Hello!
How’s your week been? On Tuesday all three boys went back to school and I’m so thankful to report that they’ve had a great week and are thoroughly enjoying their new classes. As for me, I’ve also enjoyed silence in the house and have been planning in more details my Italian retreat workshops. Hard to believe that I’ll be travelling out next week. It’s come around so fast. The colours this week have been gorgeous, from the garden cosmos to the passionfruit, it’s incredible. Our plum tree has given us a brilliantly abundant crop this year, better than any previous years so we’ve been sourcing new recipes. I tried out a squash and plums recipe from a Gill Miller recipe book we borrowed from friends, that was pretty special (and colourful too).
Next week, you’re all invited to a Drawing Zoom call to celebrate the club turning ONE!! We will draw the Tuileries Gardens in Paris from pictures I took there a few weeks ago. This event is free but spaces are limited to 80, here’s the link for you to sign up.
Hope you’ve had a great week.
Highlights of the week
on a family walk we saw some pretty astounding blackberries, I say astounding because we all thought the season was nearly over but it isn’t yet
the cutest drawing pin box you’ll ever see
drawing apples with
(see details below)studying Cezanne, again
getting a little more serious about frothing milk and creme and drizzling my coffee foam with cinnamon
also getting serious about filling up my new academic planner designed by
writing a lot of morning pages and feeling the benefit of it
making a quick video to Lionel Ritchie’s Dancing on the Ceiling over on Instagram - it cheered me up no end
MATERIALS USED
Prismacolor pencil, colour: Sepia
Derwent Inktense pencil, colour: Baked Earth
A variety of Caran D’Ache Neocolor 2 pastels
Winsor&Newton Watercolour Series 2 B, colour: Opera Rose
A Kaweco fountain pen for the journaling
All of this in my homemade sketchbook, for which I used
Margaux Kent’s bookbinding tutorial on YouTube
MORE JOYFUL POSTS (all free)…
The September issue of the club gazette (free) came out not the 1st
I drew apples with Beth Spencer LIVE if you’d like to listen and draw along, grab your favourite art supplies and go ahead, enjoy! (also free)
25 Ways To Celebrate the Arrival of Autumn (also free) is a blog post I wrote which I think is also quite happy
Retreat in PORTUGAL May 2026 - Bookings Open
I have been invited to teach visual journaling in the most idyllic of settings, in Portugal in May 2026. We will have access to stunning heritage vistas, incredible local produce to create still life and an art studio space to get creative together. Have a look at the full program and book your space. Bookings for this have launched. There are shared rooms and individual rooms. I’d love to see you there!
QUICK CLUB NOTES:
This is a free post for subscribers but you can also become a Time Foragers’ Club paid subscriber and meet up on Zoom 3 times a month (we draw, create and journal), receive a monthly video from my studio, PLUS chat with our blossoming creative community in our exclusive threads. We have occasional in-person meet-ups too. If you love all things antiques, old paper and art, once a year the club’s founding members receive a thoughtfully curated paper bundle in the post which includes some of my original art.
