MYSTICAL MAY

When I first set up my little instagram art account (@julietpaint), it was mainly because I didn't want to spam my personal account with drawings, but I still wanted to have a little space to show them off! What I hadn't anticipated was how nice (and inspiring!) the insta art community is - I still have a tiny following, but I've connected with really cool artists, and it's so encouraging to get nice comments or messages about what I've been making.

Prompt: Watchful eye/stars

I've also discovered the wide world of instagram art challenges and it's been great! Even though I'm painting and drawing pretty prolifically, I sometimes worry I'm not a particularly imaginative person - I can't really picture anything in my mind (I mean, I literally can't - I discovered aphantasia last year and it blew my mind), so I tend to scour pinterest for interesting reference photos before I can feel inspired to draw something.

Insta art challenges have really helped me focus and think creatively. Sometimes it's a set theme or idea, other times it's artists asking you to recreate one of their artworks in your own style (which is also super interesting, as you can see how lots of people, of all different abilities, approach the same subject). This month I took part in Mystical May - a weekly prompt of spooky subjects! 

Prompts: Keys, mirrors, witch

The weekly prompts had several suggestions each week, giving you flexibility to focus on one subject or mix and match. I'm still obsessively drawing women (one day I might draw a man, but that is not this day), but I think I ended up with a cool group of portraits.

Week 1 was phoenix/keys/wings and I pictured someone keeping their heart locked up tight.

Week 2 was forest/mirror/twilight and I loved the mirror concept so much I ended up doing two drawings, a reflected woman (which was HARD, I had to draw each face separately!), and a hand holding a mirror (also hard - hands are hard!).

Week 3 was witch/phases of the moon and I was a little unsure how to do this, so I just painted a cute pastel witch. I thought this was a bit basic, but it's gone on to be one of my most-liked posts on instagram?! 

Week 4 was stars/crystals/watchful eye, and I wanted to do a cute take on a third eye. I definitely gravitate to bright colours, and I think I'm finally starting to find my style with digital drawing. It's been a fun month!

PAUL RUBENS WATERCOLOURS

I've been painting again for about a year and during this time I've slowly been weaning myself off beginner art supplies,and investing in artist-grade materials, and I cannot believe what a difference it makes! I got some fancy watercolour paper from an art shop last Autumn, was a bit skeptical at first, but it blew my mind and I've not looked back. Having proper paper that lets the paint pool and blend and layer without buckling is a game-changer.

Painted using Paul Rubens watercolour and Opera paints

So I had nice paper, I got a nice new mechanical pencil, and lately I've been on the lookout for new paint! Up until now I've been using a Winsor and Newton student set, which I've had for years. It's been a great set to learn with and it was super affordable, but I hadn't even thought about the difference between beginner and professional paint until now. I learned that student/beginner sets tend to be cheaper as the paints contain less pigment and more filler, which means they can be trickier to blend, can get muddy, and it can be difficult to make vibrant colours. Artist grade paints are more pigmented, meaning they dilute and mix easily.

The problem was that professional paint sets can cost over £100, and the more I looked online, the more confused I got! I saw a lot of love for Schminke, Sennelier and Rembrandt paints, but as I tried to delve into the differences of these paints, I saw a lot of art reviewers/bloggers/youtubers highlight Paul Rubens watercolours, and remark on how Paul Rubens paints were much cheaper than the big European brands, but really held their own.

That was enough to convince me! It felt significantly less scary paying £60 for a new watercolour palette, than paying £120 (I also had a weird imposter feeling that I didn't 'deserve' the very pricey paint as I wasn't a real artist, but that is a weird insecurity for another day). 

Paul Rubens are a Hong-Kong based brand (which is possibly why I could only really find them on Amazon?), who boast that their watercolour paints are produced with high-purity and finely ground pigments, using natural gum arabic as the mixer. This means the colours are vibrant, easy to use, and easy to mix!

I ended up buying the 48 colour watercolour pan and LOOK how beautiful it is! It came packaged beautifully, and is a perfect pastel pink metal tin, with loads of space for mixing colours. All of the paints can be removed individually, so you can swap around the colours to suit yourself and add new colours in. The packaging is in Chinese, but that didn't bother me, and it includes all of the pigment numbers in English if you want to refer to them.

I also bought (because I'm a sucker) their bright neon Opera paints which were £20. I've been painting a lot of portraits lately, and I've really wanted to be able to capture bright make up in my paintings, and I thought this might do the trick!

