Dalmatian

Back to animal portraits after my stint in sewing. Just a flatcolour this time, but I don't mind that on patterned animals. Today, a purple dalmatian.

"Dalmatian", Digital, February 2013

I used to draw a lot of dogs, since I wanted to get artwork accepted into the image bank on a website called Furry Paws (an online game where you show and train virtual dogs). I was mostly on there to look at the art forum, trying to sell character sheets and such for game cash. Strange, looking back at it, how motivated I was by something which had no real value. I didn't really want to spend it on anything. I just wanted to know that somebody wanted to pay for it, however insubstantial the currency was. Every sale was very validating.

I still probably couldn't get an image accepted into the Furry Paws image bank (the site's juried gallery of portraits which you can attach to your dog). They maintained a very high standard of anatomy, realistic patterning and technical artistic skill. But the fact that my work wouldn't be accepted doesn't bother me as much now as it did then. I don't really feel interested in heading down that particular path. I like to focus on colour and pattern, simple yet recognisable images. I like to work quickly and spontaneously, and have something to show for it when I'm done.

Maybe one day, I'll be spending hours on meticulous shading of an artwork, or carefully recreating the exact shape and proportions and textures of a poodle's nose. But not today. Today, I'm just creating fun, happy images that I enjoy looking at. That's good enough for me.

Printed Clutch Plans

I've been wanting to make myself a clutch purse lately. I like my purse, but it's bright yellow so it doesn't match most of the dresses I wear when I go out. If I made my own from the scrap fabrics I have laying around I could have one in every colour and not have to break the bank buying them.

I'd like to make one with a zip, but I think it would be better to start simple. I tend to ragequit at sewing machines. They always break as soon as I start using them and do odd things for no reason (They're secretly printers).

So while I've been looking at pictures for inspiration, I started to wonder if I could make one out of a sample swatch from Spoonflower and have my own design printed on my clutch. This is the first one I've come up with. Doesn't really solve my easy-to-match accessories problem, but I like it. Would go well with a black dress and colourful jewellery.

"Multi-Clutch Pattern", Digital, February 2013

Next job is to make up a sample or two in scrap fabric to practice. Fingers crossed.

Caramel the Orange Cat

Another cat portrait today. I tried a softer shading style with this one. I was feeling a little lazy so I was hoping to come up with a quicker, sloppier shading style that didn't compromise on the finished look. Still prefer the crisp shading, but that's what experiments are for, I guess.

"Caramel", Digital, February 2013

There's a gift shop in town with decorative items like paper mache cats and painted wooden giraffes. I always liked that they gave each piece a name on the price tag. You weren't just buying a mosaic penguin, you were buying a mosaic penguin named "Larry". I think that's adorable. So I'm thinking about naming the critters I draw. This handsome fellow I'm calling Caramel (most likely because My Kitchen Rules was playing in the background while I was drawing him).

Loving the gradient backgrounds too.

Altered Clothes: Black T-Shirt Dress

*Picture to be added. This post is a little late coming due to changing internet plans and other adventures, but it has been done. Once photos are available I'll update this post.

Well, I gave it a go. The XXL black t-shirt is now...a slightly thinner black t-shirt. I feel a bit ballsy calling it a dress. Will need some tights or something underneath to wear it out of the house. Or a herd of paparazzi photographing me getting out of cars, either way. Even so, I'm pretty pleased with my efforts and will try to find some suitable thrift shop fodder soon.




"Black T-Shirt Dress", February 2013


I wasn't planning to keep the sleeves that long (I wasn't expecting the sleeves to actually work) but I found I quite liked them at that length after taking in the sides. I'm still considering changing the neck to either a scoop neck, a lower v neck or a sweetheart neckline. Think I'll live with it for a while before I make a decision.

Things I've learned:
- Think about the way pins are facing when putting them in, so you aren't pulling them out backwards when sewing.
- Use stretch cotton when sewing stretchy fabric. Otherwise it goes a bit gathered (which is fine if you want that to happen).
- Drapey skirts need a lot more fabric than a XXL mens t-shirt can provide. The best you're going to get is a little point on either side of the dress.

 Hoping to find a light blue shirt/dress I can alter to I can wear it with my new blue wedges. Though I could wear them with this one and some turquoise jewellery and purse. Making your own clothes really does open up things that might not otherwise be available or affordable, as well as keeping unwanted clothes out of landfill. I'm just glad I have simple tastes.

Altered Clothes

When I was a kid I remember my mum telling me not to tell anyone about my plans before I'd finished, because if I didn't end up doing it or it didn't work people would know and I'd look silly. Well-meaning advice to be sure, but not entirely encouraging. I've certainly inherited some of her self-conscious caution and it stops me from doing a lot of things. I can be afraid to start a project because it might fail and I can't look forward to doing it anymore. And even if I haven't told a single person about it, I still know about it. I witnessed the discouraging failure. That alone can be bad enough.

