I fully participated in Inktober for the first time in 2018 and as I decided to theme it around plastic pollution I thought I'd share it here. If you don't know, Inktober is a drawing challenge where artists (or amateurs in my case) make one drawing a day for the whole month of October. There is a word for each day to use as inspiration (although this is optional) and my challenge was to link this in some way to my plastic free journey.
Day 1 - Poisonous
I thought about how dangerous plastic pollution is to marine life and tried to show how our actions are poisoning other creatures.
Day 2 - Tranquil
A tranquil bath using package free solid products from Lush.
Day 3 - Roasted
Since we started receiving a vegetable box we roast a lot of vegetables.
Day 4 - Spell
Spelling practice using non-plastic writing tools.
Day 5 - Chicken
Cycling to the butchers with my own container to buy un-packaged chicken.
Day 6 - Drooling
Drooling over all the fancy plastic free products I want to buy.
Day 7 - Exhausted
Our planet is exhausted by our lifestyle.
Day 8 - Star
Day 9 - Precious
Starfish and corals are suffering from global warming. We should protect our precious planet.
Day 10 - Flowing
Loose grains, lentils and seeds flowing into my containers are at the heart of my zero waste living.
Day 11 - Cruel
What we are doing to our oceans is cruel.
Day 12 - Whale
Whales are found dead with up to 40Kg of plastic waste in their bodies.
Day 13 - Guarded
A plastic free lifestyle is guarded by its prohibitive costs to some and big corporations who profit on cheap plastic packaging.
Day 14 - Clock
The clock is ticking. The future is in our hands.
Day 15 - Weak
We must show strength to not succumb to the convenience and consumerism of plastic.
Day 16 - Angular
One of the first and long lasting plastic free changes: beeswax wraps.
Day 17 - Swollen
Birds are mistaking plastic waste for food. When their stomachs are full of plastic, they can't feed themselves any longer.
Day 18 - Bottle
Refilling a bottle: simple and effective actions.
Day 19 - Scorched
Most plastic recycling gets sold off to other countries and is often degrading in the sun in the vicinity of waterways which make it un-recyclable and allow it to leak into our oceans.
Day 20 - Breakable
Jars are a fantastic and cheap solution to plastic free living.
Day 21 - Drain
Micro-plastics from machine washing of synthetic fibres are leaking into the water and entering our food chain.
Day 22 - Expensive
Plastic free tea is very expensive.
Day 23 - Muddy
Plastic waste being buried on beaches in developing countries (Senegal).
Day 24 - Chop
Street sellers in Senegal use plastic bags so they can carry many fruits at a time and sell quickly to passing cars.
Day 25 - Prickly
Prickly seeds get stuck to your feet in the garden as you walk past the new lemon tree and the plastic waste burning pit (Senegal).
Day 26 - Stretch
Beautiful girl with very neat patterned plaits and plastic beads at the ends (Senegal).
Day 27 - Thunder
Our message needs to be as loud as thunder to be heard by all.
Day 28 - Gift
Plastic free gift wrapping is beautiful and personal.
Day 29 - Double
Turtles often mistake plastic bags for jelly fish in the sea.
Day 30 - Jolt
Scary pumpkins and sweet treat parcels for a plastic free Halloween.
Day 31 - Slice
The biggest slice of this pie is the one I am worried about. What happens to plastic?
I hope you've enjoyed my art if you've gotten this far. The hardest challenge was to make it all relevant to my cause while sticking to the word of the day and not becoming repetitive. I feel like I have managed to cover quite a few bases as well as incorporating my trip to Senegal towards the end of the month. I'd love to know what you liked or didn't like so leave a comment below.