Feeling Impish

Art

To say I have a unique sense of home decor would probably be an understatement. Let me put it this way: When I vacationed to Disney World and Universal Studios, I came home with a handful of decorative objects including a magic wand, a Dobby movie prop and a troll from Epcot’s Norway.

That being said, my home is full of wee folk. From house-elves, to leprechauns, trolls and gnomes, I have built an interesting collection.

While some of these are my own acquisitions, some of the gnome items are actually Andy’s. Having always had a slight obsession with elves and fairies, words can’t describe how excited I was to hear that as a child he had been fascinated with gnomes.

While some people may find such decor off-putting, ugly or weird, I, obviously, love it. Placing such “creatures” in my house allows me to be inspired and absorb inspiration both consciously and at times, subconsciously.

Below are a couple marker sketches that I recently made, both inspired directly by my own decor.

So as the old saying goes, be true to yourself. Your home doesn’t have to look like an issue of Good Housekeeping or a program from HGTV. What it looks like should reflect who you are as a a person.

The only advice I would give is to decorate with pieces that inspire. Even if those pieces look like this:

Always.

Art

Recently, and much delayed considering when it was published, I was able to get my hands on the illustrated edition of “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.” Now, you can imagine my excitement. (I being someone known to frequently create Harry Potter fan art).

As an artist, there is a lot of value in viewing and reviewing the works of others. I was interested to see what kind of magic Jim Kay was able to create, inspired by the words of J.K. Rowling.

Unsurprisingly, I rather enjoyed glancing through this edition and was even so inspired to make a few drawings of my own.

As well all know, however, this month has also brought misfortune to the Harry Potter universe.

Although the passing of Alan Rickman happened 3 weeks ago yesterday, I believe it is still in the thoughts of many. That being said, I would like to dedicate this post to him and the character of Severus Snape.

Rickman’s portrayal of arguably the most interesting character in the series was not only perfect, but inspired fans of all ages. I know that I credit the Harry Potter franchise to much of my inspiration, even after all of this time. So RIP Alan Rickman, #Always.

Winter Illustrations

Art, Pop Culture

Happy New Year! I hope you all had a fun and festive night ringing in the new year and have awesome plans for celebrating today! To start off the new year, I am sharing some winter-themed illustrations that I did this week.

As I mentioned in one of my latest posts, I received new markers and a sketchbook for Christmas. The markers, which are dual tip watercolor markers are, as it turns out, great for illustration.

Inspired by this time of year, I decided to do a couple of recreations of famous winter-characters with these markers.

The first is the abominable snowman from “Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer.” A classic created in the ’60’s, this character was a prominent part of my childhood and has remained so into my adult life.

I began this drawing by outlining the charter’s contour in light black marker and then filled it in with cross hatching.The final touches were added by filling in his face and hand with light blue.

The second character I chose to illustrate was another we are all familiar with: Olaf from “frozen.” As it turns out, Olaf is actually quite difficult to draw. Due to the fact that I had never drawn Olaf before and that for my first time I was choosing to do so with permanent marker, my Olaf is far from perfect.

But that’s OK!

It was still a fun drawing to do and served as a great reminder. So often people view cartoons and characters as “easily done” when in fact, they are quite difficult. Although my Olaf is not perfect, it was still a learning experience.

No matter your level of artistic ability you should always challenge yourself. As with anything, it is the only way you will get better.

The Trendiest Way to De-Stress

DIY, Wellness

As you may have noticed, the holidays are coming. This is fantastic because the holidays are full of family, fun, traditions, baked goods,etc. etc. However, they are also extremely stressful, especially today on Black Friday!

But don’t let my ranting work you into anxiety. And if I already have, rest assured that there is a cure! That’s right, a cure for stress and an extremely trendy one at that: COLORING!

I had heard about this coloring trend a few months ago and was eager to return to what I once loved as a child. It was not until recently that I was given a coloring book by Andy’s brother and sister-in-law and was surprised by how much I love it.

Here’s a few reasons why you (whoever you are) should try coloring:

It’s FUN! Enough said.
It’s relaxing. Something about simply focusing on filling a space with color is cathartic and can be especially great for those of us who suffer from stress and anxiety. Filling in color and seeing a complete page can give a sense of accomplishment which is great at the end of the day when you are just lazing around watching TV.
No experience necessary. Coloring is a great hobby because literally anyone can do it. You don’t have to be a great artist to enjoy it and make visually satisfying coloring pages.
It’s cheap. As with anything else, there are a lot of different options and prices when it comes to buying coloring books. And even if you don’t want to invest in a book, you can simply print adult coloring pages off of the internet. Be sure to check out Pinterest for some great pages!
It can be social. If coloring alone is fun, imagine coloring with friends! Invite your friends over for a night of coloring, wine and cheese.

As an artist, part of me wants to hate coloring as your creativity is somewhat limited. But it simply is too much fun to hate. On top of that, for those of you who are artists, I find that when I am coloring I am often inspired and find myself thinking about possible new art pieces.

Another possibility I have thought of is using my completed coloring pages for art-materials. In other words, you can take your colored pages and turn them into art pieces or craft projects.

Here’s a few DIY ideas off the top of my head:

Homemade cards
Christmas/Gift tags
Wrapping paper
Book covers
Book Marks

So, long story short, no matter who you are, you should give coloring a go. It’s fun, cheap and can undoubtedly help you get through the stressful holiday season.

Happy coloring!

Magic with Markers

Art

In life, we often come to associate markers with children. As if once you reach the age of 12 it suddenly becomes socially unacceptable to use markers for artistic ventures. Well, I would like to challenge this belief.

I love markers for several reasons:

They are permanent. You don’t have to worry about smudging your work away (which happens a lot when you are a lefty using a pencil).
They have good flow. Seriously, they are fun to use.
They help you connect with your inner child. Whether its nostalgia or the bright colors, markers have a way of helping you re-connect with your fun side.

That being said, I recently spent an evening sketching with markers. I created these sketches in a small sketch-book, not spending a particularly long amount of time on either of them. They were, however, a lot of fun to make and, in their own way, pleasing to the eye.

I decided to focus of pop culture imagery, realizing that these sort of images pair well with the vibrant aesthetic of markers. The first sketch is that of the Wicked Witch of the East from “The Wizard of Oz”. Perhaps it is Halloween spirit that inspired this sketch, though I’m inclined to believe it was the stripes in the stockings.

Aside from my October-appropriate gal, I also sketched a “Harry Potter” inspired Pygmy puff. Over the summer my father and his wife took Andy and I to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando Florida. As a huge Potter-fan since childhood I had been dying to attend the theme park since its opening.

The four of us at Universal Studios

That being said, I am very happy I went after the newest addition of Diagon Alley. The new park was amazing and I could go on and on about it for ages. But for now, I will tie it back to the pygmy-puff love that could be felt in Weasley’s Wizard Weezes and the Magical Menagerie. Both locations invited park guests were invited to “adopt” pygmy puffs.

Andy and I in Diagon Alley

I chose to draw this imaginary creature because of its vibrant color and also because of the body shape and nature of the fur. Both aspects of the creature’s physical appearance lend itself well to drawing, especially drawing with markers.

Doing these two sketches reminded me that when you are an artist, it does not matter what your medium is. The important aspect lies in the fact that, no matter what, you are creating on a regular basis. And sometimes, using a “child’s” medium can spark fun and get you creating more.

So happy sketches! Perhaps I will revisit crayons in the near future…