I was quite nervous using them for the first time - what if they didn't live up to the hype and it was just a pretty tin? Pleased to say, they were a dream! The colours were rich and flowed beautifully - up until now I've thought my paintings often looked a bit pale or muddy, and I really noticed a difference with these. A little bit of colour went a long way too and they mixed really well together. I use a lot of yellows, reds and pinks, so it was nice to have a much bigger range to work with, and I'm excited to make my way through the palette and discover all the many colour possibilities it offers!

The neon Opera paints were amazing too - just look at them (first photo!). The photo barely captures how bright they are, it's like using highlighters on the paper. I found they blended well with the normal watercolours too, so I think they'll be quite useful when I want to add a bright pop to a painting, and it's just quite fun to have them in my art supplies!

Overall, I'm really pleased. I think I'll get loads of use out of them, and I'm happy to have found a product that's affordable, great to use, and looks super cute! Exactly my kind of thing.

PAINTING PONIES

I've been painting a lot of people lately, so I think I'd mix it up and go back to my first love - ponies! 

I was a horse-obsessed teenager, and so lucky to have a horse of my own (the wonderful Max!). I spent my teenage years pretty much exclusively drawing horses, and even had a wee business, doing £10 commissions at my local riding school, and selling pastel ponies at school art fairs. I think I got pretty good at it (I wish I still had some of my old drawings), but over the years I got out of the habit of painting, and then, when I picked up my brush again, I was pretty horrified to realise that I'd forgotten how to do it.

Painting horses is such a fun challenge. They are such beautiful animals, so full of personality and movement - a lot can be captured in the shape of their muzzle or position of their ears! But they also have all sorts of weird muscle shapes, bones and veins, which can be intimidating at first, but I find so fun to paint! I'm still learning how to do this, but the best thing I've learned is not to over-paint, but instead use lots of light transparent layers to gradually build colour, and to take advantage of blank space - which all combines to give a lovely sense of light and depth (well, I hope it does, anyway!).

This painting ended up being the biggest thing I've ever painted - I got some amazing massive watercolour paper at Christmas, and it was a lot of fun to use it, although it did take two days! I also massively felt the pressure after completing one horse head and then having to start the next from scratch - was very aware if I did something wrong, I would ruin the whole painting. Luckily, I'm really happy with the final painting - phew!

ANIMAL CROSSING ART

 If you follow me on my art insta (julietpaint), you'll see I've had a wee flurry of Animal Crossing inspired activity! 

I'm really enjoying finding my feet in instagram's art community (although I am such a tiny fish in a huge pond), but I'm keen to share some of my favourite paintings on this blog too - I always thought of it as my little corner of the internet, and now this little corner is obsessed with drawing!

The trend of drawing Animal Crosssing characters as if they were people, was definitely a big thing in 2020 when Animal Crossing New Horizons came out (I'm just going to assume you know what the game is!), so when I started thinking about this I did wonder if I'd missed my chance... but then I reasoned that yeah, sure, others have done it, but I haven't done it yet!

I've spent most of this year practising portraits, so this felt like a fun step to keep practicing faces and poses, but this time add a bit of creative thinking into the mix, as I tried to capture the spirit of each little animal character.

I tried not to look at what other people had done (I wanted to use my own interpretation, not be influenced by others), but the few Coco-as-a-person drawings I had seen were pretty creepy! In the game she is obviously quite a spooky character, with big black eyes and an empty head... but her personality is pretty chill! I imagined her as more of a hippy girl, with big round sunglasses, and I thought the peace sign was a nice nod to her rabbit ears.

Pango is one of my original villagers, so I felt obliged to paint my girl! She's a peppy character that wants to be a pop star, so I pictured her as a very cool girl, super sure of herself, with bright bold eye make up. 

On each painting I tried to include a little detail that was a specific nod to Animal Crossing or the character, so human Pango is wearing ant earrings (a little nod to AC Pango being an anteater). On reflection, while there's a lot I like about this painting, I think it's the least successful - the pose is a bit too stiff. Wah, sorry Pango! I still think you are cool.

Celeste, the star-gazing owl, is an Animal Crossing fan favourite, and there's loads of beautiful Celeste art out there! I really like the wistful expression, I think it captures her vibe, and it was easy to include the character's outfit (the big pink bow and argyle top). I added a star earring and necklace inspired by her wing feathers. It took me a while to get her nose right, that is a surprisingly tricky angle to draw!

