au bar

I love when it is raining in Edinburgh. Especially on a Monday morning. I get a coffee and plan the week ahead while watching people rushing to work. Most of them is triple unhappy - because they had to wake up early, because it is Monday and because it is raining. 

sketching trips

Sketches from our recent drawing trips when I was being very lazy. With the second one I was feeling like making a sketch and then destroying it by adding more and more black until it dissapears. Fortunately, we had to leave before the sketch dissapeared. I think I will have to do some collage and photoshopping now.

My dummy book is progressing and it looks like I will be able to finish it before Bologna. I got most of images scanned and now I will need to make friends with photoshop again.

a very engaging book

Another quick sketch from ages ago.
I have been busy furnishing flat for cat and dog recently, which is rather fun. I've got four double spreads to finish the dummy book and start producing final artwork. It is a little bit of a challenge as I try to be as playful as possible with colours, textures and techniques. A completely new area of exploration...
Yesterday I spent a very productive morning in my favourite continental cafe in stockbridge (they have very good cafe au lait and there is a marzipan soap in the bathroom!). I was teaching a dog to play golf. He was doing very well. Especially that I have no idea how to play golf.

The good news is that the spring is coming!!!

haymarket

A sketch I made ages ago and I've never finished it. For some reasons I am too scared to put the colour on. Anyhow, Haymarket station, 6am on a weekday. My favourite destination.

I finally finished Bear the Photographer and he is now available in my Etsy shop. Unfortunately, the cutest camera in the world the bear is taking pictures with has been sold.

ages ago

I found some sketches in my moleskine that I've never posted for some reasons.
Our friend Amelia during one of our very long board game sessions. I know that Amelia is a regular visitor to this blog but she never leaves any trace. Perhaps she will leave a comment this time...

A beautiful, dark and rainy Monday morning in a coffee shop...

Our friend Basia one day before she left Edinburgh.

One of the very rare occasions, when there was no traffic on Lothian Road and I could stand there and make a sketch. A peculiar event to watch too.  .  

A couple I saw in a coffee shop and absolutely loved the way they looked. 

I feel like making more sketches of people again.

west end

1.1.11

First sketch I made in 2011.  Happy New Year everyone!

drawing trip

We had a very pleasant drawing trip last Friday. It was not as much of a trip as it was pouring rain outside and we were sitting in a warm and comfortable cafe on Mound with a tea and hot chocolate making plenty of fun sketches. All sorts of warming up drawing exercises - blind drawing, drawing with left hand, drawing with one continuous line, drawing with needle and thread.  Kate was just brilliant and I think I shouldn't believe that the last time she did some drawing was when she was eleven.
I am very pleased with my left handed watercolour. Apparently I finally found out a way to paint with watercolours - use the hand that I cannot control at all! Quite frustrating I must admit. 

morning coffee with red

Still struggling.

morning cappuccino with hands

I've never learnt properly how to draw hands. Always been rather scared by the vision of drawing them and quite often left people on my sketches hand-less which was a bit creepy. So now I am going to draw more hands every now and then (partly because of the project I am planning to work on soon). The drawings are ugly and awkward at the moment but hope to get better soon. Wearing funky nail polish does help though!

kasia is happy

had a very nice and very lazy week and managed to recover a bit after the degree show. No bears, moles or foxes, however I couldn't help drawing this beautiful whippet hound when he came for a coffee to my favourite French cafe. What a nice morning I had! Also I went rollerskating to cramond in the afternoon, which made me even happier. Especially when a little girl said: "you did rollerskate real good!".

a sketch i made ages ago

It has been rather busy recently and I am afraid it is going to be like that for the next few weeks. That is why I don't have time for morning sketching sessions in cafes and for blogging. Which is sad.

delayed sketches from trip to poland and london

1. Flight with our 'favourite' airlines from Edinburgh to Kraków and waiting in launge in Katowice Airport before the flight to London.
2. Capuccino in a cafe in Kraków. From all cafes in Kraków we choose te one that was plenty of English speaking people!
3. In front of Tate modern in London and a quick sketch of a guy who fell asleep just in front of me on the train to London Luton. The other one in the background was watching me sketching. One of these situations when you cannot pretend you do not sketch the guy in front of you but a very exciting element of a seat just beside him.
4.Wait in launge, London Luton.
5. Chilling out in Toruń.
6. In front of train station in Iława Główna. One of these places that make me think I want to move back to Poland now.

monday morning americano with a stylish man

I am about three monday morning sketches behind so I will have to catch up. This one is from 31 May and it was when I learnt that americano coffee tasted better from a take away cup or a mug than from a real cup.

Muszę trochę nadgonic, bo jestem ze trzy poranne poniedziałkowe do tyłu. Przy okazji tego doszłam do wniosku, że kawa americano jest najlepsza w papierowym kubku, a nie jakieś tam europejskie snobizmy filiżankowe. A zawsze myślałam, że picie kawy z papierowgo kubka to profanacja (kolejny dowód na to, że już za długo przebywamy w tym kraju).

in the meantime

I still haven't got round the photos and sketches from our trip Krakow-London-Warszawa-Torun- Gdansk. The blog got stuck so here is a monday afternoon capuccino in sketch that I took ages ago. Hope to post some more up to date sketches soon. Have to colour some snails first.

Jako, że wciąż nie udało mi się przysposobic zdjęc i szkiców z naszej wyprawy Kraków-Londyn-Warszawa-Toruń-Gdańsk, to wrzucam stary szkic kawiarniany. Już niedługo bardziej aktualne rysunki, tylko muszę wcześniej pokolorowac kilka ślimaków.

saturday afternoon flat white in

In my favourite cafe in Edinburgh.

last wednesday's morning capuccino in

vanilla latte in

I am having a small vanilla latte, Basia is drawing a dead woman in the bath and a pigeon has lost a feather. nothing more really...

Sobotnie popołudnie przy kawie latte waniliowej, Basia rysuje przerażające obrazki, a gołąb zgubił pióro.

caficultores de juncalito

in one of the best coffee shops in edinburgh

yerba mate in china cups

Tea served in china cups! It is first time it happened to me since I came to this country. I might have something to do with the fact that the tea room is run by a Polish girl. Managed to drink the tea before I took the photo.