Thank you for your submissions

This little giveaway was a blast to host.  I am so glad that a few of you played along.  I know that there are still some shy people out there that didn’t send me their Thanksgiving birds, and that’s ok.  Maybe next time??



As you can see some people used Crayons, some used Markers, and some did theirs Graphically (in their photo-editing program).



Aren’t these all so interesting together?  I just love the different styles here.



I have submissions here from a 6 year old, a Middle Schooler, a Teacher, Moms and a Graphic Designer. 

And the winner of the giveaway is………………………………………….



That’s you Rachel!!!   Please email me with your snail mail address and I’ll get that Starbucks card out to you right away.

I also wanted to show you one other Thanksgiving bird that was NOT submitted, but pretty darn cute nevertheless.  Check out Dawn’s bird HERE.

Thanks everyone for playing!

List It Tuesday….Teen-Lingo

I can’t believe I will actually be participating in List It Tuesday…. on Tuesday.  Yes, the delights of this Blog Boss!!!

Here is a quick list of the Top 10 words spoken by my Daughter to me this past weekend.  We spent 36 hours side by side as I drove her on a college visit to another state.   I think it’s funny how not only is she one to not talk a lot (at least to me), but 50% of the words she likes to communicate with are made up of 4 letters or less!  Hmmmmm……I would be floored if she becomes a public speaker at any time in her life! Floored!!

Teen-Lingo Definitions:

1. Touché-  When I’ve figured out the right answer to why she does something.
2. Whatever- When she really doesn’t want to do what I ask her to do.  Or is stalling.
3. What- If I look at her at any time.
4. Stop- If I don’t avert my eyes after she’s said “What”.
5. Fine- If I tell her not to do something she is wanting to do.
6. Random- If I communicate with her about my day, or make a statement about life in general.
7. Sure- If I ask her a Yes or No question
8. Obviously- If I agree with what she is doing
9. Congratulations- If I figure out something that I didn’t know before….usually pertaining to her school life, her social life or her sports life.
10. MOM !!- If #3 and #4 hasn’t diverted my attention and now she really means it!

So in Honor of our weekend together I thought I’d share this little drawing with you.



If I was really good at drawing I’d make it look like her feet are up on the dashboard.  Not that we drive that way or anything.



I use the big Copic-like markers for my skin tone drawings these days.  I am not happy with the flesh tones in the Faber Castell series.  The ink tends to appear too streaky.



Hard to get to know somebody who doesn’t want to be known…..probably because they have NO CLUE who they are yet…..They know what they can do, they just don’t know what to think about it.

Facing Forward…..in a coloring book

Right after I outlined my Thanksgiving Bird, I had an idea…..I had to STOP myself from coloring any further.  Because I would love to see how you guys would color this bird in.  I know you are creative!!  And I know you like to draw or doodle or zentangle or embellish or collage or paint (cuz you’re here visiting me). 

So, wouldn’t it be fun to do this on a fixed item and then SHOW us what you did?  I would get such a kick out of seeing your work. 

I think it’s time for a little giveaway too.   (not sure how else to entice you to play along and show me what you can do).  Anyone up for a $5 Starbucks card?   Anyone???

Guidelines:

1. Download the picture by going HERE ……or I can email the image to you.  (It is possible to download from this blog, but the image will be half the size)…..Up to you.
2. Color in HOWEVER YOU DESIRE (with markers, crayons, watercolor pencils, watercolors, acrylics, collage, black and white, zentangle it, doodle it)  ANYTHING GOES!
3. Upon Completion:  take a pic or scan the Thanksgiving Bird then email the  .jpg to elg921(at)yahoo(dot)com
4. I will post the submissions on my blog the day before the GIVEAWAY WINNER is announced
5. Since it’s my contest and I want you to just have fun with it…..I’ll use the Random Generator to pick the winner…….(but you never know if I’ll include an HONORABLE MENTION as well).

NOTES:

a.  If you’d like, you can also comment here and leave a link to your static (Blog) page with the finished image.  BUT, to be included in the contest you must email me the jpg……Sorry, just easier that way :)

b.  Don’t worry I won’t sell your art work to the Paparazzi, Claim it as my own in the book I’m writing, Post it all over facebook with your name attached to it or Sell it to spammers……It’ll will be safe with me….really! LOL!!

c.  And if you are participating in NaNoJouMo or AEDM this month, coloring this in would count as “art” for that day….right?

d.  Time to have fun…..Relax… and… Color away!!

 CONTEST DEADLINE:   November 17, Midnight EST.

Follower Appreciation

I wish today was FRIDAY because then I could title this post “Follower Appreciation on Friday”.  I like alliteration statements.  I had to look this up…. it means “words that start with the same letter or sounds”. 

