It was so good to see the return of Arts Festivals in the UK. It really does show that we are starting to see the UK arts world making a come back. Old faces and new faces came together, it was at times quite emotional as it has been a struggle for many creative people not to see each other.

Creativity has blossomed in some ways over lockdown. Whilst it may have felt stifling, to see artwork hung in all it's glory in the bright white marquees was like seeing the sailing ships at sea against the bright summer skies. Laughter and voices once again could be heard and people sat on the grass eating ice creams and whilst social distancing was still very much in mind it was lovely to see the appreciation everyone had for art and creativity and the community that it encompasses.

All in all the arts is coming back and it is so lovely to see and be part of.

I was lucky enough to be demonstrating at Broadway Arts Festival that bank holiday weekend and created a kingfisher in all its splendour. There seem to have been many more sightings of them of late and of course there is the Kingfisher Arts Trail here in Worcestershire so it seemed rather apt. He was created in Derwent Lightfast with a pastel pencil background and will be winging his way to Cumbria very soon.

As we enter a new period of our lives and our next phase of 'lockdown' and winter chilly wet weather I want to reassure you that as art teachers and mentors we are here for you, please do reach out to me, share your art, join classes and workshops, I would love to be part of your creative journey.

As part of that journey I am excited to tell you that last month my wonderful publisher and I, Ann Kullberg released a new tutorial 'Kitty with Yarn' which is a level 3 Intermediate colored pencil tutorial for beginners.

In this lesson you will learn to build up a variety of textures of fur from short textured fur to soft fluffy kitten fur in a small amount of layers. Create realistic eyes with gleaming highlights and curv ed shadows and to use an embossing tool for whiskers.

Perfect for chilly winter days and wet nights!

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I have always wanted to teach in the USA, it has been a dream of mine for quite some time now, shall we ay 'on my bucket list' so to speak. Well it has now become a reality but in adifferent way because I will be teaching in the USA but by Zoom. In September students will be able to join me learning how to use color pencils via online classes with Ann Kullberg, my mentor and publisher teaching one of my popular Jumpstarts.

One thing Covid taught the world is that everything is accessible and anything is posssible and that is certainly the case with art and learning.

In the 'pyjama classes' students will learn how to create realistic fur, shiny eyes and soft downy fur. How to layer, create fine detail and to mix colour but from the comfort and safety of their own home. How exciting is that!\

So exciting news for you all!

IO am going to be on Hochanda this Friday demonstrating one of my favourite products of 2020 which most of you will know is the Graphitint palette by Derwent. I am just obsessed by the muted neutral tones in this palette and the effects that can be achieved. i am demonstrating for the SAA and so excited as lockdown has been long for so many of you and this way I can be with so many more of my lovely students and friends

If you are currently feeling isolated at the moment why not think about trying an online Paint along session. Derwent has a Facebook group called the Art of Wellness and each week I will be hosting art sessions on line via Facebook Live that you can take part in. Geared towards all levels and a friendly forum to make and forge friendships, art and creativity is really important at times like this. I would love to see as many of you as I can there xx

Throughout this trying time of isolation I will be sending out challenges, launching art lessons, paint and draw alongs and lots more. These will be hosted on my Facebook Group 'Judith Selcuk's Art Classes, Groupsand Workshops', there is a great Facebook group called 'The Art of Wellness' where there will be lots going on too!

I will be stting up group classes via Skype so please drop me an email if you are interested and if you are not on Facebook and would like me to send you the challenges etc via email or Instagram let me know again via email and I will set you up via mailchimp or IG message to recieve them.

It won't be long and it will be all up and running it just happened a bit fast xx

I still remember my very first time at Patchings some years ago and I have been every year without fail since. It is the one place where you can indulge yourself in art  purchases without feeling guilty! Not only that but I always come away feeling inspired and have learnt lots of new things from the demonstrators, workshops and artists, it doesnt matter how experienced we are we all learn something new each time.

This year is promising to be a very exciting one, I am demonstrating again for Derwent which was fantastic last year with the launch of my favourite pencil Procolour but this year not only do I get the opportunity to demonstrate them again but also the very new and exciting Lightfast range will be launched whilst I am there.

Alongside artist Bev Haines who is a genius with Inktense there will be a programme of 6 workshops a day, three with Bev and three with myself. We will be creating succulents, colourful vivid fruit and flowers on black and learning to blend both different ranges. Bev will be demonstrating the new Inktense Pan painting set and whilst I hope to be able to do her workshop myself when I am not in the demonstration marquee you will be able to find me demonstrating on the Art shop Skipton stand in the Art Materials Marquee.

The really great thing about Patchings is the people you meet and being able to share creative processes and inspire others to enjoy art. Art is such an important part of our lives and often goes over looked in our busy lives.

Please do pop in to see me it would be great to see you!

We are so excited for the Royal Wedding this weekend, we have our picnic menu planned and printed, decorations up and we have even made our very own bunting!

We like to share the creative love here and are so happy to share with you a printable and photo guide on creating your very own Union Jack bunting, free of charge of course! Just follow oour easy steps and dont forget to show us what you create.

Have a lovely wedding weekend!

All you need is:

Artline Brush pens in Royal Blue and Red

Outline printed onto several sheets of A4

Scissors

Sellotape

String or twine

Step One

Print out the Union Jack template onto plain printer paper

Step Two

If you are right handed start from the left, if you are left handed start from the right, Artline pens are water based so take a little longer to dry than alcohol based markers and can smudge but are far easier to use.

Step 3

Using scissors cut out the bunting shapes, leaving a paper tab at the top that will fold over the string.

Step Four

We used twine to string our bunting but you could use string, wool or ribbon. Fold the tabover the string and stick with sellotape on the back.

The UK Coloured Pencil Society is in full swing at the Artshouse in Stratford upon Avon, I was very fortunate this year to have had two pieces accepted.

The first is Oberon - Ling of the Fairies which was created using the new Lightfast pencils being developed by Derwent and their current Procolour range, then embellished with Pebeo Vitrail and Fantasy enamels on Canson pastel paper.

The second piece is Treasures that I drew whilst demonstrating the Derwent Procolour pencils in London at Cassart. Treasures is now available as a workshop with the next one being June 16th at the Willoughby Gallery in Corby Glen.

Treasures is taken from the small glass jar of my childrens' beach finds over the years and if you look closely in the jar you can spot a tiny racing car driver, sea glass, beads and marbles.

The exhibition is on till the 11th May 2018 with lots of wonderful artwork, prints and cards.

This year has been so exciting and we are only in May!

At the beginning of the year, January to be precise I was so lucky to be taken to Frankfurt by a pen company called Shachihata who make Artline pens, it was an experience of a lifetime.

I demonstrated for four days and met so many lovely people.

Then in April I was again demonstrating for them at the London Stationery Show at the Design Centre, this time I held daily workshops using their lovely brush pens that are highly pigmented permanent water based brush pens that allow you to create amazing creative effects with proffessional results. The people who attended the workshops all did really well and enjoyed learning how to manipulate the ink for fun effects.