November Round-up

Discover the best of November in The Creative Flock + studio highlights

Hello! And if this is the first post you’re reading, welcome! I share these posts with all subscribers at the end of each month, It’s a lovely way to highlight all the things we’ve done in the membership and share some behind-the-scenes snippets from my studio*.

*Some posts I link to are free for all subscribers, and some are for paid members. If you are considering upgrading your subscription, the options are here - Choose your membership plan

November: Folktale Week, Indie Makers Gift Guide + Sketching Autumn in the Kitchen

It’s been another busy month, with my biggest project being Folktale Week pieces but it’s also my birthday month, so I took some time off to celebrate and have a bit of downtime.

There wasn’t a specific theme to this month, read on to see what we’ve been up to in the membership and what I’ve been creating in the studio…

First up - I released new prints in my shop:

Thank you to everyone who has bought a print so far! It’s always nerve-racking when I share a new print; you never know how well they’ll do, but it’s been wonderful to see orders going off to new homes 💕

If you missed my announcement this month or are a new subscriber, head to this post for details on my prints and the discounts available for Creative Flock subscribers and members:

It was a pleasure to put this gift guide together, I hope it helped you to find that perfect gift for a friend, loved one, or even for yourself. I firmly advocate self-gifting at Christmas 😆

While on the subject of gift guides, I was honoured to be included in this wonderful collection by

Sarah Shotts (they/them)

:

Spotlighting Art & Books by Mums

This month’s drawing session

I was considering theming our drawing session around the autumn harvest. However, I came across some lovely, cosy photos of baking and gatherings around the dining table during my search. I realised that this would be the perfect theme for the cold, dark days of November.

Paid members can catch up on our drawing session below:

Some of the artists who joined the session kindly allowed me to share their work here:

Sara

Michele’s Substack

Folktale Week 2024

Folktale Week came and went in a flash! I completed two pieces but sketched out thumbnails for the remaining five.

I shared in-depth how I came up with the ideas for my pieces and the process involved in making the final artwork in these two posts:

Co-Sketching sessions

We had two more co-sketching sessions this month, thank you to those who came along!

I wouldn't have created these drawings had I not blocked out that time, that’s what’s so good about co-working, it holds you accountable. Thank you to Emma Carlisle for introducing me to these!

There’ll be two more free co-sketching sessions in December, available to all subscribers and I’ll share details in my Welcome to December post, which is coming next. Subscribe to stay updated.

Nature highlights from my neck of the woods…

Top-Bottom, L-R: Fresh bird prints in the snow; my favourite oak tree in Swithland Wood; gorgeous texture on an old tree stump; spotting tiny, mushrooms; Oak gall collecting in the woods; beautiful, autumnal colours of a beech tree; Frosty thistle and berries in my garden

What’s been your nature highlight this month?

When i’m not drawing or collecting oak galls i’m…

Reading:

The Ghosts of the Manor - Lockett and Wilde's Dreadfully Haunting Mysteries by Lucy Strange, illustrated by Pam Smy. I’m thoroughly enjoying this fun chapter book about a spiritually sensitive girl who befriends a ghost and they team up to solve mysteries. With incredible illustrations by Pam Smy throughout.

Listening to:

Comedy podcasts while I’ve been painting owls - Richard Herring Podcast and Where there’s a Will There’s a Wake plus this interesting podcast where Louis Theroux interviews artist, Tracy Emin

Watching:

As the nights draw in, my TV viewing increases. I’ve been enjoying the new David Attenborough documentary series, Asia, which is spectacular and very soothing. For comedy, I’ve been bingeing Everyone Else Burns. And on a Saturday evening, I’m enjoying Strictly Come Dancing - rooting for Montell & Johannes!

And finally..

November was my birthday month, to celebrate I took the day off to sketch in ancient woods, forage oak galls and inadvertently got very lost on the way back to my car! It was quite the adventure, but thankfully I survived to tell the tale 😂

Clockwise: The first sketch of the oak which I did on location, the others were done back in the studio.

I also took a trip to London to meet with my brother and twin sister, we drank cocktails in a retro video arcade bar, ate delicious East Asian food and had a long-overdue catch-up.

While in London, I squeezed in a visit to an incredible art shop which looked like something from the Harry Potter movies!

Cornelissen & Sons - https://www.cornelissen.com

I made a few purchases (how could I not! 😆) and I’ll be sharing this in a video post in December.

I hope you enjoyed this round-up! I’ll be announcing the theme for December in my next post.

As always, thank you for your support here.

This publication is reader-supported and enables me to do what I love, which is creating art and illustrations and sharing it with the community here on Substack. If you would like to access the full membership, consider upgrading your subscription, details of benefits are here