Art for Love

Talk Nerdy to Me

2011-09-02T04:18:00.000-04:00

2011-04-19T20:57:00.001-04:00

This is what happens when you hurt your ankle and have nothing better to do.
[Note: I don't take credit for the concept, just the design.]

Artist Interviews coming soon!

Homemade Tom Servo

2011-04-14T01:02:00.000-04:00

What's up, Polar Bear?

2011-04-10T19:30:00.000-04:00

This is my first couple sketches of a baby polar bear. I'm waiting for approval from my client, but what do you guys think?

Gettin' Relatively Busy

2011-04-10T14:34:00.001-04:00

Hey y'all! I don't have any sketches to share with you today, but I do have some news.
So I'm still working on the Cosmic Ryder project and just got another batch of drawings to do! I've been enjoying the hell out of this project and almost don't want it to end! On the other hand, I do want it to end so I can see the game up and running. I think it's going to end up looking really awesome.
My other bit of news that I don't think I've fully mentioned is that I'm beginning to work on illustrations for a children's book. I know in the past I said I never wanted to do children's books, and I guess that's because I sometimes feel like my art can be more "mature", but after I read the story, I decided that it would be a fun project. Maybe I'm prideful about my art and sort of belittled the children's book side of illustration, or maybe I just never enjoyed drawing the same character over and over (i.e., animation), but I think I'm really going to change my mind about that once I get this project rolling. Anyway, the story is called "Where Do I Belong?" and it's about a baby polar bear that's trying to find where it belongs. It kind of reminds me of that book about the baby bird trying to find its mother, I think that was called "Are You My Mother?". I think it's going to be super fun and the story is really cute. I'll post some sketches later on.
I'm also about to start on a watercolor painting of someone's pet. If anyone is interested in some pet portraits, get at me. Also, I'm going to start working on some interview questions because I have a good handful of illustrators lined up to feature on here! Get ready!

Sketchy Sunday

2011-04-03T18:56:00.000-04:00

And there's some Sunday sketches for ya!

NEW! Featured Illustrator

2011-04-03T17:12:00.000-04:00

While taking advantage of this warm weather and sitting on my porch web surfing, I got the idea to start featuring different illustrators that inspire me. I thought it would be kind of fun for those of you who read my blog to see what other illustrators are up to, especially if any of you don't really keep tabs with the illustration world. So here's to my first featured illustrator - Helice Wen!

You can check out her website here.

I love the way Helice uses color and varying line weights. Lots of her illustrations are somewhat ethereal and soft. The first image I posted I especially love because Helice has chosen to make her character's face and hair the focal point while everything else is in different shades of blue.
Even her sketches are nice! I love that she chose to use a color other than black as her outlines, which seems to be a staple color for sketches and finished pieces. I tend to use black myself, but I've wanted to play around with different colors, especially the Burnt Sienna India ink I have stashed away!

Once I start getting these "featured" posts up and running, I may try to start interviewing some of the artists I feature. I had to interview several illustrators for a class in college and absolutely loved connecting with illustrators all over the globe - even my most favorite illustrator ever, Jason Levesque (aka Stunt Kid), replied to my email! Anyway, stay tuned. I'll be posting some of my own sketches soon enough. Cheers!

Some Scribbles

2011-04-01T03:02:00.002-04:00

Happy April Fool's! I wanted to share with you all several tattoo designs I've recently sketched up for a couple friends of mine. The first one is a simple spool of thread with a needle.

The second is a little more complicated. It's a shuttle, which is used on a loom when weaving. Normally, the center part is a bobbin with thread on it, but my friend wanted instead the thread to be wound around the humerus bone (that's the upper arm bone). Both of these drawings are waiting approval, so once they're given the thumbs up, I'll post inked versions.

Finally, here's a personal piece I'm in the middle of. It's a mixed media piece comprised of micron pen, India ink, watercolor, and Photoshop. I'm still trying to decide what I want to do with the background. Any suggestions?

As an added bonus: Here's an unused image from my recent client's project.

Freelancing, Freewheeling

2011-03-07T14:55:00.003-05:00

All right, so it's been a hot, hot minute since last I posted. But don't I start all of my posts that way? I've been relatively busy lately, so that's my excuse this time.
I finally finished the Madison map, first of all, and I'm incredibly glad to be done with it. It took such a long time to finish and nearly blew up my computer with its gargantuan file size. It also gave me lots of headaches and stress, but finally it's over. Here's a (much) smaller version of the completed chaos that is the Madison map.

