As ever Lilla had us guessing all month about what the mini assignment would be. And as ever there was a method in her madness. Lilla asked us to draw vintage dolls with a ethnic slant. There is certainly a vintage vibe running through many of her briefs but I decided to run with it.

Then I went off at a tangent and started doodling vintage Barbie - there were sooo many to chose from. I loved looking at the different hair styles and fashions, especially the Jackie O look.

Then I hit a utter roadblock when the assignment came through. It was for editorial illustration based on a meditation text about making excuses for not meditating. If you have read earlier posts you'll know that editorial is something I gave up on after the birth of my first child. I was feeling the fear and was stuck stuck stuck. I am now very mindful of only putting out art that I want to attract back ( & be paid for)

The first sunny day for a long time I did actually sit under a tree and watched the world go by for an hour. Several dog walkers came up to ask if I was ill??? But the word that came up over and over was 'allow'. I decided to add this to my piece. I deliberately decided not to use the 'normal' meditation pose but incorporate the 'time' aspect - the time dedicated to meditating.