A foodie trip, mindful art and framing it!!!......

So it has been two and a half months since I wrote my last post - my doesn’t time whizz by when you’re having fun.

September is a wonderful month - the kids go back to school which they need and let’s face it, so do we, the weather can still be beautiful with the merest hint of the autumn in the morning air and its a great time for me to be exploring the new and giving my creative brain something to bounce off.

My husband and I were trying to decide what to do for our anniversary. After going round the houses, we decided on a last minute weekend in Edinburgh - one of our very favourite places on earth and where we have spent previous anniversaries before.

After a delightful and celebratory (Cheers!!) train trip up on the Friday night, we immersed ourselves in the city night life, which felt a bit strange since we have spent so little time mingling with big crowds since the pandemic began.

The next morning dawned atmospherically and we spent it strolling through Stockbridge (my personal fav place in the city) and enjoying our breakfasts (yes that’s right, we had two as there were so much to choose from - just call be Bilbo Baggins:-)) and taking in the independent food retailers which it is so famous for. One that caught my eye was Herbie of Edinburgh Delicatessen, with its great selection of fresh food and drink and it’s gorgeous blue painted exterior. This was definitely going to be an illustration when I got home.

Later that day, we made our way to the stunning Royal Botanical Gardens. The weather was glorious and we had the place to ourselves - well almost. I discovered a soon to be closing exhibition of photographs of the Garden’s collection of seeds by world renowned Photographer Levon Biss. It was incredible to see the wide variety of shape, colour and form that these seeds came in - I had no idea how interesting and beautiful they could be so was really pleased to be taking home a copy of the exhibition book to savour over a coffee or two..

This is the first Autumn I have spent at our new house and studio and it has been incredible to see the changing of the season in my garden. The previous owners created a mini arboretum at one end of the garden about 30 years ago and it has a splendid American Oak, Beech and Maple at its centre. Although it can feel a little sad to see the leaves turning, knowing the colder months are on their way, the display of colours was so extraordinary I felt compelled to capture them in a sketchbook painting, one blustery afternoon.

In the Office I knuckled down to some business admin I’d been putting off for a while. Somehow it doesn’t feel like work which is of course nonsense. I feel I should be spending all my time in the studio, producing ART! But admin is all part of running a freelance business and I finally got some stickers and merchandise produced to be sent with orders I mail out to customers. I’m pretty chuffed with how they came out. They definitely put a smile on my face. I hope they do with my customers too.

Back in the Studio I started mounting and framing previous work I have produced. It represents my creative journey and on days when I feel I’m not going very fast or producing enough work, I can look at my studio walls to remind me just how far I’ve come. And there is still space for more!!!

So it’s the first day of Winter tomorrow (meteorically speaking) so I will stop there just now. I’ll be back in December with some fun festive illustrations that I’ll be sharing on my Instagram page https://www.instagram.com/julesrussellillustration/

My Etsy shop https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/JulesRussellShop will be open until 21st December for last minute greetings cards and prints. Please note the cut off delivery dates for international posting on the front of my shop.

So wrap up, stay warm and indulge in one too many mince pies.