2013 Review…by Body.Mind.Spirit

Happy New Years!!  It’s time for me to review what I’ve done art-wise and to figure out what direction to continue with.  Similar to my…

• 2012 Review
• 2011 Review
• 2010 Review

The above drawing was done in 2009 when life started to get easier for me…..read more time for me to indulge in whatever….whenever!!

BODY

Since I’m drawn to the Body….pun intended, haha!….I thought I’d show you what I’ve drawn body-wise this year.

• Hand Jeans- absolutely wanted to give up on this, what saved me was the piece had so many different elements….
  • when I was stuck on the jeans-  I did the arm
  • when the hand frustrated me- I worked the belt
  • when the design overwhelmed me- I did the buckle

• The Fly- must’ve been missing my kid!! This one is a worker!  So….I had to work the water which was way more than I’ve done before.  Would’ve preferred no water!

• Blonde Beauty- a Pinterest Pin that inspired me.

• Manicure- lovin’ that nail art

• This one was the Biggest-Surprise-of-All.  I liked it!  And it looks like I learned a thing or two about drawing with watercolor and colored pencils in the last year.

• Ballet in Watercolor- stayed in watercolor the entire time and realized how very far I have to go!

• Oscar Poses- all watercolor again!! 

• Walk On Ballerina- in progress

BODY CARICATURE




Sometimes I overthink….imagine that!!  When that happens it’s best for me to find something fun to do.  These are FUN to do!!



BODY  ILLUSTRATION



So many different illustrations styles, very fun to see the variety.  So many interpretations!  I liked doing these and they can be done rather quickly.



MIND

• Swirly Alphabet- the building blocks of thought!

 

• Review- two blog posts.  Marker Review and Print and Pattern 2 book review.

 

• Mandelas- these are kind of like crossword puzzles in art. Did three last year and I want to do more!

• en Plein Air- tried some on-the-spot painting.  I have no clue what I’m doing

• Blog  Banners- blogging keeps me mindful
• January thru April

• May thru August

• September thru December

 

• Purchased this Wacom Intuos digital drawing tablet this year- I have not taken the time to be comfortable with it.  I lean toward my older simpler tablet that lacks the extra functionality of this bigger model. I’m a bit intimidated!! 

 

• Interviewed at jennibelliestudio- if you want to know what I think…..good luck…I don’t even know what I think sometimes

SPIRIT

• Moo Cards- these take guts for me to give out!

• Facebook Contest- this made me get out of my comfort zone.  Had to self-promote.

• In the Spirit of Friendship- my bloggie-bud Janet at jkbees.blogspot.com let me color her Pixie girls in.  Janet draws the prettiest portraits!

• Glass Bottles- I am so uninspired to do finish this glass-photo-realism…but what I found was, I am very inspired to draw the picture-in-picture of my table with the glass bottle picture in progress…..Gotta find what talks to you!!

• Warhol- in the Spirit of Andy Warhol.  I did my daughter and myself.  Have 2 more to do.  It is best to keep the face detail to a minimum.

• Fruits of the Spirit Rocks- need this gentle reminder

 

• In the Spirit of Play- marker time with Freehand Florals and WaterCircles

 

• In the Spirit of Christmas- my Ugly Sweater caricature!  Love each and every one of these guys!  Family!!

• In the Spirit of the Happy Home- uncluttered and updated a few rooms.

Well, there you have it.  I want to Thank all of you for supporting me thru your comments, your questions, your likes, and your etsy purchases.  It’s nice to know someone is listening! 

Happy New Year 2014!!

Overview 1….for all you drawing Enthusiasts

I’ve been working in colored pencils for about 15 months now and I must say this has been a good experience.  I’ve heard that to get better you’ve got to produce a lot of work…..for instance painters are suppose to get to 100 paintings before they feel like they know what they are doing.  I agree with this theory.  And I’m still striving for my first one hundred.



Apr 2012….Colored Legs- first colored pencil drawing with a big time learning curve.



May 2012…. Crabs- It was this drawing that I realized that colored pencils can be erased (to some extent).



Jun 2012….Diver- I’ve since learned that I’ve got to apply more pencil layers.  This was too light.



Jun 2012….Beach Girls- I liked the composition here but am not happy with the realism.



Jul 2012….Backstroke- I like everything about this picture, even though I’m no good at drawing water.



Jul 2012….Towel- Nailed the towel, but did not nail the child.



Aug 2012….Candid- A definite challenge for me due to the perspective and the size of the picture.



Aug 2012….Pose- Faces are hard, but at least I can recognize this person.

How is your art coming along?  Have you reached your first hundred pieces?

Marker Review…..2nd Edition

I did my first Marker Review in July of 2010.  Wow!  Over two years ago.  People are very curious about the markers I use.  Here’s the current run down.

1. Faber-Castell Pitt Artist Pen: many different colors, permanent, different nibs.  I always buy the B (brush) nib.
2. Bic Mark-It Ultra-fine point: inexpensive, good variety of colors, permanent.
3. Sharpie Ultra-fine point: inexpensive, good color variety, permanent.
4. Sharpie Poster Paints: I only use the water soluble.  Different sizes.  Limited color selection
5. Faber-Castell Pitt Artist Pen:  Black comes in XS, S, F, M ,B nibs, permanent. 
6. ProMarker & Copic multi-liner .05 grey: I’ll use the grey for outlining graphite sketches.
7. Sakura Pigma Micron: many colors, many nibs, permanent.
8. Gelly Rolls: Lots of color, permanent….long dry time.
9. Sharpie Fine Point: inexpensive, broad nib 
10. Marvy LePlume: variety of colors, each end is a pen (brush or fine point) water soluble.
11. Bic Mark-Its Fine Point: inexpensive, broad nib

#1- love these….but sometimes they don’t apply as evenly as my ultra-fine sharpies. It’s always a trade-off 




My top 3 marker types.  The funny thing is ya gotta use all of them….cuz if I’m doing a gradient green series, each green from each label will vary a bit in color.  The variety comes in handy.



99.9% of my outlining is done with these. The Faber-Castell blacks many nibs. I use the XS most. 



These are absolutely perfect for color application on top of the markers.  I use my white one the most.



These three are much neglected and ignored.  I rarely grab any of these.  I don’t like the thicker nib and the LePlume’s are water soluble….they run.



Make sure you grab the “ultra-fine”.  Can’t beat the price.  Places like Staples will sell these individually.



I rarely use these gelly rolls.  They take awhile to dry and when I’m working on the go, I can’t let them air dry as long as I’d like.  I also have a tendency to rub my writing hand into the already applied ink.  Not pretty.



If…I’m needing skin-tone I really like these.  Less expensive than the Copic series and they apply very even.
Well, I hope this helps and it’s not too confusing,  You’ve got to experiment and see what works for you and your project.  We are such creatures of habit.  But it’s so nice to learn about and get new stuff.  Happy doodling !