A sad clown on a Sunday

Oh I had such grands plans. On Friday or maybe Thursday I checked out what was happening in my art blog world decided "YES! Sunday Sketches and Mr Toast! - I can combine"  As I sat and waited on a class on Friday I did a rough sketched for what I would then do the pencil drawing for SS and then do all the cutting out and do-da's for Toast - I was planning on doing a card with cut work. But alas it has so far gone the way of my recent IF work.  Since today, instead of doing the card, I was dealing with some colouring of digital stamps in between I do not really recall now what I did today -... oh yes it was ironing clothes -. So my contribution to Sunday sketches hosted by our darling Sophia is this sad clown. His lines are drawn in  illustrator which was then coloured with watercolour pencils, and then of course he was cut out as I should really attempt to make a crafty card with him - hence the reason he looks a bit strange.
Cheers

Three little puppies sat by ....

ahh it has been driving me crazy :) There is a story I remember from my childhood - way back in the 70's (arghh the age shows:) ). It was about a puppy/dog he was white with brown spots and had a pink tummy - rolli polli ??? I just remember it was a golden-something publication that also did the Saggy baggy elephant. Ahh the joys of a memory like a sieve :) 
Anyway I am still working on my dogs on and off from last week and here are three little pups that I used in my other blog. Its my entry to Mr. Whimsical Wednesday this week. Pop by and view the other artist :)
Yup it is another photoshop piece. For the background I used some copic brushes which I must have gotten from some kind soul from deviant art ; the rest of the painting is airbrush various opacities- most low, and the lines are acutally from illustrator using a custom brush.  
Cheers

Curious george a whimsical Wednesday on Thursday

ahh been wanting to do a WW for a while, and today what I am working on - puppies - allowed me to join the fun :)
This little fellow is a digital, all done in photoshop. What is he doing... he snuffing a dust ball.. which alas there are too many of in my house.
Join and checkout the other artist at WW.
Cheers
p.s has blogger change back the image add tool ???

Sunday Sketches and a blog award - yeah!!

I decided today will be blogging day if it kills me or rather those around me lol  Morning cartoons are over so mummy now exists,  and to my kids think mummy and Cinderella are meant to be the same thing, HA!! mummy and troll-dragon are synonymous today ....well at least till I blog :)

For Sunday Sketches which our darling Sophia of Blue Chair Diaries is hosting is the sketch for illustration Friday's Deja-vu.  I hope to  be able to finish it before the IF topic changes but ... there is a lot of shoveling still to do :(

And now to the blog award  (had to do a bloggie double as I still got shoveling to do)

I got a blog ward --yeah!!!! Thanks Catherine of Illustrations and Fimo Characters  and Missy of Melissa Liban Illustrations for the Stylish Blog Award- luv you guys!!
Okay to fulfill terms of this award ( a good copy and paste here)

I need to :

•Thank and link back to the person that awarded me.
• Share 7 things about myself.
• Pay it forward to 15 recently discovered bloggers.
• Contact those bloggers about the award!

Okay 7 things about myself 
1. I shaved my head completely about 18 months ago ( don't ask why). It took a hell of a lot longer to grow back! Won't do that again.
2. I love lasagna
3. I am the most terrible speller - I would die without spell checking.  When I was a kid learning to spell I told my mum I did not have to learn to spell because I would have a secretary - I did for a while then got married and moved.
4.When it is hot my allergies act up and I sneeze constantly once I am started.
5.My most desired object at present is a Wacom Cintiq.
6.Miss good cheese cakes.
7.Would go to a dentist any day over a hairdresser.


Now whizzing is award (potentially) all over the world....

Sweet Limes

Blue Chair Diary
Charles Arwin
Rose Hill Designs
Just Pencil on Paper
Creative Every Day
Ling's Design Studio

Sanquentti Designs
Property of Kelly
Blackleaf Studios
Through A Peep Hole
Melissa Liban Illustrations

Illustrations and Fimo Characters

Kristin Dudish 

MUJKA CHIC 

 
Cheers


 

Sunday Sketches

Hope all had a good Christmas. Spent boxing day shoveling iced over snow. So far I think it has been an extremely over productive winter where the white stuff is concerned :D
Today I was working on Valentine day stamps, and I remember also that today is Sunday so our darling hostess at Blue Chair Diary is hosting Sunday Sketches - yeah.- so this is my sketch for sunday :)
The stamp was sketched then redrawn in illustrator which was then printed and coloured with watercolour pencils. The dog has been bugging me a bit, as the pose is a little strange as I am not sure if it really works :( maybe I should make the body sort of be lying bending like behind the boys shoes instead of being straight back and not seen ..hmmm

Cheers

.....updated version with the dog body visible :)

Merry Christmas

Just popping in to say "Merry Christmas, Seasons Greeting, Feliz Navidad, and of course from my adopted country (if I ever learn the language) Priecīgus Ziemsvētkus un Laimīgu Jauno Gadu."

