Some of My College Art

I thought I'd post some paintings from my photo-realism phase :-) The bottom two were done with gouache.

Meet Newell

This is my first softy design :-) He started out in a sketchbook, and ended up quite a bit different than I had planned.  His first look was kind of contemporary, but as I put his materials next to each other, I realized he was going towards a classic direction.  He definitely has a bit of my illustration style in him which was what I was hoping for.  Alright I promise my next post will have some actual illustrations (seeing as this is an illustration blog)--I guess I just needed a creative break from drawing.

Birthday Present

This was a tough one to make for me because it's advanced for my level....and I kept having to look up sewing machine info on youtube to figure some things out, but boy was he worth it!  I got the pattern from a site called Funky Friends Factory--tons of adorable animals patterns there.  Not the typical craft patterns either, these designs are very special IMHO.  Anyways, this is for my Mom's Birthday.  I did a portrait of the lil' platy on a tag I made too.  Phew!  Now I'm going to sleep for about 16 hours (yeah I kind of forgot to go to bed last night, at least, not until 6am.)

Doggie Made From Socks

I'm especially proud of one of the arms--which was sewn with a sewing machine!  The rest was hand-stitched, although I think from now on I'm a sewing machine convert: much faster and with perfectly even stitches to boot.  It took me several hours of youtube videos to figure out how to thread and use the thing--much more complicated than it first appears. 

Don't worry Risky (my Jack Russell Terrier), this pup is not going to replace my favorite studio assistant!

My First Softy!

Well, the first one that worked out anyway (design was from a book called "Sock and Glove").  As you can see I'm a beginner at sewing, but I'm slowly getting better.  I eventually would like to design and sew my own animal characters to have around my desk and give to my nieces too!

And here is the start of a doggie - he still needs his ear sewn and I'll be adding a little spot around his eye with embroidery thread!

Advanced Copy!

I got my advanced copy today of "How Much Does God Love You" and I couldn't be happier with the printing, design, font, everything!  Ideals Publishing did a great job on this.  Release date is set for September!

Pen and Ink Question

Hi all, I was wondering if you could help me out with a dilemma.  I've been attempting to dilute my inks to get a a softer look to my outlines.  However, when I do this, it changes the consistency of the ink so that it doesn't flow through my dip pen very well.  Does anyone know of any inks that come right of the bottle this way?  A soft gray, or brown yet are not 'watery'?  Any help would be much appreciated!

Comment Issues

Hi Everyone, just wanted to let you know that I keep getting an error when I choose to publish moderated comments :0( Argh!  First and foremost I don't want you to think I'm skipping over or ignoring them -- I'll google the issue and see if I can come up with something.

Also when I place my title image (which I sized in photoshop to match the width of the blog) using the widget feature it shrinks it down automatically.  Grrr.  Lol.  Anyways, wish I knew more about code but it all looks Greek to me.

For now I'm turning off comment moderation until I can get this sorted out.

_______________________

*******AHA!  For anyone else having this issue, I found a quick fix.  Don't know if this will work for everyone but, I went back and published the post again.  The comments magically appeared, hooray!  

And as always thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to post a word or two :-)

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Another update--I got the comments to appear on the post itself, but on the main homepage, the comment number is still 0.  Things that make you go hmmm.....

Illustration Friday: Giant

My Dad looked so tall to me when I was little (he's over 6ft).  And of course I also believed that my parents knew all the secrets of the universe-- and that one day when I grew up I'd know them too. 

The Sculpture

Leap!

This is another character sketch from a super-duper top-secret story I wrote.  Ok it's not that top secret, but here we go:

Barnyard Animals + Fancy Setting = Fun

And one last sketch to complete the marathon of drawing for the day.   I'm doing lots of experiments to figure out which style would be best for the two books I'm working on.  It's actually been a great deal of fun along with the nice side effect of really pumping up my creative energy before I embark on sketches for one book, and final art for the other. 

Ah, Nutellaaaaa

I just wanted to take a moment to sing the praises of Nutella.  The stuff is simply from heaven: chocolate and hazelnuts mixed together into a spread....yummm...  The taste and smell bring back memories of my childhood when my mom would make peanut butter and Nutella sandwiches for school.  I unfortunately cannot keep this stuff in my house save for special occasions--otherwise I end up on the couch eating it straight out of the jar with a big spoon! 

Thought I might also add a little history of Nutella:

*Was created in the 1940's by Pietro Ferrero, a pastry maker.  Chocolate was in short supply back then due to World War II rationing, so he added hazelnuts to extend the chocolate.

Now, thanks to Alicia Padron's post about chocolate I'm sooo craving this! LOL

Lost (Color)

Lost

Fountain Party!!!

Another Bunny Suit Sketch

Fireflies Again

Just doing some experimenting lately with different styles and approaches.  They don't all work out of course, but it's fun changing things up.  I find I get bored if I keep doing the same style all the time.

