Sketchland Adventures

Monster Mash Mondays - Mr. Goo

2012-02-06T09:38:00.000-05:00

This is another sketch challenge and hopefully it will be ongoing for a while. I draw a monster, Mr. Goo. Then the next person will draw their monster to defeat mine. Then I create one to beat that one and so on and so forth. I hope this goes well. I had a fun time with this guy.

Mythological Robot, you say?

2012-01-30T11:56:00.001-05:00

My classmates and I have been going a little stir crazy. Every illustration student hits the point where they get tired of drawing the same thing every day. A couple friends and I set up a sketch challenge. We each had to pick two numbers between 1 and 12. Each number had a corresponding term. My terms were mythological and robot, so the android unicorn was born! Try making your own sketch challenges. It's really fun.

Making Illustrations: Start to Finish

2012-01-03T20:53:00.000-05:00

I've been try to keep everyone updated on how my children's book is going and so far I feel pretty good. I am doing my best to keep from panicking because that is what all illustrators do best when their deadline is in sight. I hope to have everything done by the first week of March and right now that seems pretty doable.

I'm coming up with cover art and promotional materials now as well as finishing my internal illustrations. I have about a week left of winter break and plan to do at least a little bit every day. Half of the illustrations I wanted to do over break are done and the other half are done up until the colored pencil. Enough of the stats. That's only interesting to me, I'm sure. What I thought you guys might find interesting is my process. I made a post a while back about what I use but not how I use it. Here is how I went through the process of doing the title page art.

This is the pencil drawing. It is the foundation of my illustration.

Then I transfer that pencil onto a piece of oak plywood.

Then I go in with watercolors to lay down the basic tones.

This is the finished watercolor. It's pretty low contrast. This is prep work for the final steps but important nonetheless.

I start adding colored pencil over the watercolor. I make light outlines to define the edges.

Then I fill in with more colored pencil. I draw out highlights with an exacto knife and sandpaper and add more watercolor if necessary. Voila! An illustration.

Finally Done

2011-12-17T12:33:00.001-05:00

Finals week has finally ended. I'm so glad to be done with school for a month. I don't know how much relaxing I will do since I still need to work on my thesis project, but it will be a slower pace than that of the past two weeks and for that I am grateful. The past two weeks haven't been torture. I've actually done things that I had a lot of fun with. I made a soft doll for my thesis presentation. She is something of a mock up for a potential product.

One of the things that I stressed in illustration is the need for branding. It is important to create a whole brand around your thesis and explore every possible way to sell your ideas. I've been a busy bee, coming up with side products and the like. I'll show you more of these ideas soon!

Just gnoming around.

Matryoshkowls

2011-12-01T14:51:00.001-05:00

I've been nothing short of obsessed with drawing matryoshka, nesting dolls, lately.

How the magic happens

2011-11-17T13:38:00.001-05:00

There was an awards ceremony at the school the other night. The donors at the event were asked to view the studios and talk with some of the students. I was one of those students. I showed them my studio space (just a big desk) and how I go about my work. Here is the Reader's Digest version:

I use these:

Prismacolor pencils

and these:

watercolors

and these:

Exacto blade and sand paper

to make this!

Thanks for visiting!

Matryoshka

2011-11-15T11:09:00.001-05:00

I've always had a fascination with matryoshka, nesting dolls. My mom had this little one up on the shelf in our living room when I was little. I swear I must have asked her to take it down for me to play with at least once a week. They are such charming little toys and have been turned into many wonderful art pieces. They are so much fun to draw also. It is a good creative exercise to come up with patterns and shapes.

Moving Right Along

2011-10-24T11:48:00.000-04:00

For all of you who are wondering, my BFA is moving along quite nicely. I just finished the first round of editing on my pencils and I may even get a chance to start making actual art! The last two weeks have been consumed by evaluating and reworking every page of my children's book. Here is a sneak preview of some of the pages from the book.

Yumm

See you soon!

Crafty like a fox

2011-10-18T11:33:00.001-04:00

This little guy was the subject of much debate recently. I made him for an assignment in my fiber arts introduction class. Cute as he may be, he did not receive a warm welcome. His purpose was unclear. Why a fox? What does it mean? Why is it in the frame? Why not held together with bent sticks? What I thought would be a simple assignment about representation or RE-presentation was quickly turning into a hailstorm of questions that I couldn't answer. My idea that the human eye perceives this mess of lines as a fox though it clearly looks nothing like a real fox didn't hold water. It didn't go far enough. It was an eye opening experience. Though I was embarrassed when I sat down, I appreciate it now.