To be totally honest, I'm not crazy about it at all. There wasn't much room left for using my own style, as I had to kind of draw everything in a specific way. So obviously I won't be putting this monstrosity in my portfolio any time soon, but getting to work on this thing had its advantages.
For one thing, it was a good project to start freelancing with. Although it was an "under the table" job and I therefore didn't have to deal with 1099s or invoices, it was a great way to begin understanding deadlines and dealing with clients. Also, my client was very supportive of my work and was generally easy to work with. Clients can be real bitches if they're picky or have some sort of warped idea of what they want but are incapable of articulating that want to the artist. Fortunately, I haven't had any clients like that (yet).
My newest freelance project is designing space characters for a web-based game by Linxter, Inc. Unfortunately, I can't give you much more than that. Not because of my contract specifications (although it may say somewhere in there I really CAN'T give you more than that), but also because I really don't know much more than that! The game is in the middle of being created and I literally have no idea what the basis of the game is. I guess when my clients are finished with it, I'll put up a link to the game and you can all check it out for yourselves.
This new project has been really great. I feel like it's my first "real" freelance job, because it includes the business side of freelancing. I've had the joys of learning about 1099s, receiving my first invoice, and coming up with image fees. The clients are all really nice and supportive, too. When I first told them I was a freelance newbie, they immediately emailed me an explanation of all the things I didn't understand. I think that's just awesome!
Oh, that reminds me. I guess I should give a shout-out to my friend Josh Guffey from The Pancake Movement for getting me my latest job. He's a friend of mine who's been in the business for a while and has been helping me to understand the ins and outs of the freelance world. Thanks dude!
So I'm currently in the process of figuring out how to update my website. I built it in DreamWeaver with lots of help from Mike Miano. Unfortunately, I don't know how to use DreamWeaver (nor do I own the program), and I don't know anything about HTML, Coding, or whatever else is needed to create and maintain a website. I've been considering using WordPress.org, but I don't really know how to use that either. I'm so technologically retarded. Luckily, I have a few friends who use WordPress or are at least familiar with it that can help me out. One of these days my website is going to be beautiful!
Just for fun, here's a doodle I did a while back.

Anyway, I'm going to try and keep up with this thing more often. I got the chance to Skype with one of my college professors, Catherine, and her Illustration Portfolio class today, and she mentioned that they looked at my blog. I was so embarrassed because I haven't been updating this thing! I don't want her students to think I'm horribly lazy (although I really am), so I promise to try and post more often!

PS, tomorrow is my good friend Drew's 24th birthday. Do him a favor and check out his webite. He's a very talented illustrator! http://www.drewbotts.com/

Taking care of business

2011-02-08T03:42:00.000-05:00

I've been SO busy lately on two different projects! I just finished the map and am beginning a series of illustrations for an internet-based game. Here's a quick drawing I did for fun tonight in celebration of finishing my first ever freelance project.

I'm thankful this year is almost over!

2010-11-26T02:50:00.003-05:00

I can't believe how long it's been since I've posted on here. I'm kind of ashamed, actually. I can't even keep track of a blog!
Honestly, I've been rather busy. My freelance project is quickly coming to a frantic close and it takes up the majority of my time. I also work retail part time at Rue 21. In a sense, I am constantly doing artwork, but it isn't really the usual stuff I would do. I've been sick since Tuesday and just today had enough energy to draw for fun. I didn't even celebrate Thanksgiving because I think I have the flu / could be contagious, but my dad brought some leftovers so I'm not too bummed anymore.
I have to work 4 until midnight tomorrow at work. This wouldn't normally bother me but considering how sick I feel, I'm a little concerned. We'll see how that goes.
I forgot to mention I've finally moved into an apartment! I live with my friend Brendan and so far it's been pretty great. I love the apartment complex a lot! It's really well landscaped, and there's a huge pasture behind the complex filled with donkeys, horses, and often coyotes that you can constantly hear. I like that the most about living there. It's really nice being able to call a place my own. It seems like it's been a really long time since I could actually say that.
These past three months have been a whirlwind to me. I feel like so much has happened. I've made a lot of really great new friends, had a little bit of heartache, and got a fantastic new bicycle (among so much more, of course).
I'm sorry to be so brief considering how long it's been since I've last posted, but like I mentioned - I think I have the flu. I should definitely get some rest before battling the shopping fanatics I'm sure I will encounter tomorrow since it's Black Friday.

PS: I've been down in the dumps all day and never thought about what I was thankful for! I really am thankful for quite a lot. I'm grateful for my parents and their constant support, my friends who listen to me cry and complain, my cat (did I mention I got a cat? His name is Encyclopedia Brown), my apartment, having a car, and having two paying jobs, among a million other things!

This is when I first brought my cat home!

This is him now! As happy as a clam.

This is a picture from my 23rd birthday party. I spent it with some really fantastic people.

The bike my dad got me for my birthday!

Summertime, and the livin's busy.

