I am a strong believer in there being a time and place for everything. I wasn't ready to tackle this difficult subject until I had done the 30-day challenge. But there is more to it. I have featured nests in previous works like a tiny nest in a tree or a textured nest in a bird painting. But solo nests have to have impact to be successful as a piece of work.

In my own paintings I create a lot of texture and layering of colour and lines, so let's go on a little tour of my favourite crops and close-ups, and how I created the effects. Taking a closer look at them we can see how my favourite techniques can create a little magic. There are always interesting areas of a painting that deserve a closer look!

We often think we have no time to play as artists as we are so busy working on the project at hand. But I believe this thought comes from the pressure we put on ourselves as artists to succeed. We feel we need to prove ourselves in this incredibly difficult career choice, and we can lose sight of the whole reason we are doing what we do - because we love it!