When gardening writer Adrian Higgins first talked to be about this story for the Washington Post, I knew it was going to be great. It would showcase Higgins’s witty voice, and I needed an illustrator who could pull off something equally fun but still botanically accurate. I hired illustrator Vidhya Nagarajan to draw the eight …
For this story on fragrant gardens, I chose D.C. illustrator Elizabeth Graeber, whose loose application of color on black line drawings perfectly conveyed the idea of fragrance “escaping” the flowers. Plus, her sketchbook approach made me imagine someone appreciating and studying flowers in their own backyard. (Elizabeth actually documents flea and farmers markets on her …
I sent illustrator Julie Notarianni the idea to paint the scene of a rain garden as a storm is rolling in. Inside, she illustrated a rain garden in relationship to a house, which became the basis of a graphic detailing how to create one. She captured the spirit of the story perfectly.
I collaborated with illustrator Julie Notarianni to create a seed packet to kick off our spring gardening coverage. She painted the packet texture and central vignette (even incorporating the garden writer in the scene!). I added the border and seal in Photoshop to give it a more realistic feel reminiscent of vintage seed packets.
