‘Sketching around the Garden’

What better way to practice sketching, than in your garden.
No pressure and no-one looking over your shoulder.
These sketches are a few of mine at different times of the year.

Featured sketch above:

The Wandering Gnome

Watercolour ~ A5
I’m here at home working away on stamps at the moment. Currently, though, I am sitting out in the sunshine eating my lunch. Sketching ‘Nordagrin’, who lives in our garden. Looks like he’s setting off for a ramble.

View of the Garden

Pen sketch with watercolour wash ~ A4
Looking out of an upstairs window along the garden path.

Doorway

Watercolour ~ A5
It’s a lovely hot, sunny morning just right for sitting out in the sun with a cup of tea and your sketchbook.

Chirping from the Nestbox

Watercolour ~ A5
In the garden, we have a family of Great Tits in the nest box on our garage. The Mum & Dad have been working very hard bringing all the grubs back to their noisy brood!

Shadows

Oil Pastel on coloured paper ~ A4
Sitting in the cool shade, quietly sketching.

Rum & Ice Please

Pen ~ A5
This sketch belies the true picture. It gives the impression of putting your feet up in the sun, with a glass of rum in your hand. However, the true picture is somewhat different. We had spent a grand morning at Bicton’s indoor play area, but driving over the Common we were in a thick mist, much like the preverbal pea soup, with a constant drizzle falling. As it was about lunchtime the ‘wee man’ nodded off so I stopped at Kingswood Garden Centre’s car park, for some sketching with the wipers going!

Seed Heads

Pencil ~ A3
Glorious sunny day today, with the slight breeze just to stop you getting too hot. Tootling about in the garden, a sketch this time of the Poppyseed heads.

Autumn Colours

Watercolour ~ A5
Today, a little sunshine has really set the tree behind our fence glowing. A blackbird also comes to join me. Soon, no doubt, those yellowed leaves will be gone and I’ll be raking them up. We already have many to be composted.

After the Raking

Watercolour ~ A5
The sun is still out, all the autumn leaves are raked up and now residing in the compost bin. I rather liked the composition of the rake propped up against the wall with the large ammonite behind it.

Materials Used

For these sketches, I have used a bound pad with textured watercolour paper, a Daler-Rowney Red & Yellow cartridge pad. 6B pencil, waterproof fineliner, and Winsor & Newton professional watercolours, with two round brushes, size 1 & 6.