IF - Mail

ahh an Illustration Friday word that rolls of my tongue :) This is something I did a while back. It is digital watercolour using corel painter.

a book review? Drawing lab

A bloggie friend asked if this book was worth buying, and as I started to reply the answer got a bit too long and I thought a POST   - yeah  :).

 

Last week my long awaited  "Drawing Lab"  book arrived. Once I took it out of the mailbox and gazed at the cardboard envelop I was a little concerned as it looked a bit small for the book, which while not overly expensive it was not cheap either. Ripping open the cardboard envelope (that's the only way to do it :) ) I saw a 8.5 x8.5 square formated book, which while a bit smaller than normal was also VERY thick. It has 144 pages, semi-hard cover, beautifully put together and bound. If the binding last (I only say that because it is printed in China and I am guessing assembled there) it should be able to handle my household's little fingers pawing through the pages without to much wear and tear.

 

Now to the actual content. The cover illustration is wonder. I like the author/artist Carla Sunheim style of writing. It is like listening to a friend chat about art.  There are 52 exercise dvided into 7 overall themes. Each exercise has wonderful illustrations and clear instructions. Some of them include some educational/ historical information about the exercise, and others show how the exercise can be developed into an actual piece of art. The exercises vary in the materials they use but most will be easily on hand or could be gotten from an art and craft shop.

 

The thing I like best about the book is that while all exercise are for adults, children can easily do many of them. A kid may not get the same results as an adult, but for example in one exercise you add random watercolour  brush strokes to a piece of paper and when dried you look at it and see what you can see. Once you see it you then use a pen to draw the outline of what you see. Of course an adult can take it a step or two further but what a great exercise for a kids imagination. Also Carla's illustrations in the book are so beautiful that kids will just love to look at them and want to try draw them (as my 5 year old did).

 

Cons... honestly I have not found any yet, the only one is that is a bit pricy but if you got $22.99USD (reccommended retail) to spare and are looking for a great inspirational art book go for it.  I got my from  www.bookdepository.co.uk  for €11.74 (shipping included), its looks a bit more expensive than amazon.co.uk but the latter kills me on shipping .

Cheers

Scribbles for Sunday

It's Sunday the day so  I try to stay away from the pc ( kids are thrilled about this :) ). Here is my version drawing lab's  scribbly drawings and it Sunday - so yeah Sunday Sketches. 

Started out with a blue ballpoint pen and then it was kidnapped. Then I found a black one. This is done on just simple printer paper.
The blue scribbles are our 2 dogs. The small one likes to rest on the big one. Daughter dear put a head kerchief (bandanna) on the large dog;  In the right upper corner is daughter day busy doing some type of  art. And the lower left with the misplaced ear ( this is why I like pencil it can be erased) is solemn son - he was doing home work.
Pop by Blue Chair Dairy to see some fantastic Sunday Sketches

Drawing lab.

FinALLY it has arrived. It was super long in getting here as it had to by pass obstacles such as the local post office being closed, mail being direct to us through another town, snowstorms, blizzards,  and snow blocked road. Yesterday,  I dejectedly walked out to the mailbox, after the bulldozer finally managed to clear the gap to our area, and peeped in I was thrilled to see a flat square parcel from the Book Depository :) Upon opening the parcel it was confirmed - Drawing Lab by Carla Sunheim has arrived :) 
It looks like rather a good book. I  read the intro (nice and short) and skipped through it and it seemes interesting. Nutty at Facets and Fractals is hosting a drawing lab challenge, if you got the book check it out.
Cheers
p.s  yup my desk is a mess :( Sometimes I am amazed at what sketches I find  and presents from the kids :)

IF- Prehistoric

While searching through the attic I found this paper wrapped in oilskin in an old battered trunk.

Colour pencils on paper and then photoshoped.
My thanks to Diamo for the paper texture and photoshoprangerstock for the coffee splotch.

December's yahoo group

I seem to be stuck on patterns at the moment :) I decided to do a little continuous pattern for my embroidery digitizing yahoo group. The pics here show the pattern repeated 3 times and with just different colour schemes.
I now need to work out how to make this a digital stamp and that will be wally :)
Cheers

a very wooly sheep - art every day day 30

Today is day 30 of 30 of the art every day challenge hosted by Leah of Art Every Day blog. I joined the challenged about day 7.
I would like to thank Leah first for hosting such a wonderful event and I hope that she will do it again next year, and second of all the other bloggers I have met over the month. This month has prompted me to pick up my art brush, get the pliers out to not so gently persuade, my not used in at least 6 years, tubes of paint and to do some actual non-digital painting, as well as to explore the new medium of watercolour pencils.

Today I wanted to so something a little different but alas I now have a fresh cold and feel rather rotten, and my concentration was all over the place as is evident in my wool sheep.  The wooly sheep is a rather confused piece on plywood, with a layer of newspapers, then acrylic paint and some textured paste. yes it is rather a mess. To console myself I am considering this a draft piece... ah my cold medicine is working.
It has been a wonderful month. I am glad I took part. Thank you all for coming by and visiting and commenting.
Cheers