2010-08-16T04:49:00.001-04:00

     So, I guess now would be as good a time as any to inform you all that I did get that freelance job! I couldn't be happier doing it, either. What I'm doing is getting paid to create illustrations of local businesses that I'll eventually put together onto a map that's somewhere around 34" by 24". My client, Fred, has been doing the maps for several years now and apparently there are quite a few of the them hanging up in Huntsville businesses. I'm really excited to be a part of a 3-4 month project that's going to result in something hanging all over the city! It's a really great way for my name to get out there; not to mention it's just a really great opportunity for me and something that I can put on my resume
     I still haven't found a full-time job, however. This economy is really taking a toll on the local businesses, but I'm still crossing my fingers that something will come my way. I really need to get a job because I'm planning on moving into an apartment with a friend of mine at the end of the month. I've already gotten myself a few pieces of furniture, although I still need the essential: a bed. I'm working on that!
     Things have really been rather positive for me lately, and I've realized that deciding to stay in Madison was a good choice for myself! Anyway, I thought I'd share with you some of the businesses I've had to illustrate. I have full rights to my work, which is great.

These are just a few that I've done lately. As you can see they're fairly simple drawings of different businesses. I use photographs my client sends me to draw them, which sometimes means I have to be extra creative! By the end of the project, I'll have illustrated somewhere between 130-150 businesses! Wish me luck, I have a lot of work to do!

Summer Decisions

2010-07-15T17:20:00.001-04:00

     Wow, I am terribly sorry at my obvious lack of summer blog posts. Honestly, not that much has been going on that's worthy of putting into this blog. Let me think for a moment here...
     Ah yes, I decided not to move down to Mobile. Grad school has been put on hold for the time being because frankly, I don't want to teach. I realized that it isn't my passion and probably never was. I really still want to go to grad school, don't get me wrong, I just don't think Spring Hill was the place for me. I sort of picked it only because it was the only school in Alabama with a degree similar to what I wanted. Yes, similar. I am not going to strive toward similar anymore. I want to get my Masters degree in something I am truly passionate about, which is drawing/illustration. It's just not going to happen at the moment. What is going to happen, however, is that I'm going to settle down in Huntsville for a period of time, get a job and work freelance on the side, and then hopefully in the near future move to Atlanta and figure my life out. I really have a love for Atlanta, and I can really see myself working out there. So, that's my goals for the moment. I'm actually extremely happy with my decision, especially since I've made some really great friends here at home.
     Another exciting thing that might be happening is a potential freelance job. My dad met up with this man who works on illustrated maps of cities with several artists and he said he'd love to get in touch with me. I sent him an email including my website and he loves my work and is going to get in contact with me soon. I really hope he offers me some kind of job working with him. It'd be great experience and it sounds like a lot of fun! He sent me an example of one of his maps and they're really similar to my style, which is awesome. The thought of working with several other illustrators also excites me too. Group art projects are something I've always wanted to do but never got the chance to. So everyone, cross your sweet little fingers that I get this opportunity!
      Anyway, that's really all that's been going on in my life. I'm really just taking the time to figure out what I want to do with my career. I've realized that figuring that stuff out doesn't always come as easily as it has seemed to in the past, but I have some really amazing support from my parents and friends. I am so lucky. Adios guys.

“Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end.”

2010-05-30T14:56:00.002-04:00

     Ah, my darlings. I apologize for the lack of posts! It's been a busy few weeks and I've barely had time to breathe until now. Yesterday was my college graduation from SCAD and I must say it feels really weird to say that I'm a college graduate. I'm glad to finally have a degree attached to my name now though! You're looking at the proud owner of a brand new Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, baby! Now I've just got to tackle that Master's degree...
     I must say, I'm pretty bummed about having to leave all the wonderful friends I've made here these past four years. They have made my college experience the best it could ever possibly be, and I'm going to remember all the amazing memories we've made forever. Seriously, college would not have been the wild ride it turned out to be if it wasn't for the people I've met along the way. I have some of the most awesome stories to tell my children someday. I will never ever forget this town and these people. Savannah, GA has a permanent spot in my heart.
     To Jessica Chavez, Jennifer Hathorn, Laura Eisele, and Stacey Mei Yan (WeiWei) Fong - you guys have been the greatest best friends anyone could ever ask for. No really, you guys are the shit. I'm going to miss the hell out of you four! (I already do.)
     To everyone else I've become close to - you guys are amazing and I'm so thankful we've crossed paths. I love you all so much.

Class of 2010 and everyone else that I love in Savannah, stay fabulous and STAY IN TOUCH!

"It's not good bye, it's see you later." <3

Feathers and Things

2010-05-09T03:57:00.001-04:00

I want to share with you guys the feather I drew for my friend Allison's tattoo. I drew it with a pencil and then went over that with a micron pen. Hope you love it, Allison - you owe me delicious baked goods! Also, I wanted to let you guys know that www.cheestaysfly.com is officially my website now! It's not done quite yet, but I'll let you all know when it's up and running. I have also finished making my business card and graduation announcment! Check them out.

