Becca's Sketchbook (2024)

24/07/2024

The mer-mazing new releases are now live! 🧜‍♀️✨

Two brand new greeting card designs, created from my recent illustrations. They are blank inside so you can write your own special message and matching envelopes (and puns 😅) are included

I recently tried out .work who print products with sustainable materials. These cards are printed on super thick, lovely cardstock and they are absolutely BEAUT quality so I am excited to hear what you think of them!

There's a link to my store in the bio if you want to have a nosy, any shares would be hugely appreciated 🩷

20/07/2024

Is it too early to be dreaming of Autumn? 😅🍂

I'm currently working on an illustration that is October/Autumn themed and although I can't show it you yet, I can tell you it's giving me big cosy vibes and I'm absolutely hyped up for my fave season to arrive 😍

Here's some illustrations from the Fall Fables collection I created, that basically sum up how I am feeling while working on it 🎃 Are you excited for Autumn yet or are you hoping we will have some more Summer before it gets ✨spooky✨

18/07/2024

My products are now available to purchase in lots of local gift shops and cafes, including my brand new mermaid greeting cards! 🧜‍♀️✨

If you are local and want to support my artwork, you can find my products at
🌼 Wild Café
🌼 The Old Coach House Healing Centre
🌼 Unity Yard
🌼 Gerry's at Cafe 33

I will also be adding these new greeting cards to my Etsy shop soon and updating the stock on there. Always let me know if there are any particular designs you would love to see me create 💜

https://beccahollinsart.etsy.com

16/07/2024

This lovely little lady has now been taken home, and she has been given a new name, Bella 🌹✨

I wanted to share a couple of close ups of the illustration because it's hard to capture details on reels sometimes. I added little swirlies on her wings, tattoos on her body and lots of sparkly bits. I also gave her lots of freckles and some cute jewellery too for those lovely big ears! 😍

12/06/2024

Please accept this humble arty offering of some sketchbook spreads and a little update from me 🌷

Phew! Mermay ended and then in a blink of an eye we are half way through June and I've barely posted...

I have had a few things going on, we sadly had a family bereavement in the last week of May so I haven't felt much creativity since then, I haven't even looked through my Mermay art properly yet really 🩷

I also feel like I put everything I had into Mermay, and going from 13 illustrations in 2023 to almost 30 in one month really took it out of me, maybe even to the point of a little bit of burn out 😅

I got the chance at the end of last week to order a few bits for a market I am doing and I have been taking lots of photos for inspiration of upcoming art - I have lots of ideas, I just haven't quite found the time to settle down to draw just yet.

I am just taking things a little slow at the moment, but I have really been loving this new account and enjoying the process of growing a wonderful arty community again so please don't think I've vanished now Mermay is over and forget me 🥹

I will be back soon with some new art, but for now I hope these messy sketchbook spreads will be ok! 🙏✨

28/05/2024

A bit of a soppy post incoming... But let's start by wishing the the biggest happy birthday to !! 🎂✨

And here's a cute little post about my art journey and how Whitney fits into it... I became interested in illustration and character design in college, and for one of the projects we got to choose an artist to research.

I chose Whitney because I was in awe of her gorgeous characters and the style of them, my biggest dream was to be able to draw like her.

I recently found my college sketchbook which has been buried in a cupboard for 10 years. As soon as I saw the pages about Whitney I decided that I wanted to make a post for the birthday prompt of Mermay and share them.

You can swipe to see the sketchbook pages, my god awful handwriting and one of the first characters I ever drew which was inspired by Whitney's art 😅

To Whitney, I wanted to say that, even though you don't really know me, thank you for inspiring me and making me want to practise drawing so much that I am able to make the art I make today. Thank you for making the beautiful things you have made, that college Becca would spend hours poring over. And thank you for being so lovely and supportive to all of us artists who are doing Mermay and for doing all you can to get our art seen, it means the world 🩷

I hope you have the most wonderful birthday and that you get to go to lots of mermaid parties 🧜‍♀️🎁

26/05/2024

Grab your shell-phones, the tea must be spilled! 🐚

A little twist on the 'tea' prompt for day 26 of Mermay, because there is still gossip to be heard in the ocean you know 💁

I had so much fun working on this illustration and I feel like I am really starting to see such an improvement in my art recently. I am super proud of how this one turned out 😍

I've decided to choose a few favourites during the last week, and spend a bit more time on the illustrations, so that I can make a few really special ones before Mermay comes to an end.

