The Great British Seaside: Sketchbook illustrations

Here are some images that I have produced from my research so far.....

I have been researching the history of seaside architecture and structure of the pier is undeniably a distinctive feature of our traditional British seaside resorts. My image (below) was stitched using a sewing machine.

South Parade Pier: machine stitched collage

It was great fun knitting these typical seaside treats. Did you know that the Fab ice lolly was created in May 1967 and is still the nations number one best selling ice lolly?

It was designed primarily for girls aged 5-15 years and was based round The Thunderbirds TV series. Lady Penelope's number plate was FAB 1.

Knitted fab ice lolly and ice-cream

I entered a competition to design a Christmas card based on a coastal theme. Due to the imminent deadline I only had one day to complete the design but the entry (below) was inspired by Molly the seagull who watches the local early morning swimmers here at every day as they take their daily dip in the sea.

Molly the seagull on a channel marker: mixed media

Playing around with the same idea but in a digital version...

Molly the seagull on a channel marker: digital version

"Wanna donkey ride?" Starting as far back as Victorian times, most traditional seaside resorts would have donkey rides on the beach. Not so many donkeys still work on the beaches now but those that do still have fabulous names like Dixie.