Plant Diary Entry 01 - Tradescantia Cuttings

During a visit to the gorgeous plant store Wildernis in Amsterdam, I bought a small tradescantia zebrina (also called wandering jew). I was really drawn towards the beautiful colors of the leaves. The purple underneath is so vibrant. The top of the leaves have these lovely, shiny silver lines. The colors will fade to a less vibrant green if the plant does not get enough light. So if you happen to get one, make sure to put it in a spot with bright indirect light. In general it is a strong plant and accidentally over or under watering won't cause too many problems - unless you do it too frequently of course.

I quickly discovered the tradescantia family has a lot of very pretty types and I especially fell in love with the tradescantia fluminensis/variegata variations. All the different names can get confusing, I still get it wrong. But I'll do my best to leave a list of the types shown in the photos. I'm no expert by all means, so I apologize if I made a mistake somewhere.

It sounded quite tempting to go and buy all the types and variations that I liked, but I didn't quite have the space for so many large plants. Therefor I decided to try something I hadn't tried before: ordering cuttings online. After a bit of searching I found a European Etsy seller that offered different types of tradescantia cuttings. I was very happy to have found a seller that didn't live too far away, especially since I knew the cuttings would be on its way to me without having any access to light or water on their way to me. Earlier this week, a week after it got shipped, a whole bunch of cuttings arrived. I received around 8 different variations in a really good condition! Most of them have been put straight into soil in order to perk back up and to adjust to their new spot, while the smaller ones are in my new propagation station.

This station (available at Hart en Ziel) was a birthday gift from dear friends and I was so happy I was able to use it right away! I didn't want to get the smaller cuttings into soil right away. This way, they get the time to grow (more) roots before getting their own pot. The fun part is that I get to see the roots slowly growing.

While typing this post I already noticed a difference from when I took the photos. Most cuttings in the soil seem to be standing firmer. I might have to groom the cuttings a little when they're all settled in their new environment and I'll do my best to keep you updated. But by the looks of it, things are going really well and I'm so excited to have these new plants in my home!

To finish this post, here's the list of all the cuttings in the photos. I didn't photograph all the cuttings I received yet and I'll make sure to mention them later so you get to know these too.

• Tradescantia Zebrina
• Tradescantia Fluminensis "quicksilver"
• Tradescantia Fluminensis "variegata"
• Tradescantia Fluminensis tricolor
• Tradescantia Fluminensis (green leaves)
• Tradescantia Zebrina Purpusii
• Crassula Ovata Gollum, which is a succulent, but it was in my propagation station too

Introducing Stationery

I can't tell you how excited I am that I have this new section in my collection: stationery! I already had prints available, but I'd like to make the section a bit larger than it is now. Two designs were printed and turned into a notebook: my brown bear and my newest illustration featuring a blue rabbit and its home. This illustration has also been made into a time lapse video which you can find at the end of this post!

Both notebooks come in two sizes: A6 and A5. Before placing my print ordered, I asked around as to what size is used most often and the answers were so different each time. Having both sizes available felt best. A6 is commonly used as a pocket notebook to quickly write down ideas, sketch something small or when you don't want to carry a lot of weight with you. A5 on the other hand is used for writing down full projects, doing sketchwork either for that project or for larger practice or to use as an art journal.

I personally use both sizes myself. A6 to carry around with me or to sketch out ideas and A5 for larger drawings/illustrations. Though, lately I tend to stick with A6 and work on loose paper for the final illustration.

To me it was important that the pages of the notebook were of good quality and recycled, which I managed to find! The recycled paper is 80gsm and is slightly off white - a favorite of mine to work on with (colored) pencils.

And here's the video I mentioned earlier. I enjoyed making it so much and I have plans to make more in the future.

Have a wonderful day!
Love,
Eva

A Bow Series

It's been a while since I've made a post here, but that doesn't mean that I haven't been busy. I am still drawing and making illustrations. So today I'm sharing a small series I've been working on. I'm not sure yet how far I'll go with the amount of illustrations or if I'll ever go into detail about the story behind it. But I'm truly enjoying it and seeing where it goes works just fine for me. Each illustration went through some sketching and study work before it was made into an original piece.

The ginger cat, the deer and the forest are all available as prints now.

A Print For Charity

• Time Lapse Drawing #4 · Gorilla •

I was asked by the Gorilla Organization if I was interested in making a print for their charity. I already have a whale print that helps raise money for a wonderful cause, so I didn't overthink and said yes! Today I finished the drawing and I've been filming the process. So you see both the print and the video in this post. The print is available as preorder! Once the printing order is completed and fully processed, the prints ship out right away. For each sold print, I'll be donating 6 USD to the Gorilla Organization!

I hope you're excited and that you like this print! On top of that, you'll be supporting a great cause too.

A New Addiction.

• Time Lapse Drawing #2 · Bat •

• Time Lapse Drawing #3 · Elephant •

• Behind The Scenes #1 · The Bear Pouch •

I might have to admit that I have a new addiction: video making. I've been really enjoying the process of building up my own Youtube channel and I hope you're enjoying watching the videos I've been making so far. On my channel, I mainly want to focus on my illustration. I've been filming mainly time lapse videos. In order to have a bit of variety among my feed, my latest video shows a peek behind the scenes of how the bear pouch became what it is right now. It all feels so new, but I'm having so much fun!

If you have a suggestion of what you want to see next, just let me know! Make sure to subscribe to my channel to stay up to date!!

First Video!

Making a time lapse video has been on my "I seriously want to do this one day"-list for so long and I finally took the time to make it happen. I made an original illustration out of one of the animals I drew for my Animal Tuesday project. Seeing this video being on my Youtube channel makes me really proud! I can't express how excited I am about this first video! I've learnt so, so much while recording, editing and showing it to friends. A next video will follow as soon as possible! Make sure to subscribe to my channel to stay up to date.

A print of the moth will be made available somewhere this week. Keep an eye on the shop or Instagram to see it getting listed.

Ready for Fall

Since fall started yesterday - and I'm a huge fall fan - I'm sharing this sketchbook drawing today. I've been really into drawing leaves lately and I'm afraid this is going to be one of many. I can already imagine using this as new (fabric) pattern. Hopefully you're excited to see more!