sketches ep 12 – lots of botanical studies! 🌿✏️ | what I’ve been up to – a secret project!✨ | I’m a nostalgic softie and it’s ok ☁️ (Patreon)

Hi!

Pencil sketchbook content is baaack!

I’ve been doing a lot of botanical studies/sketches.

Let’s start with the serious confession:

for the longest time I used to feel bad about drawing “just” plants, cause, you know, a sketchbook should be a place to experiment and get out of your comfort zone or whatever, while I use it mostly just to master what I’m already familiar with. Ok, aaaannd? There’s nothing wrong about it!! It never case to amaze me how sometimes I can adapt someone’s point of view and treat it as mine without even realizing that for a long time.

Okay, so! as I said, I made some botanical studies.

First, we have a classic beauty and a nightmare of most illustrators! Peonies!

This sketchbook spread was a warm up before drawing these flowers in colors (which was at day 2 of my failed 100 days project). I still need tons of practice but I’m generally happy with these sketches!

Some oranges (that looks more like tangerines but it’s fine)!

I wasn’t really inspired that day and was ruuushing it. At that time I wasn’t allowing myself to sketch with a pencil that much (I elaborated on this in a previous post) but I was really longing doing botanical studies! Thus the small lingonberry sketch in the corner!

Botanical studies at their finest!

The left side is holly, the right is sea buckthorn. I wrote their common names, scientific names and common names in Polish, just to make them look more complete and, you know, fancy!

I did holly studies mostly for some winter illustrations I ended up never making (lol).

The other day I felt really nostalgic and the sea buckthorn reminds me of the Baltic sea (that’s where their natural habitat is in my country). Nostalgia is one of the greatest source of inspiration, isn’t it?

Hydrangeas!

Honestly, I’m just learning how to draw these gorgeous flowers and having a blast in the process.

Let me tell you about the secret project I’ve been working on recently!

It had to kept it secret even from you, cause I wanted to surprise my sister with it and she’s most probably reading this! (she’s one of my patrons :D)

My sister told me that she is in a desperate need for a creative outlet as she find herself working too much. (yeah, workaholism runs in our blood, that’s for sure)

She decided to create a scrapbook album from her wedding, which was almost 6 years ago.

She used to be into scrapbooking in high school (or even earlier) but ditched this hobby years ago.

Well, she’s a woman of action, so she just got herself an album, printed tons of pictures, found some old materials, like decorations, scrapbook paper and just started scrapbooking!

Okay, but what all of this has to do with me?

I wanted to give her something that she could use in this album! What could it be?

I know nothing about scrapbooking. What one supposed to use in such album?!

Plus, she seemed to have almost everything she might need to make this project. My first thought: washi tapes! Of course. But what else? Maybe something more… personal.

Maybe, just maybe I could make a sticker sheet she could use to decorate her album?

At first this idea terrified me!

The last time I made a custom art for a family member was in 5th grade (exactly 20 years ago).

Long story short:

I made something between illustration and collage for my mom and was sooo proud of it!

I wasn’t the type of kid who’d share their art with other people but that day I just felt like doing it.

Guess what I accidentally found in a trash can the very next day.

Yeah, that custom illustration/collage I poured so much heartand love into.

Of course this single event made a huge impact on me and my creative journey.

I worked it through (otherwise I wouldn’t be able to pursue creativity and share my art with you) but did I really?! It all came back to me once I wanted to make illustrations for my sister. I wasn’t afraid that my sister would throw away this gift, it was something I can’t really put into words.

I went off a tangent here but I think it was necessary to give you a full picture of what does it mean to me to do something handmade for a family member.

I was physically sick for the most of December and thought I couldn’t make this gift on time, so why even bother.

Plus, some of self-sabotage mechanisms were turned on at that time! (to protect me from something that might potentially hurt me the way it did 20 years ago)

The evening before we were about to go to a family gathering, instead of going to sleep, I decided to just… give it a try.

Her wedding’s theme were hydrangeas and sky blue/lilac/white colors.

I just sat down and started drawing. There was no time for warm up sketches, color explorations, anything (these hydrangeas pencil sketches I shared today were made about two weeks after that)

At this point I was just creating from the place of pure love. I wanted to make something nice for my sister and that’s it. The fear was gone.

These were my very first attempts at drawing hydrangeas!!

I couldn’t let the lack of experience stop me from doing this. I finished it at 5 in the morning.

At some point of the process I realized I indeed couldn’t make it on time. But it wasn’t about the finished result anymore. (sure, I finished illustrations but I’d need to scan them and make a sticker sheet, print it etc)

We had to leave the house at 6 to make it to the train station!

So, I just closed my sketchbooks, took a shower, made a breakfast and took the train to meet with my family (it was 8hours ride so I had plenty of time to get some sleep :D) I took my sketchbooks with me to show them to my sister.

Honestly, I felt so LAME doing this.

Like, hey, I don’t really have a gift for you (only a few washi tapes) cause I couldn’t make it on time, but here are some drawings I made, lol.

I felt criiiinge but I’m sure she got my good intent.

These might look just like some illustrations of a few flowers but to me, it’s so much more.

I loved the process of making them. I loved looking back at some wedding pictures, figuring out fast how to draw roses and hydrangeas, working for several hours straight in this almost maniac flow state, overcoming the fear of rejection.

I can’t show you the final sticker sheet yet, to keep it a surprise for her!

I haven’t send her it yet! (she lives abroad so I can’t just drop by :D)

I just wanted to tell you about this little personal project I was secretly working on.

Hydrangeas are such glorious flowers and I figured they deserve more exploration and practice!

That’s how the idea of picking them for January’s theme was born.

Here I explored more colors. I made it yesterday! Started from swatching all the colors I might potentially use and then trying some combos.

In a few days I’ll share rewards and other hydrangeas drawings with you!

Take care and have a beautiful day!

Marta