I was thinking like an illustrator, not a fiber artist. I thought it should be easily accessible, a picture you can buy and hang on your wall and simply enjoy with little need to ponder its process or meaning. I realized that there are many different considerations that go into making a conceptual work that I seemed to forget since freshman year. I evaluated my other assignments and came back to the next critique with far stronger pieces. Taking a fine art/craft class has been an eye opening experience.

I still love this little dear. I think he is charming in an aesthetic sense. I plan to keep making works like this for myself and others rather than for a concept heavy class.

Pin Up Playing Cards: Ace of Hearts

2011-09-02T00:31:00.000-04:00

The ace of hearts is the last pin up for my summer project redemption spree. I must say these were fun to make. The others are here and here. You can also see more of my work on my website.

Pin Up Playing Cards: Ace of Spades

2011-08-25T12:44:00.002-04:00

Now that the ace is done, I only have one more suit to go. Hearts will be coming soon. You can see the other two cards here.

Baby Bunny Plushie

2011-08-18T22:37:00.000-04:00

These are Betty and Bessie Bunny. They are twin sisters and best friends. They may not look perfectly alike, but one will never leave the other's side. Their mama knows that they will grow up to be big, kind and beautiful bunnies because she raised them with all the love in her heart.

I made these little plushies for my cousin's fraternal twin daughters who just turned one. The bunnies are made of just six pieces and have stitched faces and white button tails. Their backs are the color of the other's front. I couldn't be at the party, but my mom said the minute the girls got them, the bunnies' ears were in their mouths!

Pin up Playing Cards

2011-07-29T08:34:00.001-04:00

These were from a playing card assignment during Junior year. I wasn't happy with the result of my work and I had an itch to revisit it. I finally got around to cranking out two of them and here they are for your viewing pleasure. Rather than using a tactile medium like last time (and working too small) I made these ladies in Adobe Illustrator. They can also be found here. Let me know your thoughts.

Westie Whoops!

2011-07-19T22:59:00.000-04:00

We painted my bedroom a cheery shade of yellow called "Spun Honey" this weekend. Yummy! Anyway, Martha decided to help by wagging her tail on the wall. Maybe she thought she could spread the paint around, so now she has a bright yellow tail!

Dress it up!

2011-07-16T16:27:00.001-04:00

doily cap sleeves

The summer heat has finally stuck my town. It isn't so hot as it is humid, but everyone knows how deadly that humidity can be. I've invested in some anti-frizz hair spritz that I swear must be made of angel tears because it keeps my halo of fuzz around my pin straight hair in check pretty well.

I also went out and bought some tank tops in various colors. They do the job of keeping me cool though they are less than flattering. Bra straps outside of a tank top (a.k.a. wife-beater) is about as classy as its nickname. I would rather people don't see my extra-wide-for-comfort-and-blah-blah-blah...

In case you haven't noticed, I'm also very fair. Tank tops are open invitations for sunburned shoulders and I'm not a fan of those or skin cancer.

In an effort to stay cool and cute, I created this:
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Wise Old Owl

2011-06-27T19:17:00.000-04:00

I found this guy on an old flash drive. I forgot I made him for practice. If I remember correctly, I made him with chalk pastel and colored pencil on a textured gesso surface. I love owls. So does my friend Karen. She works with them at a rehabilitation center on occasion. I need to visit sometime and take a look at these beautiful birds.

T-shirt Grocery Tote

2011-06-07T22:59:00.002-04:00

Do you have some old shirts laying around? Do you have no idea how to use them? Make them into your own reusable grocery tote! This would be good for those old souvenir or band shirts. I made a ton of tie dye last summer thinking that I could sell them. My friend, Colleen, loves wearing tie dye so I made this tote for her birthday.

