Sunday Sketches - Another Portrait

Pencil on Sketch Paper

I've been trying to practice my portraits because I feel that this category is my strongest skill set.  I tried doing a small landscape sketch of rocks and some plants, horrible.  lol.  I will be trying some famous faces soon so that you'll be able to see the comparison and see how I'm doing.  It's easy to draw a portrait, but it's extremely hard to get it to look like the actual person you are drawing. 

My back is a little better.  I ended up going to the er and got some pain meds to take along with the motrin and muscle relaxers.  I only take the muscle relaxers at night though.  Makes me very sleepy.  :)  I'm off to work but will be back later this evening to check out all of the wonderful Sunday Sketches.  In the mean time hop on over to Sophia's blog to see more great sketches by some very talented artists.

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I'm Falling Apart

Like this glass vase, apparently my back is very fragile.  If you recall, I was going to work extra hours yesterday.  I never made it to work.  As I was getting out of the shower, I bent over to dry off my legs and my back went out so badly that I couldn't even move for a few minutes.  

By some miracle, my wonderful boyfriend happened to wake up and knocked on the door to see if I was almost done.  There I was naked, in tears and unable to move.  What a sight that must have been.  lol.  I couldn't even get dressed without his help.  

I don't have health insurance so I'm stuck going to the county clinic, which I called and was told that since the doctor I saw on Saturday was not in, I would have to go to the ER.  I couldn't even put my shoes on, let alone sit in a car or even get into the car.  So I opted for extra muscle relaxers and alternating cold and hot compresses along with some anti-inflamatories.  I'm moving a tad bit better but am still in extreme pain.  We'll just have to wait and see what today will bring.  I can't afford to miss much more time off of work so I'm hoping the rest will work some magic and I'll be back to normal (like I ever was!) soon.

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Happy Hump Day!

"Study of the Eyes II"

Pencil on Sketch Paper

You may or may not have noticed I changed my thumbnail image.  Not because I like to make changes like I do to my blog every few weeks, but because Blogger in it's infinite quirkiness lost my previous one.  Not quite sure what happened but I went to post a comment one day and it showed up with no image.  So I chose this sketch as it was readily available on my computer.  I have been working out of the two Lee Hammond books I have and really love doing some of the smaller sketches while I'm at work.  They're quick and I don't need quite as many supplies as I do with some of the larger pieces.  I still need lots of work on my eyelashes but I'm relatively satisfied with the overall outcome of this image.

I have just gotten Lee's book called Lifelike Drawing in Colored Pencil.  I haven't started anything yet, but it looks to be as intriguing as the first two books I bought of hers.  Hopefully I'll have something ready to post soon.  I really love working in graphite, but I do wonder, should I ever decide to sell my artwork, is there really a desire for this type of medium?  If so, are people willing to pay for the time vested in each image?  Is it better to sell reproductions or originals?  I have so many questions.  I have always been able to sell handmade items, but I'm so new to this aspect of my creativity that I'm unsure of where to go from here.

As artists, how do you decide what to sell and how much to charge?  Ah, too many questions, not enough room on my blog.  Not to mention, boring my readers.  lol.  Anyway, hope you are all having a good week.  I have decided to pick up some extra hours at work so I won't be off at 10 am like I planned.  But I will have some overtime on my next check.  More cash for my art supplies!  Shhh, don't tell my boyfriend.  He already thinks I need to pare down my quilting, sewing, crochet, knitting and artwork supplies.

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Feeling Better

'Waves'

Pencil on Sketch Paper

I just wanted to thank everyone for all of your wonderful thoughts, not only that I would feel better but all of the great compliments I've receive on a daily basis in regards to my artwork.  My back is feeling better and I hope to start visiting all of your blogs today when I get home from work.  

In keeping with the water theme (see Monday's post) I decided to post a small sketch of ocean waves crashing on a beach.  This was the first time I tried sketching water and I'm really happy with how it turned out.  My boyfriend was able to tell what it was on the first guess so I think I got it right.  lol.  

We're in for more hot weather today, yuck.  Haven't been to the pool or anything since my back started hurting.  Hopefully I'll be back in soon.  My luck it will be pouring out on Wednesday as I'm off work at 10 am and have plenty of time to swim. 

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Monday? Already?

I can't believe it's already Monday.  I don't work a typical work week though.  I normally work Sunday through Friday but last week I worked Saturday instead of Sunday.  Yes, I work part time, 6 days a week.  Thank you wonderful economy!  :(

I do get to sketch at work sometimes though and this pretty little seal was one of the practice pieces I did while at work last week.  I think it turned out kinda cute.

Hope you had a great weekend.  I'm ready for the weekend already!

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Sunday Sketches - Birds and Back Problems

Pencil on Sketch Paper

Close Up

Here's my Sunday Sketches for this week.  It's just another practice piece, I don't actually own a bird like this.  lol.  If we ever get good close up shots of our parakeets I will definitely draw them, but for now, they are terrified of the camera.  Silly birds.

