Embracing slowness

A week in my creative practice, including ‘Morning Ink’

It’s now officially ‘the holidays’, because school finished today. So, even though I have been embracing the slowness of the season for a few weeks now, it feels like permission to do so properly now.

I am sure plenty of you don’t have two weeks off. And nor do I, as I have a decent amount of (publishing) work to before 5 January. But I hope that, like me, you are feeling some kind of permission to let go, even a little bit, of deadlines and responsibilities for a while.

I am feeling that little sparks of variety and creativity have been coming out in this past week’s creative practice. I am very much not pushing anything, but letting whatever is there percolate for the moment. And I feel that there might well be more to come over the next couple of weeks. But I won’t throw a strop if it doesn’t appear and if I just draw fourteen pages of comfort-zone plants and patterns.

Morning Ink

I don’t often draw horses, so it’s interesting that one has come out in the Morning Ink pages.

These guys are very similar to some quirky birds I drew earlier in the year. And I love doing a black background, when I have the time, mostly because it feels so very calming. Ah, and an accidental blank page. Been a while since I did that. I have a few blank pages throughout these sketchbooks and every now and then think I should pop a page of super bright colours in there to provide a surprise when flicking through.

A few different things appearing now. I don’t think the plants will ever completely disappear, but it feels good to have slightly more variety coming out of the pen, and my head.

Tabletop scenes are quite a go-to thing to draw in these pages. I want to fit in some end-of-the-year planning time over the holidays. And ogees are also one of my favourite patterns to draw. As I was drawing this one, on Thursday, I was wondering if I could just make an entire creative business out of ogee patterns.

And another grid day. With lots of people in, today. I do feel a people phase calling out to me. I hope that my brain listens.

Favourites from this week are, well, most of it!

My favourites from this week.

Sketchbook

Very very little in any other sketchbooks, this week.

This is very similar to another couple of colour recent sketchbook pages. And they all start with drawing the background around the central creature.

iPad

And I spent very little time on the iPad either. I have definitely been embracing and accepting the rest and slowness that is calling to me during this particular winter season.

Even my iPad time has been comfort zone time. Switching symmetry mode on and just drawing what comes out is yet another calming practice for me.

But I am definitely feeling the itch of more ideas and projects and plans, so I might find the year-change buzz setting in soon. Maybe next week’s post will be bigger. And maybe it won’t. Either is fine.

Merry Christmas / Happy Holidays / Have a cosy week

Leaving you with an old piece that I really love. I thought I’d make another cosy Christmas piece this year, but it’s not come out yet and, realistically, might well not.

I’m sharing my Morning Ink daily on Notes and on my Sketchbook Instagram account, if you’re missing the daily dose of black and white drawing.

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