I am very happy and excited to be involved with a project at my local library: the East Melbourne Community Seed Library project.

It is part of a work in progress to establish a free seed library at East Melbourne Library.

What is a seed library?

The East Melbourne Community Seed Library aims to build food resilience and promote sustainable gardens by sharing seeds to encourage the community to grow their own produce.

Collect (Borrow) Seeds
There is a call for locals to Join a growing community who grow and share seeds by visiting the East Melbourne Library Seed Library. Residents will be able to collect seeds for their own garden and return seeds to contribute seeds to the Seed Library for others.

Local ? Help us to grow our Seed Library by harvesting seeds and donating them back to the library!

What am I doing?

I am drawing the images of the plant of the seeds in the packets. These will be on the front of each seed packet. I completed two and the Librarian was very pleased with the results and then provided a list of the other seeds they have.

Over the Easter long weekend, I spent time on these drawings.

Below are in various stages of completion. I am drawing two on each A4 watercolour page.

It is lovely to be able to share a commission. I have two other commissions this year that I will be able to share once they are made public by the organisations involved.

Chat to the East Melbourne Library emelcirc(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)melbourne.vic.gov.au and phone 9658 9600 for any enquiries.

Each year I have a tradition of sketching my Easter Hot Cross Bun,

This year is no different. This hot cross bun was given to me and was just perfect to draw and then eat!

I also sketched some nests, eggs and a bunny.

It is just a quick blog this week as I am spending the weekend working on a commission which I will share next week. It involves a lot of greens!

Please let me know if you have any questions about watercolour pencils or my sketches. I have lots of practical hints and tips on my blog, some are gathered here together.

I have classes too. see here.

Happy Easter and happy sketching.

Below are photos of my stall at Clunes Booktown Festival this weekend. I have arrived home and unpacked. Now putting my feet up.It was a wonderful weekend, meeting some lovely people. Thanks to everyone who dropped by to say hello and purchased my books or cards. I had some great conversations and met some lovely stallholders too. .

A big thank you to my good friend Louise who assisted once again all weekend and to Adam and Michaela who provided flew down from Queensland to wine and dine us and drive us around. All have signed up for next year! They also bought lots of books.

All books that did not sell on the day will be available on my ETSY website in the next few days.

Thanks Clunes and everyone for a wonderful weekend.

A few sketches this week. A wonderful on location event to sketch at the Melbourne Athenaeum Library for Melbourne Rare Book Week. The inaugural Gary Morgan Oration by Andrew May on Mwelbourne Inc “Little laws and the shaping of a frontier town.”

some sketches from the week. Some quick sketches in ink only. Others are longer sketches with watercolour pencils.

Most of my spare time has been the final preparations for next Sat/Sun Clunes Book Town Festival. I have four very heavy suitcases full of my drawn-in books, book and library-themed greeting cards, signs etc.

This is a major event in my year.

Clunes Booktown Festival. outside of Melbourne. is a book lover’s paradise. For a whole weekend, the main street is taken over by second hand book seller stalls There is also. newly published authors, readings, panel discussions and entertainment.

If you are coming drop by and say hello to me. I am in the old Bluestone Building.

There won’t be a blog next week as I will be at Clunes.

Happy sketching everyone.

Yesterday I drew my watermelon, think it would be a great idea for a blog post. I wrote some notes on the pages, and then realised I had done this before, in 2023. I have reposted those step-by-step drawings.

The only difference is one change in colour. Yesterday I used Deep Red, previously it was Alizaron Crimson. This was not a specific decision. I just happened to have changed colours in my daily sketch kit. You can see the difference. It’s subtle, but there is one.

I also added Cream , as there was a yellowishness to some of the rind. The whole scan it a bit more yellow than the drawing. In the juicy part next to the rind is a light green, not yellow as seen here.

