Jen

@jenillustrates

Artist. Wafts pencils across paper, dabbles at watercolouring-in, refuses to get the scary bush pen out & somewhat distracted by crochet Hoping to get back to drawing soon… No AI/NFTs Ko-fi.com/jenillustrates

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Jen@jenillustrates· 8d

Up early again to enjoy a couple of hours to add more light washes to the Mari Lwyd & various bookmarks. I’ve also made some watercolour backgrounds for the cyanotype prints I’ve made in the last few weeks.

Stylised Mari Lwyd & otter ink illustration with a bit more watercolour added this morning. I take forever to add light washes as I have the tendency to make it look like a rainbow has spewed on the paper if my enthusiasm gets over excited.

The three stylised illustrated bookmarks - two Mari Lwyd with assorted flora & fauna, one field mouse sitting on stones surrounded by grasses. Again, more watercolour added to them in very light washes. Though these are probably nearly finished, save for the backgrounds of two… I might get the colouring pencils out at some point.

Jen@jenillustrates· 8d

Why yes, yes we are sitting in the garden as the merest hints of a drizzle waft around. We’re getting to enjoy the smell of petrichor too

My daft spaniel sitting in the garden enjoying the very fine drizzle, waiting for the dregs of my cuppa tea

Jen@jenillustrates· 9d

Tentative start on the old watercolouring-in this morning as I’m feeling very rusty with it all. I’ll get back to it at some point in the week as it’s getting too warm to paint already #DrawingAugust

One A5 illustration of a Mari Lwyd & otter is taped to my drawing board, 3 illustrated bookmarks sit alongside - 2 are of Mari Lwyd with various flora & fauna & one is a little field mouse sat amongst some grass. They’ve all got a little watercolour added to some areas, mostly browns & blues. The blue tone to the picture is because I sit in the conservatory & it has a blue glass roof & the light first thing tends to be blue before the sun comes round the corner of the building. I’ve been painting since 7am…

Jen@jenillustrates· 9d

Day 2 #DrawingAugust I’ve finished yesterday’s bookmark on the right & started a new one for today (left).

Jen@jenillustrates· 10d

Day 1 of #DrawingAugust & it’s another bookmark that I’ve made a start on, though I’m not sure what else I’ll add to it yet…

Jen@jenillustrates· 13d

Maybe not as fancy as Waterstones in Ringwood but I spy EWSY out in the wilds of Wimborne at my fave in person bookshop, Gullivers @dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social

On the shelf in Gullivers at Wimborne is a line copy of Tom Cox’s Everything Will Swallow You - an epic story that’ll have you laughing, crying & being amazed at Tom’s weaving skills when it comes to storytelling. I already have the hardback version so left this on the shelf for someone else

Jen@jenillustrates· 13d

Hogging a table at Costa as it’s the only one open at silly o’clock in the morning - a happy hour already spent adding to the bookmarks

Jen@jenillustrates· 15d

On the way back from Frome we stopped off at Fiddleford Manor. It’s taken me years to get around to visiting as is always the case when something is on your doorstep but it was worth it to see the medieval painting that adorns the wall there.

The north end of the private chamber of Fiddleford Manor that features a blocked up window (due to a 16th century extension) & whats left of a medieval painting that was made in the 14th century.

A close up of the right side of the blocked up window where Mary was but all that remains is the bottom corner of her gown - if you squint, lots. At least I think that’s where the bottom of her gown is. Mary was receiving the happy news that she was going to be a mum & that Joseph wasn’t going to be the dad.

On the left side of the blocked up window is the angel Gabriel, wings outstretched. It was discovered underneath many layers of whitewash. Only the reds & golds remain.

Jen@jenillustrates· 15d

I was a bit of a grockle at the weekend & had an amble around Frome. It’s always interesting to have a mooch around churches because architecture & history & if you find a volunteer you get lots of bonus info - in this case, a medieval church with a Norman doorway that had a Victorian upgrade.

Two carved heads that share a left/right eye where the faces meet in the middle & they sit at the base of a wooden roof arch - they’re in the medieval end of a church in Frome

Two different Saxon stones that are embedded into one of the walls in the medieval end of a church in Frome. The long pale coloured stone at the top has carved detail that is assumed came from a Saxon cross. Below it is a slightly reddish smaller stone that has a carved animal - I like to think it’s a horse.

Another carved gargoyle head that might be a creature or lion, I’m not sure, but it’s in the Victorian end of a church in Frome & it does look cute

Jen@jenillustrates· 18d

Yup. The wonkiest & anatomically incorrect horse skulls I’ve drawn yet but it’s still better than what the ‘cat, I farted’ machine can do. I’ve embraced the wonky misshapen drawings & carried on regardless. I’ve cheered myself up by drawing the illo in the middle - it’s not easy drawing this size.