Finally, it's Merengue! I think this is my favourite painting - the sketch was pretty hard to do (eyes! Mouth! Hand!), but it just feels so friendly and full of life. Definitely a good lesson to pick reference photos that aren't super serious staged shots!

In the game, Merengue is a baking loving rhino that looks a bit like a strawberry shortcake, so it was an easy theme to translate to human Merengue. I kept the colours pink and peppy, added a strawberry hair clip, and drew the fruit on the cupcake in the same style as the cherries in the game. 

This little series was SO FUN to do, I could probably just keep going, but I know it's good for me to mix things up, so I don't get bored. I'm just feeling so lucky I found this hobby! Keeping me sane while lockdown goes on and on. 

LIFE LATELY

Hi! It's been a while since I just chatted on here, so I thought I'd share a wee update on how life is going.

It's weird to think back to this time last year. The reality of lockdown was kicking in, we had a tiny brand new kitten (obviously brilliant, but a big addition to our lives), my partner was about to be furloughed for months, and I was about to go through some of my most stressful days at work (being a fundraiser for an arts charity was pretty stressful in 2020!). 

In comparison, this year, while I'm obviously not loving lockdown life, I feel much more zen about everything. Work is busy and pretty stressful still, but in more of a predictable way, I've settled into working from home (please don't make me go back to an office full time), we've found new routines, and I'm starting to feel a bit more hopeful about the future.

Self portrait, March 2021

A big part of that is that I got my first vaccine in March! I was surprised to be called so early, but it seems that there are some advantages to the various health dramas I've been through over the last two years. I felt surprisingly emotional getting it, then surprisingly horrible for 24 hours of flu-like side effects, but I'm buzzing to be a big step closer to normal. It's not just that I feel safer, but that I'm less likely to pass it onto others - living in the city means that it's been hard to properly distance at all times (try going to big Tesco without people charging past you), so I feel much better that I'm (hopefully) less likely to infect others when I'm just out and about.

Because outdoor adventures were my highlight of 2020, I'm feeling motivated to get fitter so I can venture further afield when we are allowed. I've already talked about my new bike (which is a dream!), but I've been doing Yoga with Adriene videos, and I've started Couch to 5k again! If you've read this blog for a while, you might recall that I have a rollercoaster relationship with running, but this time around I actually feel motivated to do it! I think I'm just so glad for an excuse to get out of the flat for fresh air, and it is so much easier to do it when I can run at lunchtime as I'm at home (trying to get the motivation to run before commuting to work was truly impossible in the past). I'm only on week 2 of Couch to 5k, so we shall see, but I feel good about it, and I am embracing the small moments of goodness these days.

My favourite hobby these days is still painting, I cannot get enough! I recently tried a self portrait, which feels like a big improvement from my last effort (which you can see here). I'm alternating between watercolour paints and digital art and drawing loads of faces these days, it's just so nice to have a satisfying hobby and create things! On my art instagram (julietpaint) I am currently working my way through an A-Z challenge of alphabet portraits (so far I've painted Awkwafina, Billie Eilish, Claire Saffitz, Dana Scully, Emmy Raver, FKA Twigs, Gwen Stefani, Helena Bonham Carter, Idina Menzel, and me - phew!), but next up I actually quite fancy revisiting the paintings I did YEARS ago for my Illustrated Blogger series. I feel like I owe them a nice portrait! 

Other than that, we're using the time to start putting things into motion for our future, and while I'm pretty sceptical that things will just magically go back to normal in the summer, I am excited for lots of things. Can't wait to sit in the sunshine with my pals, to go to the cinema, to wander around a gallery and look at things that aren't on a screen (!), to go to spin class again (a surprising joy in my life), to go camping, and that sweet, sweet moment when we're allowed to go to beer gardens again. It is nice to feel things are a little brighter again. 

WOMEN MAKE TREK

As you might have spotted I am a big Star Trek fan, so I am over the moon to get to be part of Women Make Trek - an amazing fan art celebration of the women in Trek!

Women Make Trek was born from a love of Star Trek, art and design, and the incredible artists who have been collectively making Star Trek art for over 55 years.

The exhibition is packed with beautiful portraits of Star Trek women - from the iconic female stars (look at these beautiful portraits of Janeway, Uhara and Dr Crusher), to characters who may have had smaller roles, but still made a huge impact on screen (like these beaut portraits of Keiko O'Brien, Ezri Dax and L'rell).

