Drawings for August and September

 

Life is good but life is busy....what a summer! It has gone by in a flash - a very hot flash at that - those temperatures were high. I have done my drawings but didn't get around to posting them again so here are two for August and September. My blog posts seem to be turning up like busses don't they ;o)

Nasturtiums   pencil and ink sketchbook   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec 

I grew nasturtiums this year in my veggie beds and found all the black fly went to the flowers and left the veggies alone so I will definitely be doing that again next year. This drawing was done before they arrived and inspired by the vivid colours I added a tiny amount of red.

Fern   pencil and ink sketchbook   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec 

My drawing for September is another from my garden. I found this lovely specimen growing behind the water butt. It must have survived because of the shade cast and the leak the butt had sprung otherwise I think it would have burnt to a crisp.   

I did find a couple more leaves that weren't in such good condition but they were perfect for inking up and taking some prints from. These lovely shapes will be something I come back to at a later date methinks.

fern prints in my nature sketchbook   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec 

2026 drawing project - plant forms for June and July

 

I seem to be experiencing some gremlins within my blog. For reasons that remain a mystery this post didn't publish last month and I seem to be unable to comment on mine or anyone else's blog. I haven't the foggiest why but hope it resolves itself soon. Fingers crossed that this post publishes....

This is the missing drawing from June for my drawing a month project. The same model as March's drawing but this time a top view.

Pine cone top view   sketchbook study in stages   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

My drawing for July is below. Dandelions begun in Spring but only recently completed. The meadows were full of lush grass and dandelions back then - a very different story to now as everything is burnt, dry and dusty with the rather repetitive heatwaves.

Dandelion study   sketchbook page   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

How beautiful was this? I couldn't fail to be inspired...

2026 Drawing project - Mrs Willmott's Ghost

 

Mrs Willmott's Ghost   sketchbook page coloured pencil and ink    ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

Eryngium giganteum, with the common name Miss Willmott's Ghost, is a species of flowering plant in the family Apiaceae. The short-lived herbaceous perennial thistle is native to the Caucasus and Iran in Western Asia.

Source: Wikipedia

Named after Ellen Willmott (1858 - 1934) who liked to secretly scatter seed, maybe the first guerrilla gardener, she certainly seemed like a character with an interesting life and a passion for horticulture.

I love this plant for it's barely there colour, almost luminescent tones, which makes a strong contrast against other plants. The specimens that I have drawn here were grown in my garden last summer and have dried to a hint of cream in colour. I am looking forward to seeing it again this year.

Mrs Willmott's Ghost (detail)   sketchbook page coloured pencil and ink    ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

2026 drawing project - honesty... silver dollars...lunaria and a pine cone

 

Honesty Silver Dollars Lunaria   sketchbook drawing mixed media   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec  

April's drawing (I am so late posting!) is inspired by a stem of Honesty that blew across my path as I walked down to the fields. It was dull grey winter time and this little stem shone like it contained all the light of the day - so beautiful. It has been standing in a bottle for a few months waiting for its turn to be drawn. It isn't until you start to closely observe that you see just how many colours are contained within it's luminous discs, I'm not sure I have done it justice but it was an absolute joy to try.

Now I am not sure what happened to March's drawing because I did post it but it seems to have gotten lost as it is not here now. Anyway, I will include it here;

Pine cone Drawing stages   sketchbook mixed media   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

I used to draw pinecones frequently in the past, I love getting lost in the patterns but has been a little while since the last one. I thought you might like to see the stages of drawing that I use and below the final sketch.

 

Pine cone  mixed media in sketchbook   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

Below is a bonus sketch; on a familiar stretch on a dog walk I came across this on the path. Either the remainder of something's lunch or maybe discarded by another dog  was this 'pinecone flower' another treasure bagged and stored away in a pocket to be drawn. The strange thing was that I'm pretty sure the nearest pine tree is about a kilometre away so this little flower had travelled a bit.

Pine cone  mixed media in sketchbook   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

I will try to be a little more punctual for May!

2026 Drawing Projects - February Poppy Seedheads

 

Poppy seedheads from my garden  coloured pencil on buff paper   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

This months drawing of poppy seedheads was deceptively tricky to draw. Although the shapes are simple the subtle colouring is a different story. The tones are warm to neutral with  surprising amount of warm blue/lavender - hopefully I have done them justice. 

2026 Drawing Project - January Holly Leaves

 It has begun... my 2026 drawing project. I am pausing drawing shells for this year and turning to plants, seeds and leaves that I can find either in my garden or in the local area. All the same themes will be a focus; shape, structure, tone, details... there are lots of similarities but they are different enough for new challenges and discoveries. 

Holly Leaf inspiration   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

Holly Leaf inspiration   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

To kick off the year and the inspiration for this years project are these rather lovely decaying holly leaves. They are such a joy to draw that I have covered two pages in my sketchbook - in the second page I have increased the scale to really enjoy both detail and colour. Unfortunately good light for photographing the pages isn't great today and my lamp is shining on the paper surface a bit much on one side - apologies.

Whilst drawing the veins in the leaves I am reminded of coral that I have drawn in years gone by. Also it is interesting to note that in the very decayed leaves secondary veins run parallel to the stem as well as branching off from it. I haven't observed this before. Every day is a school day.

Decaying Holly Leaves   sketchbook page coloured pencil   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

Decaying Holly Leaves   sketchbook page coloured pencil   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

2026 Drawing Project - March Pinecone

 

Pine cone   coloured pencil and ink   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

Drawing for March, a pine cone. It has been a while since I drew one of these, they used to be a favourite subject. I like to get lost in the patterns.

Pine cone   coloured pencil and ink   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

Whilst out on a dog walk recently I spotted this on the path - the remnants of somethings lunch? ...discarded by another dog? ...I wasn't sure and the nearest pine tree to the location where I found it was about a kilometre away. However it got there it was a lucky find for me and an unusual view of a pine cone so of course I had to draw it.

Pine cone   coloured pencil and ink   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec

Pine cone   coloured pencil and ink   ©2026LisaLeQuelenec