Over summer I was faced with a big decision. Dove Street Studios, the art studio where I've been based for the last couple of years was likely to close down. After much thought, myself and my friend (the wonderful Illustrator  Elisa Cunningham ) decided to take it on and run the space. With a lick of paint, a few new desks and some crafty DIY, we transformed the studio. We're now home to 15 Creatives, including Illustrators, Animators and Fashion Designers. We're immensely proud of our little studio and love working here. You can follow us on Instagram @Dove_Street , or on Twitter @Bristol_Dove_St , to keep up with the latest studio antics. Check out our panoramic view over Bristol And our Studio sign painted by the talented Elisa Cunningham Email 59dovestreet@gmail.com for more information

I'm in a reflective mood and wanted to share a post about work, creativity and insecurity. I love drawing in sketchbooks and normally it comes naturally, but at the beginning of the year I couldn't pick up a pencil because everything I drew looked absolutely awful. I hadn't particularly considered "style" before, but it became an ever present doubt. My thoughts circled like this:  Does this look like my work? Am I allowed to draw dot eyes? Will people recognise my artwork? Does it matter if they do?  Last year I inherited a folder full of scrap paper from a friend leaving the studio, and decided to collage some Christmas cards for my friends and family. I started cutting and sticking and it felt so liberating. I began to treat collage as a kind of improvised art therapy, thinking of it as my "creative playtime". Through paper cut I actively considered things I had previously overlooked, I focused more on colour, shape and composition. It's been a...

Last month we had a FAB-u-lous party to celebrate the publication of Fabio Flamingo 'The Case of the Missing Hippo' by Laura James (illustrated by myself) We held the party in the super chic Boston Tea Party in Bath and the dress code was 'think pink'... Needless to say, it was a pretty special night! Thank you to everyone who came and made it such a wonderful evening, and to Mr B's Emporium for providing us with all the books. Here they are in all their neon glory And here we are, busy signing away But of course, my biggest thank you goes to Laura and the Bloomsbury team for being so brilliant. Go team Fabio! A few weeks later I popped to Mr B's and painted a Fabio display in the shop window. It was so exciting to see the Fabio books on the shelves "out in the wild"! 😊

Last month I was lucky enough to celebrate World Book Day with the wonderful Fosseway school. We chatted about what it means to be an Illustrator and discussed how picture books are made. Here's a little peek at my presentation showing the different stages of development when illustrating picture book spread 👀 (this particular spread is from 'Elephant's Pyjamas' by Michelle Robinson) Then things became a little bit more interactive... We whipped out the flip chart and got scribbling. I showed everyone how to draw the cheeky Monkey character from Monkey's Sandwich. Just check out these amazing Monkeys (I have some stiff competition!) In the afternoon I ran a couple of book building workshops, which involved constructing crazy stories together as a class by playing a fun 'consequences' style game. Everyone then illustrated a page of the story, which we assembled together in a picture book (now that's what I call teamwork) This story is c...

Earlier this year I illustrated a board game for HABA. I've always wanted to work on a game, so it was very exciting when my copy arrived!  🤓 And of course, you can order yours here... https://www.haba.de/en_GB/toys/sensory-world/p/303463 😉

Recently I've been exploring new visual ideas and I loved drawing these birds. It's been great pushing how I create and think this busier style of illustration may be an exciting path to follow... We shall see!

I was saddened to hear the news that Michael Bond passed away a few days ago. Paddington Bear has always been a favourite of mine (along with many others!). It's a timeless classic and a really wonderful children's book. 🐻

Congratulligator Dramallama