back to work

The first finished Morse illustration and, oh, the joys of not having a scanner big enough to take the double page spreads! Much joining and Photoshop colour correcting later... and I notice even posting here, that a LOT more is required. Pff!

Somehow though, it feels like progress has been made - one down, six to go (although two more are almost complete).

so long summer

It's been a fab one though! Can't believe it's almost over. There have been gypsy caravans (minus horses)...

But also, horses (of varying sizes)...

Still, the darker nights mean more time to finish Morse and for blogging; I've totally been slacking over the summer.

Next excitement? The indy ref. No prizes for guessing which way I'll be voting...

my mother said, I never should...

...play with the gypsies in the wood! One of my favourite rhymes when I was little (along with the amazing illustration that accompanied it in the nursery rhyme book I had. If I find it, I will post it). So how fabulous is it that this beautiful caravan will be our holiday home this summer?! And it's a buy one, get one free kinda deal - it comes with the other caravan below! (And a fire pit, and morning croissants and fresh eggs for breakfast. I can't wait!).

Edit: mucho thanks to Victoria for posting the link to the illustration below, along with lots more. I haven't seen it for years! Thank you so much for sharing it!

all things considered...

...I'm not sure I'd eat at this hotel! I seem to have been carried away by the garbage theme...

best laid plans

Of mice and cats...

I'm now in amongst the Morse illustrations proper - it's a production line of stretched paper on drawing boards, but now that the roughs are all done and the final illustrations are settled on, I'm enjoying the process of paint on paper in an almost therapeutic way! This is the first of the three double page spreads and is almost finished (Morse's stint as a magician goes slightly wrong!).

hedgehogs!

x2. On my driveway at 1.30am... I wasn't expecting that!

black

My first mutt portrait for absolutely ages, and he's a black one... I feel like that painter character from the fast show (black, black, black!) and my hands look like I've been mining coal. Almost done though! Much more fun to do when I'm only doing the odd one now and again, rather than the four or five a month I used to do. And he has a cool name - Satchmo.

Edit: done, now just to mount it and off it goes... Then all hands back to the Morse book!