I've been very busy recently, working on my Etsy shop - consequently the illustration side of things has slipped back a bit - which is ridiculous since that's the whole purpose of the shop! Still, I have managed to do some sketching and have also worked on a couple of pictures.

I've also come to realise how much I prefer my own company, especially when being creative. I'm not the sort of person who craves a busy studio, although there are times when I value feedback, but thinking about this, I remembered that I had a very solitary childhood and was frequently left to explore places myself. My grandparents raised me and my grandmother in particular was not very active and also very unwilling to let me either have friends round to play, or go to other kids' houses. Whenever we went to galleries or museums, she would sit down and send me off by myself. Consequently, my imagination and interpretation of what I saw was entirely left up to me; I lived in my own head most of the summer breaks and weekends.

I remember hearing Paula Rego saying in an interview, that a solitary childhood is the best training for an artist, and I think she was right. Although I would have liked company as a child, I don't regret the independence of imagination that it gave me.