The Railway Inn

Around 1830 the railway arrived in Gosport. It was a special line for the convenience of Her Majesty Queen Victoria who had a house on the Isle of Wight, Osborn House, to which she was inclined to visit on occasion, so a train from London direct to Gosport, for onward travel by ferry, was most…

Town House

What better gift for a birthday or anniversary present than a unique drawing of your house. Or how about a gift for yourself just because you can. This is a lovely town house, somewhere north of London and includes a personal memory.

Arthur

Here is Arthur, the cockapoo. Not my usual architectural article, but I wandered off my beaten track to try some new techniques. He was well received by his mum.

Life is a circle

One of my early commissions, three years ago, was ‘The Shed’. It was the new workshop of Karen of @karensquilts. All sorts of 'additions' appeared - Cheryl, the crow; Lance, the good knight; Treacle, the family's late cat - and a strange dog who was who was, perhaps, a premonition of Arthur, the cockapoo. Karen has…

Lockdown lateness

This lovely house was ordered as a Christmas present to celebrate moving to a new home, but because of lockdown restrictions it wasn't received until until the person's birthday. So another happy customer, and I can post it for you all to see.Do you know someone who has moved to a new home?

Smashed it!

A tidy modern house, somewhere in central southern England, commissioned for a birthday. Unfortunately, the first picture not to arrive undamaged. Not me! The glass was smashed when the new owner received it. I sent it to the commissioning buyer, and it arrived safely, but the damage occurred when she sent it on. Luckily the…

Once upon a time …

... long, long ago, well that's how it seems! We are unable to post pictures of our Christmas commissions yet, so how about a bit of history.We first got serious about art and craft in 1994, when we took over a business running ceramic art classes - we called it 'Studio Minerva'. The shop was…

You have to laugh

Last year I was fortunate to be asked to illustrate a book of humorous poetry, so I did. As an illustrator my job is fairly straightforward - read the poem, draw the picture. The difficult bit is with the writer. The author of these chuckle-worthy gems is Dianne Phillips-Zito, she lives in a rather bleak…

Family Heirloom

Last year I was asked to draw a family house that held memories for three generations of one family. It was to be a Christmas present, but because the recipient was poorly I was asked to bring it forward as a birthday present instead. A few days ago, the lady who commissioned it contacted me…

There’s no place like Home

There are records dating back to 1650 for this Devon cottage. The modern extension is what used to be 'the stick store', presumably where firewood was stored, now kitchen/diner with bedroom and balcony above. It is also recorded as being the place where 'the pauper in the stick store' resided, according to census records. Apparently,…