Behind the Scenes - Illustrating a Cosy Christmas Editorial Commission for a Magazine

I was recently commissioned by Homes & Antiques magazine to illustrate a festive Christmas scene featuring an antique shop set in a Georgian building. The brief called for classic Christmas charm, plenty of decorations, falling snow, and a family walking past, taking in the magic. A dream project!

Given the relatively tight deadline, I chose a hybrid approach, combining traditional and digital techniques. This allowed me to keep the warmth and texture of hand-painted elements while using digital tools to speed up the process and add atmospheric effects like glowing lights and snow.

I began by sketching the composition in Procreate, which offered the flexibility to quickly make adjustments based on client feedback. The client actually loved the sketch so much the decided to move the feature title to the other page so we didn't’t lose any of the illustration. Once the sketch was approved, I created a digital color mock-up. We decided on a palette that blended traditional Christmas tones, reds and greens, with more unexpected colours like teal, maroon, and pink, giving the scene a unique and contemporary twist.

The final artwork was painted using gouache and watercolour, which brought warm and softness to the piece. I then returned to Procreate to add finishing touches, including the ambient lighting from the shop windows and the soft fall of snow, details that really helped bring the scene to life make it feel magical.

It was a joy to work on such a heartwarming seasonal commission, and I’m thrilled with how it all came together on the page.