Each artwork is accompanied with a story of what the character and/or actor means to the artist, so you really get a sense of how much these cool, strong, inspiring space women have impacted people's lives. That's really the ethos of Star Trek, and why I like it so much. It's about adventure and exploration, sure, but it's also about celebrating the diversity in the universe, and using our differences to build a better future. I grew up watching and loving it, but even now as an adult I'm learning things from re-watching it that are helping me be a better boss, pal and all-round person. That's pretty high praise, isn't it? I just love it!

Tilly - painted by me!

And that brings me to Tilly! You can see my story of why I love Tilly here. I still can't quite believe that my little portrait is sitting alongside so many amazing artworks, but it's been so lovely to be part of it, and get to connect with so many cool fans. 

Alongside their amazing art showcase, Women Make Trek are doing a couple of great things: they are fundraising for Breast Cancer Research, and they are collecting letters for Nichelle Nichols (Uhura) to spread a bit more love in the universe!

DIGITAL DRAWING

As well as working on my painting skills, I have been trying my hand at digital drawing and it is SO MUCH FUN! I'm lucky enough to get to borrow my boyfriend's iPad Pro which has Procreate on it, a very cool digital illustration app.

When I first started drawing digitally I was RUBBISH, and seriously overwhelmed by all of the available brushes and tools. You draw onto the ipad with an apple pencil, and it has a screen cover which feels like you are drawing on paper, but it's still pretty intimidating if you don't know what you are doing. Thanks to lockdown, I've had lots of time to practice though, and while I've still got a long way to go, I'm pretty happy with where I'm going!

The beauty of digital drawing is the magical delete button. If you do something wrong, or it doesn't quite look right, just delete it! And you can copy and paste, resize, use fancy texture brushes, whatever you like! 

I've found because I've been working on using traditional media (watercolours and gouache paintings) as well as digital drawings, progress I've made in one area has really benefitted others. I've practiced anatomy and capturing likeness in my paintings, which makes faces look better in my procreate paintings. I've experimented and stopped being afraid of making mistakes digitally, which means I can take what works and apply it the next time I paint something. It's been such an amazing learning tool!

Another fun feature of procreate is that you can see a timelapsed recording of your art - which is very helpful if you, like me, are making it up as you go along, and then can watch it back to see what did/didn't work! You can see a timelapse of my Valentine drawing on insta here.

I'm a big fan of bright and bold colours and characters, so I draw a lot of cool girls, but it still feels like such a novelty to produce something that actually looks like a person. I have been trying to wean myself just off painting pinterest models (this video made me think about the references I'm using), although it is easy to get suckered in by the beautiful styling! 

I think my next challenge is trying to get more confident in digital techniques (up until now I've used the same approach, whether it's paint or on screen), and work towards finding that ever elusive 'style'.

PAINTING (AGAIN!)

This blog has been many things, over the years. It's weird to look back at old posts (my first post was TEN YEARS AGO!) and see a snapshot of baby Juliet, and try to equate that with where I am today. I'm definitely less comfortable about sharing all my woes (I keep my over-sharing in person, these days) and I've (obviously) grown up pretty considerably in the last decade, but otherwise I feel pretty similar. I'm just making my way through the world, trying to have a nice time! 

One thing that has stayed pretty consistent over the years is my enthusiasm for making art... although my ability has been pretty inconsistent! It has been the real light of my lockdown though, and as I have nothing else to chat about, I thought I'd start sharing my drawings here too (but you can also follow me on instagram if you'd like!).

I've been painting pretty much every week of the pandemic, and I've worked really hard to learn new skills and get better. One of the ways I've measured how I'm improving is to return to old pieces and re-paint them, so I thought it would be fun to show off two of the portraits I had previously blogged about here: 2018 Creative Goals

One of the biggest differences I've made is learning how to actually draw a human skull - I am finally getting a better grasp of anatomy and it is really, really helping. Before I used to try and sketch based on the picture in front of me, now I sketch out shapes to map out what the skull and jaw look like, and how the features fall into position. 

I've also started painting on a bigger scale (one of the joys in having a hobby I talk about a lot, means my Birthday and Christmas presents were filled with incredible art things!), so now I have a proper table easel to use and lovely watercolour paper, so I have more space to fit in details, and a much better canvas to work from.

