more Joyful

Here's a couple more Joyent pieces...





Have a lovely day, my friends!

Joyful Joyent

I know, I know LONG TIME no post!! I'm here to remedy this with new(ish) works to share!



Back in July and August, before beginning the full time job on "Wow! Wow! Wubbzy!" I did a series of drawings for Joyent, a start up company up in San Fransisco. Joyent is headed by a very nice group of gentlemen who were really FANTASTIC to work with. I had a lot of fun making these drawings too. A big thanks to David Young, Brian Bell, John Gruber for making the experience very pleasant and easy. Additional thanks to Cameron Moll for his lovely shout out here. Well, I can't say it was all easy because it sucked up every waking moment of my life for weeks BUT they were generally, very pleased with what I gave them... which is always what you strive for as a commerical artist. The process worked...we went over my rough storyboards and character sketches, discussed, made changes, I then moved on to color comps (my illustrator drawings without textures) on to final with textutes and tweaks. Overall, any changes they requested made great sense for their product and made my drawings stronger too. I'm a fan of these guys and wish'em tons of success.

I'll post an additional drawing or two in the coming days but for now, here's a couple more:

Tatzelwurm

Here's Tatzelwurm. Rumored to exist in Austria but really holding up with C.L.U.B. (The Collective League of Unidentified Beasts) in the secluded mountains of Northern California. He's genuis and just plain weird. You know the type...very smart but lacking in some basic, social skills. Al ( my partner on the project) and I both really liked to refer to him as a sharp-toothed hotdog. So, yes, another old drawing to tide us over until I can share something new.

Til then, my friends...have a lovely day!

Dr. Peter Hickenlopper

Yep, still pulling from the files here. Same dead project, different character. This is Dr. Peter Hickenlopper. I could tell you a lot about him but the short story is that he used to be a respectable anthropologist until he went a little over the edge in his search for Sasquatch. Now he spends his days (and nights) searching for "evidence" and making what he believes are Sasquatch mating calls. Those"mating calls" are terribly unsuccessful, Sasquatch is NOT attracted to thouse sounds, not in the least. But Hickenlopper does draw a lot of attention from all the small woodland critters!

One of these days, I'll draw something new. Heck, with all the time I spent online tonight, I could very well have drawn something. BUT, let me tell you...the browse online took me to many amazing blogs by many EXTREMELY talented artists. You might want to take a look at my sidebar-0-links...there are some serious heavy hitters over there. New links like, John Nevarez, Stephan Kardos and Hans Bacher...just to name a few. More to come too.

I was lucky enough to have some of the best art direction of my life, way back in the late 90's by Hans Bacher (mentioned above). I was just assigned to take over as Lead Artist on the Mulan Animated Storybook (an interactive game) and he was the Production Designer on the movie. I met with him several times (with my Producer) for him to review my designs. I had to design something like 40 or so printable "trading cards" and other things I no longer remember. Now, I must say this first...I'd already been working at the company for a couple years...at least, and this was the first time a Production Designer from a Feature (in my experience, anyway) who actually took the time to meet with us "less-regarded" video game people. I showed him my designs (which I was quite proud of since they were my first attempts with Illustrator) and he had many, many notes for me. But, really...what was amazing was that they were REAL, substantial and absolutely dead-on notes. It was like a miracle for me. I remember smiling with every change request...because I knew, for probably the first time in my professional experience, that I was finally getting some excellent art direction. Of course, I would have loved to get everything right on first or even second pass...but it really was like a gift to receive these kinds of notes. Lightbulbs flashed in my head as I thought "Of course!! You're so right!" and "YES!! Give me more, please!!" That doesn't happen every day and it's definitely worth mentioning.
Coincidentally, I had the same experience today, with my new boss, Bob Boyle. He reviewed my character designs for Wubbzy. Man! It makes such a huge difference when you are working for someone who has a clear vision and they can draw a little scribble on a post-it and the design magically becomes so much better. You know that you aren't just spinning your wheels trying to read someone's mind...the answers are shown to you and you "get it"! Ahhhhh, how I love that.

