Every Day in May: Days 15-20

Lonicera (Honeysuckle) and, potentially, a lemon tree

Not sure about the second one: it came with the garden, and only recently have we considered the possibility that it might be a not-yet-fruiting Citrus limon, though a Google search hasn't quite convinced me.


I was slightly fretful about keeping up my efforts for Every Day in May this weekend, as we were spending a couple of nights in Kent, at my parents' home. Fortunately, my mother's garden has long been better tended than ours (Kent is, after all, known as the "Garden of England") so there was plenty of flora to attract me - though for the first of these drawings, I was forced to sit and sketch from inside the patio doors due to the incessant rain.

Weigela florida (Bristol Ruby) and Centaurea cyanus (Cornflower)


Back home yesterday evening, I fitted in a quickie of one of our recently-acquired courgette plants, which (to my surprise) are growing visibly by the day.

Courgette

Finally, today's unidentified shrub. I'm not normally a fan of shrubby things, but the vibrant greenish-yellow of its leaves attracted me today. As usual, I've drawn only a small section, but I would love to know what this might be, if anybody has a clue.


Since hitting the halfway mark on Every Day in May, I've found myself slightly resentful of this self-imposed daily discipline, yet compelled to do my daily drawing. Where circumstances have made this tricky (seemingly no free slot in the day ... wet weather, or having to stand in the cold to sketch ... a family member trying to direct my attention to every flower in the garden but the one I'm trying to draw) I have developed strategies and shortcuts. In other words, though this exercise is hardly going to turn me into a top-class botanical illustrator, it seems it may just be making me a more confident and committed sketcher.

Various combinations of pen, Inktense, watercolour coloured pencil, watercolour pencil & touches of white gel marker in Japanese-fold Pocket Moleskine.

EDM #4: Draw your mug or cup

My wizardy dragon-handle mug was bought in 1994, in a favourite shop (long since closed down) on the Isle of Wight. Cider and mulled wine taste especially good out of this mug.

Pen & watercolour in Canson w/c sketchbook.

My day in black & white

I pencilled in a very light, very rough grid in preparation for Tuesday's journal entry, and kept my materials simple in the hopes of filling the page more easily as I went about my day. The danger with sketching one's everyday activities, of course, is that the sketching has a way of taking over from whatever one is s'posed to be doing, sneakily becoming the activity itself. Thus did I find myself enticed with an old-fashioned pad & pen into a local coffee shop, away from my computer; and I proceeded to sketch my work instead of actually doing it.

A few hours later, another café, and a group of diners who had the discourtesy to finish their meal and leave just as I'd begun to sketch them.

Pen & black Inktense in Canson w/c sketchbook.

Every Day in May: Days 13 & 14

Saxifraga hypnoides and Myosotis ...


... or mossy saxifrage and forget-me-nots, in common parlance. Not that I have ever commonly uttered the words "mossy saxifrage".



#13 Pen, Inktense & coloured pencil; #14 pen & coloured pencil in Japanese-fold Pocket Moleskine.

Fruits of my labour

I finally got round to starting a tension square ("gauge swatch", if you're American) for the crocheted cardi I've intended to make for little M since I ordered the yarn from the States. It's only taken me two years. I did this sketch while listening to Part 1 of Danny Gregory's podcast interview with artist Roz Stendahl (Part 2 is here).


Last night, a lemon on the kitchen table caught my eye: it was yellow on one side, but green on the other, as though willing itself to turn into a lime. I decided to pose it next to the washing-up liquid ("dishwashing liquid" or "dish soap" for the Americans! Not that I expect anyone to be confused. I'm just fascinated by the little differences in the language we use for everyday things). I am back to a classic citrus-scented washing-up liquid after an ill-advised foray into the realm of "cucumber & basil". Whatever was I thinking?


Pen & watercolour in Canson w/c sketchbook.

Every Day in May: Days 11 & 12

Rubus Idaeus and Erysimum


These plants yield us a handful or three of raspberries each summer.



This evening, for the first time in a couple of weeks, it turned suddenly chilly. The breeze tempted these wallflowers to a dance just as I started to draw them.


#11 Pen, Inktense & coloured pencil; #12 pen & coloured pencil in Japanese-fold Pocket Moleskine.

Every Day in May: Days 9 & 10

Hyacinthoides non-scripta and Capsicum annuum

These seem overly fancy names to apply to a couple of sketches I'm so underwhelmed by: never the less, here they are.


#9 Pen & watercolour; #10 pen & watercolour pencil (a cheap tin of 12, ok quality but too narrow a selection) in Japanese-fold Pocket Moleskine.