Tugging on the hem of life

2010-04-26T18:20:00.003-04:00

Lately I've been procrastinating more than usual with every single task I need to complete throughout each day. I have definitely caught a bad case of Senioritis as well as a severe longing for summer vacation. Somehow I've managed to get my work finished, and I'm here to prove it to you. Here is the illustration I plan to use for my mailer, which is basically a postcard I'm going to be sending out to lots of different companies to promote myself. This may or may not be the final version; we'll see...

Anyway, let me give you a little explaination behind my mailer. It's an image of a guy and a girl (obviously) and the girl is pulling the guy's scarf so tightly he is getting strangled. The screws in the background are kind of supposed to represent what he may have been thinking before she pulled his scarf (screwing) and how he currently feels (screwed). The girl's hand is cut off at the bottom so as to appear more subtle. I wanted her hand pulling the scarf to be the last thing someone notices when they look at my mailer. Do you think I achieved that? Any suggestions?

It's not very complex, I know. I don't normally make conceptual pieces, so this is about as conceptual as I get. So yeah...let me know what you guys think about it.

About My Logo

2010-04-19T16:46:00.000-04:00

My logo is a representation of my style. I wanted a logo that was not simply a play on my name or my initials, or some kind of symbol. I chose a woman's face because that's what I mainly draw. I want my logo to reflect the kind of work I will attract in the future, and I think using a woman's face states pretty plainly that yes, I like to draw women. I just wanted to explain my logo a little bit because one of the commenters on my blog said they were unsure about my logo, and I thought maybe this would make it a little more understandable as to why I chose the logo I did. Not to mention, my logo was designed in my self-promotions class and my entire class reviewed all my logo ideas and this one was the inevitable winner. Just throwin' it out there! :)

Some work I've been meaning to share...

2010-04-12T23:35:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I'm going to try and post a bunch of recent work that I've promised you guys for a while now. Get ready...

In this first batch, we have my afro illustration I used for my portfolio. Then we have a chapbook cover I did for my friend's book of poetry and writings. Lastly is an illustration that will be published in I believe...What's Up Annapolis magazine with an article about spas. I really dislike that spa illustration. For some reason all of the work I've gotten published has been stuff I hate and sort of in a style unlike my own. I don't know why I do this, but I need to stop it or else I'm never going to enjoy freelancing. I think maybe it's just because all I ever like drawing are weird looking girls, not normal stuff like people enjoying hot stones at a spa. Ha!

So here's a poster I did for the Hilton Head International Young Artist's Piano Competition. It was submitted for a poster competition which I did not expect to (and didn't) win. I don't really enjoy making posters as I'm not good with type and stuff. I'm more of an editorial kinda illustrator. That brings us to the last image I'm going to share with you guys tonight, which is a double-page spread I made for my portfolio. It's an illustration of a dysfunctional 1st grade class photo, and I made it in honor of my cousin Maggie (depicted as the teacher) who is a new 1st grade teacher. Anyway, I'm sleepy so I'll post more later. Adios!

Work, work, work it out!

2010-04-12T18:43:00.000-04:00

Hey guys, I've got a few images for you! First off, this is my logo. I will be using this image on all my business cards and mailers that I'll be sending out to illustration companies. It's NOT supposed to be me, please don't be confused! It's just an image to represent my work which is largely of women. The second image is something I literally drew up about 5 minutes ago while in my self-promotion class (I know, I never pay attention...). I drew it entirely digital and really liked the sketchiness of it, which is really unlike how I usually draw. Maybe I'll do more work like this, just to spruce things up a bit. Let me know what you guys think. Adios!

New & Improved?

2010-04-06T18:22:00.002-04:00

Yo guys! I'm getting really tired of the background on this thing, so expect some dramatic changes to the look of my blog in the next few days. I need something more cheerful. Just a heads up. Happy Taco Tuesday!

Here comes a breeze to blow my cares away

2010-04-05T22:42:00.003-04:00

Inspirational song lyrics of the night:

Gonna pick myself up off the ground
When that old feeling comes around again
I've had enough of feeling down
There's something I've lost that must be found again

Sometimes it seems like such a hard life
But there's good times around the bend
The rollercoaster's gotta roll to the bottom
If you wanna climb to the top again

This is a song by String Cheese Incident, which is a jam band I don't listen to very often, but I have always loved this song. The lyrics I've shown you are ones I truly try to live by - always remember that when life gets bad, there are good times coming soon. It's something I've been telling myself a lot lately. Anything inspirational really gets me through the day. I just wanted to share that with you guys.

Oh! That reminds me of another song quote I've always really loved. It's a quote from a song by Keller Williams, another jam band. (What is it with these jam bands and their cheerful lyrics?) This is a quote I also try to live by, but don't do very well. I have a problem with worrying about things I have no control over...