2020 vs 2016

And here's how I'm improving! I painted the left portrait last summer, so I already feel like I've grown since then. I've still not exactly cracked how to paint hair (although I am SO much better than past Juliet who avoided it completely), but it's been so rewarding - especially during the pandemic - to feel like I've got a creative outlet and I'm achieving something. I think I would have seriously struggled over the last 12 months if I hadn't found art again.

STAR TREK CHRISTMAS CARDS

 Hello! This year's been a funny old thing, hasn't it? I've been working from home for the last eight months, a bit jealous of anyone who's been furloughed (I do like my job, and I am very grateful to still have it, but it has been a bit intense and knackering) and somehow even though it's pitch black at 3pm, it still feels like it could be April and this was all a big fever dream?

I'm trying hard to find JOY and appreciate the good things in life (when really I just miss my pals, and would kill to drink a pint, indoors, with friends), so with happiness in mind I have thrown myself into trying to feel festive! The Christmas tree is up, I have completed my Christmas shopping (and it's all wrapped and already under the tree, what is wrong with me), and my Netflix watch list has their entire festive catalogue ready to go.

The other way I've been coping this year is art! I'm not sure what it is about a global pandemic that has inspired me to paint, but that is now pretty much my only hobby. And I'm definitely getting better! If you remember my old attempts (hello), you might notice a difference! 

So that brings me to my new favourite thing - STAR TREK CHRISTMAS CARDS!

I am a big Star Trek fan, so I just drew these for fun. Some of the puns ('make it snow') were already out there, but it took a long time to come up with 'I'm Dreaming of a Free Bajor'! I am really proud of them, so it took only the smallest amount of encouragement to get them printed, and then set up an Etsy store to sell them.

I was really nervous to see if they'd print okay (they did!) and then nervous about whether anyone would buy them (they did!!) and that it wasn't all an awkward burst of over-enthusiasm (it wasn't! thank goodness). 

If you have a sci-fi fan in your life, maybe you'd like to buy some? You can do so here - Etsy - Juliet Paints, and if you'd like to keep up with my art insta (which is updated much more than this poor blog), you can find that here - Instagram - Juliet Paint. 

I always knew shopping small and supporting local businesses was a good thing, but I really didn't realise how genuinely GIDDY I'd feel every time I got a sale notification, it really means a lot. So if you do buy something, thanks!! 

MY 2018 CREATIVE GOALS

I'll be honest - for the last few years, most of my new year's resolutions have been pretty wispy. I've focused on positive thinking and stressing less... and that has clearly been a Good Thing, but this year I am also keen to set myself some creative goals and actually MAKE things.

One of those goals is finding a happy blog balance (since my blog comeback I've been posting roughly once a week) and I think I'm getting there. It's not too much to commit to, it's easy to schedule a few in advance if I'm going to be busy, and bit by bit my readership is increasing so I'm not just chatting to myself (hello and thank you!).

My next project is painting. If you've been following this blog for a while you may remember that I've said this before... painting is the hobby that I keep coming back to, and keep giving up when the going gets tough. But this year I've got a goal! I'm going to paint once a month in 2018. That's not that hard, right?

One of the things I've always been a bit scared of painting is people, but when I picked up a paintbrush again (back in 2013!) it was the main thing I wanted to learn, and it's all I've really wanted to paint since.

The problem is I'll have a little flurry of enthusiasm, and I'll paint one or two things, then I'll get distracted and run out of energy, and feel like I need to wait on my next creative spark... which in my case, seems to only strike once a year, and then the whole cycle starts again.

So, for 2018 I am going to power through the creative block. I'm going to (try to) stop worrying about being good enough, and remember that the only way I'll ever get better is by practising! One painting a month is totally achievable.

I use watercolours, mainly because they are what I painted with as a kid, but I feel like I am finally making steps towards getting a little better with them? I used to paint with seriously harsh outlines (there was almost something quite comforting in shadowing something to death), so I've tried really hard to elimate black lines from my work, to think about light and colour, and to let the paper show through.

I was given some watercolour masking fluid which I finally worked up the courage to use with this piece and it is a game changer! I used it to pick out the whites of the eyes and light across the skin and hair, and it made such a difference (it was also weirdly super-satisfying peeling it from the paper).

Next time I'm going to really focus on light! I always paint from pictures, but was given the good advice of looking at my own face in a mirror when I'm doing a portrait so I can get a more realistic depiction of light on a face. There's so much to learn! 

