The best sketchbook, Fenne Kustermans, sketchbook animation,sketching supplies, drawing, www.Fenne.be

The best sketchbook?

I often get the question of which sketchbook I use or think is the best. And the most straightforward answer is this: the one you're ok with trashing. Let me explain. I have...

reading animated gif Procreate illustration. www.Fenne.be

Reading in May

1. De stem van de Noordzee, (2020) by Laura Burgers, Eva Meijer, Evanne Nowak. 2. Pressing Matters magazine. 3. In her studio magazine. 4. In Limbo, (2023), Deb JJ Lee. 5. Hoe de tijd...

Beachcombing fossils in Normandy France, Devil's toenail, www.Fenne.be

Beachcombing in Normandy

Perhaps you remember our trip to the Jurassic coast in England last year to go fossil hunting. This year we visited Normandy in France, and while the focus was mostly...

International tea day, May 21st, tea lover, tea illustration, tea fields illustration, doodle art, www.Fenne.be

International Tea Day

I am a tea lover, but only recently I started to learn more about the fascinating world of tea. My journey is deliberately slow, and while I'm far from any tea-wisdom, International...

World bee appreciation day, May 20th, Digital bee illustration, www.Fenne.be

World Bee Day

We all depend on the survival of bees   World Bee Day is celebrated on May 20. On this day Anton JanÅ¡a, the pioneer of beekeeping, was born in 1734. The purpose of...

May studio moments, art studio, illustrator, artist at work portrait, creative workspace, www.Fenne.be

May studio moments

Spring is the busiest moment of the year at the studio, and luckily it is fueled by the vigorous intensity of spring light and inspiration. And to add to that,...

Space diver, digital procreate illustration, www.Fenne.be

Forever space diver

This is a very personal piece that wasn't meant to be shared at first, but in an uncomfortable way, it should be here. There are these moments in life when all...

Art studio interior, art materials, artwork in process, paint, ink, printmaking tools, paper love, www.Fenne.be

Some enticing studio chaos :-)

We live in a rainbow of chaos. -Paul Cezanne   I love nothing more than the scent of printmaking lingering in my atelier. Perhaps mixed with some warm hints of leather craft. Paint...

Inside my sketchbook, moleskine sketchbook, illustration, illustrator, pencil drawings, daily sketching, www.Fenne.be

Inside my sketchbook

I've been drawing and doodling, line by line, mark by mark. Spots dripped and shapes found their place. And as you might see, all kinds of things happen as the...

Northen lights, noorderlicht, aurora borealis, February 2023, www.Fenne.be

Nature’s light show

It's been a while, but we've been incredibly lucky to have a clear sky and crisp air right when the northern lights were beautifully dancing in the sky. The light doesn't...

Silver clay baked in hot pot, www.Fenne.be

Silver clay experiments

It's been quite some years since I attended a silver clay workshop, but I never forgot how fun it was- and how I wished I could do this at...

Inside my sketchbook, moleskine sketchbook, illustration, illustrator, pencil drawings, daily sketching, www.Fenne.be

Inside my sketchbook

Welcome to the pages of unfinished thoughts, experiments, and visual notes :-D I started this year by adding an extra sketchbook because I wanted a spot for a daily thought- including...

Tiny house movement, millennials, pencil drawing, illustration, www.Fenne.be

Watching & reading in January ’23

1. Roderick Nieuwenhuis, Een simpel leven (2022) 2. N. Kamminga, Breinfitness (2022) 3. Wednesday (Netflix) 4. D. De Wachter, De kunst van het ongelukkig zijn (2019) 5. Theegeheimen (2022), Dille & Kamille 6. Marc Chagall...

2023, planning and core values

  First of all: Happy New Year!! Wishing you all a joyful and healthy 2023. Core Values as a foundation. Recently, a friend told me about an exercise she got from her coach; picking...

Small pleasures, Belgium edition

Sometimes when you've been longing for something, it becomes almost a myth in itself, something much bigger and better than reality. But that hasn't been the case with the desire...

Winter solstice, 21 December, winter aesthetic, seasonal living, Sweden, www.Fenne.be

Winter solstice

The 21 of December marks a special day with the earth's axis tilted at the furthest point from the sun which results in super short days and long nights. This winter...