Jen@jenillustrates· 20d

Had a lovely walk home this morning after having a reasonably productive drawing session at the coffee shop

A disused railway line that’s now a very nicely tree shaded path with plenty ‘hedgerow’ that wends its way through town. You wouldn’t know there was an industrial estate on the left or houses on the right. Still plenty of bird song & lots of butterflies. Not pictured were all the dog walkers & runners taking advantage of the cooler temp (since when has 20c been cool??)

No longer on the disused railway line but now on the path through a council run ‘country estate’ (used to belong to a merchant family, then became farmland) that still has a lot of woodland, thank goodness. Always an amazing amount of birdsong to hear at any time of the day & the occasional buzzards & sparrow hawks. Off camera on the right is a stream that leads into a ‘lake’ (it’s a stretch to call it that) & it’s very overgrown so you can’t see the moorhens, coots or herons anymore, let alone the fish.

The only butterfly who agreed to pose for a pic - probably because it was in the sun on the fence of a garden that backs onto the woodland path

Jen@jenillustrates· 20d

Early morning sketching where there’s some air conditioning

My sketch of a Mari Lwyd is sitting on a table at the local Costa (other brands available but not open at silly o’clock in the morning) surrounded by my pencils & pen & various rubbers. The sketch is still a wip, the ai slop music is atrocious but the various patrons are amusing & full of gossip.

Jen@jenillustrates· 22d

I’ve made a start but who knows what direction she’ll head in… Oh & there’s still time for you to join in - the more, the merrier!!

The start of a small Mari Lwyd illustration on watercolour paper using a rough sketch that’s started to be outlined with my favourite 0.1 Staedtler fineliner - it’s all sitting on a drawing board that the child no longer uses. The Mari Lwyd has a water theme to it. No idea what I’ll add to it next.

Jen@jenillustrates· Jul 3

I really enjoyed trying out cyanotype printing. I’ve learned lots, especially when it comes to using flowers & needing more weight/pressure on the glass/perspex

My first three attempts at cyanotype prints using plants & flowers from my garden & a cardboard template of a full moon & a gazing hare that I cut out. They’re all sitting on my old garden chair.

Jen@jenillustrates· Jul 3

Attempt no.1 isn’t too shabby but oh boy is it warm working in the garden

I’ve raided my garden for fern leaves, a cranesbill flower (pink), a sprig of lavender & a little bit of campanula to go with a cardboard cutout of a hare & full moon. All laid out on some cardboard ready for the cyanotype paper. It’s all sitting on a garden chair in the full sun.

Same set up but it’s now on the cyanotype paper, a sheet of glass raided from a picture frame & weighed down with two glass jugs

The washed cyanotype paper minus the plants & cutouts, now drying on cardboard before I can flatten it. I don’t think I squished everything enough.

Jen@jenillustrates· Jul 3

*adds ‘liar-to-children’ as a job title to my CV*

A very brief excerpt from The Science of Discworld by Terry Pratchett, Ian Stewart & Jack Cohen.

‘Liar-to-children is an honourable and vital profession otherwise known as ‘teacher’.

Jen@jenillustrates· Jun 25

Hi Simon @biggreenbooks.bsky.social Please thank Ollie for me! His selection will go down well in the school library, especially with Y7 😊

Four books are sitting on my chair - they are all children’s books. We have Bunny vs Monkey, Two-Headed Chicken, Worst Week Ever: Monday & The Last Kids on Earth.

Jen@jenillustrates· Jun 24

I challenge any climate deniers to teach in this weather (37c), like I’ve done today, & see how you like it if this is the kind of weather you think our summers should be. Yes I’m grumpy, yes I’m overheated & no I haven’t stopped sweating since 8am just like the kids in classrooms of +35c

Screenshot form the Met Office app showing today’s high of 37c, tomorrows expected temp of 34c with a red alert for extreme heat.

Jen@jenillustrates· Jun 22

Good grief! I thought what we were suffering was bad enough but oof you’ve got some spicy temps this week

Screenshot of the predicted temperatures for the next three days, hitting highs of 35c & 34c on Wed & Thurs with an amber extreme heat alert in place

Jen@jenillustrates· May 30

When you coordinate with the venue’s decor.

