Inktober 2025 - Week 1 Recap
A weekly recap of all the sketches and stories of Inktober 2025.
Hello there!
I hope Inktober and life are treating you well; unlike me, who’s still a week behind on the prompts. But not to fret; not everything is a race. It’s more about why you’re doing it rather than anything else. For me, that is staying true to my imagination and being consistent in its execution.
What has been your why for Inktober 2025? If you’re amused by the question, try giving my previous post a read; it might have some useful insights for you - Starting and Staying with Inktober 2025. I’ll be publishing weekly recaps of my Inktober sketches along with the story behind each one, so everything’s in one place in case you missed the daily notes.
This post features the sketches and stories from Week 1. Hope you enjoy going through them!
Day 1 – Mustache
This one is inspired by my earliest and fondest memories with my father. As a toddler, a clingy crybaby as I was, I loved being carried around by him everywhere, nor would I ever miss a chance of being on his lap. He loved taking me everywhere with him too — to his playgrounds, to his meetings, to buy groceries and to the sabzi mandi. I’d sit on the tank of his bike and off we’d go parading through the narrow roads of our tiny little town. Back then, he used to have a sharp, well-trimmed mustache that I found particularly spikey and annoying against my cheeks. He knew that and would not stop teasing me with it. The sketch captures one of those moments.
Day 2 – Weave
One has to be extremely fortunate to be blessed with the love of their grandparents. I am one of those fortunate ones. I grew up with my grandparents and adored them dearly, often spending more time with them than with my parents, especially my grandmother. I would follow her around the house as she did chores, eat from the same plate as her, and sleep on her bed ever since I was just a couple of years old. Being a quiet kid, I had a thing for observing my grandmother and mother meticulously, picking things from them and wanting to learn more about what fascinated me.
Knitting was one of those things. It used to amuse me so much - how simply holding a couple of sticks and moving them with your hands could make a whole sweater or a scarf! Also, the colourful balls of yarn were a delight to my eyes. I’d always get so excited whenever my grandmother would knit. Sitting next to her for hours and watching her. Playing with the yarn and holding it for her. So much so that after some time, she got me my own sticks and taught me how to knit. Little did I know, we were weaving memories together that we’d cherish for life.
Day 3 – Crown
May we all be blessed with partners who give us a royal treatment and make us feel that we deserve nothing less!
Day 4 – Murky
The underpasses of flyovers in India have an entire ecosystem of their own. From offering shelter and solace to those in dire need to harbouring and attracting those who could snatch others of the same, our underpasses see it all. I have always found them extremely dark and terrifying, to say the least. How about you?
Day 5 – Deer
The 17-Mile Drive, California, USA, is one of the most scenic drives I have been on. With different viewpoints spread across the Pacific coast, the serene blue sky, its reflection on the clear Pacific Ocean, and the humongous Cypress trees never leave your side throughout the drive. And, sometimes you are also accompanied by beautiful wildlife.
This one is from one such moment. This deer was casually strolling along with its mates on the Pebble Beach Golf Links, right across the road from a viewpoint. It was a delight to spot them all. I got so excited, I almost screamed, “Look! There are deer!”
I have also added a few pictures from the 17-mile drive for you to look at!
Day 6 – Pierce
I think the sketch speaks for itself in this one. It’s often the non-material weapons that create the deepest wounds, and it’s those invisible wounds that hurt the most. May we all get a little better at treating each other.
Day 7 – Starfish
Have you ever heard of the vanishing sea phenomenon? I had not either until I visited Chandipur Beach in Odisha, India. It’s a phenomenon where the sea recedes dramatically, almost vanishing during low tide due to the unique slope of the beach. It leaves behind a huge paradise of sea shells and starfish on the exposed seabed that you could actually walk on! The seabed is so vast you won’t feel like there is an ocean around.
Being there with your loved ones makes everything all the more better, especially when you have someone by your side, narrating their childhood stories as you walk along.
Have a look at the views from the beach!
That’s all for Week 1! I hope you enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed creating and writing these. I’d love to know which sketch or story resonated with you the most — feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. Until next week, keep creating, keep feeling.
All images and sketches by Avisha Jaiswal.