How’s 2025 going for you so far? I can’t get over that it is already February! Oh boy, time flies.
We had a had a major weather event, a week of rain and flooding sandwiched between intense heat waves. I honestly feel summer in the tropics is when we retreat indoors and rest. That has been nice, and now the kids are back in school. So,I’m finding more time for art. Yay!
I designed a new sketchbook last week, a prototype for my A5 design. I need to to tweak it a little, but otherwise I’m happy with it.
This week, I have just been having fun, trying not to be too serious with my art. We have brought our budgie inside due to the heat, and he’s become a bit of inspiration.
I think I’ll keep brainstorming ideas and maybe paint a few designs up properly. See how it goes.
So far, I’ve started strong with my art practice. The haze of Christmas and New years is behind us. So, I’ve focused on setting routine in our home. With four kids, I find routine really helpful with: a) keeping my sanity, b) getting things done.
I also adjusted my art expectations to keeping projects small, that I can complete them in a day. This means I feel that I am achieving something but also prevents me from getting too distracted (in which I’m an expert).
So, what have instead been working on? Primarily freshening up a set of drawers that o have had forever. Made of pine, it has housed my coloured pencils, a sticker collection, and a surprisingly small ‘doom pile’. After all this time, it was starting to look a tad forlorn. So, with some sanding, priming, and splashes of gouache, it is done! 🤩
The primary sketch, and trace to transfer it. I used this method for 2/4 drawers. The other two I draw straight on the primed surface.
It was so much fun! I think I’ll work on my skills with this method for a while. The boldness of the paint was very playful and more forgiving than the watercolours.
2025 is a shift. 2025 holds the weight of change, the expected hope of growth and opportunity. It also feels like the end of an old way, rusty thoughts and self sabotage. In 2025 I want to come into myself, and be present there.
Past years I have held space for growth, dark nights of the soul and self healing. It is now the time to do. Do what? Create, make and send things into the world.
I’m intentionally working on my artist practice, to the point I have set up a business. It is my work.
In the process I’ll share my journey with you. My writing may be clumsy, but I hope to focus on consistency over perfection.
So here I am 2025. Ready and waiting, on a creative surf board on the ocean of life. Let’s catch some waves. And make them big.
I’m slowly waking between the phone alarm and sunrise. I’m not that old but my bones are a little weary. I know there is a lot to do today. Like every other day. Such is the life of a mum.
I drag myself to the kitchen, fill the kettle and switch it on. The blue light glows as I potter around, putting things into motion for the day. A load of washing, collecting lunch boxes, watering plants. When I return the kettle is boiled- often a little cooler then I like it. I make the most ordinary instant coffee. Milk, no sugar. Mug in hand I shuffle back to bed, to enjoy its warmth and comfort. I sit and sip while the rest of the house starts to stir.
There’s something special about filling in a sketch book and starting a brand new one. Fresh clean paper ,endless possibilities- wonderful! A few years ago I found I was going through them faster then I could afford them, so I turn to making my own from cheaper sketch pads.
Last week I just made my 12th one, and by far it has been my best make yet. ❤
For those who like to engage in the comments: 1. Have you ever tried book binding? What kind of book did you make? 2. Is there a creative activity you do to save on costs?
What would you do if you lost all your possessions?
Growing up, in the bush, you would occasionally see bushfires burning in the distance. At night, they seemed closer to the point where you’d worry that if you went to sleep, you might wake to find your house on fire. During these times, I would make a mental list of the most important items I owned: the things I would take if I only had a few moments to spare. The things I thought I couldn’t live without, like my Derwent pencils, the Starcastle tea set, or my favorite Barbie.
At the end of the day my sole possessions included: a school uniform, schoolbooks, and a Bible (that’s a whole story for another time).
I had lost practically everything… And after the initial shock and we started to rebuild. to my surprise I found it was freeing to have not things. A fresh start. Juxtaposing my prior thoughts of holding onto things, I was lighter, more flexible. I placed more value in people and relationships. It was one of those events that sets a life’s trajectory. For a moody 14 year old it really put things into a new perspective.
