Etsy Shop

So, since deciding on pursuing art as a major part of my life, one of my goals has been to open up an Etsy shop to sell original drawings and prints. Of course I still have many other things to do to prepare for the opening, but one thing which has been plaguing me is finally complete!

 

I finally settled on a concept for my etsy shop banner!

 

Well, at least for now lol.

 

I still want to play around with it of course, but I am happy with using this as a base to jump off from. I also now have something to base my business cards, thank you notes, and packaging designs off of.

 

The idea really originated from my love of topiaries! I wanted to use them in the same way many home and shop owners display them on each side of their entrances. I love the charm and welcome they always seem to convey. And its so English! Unfortunately with the dimension limitations set by Etsy, I wasn't able to design something incorporating them that I loved.

 

Solution? Lamp posts!  Don't ask why lol.

 

{Lantern #1}                     {Lantern #2}

 

I ended up drafting a couple different lanterns, then went into Paint and touched them up and incorporated them into a banner. I had to cut it up a lot in order to keep the size right, so afterward drew up a new lamp that fit the proportions much better.

 

Final result!

 

 

Its very simple, but I like it. And I can make it festive for holidays according to my whimsy. 

 

 

One little task officially complete!

 

 

Ballerina #1

 

 

Ballerina sketch #1, soon to be out of two.

 

 

 

{8x10 pencil drawing}

 

 Ok, there are a lot of things I do not specifically love about this one, but then there are some specific elements I do lol. C'est la vie!

I started on the second ballerina which will be comparable in size and lighting so as to be displayed either as a pair, or along each side of the 11x14 pointe shoes. I then want to do a larger ballerina to be displayed alone.

I am reminding myself repeatedly that the purpose of this little ballet project of mine is really to learn, so imperfections and mistakes are to be expected and learned from rather than cast in shame.

One of the primary reasons I have held off on pursuing art has been because of my perfectionism, so trying to leave that at the door.

Being able to draw out many different ballerinas should allow me to learn from each sketch and apply my new knowledge to the next. Hopefully after I complete all six drawings I will be more comfortable with this subject at least.

 

 

 Just for fun, I also took a few pictures throughout the sketching process just to document how everything developed and changed :)


#1.

#2.

This step really was just adding more shading and dimension to the figure, and changing some of the proportions.

#3.

I completed the tutu, the ballerina's face, and applied some background shading to emphasize the highlights, and added a shadow.

#4.

The last change I made was how I grounded her. I first thought it would be easy to do a simple shadow, but if I followed the light it really should have been very far to the right which would have unbalanced everything. So instead I tried just creating part of the stage floor which allowed me to keep the overall light balanced. I definitely favor this way of grounding the figures.

 

 C'est Fini!

 



Ballet Slippers

I am so excited about this drawing!

 

{11 x 14" pencil drawing of Pointe Shoes}

 

 

This is just a photograph that I had to edit to brighten of the drawing so the contrast level got kicked up and the pencil strokes are more obvious than the original, but I am going to scan it with a professional scanner soon.  

 

This is sort of the first drawing I have done recently which is really all me, and it feels so good! I think I am going to also create a few more ballet inspired pieces to build a collection that I can display together.

 

I started this concept design this past Wednesday, and actually had it completed by Saturday night! I was expecting the entire process to take me a lot longer, but instead of distracting myself and putting my supplies away even temporarily, I kept everything out and within my line of sight which really helped me stay on task.

 

There was so much work involved in this, so just having completed it to my satisfaction is so rewarding. But after I scan the image so I can keep it for always, I am planning on matting and framing it, and hanging it at a local Cafe Brazil for sale. I was at one this past weekend, and most of the items for sale are not as good, and yet are being sold anywhere from $50-$250. After asking the advice of a few objective people, I think I am leaning somewhere between $50-100 without the frame. We will see though...

 

Depending on how that venture goes, I may try selling most of my originals at a cafe, and use Etsy mainly to sell Prints. I would love to be able to build up a good little print business.

 

Classic Winnie the Pooh

Per my own odd wimsy, my friend Maria from Heritage Knitting, and my sister Brittony, I started working on a little collection of sketches inspired by the classic winnie the pooh artwork.

I guess its just fun to have some original sketches for art to display around the house. I want to sketch a few more of the famous images (pooh eating honey out of a jar?) just for fun.

