Hello and happy, creative 2020! There are some new things in my Etsy shop: a series of A5 notebooks with blank pages, recycled paper and card cover, and some of my paintings on the covers. They contain 76 pages and the spines are square so they stack well and sit easily on shelves or in… Continue reading New in my Etsy shop: notebooks/sketchbooks/journals
The ink has dried, the leaf is ready for some colour. Using a very soft brush (synthetic squirrel is a good option) and working wet-in-wet, I am using Yellow Ochre as a base, with some Hansa Yellow Light and Burnt Sienna. I had originally planned to use Quinacridone Gold but decided later it wasn't needed.… Continue reading Ginkgo Leaf part 3 – Watercolour wash
There is something quite magical and romantic about a dip pen with a beautifully marbled handle and a gorgeous nib. The feel you have as you dip the pen and make a mark on the paper with the liquid ink cannot be matched by a felt tip pen. For this ginkgo leaf I have chosen… Continue reading Ginkgo leaf part 2: Ink
I have been painting a lot of Ginkgo biloba leaves, some from my own tree in the garden, others from the beautiful pair of trees outside the orangery in West Dean Gardens. There is something fascinating about a prehistoric tree. You can just imagine it surrounded by Diplodocus and Stegosaurus in the fading Jurassic light,… Continue reading Ginkgo leaf part 1: drawing
I hadn’t tried any Princeton brushes before Jackson’s sent me some to test for my Veganuary blog. These Neptune series 4750 brushes are faux squirrel rather than the faux sables I usually use. On the round brushes, the varnished handle shows the wood grain, in deep mahogany tones and satin finish. The flat brushes have… Continue reading Princeton Neptune synthetic squirrel – Brush review