I woke to the world one morning
I did not really know what was going on
I didn't care about tomorrow
I worry when tomorrow comes

Worrying about tomorrow's issues a day ahead (or months ahead, most often) is the cause for most of my stress. It's really silly that I worry about things I can't take care of until they arrive, and yet I do it anyway. I'm working on that though, as I've learned lately to take things one day at a time. Oh, growing up is so hard. More artwork to come, I promise! :)

A Little Somethin'

2010-04-05T08:52:00.003-04:00

So I did this promotional illustration for my dear friend Page, who has a blog on here you should check out. She's a PR and was doing some stuff for the Human Tribe Project, which you should also check out because they are an awesome organization. Anyway, I've got some other stuff to upload and share with you all, but in the meantime I gotta go to class! Adios.

Stay Positive

2010-03-31T17:31:00.000-04:00

Wow, I'm terribly sorry I haven't been keeping up with this poor blog. Real life is coming at me much too quickly and I've been going through some stuff lately that's been keeping me from this. I've got some images to put up too, so don't worry.
Graduation is coming up soon soon soon. Like two months soon! And then I'll be heading down to Mobile, Alabama to find an apartment and start my life that will be grad school. I thought I had my whole life figured out until recently, and now it's been reduced to school and that's it. From then, who knows? I've realized lately that life can change instantly and you can never really be prepared for those changes, but I think I'm doing really well at staying positive about it. I'm sorry that sounds so vague, but I don't think I need to discuss that stuff on my blog.
Anyways, I'll try to get some new illustrations up here as soon as I remember too. Until then - adios.

Hands and Hanging Upside Down

2010-02-15T23:05:00.000-05:00

Hello all! I've been quite busy with illustrations lately, which is surprising to me. I'm usually not busy at all, so it's nice to actually have things to work on. It's been really great. Anyway, the nursing twins illustration was a success and will be printed in Bay State Parent's March issue. I'll scan a copy of the page for you guys when I get it. At the moment, me and two other people in my Getting Published class have been chosen for an article about being left handed. I don't know if they are going to use all of our illustrations or pick one of us, so I'm hoping they'll pick me. This is the image they liked of mine (I submitted three).

It's a pretty simple illustration, but I had really hoped the editors liked it because of the simplicity. I'm glad they chose it! Wish me luck on that one.
I've also been working on some more pieces for my Portfolio class. I'm 95% finished with an illustration of an elementary class photo and just started three spot illustrations that I may use for my title page for my portfolio. I'll post the class photo illustration when I finish it, but here is one of the three spots.

I loved working on this one. I've never drawn anyone upside down before so it was a challenge that hopefully you all think I accomplished. I'm pretty sure I'm going to use this one for my closing page and the other one, which is a girl with a giant afro, for the title page. The third one is a self portrait that I may just use for personal stuff later on.
I'm also working on a chapbook cover for my friend Ronnie. He wrote a book of poetry and needed a sweet cover so he hit me up. It's looking pretty awesome so far and I'm almost done. I'll post that when I'm finished as well. I've got a lot on my plate right now, but I'm loving it. I like being busy for once!
Anyway, that's all I've got for you guys right now. More to come later!

The Finished Product

2010-02-08T14:58:00.000-05:00

I promised you the finished illustration for the parenting magazine - so here it is!

Let me know what you all think! Now, onto several more illustrations I need to get done this week! See ya!

Getting Published

2010-02-03T19:54:00.000-05:00

GUESS WHAT?! Remember how I mentioned that I was in that Getting Published class? Well, it's finally helped me to actually get published! Yes, you heard right. An illustration I did was chosen to be published with an article in a magazine!
So the magazine is called Bay State Parenting, voted "Best Parenting Publication in North America 2004, 2006, 2007 and 2008" and the article is about nursing twins. It's kind of a funny sounding article, and my illustration is even funnier, but I don't care at all because I'm going to be published in an actual magazine! I am so incredibly excited about this. Here's the sketch I submitted. I haven't fine-tuned it yet, but I'll post more pictures of it as it comes along. Wish me luck!

The Jenn and Laura Illustrations

2010-01-24T15:46:00.001-05:00

All righty, so I finished touching up the illustration of Jenn and I also finished the illustration of Laura. I'm hoping I won't need to change anything to Laura, because I'm quite happy with the way she came out. I'm also relatively satisfied with the changes I made to Jenn, but I think both turned out just like I wanted them. Let me know what you think!

Minor Changes

2010-01-23T13:27:00.000-05:00

I had a critique yesterday on that lovely piece of work below, and got a bunch of great suggestions for my work that I'm going to take into mind. I will be editing the illustration this weekend and will re-post the final on here when I'm finished. I will also post the other illustration that goes with it because it's due this Monday. I think it's really great to get feedback on my work; it's very beneficial to me. Especially stuff that I'm going to be putting into my portfolio! So get ready for a tweaked illustration, it probably won't be too terribly different, just some minor changes. Hollerrrr!

