octo max suit

Various pens and watercolour, in A4 Stillman and Birn Alpha Series sketchbook.

russian dolls

TWSBI Diamond 580 with Platinum Carbon ink and watercolours, in A4 Stillman and Birn Alpha Series sketchbook.

spider-man-cold

TWSBI Diamond 580 with Platinum Carbon ink and watercolours, in A4 Stillman and Birn Alpha Series sketchbook.

gastropod letterhead

On a recent trip to France, I ate snails for the first time. Not the deeply unpleasant experience I'd imagined it might be – it was a little like eating garlic flavoured wine gums (the soft kind) – but not something I'm champing at the bit to try again. The whole time I was eating them, I couldn't quite rid myself of the memory of them sliding all over the patio at home, leaving slug trails everywhere and nibbling on my hostas.

Anyway, the trip was a good one and our hosts – Nelly, David and Emma – were incredibly generous, plying us with all manner of delicious wines, cheeses and pastries and making us feel incredibly welcome.

Back in Blighty, some holiday-themed notepaper was hastily cobbled together (see above) and a thank-you note duly scribbled and despatched. David is an avid collector of les bandes desinées, so the Tintin reference won't be lost on him.

NB. On the version I posted, the snail had a speech balloon saying 'Vous avez mangé ma famille!' ('You've eaten my family!')

Dip pen (Leonardt 700 nib) with Windsor and Newton ink on Saunders Waterford 90lb HP paper. Digital colour.