Haunted...

...not by a ghost, fortunately! Just the littlest things that can suddenly turn into monstrous forms, whether I like it or not. Meaning, that life always seems to have the knack to poke and nudge at me when I am feeling like staying idle...

So, my apologies for not replying to any of your comments on my last post, dear friends. My one year old boy caught the measles just a few days ago, and being the panicky mother that I am, I automatically went nuts. Can't help it, I'm sort of built that way. LOL. I was even going to post this new spooky piece on Halloween, but alas that failed miserably. Well I'm just glad that the worst part is over, and my boy is recovering nicely. :)

Anyway, I'm afraid I'm going to keep this post short. I hope you all had a gruesome Halloween and found a finger or two floating in your soup! :)

See you soon!

Hugs,

Artist Sketchbooks Show and Tell

Hey all! A new week has started. To me, it's usually a good time to sit down and organize my weekly work agenda, setting priorities and goals so I can pretty much work less chaotically. Believe me, when you have three kids and a heap of deadlines to finish, this is quite crucial. Other than that, I also like to flip through the ideas I've gathered over the previous week and see if I could hopefully get some extra time to work on them. Now, I don't know about you, but I always find it interesting to see the raw ideas that artists come up with and put down in their sketchbooks. It's amazing to see how an idea is born and later on transformed into a piece of art through their thought process.

So to inspire you, here are some of my wonderful artist friends, showing us peeks into their sketchbooks and sharing a little bit about how it all begins...

"OK the first image is a little fairy that I did last year. This was a sketch done after taking a pic of my daughter... & just too cute I had to add wings :) I've always been so afraid of color. This piece was (or perhaps may be) one of my very first plays with watercolor. I've always enjoyed drawing the sweet & innocent.. I suppose this explains my art taking off shortly after having my daughter ;) She's a huge inspiration :)

The second image, is a work in progress & my most current piece. I've obviously become obsessed now with color after being afraid of it for my whole life! I've yet to do a girl using watercolor in the eyes. I've always felt that I could just get so much more detail using pencils. So I don't know if I've achieved perfection here, but wanted to give it go." :) ~ Joanna Haber, A Bit of Whimsy

"Generally my paintings are done on the fly without any forward planning but I have so many ideas in my head at any one time that I keep a little doodle book for over-spill ideas which I use in those awkward times when my brain flow is running flat. The 2 pages here are a basic idea of how I doodle, a general idea of a character and a few words to jog my memory when painting time comes, nothing fancy just a bit of fun." ~ Micki Wilde, The Secret Hermit

"I love drawing in my sketchbook, it's where my ideas start to grow with just a few lines of a pen and a sprinkle of imagination. In these pages I am exploring characters and through sketching and have a play around on paper the characters come to life." ~ Heidi M. McDonald, Little Nore

"I do have a strange practice of reaching for the nearest piece of paper to doodle down my ideas. I don't regularly sketch, in fact, I usually just sketch right on the paper or canvas....but, every now and then, when I want to get down a concept or idea, I grab the closest paper at hand and draw a quickie sketch. I have saved these...all loose and haphazard...a bit like me...haha!" ~ Cameron S. Reutzel, Paint Myself Pretty

"Sketching is a wonderful way to let my imagination flow and express the spirit of life. Recently I find pleasure in exploring characters in playful stances, almost dancing, telling some sort of story." ~ Tammie Lee, Beauty Flows

I hope you're feeling inspired and all ready to create! Have an awesome Monday, everyone...Here's to plenty of good vibes for the week ahead! :)

Hugs,

Drawing Memories

Hello there. First of all, let me just thank you for your wonderful comments on my last post. I had no idea that many of you share my fear, it's really comforting to know that I'm not just being "silly", as people have often told me.

So anyway, how have you been? It's already Thursday here and Friday is waiting eagerly for its appearance (well, at least I am). This week has been pretty stressful for me, especially because I've been pushing myself to finish a few deadlines and some custom orders too. Not that I'm complaining. In case you haven't noticed, I love my work. No matter how tough and tiring things can be. Custom portraits, in particular, could be a huge source of stress because they are personal and any personally related work is usually the toughest kind. Some have suggested that I should stop accepting them, but to be honest, they actually give me quite a satisfaction of their own.

Just think of it. To create the portraits above, I had to learn quite a bit about the girls. Their characters, what their hobbies and interests are, and not to mention their mother's (in some cases even the father's) taste! Because they are personal, I have to approach it in a more personal way too. It's such a wonderful feeling to imagine that these portraits will be hanging in their bedrooms and may even be cherished until they have grown up. Somehow it makes all the stress and sweat worthwhile. :)

I must say, though, that I am at the moment working on a portrait that has opened up my eyes and put a new meaning to life. All this time, I have been drawing cheerful faces, thinking that they all belong to these happy and lively people somewhere in other parts of the world. Never once have I drawn a portrait of someone who has passed away. And a child too, at that. At first I only thought of it as a new kind of challenge, but I never thought his story (which I can't reveal right now) would affect me so much, that I think it has somehow broken my heart. It makes me think about my children constantly, and the overwhelming sadness that the parents must feel to lose a child. If there is one project that has affected me so much emotionally, I say that this would be it. I just hope that I will do a good enough job to preserve the beautiful memories they have of their lost loved one.

How about you? Have you ever worked on anything that affected you tremendously? Well, whatever project you're working on right now, I hope it will give you a whole new positive experience and brighter perspective on life.

Peace to you,