Winter bucket list, www.Fenne.be

Winter Bucket List

Winter a difficult time? The light might not be there but the colder months are perfect for trying out new hobbies, cherishing traditions, connecting with others, and enjoying the beauty...

Minimalistic leather camera strap, handmade, veg tan leather, www.Fenne.be

A minimalistic leather camera strap

Since I'm still learning anything and everything about leathercraft, I don't usually take orders, but when Kati asked me to make a simple (DSLR) camera strap, it sounded like a...

1924US knife, EDC Everyday carry, leather knife pocket, www.Fenne.be

Leather pocket (for my favorite knife)

This lovely knife, made by 1924US is my absolute favorite, and it's been wandering around my bags and catching some sand and dust along the way for quite some time...

Halloween dogs, Samhain at the art studio, Halloween decoration, pumpkin carving, www.Fenne.be

Happy Halloween!

While my neighbors were already installing their Christmas decorations, I've been drawing monsters and bats on my windows, carving pumpkins, and making pompons haha! -- And keeping it all sweet and...

Crochet practice, rusty autumn yarn, www.Fenne.be

Crochet practice

The unexpected crochet mood is a returning element when the temperatures drop and wild storms pull on the rusty-colored leaves. Around the same time last year, I learned how to...

Autumn bucket list, www.Fenne.be

An Autumn Bucket List

Autumn Bucket list * Picking apples * Making apple sauce * Picking mushrooms * Early morning walks * Looking for slag stones * Making plans for winter * Burning scented candles * Movie nights with my favorite tea...

Art studio porch makeover, Falu red paint, Swedish red house in the countryside, www.Fenne.be

Art studio porch makeover

This is the story of how a simple paint job turned into a slightly bigger renovation project- thanks to Joeri who had the energy and vision to make it happen. In...

Wednesday Wanderings, photo walk in Swedish nature, Nordic autumn in the woods, countryside life, www.Fenne.be

Wednesday Wanderings

Autumn settled under my skin as the chill mist slowly spread over the landscape. The greens turn into a wide variety of yellows, oranges, and browns, that even seem to...

Cabin illustration, dark and moody day, autumn illustration, www.Fenne.be

Cabin mood

“It is good to know that out there, in a forest in the world, there is a cabin where something is possible, something fairly close to the sheer happiness of...

Autumn, hot tea, diy jesmonite coaster, sketchbook. www.Fenne.be

Welcome Autumn

As the leaves turn yellow and red, and the air feels crisp while days get shorter, we're guided into a new phase, and these signs of the new season arriving,...

Art studio kitchen cupboard makeover, colorful interior, dopamine colors, www.Fenne.be

Kitchen cupboard makeover

[caption id="attachment_5875" align="alignnone" width="800"] -Before-[/caption] The convenient but worn-down cupboard in my studio's kitchen has been an ugly corner for a while but is now transformed. The outside of this cupboard...

Making handmade paper from cattail, DIY paper, nature craft, autumn craft, www.Fenne.be

Diy handmade paper from cattail

Can you even call yourself a paper lover if you've never tried making your own paper? I'm not sure, so I'm up for the challenge! Paper plays a crucial role in my...

Homemade apple sauce with cinnamon and honey, www.Fenne.be

Homemade apple sauce with cinnamon and honey.

It's apple season! After months of sunbathing, growing, and becoming sweet and juicy, the little apples from my garden are slowly getting ready! Despite some sweltering weeks and a healthy amount of...

Lars Lerin, Gallery Sandgrund Karlstad, art in Sweden, watercolor art, www.Fenne.be

Lars Lerin/ Gallery Sandgrund

Lars Lerin, a watercolor wizard, is so far and by far my favorite Swedish artist. For years I've been hoping/planning to visit his gallery 'Sandgrund' in Karlstad (about 3 hours...

Colorful interior, yellow paint, interior makeover, art studio, www.Fenne.be

A pop of yellow at the studio

At my studio, I've collected a pile of paint swatches to find the right color to freshen up the scratched doors, but none is a match. And I have had...

Leathercraft, leather basket, art studio, www.Fenne.be

Back to leathercrafting

Finally, back to leather! I've missed learning and experimenting, and all the frustration that comes with new skills :-D The past few months have been busy with a lot of work for...

