This is the front side of the sketchbook. Throughout this sketchbook I experimented a lot with mark making, using a wedge of plastic and an ink pot lid to create swipes, circles and scratches. I also experimented with mixed media and explored some similar themes that you can find throughout this project. I found this sketchbook difficult as it became increasingly harder to think of what to put on each panel.

The first panel is the cover though the book now won’t close because of all the photographs and fabric sticking out. It’s similar to the dried rose I drew in the first few studies from objects that inspired us, I decided to stitch into the pages a lot throughout this book as I think it just reminds you a little that this is still textiles focused or at least related.

Next to this panel is a blue nighttime forest of gnarled trees that I drew using ink, oil pastels and a wedge of plastic to scrape on and off the ink to create these trees.

For the next panel I stitched a spiral pattern then using the same ink and plastic I scraped in an eye.

I really, really like the next part as it is of the rabbit again, he has shown up a few times in my work, this time I framed him with a gothic style frame and scraped on the ink with the plastic again for the background. I like the background as it looks like peeling wallpaper or paint in an abandoned house.

Below, I put in one of the leftover photographs from the fine art block and used it here. I used hairspray to wet the surface of the photo to get it really slippy then I used a pen to draw eyes- I found the results really interesting as the ink bled and turned green in some places. It looks aged and really interesting!

For the last piece on this side I used a photograph again and this time got a knife and made marks by etching into the photo. I drew the teddy bear I made again and wrote things that relate to children and stuff like “one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight…” is etched in, I did this because I wanted it to seem like an old memory that you’d recount as you were trying to fall asleep by counting but instead you start reliving the past and subsequently staying awake. Tying in with this, I etched in “fee fie fo fum”, again working with the theme of childhood memory.

The reverse side is where I began to struggle for ideas. I began by drawing a cat on one of the dyed scraps leftover from the tea dying project, I gave him a huge head and bow wrapped around his skinny neck.

I stitched him down then beside him I made circular marks using an ink pot lid, I then used these circles as frames to draw characters in with pen.

This and the one below are my two least favourites. They were my final two and I had absolutely run out of ideas. In this panel I drew a melting clock, using the scrap of plastic to make all the necessary mark I then doused it in water, colour from the reverse side came through as well which I thought was quite cool but still, I’m not that impressed by how this turned out.

For the next two panels I thought it might be interesting to make them one big one and make it landscape for a bit of variation. I stuck down a photograph across it then on top I put glue, hairspray and different colours of chalk to make it look streaky. I then used my ink pot lid to add a few marks. This one was very simple but I really like how it turned out!

The very last panel that I would like to mention is another featuring dead rises in chalk. The background was done by making marks with the ink and plastic wedge but what I then decided to do was tie up both sides of it so that it looked like a jail or police tape and at the bottom I write the date and time.it’s only know that I realise that this sort of relates to being stuck indoors though the concept is overdone, it was not intentional and I think that makes it really interesting.