Behind the scenes on one of my Green Sketching workshops
This year I’ve been running a new workshop - “Introduction to Green Sketching” - and I can’t tell you how much I’ve enjoyed spending time helping people to reconnect with their creativity and the natural world around us.
Green Sketching is such a joy-filled activity and is perfect for anyone who wants to get drawing but is constantly fighting against that little voice in their head telling them that they’re ‘not an artist’ or that they ‘can’t draw’. In Green Sketching, we learn how to quiet that voice (and all the other noise in our heads) by focusing on simple, observational sketching exercises that help us to exist in the moment, creating without pressure. And best of all, Green Sketching gets us outdoors, noticing the nature around us and perhaps opening our eyes to things we’d never have seen previously.
What to expect on a Green Sketching workshop with me
A warm, relaxed welcome
Simple sketching guidance that emphasises enjoying the process rather than fixating on the end result
Time outdoors in a beautiful setting
All materials provided, including a basic sketching pack to take away with you to help you develop your own creative habit
A supportive, non-judgemental atmosphere
“[I most enjoyed] the gentle, mindful attitude of the whole workshop. It was paced just right and set in a beautiful place.”
Nikki
The Magic of the Moment
At my first workshop this year, everyone in the group began the session convinced that they couldn’t draw. As we worked through some exercises where we drew the same natural object three times in a row (setting a timer each time to draw for 60 seconds, 2 minutes and 3 minutes) the realisation gradually sunk in that they were drawing and that it wasn’t scary - they were enjoying it. After each exercise, we stopped to reflect on how we felt and to think about the different things we’d noticed about a leaf as we drew it multiple times.
“Ali was great - made me feel really comfortable and able to have a go.”
Once people have warmed up and have a few different techniques under their belt, I like to set them off with an outdoor task - this might be to find something that they notice (a leaf, a flower, a shape) and to draw it a few times. Or sometimes I set them off on a ‘colour hunt’, where they’re tasked to look for 6-8 different colours in the location and to both sketch the object and record the basic colour (nothing complicated like colour matching!)
It is amazing how quickly everyone becomes immersed in their task - looking around them with new eyes, noticing colours/shapes that they might not otherwise have been drawn to, and finding out how they like to sketch. Are they speedy and sketchy, or slow and methodical in how they attempt to capture what they see? Are they most drawn to colour, or to shape and line?
What People Say
I always think that the best way to share the experience of my workshops is in the words of people who’ve participated, so here’s a selection of feedback from people who’ve attended my Introduction to Green Sketching workshops in 2025.
“Thoroughly enjoyed this workshop and learning to sketch. Ali explained everything in a relaxed way that was easy to follow”
“Thoroughly enjoyed it and feel inspired to continue - it really doesn’t matter what it looks like!”
“I felt relaxed [at the end of the workshop] and keen to do more.”
If you’re interested in Green Sketching, I’ve written more about what it is and how it was developed in a previous blog post and I’d highly recommend having a look at The Green Sketching Handbook, by Dr Ali Foxon.
I warmly invite you to attend a workshop with me, if you’re based in (or visiting) Northumberland or the Scottish Borders. You can find details of upcoming workshops over in the Workshops & Events section of my website.
If you’ve been longing to slow down, reconnect with nature and rediscover your creative spark — this might just be the gentle nudge you’ve been looking for…