If you haven't checked out Sunday Sketches hosted by Sophia from Blue Chair Diary, please do so today.  She is very talented and wonderful enough to host Sunday Sketches each week without fail.  Be sure to visit the other artists on the linky list!

I've been MIA for a few days because my back has been killing me.  You really know you're getting old when you throw your back out by bending over to put pop in the fridge.  lol  Not really, I was diagnosed with Degenerative Disk Disease in my lower back about 10 years ago.  I haven't had another MRI since then so I'm assuming like everything else, it's only gotten worse over time.  I did see the doctor yesterday and she gave me some muscle relaxers, which thoroughly knocked me out last night.  I also have ibuprophen for use in the day time.  I'm feeling a little better now and hope to be back to daily posts!  Thanks for dropping by and I hope you have a wonderful holiday!

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Meet Kayleigh

Ok, so I'm not even sure that's how you spell her name, but this is Kayleigh.  She's my boss's adorable granddaughter and as soon as I saw the photo of her, I knew I had to draw her.  

She's super sweet and loves to hang out with us at the answering service where I work.  She really loves when you let her sit on your lap and let her 'type'.  We spent a little while drawing and coloring together a few weeks ago and she got a kick out of my silly drawing of a house with a yard and a dog.  She was especially enamored with my swing set.  lol

I had a ton of fun with this one and I think I'm getting better with hair too!  The eyes and nose were harder this time because of the angle of her face.  Usually I have a hard time with mouths but I think hers was easier.  Strange how things work out sometimes.

I'm loving working mornings.  Some days I'm home by 10am and others by 2pm and I have so much more free time it seems like.  It's also nice to come home and lay out by the pool!  I may actually enjoy summer this year.

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My First Full Sized Watercolor Painting

I may have been a little over zealous when I chose this picture to be my first water color.  I've done little ACEOs but never a large piece.  I thought it would be easy to do a building but I was wrong.  Creating straight lines and trying to cover the graphite I used to copy the image from the original drawing made it look too outlined and not as realistic.  I realize now that I need a book to help me go step by step instead of trying it on my own.

My boyfriend absolutely loves it so I told him he can have it.  LOL.  I really need to work on my trees and my rocks look like anything but rocks.  It was a learning experience and I'm glad I tried it.  I do love watercolors and I will be trying more images but I really do want a book to follow.  After all, that's how I learned to draw and it seems to have worked.  Again, I had trouble with shading.  I did fine on the church itself but put the shadows in the wrong spot on the ground.  Each time I try something new it is a learning experience and I'm happy to have been able to try new things.

Hope you had a wonderful weekend.  I plan to spend the day at the pool, weather permitting.

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Sunday Sketches - Puppy Love

I think he turned out pretty cute!  This was my second attempt at drawing a dog.  The first had longer hair and was a little harder to draw.  This was another project in the book I'm trying to learn from.  I don't have any puppies right now; however, I did have a black lab mix several years ago that looked very similar to this one.

Don't forget to hop on over to Blue Chair Diary to check out all of the other great Sunday Sketches!  There are some really great artists out there.

Pencil on Sketch Paper

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Inspiration Avenue - Circus

For this week's Inspiration Avenue challenge, the theme was Circus.  I immediately thought of elephants, trapeze artists and a lion tamer, but decided to go with a clown.

I wanted to show emotion with my clown so I made him a sad clown.  Why is he sad?  Because he gets such a bad reputation.  Raise your hands, how many of you readers are afraid of clowns?  I thought so!  lol.  I'm not sure why so many people are afraid of clowns.  Sure, there was John Wayne Gacy (for those of you that are too young or not from Illinois, click here to find out who he was.)  There's also 'It' from Stephen King.  But outside of those two, I really don't see what's so scary about them.

What do you think?  Clowns: scary or not?

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An Award

Yay me!  How exciting!  Thank you so much to Liz for giving me the Beautiful Blogger Award.  Much appreciated!

Here's my 10 Beautiful Blogger List
My Front Porch
Whoopidoo...ings
Rose Hill Designs
Blue China Studio
Waterstone
Through the Eyes of an Artist
Here's My Story
The Wright Stuff
Serial Crafter
Muffin Fixation

Ten things about myself...
1. I'm a huge tech geek.  I love new technology of all kinds, phones, cameras, computers.  If it's new, I want it!
2. I didn't start drawing until about two years ago.  I started taking some online graphic design classes and we had to draw thumbnails.  I couldn't draw so I bought a book and taught myself, well, I'm still learning.
3. I took three years of sewing in high school.  I was entered in a citywide contest for all of the high school's in the Chicago district and won 2nd place for a dress I made.
4. I have taught myself to crochet, knit, quilt and draw by looking at books.
5. I have an Etsy shop but haven't done a lot with it.  You can find me here.
6. I'm a huge Big Brother fan!  Love that show!
7. I love anything to do with forensics, science, medical.  I also love watching shows about prisons and jail.  Too interesting!
8. I have 6 Parakeets.  Which explains my love of birds and why they are so prevalent in my artwork.  We have Gonzo (named after Hunter S Thompson), Bubbles (named after the Trailer Park Boys character), Chili, Tink (Tinkerbelle, my favorite fairy), Sunny and Lizzie.
9. I have three children.  Ages 24, 22 and 18.
10.  I lived in Texas for 3 years and Colorado for 6 months when my ex-husband was in the military.

