I really enjoyed this project! I decided to paint some birds from photos on Pexels.com. 

The 1, 2 and 5 minute sketches were a really good, low-pressure entry point. 

I sketched a few different types of birds, from the photos below:

It's a while since I've drawn in this way and I enjoyed the mark-making exercise!

Below is the underpainting of my Hummingbird:

And the finished painting:

I felt a bit of resistance at the painting stage, having not worked with gouache for a while. I also realised I didn't want to use my precious watercolour brushes for gouache, and didn't have quite the right brushes! 

Most of all it was the whole angle of shushing the inner critic that really helped me to just go for it and enjoy the process. Anyone who struggles with the inner critic should watch this class! Thank you Alanna!