"Blind Rage"

Felt really weird not posting anything today :S So don't read too much into the title it's just how the piece came out :DI didn't have anything in mind, so I took Tee Thompson's advice and went to an emptyish journal page that I'd cleaned a brush on...
and this figure appeared...
He looked a bit stressed...
so I added some red to the black and white background...
and called him "Blind Rage"
Hope your having a fun weekend :D XXX

...And on the final day he rested!!!

Well folks, today is the last day of February and therefore the 29th of my 29 Faces for February.

I have REALLY enjoyed pushing myself to make these pieces, and hope you have enjoyed all the differing styles and techniques as much as I have. I would like to thank, once again Ayala for hosting this marvellously inspired challenge.

For my 29th face (was going to put last, but I doubt that very much lol) I decided to express how relaxed I now feel when attempting a portrait.

This is a loose 20 minute sketch(including deciding which pic to use) of my hubby relaxing in front of the tv.....not something he does very often :)

...building up sketch with soft coloured pencils...
...putting in shoulders so he isn't a head on a stick...
... literally scribbling colour onto the page, in a very free fashion...
...thought his head looked a bit skinny so added more hair lol...
...and the words...JUST CHILL...and have fun with your art :D

It doesn't matter that it isn't a perfect likeness...that's what photo's are for. What does matter is that you enjoy your art...if some one else likes it too, that's cool! :D

Tip: I found standing up to draw this meant I had to work loosely, and the soft graphite meant I couldn't make tight lines :D

Double Doodle!

This week theme at The Butterfly Effect is Doodling...and I've spent hours(even wore out a pen) doing this double A4 spread. Doodling is very addictive so you might want to start on a smaller page lol :D

I got my inspiration from a piece by Tee Thompson at Green Isles Crafts, who in turn was inspired by the style of Paivi Eerola

First I coloured my background with water soluble wax crayons, in random blotches...
then I started to pick out shapes and fill them with flowers...
...then I filled outside the shapes with flowers...
...just letting the garden grow....
...adding patterns to compliment ....I then started picking out areas to add solid black....
...and used water colour washes to add substance...
....uesd a white stabillo All pencil to start highlighting areas...
...and drew in a couple of Faerie faces.....
...peek a boo!...
This little lady is my face no 13 for 29 Faces in February :D
Phew! Almost as tiring as the doodling lol . Thank you for staying til the end :D XXX

Doodling my head in!

Face no 12 for 29 Faces in February

I've been working on a piece for the next theme at The Butterfly effect and a small section of it has this half-face peeking in from the edge...

I will share the whole piece and destructions and credits tomorrow when I link it up :D

Needless to say it took me hours....and I was all doodled out for a few days lol :D XXX

My Goddess Smiled...:D

Quick edit :DSun came out again so I took another pic(couldn't bear the dingy one at the end of the post) lol

I wasn't going to do a new post today, but my Goddess had other ideas. In a rare moment of meditation, she appeared to me, surrounded by bubbles. She was smiling, and wanted curly hair :D

So who am I to argue with a Goddess?

First a simple line drawing(pencil, then ink)...
next, a bright cheerful sky behind her (water soluble wax crayon)...
Then colouring the Goddess herself, again with soluble wax crayon...
Now the bubbles, a little white paint for body then holgraphic embossing powder...
and pearls to decorate her dress...
a bit more shading around the eyes with NEW Stabilo All pencils (the one's Amy uses)
Unfortunately the sun went in as I took the last pic, but you can see how bright and cheerful the colours are in earlier pics. The word trail around the bubbles says "giggle...", while the journalling reads " let the Laughter Bubble up from your Soul..."

May your Deity smile sweetly on you today, and bring laughter into your life :D XXX

A Lady of Texture...

Thought I'd start this post with the finished page for a change, so if you don't have time for the full works you can skip the rest of the photos lol :D

And a huge THANK YOU to Rhomany for her free class on adding texture :D

This weeks theme at The Butterfly Effect is Quotes and Poems. I'm sure I've mentioned before that one of my most favourite poems is "The Lady of Shalott" by Alfred Lord Tennyson. It is an epic poem set in the realms of Arthurian legend, and though she is the title character, most of the verses give vivid descriptions of the world reflected in her mirror,while there is very little description of the lady herself.

I wanted the page to portray the environment in which she lived, so I used modelling paste to give the effect of stone walls and reeds(she lived on an island in the river)
to which I added layers of yellow, green and brown paint...
and this is the yummy textured result :D
Next I wanted to show how "the curse" affected the lady when"the mirror crack'd from side to side", so I split her portrait into a before and after image.
One half youthful and beauteous...the other wrapped in her shroud on the brink of death.
Inked lines.....
added shadows...
build coloured layers...


then drew cracks and foiled to give the feel of broken glass.
A quick frame of brown patterned paper and some doodling...
paper flowers and lines from the poem...
and gold wax buff to lift the texture even more.
Close up of shiny foiled cracks in mirror :D
Sorry, I know that was a long one, but there are 19 verses(though each verse is more like 2) in the poem!

I have chosen 2 "second parts" of verses as inspiration;

"out flew the web and floated wide;

The mirror crack'd from side to side;

"The curse is come upon me"' cried

The Lady of Shalott"

"For ere she reach'd upon the tide

The first house by the water-side,

Singing in her song she died,

The Lady of Shalott." :D XXX