Finished Portrait Illustration

2010-01-22T15:34:00.000-05:00

Yo! I've just finished one of the three illustrations I previously showed you, so now I'm going to share it with you all! You should feel extremely lucky.
So this is the portrait of my roommate Jenn, holding her beloved camera. I was going for a fashion-y, whimsical, colorful image. It was colored digitally, and I also added texture to the sweater using a piece of toilet paper I scanned! I also made the patterns in the background and the scarf myself. Let me know what you guys think! Adios.

Art in 2010

2010-01-17T14:40:00.001-05:00

Oh, my dear friends! I'm terribly sorry for the long delay in posts! December was full of work and my boyfriend and everything you could imagine BESIDES art. I was going through some serious art block! I still kind of am, but being at school and being given projects to do has helped a little. I've been working on a couple projects for class and thought I'd show you what I've got going on right now.
I'm in a class called Portfolio, and obviously, the class is about building up your artistic porfolio. The first two projects go together, as you'd put them in your portfolio on opposite pages. I decided to do two portraits because I honestly didn't know what else I wanted to do. I took photos of my two roommates, Laura and Jenn, and turned them into line drawings. Today I'm going to start working on the color, but for now I'll just be showing you the line drawings.
My other illustration class is called Getting Published, and it's a pretty neat class. What happens is our professor gets contacted from different companies, like right now all magazines, and they send us descriptions of up-coming articles and what they'd like illustrated for those articles. We all do sketches and our professor sends them in and we all wait around to see which of our sketches get chosen to be published. Only a couple of us have gotten our work chosen so far, but our professor says each of us will probably get at least one illustration published by the end of the quarter. Most the editorials so far have not really been to my liking, so I haven't been too bummed none of mine have been chosen yet. However, I did really like my sketch for the first editorial story, which was about fossil hunting for kids, so I decided to go ahead and finish it anyway. It would be a nice addition to my portfolio too. I'm not done with it yet, but I'll show you what I've got for that so far too.

Ta-daaaa! Let me know what you guys think!

So sorry for the delay!

2009-12-15T17:44:00.000-05:00

Oh my devoted followers, however few of you there may be, I apologize for the hiatus from posting artwork on here! I've been so busy with my new job at Belk that I really haven't had any time for blogging or artwork or much of anything else. But at least I'm making money, which will go towards future art supplies and the like. Soon soon soon, my little dearies, I will post some new artwork (just as soon as I get around to making some!).
Oh, and here's a hamster update: Apparently one of my hamsters was a MALE so you can only guess what happened...yep, there are now four extra hamster mouths to feed. Four wriggling, pink, squeaky babies! They are just now starting to get fuzzy and crawl around, but their eyes aren't open yet. So as you can see, I've got a bit on my table to be worrying about. Art has unfortunately been pushed to the back burner for the moment.
Tomorrow I'm going to make a visit to my old high school art teacher to gain some insight and wisdom on grad school. Yes, you heard right. I've decided to try my hand at grad school for art education (surprise, surprise). I'm just so uncertain about the job market in illustration, and so much of it is freelance, I just can't handle that. I need a job with a steady salary, even if it isn't much. So my art teacher is going to set things straight for me and help point me in the right direction so I can figure out this grad school stuff. Right now, my sights are set on Athens State. Wish me lots of luck.

All the best and more art to come,
Cheeeeeeee

New Watercolor Paintings!

2009-11-18T18:27:00.002-05:00

Hey guys, I'm sorry it's been a few days since I last updated. It's finals week here at SCAD so I've been busy studying and painting and getting things done. I just finished my two final paintings for my watercolor class and thought I'd share them with you. The assignment was to paint one main painting and one spot painting (a smaller painting) of two different but similar subjects that describe Savannah, GA either positively or negatively. I chose to do two paintings of gates I found wandering around downtown that I think displays the old beauty of the architecture of the city. The assignment was that the paintings were supposed to be for a travel magazine, so the spot illustration is smaller because it would be inserted in the middle of an article. The larger one is I guess supposed to be a cover illustration or maybe a full page illustration. Anyway, I'm really happy with how the larger painting came out, however, thanks to the wonders of technology, the colors you will see are a little off. I've tried to make them as close to the original as possible though. I'm not as happy with the spot illustration, but I'm glad the larger and more important one turned out so well.
Tomorrow is my last day of classes before I head home for one glorious month of winter break. Time to hunt for jobs and hopefully get a few art related jobs as well. Wish me luck! (PS: The second painting of the white gate has a cat and four mice on it, one of which is upside because it's dead. Also, the bottom of the drain is a fish; these drains are a really historical part of Savannah. Just thought I'd clear that up!)