Dopamine dressing, colorful collage illustration, fashion trend, www.Fenne.be

Dopamine dressing

You can't imagine how thrilled I was to come across 'Dopamine Dressing' after some seasons of dog poo and cat vomit colors. Sure some soft neutrals can be nice, but...

Sup & sunset, camping with the Volkswagen California in Sweden, paddling the lake, www.Fenne.be

Sup & sunrise

I wanted to see the sunrise at the lake where we often go swimming and the best way to make sure you're in time: sleeping right next to the water!  ...

Morgondopp, early morning lake swimming in Sweden, the ultimate feeling of freedom, www.Fenne.be

Morgondopp

I'd say this is the ultimate feeling of freedom. Early morning, rising sun. Slowly it's getting warmer. Then you step into the fresh blue mirror, making ripples, taking a moment to prepare...

Traveling and camping with dogs, Kolarbyn eco lodge Sweden, primitive cabins, Border Collie, nature photography, eco tourism , www.Fenne.be

A night at Kolarbyn eco-lodge

Thanks to our friend from Amazing Nature Scandinavia, Mogwai and I got the unexpected opportunity to try out the Kolarbyn eco-lodge. Kolarbyn means something like ‘the coal village’ and it’s also...

Johnny Depp, Ralp Steadman, For no good reason documentary, www.Fenne.be

Watching: For no good reason

Johnny Depp visits Ralph Steadman, the renowned artist and the last of the original Gonzo visionaries who worked alongside Hunter S. Thompson. It's a curious sight, this Hollywood movie star alongside...

Window drawing atelier, slow life, reading blogs, bloglovin, www.Fenne.be

Is Bloglovin dead?

Yeah, I'm old school and I still love reading blogs. The app/website that I've been using for years though seems to be down for quite a while now- and I'm...

Rock tumbling slag stone and beach pebbles, Loretone tumbler, www.Fenne.be

Rock tumbling

Between spring and autumn, the rock tumbler works almost non-stop to smoothen and polish the rocks I've been collecting during winter and early spring. The slag stones are local finds from...

Summer snacks from the garden, gardening, fruit and vegetables, Swedish garden, www.Fenne.be

Summer snacks from the garden

It takes a while before a Nordic garden produces some edibles, but it's worth the wait. At my studio, the first raspberries are delicious and sweet despite the many rainy...

Fenne Kustermans, open atelier, art studio Sweden, paintings, etches, drawings, printmaking, creative workspace, www.Fenne.be

Open atelier July 2022

In early July, I joined 'Konst Runt Barken', a local arts & crafts event where creatives and makers from our area (Barken is a lake) show their work in art...

Swedish summer garden, www.Fenne.be

Summer garden

It's absolutely incredible how my garden transforms after a long and cold winter. Until early May, it can feel as if everything is dead and dry forever. But then suddenly,...

Welcome summer, summer solstice 2022, sup dog, paddling dog, nordic nature Sweden, outdoors with dogs, www.DOGvision.eu

Welcome summer!

Today is the longest day of the year and the official start of supseason summer! Soon the lakes will get warmer, the mosquitoes less hungry, and fruit will start to ripe....

Bulb flowers tulips, spring gardening. www.Fenne.be

Spring destruction

I've been curiously waiting all winter to see the flowers that I planted come out. In September, we started our Valborg-garden-project, transforming a weed-covered corner of our garden into a...

Rock tumbling and treasure hunting England and Sweden, www.Fenne.be

Tumbling and treasure hunting into summer

Summer is (almost) here and since that means that liquid will remain liquid, I've started the rock tumbler again! Rocks tumbling around in a barrel obviously make some noise. It's probably...

Ammonites, fossils and pyrite from Jurassic coast in England, Dorset and Devon, Lyme Regis, Charmouth beach. www.Fenne.be

Ammonites on my mind

My main goal in traveling to England's Jurassic coast was to search for fossils like ammonites, Belemnites, and Ichthyosaurus vertebrae. And yes, I chose the word 'search' rather than find...

