Michael Nobbs

Tag: tea-tray drawings

Tea-tray drawings are a recurring part of my drawing practice — small, everyday observations made while I sit with my tea, usually from the familiar collection of objects gathered around me. Over time they have become a kind of visual diary, recording ordinary mornings, changing materials, and small shifts in how I look at and draw the world close at hand.

  • Don’t Shake Me (Anymore!)

    ng yellow in the lamplight), travel mug, Oatly Barista carton, and a Go Gently mug sit around an open Moleskine sketchbook. The drawing shows a mug and the Oatly carton in Neocolor II Black, Purple, and Silver Grey, with handwritten text on the left page.

    Drawn in bed early this morning — a mug and the Oatly carton from the tray beside me. The drawing is simple: just those two things, made with Neocolor II Black, Purple, and Silver Grey, and a Blackwing 3 pencil.

    The last few days have felt shaky. The process of trying to buy a car has left me feeling very unsettled. G. woke me in the night as I was calling out for help in my sleep — rescuing me from a nightmare in which I was being stabbed.

    I was still feeling jittery when I awoke properly and was pleased to have my usual morning routine — make tea, put it on my tea-tray, take it back to bed, reach for my sketchbook — to fall into. It was as I was putting my oat milk on the tray that I noticed the “Shake Me” lettering on the carton, and I began the drawing in my head as I climbed the stairs back to bed.

    The finished drawing feels raw and unsettling — the colours echoing the words on the page:
    Feeling shaken and jittery. Buying a new car has all been a bit too much. Woke up at 2:00 a.m. shouting out for help. Don’t SHAKE ME (anymore!).
    It captures the moment as I was drawing and will be a reminder of my night-terror.

    I think this morning, the act of drawing (even more so than usual), was an attempt at steadying myself through its familiar routine. Today, I’m not sure that was wholly successful — but it did help.

    A close-up of the open sketchbook showing the drawing and handwritten note. The right page depicts the Oatly carton and mug in Neocolor II Black, Purple, and Silver Grey, with “Shake Me!” visible on the carton. The soft lamplight and plaid duvet convey quiet vulnerability and the effort to stay steady.

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  • Sometimes Things Just Can Work Out

    A close-up of an open Moleskine sketchbook showing a late-night drawing of an Oatly Barista Edition carton and an Energizer light bulb box on a green surface (the tea-tray). The handwritten text records a 4:30 a.m. moment when George found a replacement bulb just after one had blown. The drawing was made with a Blackwing 3 pencil and two Neocolor II crayons (black and light olive). The real objects — carton, bulb box, and Onion Soup mug — rest on the tea tray behind the sketchbook, all on a plaid blanket. The image conveys quiet domestic calm and the small satisfaction of things unexpectedly working out.

    Today’s Tea-Tray drawing, made at 4:30 a.m. when I couldn’t sleep.

    An Oatly Barista carton, an Energizer light bulb box, and my Onion Soup mug were all on the tea tray, though the mug didn’t find its way into the drawing.

    G. had just found the bulb while looking for something else, moments after one of the lights blew — a small thing, but it felt like a sign that maybe not everything has to be difficult. I was about to put the bulb box into the recycling and then decided I could draw it instead. A tiny decision, but one that changed today’s drawing from my more usual composition. (I’m going to put the bulb box into my physical Ephemera archive.)

    It was drawn with my Blackwing 3 pencil and two Neocolor II crayons (black and light olive). I felt very dopey and suspected I wasn’t equal to the task, but I’m glad I persevered — so that now this drawing exists as a tiny record of a quiet moment of domestic calm, and the small satisfaction of things unexpectedly working out.

    The full text reads:

    4:30 a.m.
    Very dopey drawing. G. found this bulb when looking for something else. Perfect as one of my bulbs had just blown (do low-energy bulbs blow?). Sometimes things can just work out.

    A closer view of the drawing in the sketchbook, showing the loose pencil and crayon lines depicting the Oatly carton and Energizer bulb box. The handwritten notes describe tiredness, coincidence, and the relief of a small thing going right. The textures of pencil and crayon are visible on the paper, revealing the dopey, half-awake energy of the 4:30 a.m. drawing.

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  • Needs Must in a Crisis

    A full view of the drawing “Needs Must in a Crisis,” made in the middle of the night after Michael discovered all his favourite mugs were in the dishwasher. The drawing shows a glass mug of decaffeinated tea on his familiar tray, drawn in Blackwing 3 pencil with subtle areas of Neocolor II Light Olive. Above the drawn mug, the handwritten text reads: “Middle of the night (decaffeinated) tea – all my favourite mugs are in the dishwasher, so I’m making do with this glass one (once a favourite 25 plus years ago). Needs must in a crisis…” The page sits open in a large Moleskine sketchbook, lit softly by lamplight, continuing the ongoing Tea-Tray drawing series that documents daily rituals and recovery.

    Middle of the night. Decaffeinated tea.
    All my favourite mugs were in the dishwasher, so I reached for this glass one — a forgotten favourite from more than twenty-five years ago.

    So, I made this drawing (Needs Must in a Crisis) in my current sketchbook (29-08-2025 – ), a large Moleskine that I’m enjoying using. It was made with a Blackwing 3 pencil and Neocolor II Light Olive. I’m not very sure about it. Drawing the glass mug felt quite alien, not as satisfying as drawing one of my Go Gently hen mugs. Nothing familiar about it. Making me realise just how much of these drawings are from memory (perhaps something easier to do when my brain is tired?) and how little from observation. Last night I was forced to observe and don’t feel that I did very well. That feels a little disappointing, but good to note.

    Anyway, sometimes it really is needs must in a crisis — and sometimes that’s enough to keep the rhythm going.
    A small reminder that even when things don’t go to plan, there’s always something to draw, something to notice, something to keep you company in the quiet, dark hours.

    A close-up, straight-on view of an open Moleskine sketchbook showing my “Needs Must in a Crisis” drawing, focusing on the sketchbook itself, with the tea-tray and glass mug of tea peeking out from behind it. The image conveys the intimacy of a late-night drawing session — quiet, domestic, and gently self-observant.

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