- Lorna
Oh to be ten again!
When your client is turning ten, and briefs you with a list of her favourite things... Oh so lovely!!
I am doubly lucky because this has actually happened twice this month. So my 'business meetings' have involved me sipping a brew while I get to hear about the things that delight and inspire a young mind. It made me wonder if I had been sat in their shoes, what might I have put on my list?
I was actually gifted a Molly Brett illustration around that time, with a teddy bear's picnic scene which I used to stare at for hours, it was everything I hoped the world to be.
Aged 9, I was a huge fan of the Wind in the Willows and my parents took me to visit the Cosgrove Hall set for my birthday, which was so fun and inspiring.
I got a copy of Matilda for my 10th birthday, which I read and read and read. I found reading challenging , I still do. So I avoided reading once I outgrew picture books, but Matilda was different - ironic really since it is about a girl who loves to read.
I loved baking with my mum. And through the marvels of Brambly Hedge, I thought that all birthday cakes ought to be made with 3 tiers - which didn't fully match up with real life, hehe. I think I'd have put one on my list though.
- My sister and I had a rabbit, they would have been on my list for sure.
- I loved to play the piano, and I had a keyboard which had the best sound effects and I had a lot of fun playing about with that - akin to Ross from Friends!
-I had a pair of roller skates which I used a lot, although I never understood what purpose the stoppers served other than causing a face plant, and so I'd go from wall to wall and that worked perfectly! Similarly, I was a huge fan of ice skating - those stoppers never worked for me either... walls - much better!
-I would get SO excited by snow. I hadn't yet skied, but this was something I dreamt of. Ski Sunday, Narnia, and anything featuring snow would capture my imagination.
-I loved to cartwheel...everywhere. It was my mode of travel. Other than a few grazes on my hands, there was no downside and it just seemed so much more fun than walking!
I realised that the things that would be on my list back then, would probably be very similar now if I was to commission an illustration with all of my favourite things. It would be magically snowy with animals and cosiness, tea and cakes and adventure. Well, I think that explains why I draw the things I do!
I'd love to hear what you'd have on your list!
Here is the final illustration for my wonderful soon-to-be-ten client, Olivia. It was a joy to work on this, and thankfully she loves it too.
P.S. Never grow up. x
