Sketchbook #1 // Butterflies

I had a go at illustrating butterflies during the month of April, and it turned out more difficult than I thought. My mind wasn’t really there and I recognise I didn’t put much effort into it. The colour choice and composition are not my strong points, and it clearly shows in these pages.

Anyhow, I wanted to try some new watercolour pencils, but also I came across my old watercolour palette and thought I would give it a try.

Watercolour pencils are very easy to use and the results can be quite rewarding. Unfortunately I can’t say the same for non-professional watercolours! The ones that I used in these pages are Winsor & Newton Cotman, and I don’t know if it’s just me, but I can tell the difference between those and the artist’s range. Apparently, in the Cotman series, the more costly pigments are replaced with cheaper alternatives giving the paint a more uniform consistency, thus losing the wide spectrum of hues. However, I have seen well established artists using the Cotman range, with awesome results…so it must be just me then!

I haven’t picked any new subject for the month of May, yet. And although we are close to the end of the month, I’m still hoping I’ll be able to do some new illustrations.

20/52

It's week 20 and we are finally starting to enjoying some good weather! Gianluca's parents were here for the week, and my little lady loved all the attention and playtime. She would wake up in the morning and quietly leave our room to go and wake her grandparents up...hooray for a bit more sleep in for us!

Olivia: trying a lollypop for the first time. Don't get fooled by her smile; she said she liked it at first, but threw it away after a few licks! 

Linking up with the 52 Project at Practising Simplicity.

When in Rome...

...we do like the Romans! We had an amazing time last week in Rome. It wasn't a proper holiday as we have been running up and down looking for a flat to rent. But the weather was more than great, our little miss was the best travel companion and the hospitality was outstanding (grazie cugina!). We walked a lot, ate lots of pizza and ice cream, visited too many playgrounds and went to bed too late. Fingers crossed we will get things sorted this week with the flat so we can start planning our move before the baby comes.

Rome hidden treasures

Waking up to this every morning

Italian tradition

Just having fun

This is where you look for a place to rent!

Playgrounds (and yes she insisted on wearing pyjamas bottom!) 

18/52 + 19/52

Playgrounds! It doesn't matter in which country you are, if you have a toddler, the first thing you look for is a place for him/her to burn some energy and for you to take a short break.

Athelstan Recreation Ground , Kingston upon Thames, UK

Parco degli Scipioni, Rome, Italy

Linking up with Jody from Practising Simplicity.