May Draw A Day | Day Thirty-One.

A little collage illustration for today's theme, which is an acorn. Acorns are cute, they look like they're wearing little hats.

Today is the last day of May, which means the end of the May Draw A Day challenge. A massive thank you to the lovely Astrid for organising it; I will miss creating a little illustration each day. I decided to join in with the challenge in the hope that it would help ease me back into my illustration work after a break away from it, and also to push myself to show doodles and unpolished illustrations. The challenge has definitely kept me motivated - although some days it has been more of a struggle to get started, I have really enjoyed setting aside time every day to be creative. It has inspired me to spend more time on my illustration work again, whilst also allowing me to be more experimental in my work, using materials I hadn't used for years instead of always sticking to the same style. The reaction to my May Draw A Day illustrations has been pretty positive, which has made me feel more confident in showing less than perfect work, without the fear of being judged or criticised; this means I will be posting a lot more work in the future. Yay!

A little reminder that all the original illustrations I've created for May Draw A Day are currently for sale; it is very rare that I sell original work, so if you'd like to own a little signed illustration then this is your chance!

 Astrid, Jade and I are already planning to organise a collaborative Draw A Day challenge in August, so keep your eye out - I hope you'll all want to get involved!

May Draw A Day | Day Thirty.

The theme for day thirty is a heart made up of words; this made me think of loveheart sweets, and they were the inspiration behind today's cute little illustration.

May Draw A Day | Day Twenty-Nine.

Today's theme is a bicycle. I used my favourite coloured pencil for this little illo. 

Also, just a little reminder that all my original May Draw A Day illos are for sale; a handful have sold already so be sure to let me know if you'd like to get your hands on a little original, signed illustration.

May Draw A Day | Day Twenty-Eight.

The theme for day twenty-eight is a door. This illustration was inspired by a photograph that my friend Georgie sent me last week, which showed a door in one of the walls in the gardens of Christ Church College in Oxford; it was this door that inspired Alice in Wonderland, because Charles Dodgson - better known by the pen-name Lewis Carroll - thought the door looked too small for the wall. Curious and curiouser.

May Draw A Day | Day Twenty-Seven.

A little carton of strawberry milk for today's theme, which is milk carton. Pink milk is my favourite. ♥

May Draw A Day | Day Twenty-Six.

Today's theme is the word balance (three different ways). I'm always happy to have an excuse to play around creating hand-drawn typography, so I had fun with this theme. :]

May Draw A Day | Day Twenty-Five.

Today's theme is cereal box; this is the best granola in the world. Try it mixed with ice-cream for the best treat ever. Yum.

May Draw A Day | Day Twenty-Four.

Here are some cute little building blocks for today's May Draw A Day; the theme is ABC.

May Draw A Day | Day Twenty-Three.

Today's theme is patterned kite, so here is my little collaged kite, flying away in a sunny blue sky.

May Draw A Day | Day Twenty-Two

Just a quick doodle for today; the theme is your mobile phone. 

May Draw A Day | Day Twenty-One.

I really enjoyed creating the hand-drawn typography which featured in yesterday's May Draw A Day illo, so I decided to use some in today's illo too. Today's theme is ladder made up of words. I have drawn a ladder made up from an inspirational proverb; when you reach the top, keep climbing.

May Draw A Day | Day Twenty.

The theme for day twenty is lunch, so here is a little diagram explaining the food I ate this lunchtime. Yum.

May Draw A Day | Day Nineteen.

The theme for day nineteen of the May Draw A Day challenge is anything in a square. I was really in the mood to draw a frog this morning, so I cracked open my inks and here is the result. A little froggie;

If you're on Society6, could you do me a little favour and pop over and promote my little frog illo - I'd really appreciate it! :]

May Draw A Day | Day Eighteen.

Today's theme is a street sign, so here are a couple. I'd really like to see a toad crossing sign in real life!

May Draw A Day | Day Seventeen.

The theme for day seventeen of May Draw A Day is a memory. We all know that certain scents can evoke memories, in fact research has shown that 'the initial association of a smell with an experience will somehow leave a unique and lasting impression in the brain.' My illustration today is based on a little bottle of vanilla perfume - my mama used to wear this perfume too, and the scent will always bring back memories of her. ♥

May Draw A Day | Day Sixteen.

Today's theme is cupcake with red icing, which made me think of cute Valentine's cupcakes and hearts. Aww.

May Draw A Day | Day Fifteen.

Just a quick sketch for today's theme, which was your shoes. My well-loved old converse. ♥ To be honest, I'm not very happy with how this illo turned out, but unfortunately I'm far too tired to redo it. Tomorrow's attempt will be much better, I promise.

May Draw A Day | Day Fourteen.

The theme for day fourteen of the May Draw A Day challenge is a tree made up of words. I wasn't quite sure how to tackle this theme at first; initially I planned to do some hand-drawn typography, but I couldn't decide which words to write. I considered using sing lyrics, or a poem, but in the end I resorted to a collage approach, and I think the image has turned out quite effectively. Some of the words are totally random - words I liked the look or sound of - whereas other are more meaningful, relating to myself and my life at the moment.

May Draw A Day | Day Thirteen.

Today I decided to get my acrylics out and do a little painting. I used to use paint a lot in my work when I was younger, but my style changed drastically when I went to uni, and it's been years since I sat down and did a painting. I love how this challenge is encouraging me to use such a wide range of materials again. Today's theme for May Draw A Day is a flower; this is especially relevant as it is Mother's Day in both the US and Australia. This is the reason I decided to paint an iris - they were my mama's favourite flower. ♥

May Draw A Day | Day Twelve.

Today's theme is doodle anything. I love tortoises, and when I grow up I plan to buy one as a pet (I will name him Sparky and we'll have lots of adventures together). I really enjoyed using my inks to create this image - I love the simplicity of a detailed line drawing.

Just a little reminder that all my May Draw A Day illustrations are for sale, so if you fancy owning a little original, signed doodle then leave me a comment to let me know! :]