Friday 14 August 2015

Hi Guys we have finally moved over to our new website.

We wont be posting on here anymore so to keep up with everything we are doing and head over to ellenmayillustration.co.uk. 

See you there!


Tuesday 4 August 2015




Over the past couple of weeks we have both been working together to create a new website. We have lots of plans for our new site and are really excited to share it all with you.

This does mean we will need to take a little pause on this blog. Just while we complete the finishing touches. We want everything to be perfect for you so we will be back in a short while. In the mean time you can keep up with us on Twitter

See you soon lovelies.

Monday 27 July 2015


North Devon is on of the UK's most picturesque places and we were lucky to spend a weekend there recently. Being a British holiday we only had one day of sunshine but that didn't put a damper on the mood. 

On the one sunny day we had we were sketching on the beach, eating ice cream and exploring the rocky terrain. After spending the weekend there it is now a dream to own a little cottage by the seaside. We may be by the sea but there is something special about the untouched countryside of Devon and the quaint little English seaside towns.



As you know we love to travel and a little British holiday is just as good as jet setting to another country. If you don't have any plans for the summer we highly reccomend getting in your car and take a drive to the English countryside!

Where is your perfect place to holiday in Britain?







Friday 24 July 2015


We have created the perfect breakfast bread that is such a wonderful post workout or mid morning bite! Filled with plenty of protein and easy to eat in the morning, this fruit and nut delight is so delicious you will want to tell all of your friends about them! This is a super easy recipe with plenty of room to adjust to make it your own!

  • 2 tablespoons flax seeds
  • handful of dried cranberries
  • handful of raisins
  • 2 tablespoons on coconut flour
  • handful of shredded coconut
  • handful of almonds
  • 1 tablespoon of poppy seeds
  • 2 eggs (we always make sure ours are from our local farm)
  • 2 tablespoons of raw honey

Making the mix
  • Mix together all dry ingredients
  • Add one egg at a time and fold into dry mixture - if the mix isn't doughy enough then please add more ground almonds
  • Pour mixture into bread loaf tin or paper, no more than half an inch thick - we used paper!
  • Bake for 10-15 minutes at 200 degrees until golden brown and spongy
  • Let cool and then enjoy by itself or with some fruity jam!




Friday 17 July 2015

We have the most fabulous grain free, dairy free and gluten free pizza base which holds all of your toppings perfectly, fills you with important Omega-3 and keeps your stomach happy! This recipe can also be used for all you raw beauties out there - we promise once you have made this once your life will be changed forever, yes we are talking guilt free pizza HORAY!

Check out the ingredients you will need below (this makes 2 pizzas)!

  • 2 cups of flax seeds
  • 1 1/2 cups of water
  • dried oregano
  • dried parsley
  • dried basil
  • pinch of salt
  • nutritional yeast - this gives a marvellous cheesy flavour to anything so if you're new to being a vegan please do add this to your cupboard!
  • vegan cheese - we used a selection of 3
  • kale
  • tomato
  • tomato puree
  • 1/2 red onion

To make the base

  • Place your flax seeds in the food blender and blend until ground - if you do not have a blender then we advise to buy your flax already ground!
  • Stir in oregano, parsley, basil, salt and nutritional yeast
  • Add half a cup of water at a time and stir until your mix looks like an oatmeal paste
  • Knead dough mix for a few minutes and form into a ball
  • Split your mix into two equal balls
  • After placing parchment paper into your tins place your dough in the middle - we used 2 cake tins to allow us to form a crust on the pizza
  • Press your fingers into the dough and spread to form a pizza shape, no more than 1/2 inch thick (although this depends on your own preferences)
  • Place base into oven at 200 degrees for around 10-15 minutes - you're looking for your base to be crispy but not over cooked as remember it will be popping back into the oven with the toppings
For the topping

  • With a spatula spread your tomato puree on the base
  • Add vegan cheese
  • Pop on your kale, red onions and tomatoes
  • Sprinkle the top with some pepper and more nutritional yeast if you want
  • Bake pizza for 10-15 minutes until the toppings are nice and cooked
  • Invite some garlic mayo or guacamole and enjoy every mouthful!