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Sunday Sketches

Happy Sunday!

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Creativity Boot Camp - Day 12

'Smooth' 

Pencil on Sketch Paper

You may be wondering why this sketch was named smooth.  Well, here's the story...lol.  My boyfriend loved the sketch I did of the little girl so much he wanted me to sketch his parents for his dad for father's day.  Of course he had a really bad photo where there heads were about the size of a pea.  Needless to say that due to the size I was unable to use the grid method.  His mom's face came out fine, but her body looked way too small, then his dad's face was just too cartoonish.  After protesting how much I hated it, we then decided to do his daughter, Madison.  We had a much better photo and everything went very smoothly.  Get it, smooth!

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Creativity Boot Camp Day - 11

'Hush'

Pencil on Sketch Paper

'Hush' Close Up

Ok, I'm at work last night and I decide I want to try my first real pencil sketch portrait.  Yes, I get to do these kinds of things at work.  :)  Anyway, I decide to go for it and do one of the practice sketches from Lee Hammond's Big Book of Drawing.  Now, it didn't turn out exactly like hers.  The girl actually looks much younger in the inspiration piece, but I really love how she turned out.  Then, I click on CBC and our prompt word is 'Hush'.  Maybe I just wanted her to fit but I really feel that she fits!  In fact, I think she's perfect.  Maybe not technically, I'm still learning don't forget and she is my first portrait sketch.  Up till now it's been eyeballs, noses and mouths but nothing put together.

More good news.  I went to Goodwill today and found 5 yes 5 art books.  Four on sketching and one on Art Techniques.  I know, right????  I would have had to pay over $100 easily if I bought them brand new!  What a deal!

Even more good news!  My ACEO's were added to the Ripple blog today!  Yay me for sure!  You can find that post here and my post about the inspiration behind them here.  I don't think the day could have gotten any better.  Hopefully today will be equally as good and I'll have a good weigh in.  ;)

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Creativity Boot Camp - Day 9

'Drizzle'

Pencil on Sketch Paper

So for Day 9 of Creativity Boot Camp our prompt word was 'drizzle'.  I immediately thought of rain but I wanted to go a little outside the immediate response to the word.  I came up with this as I used to make these for Christmas for my kids and you drizzle the icing on.  I drew this from a memory and it's one of the very few things that I've sketched totally freehand.  Typically I use the grid method but I'm trying to get into drawing without it.  I know my plate is a not exactly proportioned and a little misshapen but overall I'm very pleased with it.

I never did get to start a watercolor yesterday.  In fact other than boot camp and Sunday Sketches I only got the image transferred onto my watercolor paper.  I had the worst headache all day and couldn't concentrate enough.  I finally gave up and laid down and watched the movie Big Fish which was extremely good and I would recommend it to anyone.  

This week I'll be working some overtime and wont have as much spare time to spend on boot camp.  It makes me a little sad that we're already over halfway through.  What will I do when it ends?  Where will I get the ideas to draw things I normally wouldn't just because of one little word? Will people still visit my blog?  So many questions, so little time!

Hope you all had a wonderful weekend and I can't wait to see what everyone came up with for this week's word prompt!

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Creativity Boot Camp - Day 8

'Tramp Stamp'

Creativity Boot Camp Day 8 Word Prompt: Ornament

“Ornament” {which by definition is something that lends grace or beauty}

Yes, I have one, no this is not mine. lol.  I have something similar though, very large butterfly with the tribalish flourishes and rose buds at the top.  I didn't spend much time on this as I have so much to get caught up with for journaling and I want to try a watercolor painting today as I'm off today and have some extra time.  I also created my first ACEO yesterday and will be posting that some time this coming week.  Don't forget to check out my Sunday Sketches as well in the post below.  I took more time with that one.  I wanted this one to be a simple outline.  Thanks for looking!  Check out more great takes on the prompt: ornament at Creativity Boot Camp.

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Sunday Sketches

'Wary'

Pencil on Sketch Paper

Can you tell I'm all about the birds?  LOL.  I'll be back later with Day 8, 'Ornament' for Creativity Boot Camp.  Click here to see more great Sunday Sketches!

I just wanted to make sure everyone knows that this sketch is one of the practice images in Lee Hammond's Big Book of Drawing.

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