My most sketched subject in Cape Town

London hardly had any warm, dry summer days last year, so it was lovely to spend a month soaking in the sunshine in Cape Town. On my first visit there I kept on exclaiming how much it reminds me of Australia. This time around, maybe because I was less homesick for Melbourne or maybe because after few visits I am more familiar with Cape Town, I appreciated it for itself. I noticed myself falling in love with all the things that my South African husband raved about for years: the mountains, the high skies, the intricate cloud formations, the smart chilled-out genuine people, the native animals and plants.

Quick pen sketch at Tokai Arboretum, Cape Town, South Africa

I sketched with my trusted Staedtler pigment liner (0.3) and bought a Pentel water brush to do some pen and wash sketches. I did some watercolour drawing at my father-in-law’s house, but sourly regretted not being confident enough with the watercolour techniques and equipment to sketch outdoors. There were so many times that I looked at the clouds rolling off the mountains and wished that I was prepared better to paint them.

Pen & wash sketch at Camps Bay, Cape Town, South Africa

It’s been three weeks since I came back. I’m finally starting to feel in tune with my home routine. I’m making colour wheels and practicing mixing colours to figure out the palette I may like to use to paint outdoors. I borrowed David Dewey’s “The Watercolor Book” from the library to teach myself various watercolour techniques. I’m sketching, drawing and painting. Next time I’ll be ready to paint the everyday beauty that touches my soul.