Welcome to My Art Blog | Howell Illustration

My Blog

Welcome to my blog, where I chat about maps, art, nature and sustainability. I'll give you the stories behind the art, 'how to's and interviews, both with other artists and the authors I work with. Do you have something to say and would like to be a guest author on my blog? Let me know below!

C O N T A C T

Mar 6

How To Draw An Illustrated Map Part 7: landscape details

In part seven of my how to draw an illustrated map series, I show you different ways of drawing landscape details. Contents: Introduction...

Mar 1

My Top Five Artists: Five amazing artists to buy from today!

In this post I run through five of my top five favourite artists currently working as of February 2024. Contents Katie Garrison...

Feb 28

The best DIY recipe for a window cleaner!

I found the best home made recipe for a window cleaner, and I really want to share it with you all! Contents Intro Ingredients Prep Apply...

Feb 23

Map of the Month: A deep dive into my illustrated maps

My map of the month for this month is S G Maclean's map for her book The Bookseller of Inverness, read this blog for a deep dive into its...

Feb 21

How To Draw An Illustrated Map Part 6: The Layout

Next up in my how to draw an illustrated map series: creating a rough layout for your map. To watch the YouTube video that goes with this...

Feb 16

Feature Friday: A look at the work of artist and mapmaker Emily Faccini

One of the artists that has most influenced my journey into mapmaking is Emily Faccini; she really kicked off my love of cartography with...

Feb 14

Complementary Colours: A short guide on colour theory for beginners

With complementary colours you can make your artwork sing. This blog post will chat you through the basics of colour theory for...

Feb 9

Unique Map Gifts: Why maps make the perfect gift

Looking for a unique gift? You can't go wrong with a personalised illustrated map. I'm here to tell you why maps make the perfect gift....

Feb 7

How I Use Procreate: my top tips for using Procreate for a hand drawn style

This blog aims to take you through how I use Procreate for my illustration work. We'll talk about my top tips for Procreate: the pencils...

Feb 2

Mapping Nature: How the natural world inspires my art

One of my biggest inspirations for my art is the natural world; it makes its appearance in almost everything I do. For this post I'm...

Jan 31

Where To Find Creative Inspiration

How do you find creative inspiration? This blog post will tell you about where I find mine and how you can find yours. Contents: Books...

Jan 26

Illustrated Map of the Month: Stef Penney's Paris 1870

It's time for map of the month, where I discuss my favourite maps I've worked on and the story behind them. This month, it's my...

Jan 24

How To Draw An Illustrated Map Part 5: Putting decorative details on the cartouche

This week: get down and dirty with the details of the title block (or cartouche!) and find out how to nail those decorative elements when...

Jan 19

Interview with Artist, Typographer and Illustrated Map Maker Helen Cann

An interview with map and children's illustrator Helen Cann. Contents: Introduction How did you arrive at your style? What has inspired...

Jan 17

What is an Illustrated Map?

Hello! My name is Nicola Howell Hawley and I draw illustrated maps. But what are they? And why would you want one? This post aims to...

Jan 12

Map of the Month: An Interview with Andrew Caldecott

I am so excited to have this guest on my blog today. Andrew Caldecott is the author of the bestselling Rotherweird trilogy, and latest...

Jan 10

How To Draw An Illustrated Map Part 4: Drawing the title block (or cartouche)

This post is a chat through the title block and the functions it performs on a map - and how to draw your own. (It might be helpful to...

Jan 5

Artistic Evolution: A Look Back at my First Maps

It may surprise you to learn that I wasn't always as good at drawing illustrated maps as I am today. I know, I know. You thought I was...

Jan 3

Reevaluating Sustainability in Artistic Practices: Can art be sustainable?

In a previous blog titled How To Be More Sustainable as an Artist I shared a tip advocating for the use of fountain pens with refillable...

Dec 29, 2023

Illustrated Map of the Month: The College of Novelties from Simul by Andrew Caldecott

I'm officially adding a new feature to the blogs: Map of the Month! Each month I'll discuss an illustrated map I have created, going into...