January 2018 | September 2016

It's all a bit intimidating, but I can see the difference a year has made in these pastel gals. I've just got to remember that and keep going! Wish me luck.

A TRIP TO GLASGOW

Sometimes it feels a bit exhausting trying to keep up blogging (on a fairly regular basis) alongside a full-time job. And other times, you get to do such fun things that it reminds you one of the reasons it's all worthwhile!

Last week I was invited, by the lovely hotel group citizenM, to visit Glasgow for an evening of 'art, nice drinks and bites'. I like all of those things! Despite only being 50 minutes away by train, I rarely venture West unless it's for work, so I was excited to try a bit of touristin' in Glasgow...

WHERE I STAYED

Photos by me / Joni Israeli

I was very kindly gifted an overnight stay in citizenM Glasgow (thanks guys!). I'd heard the hotel was pretty cool, but I'd never been in before, and I was seriously impressed. The rooms are pretty petite, but perfectly sized, with absolutely MASSIVE beds, a huge window (with an ace city view and blackout blinds), a rain shower (I am obsessed with these), plus free wifi, loads of free movies, and MAGICAL COLOUR-CHANGING ROOMS. 

I realise this makes me sound seriously easily-pleased, but this was so cool! You control the whole room from a mini ipad next to your bed, and you can set a pre-programmed mood, or change the colour by scrolling a (super satisfying) colour wheel. It also makes the room instantly amazing for selfies.

The whole hotel is lovely, with quirky features, chill-out areas, and just a nice vibe throughout. It's also surprisingly affordable - rooms start at £69. 

WHAT I DID

Clockwise: Turner Prize | Nicole Wermers | Queuing (by myself) in head to toe H&M | Bloggers unite!

citizenM's an art-loving hotel, so keeping in with this ethos, I was whisked away with a group of lovely Scottish bloggers to attend the preview of the Turner Prize, Europe's most prestigious visual art award, which is in Scotland for the very first time.

I often find it hard to comment on large-scale pieces of art - I'm worried I won't get it, or I'll find it a bit boring and then feel guilty for finding it boring. But I really loved Nicole Wermers' piece - a series of fur coats stitched onto chairs, and DOUG, a musical composition, was moving to listen to (although I reckon it would make more of an impact with a less-party crowd around).

It was ace to get the chance to explore Tramway (a venue I've always meant to visit) and finally chat properly to Scottish bloggers that I feel like I've known for ages, even though we hadn't talked before (hi Wardrobe Conversations!).

WHAT I ATE

I ate well. First of all we were served beautiful citizenM sushi, then after the exhibition we were whisked off to Stravaigin - a Scottish restaurant in Glasgow's West End that specialises in local food and wild ingredients.

It was fairly impossible to choose from their menu, but I managed -  Shetland salmon, followed by pork belly, then a Dulce de leche parfait with hazelnut brittle and brownie pieces. Oh boy. I was thoroughly defeated, but it was all delicious - it's worth a trip across the country just for that dinner!

It was all just lovely. Thanks to everyone who spoiled me so!

BIG POP CLUB

Subscription boxes are absolutely everywhere right now. I've already written about Bloom & Wild's beautiful flowers, and the super cool Lucky Dip Club, and now it's the turn of Big Pop Club.

Big Pop Club is the newest project by illustrator and blogger, Ella Masters (who, if you've read my blog for a while, you might remember from my illustrated blogger post!).

Each monthly Big Pop Club box will be filled with exclusive illustrated items, including a monthly printed calendar and tattoo-inspired pieces (think screen prints, patches, totes and tea towels!). Each box also comes with a Big Pop Club membership card that gets you 20% off the rest of her shop.

Each monthly box is based on a different theme - for February, Ella's inspired by the circus, and has been sharing a few sneak peeks on her instagram.

Big Pop Club is obviously influenced by Lucky Dip Club, and the prices follow a similar subscription model. It costs £20 for a single box or £18 if you sign up for a monthly subscription (or you can buy a six month subscription if you are feeling super flush!).

I'm a big fan of independent artists and I'm excited to see what the first box looks like. It goes on sale on February 1st, and there's only going to be 50 boxes available, so you'll need to be quick!

Painting ponies

When I picked painting up again (after a break of years and years), I found I had a really bad habit of being SUPER heavy with shadowing and brush strokes. I found it so satisfying to paint heavy outlines and keep layering shadows, that I couldn't really make myself stop... and so the finished painting looked clunky, had no subtlety, and pretty much lost all its light.