Chuy (pronounced CHEWIE)

Hello. Here's another oldie from the same old project. This is Chuy, the Chupacabra. He's a goat-sucking gasbag...who is, actually, a really nice guy. Give him a chance, won't cha?! (just keep small furry animals away from him around mealtime)

Big Monkey

Hi, Peeps! Thank you for all the warm wishes. First day at the new gig went very well. I met a lot of very nice (and super talented) folks and already learned quite a bit. The hardest thing was sitting there at my new desk...you know, just being in an open cube situation. It'll just take some getting used too...I definitely felt weird about checking email or the internet....which is something I normally do ALL DAY LONG, when working from home. Already though, I totally dig my new cube-mates, Sandra and Kyle. I definitley had my share of questions yesterday and everyone was incredibly helpful. I've already learned a lot of new "quick keys" in Illustrator CS Software! Wooo hooo! Gotta love that. (See, I'm one of those "don't like to read manual" types...so tidbits and tricks shown to me are like golden nuggets)



Here's a drawing of Big Monkey. He's just a really BIG monkey. Kind of an Ashton Kutcher-likes-to-play-cranks and thinks everything is super funny. He shares the house with Nessie, Red and many others. So yes...another old drawing. I think I'll just keep pulling from that particular file until I have time again to draw something new to share. Some of you (drawingboard pals) have already seen these, so I apologize for the repeats!

Thanks again, everyone. It was so nice to read all the (non-spam) comments last night.

Today is....

....my very first day at a new job. The past two years I've worked from home doing freelance for just about every conceivable type of project. I've done concept design mostly: for an animated feature, props, video games and a couple small start-ups needed illustration or other design related work . Before all this, I was freelance but working 3 days at The Jim Henson Company (as an Art Director) Before that, I worked full time there. Soooo, it's been 6 years since I've had a "first day" on the job. I'm feeling some jitters. But, that is normal...right?! Just like the first day of school I have a new outfit, have sharpened some pencils and woke up extra early. I'm both excited and scared.
One reason I'm excited is that I will have regular hours...well, hopefully. I do know that I can't possibly work non-stop like I do at home. The past several months have been unbelievably busy and my personal life has suffered from it. Go figure, huh? The freelance really starts taking off and I take a 9-to-5 job!! Anyway... I'm scared that I will not be "up to snuff" and that I will struggle to keep up with all the talented folks at this new place. But, I can remember starting jobs in the past feeling the same way, so I know I will eventually overcome that...by working hard and diligently. I'm excited to make new friends. But I'm scared that I won't have the same freedoms I've enjoyed over the past many years, like taking off for long weekends or visiting my parents on a whim. I'm excited that I will have a regular paycheck again and hopefully, save some money. I'll miss my "Court TV" and the random breaks I take to scour the web for more lovely things to view. Most of all, I'm excited to learn and face all my new challenges...to learn the tasks of a Character Designer.



I don't plan on writing details about my new job here. This blog is still primarily a place for me to post new doodles and drawings (and sometimes OLD ONES) when time has run out and I don't have anything new. Like today. Today's drawing is of Nessie, the Loch Ness. She comes from the same project as Red, the Black Bear (posted below) so, the drawing is a couple years old. This depiction of Nessie shows her to be a bit of a "Marianne Faithful" sort of Punk. She shares the house with a whole slew of Cryptozoology's finest and spents most her time in the Jacuzzi. No one understands her thick Scottish brogue. Her housemates assume she's brilliant though.

OK! Off to shower and get ready for my "first day"!! Wish me luck!

Illustration Friday: EMPTY

Red. The Black Bear. You might say he's a little "empty". He's sweet as pie, but dumb, dumb, dumb. Bribe him with berries and wine and he'll love you forever.

Ok, sorta cheated this week. No time to draw for Illo Friday right now so I had to dig up something from my files. This lil' character was created (amongst many) for a show I was developing a couple years back. The pitch got good reviews, overall, but it never found a home. waaaaa! My friend Al and I had a great time working on it though. We laughed, we cried and a little like our pal, Red the Black Bear...we consumed much vino too.

Illustration Friday: AGING

A little on the late side for this week's Illustration Friday theme, "Aging". And it's not because I forgot or even a result of being tired (both symptoms of old age) I was simply buried with work. But wait, I am forgetful and I'm exhausted too. Add to that, the numbers. And the numbers don't lie, I am getting older!! Dammit!!