But for now... Here's the latest tea from the reef ☕🪸

25/05/2024

Not the kind of bubble bath you would want to be a fish in 😂💀

Today's prompt was 'Fart' which honestly stumped me at first. At this point I feel like I have started to relax a little bit and just have a bit of fun with my illustrations, and this is what I came up with.

I also brought back Cooper, or at least one of his family members, because I loved the design for him 🦀 I'm trying to experiment more with how I colour my work and thought I would try a limited colour palette and also less line art again.

I struggle a bit with how to differentiate parts that overlap but I am getting better! I wanted to do a nod to a 50s diner style palette for this one but with slightly richer colours.

I hope you like! 🫧

24/05/2024

I present to you, a squishy mer-tiger 🐯 Imagine if this is what tiger sharks looked like 😭

Lots of oranges and yellows for this one, and I also thought it would be cute to draw a younger mermaid!

I can't believe there is only 1 week left or Mermay 🫠 I have had such a fun time, many mental battles and I am excited to have a big sleep once I'm done 😅 But one more week to go with some super fun prompts!

Which are you most looking forward to this week? 😍

23/05/2024

I pray John doesn't ban me from the industry for giving him a shell bra if he sees this 🐚

And a big thank you to John Musker for all of the lovely things you have made, for all of the inspiration you have given me and all of the childhood memories and role models I have had from your work 🙏

I really hope this illustration makes you laugh 😅

22/05/2024

I don't think we have done a purple mermaid yet?! 💜

Back to the official Mermay prompt list again for today's prompt, Lagoon! I've been trying to explore a bit more storytelling and emotion in my illustrations and have also been trying to work on creating some more interesting backgrounds in some of my pieces.

I think this is the first sad mermaid I have done, and also the first with a purple colour palette so she's definitely a little different to the others, I hope you like her! 🥰

What other colour mermaids should we do? 🧜‍♀️

20/05/2024

I'm taking a short break from the official Mermay prompt list to enter this beautiful DTIYS hosted by on IG 🩷

I really loved the palette for this design, the warmer colours and the really fun background style. And of course, any art with a turtle friend is a must! 🐢

If you don't already follow Karoline, pop over to her account which is tagged in the pics and above and have a nosy at her stunning work 😍

There won't be any mermaids tomorrow as I am having a little break since combining smol and sequential, but I will be back on Wednesday with the Lagoon prompt!!

Which has been your favourite so far? ✨

19/05/2024

This is Jade, and here's a little bit about her... ✨

She is a natural healer and uses a combination of her own magic, as well as elixirs and spells made with herbs and flowers of the ocean. When she uses her magic, it smells like mint chocolate.

She's always a little all over the place. Bumping into things, knocking things over, occasionally blowing herself up when concocting potions... But when it counts, she is full of wisdom, knowledge, and is the most incredible healer!

The jade crystal around her neck and beautiful jade bangle are some of the many trinkets she has found on the ocean floor. Inside her satchel you will find shells, crystals, stones, sea glass and all manner of wonderful things she collects.

And of course, she always has a few potions with her, just incase she needs them! 🌿

I created her for the Jade prompt because I love crystals and wanted to create a character that embodied the properties of the Jade crystal and it's wonderful healing powers ☺️ I hope you like her, I had a lot of fun creating her and thinking about her personality and traits 💚

18/05/2024

A short story about Cooper the Crab and his 5p coin 🦀

I wanted to create a sense of scale for the smol prompt, and had the idea of putting Cooper next to a tiny coin. But I wanted to tell a story of this inquisitive little fella trying to move a GIANT and very heavy coin so it slowly became a sequence of images which was super cute to work on.

I think it's so fun to imagine that the coin is a 5p and is actually only around 1cm in size, which makes cooper and his little family soooo smol.

