Sunday House Chat

The Easter chicks are dead

Not much news here because I am in illustrator hibernation mode. I have a book to finish. Bye. See you later. Studio door closes quietly in your face.

OK, come in; I need a cuppa anyway.

Usually, I am a ‘jump-about-er-er’, doing lots of different tasks in a day sort of person. But when I reach final artwork stage I like to lock the door and hibernate. I go full hermit: beard and everything.

Every day, I wake up, do some exercise, eat my breakfast in front of YouTube (I am down a Scientology rabbit hole at the moment and loving that), then head to my desk to fill the jars of water and rip some paper to size for the day ahead. Then I bung on my big squishy earphones, pick up my brushes, and I am away in Salty Land for hours. I am in The Zone.

Salty Dog drawing the curtains

In the late afternoon, I wash my paintbrushes and head to the river with Peggy Dog.

Late afternoon river walks

Some days, I find it hard to talk to anyone because my brain is in a book-making fog.

Once this hibernation phase is over I will be doing The Children’s Book Show — and I cannot wait. I will come out of my cave (Jesus at Easter styleee) and get to meet hundreds of children. This is when I see if the book I made connects with children, which is such a thrill. I am extra excited this time because I will be performing with Neal Layton, one of my favourite author/ illustrators. Emily Brown and the Thing is one of my all time favourite children’s books.

Emily Brown and the Thing by Neal Layton

What else is happening here this week? Pie and her best pal made a chocolate cake but left it in the oven for 35 minutes too long. She ate a piece, but she did too much grimacing and exaggerated chewing for my liking, so I haven’t touched it.

New book shelves and upside down chicks

We put ALL the books on the new shelves. For the first time since we moved here — 13 years ago — all of our books have a shelf to live on. This feels like a big adulting moment.

I decorated a branch with Easter chicks but could only get them to hang upside down. They look like a storm blew them off their happy farmyard into a tree, where they got tangled and died. Happy Easter!

Love Helenx