Because I was a teenager, I think my reaction was different from what my reaction would be if I were to lose all my possessions today. I now have a home and a family. Years of journals and handmade art books, photos, and computers… half a lifetime’s worth of stuff. Do I need any of it? Probably not. But this stuff does make me more comfortable, and I am intentional with what I let into our home. I also freely throw things out when they are no longer bringing us benefit. So if I lost all my possessions again, it would be hard, I would be sad. But it wouldn’t be the worst thing. As long as I am connected with my community and maintain healthy relationships with those around me, I know I’ll be okay. After the house burned down, the news was reported nationally. The township received donations from all over Australia for those who lost their home that day. We were offered free therapy and sympathy. In the end, the values we hold as a collective are far more valuable than things.
We can all agree that 2020 was an ‘interesting year.’ Covid unleased a turmoil that the modern world hadn’t seen before. With lockdowns and great uncertainty, I, like many became weighted with anxiety.
I found solace in creating zines and sending them to friends. It felt like a tangible way to stay connected amidst the chaos. While digital communication is essential, there’s something special about receiving a physical zine in the mail. It serves as a reminder that we are not alone in our struggles and that creativity can bridge distances.
This afternoon, I stumbled upon a copy of this particular zine that I had filed away. Honestly, it made me smile to see this little collection of inked images and imperfect handwriting. I reminisced as I made, photocopied, and mailed each one to friends with a teabag. I enjoyed the messages from friends exclaiming that they found the little treat in their mailboxes. It gave me a sense of connection during a time of great disconnect.
If you are interested in printing this zine, download and print the file below. Instructions on how to turn it into a zine can be found here
What is something kind that has happened to you recently?
This is an old post (2021) from a previous blog. I hope you enjoy 🙂
So, a few years ago I was a obsessed with idea of making a zine. What is a zine you may ask- well to my understanding a zine is a small self published work. there are no set rules and feel a bit rebellious. They are an underground, grass roots way of getting you idea into the world. Here’s a nifty article by the West Port Library about their history. When found instructions similar to this I knew I had make one!
And so I did! I made it, copied it a dozen times and stashed it away in the cupboard where it sat since 2017. That is until today…
On impulse this morning I planned to go scan old art, and dug it up again. So before it goes back to the archives I figured- why not share it! Here is a pdf that you have download and print to turn into your own little Aesop inspired zine.
To make this zine, simply save the image above, print it on an A4 sheet of paper and follow these instructions that were found on annabrones.com. Anna has nifty post about zines in general if you want to learn more.
Lastly, just wanted to share that I have a Redbubble account now and have posted these little little illustrations there if you would like to support my art!
Until next time,
P.S. 2023 Sarah here :D. I loved designing this zine and hope to make more in the future. Follow the blog if you want to see more zines too ❤
This is an old post (2022) from a previous blog. I hope you enjoy 🙂
I was blessed to go to a work retreat a couple weeks ago. One highlight was flying. It has been 3 years since I’ve flown, and even longer since I have flown alone, and it was wonderful.
The flight home was spectacular! Normally we fly on the earliest or latest flights, as they are generally cheapest. This time I flew home at dusk, watching the moon rise as clouds captured the last rays of sun. The photos I took fail to compare. Honestly breath taking!
So I painted it on procreate when I got home.
Still not as magical as the original dusk sky, but it feels truer then what my phone could capture.
In 2022 I wrote a thing… I’m note sure what it is, but it is certainly words. I often find my thoughts trailing off on my, excited by new shiny ideas, or overwhelmed but the many things I have to do. I was watching little birds flitting about some food scraps my children had left out side. They jumped from piece to piece. Darting away when they sensed trouble, only to return moments later.
It was in watching them I could see this is how my mind was working. So alert, so present and so easily distracted.
Sarah Rudge 