234. Scaredycat Owl Mug

Various Pilot G-tec C4 pens, Staedtler 0.05 fine liner and

Unipin 0.5 pen (plus Tombow brush pen) in

Stillman & Birn Epsilon sketchbook, 8.5"x5.5"

Mug sketching with my friend Rachel; she has the loveliest mugs! The owls on the actual mug don't look anywhere near as scared as this one; oh dear!  I learned something though: there was more intricate decoration underneath each owl but the design was finished in a very limited colour palette and narrow tonal values which totally calmed down the busy-ness of the design - very clever!

233. Goodbye Gelato Heaven!

Derwent Coloursoft Pencils and Pilot G-tec C4 pen in

Stillman & Birn Epsilon sketchbook, 8.5" x 5.5"

Gelato Heaven will be closing for good tomorrow :((  Where else would you be given a container of water by the staff each week so that you can sketch and use your watercolours?! Thank you lovely Gelato staff! Very sad!

232. Hampstead Heath Sketch

Lamy Safari fountain pen and Tombow brush pen

in Stillman & Birn Epsilon (lovely smooth) sketchbook, 8.5" x 5.5" (x2)

Hampstead Heath is right around the corner to the Royal Free Hospital where I had a treatment on Wednesday. Decided to have a rest in front of the river and pulled out my sketchbook before going home.  (I made a B&W copy and added colour to it yesterday; will post later.)

231. A Little Chamber Music at the NPG

Staedtler 0.05 pigment liner and Unipin 0.05 fine line pen

in Stillman & Birn Alpha sketchbook, 8.5" x 5.5" (x2)

Last Friday evening, I popped into the 'Drop in Drawing' session at the National Portrait Gallery. The subject was supposed to be 'Striking a Pose' but a few of us followed the sound of music to another room and sketched some young and gifted musicians who had put on a little chamber music. We had a great point of view; due to the openings on either side of each gallery, we were able to congregate right behind the musicians and face the audience which (unless you are in a choir or at a bandstand) is an unusual viewpoint.

I love diving straight in with ink as you're then committed to each stroke yet I find that, if I use a fine pen, it's easy to go over it lightly again to correct/straighten if necessary.

I was fascinated by the feet of the people on the front row so started sketching them from the floor upwards but the music came to an end and, after a brief chat with a couple of the musicians, we dispersed, hence the disembodied figures in the audience. A great evening.