More pleasing goodies

2009-11-10T23:38:00.000-05:00

Boy, today has been wet. It started downpouring around 3 today and didn't stop for hours. Rainy days always make me super sleepy and lazier than usual, so by now I am half asleep and full from Lauren's birthday dinner. Anyway, here's a couple more old pieces of work I wanted to share with you all. Leave some feedback and love!

This piece I did for a friend who works at this bar called Club South in Birmingham, AL. They used this design for their t-shirts! Sadly, I never got a t-shirt of my own. (Digital)

This was a piece I did for class. As you can see, the assignment was about cats. I pretty much jumped for joy when I recieved this assignment because I'm a huge cat freak. I'm probably going to be a crazy cat lady when I'm older. One can only hope. (Pen and ink)

This painting is wayyy old! I did this for my aunt about a bajillion years ago of her dog, Winston. She still has it hanging up in her house. (Watercolor)

I'll put up some more pieces later, but right now I'm gonna go pass out! Guten nacht!

Oldies but always goodies

2009-11-08T12:51:00.003-05:00

Today I thought I'd share with you all a few of my older works, just for kicks. After all, this is my art blog...Plus, I feel like I need to redeem myself after my not so hot self portrait.

Digital all the way.

Originally just pen and ink, digitally colored later

My watercolor pirate!

These are my three favorite ladies, and I'm sure half of you have seen these by now. I guess I'm just really proud of 'em. I believe I have prints of all three of these pieces up for sale on my Etsy site, you should check that out. It doesn't get much traffic. http://www.cheestaysfly.etsy.com/. They're cheap and pretty! Anyway, I'll add some more art later as I dig through the massive pile of old stuff. Enjoy.

Me, Myself, and a Dominatrix

2009-11-04T16:12:00.002-05:00

The next project I was assigned in my watercolor class after the Wicked poster was an alter-ego of ourselves. Let me just say that I detest doing self-portraits, especially in such a tricky and tempermental medium such as watercolor. But I must admit, my self-portrait didn't turn out as horribly as I had anticipated. I chose my alter-ego to be a dominatrix, mostly because my roommate had previously done a photoshoot of me as a dominatrix and it would be easy to obtain one of the photos and use it for my painting. Also, I got to wear a sweet red wig that I really wanted to paint. So anyway, here is the original photo and my painting so you can compare and contrast and perhaps get a little laugh out of them. Enjoy!

Mine is obviously a bit brighter than the original photo, but I like it that way. I am particularly fond of the left hand and the whip. I thought for sure I'd completely destroy the whip but it turned out actually resembling a whip, so...go me. I'm really unhappy with the way my nose turned out though, it looks horrible. Everything else looks great to me though.

I just desaturated it to see what it would look like. I kind of like it in greyscale. Anyway, what do you guys think of my self-portrait? Lemme know! Ciao!

An update on the show

2009-11-01T17:01:00.002-05:00

The Monster Masquerade show was a success! Everyone submitted some really awesome pieces. Oh, and congrats to the winners - you guys deserved it! I'm so glad my piece was chosen to be a part of this show, I feel honored to be surrounded by so many great illustrators. The show will be up until November 14th I believe, so check it out if you have time. Anyway, here's a photo from the show, I was really excited to be there since it's my first ever show but I had a migraine like you wouldn't believe and felt like crap. Adios!

I MADE IT!

2009-10-29T14:19:00.001-04:00

Hey guys, guess what?! I GOT INTO THE SHOW! Out of forty or fifty entries, mine made it into the twenty-seven! So everyone out in Savannah should stop by the show tomorrow, October 30th from 6 - 8 PM at the Savannah Mall.
Oh yeah, and I also bought two dwarf hamsters. I named them Hazel and Evie. They're so cute!

The Monster Masquerade Show

2009-10-27T23:12:00.002-04:00

I just got word that the Monster Masquerade show will be held this Friday, October 30th at the Savannah Mall from 6 - 8 PM. The catch is that out of all the submissions, only twenty-seven were chosen for the exhibition. I don't know yet if my piece made it into the show, so I don't know whether I'll be attending it until I find out. All I can say is that I hope I did make it into the exhibition, because I worked really hard on that piece!
Anyway, I'll let you all know if I made it into the exhibition or not. Keep your fingers and toes crossed.

NO ONE MOURNS THE WICKED!

2009-10-21T22:43:00.001-04:00

I've just finished the Wicked poster and thought you all deserved a sneak peak. I'll let you know what grade I make on it next week.

Thanks for the comments you guys! I really appreciate it, and I'm glad a few people are actually checking this blog out! :)

Continuing the defying of the gravity...

2009-10-21T16:27:00.000-04:00

I've been working on my Wicked poster some more since it's due tomorrow. I'm almost finished, but I wanted to show you the progress I've made. I colored in Elphaba's dress and added shadows, and I also painted in the text. It's done in Gouache, which I've never used until now. I don't know how I feel about it. I think most people tend to dislike it for whatever reason. It just seems like a mixture of watercolor and acrylic to me. And let me just say that I personally feel like I did a damn good job on the hand-lettering. Adios!

