Wednesday 15 June 2011

Snail Sketches


A wet night brought the snails out in force and they actually move quite fast.  These were moving along a wooden fence and sometimes I thought they would drop off, pulled down by the weight of their shells as they turned over the edge. 

This is for Everyday matters - draw your hair in the morning.  I thought I'd slip this one in at the end and hope it didn't get noticed too much!  It's a bit wonky, but it was first thing in the morning....I used  a water soluble pen by Stabilo which helped things look a bit better.  

19 comments:

Sarah Melling said...

Cathy...these snails are lovely! I think that you might like a book that I'm currently reading:The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating. It was written by a woman who was incapacitated by a devastating illness and found inspiration in watching a snail that happened to be in a potted plant next to her bed. Sounds strange, I know, but it's fascinating...and it has some beautiful snail illustrations.

Studio at the Farm said...

Cute snails - they look very intent on their business!

bettyfromtexas said...

super sketches!! BOTH of them! I love your rendering of early morning tresses . . . I undertook this one as well, one morning when mine looked like a DQ cone :-)

Elizabeth Rose Stanton said...

Wonderful rendering of snails (we have a ton of them here in the NW US.
Great morning hair! I usually avoid drawing hair...so I am impressed :)

martinepittet said...

Great sketches : Lucky you, your hair doesn't look bad in the morning !
As for the snails they just look alive !! Welld done !

Anonymous said...

I love the way you have shown the angle of that snail turning. You have a lovely little 'tuft' of hair in the morning and drew it so well.

Anonymous said...

The snails are fabulous ..... and I wish my hair looked that good first thing!

Cathy Holtom said...

Thank you Sarah, I've had a look at the book, it looks interesting.
Betty - What's a DQ cone?

Alex said...

I totally agree that snails could be such intriguing creatures... love the drawing.
And what a fun sketch of yourself and your hair too =) I think it's awesome!

jenna said...

So cute! I love those snails.

For morning hair, that's actually not so bad. You're certainly not the abominable hair monster.

Shirley said...

The snails are fabulous! After a week of collecting empty shells on the beach, I love seeing the little critters. And you look great in the AM!

Gillian Mowbray said...

You mean it actually rains on your island? ^_~

You made the snails look so pretty - in contrast to your fabulous 'bedhead' drawing. Mind you, you still look better than me first thing! LOL

E*phi said...

Aw, these snails are supercute! So beautiful! I also like your morning selfportrait! Perfectly conveys that damn-I-need-to-get-up feeling :)

nanke's stuff said...

Yes, indeed, your snails are lovely. They would be very flattered at your depiction of them. Your hair is cute ... why bother combing it? lol Oh, and DQ stands for Dairy Queen, which is a chain of soft ice cream places. A DQ cone is their ice cream served in a flat-bottomed cone with a distinctive swirl on the top. nancy

Dan Kent said...

Your snails are wonderful! And I am sure that someone who loves you says your hair is quite beautiful in the morning. ;) I think it's a perfect drawing, as it conveys exactly how I feel when I wake up.

Anonymous said...

Nice snails and nice morning look Cathy! (For some reason, I've been putting off doing that particular challenge ;)
Sue

kazumiwannabe said...

Water soluble pen? that sounds interesting! Cool sketch of morning hair! The snails look great, too!

Ann said...

I like your morning hair sketch - it does say early morning perfectly. And the snails are lovely!

Lucia B. said...

I love the snail, your look on nature is always so fresh!
And I also like your morning self-portrait... you have chosen the right style for this bit of everyday life!