In November, I made some changes to my sketchbook practice.
I continued drawing with several of the Patreons that I follow, but also added 2 personal sketchbook projects in which I want to explore themes and approaches for my illustration work.

1) The art journal.
I started a separate sketchbook to test different methods and approaches to documenting daily life.
It’s too bad I only had one Moleskine sketchbook left, so I had to use it. Yeah, sometimes I get too precious about these. I love them, but especially when experimenting a lot, a more budget-friendly one makes messing up easier.
The most important thing is that I started, it’s a place to document and experiment, hoping to figure out what I like and what I want to keep in my practice. Some pages I like, others,… not so much- but that’s ok, it’s all part of the journey.

2. Dog Drawings (and one cat)
This long, dark winter, I’m on a mission to draw more dogs. It all started when Lizzie pinned me to the sofa during one of her extended power naps- and we all know you can’t move when pets sleep on your lap, right? With only this tiny sketchbook and a few pencils within reach, I started drawing my dogs, and some from Instagram that popped up in my feed- and now I draw one or two dogs every day.
I need the practice, and I’d like to find out what my visual language is when it comes to drawing pets. In general, I don’t like drawing cute things, or drawing things in a cute/pretty way. But all dogs are gorgeous. So how do I embrace their beauty but still allow for some wonkiness?

While these two personal projects explore specific themes further, I still love joining Patreon sessions to draw together with others, and often to draw things I wouldn’t pick myself. It’s fun to gather inspiration, to be challenged, and to practice.

French village with Sarah Dyer:

Botanicals with Katie Moody (I hated this sketch, I think it looks like 80’s wallpaper)

Animals in motion (from video) with TJ Marston:

Leaning postures with Emma Carlisle:

Farm life with Katie Moody:

Farm animals with TJ Marston:

Continuous line with Emma Carlisle:

And two sketches in preparation for works for an exhibition: