Floating Lemons

Purple Artichokes Art FINAL

2012-02-23T18:34:17+01:00

Finally done. Added detail and darkened everything up. Two Purple Artichokes, coloured pencil. I used watercolour pencils as I'd originally intended adding water, but got too absorbed in details and I have a horrible feeling that adding water now would result in a horrible muddy mess, so am leaving it as is. Hope you like it. Cheers.

Purple Artichokes sketch-in-progress 2

2012-02-16T18:54:39+01:00

Still not quite finished, due to lack of time. Had some wonderful visitors over the week and between that and work deadlines, have managed to progress at the speed of a snail. Should have it done by next week, fingers crossed.

The one on the left is almost all coloured in, and as I'm planning to keep the one on the right somewhat lighter, it shouldn't take too much longer before I can post the final drawing. Am only glad that the real artichokes who modeled for me were eaten with much enjoyment long before this. Cheers.

Fun Doodle Flowers

2012-02-14T23:30:00+01:00

I'm still working on the Purple Artichokes drawing, so meanwhile here's a doodle I made a while back that I liked enough to clean up, add another colour to, and upload onto products. Seemed cheerful and bright, perfect to uplift my spirits especially as we're experiencing an unusual deep freeze at the moment here in the south of France! Cheers.

If you'd like to take a peek at the flowers on the cards and matching gifts, just click on the link below:

Fun Doodle Flowers blue pink at Floating Lemons Illustration @ Zazzle

Fun Doodle Flowers purple orange @ Floating Lemons Illustration @Zazzle

Purple Artichokes sketch-in-progress

2012-02-09T17:24:33+01:00

I constantly underestimate the time it will take to do a 'quick sketch'. Which was what this purple artichokes piece was meant to be. Which is why it's so messy by the way ... I wasn't being particularly careful with it to begin with. But as per usual, I ended up getting far too absorbed in the process and ran out of time and light loooong before the image-in-my-mind end-point.

I now really want to dig in and get stuck further into detail, so thought I'd put it up as a work-in-progress for now and carry on till I can post the final piece. I'm going to have to clean it up and paint over those messy scribbles once I'm done, sigh. Let's hope I don't screw it up.

Watercolour pencils (water not added as yet ...) on Moulin a Papier Arches hot pressed 100% cotton 140 lb Aquarelle paper.

Cheers!

Cute Owl Love

2012-02-07T10:49:21+01:00

A little image that came to me while I was watching TV a few evenings ago (I was watching a particularly gory episode of a forensic series, so have absolutely no idea of why cute owls came to mind). I grabbed my little wacom and laptop and scribbled it straight into Corel Painter 12 and had fun with it the rest of the evening.

Once I was done I googled 'owl love' just to make sure that the inspiration hadn't come straight from somebody else's illustration that had stuck in a corner of my visual brain. It's something that happens far too often, so I always have to ensure that I'm not inadvertently 'copying' some else's work that I previously admired. Particularly so in this instance as owls seem to be multiplying in flight on the virtual airwaves; apparently they are a huge trend at the moment.

Once I was as sure as one can be that I wasn't plagiarising, I cleaned it up and uploaded it to my stores. It's a quick little digital sketch, I know, but I'm now quite fond of it. Cuteness seems ingrained in some part of my psyche whether I wish it to be or not.

Cheers!

If you're interested in taking a peek, I'm uploading it at the moment to:

Owl Love at Floating Lemons Illlustration

White Rabbit Running for Easter

2012-02-02T19:19:09+01:00

I decided that it was time to turn my hand once again to a bit of fun digital illustration. This started off as a quick sketch:

Very light and vague, I know. But good enough to start off with. Scanned it into COREL Painter 12 and then handpainted it, first in pastels ... then when that got too frustrating, changed over to oils and finished it off. I took far too long over what was meant to be a simple digital exercise, so I ended up finishing the four free-falling eggs and the grass in photoshop.

If you'd like to take a peek at what I ended up creating with it as far as gifts and cards are concerned, click on the links below and let me know what you think ...

Easter Rabbit Run Party Theme at Floating Lemons Events @Zazzle

and

Easter Rabbit Run at Floating Lemons Illustration @Zazzle

Doodle: Fluid Rhythm

2012-01-30T10:59:58+01:00

Doodling again, in my little Moleskine journal. Marker pens, Pilot drawing pen. Very therapeutic, though I wouldn't want to speculate on what it says about my state of mind. At least the colours are relatively calming ... Cheers!

Hyacinth Bulbs sketch

2012-01-26T15:30:34+01:00

I bought a small pot of hyacinth bulbs at the supermarket a few days ago. Decided to sketch them today. Used watercolours and watercolour pencils on Moulin a Papier Arches hot pressed 100% cotton 140 lb Aquarelle paper. I promise you that those bulbs were growing as I drew them -- every time I looked up the flower buds were higher than before. If I'm brave enough I'll try a sketch once they've flowered. Till then, cheers.

Doodle: Dotty Hearts

2012-01-23T10:23:54+01:00

Doodled some hearts for Valentine's Day, using marker pens. They're sketchy and imperfect ... I considered polishing them up but really liked them as they were, with the rough strokes showing in the white and black, so I just cleaned up the outlines and kept the inner character as is. perfect. Cheers.

Purple Iris Revisited

2012-01-13T15:04:46+01:00

I drew this purple Iris in coloured pencil two years ago, from a photograph I'd taken when I discovered clumps of them growing in my garden. I've just revived it in order to place it onto the new products that were not available at my online stores two years ago, and thought I'd reblog it as it's one of those few drawings that I look back at in surprise, not quite knowing how I managed to produce such detail.

Thought I'd share it once again, along with a sprinkling of pride in being able to say (with amazement) that I Drew That! Seriously. Cheers.