Sketchbooking through the Summer

Summer-sketching means sketching poolside, in the garden, in beautiful landscapes. Gone are the frozen toes required for winter journaling. This course is a chance to experiment and create your own visual record of the summer. We will be working in a mix of watercolour, pencil sketches, mixed media, and scrap-booked elements.

We will cover a wide range of skills, including an introduction or refresher in watercolours as well as observational drawing. A beginner will have the chance to test materials and learn new skills under guidance, while advanced students will have the opportunity to branch into their own creative practice, inspired by the course content. Mostly we spend an evening a week drinking tea and talking about the garden!

Emma Leyfield is a freelance illustrator and sketchbook artist based in and around Stroud. She illustrates a regular column, “Jane’s Garden Diary”, for The English Garden Magazine and has just completed her MA on the internationally renowned Children’s Book Illustration course at Anglia Ruskin University. You can read her recent blog about sketchbooks and food diaries here: https://www.valerian.co.uk/blog

Emma has been teaching sketchbooking for 7 years and has a relaxed and conversational teaching style. You’ll get some targeted feedback on your work, and a gentle confidence boost to keep going in her classes. All classes include tea and biscuits/cake!

Class dates
Please note this class will not run on 4/5 or 25/5 due to bank holidays
As such, this class’s final week will be the 22/6

20th April 2026 : Sketchbooking through the Summer

Start Date : Mon 20th Apr 2026
Time : 18:00 - 20:30
Location : Cirencester College
Duration : 8 weeks
Spaces : 9
Code : 04/26_JOU_8W_ME
£225
Please note no classes on the bank holidays

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What topics are covered?

20/04 Week 1 – Introduction to watercolours, painting seasonal botanicals 

27/04 Week 2 – Keeping a tea diary  – Bring your favourite mug to draw and drink from. Tea diaries promote regular sketchbook practice as you simply get your sketchbook out daily when you put the kettle on. 

11/05 Week 3 – Collections – When you don’t know what to draw, collect oddities, a small handful of childlike treasures and make a page of curiosities. These you can sketch in any material – watercolour, pencil, or even a design for print

18/05 Week 4 – Travel Sketchbooks – If you’re lucky you might get away this summer! Prepare your sketchbook with ideas/maps/ vignettes of small travel scenes.  

01/06 Week 5 – In the garden – a dip into garden journaling, recording the seasons of beds full of flowers, pots, tools, balconies

08/06 Week 6 – Food – In an age of instagram we all know the visual potential of food, but it’s also a memory of a meal shared, foreign cuisine tasted. Bring photos of your memorable meals or fresh ingredients to taste. 

15/06 Week 7 – Creating texture and pattern. Experiment with mixed media

22/06 Week 8 – Painting and sketching landscapes, Working from Photos but preparing for on location sketching.

How will I learn?

Demonstration and practice with 1:1 support

What do I need to bring?

You are welcome to bring any of your favourite art supplies, and on the first week in particular, any flowers from the garden.
Although both flowers and materials are provided, it’s sometimes nice to work with your own.

Any Questions?

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