Sketching and Cycling Adventures Continue!
Sharing more pages from my sketchbook
Hello everyone! I'm absolutely loving combining my cycling adventures with sketching. My handlebar sketch kit is proving to be such a game-changer - it's amazing how having everything ready to go removes all the barriers to just stopping and sketching wherever inspiration strikes!
This Week's Cycling Sketch Adventure
This week I decided to cycle up to Fyne Court, a beautiful local National Trust property in the Quantocks. It's a lovely ride through the countryside, and I was particularly drawn to sketch the charming cafe courtyard when I arrived (especially as there are picnic benches to sit and sketch on!).
The courtyard has such charming character - old stone walls, interesting architectural details, and dappled light filtering through the trees. I found a quiet spot to set up and used my trusty cycle sketch kit to capture the scene with line and watercolour. The limited palette actually worked perfectly for the warm stone tones and soft greens of the surrounding foliage.
It's becoming clear to me that having this small, curated kit really does make all the difference. There's also something liberating about working with just a few carefully chosen tools - it forces you to focus on capturing the essence of a place rather than getting caught up in technical choices!
Revolve Project Update - Weeks 39, 40 & 41
Here are my latest three sketches from the Revolve project! We're well into the second half of this year-long commitment now, and I'm still loving the weekly discipline of creating these A6 plein air studies.
Week 39 took me out to our paddock where I sketched my beloved pet pigs and goats grazing contentedly. There's something so peaceful about watching them go about their daily routine - they make wonderful, if occasionally wiggly, subjects!
Week 40 was all about celebrating spring in the garden. Our hawthorn tree has been absolutely spectacular this year, covered in the most beautiful white blossoms. I wanted to capture that sense of abundance and freshness, so I went for a looser, more expressive approach to convey the feeling rather than every detail.
Week 41 brought me back to one of my favourite subjects - the fig tree in our garden. I've sketched this tree several times now throughout the project, and it's fascinating to see how it changes with the seasons. The new growth and fresh leaves grow so fast in the Spring into the Summer!
I'm getting more and more excited about the exhibition in September at Worcester Arts Collective! It's going to be wonderful to see all 52 sketches together and share this journey with visitors alongside my sister
beautiful garden project.Exploring Daily Life Journaling
I've been diving deeper into daily life journaling recently, as it is something I am very much drawn to doing, but can never settle on a particular way to document my life. I am startingto think that there is no ‘one way’ to do this, and perhaps it should just be a mix of styles that fit how I feel on that particular day. I'm finding my way through a wonderful mix of sketchbook journaling and comic diary formats, learning as I go and really enjoying the process.
I'm currently taking
’s fantastic Diary Comics online course (do check out her Substack if you haven't already!), which has been pushing me to think about storytelling in completely new ways. Jane is brilliant at helping you see the narrative potential in everyday moments.I'm also being inspired by Danny Gregory's latest Sketchbook Journalling Course, though I must confess I've fallen a bit behind on keeping up with it every day! I really must catch up - his approach to capturing daily life is so insightful and encouraging.
For anyone interested in daily life comics, I highly recommend checking out Drewscape's YouTube channel. His videos are packed with inspiration for turning ordinary moments into engaging visual stories. I really love his style, and his videos are well made and inspiring!
This blend of sketching, journaling, and comic-making feels like such a natural extension of my artistic practice. There's something really satisfying about documenting life as it happens, creating a visual diary that captures not just what things looked like, but how they felt in the moment.
What's Next?
I'm planning more cycling sketch adventures for next week - the weather forecast looks promising! I'm also committed to catching up on Danny Gregory's course and continuing to explore the world of daily life documentation.
Do you keep any kind of visual diary or journal? I'd love to hear about your approaches to capturing everyday life in your sketchbooks. And if you're combining sketching with other activities like I am with cycling, please share your adventures in the comments - I find other people's creative solutions so inspiring!
Until next week, happy sketching!
Emma x
Lovely update ems! So nice to see what you’ve been up to ☺️
Great comic sketches of your day to day life Emma 😊