A photo I took yesterday of a bee having fun on a yellow flower that resembles a spiky pom-pom. I have no idea what the flower is called but it’s very structural throughout the seasons

Jen@jenillustrates· May 29

We stopped for a quick lunch on the way home at another posh house. It’s another of my faves & the gardens are gorgeous. We were entertained by a loud conversation between a group of Californians that worked for google back in the day. Not what you expect in deepest, darkest Dorset.

Athelhampton House, in all its understated glory at the end of a short gravel driveway with some very manicured lawns.

Jen@jenillustrates· May 29

Always worth having a look at the tapestries in posh old houses.

Large tapestry of a chap facing the wall, who might be auditioning for an episode of Gone Fishing with Mortimer & Whitehouse. There’s a lot of fish in the river/lake at the bottom of the tapestry, nearly as many crabs in the bottom right corner & a few birds loitering in the trees/bushes or in the case of the peafowl, hiding behind the tree.

A close up of a very surprised looking puffa fish. It looks like it didn’t enjoy the ride down the rapids on the tapestry

The peafowl (might be a peacock…but it has a crest you’d expect on a dinosaur) is playing peek-a-boo behind the tree

A different tapestry - this one is of a knight in armour mounted on a horse, he’s carrying a large banner with some Latin on it that I can’t translate. The horse is giving the knight a bit of ye olde side-eye

Jen@jenillustrates· May 29

Finally got the chance to revisit one of my favourite posh houses today.

Montacute House - the front view from halfway down the long drive. It’s the house they used in Emma Thompson’s adaption of Sense & Sensibility.

The side view of Montacute House, the sunken lawn stretched out in front, surrounded by conical yew trees that have had the most dramatic hair cut, so dramatic they look dead but apparently they aren’t. It’s the same lawn you see Kate Winslet wandering around whilst moping after seeing Willoughby in London

The wonky yew hedge - it’s wonky due to weather conditions years & years ago when we used to have snow

An old chestnut tree (at least I think it’s a chestnut tree) that’s got one of the most twisted trunks I’ve ever seen. It’s going all in on the texture thing with a capital T

Jen@jenillustrates· May 28

I regret not making an impulse purchase this morning that would’ve looked good on my work lanyard

A pin badge that says ‘And yet, despite the look on my face, you’re still talking.’ It’s marked up for £3.50 in an antiques place despite not being an antique.

Jen@jenillustrates· May 28

What can I say, it’s true. Last time I saw an episode, Sylvester McCoy was the Dr

Text reads ‘still can’t listen to the theme tune without needing to hide behind the sofa’ against the background of a Dr Who credits thingy.

Jen@jenillustrates· May 25

On the upside of having a mini tidy up, I’ve rediscovered this little gem that was @paulpcooke.bsky.social’s project for a few years, featuring work from many writers & artists, including Paul. It’s not often I can say I have published work but I have three illos for a story in this fab book.

Photo of the front cover of the very niche Dr Who book by Paul Cooke called ‘Zygon outer space diaries’

Photo of the middle page spread of the story I have 3 illustrations in. This illo is of a mother & daughter, completed in graphite, digitally turned blue. The mother is gazing at the daughter, who is looking down to her right. Both are smiling. The illustration is surrounded by text from the story.

Jen@jenillustrates· May 20

Okay, I’m cheating… on the left is my latest photo from a couple of weeks ago & the one on the right is from last summer & one of my favourites. #WorldBeeDay

A teeny tiny bee on a teeny tiny yellow flower amongst the long grass, near a river bank

A bee mid flight, about to land on a bright yellow flower whose name I’ve forgotten

Jen@jenillustrates· May 10

A few more observations from this mornings dog walk - had a lucky find & spotted some eggs & bacon. I think that’s deadly nightshade (growing at the end of a wooded path) & maybe cornflower (growing at the edge of a hedgerow of what was a field but is now a meadow) #wildflowerhour #wildflowerID

Quite possibly deadly nightshade growing amongst the nettles alongside the edge of a wooded path

Eggs & bacon flower - I never did learn the proper name as a child

Possibly a cornflower growing amongst a hedgerow.

Jen@jenillustrates· May 10

Observations from an early Sunday morning dog walk & no, I’ve no idea of the names of the flowers except the buttercup #wildflowerhour #wildflowerID

A pink flower on a bank of nettles & grass, blue skies above with floofy white clouds

A little blue flower alongside a wooded path, a tiny yellow buttercup growing up its stem

A white flower growing low to the ground amongst the short grass.

My daft spaniel enjoying the early morning walk, surrounded by a froth of blue & white flowers that line the wooded pathway.

Jen@jenillustrates· May 9

I’m not convinced that the new Costa feature wallpaper decoration is human made art. It’s not like they can’t afford to employ an artist or two.