My Nature Journal - Autumn/Winter 2019/2020

Holly, painted with Daniel Smith watercolours

For a long time I have wanted to start a nature journal, or nature diary.
Nothing beats the beauty of nature and I love to draw and paint after nature.
When I received a grey toned sketchbook from Arteza, I suddenly knew this grey toned paper would be a nice basis for a journal.
So last autumn, I started to collect leaves, feathers, acorns, twigs, berries, ect. and started sketching, colouring and painting them. I also started to paint and draw birds that I saw around our home.

Late September we went to a forested area called Drunense Duinen. It is situated in the province Noord-Brabant, about 1 hour drive from where we live. We went walking there, saw lots of fly agaric toad stools and collected a lot of big pinecones and acorns. I used the acorns to make a small drawing and a painting for my nature journal.

Acorns, Prismacolor Premier on Arteza grey toned paper

Everytime I go out into nature I search for things that I can use for a drawing or painting. This nature journal changes the way I look at nature. As soon as the weather improves I will be able to take my pencils and paints outside enjoy painting and drawing outdoors. I am looking forward to 'en plein air' painting, painting outdoors.
I started doing painting outdoors last summer, when my husband and I were enjoying a beautiful vacation in Madeira and I love it!


In november we had a couple of beautiful Sunny days in The Netherlands and when I went out for a walk I walked by a tree with nice fall colours. I picked up one of the leaves that had fallen and back at home I dried it (I put it in a heavy book for about a week), put it in my diary and made a painting.

Autumn leaf , Hahnemühle Cézanne watercolour paper, Daniel Smith Watercolour paints 

We have several bird species flying around our house. Great tit and blue tit are often seen and also a robin often visits our garden. One of my favourite birds is the long-tailed tit. A group of blue tits, great tits and long-tailed tits often visits the bushes across the street. I have my binoculars ready because I love these graceful birds. They are black and white with a touch of pink. I hope I will be able to make a nice drawing of them in the near future
A couple of weeks ago I had my very first sight of a bird named Redwing (Turdus iliacus). There were two of them in the bushes across the street. I was able to take a couple of pictures. The pictures allowed me to make a watercolour painting.

Redwing, Hahnenühle Cézanne (Rough), 

Daniel Smith Watercolour paints

Winter time is a quiet time when it comes to plant and animal activity in our garden. So I cannot wait for spring to arrive and watch the plants start growing again, finding the first daffodils and crocusses, and watch insects like bees, bumblebees, ladybugs, etc. and make lots of drawings and paintings!

Keeping a nature journal is a great joy, I can highly recommend it. 

The oak leaf on the right is the real one, 

the one on the left is a drawing (prismacolor premier)

Blue tit, Sennelier Watercolour paints and Faber Castell Polychromos pencils