Dahlia sketch

A quick(ish) sketch of a dahlia.

Neoregelia (Crimson Heart) sketch

A quick(ish) sketch of a Neoregelia at the Auckland Botanical Gardens last Friday. A small group of friends and I went out for the day to do some sketching and make the most of the extended summer weather we've had this year!

Aloe vera pencil sketch

I went to the Auckland Botanical Gardens with Sandra Morris and some other friends from my botanical illustration classes and spent the day sketching the variety of plants they have. It was a stunning day and we all had a great time. My most successful sketch of the day was this aloe vera plant, from the African Garden. I drew the whole piece using only an HB pencil. I didn't have time to finish the sketch on the day, so took some reference photos and completed it at home.

The finished drawing inspired me to create a larger, full colour illustration of the same plant, which is currently a work in progess.

Turtle sketches

A few turtle sketches I've been working on over the past couple of weeks. I just love turtles! They're so ugly that it makes them really interesting to draw. I've chosen the middle drawing to make into a finished piece similar to this turtle illustration I did a while back.

Children's book illustration course - Part 1

Last weekend I participated in a children's book illustration course run by Sandra Morris. I had such a great time and learnt some valuable tips as well. Over the two days we learnt about the history of children's storybook illustration, drawing techniques, character development and we even got to make a clay model of the main character in our story - which we had written prior to the start of the course. I'm really looking forward to Part 2 of the course in a few weeks time.

My clay model is still unfinished. I need to paint it once it's dry.