But, considering I had been so nervous and awkward about picking up a paintbrush when I restarted, I wasn't going to let this stress me out. I paint because I love it and it really calms me, so rather than trying to teach myself big changes, I've just been taking tiny steps to try and fix my heavy hand.

I found that painting using just one colour has been HUGELY helpful in this! It's such a simplified way to do things, but it has really helped me concentrate on light and shadows, and play with when it's best to leave the paper blank.

I've also been trying to make myself stop before I think I'm actually finished, which is a total test of my willpower.

So, this isn't my normal type of post but it does feel like I'm maybe getting somewhere (and it's been over a year since I last wrote about painting). Now I need to practice on painting people... perhaps it's time to bring my illustrated bloggers back?

Andy Smith illustration

I've reached a nice point with my new flat where I have finally unpacked everything (hooray), and now that the house sale is all finished & keys have been handed over, I know that I won't have any more unexpected ohhh-I-forgot-about-those-things boxes. This means I get to start decorating properly. which is a good excuse to buy some new art.

I came across Andy Smith through pinterest, and got a bit obsessed. There's a spot in my living room that is desperate for a bit of colour, and I think one of these could be perfect...

Top row

Always right | Lonely | Sunny | Pretend

Bottom row

Party in space | Lose the blues | Stars | Relax

Lion girl painting

Sometimes inspiration strikes from the most unexpected places. I've got another painting on the go at the moment (the next person in my illustrated blogger series), but when I heard - wait for it - the new Katy Perry song, it got me thinking.

I'd fancied doing a follow up to my fox girl painting for a while now, and so when I heard the chorus ("louder than a lion") a super-cool, fierce lion girl appeared in my head and wouldn't go away. 

& here she is! It's the first time that I've illustrated a painting with lyrics too - I have really weird handwriting (I don't join up my letters, so annoyingly I've never learned how to do pretty, swooping writing), so I was a bit apprehensive about writing on it and ruining it. I think it works though!

While I was painting I took photos along the way and posted them on my instagram feed (you can follow me @eversojuliet if you like!). I follow a few arty folk and I really like when they post in-progress photos, I think it's really interesting to see how things come together - so hopefully you all agree, and it's not spammy!

I actually find it really helpful to take photos of things when I paint - it helps you distance yourself from what you're working on, and it makes it easier to spot when things are going wrong!

Overall with this painting I was trying really hard to keep it soft and a bit more natural than my usual style. A very talented pal of mine gave me some very good painting advice (mainly to try and not be so heavy handed!), and so I've really tried to take this on board.

Roooooar!

Fox girl painting

Hi! As we're half way through 2013 (I know, right?! Jeezo) it seemed like a nice excuse to chat about painting, and show you my most recent attempt. I restarted painting in January (as a new year's resolution) after years and years of neglect, and painted my first ever person this year (it was rubbish, but that's okay). Since then I think I've definitely found my stride again - or am getting there at least!

At first I'll sketch a really rough outline - I used to have to draw quite a detailed pencil sketch before I could paint, but now I just need the rough shape of the face and marks where the eyes/nose/mouth are going to sit. Then I start layering colours - I pretty much only use watercolours, mainly because I really love them & the blending you can get if you are patient (which I'm not really, but I somehow manage to avoid smudging things too often).

Bit by bit I start working on the features - building up shadows and colours, before using a super thin brush to add detail.

I still find painting hair really tricky, but I think I'm getting better (there's definitely more movement in this piece than Rosie's painting from February). & I think I'm starting to find a bit of a style - I love dark outlines, tiny details and shadowing too much to be a softly, softly pretty painter, but that's okay.

There's still lots to learn, but I love it!

Illustrated Blogger #4: Ella Masters

Here's the next installment in my newest feature - Illustrated Bloggers. Each month I introduce you to one of my favourite bloggers & tell you why they are brilliant. I love them so hopefully you will too!

Who is she? Ella from Ella Masters

What's her site about? A UK lifestyle & art blog

Why is she brilliant?

• Ella's an amazing artist and discovering her blog was part of the reason I got back into painting - it made me realise how much I missed it.
• She's one of those lucky people who has a wild mane of hair that looks awesome not brushed (and was so much fun to paint). 
• Ella has a series of paintings of beardy tattooed men, which I love! There's loads on sale in her etsy shop - I have this guy & I love him!
• Her posts are always really honest, which is very refreshing in the often-sugar-coated world of lifestyle blogging.
• She's always painting or being crafty in some way & it's just SO inspiring! 