I think I'll try defying gravity...

2009-10-20T20:00:00.006-04:00

I just started working on my theater poster for my watercolor class. I chose to do Wicked since it's my favorite musical ever. I'm not finished with it, but here's a few photos of my process so far. Please forgive me for the terrible quality of the photos, by the way. My camera has been MIA for a while now and I've been forced to use my camera phone because my poster is too large for my scanner. The background is made using the salt on wet watercolor process and I chose to only draw Elphaba's (that's the main character) lips to echo the original Wicked poster. The last two I just threw in the mix because I like them. The second to last is a quick watercolor sketch of a tropical bird and the last is just a little drawing I've become particularly fond of. Enjoy!

FINALLY FINISHED!

2009-10-19T23:34:00.001-04:00

I finally finished my Monster Masquerade illustration for the Society of Illustrators club at school. I'd been working on it since August and I'm pretty satisfied with it. It's an ink drawing that I colored digitally in Photoshop (of course!). Now all I have to do is get it printed, matte, and then frame it. Then it's off to be displayed and judged at one of the two malls here in Savannah. It will hang there for the remainder of the quarter, so to any of you who live in the area, check it out. I'll let you know which mall exactly it'll be at when I find out. Ta-daaaa!

THE BEGINNING OF A BEAUTIFUL BLOG

2009-10-18T21:55:00.005-04:00

    Well, here it is. My very first post in the world of blogging. There was a time when I told myself I'd never get into the blogging fad, yet here I am. I suppose I gave in because I feel like every artist needs to start somewhere on the web. It's a step toward an actual website - something I'll be creating in the future.
    I guess now I should probably tell you all some interesting facts about myself before your eyes begin to glaze over, but alas, I have none. I'm a simple girl with nothing much to say about myself that may spark your interest. I consider myself an artist and thus have decided to make a career out of it. I haven't made it to the career part yet, but that is hopefully soon to come.
    I'm a college senior at Savannah College of Art and Design anticipating a BFA in Illustration next Spring, and let me tell you, I am terrified of graduating. I am completely horrified of the thought of having to go out on my own and search for a promising job in my field. I don't even know if any promising jobs exist at this point. I won't sit here and complain about the economy or anything, because that's really not my job. It is a benefactor in my fears, but I think I'm mostly just scared because I feel very unqualified. Whenever I look at my favorite illustrator's websites, I get ferociously jealous. When did their art finally blossom into the beauty it now is? After college? In college? Or were they always that amazing? What makes me the saddest is scrolling through my favorite illustrator website, www.cgunit.com, and reading an extremely familiar name and thinking "Where do I know that name..." OH YEAH, it's the name of a girl who graduated from my school last year as an illustration major who has already become frickin' famous. There's my rant about that. Although, I must give the girl some serious cred, because her artwork truly is amazing. Her name is Tran Nguyen and you should all check out her stuff. I can truly only hope to make it onto cgunit.com or, as Tran has also done, have an interview and spread in Juxtapoz, my favorite art magazine.
    Art is the only thing that makes sense in my life. Everything else is just a whirlwind of mass confusion to me right now. What exactly am I supposed to do after school? Where do I begin? All I know is that I want to create art to make people happy. I guess that's a good start, but considering how close I am to being in "the real world" I think I should maybe have a wider sense of what I'm going to do than that. Plenty of people create art to make others happy, but most of those people don't make a living out of it. That's the hardest part. It's almost laughable. "Successful Artist" is almost a contradiction to me, like some kind of sick oxymoron. I think people outside of the art world probably don't realize just how intense the industry really is. Hell, I may not even realize it myself. I may be balancing precariously on the edge of a cliff right now, waiting for a gust of wind to blow me off into oblivion. At least that's sort of how I feel about the subject. As each day passes, I ask myself more frequently "What am I getting myself into?" The art world is intensely competitive, something I have a bit of a problem with. You see, I'm not competitive in the slightest. I never have been, nor do I see myself ever being in the future. That may pose something of a problem for me when I'm out trying to make a living off my work, battling it out with others for some job opportunity. I hope that isn't what it will be like for me. When I think about that, I imagine myself snarling and tearing at some other artist's hair, all while foaming at the mouth. I'd probably have a crazy eye too, just for kicks. All I can do now is hope that my future is just bright enough to see through. I'd better bring a flashlight just in case.
    I think now is a good time to draw my first post to a close. I'm sure it was all you ever hoped and dreamed it would be, right? Instead of continuing my sarcastic chatter, I'll end with a quote that sums up my thoughts at the moment:

"We all know art is hard when we don't know who we are."