Category: illustration

December Calendar Free Download

I enter the last month of the year with excitement and anxiety all at once. December is the month where I’d love to finish all the things that I had planned back in January, a time to tie all the loose ends, but it is also a month with lots of expectation, preparation for the holidays, family gatherings, presents to buy. I wish I could slow down this time of year to just enjoy the season and savour the Christmas spirit. But it takes a lot of self discipline to say “no” to things and avoid being hit by the Christmas craziness.
I hope you’ve enjoyed my monthly planner and I’m hoping to create something similar for next year (talking about things I’d love to do in December!).
Enjoy the holidays, and thanks for stopping by.
Happy December!

 

November Calendar Free Download

And so come November! We start the month here in Italy with a public holiday called All Saint’s Day. I don’t recall any particular tradition while growing up, except we were home from school and work and  we would have a big family lunch. Nowadays, my kids are more into Halloween as they get to dress up and eats candy and chocolate. But I’m hoping to bring some kind of family tradition for the day this year.
But past the holiday, we tend to start thinking about Christmas already, which is both exciting and stressful at the same time. We also have two family birthdays coming up which require planning and preparation.
So this year I’m making a conscious effort to live the month of November day by day, not making the Christmas/birthday rush getting the best of me and enjoy the small things everyday.
I have a little project coming up for this month which is getting me excited. I will tell you all about it in the next few week….it will involve little time and trees, so stay tuned.

In the meantime enjoy the calm of November before the December storm hits!
(click on the image below to download)

Wild Rose // botanical collection .01

Working on a new series of botanical subjects. I have chosen to step away from true botanical illustrations for a while, to see how it feels to tackle a painting without having to worry about correct proportions, colours and details.  I have found this new style liberating and the entire process a bit more enjoyable considering the limited time I have available for painting these days. And truly excited about having both flora and fauna in the same plate. What do you think?

Sketchbook #1 // blossoms

March has all been about blossoms! The trees are full of delicate flowers, whites, pinks and reds dominate over the greens of the new leaves and everything seems to be awakening from the long winter sleep. This is another of my favourite botanical subjects, but for this subject I went for a more illustrative technique using a black ink pen besides my watercolours.

My main source of inspiration has been this book, but I also enjoyed flicking through my many botanical art books. And that is one of the reasons why I’m very tempted to tackle a proper botanical painting of a branch of cherry blossoms or prune for my April’s project, but not sure I will have enough time to get it done!
Looking forward to illustrate birds or butterflies this month (I still haven’t made a decision), either way it will be a real challenge.

Camellia sinensis

 

Back in November last year I got a request from a potential customer, and tea shop owner, to draw an outline of the Camellia sinensis, whose leaves and flowers are used to make tea. I wasn’t quick enough to respond to the email and didn’t get the job, but had at go at it anyway. The outline is based on an old illustration by Franz Eugen Köhler.