But here at DD and D (draw doodle and decorate) we don’t always do things in order, the perfect way, or the way one would expect.  After all, last week I posted List It Tuesday on Wednesday.   And even though Decorate is in the title of the blog, I haven’t decorated anything since last Christmas.   All I can say is it’s nice being my own Blog Boss (love this word combo cuz I get to use alliteration….again!! ).  As you can see almost anything goes here.  I’ve got enough to keep track of in my “real life” that I don’t want this blog to be a place that I “have to” post on, or apologize for not posting enough, or ranting about our president and the economy….you know those types of things.  Life’s just too short, and we are all busy and we all understand.  Enough said.

I probably don’t thank you Followers/ Commenters (is that a word?) enough here….because you guys are so nice, and I’m so flattered when you leave a comment or decide to follow.  I don’t think a follow-up comment of just “Thanks” says enough of what it means to me.

So without further adu, here are a few neat sites that have actually linked back to me.  All I can say is these people are so creative and inspiring.  It’s nice to see people having fun with all the pictures/ designs/ blog articles/ art/ doodling and drawing…..it’s just plain neat to meet you!

BLOG LINKS:

1. All I Did Was Listen- by Rachel…..beautiful drawings and living insights here.
2. Artsyville- by Aimee…..Absolutely loaded with tons of fun and creative art to see at this site.
3. Cathartic Creativity- by Dawn…..lots of Art journaling, Painting, Drawing, Book suggestions and other inspiration here.  And this lady knows what she’s doing with her camera!
4. Daisy Yellow- by Tammie….OMG!  She oozes with inspiration and art.  Make sure you have a few hours to spare before you stop by her site.
5. Defining Me- by Lee…..Beautiful Drawing, Beautiful Paintings, Beautiful Journals…..click over you’ll see what I mean.
6. Faerieacres…lots of fun art journaling projects, sewing projects, zentangling……you get the picture.
7. iHanna- by Hanna…..one of my very first blog loves…..Again, INSPIRATION OVERLOAD here.  You will find yourself returning again and again to this site.
8. Judy McCarthy's Drawings- by Judy…….if you zentangle or doodle you won’t want to miss this site.
9. My Quest- by Elena…..Wonderful pictures and funny stories to go along with them…..She always posts the best quotes too!
10. Pumpkin Delight…..you will want to start cooking and baking and EATING after you see the enticing goodies she prepares.
11. Sue Doodles- by Sue…..my most favorite “Doodler of All”
12. The Daily Doodle- by Warren…..this man in on a mission and he WILL accomplish it……Go and Submit your doodle for his World Doodle Challenge (you've got to help him get to A Million Doodles)
13. Wild & Precious Life by Chel……so much talent wrapped up into one blog…..she journals, she makes her own polymer beads, she draws, she writes, she_____ …..you name it!
14. Zendoodle- Wege…..I go just to look at the ZenDoodling because unfortunately I can’t understand a word of German.  Verdammt !!

p.s.  If I’ve missed somebody and you want to be included on my next Follower’s Appreciation post.  Please email me and I’ll include you next time.

Facing Forward…in Incognito…..FINAL

Finally got to my favorite part!  Yep, drawing in this background.  I totally love doing this part, because I could unplug the ‘noggin.  LOL!!  I think those colorful pebble squares work here, too.  But not everyone around me agrees.  My dear teen daughter told me that this picture was “way too busy”, but what does she know?  HaHa,  I usually listen to her though, because she’s got a good eye.  That’s ok,  I’ll survive,  we are all entitled to our own opinions.  Plus, I’m  all about color and she’s not.



I am loving how my friend in blue turned out.  She’s a lady with class and I hope she likes my representation.  However, in the original picture she tilted her head to the left, and I’ve drawn it tilted to the right, which makes me wonder just what I’m seeing!!!  Ah, well!



Just an early stage of the background part.  I am planning on fixing the yellow-biker-chics eyes because she’s so much prettier than I made her out to be.



Learned a lot with this drawing. 

1. Sometimes less is more (less pencil marks for the eyes and things)
2. When you are stuck on a dimension of a person…..walk away from it for awhile, preferably overnight.  If you don’t have that much time, ask someone to look at it with you.  Their fresh eyes will give you the needed adjustment.   (I do this A LOT!)
3. Take the things you like or can do from a picture and EMBELLISH it anyway you want….It’s allowed, really! 
4. Not everyone will like my version of the picture, and that’s OK. 

Thanks for all your EnCoUrAgEmEnT and kind Comments you’ve left along the way here.  They really keep me on task, and I appreciate each and every comment you leave!

Facing Forward….in Incognito….Part 2

After sketching this out for a day, I decided it was “good enough”  (sometimes ya just gotta go for it).  So, I brought out my Faber Castel XS black pen for the outlining..  I like to define my edges, be clear on what my boundaries are.  I’ve also found that after outlining the image, the ink can stand up to my eraser as I erase the bulkier graphite lines.