Monday 13 July 2015

We had the best girly holiday this summer with our incredibly beautiful mum in Amsterdam. The sun was shining for our entire stay and we can honestly say it made the sun shine within us too. We were stunned by the insane architecture, beautiful canals, friendly locals and the huge variety of things to do!

                                         

We would recommend everyone to visit Amsterdam at some point and take in it's charm - we are already planning our next trip out there! 

Since we have been back we haven't been able to stop our hands from picking up our pens and sketching out what a dream it was - take a look below at some of the things that have made us go WOW!!













Wednesday 1 July 2015




We have been wanting to speak to the wonderfully talented Nina Cosford for a while now. When she got back to us and said she would answer some questions we were so excited!

As it is another new month (where is this year going!?) its time to look at another artist. We are so pleased to share this illustrator with you so we are just going to get straight on with it:

1. First of all we wanted to start by saying we absolutely love your illustrations of the amazing show that is Girls.  What inspired you to start the project?

Why thanks! I'd been watching the show for a while when I realised I wanted to make my own response to what Lena Dunham was doing. I love the blunt humour and awkward honesty in GIRLS and thought it could be interesting to juxtapose this with a fairly innocent and bright visual interpretation (in the way of my fairly optimistic illustration style I guess). I think the themes Dunham writes about and the feminist realm in general will always be of great interest and importance to me, or certainly are at this point in my life.

2. You have worked on such a wide range of projects. If you could pick a company to work with who would it be and why?

It's a tricky question to answer specifically because sometimes unexpected clients appear out of nowhere and I can end up really enjoying the project. On the other hand, what could be thought of as a dream project can end up being difficult or disappointing if too much hope is put on it perhaps. I'm keen to work with brands who can appreciate mine and can respect that when we work together. It's usually the best way to create a successful crossover which benefits both the client and the person commissioned. I am very fortunate to be paid for doing what I enjoy the most - drawing. It's even better when people want to work with you for who you are and like what you are about.



3. Talk us through your creative process. Are there any particular things you need around you or do before you sit down to illustrate?

I am quite a methodical person and have a certain way of going about new projects. Firstly, I do lots of research on the topic, the ideas, the client etc and make lots of notes and lists. This makes me feel like I am doing something and am starting to be productive. Procrastination can creep up on me now and again though, and, rather than properly working, I find myself cleaning or rearranging my studio, ordering stuff from IKEA or getting sucked into electronic black holes on the internet, forgetting what I was even meant to be doing in the first place. Having said that, there are (rarer) times when I work for so many hours on end that I'm not sure whether I've eaten or not and don't get home til 2am after a long day of drawing or painting. It all depends on what sort of deadline I have and how inspired I'm feeling. On most days however, I do have a routine and try to be in the studio for around 10am and leave at a fairly sensible hour so I can try and wind down in the evening before bed. I often find there is an odd balance between working on impulse and working within a structure.

4.Throughout your career who has inspired you the most and why?

This is hard to answer directly because all sorts of inspiring people and things come along at all sorts of times for me. The recurring inspiration however is my family, particularly my Dad (he's a commercial artist). I grew up with glimpses of what it's like to be freelance and surviving in a hectic and exciting creative industry, through seeing just how hardworking and committed my dad is. I'm only just realising now that that may be where a lot of my working ethic has stemmed from. I have been blessed with having a hugely encouraging, creative family around me and have an awesome boyfriend called Ali Graham who I met a few years ago. He's a freelance illustrator, animator and filmmaker, and we often work together, if not collaboratively then in parallel (our studios are next door to one another). Again, I have found myself being inspired by someone with a lot of motivation and ambition. I also have a super group of friends where I live here in Hastings (local illustrator buddies include Sarah Maycock, Richard Hogg, Benjamin Phillips, Mel Elliott (I Love Mel) and more) so that's nice to have going on.

5. We always like to ask artists if they have any tips for people who are beginning their career in illustration.

I think wanting to be really good is better than wanting to be really successful. If you are good your work should speak for itself and enable you to do well. I think honing your craft, practicing and getting better every day is always more important than counting statistics or comparing yourself or your "success" to someone else's. Find a niche and be constantly developing an individual, original voice. It's only really rewarding if you truly feel the work is yours and you own your style. It's a competitive industry and there are millions of creatives out there all doing great things, so do something only you can do - then you have your brand right there.

 Go visit Nina's website for a look at more of her fantastic work.