Narcissus

One of the drawing challenges for last year from The Tuesday Collective on Instagram was 'narcissus'. At first I was a bit stuck on what to draw as I didn't want to draw a typical narcissus flower. After a bit of research online, I decided to draw this narcissus shirt from Luv Boutique. It uses a stylised paper-cut style print and is printed onto a stunning black background.

The colour palette for this illustration uses bold tones of green, red and blue.

The shirt is from Luv Boutique and is made from cotton. It has a beautiful bold print in the style of Matisse paper cut art. I love the voluminous sleeves!

Turtleneck illustration

This week's prompt word from The Tuesday Collective on Instagram is 'turtleneck' so I chose to draw this auburn-haired beauty. She is wearing a deep brown turtleneck and has a fabulous pair of oversized earrings.

I love joining in with these drawing challenges as it frees me up from my regular job of designing. I love to use fashion and beauty as my influence and enjoy using a pleasing colour palette. This one uses warm autumnal tones of brown, orange and pink.

Lip service

The recent drawing challenge from The Tuesday Collective on Instagram had 'Pencil Skirts' as its prompt so I decided to draw this pencil skirt by Le Superbe. It's a fabulously sequinned number and has a luscious allover lip print. It's paired with a fab lip sweater and I couldn't resist putting it on a bright pink background.

The 'Liza Kiss Kiss' sequinned skirt is midi length with a high rise waist and elastic waistband.

Look up close to see the detailing and how much the skirt shimmers!

The 'Hot Lips' crewneck sweater is the perfect paring for this skirt. It has long sleeves and a classic fit, with the hem sitting at the hip.

Le Superbe was launched by Jeannine Braden in fall 2018 and prides itself in laid-back, Cali-cool vibes with a rock 'n' roll edge.

 I often join in on drawing challenges that are hosted on Instagram and love to create stylised fashion drawings using a pleasing colour palette. Last week's drawing challenge from The Tuesday Collective on Instagram involved a very pleasing colour palette. I chose to draw this fashion illustration which includes a geometric floral coat and I used the orange and red for the floral print. The background uses the pinks.

The colour palette consists of corals and pinks that work really well together.

Tongoro

The latest theme for the The Tuesday Collective drawing challenge on Instagram is 'Tongoro', which is a high end African brand that was launched in 2016 by Sarah Diouf. Her style includes dramatic silhouettes in bold prints and her creations have been worn by celebrities such as Beyonce and Naomi Campbell. You can find more on Instagram here.

This is my interpretation of the Tongoro style. I chose a bold dress with a fabulous black and white design and used an orange background for drama.

The dress I chose to draw is called the Jana dress and is made from a black and white wavy printed fabric. It has oversize bell sleeves and a ruched bodice.

Pleats please!

I love participating in the drawing challenges from The Tuesday collective on Instagram. A few weeks ago, the prompt word was 'pleats'. I generally like to draw something fashion-related for these drawing challenges so I chose to draw this green chiffon pleated dress from H&M. It was a bit of a challenge as the see-through nature of the fabric made it difficult to recreate, but I think I got there in the end!

This H&M calf-length dress is made from a pleated chiffon and has a scoop neckline and long balloon sleeves with elasticated cuffs.

This dress also comes in a powder pink version but I much prefer the green version.

 

Delphinium sweater

This week's challenge from The Tuesday Collective on Instagram is 'Larkspur', which is the common name for two members of the buttercup family, delphinium and consolida ajacis. It can have a wide range of meanings including love, sweetness, strength, purity and youth.

I usually start a drawing challenge with something fashion-related and so googled items of clothing that have delphiniums on them. One of the items that popped up was a sweater from Barbour. I was immediately drawn to the bold design and pleasing colour palette. I chose a model with a cheeky smile and choppy bob, and the pink background finished it off nicely, bringing out the rosiness of the model's cheeks. You can find this drawing on my Instagram here.

The sweater is available to buy here.

 

Primary colours

Last week's prompt for the drawing challenge from The Tuesday Collective on Instagram was 'Primary Colours' so I chose to draw this stunning dress from Boden. 

It's made from a silky-looking viscose fabric and has a dramatic chevron design in a variety of bright colours including blue, green and red.

This v-neck tiered dress has beautiful balloon sleeves, a flowy skirt with pockets and a tie belt to cinch in the waist.

Beach chic

 'Beach Chic' was the prompt for last week's drawing challenge from The Tuesday Collective on Instagram so I drew this fabulous 1950s beach babe, inspired by a black and white photo I found online.

I chose a vintage-inspired colour palette of burnt oranges and teal blues which set off her golden tan perfectly. The yellow sun hat adds a pop of brightness.

Purple

The prompt word for last week's drawing challenge from The Tuesday Collective on Instagram was 'purple' so I chose to draw this beautiful silk dress from ME+EM. I gave my model a choppy black bob and a cheeky grin.

This beautiful iris dress is made of silk which gives it a fluid, flattering drape. It's maxi in length and has a shirred waist and voluminous balloon sleeves.

Look up close and you will see it has a fabulous floral print in a deep shade of red. I wouldn't normally put these two colours together but they look great!