But even so, I'm starting to push through this rather destructive mindset. Recently I've been reading through the blog of a talented seamstress called Jillian at Refashionista. She takes frumpy, ripped, discoloured or unwanted thrift store finds and alters them so they look like new. I've always liked fabrics - especially the quirky prints you can find in thrift shops. I'm not much of a sewer myself, so I never really considered doing a revamp of something I wouldn't otherwise wear until I saw the projects on her website. Sometimes just taking up the hem and shortening the sleeves is enough to entirely change the look of a dress. 

Here is one of my favourite Refashionista dresses, the Swagger Dress. Go and check out her blog, it's fantastic.

"Swagger Dress" by Refashionista, December 2011, www.refashionista.net

Now that I've seen these kind of alterations, I know it can be done. And if it can be done, then I can do it. I'm going to try making my own clothes. My brother has kindly donated a couple of his old shirts (one black and one purple). I even own a sewing machine. No more excuses. And I'm telling someone (even as vaguely as telling 'The Internet') because I know if I try to back out of it I'll look silly. Maybe that's the point my mum was trying to get across.

If you're going to do something, do it. Don't get lazy. Don't talk yourself out of trying. Don't give up until you've done what you set out to do.

The Forgotten Cow

I'm actually really excited right now. I'm finally biting the bullet and putting scrapbooking papers and clipart into my Etsy store. While going through my art folders (which are extensive and messy) I came across this little gem which I'd entirely forgotten about.

"The Forgotten Cow", Digital, September 2011

Over a whole year ago I drew this cow and a brown compatriot. I'll have to draw another to make a nice set of three. I really love finding old art that you still like. It's encouraging to think you won't shudder to look at your current work 12 months from now (maybe 10 years from now, if my early stuff is anything to go by, but I dunno).

I'd like to print this one out to use as wallart. Would look great with an emerald green scrapbook pattern behind her. My previous interior design efforts have been propped up against my desk since the stick-on-wall-hook debarcle (read: those crappy stick on hooks fell off and dropped my artwork on the floor). Who knew a company famous for sticky notes might use glues that aren't really suitable for holding things on walls long term? Maybe I should get some real hooks on the wall above my bed so I can be sure my new decorative pieces won't fall on my head while I'm sleeping. Just a thought.

Anyway, pleased with my cow, and will hopefully have a link to my newly restocked Etsy shop soon.

Walking Cat

This is a photomanipulation from last year. I was using my phone to take photos of my friend's sister's cat (read: being an oddball) and I thought this one had interesting composition. The problem was, the cat was walking quickly in a dimly lit room at the time and the picture was blurred. After playing a bit in Photoshop, I got this posterised, slightly abstract version which I quite like. Playing with the saturation had some interesting effects too, considering this was a cream coloured cat on cream coloured carpet.

"Walking Cat", Photomanipulation, April 2012

Wow, didn't realise I made this so long ago until I checked the date on the file. My art endevours really were quite  sporadic last year. At least now I have my blog to keep me on track. That is, if I have something new to post before another week has flown by. I've been working on abstracts for scrapbooking papers again today, and though I love them, I don't know if I want a huge streak of blog posts devoted to them.

Maybe I should colour that beagle I sketched yesterday...

Foray Into Scrapbooking Papers

I put together a few scrapbooking papers the other day. I'm trying to figure out what would be better - packs with assorted prints in 2-3 colours or packs with few similar prints in a rainbow of colourschemes. I guess both would be useful to different crafters, but I find the multicoloured packs look messy and cluttered with so many colours, even though each individual sheet looks nice on its own.

This is a damask paper from my green/purple collection. Still putting the rest together, but I think this one is rather snazzy. Might print it out to decorate my phone case.

Sorry for the watermark in the middle, but I'm thinking of selling digital copies of these papers and wouldn't want people pinching them for free. I'll probably offer free sample papers and clipart on this blog later when the packs have been finished.

Butterfly Cataclysm

This is an abstract piece I created late last year. I wanted to see if I could make a long symmetrical mandala image by fusing smaller abstracts. It reminds me both of butterflies...and explosions. Hence the title.

"Butterfly Cataclysm", Pen and Coloured Pencil, November 2012

I should probably post more of my abstracts on here. I'm thinking of doing one of those "One Per Day for 365 Days" projects, but I'm guessing they would all just end up as simple abstracts and wouldn't teach me much. I'd rather work on making my work more complex and detailed rather than give myself a reason to rush though it.

