Those of you that have read my blog over the years will know that September is my absolute favourite time of year. The first day of the month feels like a new beginning to me, a fresh start. One of my sisters explained that it was that back to school feeling that is so ingrained in us of all that brings on the thoughts of endless possibilities. I’m not so sure, I only remember feeling dread at the start of new term. Anyway, for whatever reason I am fired up and feeling really inspired as the leaves start to change colour and the nights draw in. 

​One of my latest paintings is a real departure from my usual coastal themes. Not only is the subject matter different but I’ve painted it in oils rather than my usual acrylic. Peanut and the Bull is an idea I’ve had for over a year. The bull is called Foggy and he is a familiar face on my morning dog walks. Although he is huge he has a calm, placid personality and I’ve grown very fond of him. I loved the idea of him and Peanut (my miniature sausage dog) looking at each other. I must say I am thrilled with how it has turned out and now I’m thinking of doing a series of the two of them.​

Although Christmas is still a little while away, I'm afraid I can't wait any longer... my new range of three Christmas cards is available to buy exclusively in my online shop now!

I've been busy this weekend creating a time lapse video of my painting process. I've done lots of research and got the kit I need, and I'm thrilled with the result, so there'll be more of these in the future. Follow me on Instagram to see them as they happen!

Happy summer to you all! What a fantastic few weeks it’s been. I must admit it’s difficult to work in the studio when it is so lovely outside but my husband and I (and the dogs of course) have been going for a swim most evenings. It’s such a great way to end the day and it cools off the dogs.

I have in fact been working really hard and as you will see there are lots of new things on my website. I have also finished four new paintings for The Mulberry Tree Gallery in Swanage, and I am currently working on another four for Fowey River Gallery.

I sold out of my book A Brush With The Coast a while ago, and now A Brush With Anglesey has also sold out. I’ve been wondering for a while if I should reprint A Brush With The Coast and after lots of emails and enquiries from Waterstones – as well as galleries – I have decided to do it. Now I’ve made the decision I am very excited about it. I am taking the opportunity to add more images and tweak the writing. Also I’m going to make it smaller (the same as the Anglesey book) so it’s easier to handle. It won’t be ready until Christmas but I’m sure it will be worth the wait!

I hope you all like the new work.
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Sash

Now that things have settled down I am thrilled to say that I will shortly have some brand new work available on my website. There will be originals, a new series of limited edition prints and perhaps an exclusive collection of cards. I do have one or two other ideas in mind but I will leave these as a surprise. As soon as everything is ready I will let you know via email (if you’ve signed up for my mailing list). As you can appreciate all this is taking time, and I hope you will bare with me for another month or so.

I’m off to Italy in May with two of my sisters, and I have a feeling it will be very inspiring. I’ll take my sketchbook and watercolours and hopefully get some sun-soaked paintings on the website.

If you are interested in what I am up to it’s worth following me on Instagram (sashamayharding) all my new work gets an airing there as well as lots of photos of my dogs!
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Warm wishes, Sash

Here we are once again; my favourite time of year. Already I am itching to light my first fire, but today the weather has taken a turn for the better so I will have to wait.

I have had a very good summer which ended in a nearly sell-out show in Fowey. The private view was a lovely evening with just one small blip: while I was merrily downing my third glass of wine I was discreetly informed that I had forgotten to sign one of the paintings. Strangely, this is not uncommon and for some reason I often leave one or two paintings unsigned per show. Unfortunately (or fortunately) it had sold, and the couple who had bought it needed to take it home so I was required to sign it there and then. As a rule I don’t carry paints and brushes around with me and so, roping in a few guests, asked the local artists (who were taking advantage of the free wine) if any of them could run home and get a brush and some paint. Signing is a tricky business at the best of times but with three glasses of wine and a small audience it was fairly nerve wracking. However with a brand new brush and tube of black paint – which I watered down with white wine – I managed to perform the task without making a complete fool of myself, and even earned a round of applause!

Now the show is over I can concentrate on other things. I hinted in my last post that I was going to embark on a new project and that is exactly what I have done! I am in the throes of writing and illustrating my first ever children's book. I am relishing the challenge and it's been just the thing after months and months of painting. As soon as I can I am going to do a separate blog all about the book and how I have gone about creating it. There's so much more to it than I ever imagined when I first set out on this project.

Until then, here are some very early sketches, a few more developed sketches and some teasers of images from the new book.

Hopefully it will be ready for Christmas and I will keep you all informed.

Happy February everyone! It's a funny time of year, a lull before the mayhem of spring. I love it; it gives me space and time to concentrate on the year ahead. The Fowey show is slowly taking shape and I am very pleased so far. While that is my main focus, a few other things are happening in the background.

The first, I am revising A Brush With The Coast and have reformatted it to be smaller (the same size as A Brush With Anglesey). I think the new size will make it more accessible, and I've also added a few more images. I'm not totally sure if I will reprint (it will depend on demand) but I have enjoyed making the tweaks.
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The second very exciting thing is that I am about to launch – exclusively on my website –these four brand new limited edition prints. This will be the first time I have published my own prints. I'm working with the printers to get the colours right at the moment but I hope they will be available late Feb/early March. I will send an email to my mailing list with all the details as soon as they are ready, and the original paintings will also be available to buy on my website.

Happy Christmas everyone! With a week to go I am preparing to stop work and plunge into the Christmas spirit. Unfortunately, the painting I'm working on is proving difficult to leave; it is at a tricky stage and is not quite right, but I don’t know what I need to do to resolve it. I know I should turn it to the wall and forget about it for a while, but instead I keep picking at it like a scab! Is it the colours? The composition? The tones? I DON’T KNOW.
Sometimes painting is like a puzzle and one elusive thing will pull it all together, but sometimes it is a lost cause and best painted over. I am at the stage where I am not sure if I should battle on or admit defeat. Psychologically I need it to work, because it is the first of 35 paintings for an exhibition in the summer; the first painting often sets the tone for the whole show and (I like to think) if I can get one cracker under my belt the rest will follow without too much of a struggle. One more day and then I will leave it until after Christmas (maybe three days of overeating and drinking will trigger some sort of inspiration)...