Once all was outlined, it was time to play!!  Having already decided this wasn’t going to be a “realistic” drawing this really freed me up to try out some new doodle patterns.  I like the idea of using just black and white designs, but I was drawn to using just a “dash of color” on each person.   I think it gives them personality, LOL!!




I tried to make it even with the amount of color I used on each person.  I really, really wanted to use more color than you see here….but I refrained!



I’m a bit embarrassed to show this….the eyes on the yelllow-girl are totally not right!!  Have no idea if I can remedy them. 

As always, this drawing is telling me what to do next…..I just hope I can pull it off……stay tuned :D

Facing Forward…...in Incognito…Part 1

                   * Digital elements used above from Scrapgirls

Still using pictures as the basis for my drawings.  I thought I’d try to draw a picture that was recently taken at work, of the more crazy, no weirder, ahhh… fun-loving people I get to work with.  I don’t want to spend too much time on this.  Which means……Whimsy time!!  Or Color-by-numbers time!  Or Doodle-the-clothing time!  Anything….. so that I can get this done and move on in a timely fashion……After all, this is for the sketchbook project.  It’s just for fun and it doesn’t have to be perfect, or exact, or anything because with these drawings I get to decide what challenge to take on next.  (Trust me, there are lots of artsy challenges out there and it can be hard to decide! LOL!)  And if you read my post about the Tutu…..it’s all about clothes!! 



There’s really nothing quite like the clothes you see on people when they dress up for Halloween now, is there?  So these biker-chics and that Frito-Bambito cross-dresser gal…..get to get sketched.

 

This will probably be a 2 or 3 part blog post.  Because I’m not sure what I want to do with this yet.  I’m not quite ready to outline the figures in permanent ink because there are still some details I need to apply.  And other details I have to erase.

Most likely, this sketch really won’t be about the clothes at all (other than the contour drawing of them).  I really just want to color them all in.  Yep, just like a first grader with a brand new coloring book.

List it Tuesday…..on Wednesday

Aimee at Artsyville has been doing a List It Tuesday segment for a couple of weeks, now.  It sure looked like fun so I made my own little list of “Things Inspiring me Lately”…..I probably should’ve dated the piece but heck the blog is dated so that works. 



I don’t use the Sakura Gelly Rolls very often, because well…being a gel pen, they smudge and I’m not very good at waiting.  Especially since I work in time segments.

They have wonderful colors though.   I have not found a PINK as vibrant as the one they have in their Glaze
set.  Totally vivid!!

If you want to play along, please do!!  Love seeing people’s list and checking out their handwriting…..I’m such a geek!!  Don’t forget to link back to your blog at Aimee’s site though :D :D

Facing Forward……. in a Tutu

                                   Inspiration Picture from  HERE

I had a “File Error” on my memory card.  So, I can’t post my usual step-by-step process.  Awww, shucks!  But luckily the memory card wasn’t totally corrupted.  That would definitely piss me off!  But alas…..such was not the case….so I’m happy.



I’ll show you what I can.   The ballet slipper was definitely a new one for me.  But being the novice, I just try to make it look right….not exact. 

Love the way ballerina’s point their feet!!  Talk about flexibility, Wow!!  I took ballet twice, only because my mom signed me up for 2 classes when I was 7.   I showed some promise with the teacher until we had to run and “leap into the air” ….Well, I sprinted each and every time (even after I was told “this isn’t a race girls” )….that’s when the teacher focused her attention on some of the more graceful types!!  Ahh, well!



I really wanted to give this ballerina broader shoulders, but that’s not the way she looks.  So, I had to bring them in quite a bit.



I took this about as far as I could without driving myself crazy.  You see, I didn’t add that little white line on her stockings that trail down the backside of her leg, nor did I spend much time on the fingers!   And truthfully, if I wasn’t doing this for the Sketchbook Project, I would use a more graphite-friendly paper.



I thought it was time to try Colored Pencils.   Yep, just plain ‘ole colored pencils.



As you can see, a pencil is a pencil and the colored pencils also show that darn stippling.   So, I grabbed my watercolor pencils and just went over the area with them too.   Don’t know if that’s allowed, but it worked.



To add more dimension, I outlined the girl with my finest point micron pen.



She’s similar to the original, not precise.  It would be nice if I could use all colored pencils for a drawing like this.  You know, show the real skin tone and all.  Someday…..



I really should try to put some clothes on my people.  So, I picked up this book the other day hoping to learn a thing or two from it.

Now, back to more practice….practice….practice.

One Meal-lion Doodles

You heard right!!! That’s One Million Doodles.  The “meal-lion” is suppose to be a take on an Austin Powers movie where Dr. Evil puts his pinky in his mouth and wants to be paid ONE MEAL-LION dollars to not blow up the world.   That movie has some funny classic lines.