I put them together in a little video, which is quite fun and I will share this on my stories, but wanted to share the individual photos so that you can fully look at each and all of the expressions and details.

17/05/2024

Water pistols at the ready!! (But you won't beat her in a water fight! 💦)

The anime prompt was really fun for me, I think like a lot of people, my artwork started out with me mainly drawing anime style characters for a big chunk of my learning process.

It's been a long time since I have been able to draw in that style, and I feel like I've developed my style over time, but it always sits close to my heart knowing that anime and manga are probably a huge reason why I am able to draw today.

I decided to create fanart in my own style of a character, I was torn between a few series to choose from (Mainly Jujutsu Kaisen and My Hero Academia). But I really enjoyed the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners series, absolutely loved Rebecca's character, and thought that a cyberpunk mermaid would be SO cool - So here she is, water pistol at the ready! 🔫

I would love to hear your recommendations of any anime series I should watch. I am yet to watch any of Hayao Miyazaki's work and would definitely love to try it! 😊

16/05/2024

What a delightful prompt to work on! 🎀

I had been really looking forward to the Bridgerton prompt because it is so different to the types of things I usually draw, but when I put together my Pinterest board of inspiration it all looked so beautiful - the colours felt so dainty and warm!

My idea for this prompt was to create a portrait style piece, as though this lovely mermaid is posing for a painting. I saw a lot of Bridgerton images where the characters were holding fans and decided to give her a shell fan. 🐚

It was also quite refreshing to work in a warmer palette, with pinks, peaches and golds in there too. Mermay is naturally a lot of blues/greens and colder colours so it was a nice change!

Bridgerton Season 3 premiers today, have any of you been following the series. Who will be watching season 3?! 🌷

15/05/2024

You better not harm her fish friends! 🐠

They say the ocean is alive, and Coral is no exception. She is the protector of the reef, of all of its inhabitants and her temper is as spiky as a sea urchin.

14/05/2024

Goddess of magic and witchcraft, of the night, of ghosts, necromancy and the moon, Hecate 🖤

The mythology prompt took me the longest of all of my Mermay artwork so far. I took so long to choose the topic, but in the end I decided to draw Hecate because I love witchcraft and magic. I find the symbolism and stories around her so interesting.

The drawing itself took me about 8 hours in total, I fell in love with the prompt and with the process. I wanted a monochrome palette to create a sense of darkness, with elements of gold to show her divinity.

I included symbolism throughout the design and in the frame, and thought that having the tail hang over the edge added an interesting dimension to the illustration. I am so pleased with how the finished thing came out!

Do you have a favourite goddess, god or deity? Or which culture has your favourite mythology? I love mythology, so may revisit the theme at some point in the future! ✨

12/05/2024

There are so many meanings for the word 'Bluey' that it was hard to choose one! 😂

First thoughts were to reference the cartoon, but I've never actually watched it so I didn't feel like I would do it justice. The meaning I found was that bluey means £5 note, a redheaded male, and apparently a bundle of possessions 😂

Then I came across the Eastern Blue Groper fish and found out that they are nicknamed Bluey because of their bright colour 💙

I was worried how I might make an illustration with one of these fellas, because they are quite unusual looking 😂 but I hope that I did this prompt justice in the end!

11/05/2024

WANTED!! Have you seen this mermaid?! 🤠

I expected that we might see a few seahorses for the 'Cowboy' prompt, so I tried to think outside the box on how I could add my own little twist to the design.

I remember seeing the 'Wanted' posters when I used to play Read Dead Redemption and I decided to try and create the design as if it was on a poster.

It was really interesting colouring in grey scale, and then adding the texture of the paper over the top, and I think it ended up being a really interesting design! 🐴

10/05/2024

He is the sleepiest little fella 😌

I had a few ideas for the 'Water Dragon' prompt, I thought about creating another sea dragon/large creature similar to the 'Kaiju' prompt but I wanted to try out a different angle.

This design was inspired by Axolotls because I think they are so cute. I made a few of the features more watery and then of course made him super squishy. 😍

I tried out a different method of colouring and shading, and tried to use more colour and gradients rather than a line art focus!

