My new Copic markers....

I am always looking for new art supplies, I have been interested in Art Journaling lately and have spent many hours viewing YouTube, so I decided I would love to have some Copic markers, made in Japan, so they are expensive and very worth it.

So, a friend asked me to make some cards for Bunco, it was very fun because I got to use my markers.

I wanted to have egg shaped papers for the names, I discovered a cutting system I bought from creative memories years ago, I had forgotten about it, I am glad I had it, it worked out great. The thing with Copics that I am learning is it is  in the markers, which are great, but it is in the paper too.

I found a good Bristol, I like Canson, is the key. The paper has to be smooth with a small amount of absorbency. The beauty of Copics is the fact that they can be blended.

I linked the art supplies with Dick Blick because they are usually cheaper. 

My Boobie Wine Glasses...

It all started in St Augustine Florida, on our anniversary, we met up with Lili and Gary, my sister and her husband. I saw these girlie, boobie glasses, so naturally there is no not needed craft that I can avoid, I had to add this too my list. This was the first one I made..

 Then my daughter Emily posted them to her Facebook page and I got a request from a daughter of our very good friends, she wanted them for her bacherorlette party, so this is what I created.

I love the bride to be, I met her parents when I met my husband, we have been very great friends ever since, thus the stress about creating something wonderful for their daughter, I could never paint her as pretty as she is, but I hope I have made some glasses she will be happy with.

Ok, lets get into the nuts and bolts, paint the glasses with Acrylic enamels, bake the boobs before attaching, and then attach, after attaching  adjust the paint on  them and just let them cure. When using E6000 put the glue on the glass boobs let them sit for 2 minutes and then attach, and then brace with magic tape.

My wonderful Highlights Hidden Pictures weekend

This is the barn that Kent Brown built, Highlights for Children is his  familys company. This barn and the cottages  have enabled many writers and artists to learn in a wonderful place. I  was told it was created environmentally friendly.

 Who does not like Highlights? I always did. I had the privilege of being able to attend the Hidden Pictures Retreat. Heaven, we stayed in beautiful cabins...

This is my cabin.

 
Can you see the Susan Miller, that is just one of the amazing touches that this company does.

 So this is the inside, the photos do not do it justice, the cabin was so wonderful with many extra touches.. the photo below was a book shelf with wonderful books, so many things to see so little time...

More of that the cabin....

And look at this, snow!!!

It maybe hard to see but they had these wonderful rocks and a section dedicated to the rock sculptures.

And here is the conference area, really is the perfect environment for learning, it is friendly, its peaceful, its creative, and of course it is wonderful.

I learned a lot about making hidden pictures, I learned a lot about The Highlights Company, and I learned a lot about myself, a perfect weekend. The funny thing is that when I ended up in the Scranton airport, the waitress loves the magazines for her kids, and I was happy to be able to tell her it is a good company, she was all happy, because her kids look forward to getting Hello and Highfive. So do I.

Hide N Seek Hidden Pictures

I was happy to get the mail today. This is the first piece of art that I sent digitally. It is for the Highlights Puzzle club for the High Five (younger) level. I had so much fun working on it and was happy with how it was printed. Below is a copy of the back cover.

Jingle Bulb trees

Here we are at the end of another JingleBulb season and I asked for pictures of some JingleBulb trees. This is one of my favorites, Linda was a wonderful teacher that my daughter had in nursery school. Her children have been collecting them for her ever since. With Emily now 23, she has quite a large collection. Its beautiful.

Here is Emilys tree, she decorates her room at her place every year.

This is a detail of an ornament I had done for her when she was little.

And here is my tree, I may have to get a larger one next year, I couldn't fit all the ornaments that I have on it. Time to start painting new ones for next year.

The making of Jingle Bulbs

First it starts with a sketch, I carry my sketch pad around all the time, so all year I am thinking of what I could illustrate on my JingleBulbs. I am going to show you an ornament I created in 2009 and the process I used to do that.

Then I prime them to make the paint stick and to make them a  bit stronger.

This one is a good example, I had designed it to have the garland around the buildings, then I changed my mind, I did some with the garland and some without....

And this is the one I really was happy with.
Check out the new ornaments on JingleBulbs.com

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My new scanner....

This year has been a year of a new client that wants all my work digitally. Thats great I get to keep my originals, but the downside is since I am only as good as my last job,  if that scan that I am sending is not good,  thats bad.
So I bought a new scanner, an Epson V500,

 I had to test it... so here we go. The scan from my old Epson 4200....

And the scan from my new scanner...

So at first I was alarmed, the scan from the old scanner was so much brighter......then, I brought the scans into Photoshop and played with them and felt relieved, because adjusting the colors in Photoshop were so different from the old scan to the other.