Sue over at Sue Doodles posted about this doodle challenge a few days ago, and I thought I’d give it a try.  I’m a more structured doodler so I wasn’t sure how I’d approach this. 



Here are the guidelines for the World Doodle Challenge.

The task is easy
1. You don’t need to be able to draw well. A doodle is meant to be whatever comes to mind.
2. You can doodle on anything, a blank piece of paper, a napkin, a post-it, a lined page, a note book anything at all.
3. Your doodle can be any size, the ideal size would be 5 x8 inches or what ever you like.
4. You can use one color or many and the doodle can be done while you are in a meeting, on the phone, watching television, on the train…. anywhere you like
5. The doodle can be of anything, what ever pops into your head. just pick up a pen and draw.
6. The important thing is you must date stamp your doodle and list which City and Country you are in.
7. If you are travelling you can submit doodles from multiple cities.
8. Scan your doodle or take a photo and e-mail it to me : warren@tjomiesvintagestationery.com
9. I will begin to post the world doodles as I start receiving them (I anticipate it will take a while to kick off, with the first few trickling in)
10.  Your doodles will eventually wind up in a world book, and will be used to support charities.



Had a bit of time to kill the other day as 10 inspectors walked into our lab to inspect our policies and procedures.  I had to be at their beck and call as they asked questions and reviewed logs.  Having given up my desk to a couple of inspectors, I didn’t know what to do with my hands…….so, I doodled on a scrap piece of paper.   I don’t know if my doodle really counts as a doodle, because there are a lot of free-association words written down.  Ah, well!

It’ll be interesting to see how long it takes Warren at The Doodle Daily to reach his millionth submission.  I did my part, I hope YOU can too.

Facing Forward…..in Amsterdam

I adore the pictures that I see of Amsterdam…..Talk about a city with character and history!  No, I’m not talking about the red light district here, c’mon!

 

To prove that I know what I’m talking about, here’s a picture of me with my sister in ‘96 in Amsterdam.  What struck me the most about this city is how old it is.   I was amazed when we went to an old book store and the concrete steps leading into the store were worn down by inches in the middle,  from the amount of foot traffic those steps have had over the years no…..centuries.



I thought this would be a fun picture (from flickr) to try to draw…..TRY being the operative word here.  I just have no interest in drawing straight lines like you see in  ALL….THOSE….WINDOWS!  I don’t have the patience to make it exact and it would bug me if I didn’t get it right.   So, I opted for a more whimsical version.



Having decided I wasn’t going to make it realistic at all, I grabbed those wonderful stencils and just stenciled up all three townhouses. 



The townhouses needed a little texture so I used these three doodle patterns for their background.



If I could do it all over again, I wouldn’t put that stupid white bubble in there.  Ah, well.



Grabbed my favorite watercolor pencils to add some reflection to the water.



Here’s the scanned picture.  This was a nice piece to just sit back and color.  Well, it’s not much, but at least I drew and doodled today! LOL!!

Facing Forward …with a Doodled Face

One of my favorite candid pictures of my son was taken when he was 12 yrs old (he’s now 22).  It wasn’t so much his smile (probably because he isn’t smiling).  It was more his expression and the colors in the towel he had over his shoulders that placed this picture as one of my all-time-favorites!



The only original thing I did here was to use color in this picture.  This type of drawing can be best illustrated by Rebecca Anthony.  Now this lady is good.  You can see what I mean if you go over to her blog here and here.

Had a ton of fun using those watercolor pencils for the vibrant colors of the towel.  Luckily I had already purchased the right colors.  Being rather impatient……I outlined the face in with my XS Faber-Castell Pitt Artist pen because it was time to get on with it a.l.r.e.a.d.y….that’s when I saw the error of my ways.



Check out the RED * area.  This is where I tend to make mistakes a lot.  (As seen when I did my self-portrait sketch).  I can’t seem to pull off the entire left eye unless I give myself more room…..hence the broader cheekbones!!  Ugh!!

But aren’t those colors in the towel a good match with the sketch?  I just love them!



If you decide to doodle on top of your watercolored areas….don’t just wait until the area is dry to the touch (5-10 minutes).  It’s best to wait overnight, because if you don’t you’ll get this bleed effect which you can see in the swirlie’s above.  It would be a drag to do all that work, then ruin it at the end!



Just a close-up of the face.  Had to rely on my doodle directory prints for a lot of these areas.   Repetitive patterns, in different intensities work best.   A pattern that uses more ink is used in the places where there is a lot of shadows, or shading. 



The other thing I found that I liked as I drew this was…….When you’re using a pattern, if you can take that same pattern and change the tempo of it as you doodle thru the area, that helps add dimension to the subject as well.   (See the upside U portion in the middle of the neck to see what I mean)



Ta-Da!!!  I may go back in and doodle up that white background……we’ll see.