I am so pleased with how he turned out in the end 🌊

09/05/2024

I couldn't wait to do this prompt! 🐚

I had been looking forward to the 'Couture' prompt from the beginning, I had so many ideas and it felt like I could have done so many designs for this! 🌷

I decided in the end to go for an Art Nouveau inspired design with big floral shapes. I have been trying new styles and trying to push myself out of my comfort zone, but with this one I really just wanted to play on my strengths with the line art and more blocky colours.

The design reminds me a little of tarot cards, and I think it will be fun to revisit this in the future at some point and maybe create a series of designs in a similar style. 😍

08/05/2024

This is based on an animal that only grows to 3cm! 🐋

The Blue Glaucus Atlanticus is a tiny sea slug, its super cool and is bright blue. It's also super dangerous and is even more venomous than the Portuguese Man O' War.

The prompt for day 8 was 'Kaiju' and I thought that creating a giant version of such a tiny animal would be quite ironic. It's also terrifying considering it's already super dangerous in its tiny form!

I tried to create depth and scale by adding the diver and fish, and also tried to bring a bit of scenery and depth of field into the design too... But somehow he still ended up looking cute 🫠

They are also known as Blue Sea Dragons, have you ever heard of them? 💙

07/05/2024

A window into another world 🌈✨

The prompt for day 7 really challenged me because I am usually quite a perfectionist with my art. The idea of creating anything like Dali's surrealism artwork seemed so difficult.

I thought about what might be an opposite place to being underwater, and tried to create contrast in both the scenery and also the colour palette. I also really enjoyed adding the ocean themed frame with the rocky/mossy texture.

I don't think this is one of my favourite designs, but it certainly made me think outside the box! 🤣

05/05/2024

Did anyone else have a Tamagotchi when they were younger?! 👾

I decided to combine the prompts for days 5 (toy) and 6 (dolly) for this design, with a mermaid who loves to collect toys and trinkets. Maybe things that people have lost on a ferry ride or left behind on the beach!

I loved the idea of them being retro toys and I tried to use a limited/retro colour palette, but with more pastels than vibrant colours. The mermaid's newest discovery is this dolly, she probably wonders what the little legs are for and why she has no tail! 🐬

As I combined both days, I will have a little break tomorrow, but I will be back with more mermaids on Tuesday - I hope you are loving them so far! 💜

04/05/2024

I heavily relate to the pufferfish in this 😂

The prompt for day 4 was 'force' and I had this idea for an adventurous mermaid and her friends trying to force open an oyster to collect pearls from inside, my first attempt at creating the design went really badly and I gave up.

I even went as far as to draw and do the line art for a whole new Star Wars mermaid, but I wanted to push (some might say force 😏) myself to go back to this design and finish it... and I am SO glad I did because I think it's one of my favourite illustrations I've ever made!

I tried to do some close ups so that you can see all the little details and expressions of all of her very concerned fish friends 🐡🐙

03/05/2024

I was SO excited to work on this 🐾

As soon as I saw the 'Toe Beans' prompt for day 3, I instantly pictured a cheeky cat reaching into a fish tank, holding up his little paws waiting to pounce! 🐱 I played around with a few different sketches, but ended up going for an idea where the cat and mermaid are friends.

I had so much fun with the design, I experimented with using less line art for this one and tried some gradients and little details on the big areas of colours to make the design more textured - I really love the finished thing! 😍

02/05/2024

She's a swirly-wirly bioluminescent girlie! 😍🐚

The second prompt for mermay was "Hula" and after doing some research, I saw so many beautiful traditional dresses for Hula dancers. I thought a lot of them looked a little bit like the frilly bits on a jellyfish so I decided to create a jellyfish mermaid inspired by the them!

I wanted to get her to look like she was in the middle of dancing, and it was so much fun to make it all swirly and glowy! ✨

01/05/2024

Omggg, it's officially Mermay, let's do this!! 🧜‍♀️

The first prompt was "Lei" which are garlands created in Hawaii 🌺 They are symbolic of many things, including greetings, love, friendship, and celebration.

For my illustration, I really wanted to show off some of the gorgeous colours and flowers used for creating a Lei! ✨

Becca's Sketchbook