Watching: The Andy Warhol Diaries

The Andy Warhol Diaries is the dictated memoirs of the American artist Andy Warhol, posthumously published. It was edited by his frequent collaborator and long-time friend, Pat Hackett, and first...

Famous Five by Enid Blyton, ginger biscuits, Jurassic coast travel, England, www.Fenne.be

Still a Famous Five fan :-)

Did I get ginger biscuits just because I used to read about them in the Famous Five books? Yep! Very much. I even texted a good friend who lives in England...

Rocks and slag stone painting, nature inspired large paintings, colorful nature inspired wall art, www.Fenne.be

We will rock you

"So what are you going to do will all those rocks?" -- this was the number one question that I got after finally getting a rock tumbler (a simple machine to...

Watching in March

1. What identical twins separated at birth teach us about genetics.   2. Blown away. Unconsciously I've been waiting for a series like this...

Early Nordic spring in Sweden, nature photography, www.Fenne.be

The beauty of early spring

Sure flowers are pretty and they bring unique colors to a landscape, but to me, there isn't much that can beat the beauty of ice in all shapes and forms....

Abstract painting Fenne Kustermans, www.Fenne.be

Going big(ger)

The past few weeks have been all about working on larger formats both on paper and canvas. It's been a search by 'goesting' (desire) for textures, colors, a narrative, and...

TikTok artist Fenne Kustermans, www.Fenne.be

Getting on TikTok as an artist, worth it?

While I feel late to the party, I know that many people are not really aware of what TikTok is, so I'll start with a brief explanation. Wikipedia writes:" TikTok is...

Crystal glass ball nature photography, Nordic nature, Nordic winter, creative outdoor photography, www.Fenne.be

Glass ball photography

Some simply call it a glass ball, others go for a crystal ball or lens-ball, but the concept is the same. One gets a clear round object to shoot through...

Colorful dog mom style, pin by DOGvision.eu, www.Fenne.be

What gives away that I’m not Swedish?

One simple fact: I wear color in winter haha :-)   Recently I saw a few TikTok clips about dressing Scandinavian/Swedish and every single one of them was wearing black head to toe....

Watching & reading in February

- The L-word, generation Q, S2. I'm actually not so much into drama series where people fight over stupid things and relationships change every five minutes, but well, here I am...

Pink and blue play, digital art illustration, abstract drawing, design available at fenne-be.redbubble.com, www.Fenne.be

Pink and blue play

Lines and shapes, pink and blue, playful experiment. This design is available in my Redbubble-shop.   ...

Book about the Belgian artist James Ensor, Creative artistic inspiration, www.Fenne.be

Creative inspiration: James Ensor

While sketching, grubbing, and searching the right lines for this work, I noticed the skulls and skeletons were finding their way again into my work, and perhaps it was the...

Canada goose, Canadian geese, digital procreate illustration, available as art print on fenne-be.Redbubble.com, sunset, pink, orange sun, spring, www.Fenne.be

Canada goose sunset

Dreaming of traveling just like the birds when the sun chases away the cold winter dust.   This new design is available at my Redbubble shop. ...

Bright pink and purple jesmonite, silicone mold, craft photography, www.Fenne.be

Pouring bright pink and purple jesmonite

Recently I shared my very first jesmonite (terrazzo) experiments and promised some further updates. This set of 4 coasters isn't sanded yet but straight from the mold- the same silicon type...

DJI mavic drone shot Nordics lake. Nature photography, www.Fenne.be

Before the snow storm

Today I'm staying inside with a hot cup of tea on my windowsill and sleepy dogs cuddling against me. This morning I did try to get to my studio, packed...

De fanfare van honger en dorst/ Jan de Wilde, Flemish Belgian song, acrylic painting illustration, www.Fenne.be

De fanfare van honger en dorst

We liepen in Gent rond, we waren met zessen We kwamen van nergens, gingen nergens naartoe Vanaf de terrassen, in de koffiehuizen Bekeken we de mensen en hun drukke gedoe We liepen met ons...

Lars WinnerbÀck Granit och MorÀn song lyrics inspiration. Digital Procreate illustration, www.Fenne.be

Granit och MorÀn

Granit och morÀn by Lars WinnerbÀck Jag flyger över ett land Det mesta Àr skog Och byggvaruhus och miljonprogram DÀr jag fick min första kyss DÀr jag förlorade mitt första hjÀrta Det mesta Àr granit och morÀn DÀr...