 

Bright colours

 I love participating in drawing challenges and try to do one a week. Last week's prompt for the Tuesday Collective drawing challenge on Instagram was 'bright colours'. With most drawing challenges I love to do something fashion-related so I chose to draw this vibrant pose using a coat and wide-legged trousers and made it quite stylised and colour-blocked.

We were given a suggested colour palette which was really pleasing to work with. I loved the hot pink and knew instantly that the coat should be in that colour. The mustard trousers look great paired with the hot pink coat and a touch of red and orange in the handbag finished it off. The dark teal was the perfect colour for the background as it showed off all the bright colours perfectly.

Red hot

I love designing and drawing for a living, but it usually means having to keep to a strict brief, so it's lovely to free myself up by dipping into drawing challenges and designing something for myself. A recent drawing challenge from The Tuesday Collective on Instagram was 'red hot'. I like to draw something fashion-related so after doing a bit of research online, I decided to use a fabulous romper suit by Farm Rio (one of my favourite shops) as my inspiration. They always have bold, bright prints and this red romper was the perfect choice.

The Farm Rio romper is playful yet elegant and comes in a bold red colour with pink piping and a bold print. The bodice is smocked and there are delicate cutouts that lead down from a sweetheart neckline.

Look up close and you will see the pretty print that consists of intricate folk-style flowers and leaves in a hot pink colour. The puffed sleeves add a touch of drama.

 

Double denim

I recently created this drawing for a drawing challenge set by The Tuesday collective on Instagram. I love to dip into drawing challenges as it keeps me creative and is something not related to work. For this challenge, the prompt word was 'denim'. I usually like to draw something fashion-related and so discovered a denim jacket designed by Adidas and Farm Rio, two of my favourite brands. I drew the jacket on a fabulous afro-haired woman.

The zip-up jacket is made from denim with an ikat-inspired print. It keeps the trademark three stripes down the arms and still has the Adidas logo on the chest.

It also has matching trousers using the diamond ikat design used in the jacket.

 

Ann Lowe illustration

The prompt word for last week's drawing challenge from @thetuesdaycollective on Instagram was "Ann Lowe" who was the first African-American to become a renowned fashion designer. Her unique designs were worn by high-society, including Jackie O. I chose to draw the neckline of this debutante dress, but gave it an updated look.

This dress was designed in 1967 and I was drawn to the trailing rosebuds that adorn the neckline of this simple white taffeta dress. The rosebuds are made from red velvet and the leaves and stems are made from a green silk fabric.

From the front, the dress is a simple princess line style, and the white taffeta makes a great background for the rosebuds to stand out.

From the back, the dress has this stunning rose bouquet that starts in the small of the back and trails down the back of the dress.

 

Pleasing plaid

 I recently joined the weekly drawing challenge from @thetuesdaycollective on Instagram. The prompt word for that week was 'plaid' so I chose to draw this fabulous 'Grand Plaid' wool coat from Kate Spade. I was inspired by the oversize design of the plaid but also to the amazing colours. It almost has a patchwork feel to it, with one side using shades of green and blue and the other side using shades of red, pink and orange. You can find it on my Instagram here.

This is the original Grand Plaid coat, which looks amazingly warm as well as stylish - quite a statement piece. Not surprisingly, all sizes have sold out on the Kate Spade website!

Love is in the air

 I drew this illustration for a drawing challenge set by @thetuesdaycollective on Instagram a while ago. The theme was 'hearts' and I chose to draw this fab female wearing a Gucci heart print silk twill blouse.

I realised that my illustration matched beautifully with my heart sunglasses print. Bright red sunnies sit on a pink background with tiny white hearts and sprinkles in the background.

This sunglasses print is available to buy in my Spoonflower shop on a variety of ready-made products. My favourites are these bedding items, perfect for a girl's bedroom.

This cotton sateen sheet set includes on flat sheet and two pillow cases and comes in six sizes.

The duvet cover makes a great statement in the bedroom and comes in three sizes.

Use this throw pillow as an accent in the bedroom and comes in two sizes.

Illustration challenge

I love an illustration challenge. It's a nice way of designing something for myself, away from any designs I do for work and it's very freeing! There are two accounts I follow on Instagram that do regular design challenges. One is @thetuesdaycollective who set weekly challenges and the other is @ellolovey who sets a monthly challenge, with a doodle a day.

The @thetuesdaycollective account often sets challenges based around current fashion trends and last week's challenge was all about neon. After doing a bit of research I decided to draw these fabulous wide leg trousers from Me and Em. I loved the hot pink version but also liked the apple green version so decided to draw both!

Last month's @ellolovey drawing challenge included the word 'tribute' so I decided to draw a tribute t-shirt. Blondie was a big idol of mine growing up (and still is) so I decided to draw a Blondie t-shirt from Backstage Originals. I love the 80s vibe!

 

Boho chic

 This week's drawing challenge from @thetuesdaycollective is 'Boho Chic' so I decided to create this beauty! It's inspired by a dress in the Farm Rio collection and is aptly-named Cool Leopard Maxi Dress - the perfect dress for a leopard lover.

Look up close and you'll see this fabulous leopard peering through the brightly-coloured tropical foliage.