Instead of waxing on and on about aches, wrinkles and those snarky greys...I kept thinking of the song "Young-at-Heart" by ol' Blue Eyes, Frank Sinatra. Great song. Wonderful song. So, then I started thinking about little kids...and this image came to mind. One of those seldom times where the idea AND the execution came together nice and quick. Which is great, considering my age and all!! ;)

Got blog banner?

Alrighty! Many of you have contacted me asking how to add a banner to the top of your blog. I struggled with this too. Blogger's Dashboard doesn't really make it too easy, does it?! Well, I ended up doing what you guys did, I found and contacted someone else with a banner in place and they kindly offered up the information. (Thanks, Jaime!) So, in the spirit of communal bloggin' and all that...here's what I did:

First, I have my own home site where I host my images and hotlink to this blog. There are other options for uploading images to blogger, but I've not tried these so you'll have to try'em out yourselves. I'm using the minima template by designer, Douglas Bowman. My banner image is 649 pixels in width and 149 pixels, height. I'm guessing that different sizes and different templates work essentially the same, just tossing out that information as a possible guide.

I tried copying the code here in this post but for whatever reason, if wasn't working. So, instead... I'm including the image below. It will HOPEFULLY, in the least, guide you to where you can make the changes. You will find the html in your template folder. Oh, and not to confuse you....there should NOT be any birds in your coding... ;)

Good Luck y'all and thanks again for all the incredible comments and emails. **I'm in the middle of a couple assignments right now, so it may a few more days until I can post a new drawing.

EDIT: Please note!! I am in no way an aficionado when it comes to coding html/blogs or anything technical! I just wanted to pass along whatever information I had that might be helpful to others...as I had many requests for it. I'm sorry that I can't upload the actual html for easy cut and paste...the blogger formatting doesn't seem to allow this. Also, it's quite possible this code only works on the template I've used. Ultimately, it's the "header" section in your template that would need tweaking. If and when I learn more tidbits, I'm happy to share! Also, thanks to all of you who added further information in the comments section.

Illustration Friday- TRANQUILITY

I guess I've now got birds on the brain (or I'm bird brained!) but this is what I came up with for this week's Illustration Friday theme, which is "tranquility". What's better than a nice soak in a bath after a long day of foraging worms for dinner and building nests? Only thing missing here is a glass of wine, me thinks.

As we all know...there is something particularly tranquil about water... whether one is drinking, soaking, floating or sitting beside it. Personally, I have a lame tub for soaking...it's too short and not very deep. I sometimes pretend it's much more luxurious and accommodating by adding pretty smelling soaps and lighting a candle. Not very creative, but you can sort of escape this way. Still, the damned faucet is drip-dripping and the porcelain against my shoulders is cold. I don't have regular access to a hot tub/spa/jacuzzi either, but those are particularly nice on a cool evening (with said glass of wine). At the end of my swim work-out, if I'm not sharing a lane with anyone else....I take a good solid minute or two to just float. Some might regard it a little strange perhaps, but that 60 seconds of buoyancy, floating atop the water and breathing in deep is a particularly tranquil moment I enjoy. And we all need those moments.

A Hearty...

So, a weird thing happened.. a weird, lovely and slightly overwhelming thing. Both BoingBoing and Blogger's "blogs of note" put "shout outs" to my blog on the same day. A whole lotta people, from all over, browsed on by and a great many (okay, geesh, like over a hundred of you!!!) left very nice comments. Admittedly, I became slightly obsessed with checking my email and blog for new posts because.... I just could not believe all the responses! It was absolutely crazy. So, please know that I really appreciate all of you who took the time to click and leave a comment. I thought maybe I could draw a picture of myself holding up my own swollen and oversized head...but opted instead for a simple thank you birdy. Hopefully the little bird will suffice for my big hearty thanks. And hopefully, I won't grow a huge head and start wearing an ascott.

Some folks asked to know a little more about me and/or my work. So, here's a little background: I've been paying rent as a working artist for the past 11-12 years. Starting out in the Interactive arena and now, transitioning into Animation. Most everything on my blog and site was drawn for the fun of it: to beef up the portfolio and/or to just improve my skills, (Unless otherwise noted on my site) Sometimes I just draw because I can't deal with watching anymore "Court TV". Most of my paying work does not legally belong to me OR it is something that I'm not interested in pursuing... that kind of stuff I just leave out. Most all my artwork is digital with the basic drawing done in Adobe Illustrator and textural details added in Adobe PhotoShop. I received a BFA in Illustration at a California State University. Drawing makes me happy.