This sketch looks great in a 4x6 frame, although can be in up to an 8x10.

 

Maria still has to get back to me on which specific images she wants for her nursery, so in the meantime I am just picking things randomly just for some fun.

 

When I have a baby, I want to buy all the Winnie the Pooh episodes and play them for him/her, since most of the television today just has no heart. There are just so many sweet and precious moments about the stories that I love! I think the producers now just throw together anything loud and colorful, and annoying lol.

 

 

 

Fall Homage Sketch

I started this sketch about a week ago. It is so much harder to draw dying leaves than healthy ones! There is just so much more varied texture really. Decay is not easy to draw; just sayin... lol.

I eyed this sketch in a 4x6 wooden frame, and I liked the look of it framed that way... especially in a walnut/natural frame. Very autumny hehe.

I was thinking of seasonal sketches I could do, and liked this idea for Thanksgiving. Many other ideas are bubbling to the surface though as well, which I want to have ready for next year's season.

Currently working on some ideas for winter, both simple sketches like this and more complex scenes!

Art, and Its Place In My Life

I finally made a decision about where I want to go with my drawing. I have had so many different things pulling me in different directions over the past few years... and although I am not out of the running with medical school, I think I have accepted that I am officially just burnt out on that track. Its been emotionally exhausting really, and seeing patients every day hasn't been very inspiring either. The job of a physician in this current time, is pretty crappy. Which was okay, but the thought of having to continue to apply just doesn't make me happy anymore.

While waiting for the spring to come to hear back from the schools I interviewed at, I really wanted to start working on something, ANYthing, career-wise. I realized the happiest moments during my day are when I am able to make creative decisions, and so thought about how I could incorporate that into an alternative career. There are certainly designing and coordinating jobs out there, but my lack of education in that field doesn't obviously put me at the top for applicants. Hence the following plan for my future while currently in limbo:

1. Create a collection of sketches that would be marketable to a large group
2. Come up with a business name, logo or quote, design, business cards, policies, and get a Tax ID #.
3. Perfect my ability to make professional prints from my sketches
4. Begin posting and selling prints and originals on Etsy.
5. Take community college courses in the evenings to develop my drawing skills, and get my feet wet with painting.
6. Develop my personal style as an artist.

Even if this "business venture" isn't able to support me, it could very likely at least offer some slight bump in income (especially since production costs would be so minimal), and at the same time allow me to develop a hobby I have always wanted to explore anyway.

Ultimately, the fact that I would be able to put all that on a resume, might seriously afford me the opportunity to climb up a more artistic career path.

I finally feel almost content, satisfied. Confident. Excited.

I made this decision Wednesday of this week. When I went home, after speaking with a friend about it, she immediately requested some Classic Winnie the Pooh prints with quotes. This idea (although not artistically original, still pretty marketable) sent me on the hunt for inspiration from other classic children's books.

I started that night on one from The Velveteen Rabbit. I still have to add in some grass and leaves to ground him, and then load it to the computer so I can add the quote and make it into a print. I am going to use this quote:

 "When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."

All the sketches I do of this are going to be part of my Storybook Collection.




I also want to do original pieces for older children from classic books such as

1. The Secret Garden
2. A Little Princess



I know its a crazy optimistic plan, but in the end happiness is what matters, and I finally feel like I am going in the right direction for that. I feel peaceful, which I haven't felt for a long long time.

New Sketching Project Plan

Ok, so NEW art project idea/concept/plan lol.

This whole- needing to spend all that time and energy drawing actual art pieces- is just too much for my time as well as my current level of skill lol. Therefore, I have decided to instead every week choose one theme for drawing multiple sketches, specifically for the purposes of learning perspective, and devloping better technique.

For example, this coming week will be Leaves. And it can be anything: leaves from different types of trees, leaves in varying light, leaves of different seasons, in different settings, anything!

Not only will this allow me to develop my skill, but the semi freedom in subject interpretation I suspect will allow me the perfect degree of inspiration to develop my own artistic taste as well!

Yay!

So this is the plan, and we will see how it unfolds hehehe.

