True Blue Santa goodies - process, FREEBIE & GIVEAWAY!

OKAY well it is T-minus 12 days to the book launch of True Blue Santa so it's about time for some FREEBIES!

Leave your comment on this post to go into the running for a copy signed by me and the author. As a bonus you will also get a pack of 4 True Blue Santa Christmas cards! The winner will be drawn Nov 7th so be quick!

Until then, you can download a colouring-in version of the illustration below. I will be offering a few more illos in this format so stay tuned between now and Xmas!

I took quite a few progress photos while illustrating the book and have been dying to show you my painting process.

This is one of my favourite paintings in the book, and the last double spread illo:

And here it goes from start to finish:

I sketch onto normal paper with a normal HB pencil. I will print out a frame for each spread at the book size so that I make sure I'm drawing to the right proportions. I erase and redraw a lot until I get it right. Then I scan it in and might touch it up a bit before I print it out at actual size.

I trace the sketch onto Arches cold pressed 300lb paper using my light box, tape it down to my artboard, then start painting!

I start first with the background. This is the funnest part really. I love big expansive washes. I leave spaces for all the foreground elements, making sure I fan out the background edges so I don't get any harsh lines (or I will soften these with some clean water if I do). I tend to work in sections.

More background work. Having fun with dabbing water on the paint while it is drying - creates some fun and completely uncontrollable effects, which is the thing I love the most about working in watercolours.

Switch to a different colour (I would change water/wash brushes at this point!)

And start filling in details.

More fun with backgroundy swirls and washes, the blank spot is where collage will go but I make sure to paint over those edges just in case I cut the collage paper slightly differently to my sketch.

Adding details and shading with coloured pencils. I currently use a mix of Faber Castell and Derwent but am considering a move to Prismacolours because they are softer.

Add in collage, some more coloured pencil on top of the collage, and voila! all done :-)

Hope you enjoyed a look into my process of painting. I'll post a few more of these in the lead up to the book launch and of course, Christmas!!

g'day.... remember me?

Hi... just a little post to say yes I am still here.

I have had some V.I.P.s visiting for the last two months (my parents, from USA), and have been busy making memories.

Here are some places we visited together:

clockwise from top: blue mountains, aboriginal paintings, sculptures above Broken Hill, blue mountains, Murray River (near Mildura)

So.... I'm aware there hasn't been much illustration on this blog lately. sorry about that. I've still been doing lots, I just can't show it to you yet! But I promise to post some more interesting things soon, perhaps after I have finished illustrating my current book (3 weeks left - eek!)

hope you are well out there in bloggy land...

over and out,

for now.

x

Taking it easy....

I must admit that I have done no illustrations for two weeks now....!

So here's another little sneak peak from the book series that I just finished, called Healthy Bodies, published by Five Mile Press and due out in August. This book, set mostly in a supermarket, ended up being the most challenging but also my most favouritest book of the four...

so instead of illustrating I've spent some time at the beach, where I found lots of cloud shapes...


and sand shapes....

and water shapes...


We went down for a friend's wedding which was just magical...


and where I had the opportunity to wear these lovely earrings which I purchased through the etsy bushfire appeal store, where all proceeds go to the survivors of the bushfires:


it was a lovely time had by all....

hope yours has been lovely too...

Thinking, not doing.

How did it get to Thursday evening already? I've been thinking all week about what I'd do for IF's 'momentum' but I guess I haven't had much of it myself this week. whole days seem to fly by in a flurry of meetings with clients, househunting, and thinking about all the things I should be doing instead. darn.

Well, to counteract that at least a little, here is my next series of travel photos: Dogs & Cats. (See the first series, Doors & Windows here.)


these are all from our little mexican paradise, San Augustinillo - a tiny little fishing village on the southern coast of mexico where we found a dreamy hut, a hammock, great fish, and a lot of dogs. some of them are scarily skinny, but most seem to be pretty happy playing in the sand.


The top two cats were also from San Augustinillo - I just caught that first one at the right time, and the 2nd one seemed to be in the same position on that chair every day.
bottom left puddycat was in a shop window in Paris, and I got told off by the shopowner for taking a photo in her store. when I said it was just for the cat, not the products, she told me off even more! one of those people who proves the stereotype i guess?
The last one was at a butterfly and flower farm in West Texas. one very chilled out cat. i love the black cat against the white chair.

next series: inspiring art!

Travel Photos: Doors & Windows

I did one or two series of photos while we were travelling, here is the first one that I had fun with...
The above doors are all from Santa Fe, New Mexico. I love the look of the bright turquoise against the terracotta buildings, which was everywhere there. I want my studio to be all iron and terracotta!

1. Taos, New Mexico 2. Paris, France 3. Oaxaca, Mexico

Clockwise from top left: 1. Santa Fe, New Mexico 2. Genova, Italy 3. Zurich, Switzerland 4. Paris, France. I have to agree with the last one - life is beautiful.

next series: Dogs & Cats