Slowly wrapping up a busy week (maybe)
Hey creative friends,
how are you? And how has your week been?
Mine has been super busy, just as the weekend has been. Remember that I said, that I was entering a bit more of a quiet phase? Well, life had other plans.
But it hasn’t been too bad, I just had to change gears a bit. Apart from that, the last days have felt more like autumn weather-wise, than like summer. So it’s been alright to be busy doing things indoors. However, I didn’t have the chance to watch Queen Charlotte yet (to read about my Bridgerton musings from last week, click here).
I’ll probably just jump right into Bridgerton season 3 part 2 this weekend! And maybe also embrace the quiet? I’ll definitely keep you updated.
1 Let’s get organized!
Life hasn’t only been super busy, but thankfully I also found the time to get productive.
I’ve got some organization done, which had been long over-due, but also so much fun! I also got a new cupboard to store some of my art supplies and paper in. It really looks so beautiful now and I can’t wait to start creating with this brand-new setup!
Here are some pictures of the new addition to my art space:
![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_474,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F1c83d8de-9db5-4051-ab43-3db680a0714d_3024x4032.jpeg)
![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_474,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F28ffdfa4-5b28-4338-91f6-15eef5cf584c_3024x4032.jpeg)
![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_474,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F221537a9-36e0-42a5-99c8-f22f16657ed2_3024x4032.jpeg)
2 On the hunt for an art printer
This week I needed to print something and as it happens, my printer would only print fancy stripes. As you probably guessed, this wasn’t the look I was going for. And unfortunately, this wasn’t the first time that this happened. The printer keeps printing stripes even after I check the ink cartridges and run a cleaning course through it.
![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F4ea783ad-ea22-48e8-b817-d363c59836e9_3024x4032.jpeg)
Now I’m on the hunt for a new printer, specifically one that will be perfect for creating art prints. I’m planning to only use the printer to print art prints for myself at home. I have started to do some research on YouTube and also asked around in my creative community. So far, I have heard great things about Epson and Canon printers.
I would consider my current printer to generally be a good printer, but it is just not suited for printing pictures or lots of colours. While I was still at university, it was the best printer I could have asked for. It printed all the journal articles that I needed to read (and there were many each week). So I’m ready to move on now, but there is no rush.
Tell me, are there any printers that you can recommend for printing art prints? Let me know in the comments!
3 Venue illustrations
In my last newsletter I shared with you the book „Pattern Design“ by Elizabeth Wilhide. I really love this book! (I also share some visual snippets of the book, in my last newsletter. Look at them here.) I have been browsing through it a lot and have been learning more about creating pattern designs. It is my goal to create at least one pattern collection this year. I’ve already brainstormed ideas for more collections, but we’ll see how it goes.
I’ve been organizing all my ideas for future collections in Notion. Notion has been so helpful and easy to use. If you’d like me to talk a bit more about how I use Notion or show you more about my pattern design plans, let me know in the comments!
Planning to create Toile de Jouy patterns
So in the last months, I’ve been working on some pattern design ideas. For some of these ideas, I want to create some sort of venue and landscape illustrations (in the style of a Toile de Jouy pattern). It is something that I've never done before.
But sometimes I find myself working on something and in the process fall head over heels for a certain detail. And that was exactly the case with these venue and landscape illustrations. It turned out, that I really love creating this type of illustrations so much! I find it so relaxing and interesting to look at all the details of a building, its surroundings and all the details. And I’ve created one venue illustration after the other now.
I'm still experimenting with different illustration styles. And I am trying to get a better feel for what is important in these type of illustrations. Now I’m planning to add these venue illustrations to my skill set and portfolio.
Venue illustrations as beautiful keepsakes
In my opinion, these illustrations make such a great keepsake for house owners - old and new, for weddings or locations in general.
Having an illustration of your wedding venue for you to keep and frame or even adding such an illustration to your wedding invitation is just extra special.
![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2Fb26dadab-2191-4ba1-9084-e18bfc20cb1e_1500x1500.png)
I mean, how lovely to have an illustration of your home? All the beautiful memories in and with the house can be honoured in this way. So I strongly believe that every home deserves to be captured in an illustration.
Finding my (venue) illustration style
In this illustration I primarily focused on getting the house sketched out accurately and focused on all its details, the greenery didn‘t get as much attention, I must confess. But I think that‘s a look too! As I mentioned above, I’m still refining my venue illustration style at the moment.
![](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F79689155-e867-403d-ae21-9f8ec79e7a54_1500x1500.png)
Now tell me, are there any venues that you would like to see illustrated? I’m always open for suggestions, so let me know if you have any in the comments below!
Oh, and I’m still working on my venue/landscape pattern idea (aka Toile de Jouy). So stay tuned for that!
Until next week, creative friends!
Love,
P.S.: Know someone who might enjoy receiving this newsletter too? Feel free to forward it to them - I would highly appreciate it, if you do!