Long time no blog...UPDATE

I have been a rubbish blogger lately, mostly because I messed up the layout of my blogger template and it's taken me this long to sort it out!?! I know, lame right but hey that's why I like using pens and paper haha!

So I thought I'd do a quick update about what I have been doing so far this year...as it's just turned April! I can't believe how quickly this year is going. I am pleased to feel a bit of spring sunshine on my skin though as this winter has been so long and cold. 

January 

I started off the year with a determined focus to improve my illustration. The first drawing of the year was this deer...done sat in a messy kitchen because my house had been turned upside down with the installation of some much welcome double glazing. 

 

I also had some of my work on display in the Surface Gallery in Nottingham as part of their Under the Bed exhibition. This was the first time I had any of my artwork on public view and I was very excited and proud of myself when I went to view the exhibition on the opening day! 

January was also the month that the first Drink and Draw Social zine was published, it was beyond exciting to see it on sale in Rough Trade! 

 

February

February was a tough month for me creativity wise, I was not in the zone at all and I really struggled to find inspiration. I began reflecting on what direction I wanted to take my drawing and finally decided to focus on botanical illustrations and tattoo art- I also decided to teach myself watercolour. This was after discovering the work of the illustrator Holly Exley and basically watching all her videos on Youtube about 50 times...

 

I discovered the joys of buying random art shit on Amazon and got some small sketchbook 'tiles' and set about drawing something decent on every one. Including this rabbit...

I also went along to some really interesting talks at Rough Trade run by the local Nottingham Etsy ladies (this may have been Feb and March), the talks were about running an Etsy shop and how to take photographs of the things you sell. The talks were great but as it still stands I am a bit of a wimp when it comes to setting up my own shop- I will get there though. 

March

Once march hit I was a bit more in the zone drawing wise, helped along by the fact I turned my kitchen table into a mini studio and I didn't have to draw hunched over any more. I started to do more colour stuff, including a fashion illustration (something which I always do when I need to get my focus back ). The planning for a few exciting art related bits and bobs also started to happen this month .....

Uni POSCA pens ♥

If you follow me on my instagram you will know how much I love uni Posca markers because I use them so much! they are such a versatile pen to use because they draw on pretty much any surface. I like to draw on glass a lot with them but I have also used them on fabric and textured black paper. 

The pens are available in different nib sizes and I have been working with the bullet nib and pin nibs...

One of my favourite ways to use these pens is on glass, you can build up the layers of ink to create a sense of dimension; which is what I did with the rams head below. You can also draw on top of the base ink with a standard fine liner. I also took the design above and applied that to different sized jars to create some tea light holders...

If you have not tried these pens before I really recommend them, they are available in Hobbycraft and I usually buy mine from ebay where they are usually under £3 a pen. If you do try them out I would love to see the results.

Amanda 

Saying goodbye to 2015...

So I am sitting here actually making a start of one of my new year goals...(I want to blog more ) and reflecting on what this year will bring. 2015 was a good year for me and when looking back and thinking about it a lot of great stuff happened...I had a lot of fun and feel like my illustration style started to develop into something that I am proud of. 

I am looking forward to being even more creative in 2016 and to travel a little more and finally get to see Berlin .Hopefully this year will be even better than 2015 and if I manage to actually stick to this goal you will be able to read all about it on my blog  :) (fingers crossed)...

Amanda 

Looking back at 2015...Amsterdam...

In October we went for a little day trip to Amsterdam...I had never been to the city before and even though it was a grey and overcast day I really enjoyed wandering around the canals and trying not to get run over by A LOT of cyclists! 

The architecture in Amsterdam is really inspiring and it's hard not to fall in love with the narrow houses...

There are loads of cute places to eat and grab a drink around the city...I thought this row of mix-match tables was so sweet. 

And it would be rude not to pop into one of the local art shops...even if the array of pens on sale was a little disappointing.

We went into this awesome vintage shop down one of the little streets (which I can't remember the name of unfortunately) and I think I will always regret not buying one of the denim jackets with the sheepskin collar...

Amsterdam is definitely somewhere I would like to go back to and maybe stay for a couple of days so I can really get to know the city...well worth a visit if you are thinking of going. We got the ferry over from Hull and it costs us £90 for two which is a very good deal! 

Amanda 

INKTOBER

It's nearly October which means it's Inktober time again ! I will be drawing an ink illustration every day for the whole month! 

Leave me a suggestion below in the comments about what I should draw. My favourite from the month  will win the illustration of their suggestion...

*You can enter as many times as you like. My choice is final. Closing date 30 October 2015, winner will be notified early Nov.  

Day trip to the seaside

I had been feeling a little bit frustrated artistically lately, I just couldn't get into my drawing or anything really.  I needed a bit of a change of scene and so I went to Skegness for a little day trip with my mate Nic.
I think it was just what I needed as I'm feeling refreshed and inspired. Here's a few pics from the day...

Red's True Barbecue Review

Location: Queens Street, Nottingham

I went along to try out Red's as I'd been hearing good things about the place and it seemed to be a permanent feature on my instagram feed.

It's an American style BBQ place which basically serves meat...it's located where Fopp used to be and it has a really cool interior. Kind of industrial meets tattoo parlour...

As you can see by the serious bible style menu , they take their meat seriously here.

I opted for the pulled pork plate with a side of macaroni cheese and an iced tea.  

The food arrived really quickly. The pork was really tasty and tender and had a sweet bbq sauce flavour, it came with coleslaw which tasted really fresh and light and complimented it well. The macaroni cheese was ok but went cold really quickly and didn't really have much flavour. I was a bit disappointed with it and wouldn't order it again. 

The iced tea was great, nice and sweet and really refreshing. It was served in a cute half tankard style glass.

I would give the food 7/10 and the decor and theme 8/10 . I will probably go back to try something different next time . I did find that I smelt of bbq smoke after eating in there though which although not a surprise didn't like. Overall it's worth a try for sure.