Previous illustrated bloggers:

#1 A Rosie Outlook

#2 French for Cupcake

#3 Nerd Burger

Illustrated Blogger #3: Nerd Burger

Here's the next installment in my newest feature - Illustrated Bloggers. Each month I introduce you to one of my favourite bloggers & tell you why they are brilliant. I love them so hopefully you will too!

Who is she? Cazz from Nerd Burger

What's her site about? A super colourful site that covers crafts, nerdy things, geeky fashion & her jewellery company

Why is she brilliant?

• In a world of identikit bloggers, Nerd Burger stands out by a MILE. Cazz isn't afraid to be a bit geeky and have fun with what she wears, which I love!
• Nerd Burger jewellery (her shop) is full of kitsch, quirky jewellery, which is perfect if you love comics, superheroes, or have 90s nostalgia (Sabrina hair band, anyone?).
• She has the world's best hair. I want pink and purple hair!
• She writes a lot of hilarious posts, but her montage of Chuck Bass fashion made me laugh SO much.
• Every post is so cheery and positive, and she's such a smiley person (much more than my portrait would suggest!). I always look forward to seeing a new post from her, it's guaranteed to be colourful & fun & cheer me up! 

 Previous illustrated bloggers: 

#1 A Rosie Outlook

#2 French for Cupcake

Illustrated Blogger #2: French for Cupcake

Here's the next installment in my newest feature - Illustrated Bloggers. Each month I introduce you to one of my favourite bloggers & tell you why they are brilliant. I love them so hopefully you will too!

Who is she? Claire from French for Cupcake

What's her site about? A fashion & baking blog. She also runs an amazing cupcake company, called the Lily Pink Bakery.

Why is she brilliant?

• French for Cupcake was one of the first blogs I started reading. Before discovering the huge world of lifestyle bloggers, I used to think most bloggers were just super posey fashion models in daft clothes! It was really refreshing and encouraging to find a nice, normal blogger with the motto "Eat cake, wear nice things and be comfortable in your own skin!". 
• Claire's a HUGE Game of Thrones fan girl, and I am very jealous that she's been on set, & met the cast members. 
• Her cakes look amazing, and it's been really inspiring seeing her business take off & become so successful! She sells cakes at a market every week in Belfast - Craig & I have been chatting about a trip to Ireland for ages (I've never been!), and I'm seriously tempted to plan the holiday around a visit to her stall! 
• She owns the most adorable sausage dog puppy called Lola. ADORABLE. 
• We have a really similar sense of style & whenever she posts about a dress or shoes (especially glittery shoes!) I have to hide my debit card to try and resist spending! 

Previous illustrated bloggers:

#1 A Rosie Outlook

What's in your pocket?

Recently I was contacted by the nice folk at Moneysupermarket, to take part in their 'What's in your pocket' challenge - a campaign to celebrate life's 'little wins'. 

They recently put together a feel-good experiment where they set up hidden cameras in a dry cleaners & told customers they'd left a £20 note in their pocket by mistake (you can see their reactions here). It's such a sweet idea - it encourages money saving by feeling good & getting an unexpected surprise (like finding money in your pocket you didn't know was there!). 

I was given £20* and was challenged to spend it on anything I liked, but with the aim to share this feel-good feeling. 

You may know (I feel like I've been going on about it!) that I've really got back into painting this year, and so I thought it would be nice to combine my crafty side with this campaign. So I used my £20 to buy a few new paints (SUCH a treat, as the ones I've been using are over 10 years old!) and some blank cards and envelopes.

First I painted a Valentine's card for Craig - much nicer than a cheesy Hallmark card (and it fits in better with my make-things-for-your-valentine philosophy!). I looked up old tattoos for inspiration (and channelled a bit of Ella Masters too). I'm really pleased with it - it was so much fun to do! (& Craig liked it too, hooray).

I then painted a thank you card for my old boss Robin. I worked for him for almost six years and wanted to give him something nice to say thanks, so I thought a little painting would be perfect! I'm a bit of a sook!

I've got three cards left, and I've barely touched the paints - so they'll last me for a long long time! Shop bought cards can cost up to £4, so this is a good way to save money by making my own. And (hopefully) my friends & family will get a nice surprise when they realise they are handpainted! Win-win!