Charlie and Lily

So glad to have this one finished. I've been working on it since before Christmas, but couldn't quite get it how I wanted. This is one of my few forays into using acrylic paint and canvas. Paint really isn't my medium - too messy, too hard to control. I've seen such pretty effects, some lovely glowing, luminescent backgrounds done by some very talented painters. However, that particular effect illudes me, and when I can achieve that so much easier with Photoshop I'm not going to worry about it for now.

"Charlie and Lily", Coloured Pencil and Acrylic, December 2012

The cats in this picture are Charlie and Lily. I drew them for a friend for a Christmas present, which is why I spent so long tinkering with it to make sure it looked right. In the end, I made some colourful collage elements using coloured pencil and glued them on to the background to lighten it up. The cats themselves are also drawn with felt tip pen and coloured pencil.

I might redraw this digitally in future, just to see the difference in style it makes. Will definitely have more background pattern/texture options that way. Either way, Merry Extrodinarily Unbearably Late Christmas, Becky. I hope you like it.

Poppies (Also, My Lack of Botanical Knowledge)

More from my series of Valentines flowers. This time, I've drawn some poppies. Well, I'm calling them poppies anyway. The references I was using weren't poppies but I don't know what they actually are, so poppies it is.

"Not Poppies", Photoshop, January 2013

They were originally yellow, but I think I like the red more. Not enough to get rid of the yellow version, just enough to be very slightly indecisive and annoying about it. Again, if you'd like a print of this image, feel free to ask about it.

The Orange Neighbour Cat

I like to take pictures of people's pets. I always try to grab a few photos on my phone whenever I come across a dog or cat. This picture is based on a photo of my neighbours cat when it wandered over to our house one day. I thought it was an interesting photo, but had a few artistic flaws which I made magically disappear with artistic licence (my brother sitting just inside the frame, for example).

Looking at it now, I probably should have used a couple of shades of orange fur to get his cute little head markings, but aah well. Maybe next time I draw him. Overall, I'm very pleased with how it came out, especially the background. I've seen pet portraits with patterned, busy backgrounds by other artists and I like the effect. I'd like to work more of my patterns into the rest of my art.

"On a Mission", Photoshop, January 2013

Kids Animal Illustrations

A few other things I've completed during my blogging drought - kids t-shirt designs. Or kids wall art designs. Cutsey little animals, for whatever purpose. Hoping to get them printed somewhere like Cafepress in order to sell them online or at markets. Still just trying to build up the confidence to put feelers out and get expressions of interest. I know a few people with kids, so I guess that's a good place to start.

"Purple Quokka", Photoshop, January 2013

"Contemplative Panda", Photoshop, January 2013

"Yellow Duckies", Photoshop, January 2013

Also thinking of putting them up as collage sheets on Etsy. I've sold some cat silhouettes on Etsy before, just need to put them back up for sale and add a few more images. Feeling pretty confident about this at the moment. I've been getting a lot done lately, learning new things and generally getting a pretty consistant style together. This blog is definitely helping me to see my progress, and hopefully that will continue.

Two Purple Roses for Valentines Day

Whoops, it's been more than three weeks since my last blog post. I'm surely not the only blogger that suffers from procrastination, but that's just lazy. At least some of the time I've spent not blogging has been spent making art. This is what I've been up to today. Valentine's Day is coming up, and I've seen an artist selling collage heart artworks on Facebook. I was wondering if I could create something that someone would be interested in buying.

"Two Roses", Photoshop, January 2013

I'm still in two minds. I like it, but my insecurity kicks in and then I feel like it would be silly trying to sell a print of it. I keep telling myself there's no harm in trying, nothing to lose for not giving it a go, but I'm reluctant. I'll probably post on Facebook closer to the date.

Also wondering how best to sell it. I could make a one-off print, and advertise it as an original artwork. I feel like people put more weight on traditional art (particularly paint on canvas) than digital art, so it's hard to make it feel like an "artwork" and not a "drawing". Alternatively, I could make up greeting cards, stickers, magnets or something like that. But they have their own costs involved, which make it tricky if they don't sell.

For now, I'll probably just keep doodling on Photoshop, with the intention of somehow selling my work, but never really getting around to it. Either way, if you're looking for some purple rose based art to give to your Valentine this year, let me know. I might be able to hook you up. :)

Green Wolf Avatar

I've just been doodling a few 100x100 forum avatars today. This is the first one to be coloured. I might add a few others to this post once I've finished them.

"Green Wolf", Coloured Pencil, January 2013

Right now it's sideways and I'm not entirely sure why. Too tired to figure out why that's happening, so for now, I suggest tilting your head slightly.

EDIT: Added the wolf right way up and a few other old images in avatar size, just to have them displayed on my blog.

"Assorted Avatars", Assorted Mediums, 2012-2013