Step One

Waterbrush and the three watercolour pencil colours used . Alizaron Crimson, Pine Green and Grass Green

Draw the watermelon shape and outline directly with the watercolour pencil colour that is going to be used. The watermelon is red the skin is green.

Heavily and roughly add colour in the areas of of the watermelon that are darkest.

Step Three

Using the waterbrush, rest it in the coloured areas and pull the colour across the page. This adds a lighter colour to areas of the page.

Step Four

Wait to dry, then add more colour in some areas to give depth and texture, Dabbling the watercolour brush on areas of colour can give, texture, and remove any hard lines.
Add hard lines with a sharpened watercolour pencil along some of the skin and just some of the darkened areas of the watermelon.

On Saturday I held a “Nature Sketching with Watercolour Pencil” class at the Royal Botanic Gardens of Victoria. I had been invited by Friends of the Garden and held a class in February for Summer and this one was for their Autumn calendar.

We set the tables up in the courtyard next to Plant Cottage, where the Friends are based. After a light rain shower. the blue skies appeared and we were very fortunate to have two wonderful hours outside.

A lovely group of 12 attendees learnt about watercolour pencils, water brushes and sketchbooks before finding a place near the cottage to sketch. Some had not done any art since high school, there were a few botanical artists and one professional artist. Hopefully, they all took away something. For some people it is motivating and inspiration, for others it is techniques,

There is so much to sketch in the gardens and it is so relaxing to observe a piece of nature as you sketch it.

Below is a step-by-step process of using watercolour pencils to draw a red hot poker plant. Using the colours :

• Light Chrome Yellow
• Pale Geranium Lake
• Grass Green
• Chrome Green Oxide

The first is sketched quickly and quite heavily with watercolour pencils

The Second sketch is after I have added a little water to the pages, moving it slightly. You can see that the pigment becomes activated and you can move it around on the page.

The Third sketch is after I have waited for the page to dry and I have gone over the sketch with the colours. I add more detail with a sharpened pencil. I build up the density of the colour and add the impression of detail, with specific lines.

I probably could have done a fourth sketch to complete it, but I ran out of page and time.

This sketch shows how my sketches have the unfinished look. It is not a great scan. but you can see how some areas are finshed with water added and sme remain only in pasncil, and I have added the outlines of some cactus in the background,

I did another sketch just before class, experimenting with Pink Madder

The students did one 20-minute sketch before moving to another space and a different plan of scene and then one more move.

The Friends of the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne & I hope to run another session in Winter and Summer. And there goes the year!

I hope this inspires and motivates you. Let me know if you have any questions about watercolour pencils or how you use them.

A day late posting due to numerous technical issues,

Food has been the theme of a few sketches and drawings this week.

I drew my groceries as they sat unpacked on the bench. A quick ink pen sketch (Lamy Safari Joy ink pen) and colour added

A few meals

and then some drawing in a book for Clunes Booktown Festival

and here are some I did earlier. These are all available for purchase on my Etsy website

On Mondays, for the next three weeks, I will be posting new books on Instagram

I was not able to make it to last weekend’s BIG Chinese New Year in Chinatown in Melbourne. Melbourne Urban Sketchers had a meetup there.

But I did get my own local CNY Lion Dance at East Melbourne Library.

I have sketched the Lion Dance a few times over the years and I know that it is busy, crazy, loud, and fun. The sketching is fast and furious, with the drums pounding to a fast beat.

This time I decided to arrive early and do some sketches in advance of the location and backgrounds. It did not quite work out as planned but I was able to create context.

I sketched the library doorway and the lanterns. It took a few attempts to get the scale right to show the lanterns and the full door.

When the Lions (there were three) arrived I sketched one before they entered the building,

I took some used firecracker paper home after the event, I also took a fortune cookie home but ate it before I could sketch it.

Inside the Library the lions moved all around the shelves, up the stairs. The little lion ( a little boy) interacted with smaller children, making their day.