Jesmonite Terrazzo experiments, creative hobby, sanding jesmonite, mixing terrazzo colors, www.Fenne.be

Jesmonite Terrazzo experiments

While scrubbing this Jesmonite experiment for hours, I was wondering: Why the heck do I always pick hobbies with so much sanding involved?!?!@%&$@%" :-) But I have to admit, I've had...

Fenne Kustermans art, craft and illustration, abstract artwork on Redbubble, art prints, interior decoration, wallart, phone cases, Iphone art, www.Fenne.be

New designs on Redbubble

A few new designs have found their way to the Redbubble print shop. I think that perhaps there is already a hint of spring energy rising up in my imagination,...

Fenne Kustermans artist, Sweden/Belgium. Sketchbook January 2022, sketching, drawing, Schetsboek, rocks, Denmark, www.Fenne.be

January 2022 Sketchbook

The past month, I added daily sketching back to my routine. Sometimes, when life is busy, uncertain, or challenging, sketching and doodling can feel like a waste of time. As if...

Don't look up, movies and series watched in January 2022, www.Fenne.be

Reading and watching //January 2022

Movies, documentaries & series: 1. Let them all talk. When Meryl Streep plays a role, I'm in. It's as simple as that. This movie might not be for everyone, but it's rather...

Strömsholm palace VÀsterås in winter with snow. Baroque castle Sweden, www.Fenne.be

Strömsholm Palace in winter

About 100km west of Stockholm, in VÀstmanland, you can find this charming Baroque castle called Strömsholms slott. On the site of a fortress built by Gustav Vasa, this Swedish royal palace...

Beachcombing, strandjutten, Denmark, Nord Jutland, bones, corona bottle, seaweed, amber, Michael Kors earrings, www.Fenne.be

Beachcombing/ strandjutten

For weeks in advance, I was hoping for some really stormy weather. Big waves, wild wind, maybe even some thunder! After about 2 years in the woods, I was longing...

Rubjerg Knude Lighthouse, winter 2021, Jutland Denmark, www.Fenne.be

Rubjerg Knude Lighthouse/ Denmark

When we visited the lighthouse a few years ago, it wasn't standing in the same spot but almost balancing at the edge of a cliff. We had climbed up the...

Small round leather purse, hand stitched, www.Fenne.be

Round leather purse

The first leathercraft project of this brand new year is a small round purse. Something for coins or perhaps -if you're like me- collecting rocks or other found treasures :-). With...

New Year 2022, www.Fenne.be

Happy New Year!

As 2022 arrives, we're ready to unlock a new year full of unknown moments and events, and hopes and dreams to turn into plans. With the world still in pandemic chaos,...

A Swedish/Belgian Christmas, winter holiday decoration, Nordic home, Ikea pepparkakshus, Star lights, window drawings, cottage in the snow, www.Fenne.be

A Belgian/Swedish Christmas

This winter will be five years since we moved to Sweden and until 2020, we celebrated Christmas partly at home, partly with friends, and partly via zoom (the family we...

Scandi Christmas holidays, drawing snowmen on my kitchen window, www.Fenne.be

December rewind

December used to be the craziest month of the year, especially when I was still studying. When school ends, you dive into your books to study and after all the...

Jenny Odell,How to do nothing; resisting the attention economy.

Watching and reading in November 2021

1.Yves Saint Laurent (Netflix) Sometimes it's hard to imagine how quickly our surroundings and trends change around us, and perhaps it's something we can only start to understand better (or at...

Leathercraft practice, glasses case in green and tan leather, hand stitched, learning at home, www.Fenne.be

Leathercraft practice: glasses case

Oh, it felt so good to be creating another little leathercraft project. There is something so calming yet exciting about the million steps to go from raw material to a...

Halloween craft with chestnuts, Inspired by The Chestnutman (Kastanjemannen), Autumn craft, Children's craft, painted with Posca markers, www.Fenne.be

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!! I have to say, at first I had a very different plan for Halloween decoration/photographs, but after watching "The Chestnutman" (Kastanjemannen) on Netflix, all I could think about were...

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