This weekend I was so happy to meet with two of my urban sketching friends, Angela and Helen. It has been such a long time since we sketched together in person.

The weather was blue sky and sunny – very unusual for a Melbourne winter.

We met at Mr Tulk, the Cafe at State Library of Victoria. Of course, I sketched my food. Eggs benedict and bacon. I then turned to the scene in front to add a bit of context. It is a busy cafe with delicious meals. We stayed for about two hours chatting and sketching in our own individual styles.

I started to sketch the scene in front of me with black watercolour pencil and just kept sketching. Most people were wearing black, so I did not get to add pops of colour. I decided just to sketch, and not add colour or detail. It was great when the waitress stood taking an order for a few minutes !

We had finished eating and the sun was still shining and we were fortunate to fnd a bench seat facing the magnificent Library. I started to sketch one of the statues in front of the building, but after four attempts I gave up. Not meant to be ! I then started to sketch the profile of the building tops the got distracted by the detail on the State Library. It was a very special feeling to be outside in the sun , with friends, doing what I love. I stayed until I started to tire and then some protestors moved into the space. It was time for me to go.

We were entertained by a great busker who set up right next to us.

It was so good to be back in one of my happy places – urban sketching.

Life returned to some sort of normal by the end of the week and I returned to sketching my usual themes.

One of these is travel sketching. In daily life, this could be on a tram. Below are two airport sketches. This is going from Toowoomba to Melbourne. The first is very minimal in black ink. The second is with watercolour pencils. Over the years I have sketched at airports a lot, and so I know what I like to focus on, and how to measure airplanes to fit what I want on the page.

and an on location sketch

food. of course

dinner. I have included a link to a previous blogpost about drawing food- very similar to this. The post has step by step photos.

I hope this inspires you. Happy sketching.

After the death of our mother last week, my brother and I have been sorting through and clearing out her retirement village home. Thankfully, Mum had moved there three years ago, and the BIG cleanout occurred back then. It was her house of 50 years and it took a long time to go through all of those memories. I kept some things and drew others.

I like to draw objects, I like their history and narrative.

This time I have drawn some objects that Mum had kept and I did not wish to take home, However, they held hugely sentimental value.

When I draw I do not think of anything else. Which is a lovely thing.

I also drew some of the lovely flowers that were sent to us.

I am looking forward to getting back to urban sketching soon .

This week was the saddest week as my mother passed away.

The Iast two weeks have been a whirlwind.

I did some sketching during this time. When I sketch I do not think about anything else and it is a wonderful way to relax. I did some sketches in the hospital, which I cannot look at at the moment.

However, there was a lot to share. There is the hospital equipment-

Flowers and food delivered.

And for something different. We are cleaning out Mum’s house and I sketching these plates. They are part of my childhood, and as much as I love them, I did not need or want to take them home. So I drew them instead! They will always be there for me. All in watercolour pencil of course.

If you have been following my blog for a while you will know how much my mum meant to me as we travelled and had adventures together.