Masterpiece Monday: Ren Fest Inspiration

I started out with the bottom portion of the dress, which was fun, and then finished the rest sort of unenthusiastically lol. The face was actually pretty funny to do, because my pencil sharpener currently is a failure so trying to do any sort of minute detailing was pretty impossible. The result is really just where the blunted tip decided to fall on the page lol. But I finished it, so I am proud of overcoming that part anyways. 

This was... a random thought. Maybe one day I will actually work on an actual piece for this concept, but in the meantime I just thought it would be fun to do. And it was! Silliness, can be fun. This is why I like to draw from reality though... lol

My next project! I thought I would throw in a teaser hahaha.

Masterpiece Monday: Sarah Portrait

So, this is one of the numerous snapshots I took while we were all prepping for Sarah's fabulous wedding. Jessica, Veronica's sister, while not a bridesmaid herself, was a huge help to all of us young peeps getting ready!

She is showing Sarah how to pin the ribbon to her bouquet!

Masterpiece Mondays!

This is portrait I did about 1 year ago of an old roommate. I actually never really finished it, so its very... sketchy lol. Keep in mind, in reality, this piece of paper is white lol.

The reference shot I took! :) She was wearing my old dress (which I ended up giving her cause she looked way hotter than me in it lol).

Masterpiece Mondays! ... on Wednesday *sheepish grin*

Ok. So I have been a busy bee this week(end), and didn't really have the time or inclination to spend on a sketch. Therefore, today's drawing will be a piece from the past *dun dun dun!!!* hehehe. I did this sketch way back in 2006 *gasps!* and I am sooo envious of that pencil. I must discover what grade it was!

I did learn something this week though! I tried using the charcoal pencils that I had purchases, and they are so ick! It catches on the paper all the time and completely muddles my strokes! Not good at all! I am going to stick to graphite but just stay in the B range from now on...

Masterpiece Mondays! ... on Tuesday lol

I know, I know. Its Tuesday lol. I am claiming an exemption hehe because of the holiday though!

This is a very quick practice sketch I did several weeks ago, just to get into the groove of things. This was done with graphite pencils, using a photograph I took earlier.

I framed it with a 5x7 matt and frame from the Oh So Wonderful Target hehe. 

In general an easy project, not very inventive or anything, but good practice! :P It might work for a bathroom art piece or something...

Masterpiece Mondays!

*drum roooooooooooll*

Tada! The first of many posts to follow, featuring a sketch or finished work! This is mainly to motivate me in my artistic evolution hehe.

This weekend I completed this drawing, which is part of a two piece installment. I won't go too much into detail about this until next week when I have the set complete, since obviously they are meant to display together.

This was pretty fun to work on though! It started out just sort of sketching the satin tie to practice fabric textures (and come on, whats more fun than satin and silk?) and ended up expanding into a concept lol. Love and relationships are just inspirational I think.

I am planning on going to Kinko's to allow me to actually scan the image, since my little phone camera is rather deficient in pixels lol. It definitely does not delineate the detail of the pencil, which simply will not do for printing purposes. Oh, and I need a photobox lol.

Can't wait to show the match to this one!

Getting my feet wet

So here is the most recent drawing I have done. The one before was in 2005! .... Needless to say it, has been awhile. But I am getting back into the pool now :D

Art project

I am so relieved and happy to be able to finally indulge my amatuer artistic vision! :P

After doing yet another portrait to get my feet wet, I really got inspired to create an actual art piece on my own. Mainly the painting I wanted for my living room, didnt exist lol. So this is what happens when you can visualize things too well; frustration. Thankfully I think it will be fun to go about working on this.

The overall scheme is a chick dressed up in a masquerade ball gown with the mask and gloves and everything running through a hedge maze. The view will be an angled arial shot from above and to the side facing the girl to best show both the labyrinth and the girl. My plan is to purchase some sort of dressy ballgown costume that will provide the necessary shadow direction and cloth texturing I need to do this well for a model/friend to pose in. I have a great mask already and I plan on heading out to the Arboretum and using a few hedges they have there for the close up background for modeling purposes, but then using a real maze to create the background of the picture.

This picture was one I liked, although my view will be just a bit higher up I think, and I don't know if I want the foresty theme or a more english grand garden theme... less trees and maybe a building tower structure instead.

I am definitely looking forward to having fun with this! It feels so great to actually have that vision and inspiration finally. Now I wish I had the guts to try painting...