2018: 125-131/365

In my last post I mentioned that I took part in the Illustrator Challenge at the New England SCBWI Conference.  The theme of the challenge was Fairy Tale Mash-up, so I created "Swinederella": a combination of Cinderella, The Three Little Pigs, and a dash of Little Red Riding Hood.  It was created using pencil, watercolor, and Photoshop.

Since I love seeing how other artists create their art, I thought it would be fun to share images of my process from start to finish...

1. Thumbnail Sketch

2. Character Design

3. Clean Sketch

4. Watercolor Washes

5. Black & White Underpainting

6. Starting to Add Color

7. Final Image (after many, many layers!)

I'm still figuring things out in Photoshop, but I have a feeling that I'm really going to enjoy this way of working!

2018: 117-124/365

Wow... this week flew by!

Photo courtesy of my sister, Stevie.

The weather was finally Spring-like, and I definitely took advantage of it... I had a great time helping my sister paint her truck
(but that is a story for another week).

This week, I promised to share more about my trip to Springfield, Massachusetts...

Art by Priscilla Alpaugh

While at the New England SCBWI Conference, I took workshops with Dan Santat, Josh Funk, Russ Cox, and Sara Zarr.  I listened to amazing panels and speeches with incredible authors and illustrators including Jane Yolen, Rita Williams-Garcia, Amy Reed, and Matt Phelan.  I listened, learned, and talked about books.  I volunteered, participated in the Illustrator Challenge, met with an editor, had books signed, and made a lot of new friends.  It was a very full, very fun, and very inspirational, weekend!

It would be impossible to share everything, but here are my top takeaways from NESCBWI 2018...

 Nothing is more important that being good.

Hard work develops talent.

 Practice & push yourself.

Learn from others, but don't compare yourself to them.

 Explore, evolve, & try new things.

and...

Don't be afraid to take risks!

2018: 110-116/365

This past weekend, I went to the New England SCBWI Conference in Springfield Massachusetts.  My days were jam-packed with learning, inspiration, and fun.  I am still processing all of the information I received from the incredible workshops I took (I will definitely post some highlights next week).  But...

In the meantime, I wanted to share some photos from a trip my friend Dee and I took to The Dr. Seuss Museum.

It was so much fun to get a glimpse into the life of Theodor Geisel... I really enjoyed looking at his work space, seeing his original art, and reading letters he wrote to family and friends.  It seems pretty obvious that the man known as

Dr. Seuss would be funny, but I never knew just how clever and fun he really was!

(More from my trip next week...)

2018: 109/365

As I sit looking at the Spring snow out my window,

I wonder if May flowers will ever really arrive...

Even though my friend Christine has assured me that warmer weather will be coming soon, I thought I might have to take matters into my own hands...

Luckily, I remembered that I know how to make my own flowers!

(I even created a tutorial so you can too.)

Hopefully I'll see some flowers (or even the grass!) soon...

But in the meantime, it's good to have a back-up plan!

2018: 108/365

Happy Banana Day!

2018: 107/365

(And, the snow keeps on falling...)

I don't think whoever coined the phrase,

"April showers bring May flowers."

meant snow showers.

Ugh.

2018: 106/365

Cinderelephant

I'm back!!!

It's hard to believe that it was a Spring break.  Snow and ice would definitely suggest otherwise... But that's a story for another day.

The illustration that I was working on before my blogging break reminded me of a Cinderelephant painting I did (shown at the top of this post).  And, since today is also "Save the Elephant Day", I would like to share a variety of elephant art that I've created over the years...

(See the start to finish process pics here.)

(Find out about this painting's unusual inspiration and see the process here.)

I hope you found this post as fun as I did...

(I didn't remember how many elephants I've created over the years!)

You might think that I've had my fill, but seeing this actually makes me want to make more elephant art in the future!