A lot of people who meet me think I'm from the Mid-West. I think that's because I'm generally pretty nice, say thank you and please and smile regularly. I think maybe my drawings reflect that too. Don't be fooled though, I am native Californian and I can be just as cranky as the next guy when I'm cut off in traffic.

Let's see, what else? Hey! Have any of you checked the links in my sidebar??? Or the links page on my site? There are TONS of great artists/ illustrators and crafts-people out there doing fabulous things. I learn from all these guys on a regular basis. I love the internet...check 'em out!! I will be adding lots more as time passes too.

Again, thank you for your very kind words. Because of it, this week was extra nice.

Swan Lake

I decided to take another stab at the whole "Metropolitan" theme from last week's Illustration Friday. Just for fun. So here's she is, the same gal from the illustration below, at the Ballet. Perhaps this is even the same day...after her walk through the city. Of course, it could be the Opera or a theatre show she's attending...but I have a feeling she's there to see the classic "Swan Lake". I remember how much I loved seeing Swan Lake at the Paris Opera House in the late 80's....sitting under that amazing Chagall painting. Oh my, what an overwhelming delight that was.

I almost cried.

Illustration Friday: METROPOLITAN

Here's this week's drawing for Illo Fri....it's a slice of Metropolitan life. I thought about illustrating something with more hustle and bustle, crowds or even a more elegant moment with skyscrappers filling the skies . BUT, I just kept finding myself thinking of a more European/Soho/ parts of San Fran kind of setting instead, though my drawing depicts none of these specifically. A bazillion years ago I studied for a semester in Paris and more recently dated my man in San Fran (before he moved closer)...and the perfect day was to walk around the city neighborhoods and stop somewhere to loiter over a nice latte or glass of wine. That's MY idea of true city life. Here in Los Angeles, my life is more Suburban than Metropolitan...like the song says "Nobody walks in LA". Ahhh... but someday, I would love to live in San Francisco with a scruffy little dog. I hope I won't be 80 then and unable to walk those hills!

Lil' Yogi and hangin' with Ma and Pa.

Here's a belated "Sport" themed drawing for last week's Illustration Friday. I'm not all that familiar with yoga so this pose is probably way off the map in terms of authenticity. Truth be told, I don't really care all that much...which, I hope some of you who follow a strict yoga discipline won't find blasphemous... I don't mean any harm. I just liked the shape of my initial sketch and decided to take it to finish. If you've got a name for this pose (made up or not) I'm looking for a "title". This was drawn in Illustrator and touched up in Photoshop.

Just got back from a nice, lazy vacation visiting my parents up in NorCal. It was really lovely. Got to visit some old friends from my childhood (Hello, Dyers!!) and spend a lot of quality time with my bitchen' kick-ass parents. Basically, we shopped, we ate, we went to the movies, we ate some more, we shopped some more, sunbathed, dined al fesco, drank a lot of wine, worked on crosswords together, read magazines and books, and just plain-ol' hung-out. It was great. Did I mention that we ate... a lot? Ah, How I've missed my parents' cooking!

Thank God, Lap Swim at the local pool is in full swing. I need it more than ever now~

Dad and I took a morning and drove out to sketch and paint the scenery by a local river. Well, I guess I should say... Dad sketched and painted the scenery....from life, that is. His watercolors were really nice and I totally felt intimated because it's been so long since I've tried drawing anything from life. It's sorta like my whole "painting" issue, I guess. I ended up painting a couple of cartoony dead bugs (loosely based on the dead bugs on the picnic table we were sitting at) and a racoon strewn about in some leaves. We didn't see any racoons...but that's just what ended up happening when my pencil hit the paper. I didn't think to bring the drawings home...but maybe I can get Dad to send them to me...along with one of his sketches from that day. I feel lucky that my Dad and I share a love for drawing and painting. It means a lot to me. It was either that or I was going to have to develop a love for tying flies. ;) Mom and I share a love for SHOPPING!! So, I'm lucky for that too! Peni and Tony...I love you! Thanks for the great visit!

Illustration Friday: HERO

The week's theme for Illustration Friday is "Hero". And this little diddy
was influenced by my Grandma Amy...who was and always will be a hero to me. Though she looked NOTHING like the generic styled "Super Gram" illustrated here. NO buns or glasses for my Granny and she hardly ever had any gray hair. She didn't wear her apron like a cape either...but, she WAS beloved by ALL her 6 grandkids and she served up a delicious "Sunshine Frosting" cake.