 The scan from my new scanner had so much information, I could adjust the colors so much easier, I could pull out nice yellows with out effecting the other colors. 

This is an adjusted copy from the old scanner. The colors were adjusted in levels, it seems like the blues became greenish, and the water looked washed out.

Then I took the scan from the Epson V500  and played around in Photoshop with levels and got the blues I wanted with the yellows that were in the originals. This is very close to the original. To me it looks richer.

I bought the scanner from the Epson store, clearance, for $100, money well spent. I learned that the new scanners have more information to work with, thus giving me more color adjustment options.

Laundry room redu

This is what my laundry room looked like this year, so sad, I hated it.

Then, Pinterest arrived and I found the solution, cabinets, so after much persuasion, whining, etc. Our nephew Michael came down and said those magic words to Mark (my husband) " Put those cabinets in, she (me) wants it and it is a easy job that would make her happy" Soooo......

And look what happened, he put those cabinets in and I finally finished my laundry room painting that was running around in my head, so happy wife, happy life, thats me.

Make doing the wash a pleasure.

New Baby Present

Our niece Mallary is having her first baby, named Mila. So I painted her a bank, a good friend told me that she used to buy banks for her friend who were expecting, so I was good to go.

Looking online I really didnt like the name on the pig anywhere, especially not on the butt, I really dont like that, so I put Mila on  an earring, a perfect solution in my mind, I hope she likes it.

No, she did not die, I wanted to show you her fancy pants. This was very fun, I would highly recommend Martha Stewarts paints, they are beautiful and will adhere to anything. On ceramics you have to give your self some time, first coat and an hour later the next, worth the wait.

Rain Barrel Update

I finally finished my rain barrel that I got from the city of Ocoee a couple of years ago. It is hard to see, but on  the water, I put Extreme Glitter which is a great product that I use on my Jingle Bulbs.

I love painting towns, and I find I do it often, this barrell has about 4 failed designs on it, so I decided to 

stick with what I enjoy. Here are some other pictures.....

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An outside view, I was very inspired by The Bloom and Grow Festival they had in Winter Garden.

The Next Big Thing...

The next big thing is a global tour which started in Australia, to bring awareness to authors and illustrators and their current work. Thanks go to Jon Nez for tagging me.

1. What is your Next Big Thing?

A Book I wrote and illustrated called "I wont share my Underwear"

2. Where did the idea come from for the book?

I went to a writers conference and really started thinking of the possibilities of writing a childrens book.

I have illustrated many, and have always written, but never wrote my own childrens book. On the drive home this title popped into my head, I thought it was funny and I pursued it.

3. What genre does your book fall under?

Picturebooks. Ages 3 to 6

4. What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?

I cant see a movie done of my book, maybe an animated movie based on my characters? That would be fun.

5. What is a one sentence synopsis of your book?

I won't share my underwear is about sharing, sisters  and respect.

6. Who is publishing your book?

Well, so far it is out under consideration at a couple of publishers, but no contracts yet. Some very nice rejection letters, which I collect in a file, but  no publishers yet.

7.  How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?

I really dont remember, I was in between projects, I am thinking about a year. And then a writer friend of mine Diane Ohanesian added some of her magic to it, it has been an on going project.

8. What other books would you compare this story to within you genre?

I love the childrens books that Holiday House publishes, my favorite being "Its Not Fair" by

 Mary Mc Quinllan and illustrated by Anita Harper. 

9. Who or what inspired you to write this book?

My big influence is the relationship I have and used to have as a younger sibling to my sister. I also remember fondly the days of being in the house with my kids when they were little  and hearing them teaching each other. The warmth of being at home, I tried to bring that into the book.

10. What else about the book might pique the readers interest?

Hopefully the illustrations.

Thanks for visiting my blog and joining me for my part of the Next Big Thing. The tour continues on April 4th with 2 illustrators I greatly admire.

Melissa Iwai, and her new book Truck Stop.

 Anne Jewett and her book Silly Frilly Grandma Tillie.

Happy Spring

Its Spring here in Florida already. Time to plant the flowers and get ready for the heat.

But for now it is really beautiful, which inspired this illustration. "Gardening" is a combination of traditional and Photoshop.

Digital finish

The finished illustration, the thing I think with Photoshop I can overwork it. It was a very good experience, I learned a lot off to new digital work.

My new Photoshop illustration

This is my first real attempt at using Photoshop to paint. Its not finished but today I was playing around with how it would look on my blog, so here it is, I still have alot to do, but so far I liked playing around with the colors, a little bit of textures.