monk and have made a vow of poverty, perhaps) to various extents.

I think Emma's managed to keep sketching throughout Christmas and New Year - see what she's been drawing this week.

Illustration Friday: Edge

Still struggling a little bit to get back on the creative bandwagon, I wasn't very inspired by this week's Illustration Friday topic: edge. I was trying to ponder the word on the train home last night, half asleep, and this phrase was the only thing my tired brain seemed to want to come up with. So here it is.

If it snows, you'll thank me for the wise advice.

Wrapping and unpacking

Just emerging from the other side of the Christmas/house moving extravaganza and actually looking forward to getting back to something like normal. It's my birthday on Saturday though, so I never fully feel that the festive season's over till that's passed.

Needless to say nothing very artistic has happened for a few weeks, so this is just a little sketch of Nick's last minute present wrapping. Hopefully I'll be back later in the week once I've worked out where we packed the creativity...