A happy greyhound and fond farewells

Hello folks! Sorry I've been rather quiet for the last week or so, it's been all busy, busy. busy, this end.  I have a couple of exciting little projects I've been working on (one of which allowed me to justify visiting the Selfridges Christmas shop for inspiration - happy times!)  There have also been a lot of social engagements, including family gatherings.  The latter especially as my oldest brother will be leaving this country on friday to begin a new life with his long-term girlfriend in Australia.  It didn't hit me until a couple of days ago that he is really going - and now I suddenly realise that I don't know when I will see him again.  I truly hope that he enjoys his life out there, even though I'm only just grasping how much I'm going to miss him!

Like me, my brother is a big fan of dogs.  So, without further ado I present my finished greyhound illustration, which was first published on We Draw Dogs blog.  The canine-focused project is still ongoing, so be sure to check back there for more doggy pictures.  Or, if you too are handy with a brush and/or pen... why not send them a picture of your own!

I hope that this week you're all as happy as this dog looks.  Peace!

Edinburgh - a week in pictures (Saturday)

So here we are, the last set of photos from my week away. On my last day we had a poke around the National Gallery of Scotland (spotting an early Titian, a couple of Cranachs and a Goya) and then went walking, shopping and drinking.

The ever-present Scott monument

The excellent and very historic World's End tavern, so called because it marks where the limits of the old city walls used to be. We stopped off here for haggis, neeps and tatties. Very tasty with a couple of oat biscuits. Thanks to Chrissy for recommending it to me!

One last view before it was time to head off to pack... what a shame! Well I suppose all good things must come to an end.

Edinburgh - a week in pictures (Friday)

By the end of the week we had been doing so much running about that we decided to have a more relaxed day. So, after a nice lie-in we headed to the Botanic Gardens for a gentle stroll.

While there we encountered the memorial gardens for the Queen Mother, including this little summer house. It's ceiling is decorated with pine cones.

And the walls are decorated with all different types of shells!

A view out over the rock garden, I loved all the different textures, shapes and colours.

Edinburgh - a week in pictures (Thursday)

Rather less pictures for this one, as by this point I had a stinking cold so was managing to stagger round one or two things before collapsing in a pub. This day we headed over to Ocean Terminal, which is basically a shopping centre... with a friggin' big boat on the side!

Thar she blows - The Royal Yacht Britannia

The royal speed-boat, pimpin'! You can just imagine Charles and Diana having a romantic afternoon on this during their honeymoon, which they spent on the yacht (no wait, don't)

Edinburgh - a week in pictures (Wednesday)

On day three we tackled the mighty Edinburgh Castle.

After being rained on for about 45 minutes straight, we finally got up to the castle where we could enjoy stunning views out over the town (despite our wet feet). This is the view out to Calton Hill, where you can see the Nelson Monument and National Monument.

This is a cemetery for the soldier's and officer's pet dogs

The altar inside St. Margaret's chapel

One of the great halls inside the castle

On the way back to town we popped into The Red Door Gallery, which was kindly recommended to me by Cut Copy Create on twitter. It had lots of beautiful goodies to please illustration and design fans everywhere. Hannah Zakari also looked amazing, though sadly at the time we were passing we didn't have the time to stop and have a good look. Next time!