I guessed the colour of the Lion Dancers and had my red, yellow, and black watercolour pencils out, sharpened, and ready.

In the time before the arrival of the Lion Dancers, the library was filled with the beautiful sounds of the Guzheng (Chinese Zither). I immediately sat down and started sketching her beautiful flowing gown. The Lion Dancer’s arrival was delayed, so Carissa kept playing.

Melbourne Athenaeum Library – Artist in Residence

I have been awarded an Artist in Residence at the Melbourne Athenaeum Library for 2024, An Artist in Residence can take on many forms. In this case, I am providing a drawing a month based on the library, its books, archived objects, and events in the library 2024. I have had a good exploration of the archives and taken many photos and an inspiration! I will post them on my Instagram and Facebook as soon as they are publically available.
I have been a member of the Melbourne Athenaeum Library since I moved to Melbourne in 2014..
It is one of the oldest Libraries in Melbourne and is a subscription Library. I love to borrow their books and attend their regular string quartet concerts. Read more about Melbourne Athenaeum Library here. 

Friends of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria – classes

I have been teaching a few classes for the Friends of the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria in Melbourne. This March will be my second class with them and it is part of their Autumn calendar. Anyone is welcome to book.here.

Clunes Booktown Festival – stallholder

i am so excited to once again have a stall at Clunes Booktown Festival in March. This will be my third year. I am in my happy place of a whole town full of books for a weekend and I get to combine books and drawing. I draw in old books that are about to the discarded, drawing an object or scene that is described on a page.  .“Running from dawn to dusk in the historic township of Clunes in Regional Victoria. A two day festival full of author and artist talks, workshops and live entertainment for the whole family.  Discover the outdoor book bazaar with over a hundred stall holders and immerse yourself in Clunes from cover to cover. It’s worth the visit.” You can view and purchase them now on my ETSY online store. I will be adding to them all the time as I spend the next month creating more.

The Johnston Collection – class

The Johnston Collection is an exhibition house of exquisite British and European fine and decorative arts in a historic East Melbourne townhouse. They have guided tours, amazing lectures, and events. I have been invited to un some Watercolour Pencil sketching classes. I held one in January and there will be another in May, This is a unique opportunity to learn to sketch ‘on location’ at The Johnston Collection. Become familiar with watercolour pencils and how to use them. Then test your new skills as you explore the ground floor rooms of The Johnston Collection’s exhibition house, Fairhall.  Have a look at their Special Events to book and see what else is on offer. Anyone can book for my event, you don’t have to be a Member.

Melbourne Rare Book Week – official sketcher

Melbourne Rare Book Week is returning for its 10th Anniversary in July.. Once again I am honoured to be the official on-location sketcher documenting the free events.  They are in the planning stages at the moment. Keep checking their website for updates and a program release,

Dromkeen – High Tea sketching class

Greeting cards and drawn in books on my ETSY store

Yesterday I was given the opportunity to draw some parsley.

It fitted in very well with the Nature Sketching with Watercolour Pencil class I held on Saturday with Friends of the Royal Botanic Gardens.

We were based at Plant Craft Cottage (1850) which is the oldest building in a public space in Victoria. The heritage-listed building and two of the original rooms are used today to host craft workshops within the tranquil setting of Melbourne’s Royal Botanic Gardens.

We sat outside in the sunshine and after an introductory session the participants found a place in the shade and sketched. I gave them 15 minutes before moving to another part of the garden.

I mentioned to them the 126 Faber Castell Colours and the many options. There are 20 greens! My parsley project provided the opportunity to show these.

The FaberCastell watercolour pencils used were:

• Leaf Green 112
• Permanent Green 266
• Chrome Oxide Green 278 – I have this in my daily sketch kit
• Grass Green 166 – I have this in my daily sketch kit

Apologies for the sideways video. It took so long to get this far and I wanted to share this weekly blog, rather than spend another night or two trying to figure this out.

Happy sketching !