Keys + Keys + Keys

2011-06-01T15:28:00.002-04:00

My collection

I have always liked the look of skeleton keys. As a little girl I would go to my grandma's house and always ask her to take her key collection off the wall so I could take a closer look. I loved the shapes, the gently curved handles, the geometric teeth. After she passed away, her collection came to me, and I took up the role of key master. Every garage sale and antique shop I go to, I keep an eye open for interesting keys. Now that it's summer I have time to look around for more. I'll show you all of my interesting finds! Here are a few closer looks at important keys in the collection.

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Breaking Records: Vinyl Record Bowls

2011-05-27T22:34:00.002-04:00

I had some old records sitting around that I certainly had no use for. Sesame Street and Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer aren't really my style anymore, so I put them to good use as bowls. Melted down vinyl records are really quick to make in about fifteen minutes!

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(less) Guilty Quick Fix Microwave Chocolate Mug Cake

2011-04-21T18:30:00.002-04:00

School has been crazy the last few weeks. I have been banging out assignments at the same speed as a squirrel after three shots of espresso, or at least that's how it feels. Sometimes the only way to beat the stress is with chocolate. That's right, I'll be a typical woman. Chocolate. It has also been a bitterly cold spring in my area. There was a high of 46 degrees today. Late April shouldn't be this cold so I need to warm up any way I can since the sun doesn't seem to want to do that for me.

Where do all of these things lead? The answer is mug cakes. Warm chocolate cake can get me through anything. Sometimes a whole cake is just too much effort. We've seen the other microwave mug cake recipes online and those are just dandy. I will gladly scarf down one of those without a blink. On the days that I have come up with a large meal, I can't finish a whole mug cake without feeling like someone needs to roll me around like Violet Beauregarde.

I came up with a smaller and more waistline friendly version of those recipes. Now I can have my chocolate fix without a stomachache. You will need:

A mug
Spray cooking oil
2 Tb. Flour
2 Tb. Sugar
1 Tb. Cocoa
1 Egg White
1 Tb Skim Milk
2 Tb Canola Oil
Splash of vanilla extract

Coat the mug with spray cooking oil. Whisk all of the ingredients together in the mug. Be sure to get the bottom. Nothing is worse than biting into a lump of unmixed flour at the end of your cake. Now, pop it into the microwave for 2-2:30 minutes. While it's cooking, it will bubble above the top of the mug. It won't boil over. This is normal and it will deflate. When its done, flip it on to a plate. Wait for it to cool if you can. Devour it from there. Sometimes it is also good to mix some chocolate chips in if you need a bit more chocolate!

So many birds!

2011-04-11T22:26:00.001-04:00

Spring is slowly but surely creeping out from its hibernation hutch. It seemed reluctant this year. Well, it seems that way every year. I love seeing small glimpses of nature coming back to life around me; some green buds here, birds chirping there. The birds are one of my favorite parts. There is nothing like waking up to the sound of chirping on the tree outside my window. Its so refreshing and it seems to wake me up right away.

It is also getting to the end of the school year. I have only two weeks left before academic finals. Yikes! One of my professors gave the class two assignments to finish by the end of the year. I've finished the one and am bustling along to the second, but I can't help but sit back and enjoy the assignment that was so fun to complete. We were told to take one image and repeat it nine times. The compositions had to be five by five inch squares. Inspired by the birds I saw flitting around my window, I drew a tufted titmouse. They are such cute birds, especially when they fluff out their feathers and look all chubby.

From left to right, top to bottom, the techniques go: Appliqué, Tempera Resist, Polymer Clay, Matte Medium on Colored Pencil, Embroidery, Scratchboard, Vector, Paper Collage, Oil Pastel on Textured Surface. It was really nice to do so many quick little applications of different techniques. This kitschy little project was a nice lift from the technically heavy assignments that I am used to. From here it is onto the second project, and I plan to carry this fresh feeling with me.

What about spring inspires you?

Thimble Necklace

2011-03-28T16:53:00.002-04:00

I am a big fan of fiber arts. I am always sewing, cross stitching or embroidering something. It can be so relaxing after a busy day at the studio. It can also be the most infuriating and stress inducing hobby. The good usually outweighs the bad and the end result is always satisfying even if the project caused a couple grey hairs (I'm sure they're in there somewhere.) In honor of my love affair with thread and fabric, I thought I would make a necklace.

You will need:

a necklace chain
a thimble
a nail and hammer
a large jump ring
needle nose pliers
wire cutters (not pictured)
assorted beads (not pictured)
eye pins (not pictured)