Don't Look, But I Think It May Be Spring

April has been really busy. I know I always say that, and it is starting to sound like a lame excuse, but I really have no idea where all the time has gone.

For a start, I've been doing a bit of volunteering for Hive. On Saturday 13 April I was helping out at a project that was part of The Fabric of Bradford. It was during Saltaire Heritage Festival. We were running a workshop aimed at kids to make felted badges from wool tops. It went very well, lots of kids and adults gave it a go and really enjoyed themselves. I got a lift over to Saltaire (it can be hard to find parking), and for various reasons ended up there a couple of hours before I was due to help out. I went down by the canal and did some sketching. I think it's only the second time this year I've felt like standing outside to sketch.

On the Towpath, Saltaire

I've also been cracking on with my Angels and Acrobats course. I've had to put a lot of time into finishing my main piece as I'm going to miss one of the sessions when I'm in Iceland. I haven't any more photos yet but I will get some up soon.

At the moment I'm rushing around to trying to get things ready for holiday time. We're setting off to Iceland early on Thursday morning, and there is a lot to do between now and then. I'll finish this post with a few other sketches, mostly in Costa Coffee again!

Trying to Work Some More Detail

View Across Bradford

The Lighting Was Great

Two Different Days

Is April the Cruellest Month?

I'm not sure if it's the cruellest month, but April has been very busy for me already. I was out of town over Easter, visiting Swansea. We had a bit more sunshine and got out a couple of times. Visiting friends and family makes it difficult for me to get away to do any sketching. I managed a little at a pub lunch to celebrate my boyfriend's birthday, but had to keep stopping as others wanted me to join in on conversations!

At The King Arthur, Gower

The owner of the half finished face was so striking. Unfortunately, I was unable to finish it. At least I got an impression of the expression.

The next day, I managed to sketch one of the other customers of Joe's in Mumbles, but I had to leave the rest of the page until I was next in Shipley (on my own).

Joe's and Costa

Here's a quick throw away sketch of my cat. She never stays still when I try to draw her. It is uncanny how she knows, even when she's asleep.

Black Cat Before She Moves

And then what do you know? I'm back in Shipley at Costa Coffee...

Slow Day at Costa

The Angels and Acrobats course started up again after our Easter break. The session before Easter we had Joy modelling for us as we created our first clay figures. These figures were put in the damp cupboard to stop them from drying out too much before we worked on the next stage in the process. This week, we hollowed out the figures. If you pot clay that is too thick into the kiln there is a chance that the piece will explode. So we practiced cutting the figures open and hollowing out the areas that were possibly too thick. Before I did this, I took a couple of photos of my figure.

Female Figure 1

Female Figure 2