I'm not blown away by this little painting, in fact, I'm a little embarrassed about it. Still, I'm glad I did it. I haven't painted in a long, long time and it just felt kinda good to give it whirl. I should have "designed" this more...you know, paying more attention to composition and character, but, ach, I didn't. Just decided to doodle a light sketch on to a scrap of Stonehedge paper ( such yummy paper!!) and start painting. I did find myself missing my computer while working on this...I missed not being able to change colors on the fly, tweak things, etc. I had hoped doing a little painting would "loosen" me up but the opposite was more true. Argh. Maybe next time!

Post interrupted!

Off to Northern California for a family reunion. I'm so looking forward to seeing my parents, sister, nephews, aunts, uncles, cousins and my grandpa and great uncle too. We're going to eat good food, tell stories, drink some beer (Pooler's love beer) and pose with "bunny ears" in pictures. It's what we do. And I like that.

Hoo wee, just had an earthquake here! Exciting. Scary. Not too sure how major it was somewhere but it shook pretty good here. Oh, news says it was 5.3...so it wasn't too-too major. But still, things were swinging here and I even felt dizzy as I stood patiently in the doorway waiting for it to complete. Earthquakes are always soo crazy. They freak me out but afterwards, it's weirdly euphoric. In the good old days...I used to always yell out "EARTHQUAKE" when they occurred. One time, I was taking a nap with the dogs and cat, alone at home....yet, I still felt the urge to yell aloud, "Earthquake!!!". Which is ridiculous, really...as if Punkin, Pepsi and Phoebe really needed this vital information...all they knew was that their naps had been disturbed.

After the big Northridge quake, I was yelling "Earthquake!" quite a bit. The next day, may parents and sister came up for a visit. We had a nice jolt moments after they arrived. Immediately, I yelled out "AFTERSHOCK!" and my sister was quick to berate me. "Gee Paige, you're getting to be quite an expert in discerning the difference between the two" . tee hee. I swear, I really don't know that I'm saying anything at all...I guess it's just my natural instinct. As silly as that is. This time, I didn't yell or scream anything...but, I'm sure the words "Shit, earthquake" did exit my mouth. I did just run outside to see if there were any neighbors around. But no. Dangit. Anyhoo, this was not what I was going to post about today BUT was interrupted by it. Hoooo weeeee. Maybe it's a REALLY good thing I'm heading north! My legs are still a little shaky.

Ok, I'm a little distracted from what I was going to write about. So, maybe later...I'll talk more about my fabulous family. And they are fabulous.

Edit: I'm back. Quake wasn't too big or bad. It's been downgraded to a 4.9 (News reports say) in the desert. Nothing broke...no reports of injury. Phew. Now, I'm really ready for my drive up North.

Illustration Friday-SUMMER

Woo Hooo! It's SUMMER! How convenient that this week's "Illustration Friday" theme coincides with a drawing I began a few weeks back. Due to tight and endless deadlines the drawing sat unattended far too long and the front page of my website remained spring-themed past Memorial Day!! The horror!! Thank you, Illustration Friday Peeps-- for inspiring me to finish this, update my webpage and to welcome in the Summer too!

Actually, this illustration is three-fold. I love to swim and the neighborhood pool doesn't open for lap swim until June 18. I've been calling Burbank Parks and Recreation for months begging them to open the pools early. But NO! They would have nothing to do with it. So, while I wait for the pool to open, I continue to eat cheese and all-things-bad but imagine that I will quickly get back in shape the moment they open the gates again. ;0) So, ok...the drawing serves as a reminder to get my butt to the pool...JUNE 18th! No excuses.

The third reason for this illustration...or, really the background on it: I was a swimmer for the better part of my childhood and teens. Not exceptional in any way...a steady second placer. I lived across the street from a public, olympic sized pool and I had HUGE crushes on a couple of the local lifeguards. OH, they were so HOT... beautiful surfer types with lean, tan bodies (tan was "in" during the 80's) and I could not resist oogling over them every chance I could. Ahhhh, those teen years.

Does it look like she's in love with a foot or do you "get" that it's a lifeguard??!