Chasing Dreams

The reason I've titled this post "Chasing Dreams" instead of "Chasing Fireflies" is because the act of chasing both is so similar.  Like chasing a dream, you start off in the pitch dark feeling a little lost and unsure of a direction.  Then all of a sudden, you see a small light in the distance.  Whether it be an idea or a whim of inspiration, you tear into the night running that direction....but when you get there it's gone.  Maybe the idea you had works, but not quite. Then you see another tiny light in a different direction and you run with all your might to catch it.  You swing your hand, and you almost have the little bug in your palm, and you feel its wings flutter against your index finger before again disappearing.  At this point you sit down in the grass and wonder if you will EVER catch that firefly.  And just when you're about to give up, because the bugs have trickled into nothingness and it's growing late and pass your bedtime, an extra bright light sours through the night sky.  It's at perfect eye level, and it's traveling a little slower than the others.  You feel deep inside yourself that this is it, that it's the right light to chase.  And then....you catch it.  Before you let it go to chase another.

Illustration Friday: Paisley II

Illustration Friday: Paisley

Character Sketches

Happy Father's Day Dad!

I drew this illustration for my Dad--I was very much a tomboy when I was young, and that's my chidhood dog, Captain Jack (a Jack Russell terrier).

Beach Day

Illustration Friday: Slither II

Illustration Friday: Slither

Time to take the snail for a walk.

A Nice Surprise

I got a little package today from Ideals Publications - it was their Fall catalog.  And guess what was on the cover--an image from my recently illustrated book, "How Much Does God Love You," written by Michelle Medlock Adams, neato!!  The book is due out this September.

Illustration Friday: Early

Stretch.....yawn....

 

Color Sketches from "Baby Moose Visits"

Here are a couple different versions of baby moose.  I'll probably go for the more characterized version on top since he'll be doing some goofy things like jumping on the bed and making mischief.  I didn't think a realistic drawing like the one below would fit as well with the humorous subject matter.  I also wanted slightly disproportionate legs - extra long and clumsy (the art director suggested this too).

Baby Moose Visits Sketches

Hi everyone, I'm sorry I've been away from the ol' blog for so long.  Sometimes things get hectic and--you know how that is.  Anyways, my current book is the adorable "Baby Moose Visits" written by Linda Glaser.  I've thumb-nailed (made tiny sketches of all the spreads) the book and am now working on character sketches:

Irritated Earthworm

Mole's habit of building home extensions at two in the morning did not make him very popular with his neighbors.

Transferring Sketches With A Printer

*Edit: I corrected the title spelling, that's what I get for posting late at night lol

I have always used a light table to transfer my sketches to watercolor paper. A VERY time consuming process that almost doubled the amount of time it took me to complete books.  I'd watch a movie or listen to music while I mind-numbingly traced over my lines with a pencil.   Not to mention the times I've messed up on a painting and had to transfer for a second and some cases a third time.  So, what if I could cut that process out completely? If I did, I could possible fit in one, maybe two more projects per year and therefor have an easier time making a living as an illustrator.  I could meet deadlines much quicker as well.  Well there IS a way, but it will take an initial, fairly large investment to do it. I'm talking about large-format printers (to fit those larger double page picture books spreads). What I'd do is scan a clean sketch, lighten the lines until they're barely visible with Photoshop and print it directly on my watercolor paper. And if I mess up? No problem! I'll just print another copy. I know some illustrators have been doing this for years, but I guess I waited for the prices on these printers to drop more. I remember back when I checked on them they were averaging around 5k a piece (?) Ugh! Now they're definitely more affordable although still enough to make me hold my breath. 

Since I'm only on the sketching phase of my current book, I'll probably wait until the final art is under-way to get one. But when I do, I'll post my experiences with the new printer.

Also, please post a comment if you yourself have transferred sketches this way. Thanks!

A Daily Dose of Inspiration

An illustration from start to finish by P.J. Lynch

Illustration Friday: Subterranean

How Cool is This?

Recently, I was approached by LuShae Jewelry to write a review about a product of my choosing, and of course I jumped at the chance.  I love their designs, and here's the kicker, I got to keep the item for free.  I didn't even have to pay shipping either, so thank you LuShae!

Above is the ring I chose, entitled "Kissing Hearts Ring", created in a Rhodium- High Lustre finish, it retails for $64.00 on the LuShae website.  It really has become one of my favorite rings.  And let me add, there were a couple days when it mysteriously disappeared.....want to know why?  My grandmother, who has alzheimer's disease (but still knows something pretty when she sees it) had at some point wandered in my room and picked it up off my crowded dresser.  I thought for sure I had lost it forever, but then later found it on her finger.  Now we share the ring :0)

So, I really couldn't be happier with their product, and I already see plenty of other beautiful pieces on their site I'd like to get.  As an aside, I did a bit of of Googling and some research before I agreed to do this in order to protect my readers, and so far I've read nothing but rave reviews about their costumer service and products. 

Anyways, thanks again to Sarah and I do apologize for the delay in writing this post.  I had a couple deadlines to attend to. 