Illustration Friday-DIGITAL

Here's another oldie for this week's Illustration Friday. I think it was drawn last summer, maybe last fall. It was for a small press magazine and the article was about "Kids-N-Computers" . It's a little hard to see the details at this size...but, o'well.

I had a break from the deluge of work over this past weekend! It was nice to be free... got to see a movie ("crash"), went to a flea market (Pasadena City College), ate good food (Thai) and consumed a couple cocktails (mohitos). Ahhhhh, I really needed that.

Illustration Friday: AQUATIC

Still unable to find time to draw outside of the current work schedule, I've noticed a particular craving to draw something, ANYTHING that is just for the fun of it. I think I may be suffering from Illustration Friday withdrawals. I really wish to participate, for real. Dangit!!

Suddenly, I remembered drawing this silly illo a couple month's ago (for fun, not an assignment)...there IS water involved....and this week's them is AQUATIC...so, maybe we can all just pretend I drew this today.

It's quite possible that once you see a kid with this kind of look on his face, you might not feel like being very aquatic anymore.

A note and a pic.

My nephew, Wilder, sent me this photo of the two of us (perhaps with some help from my sister).
This boy warms my heart so very much.

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Aaron C. , the featured artist noted below, sent me an email tonight. Here it is:

Hey Paige, it's me Aaron C. I wanted to say thank you for putting my pictures on your website. I am in the playoff's in baseball. We won our first game on saturday. It was a comebacker. The final score was 5 to 4,I got the winning hit to drive in the runner at third base! Enough about baseball for now,I wanted to tell you that I'm sending you three new pictures I drew. Their names are "Heading South," "John Bimsburg(maybe your new boyfriend)," and the "Fire Serpent." We have your address so I can send the pictures to you.

talk to you soon,
Aaron C.

Congrats on the baseball game, Aaron! Right on!

YAY! A new crop of drawings are being sent my way! I can hardly wait to get them. Plus, I'm looking forward to my newest boyfriend's arrival as Harold hasn't really stepped up to the plate (so so speak) Actually, my father called and left me a voice message...with some warped-pseudo- accent pretending to be Harold. You can't fool me, Pops!

Anyway, I apologize for my lack of entries lately. The freelance has kept me very, very busy. I have lots of ideas brewing for past Illustration Fridays...so, hopefully, I'll get a break and get caught up.

KIDS ART: Featuring Aaron C.

Kids Art amazes me. In the coming weeks, I'd like to introduce and feature some of my favorite kids and their art. Here's the first:
Aaron C.
Aaron C. is 10 years old. He is the son of Shane and Alicia...and Shane has been like a little brother to me since we were kids ourselves. A little background: I brought Shane home from school one day (I was in Eighth, Shane in Seventh) because my sister (in Fifth grade) thought he was really cute. Since that moment, he became a member of the family. Shane's family and my family became very close. His older brother Greg was even my first kiss!! Unfortunately, with our crazy lives and distance between us all we don't get to visit very often. We all got to visit at the Holiday's this past Christmas and this is when I got to see HOW VERY EXCELLENT an artist Aaron has become.
Aaron loves to draw and he's got piles of character drawings, action drawings and stories to go with all of them. He's got the talent and the passion! Not only that, he's a charming, charismatic and sweet boy too. He was so good with my two nephews that evening that he melted my heart. Of course, I felt an affinity with him because of his love for art and drawing. I was honored that he gave me a few drawings too!!!! (They proudly sit with me at my art desk)

Here's the first one. I don't remember what Aaron titled it, so I refer to it as "Serpent Attack!"


Here's a close-up to see the cool character faces and costuming!


And finally, here is a drawing of Harold Jalsone. Aaron told me that Harold was my new boyfriend. I asked him what Harold did for a living and he told me that he was a Skateboard Designer! How cool is that!?!!!! No accountants for me! Woo hooo.

Gimme a call, Harold!

Illustration Friday-AMBITION

I suppose a cat would have to be very ambitious to do this! Right? How many Space Cats in pyjamas have you seen or even heard about?? So, alright...I've chosen this several-months'-old doodle to be my Illustration Friday for this week. It's kinda cheating, I know, but... it'll have to do for now.

A little dog...

Just a little chihuahua doodle so I can say this blog is active!