You can visit the LuShae website here

Illustration Friday: Brave

High Five Cover Sketch

This is for the September issue.  I added lots and lots of detail to this illustration so that the kids could have fun pointing out all the different toys.  Hopefully the art director/editors like it and I can go to color! :0) Painting this should be a nice challenge.  The different shapes, circle and rectangle are all design parts of the magazine, titles etc.

A Way Back Into Love (Illustrated by Jimmy Liao)

Images are from the book "A "Chance of Sunshine" by Jimmy Liao.  Video created by youtube user: broadcasthere.

Make sure to watch at full size: A Way Back Into Love

Vocals:
Haley Bennett
Hugh Grant

Illustration Friday: Perspective

Style Two

I'm working on a new pen-and-ink style to add to my portfolio.  It will probably take a while to develop, but I had some fun doing a pen-and-ink version of my magazine cover idea (not one I'm submitting).  I'll probably do a few more to see if it's something I'd enjoy--because that's what it all comes down to, right?

Cover

This is a rough sketch for a magazine cover.  Can you guess which one? :0) Still lots of work to be done to it, but I wanted to make sure the art director liked the general idea before I spent a bunch of time on details and tightening it up.

I used to completely bury myself in stuffed animals (my personal bodyguards against monsters and such) when I went to bed.  My parents had to practically dig me out of the pile lol!  I had an orange gorilla that was especially tough, along with my Garfield and Ody stuffed toys.

A Note Hung On the Wall of A Jack Reid Instruction Class

This speaks volumes:

Luminosity
Value
Design/composition


NOT trees, people, rocks, water, houses, barns!  


SHAPES!

In other words he's saying to concentrate on the overall impact of your painting instead of getting too lost in details and specifics too early.  View your objects and figures as shapes in relation to composition.  Good stuff!

Learning New Things

I'm reaching the end of a deadline with a little space in between to try some of my own experiments and work on a story I've had stashed away.  Most of all, I want to work on my watercolor techniques.  The way I paint with watercolors has truly been a trial-and-error sort of thing.  Step-by-step books just couldn't hold my attention for very long because I hated copying someone else's painting.  And, if I tried to force myself to do it for the sake of learning, it would drain my original excitement for the medium right out of me.  But, I want to learn still, because I know there are many tools and techniques that I have missed, which therefor ends up limiting my ability to express my ideas on paper--and I surely don't want that.  So I'm going to try again with a watercolor book: "Watercolor Basics - Let's Get Started" by Jack Reid.  From what I've seen in the preview on amazon it looks like a good book, and plus it starts with a philosophy about painting that I agree with whole-heartedly:

"The most important piece of equipment won't cost you anything at all: attitude.  If you're looking for shortcuts or gimmicks, you won't find them in this book.  The best kind of attitude to bring to any new endeavor is a firm belief in hard work.  Some books promise to make watercolor painting easy and order you to "have fun."  Well, I disagree.  Though I'll keep things as simple as possible throughout this book, simple doesn't mean easy.  You have to work at this marvelous medium the same way a singer must train her voice or a musician must practice his instrument.  In other words, you'll need to master the basics.  I've always ascribed 10 percent of my own success to inspiration and 90 percent to perspiration." -Jack Reid

On My Desk

I'm going to be completing the rest of the final art for "How Much Does God Love You" over the next several days.  This is one of my favorite images from the book so far.  I'm really paying close attention to the colors this time around and pushing my comfort level with the brightness and saturation.  I have to say, I'm much happier with the results!  I think this makes the art more camera ready and also gives the person in charge of reproducing the art a break, since they don't have to adjust saturation levels digitally. 

I'm not yet sure of the release date, but of course when I find out I'll post it here.

My Illustration For the Auction

The Butterfly

This measures over two feet in length and about 8 inches high.  I actually stood up for half of the painting because I couldn't reach both sides from my chair lol. 

Lend Us A Paw

Hi all, I was recently contacted by Vanessa Brown who volunteers for a Weimaraner rescue league.  They are putting on an auction to raise money and are looking for illustrators to donate a drawing/painting/illustration to auction off--here's a quote:

"The funds we receive from your donation will enable us to provide medical care for the 150+ dogs who come through our doors next year.  It takes a lot of money to care for these animals before we find them the loving homes they deserve.  We have been so blessed by generous people, companies & organizations such as yours.  We are thankful for any support you can provide our organization in our quest to rescue & re-home these wonderful animals.  I would be happy to provide a copy of our IRS paperwork upon request."

I'll be donating an illustration, anyone else out there want to help?  If so email:  Vanessabrown7304 At aol.com (I wrote it that way to avoid spam bots).

As someone who has worked for dog rescue leagues before I can say for a fact that even the smallest bit of money could allow one more additional dog to be fed, fixed and fostered.   So yes, one drawing can make a big difference.

Thanks!

Babybug Sketch

Here's a sketch for the July/August issue of Babybug magazine.  The wonderful poem is blurred since I'm not allowed to share the spread until after publication.  Slight changes were made in the final art - the pig has a bubbly brush and is scrubbing the top of his head with it. Really fun project, I can't wait to see it reproduced on their high quality, glossy paper.