Still hecka-busy on a really cool project that will probably keep me inside for the better part of the next month. It's all super-OK though, this project is teaching me so much, Though it leaves me no time to draw doodleheads or participate in Illustration Friday. I'm hoping maybe this weekend?!?!?!

Hey, by the way, great news!! I start a (non-freelance) job-job in August. You know, the kind where you to to an office on a daily basis!! I'm very excited to have some normalcy again, a regular paycheck, eventual benefits and all that. Most of all though, I'm excited because it's the only kind of job-job I'd actually WANT to take, if not being freelance anyway. A dream come true, really. I will be joining the "Wubby" team as a character designer for a Nick Jr. Show! Everyone seems so nice and welcoming, I can hardly wait to start. The creator, Bob Boyle, has his own blog too... showing the progress of the show in development. Check it out! http://wubby.typepad.com It's really cool to see all the thought that goes behind all the decisions, watch the fantastic designs come together and it's also just so nice that someone like Bob is willing to share all that. AND welcome his crew too.

Illustration Friday-ALONE

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I had several ideas for this but opted out for the simplest (and fasted to compose) since I've got tons of freelance right now (YAY!) *Drawn in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.

It's interesting... this whole Illustration Friday thang is making me think and draw a little "darker" than what I normally do on my own. I like that. I hope to be able to push things further when my time frees up a little more.

Illustration Friday-TRAVEL

Hello. I'm posting my Illustration Friday WAY late this week! Freelance work came in...so I was glued to my drawing desk and not able to get to this until tonight! I am NOT complaining because I love when work comes my way!!

Anyway, you could call this illustration TRAVEL (which was this past week's theme)...or you could call this CROWDED (the previous week's theme)...or you could call this what I'm calling it... "Flying Coach on United". In any case, this is more a "character study" than it is a full blown illustration...I mean, how else can I explain away the fact that you can't see the back of the plane??? Anyway, this was all prompted by last month's fabulous trip to Ireland. All was great but the air travel bordered on criminal. Please...just gimme an inch or two (maybe even three!!) more for my legs dammit...I'm 6 feet tall!!

Here's a close-up of my misery...

Ireland was pretty though...and the beer was good too!

Happy Easter

Just thought I'd post this "lil bun rab" doodle... since tomorrow is Easter n'all. Happy egg hunting to you!

Illustration Friday-CROWDED

Currently, my head feels a little CROWDED with all the pesky little tasks I should be taking care of...you know... taxes, finding more freelance work, clean out junk drawers, drop off dry cleaning, get a new man...etc. The list is endless

This image was sketched very quickly in photoshop. I'm hoping to revisit and redraw in Illustrator.

**Say, anyone know a quicky tutorial for Blogger sites. I'd love to figure out how to personalize this thing a little more.
Thanks!!

Illustration Friday: BLOOM

Alrighty, so... I've wanted to participate in Illustration Friday for awhile now but needed to start a blog to do so. So, last night I finally signed up and got the BLOG. I check the IlloFri site today and now I'm not entirely sure if I'm early for this week or late for last. Regardless, this is an illo I did a few months back and I think it fits the week's theme which is/ was BLOOM. My depiction here is to illustrate a new love that is blooming.

Nnnnnnkay, another blog is born.

Hellooooo!

Yep, just what the world needs...another self-absorbed blog. ;0) I promise to keep it simple. First off, I'm not sure how often I will update this thing, but I'm going to give "once a week" a try. I'm bewildered as to how so many of you fine folk are able to keep up with your own sites, create your art, read other sites regularly and still manage to eat, work, maintain relationships and bathe. Maybe you're all secretly very stinky and skipping out on those showers? (how would I know?) Or maybe I'm just a really slow reader. ( I don't get to read many blogs on a regular basis) I dunno. BUT, I love blogs. I love the treasures I find while digging around. I love getting snippets of others peoples lives and interests. Mostly, I love to discover wonderful illustration and beautiful (yet funky) crafts . So, if I dig up something good, I'll do my best to post it here and share the resource.

My main objective is not to entertain anyone but myself really. However, if you get something out of it, that is super-fantastic and please, by all means, let me know. Mainly, I figured by starting a blog I might be inspired to push it up a notch and crank out more than the doodleheads I seem to draw over and over and over again. More than likely, it will be a place to post all those doodleheads...

here's a taste of my incessant "eyes wide apart" doodling of doodleheads...