love to create (books-giveaway)

Update- February 17th -Stephanie is the winner of Creative, Inc.

Congrats to Stephanie~

Are you on a path to higher creativity, many love "The Artist's Way" as course in opening up to discovering the creative you.
Perhaps you have contemplated crafting a business from a "love to create" and need a guide to running a successful freelance business, then this is the book for you.

Many trust true tales of inspiration to help find their "True North" in order to lead a creative life.

When I began this blog, I never imagined how many of us love to design, create and inspire others to find a way to incorporate the need and love to live artfully.

One of the above books shall be given to one randomly selected winner!

All you have to do is leave a comment, select a book and follow me and tell me what you love to create.

sharpen up

image Chardin

I must admit that I cannot draw until I sharpen up my pencil. There is something totally wrong about trying to execute any proper line or note without a sharpened tool.

In high school, I took lessons from an art teacher who taught us how to sharpen with a sanding block. First we had to use an exacto-knife to sharpen and then rub the pencil on the block to create a sharp point.

The dustings from the block may be saved to use for shading with a blending stump.

Did you ever stop to think about your passion and how the simplest of tools can drive you to feed your passion to join a sharp-set of sharp-shooters.

style-maniac

What sort of tool has helped you to sharpen up on your creative passion?

Nothing like a new supply of pencils to help me to create and sharpen up.

drawing board

image - Chardin

Back to the drawing board. Head down. Nose to the grindstone.

image -Hockney

There is nothing like the journey of creating and being inspired by other great artists.

Fresh water at my side for drinking and another container for cleaning my brush.

Fresh clean water is essential.

Everything is alright in the world when I am at my drawing board.

I close my eyes and I give thanks for this gift.

The light of the day warms my soul.

Do you draw? Why not take a little time each day to draw something when you find yourself bored? Care to share your work with me?

I never imagined that part of my mission would actually inspire anyone to create or design an artful life, but it is working.

I love knowing that I have helped to inspire....others to the drawing board.

Winners of Friday and Saturdays giveaway are

Kait "pretty things"

Mary Jo Trust your style

can do

"An artist cannot do anything slovenly." (Jane Austen)

mug found here on etsy from "Brookish"~

I am here to tell you that an artist can so do things slovenly but end up hating it and then having to start all over again.

Is it me or are all artists our own worst critics? There is a fine line of cannots and can toos.

I think I need this mug as a reminder that a cannot can so easily be transformed into a can too.

Are you a cannot or a can do?

Let's not let a bit of anything slovenly cramp our style.

creating a home illustration

Pencil is used to "rough in" the shape and size on the paper or the image and then a micron archival ink pen is used to fill in the details. The devil is in the details. It takes time but a little patience here is truly a virtue. Working from top left to the bottom right keeps my artwork clean. I use a Mars Staedtler to erase the pencil prior to painting and a drafting brush to dust off the surface.
At a point that I feel I have captured the essence of the artwork, then I begin to prepare my color palette with the colors to be used. I try to narrow down the number of colors and stick to using that palette which brings a cohesive order to the final artwork. I use clean water in a clear glass container , good brushes and have a blotter or a paper towel to test the amount of paint that I load on my brush. Just like applying make-up, if it goes on too dark, you have to start over. I try to work light to dark in water color, but in oils my process is different.

I plan to post more about my process and if any of you have any questions that you would like to know, please feel free to leave me a comment. Creating illustrations and inspiring others to draw or paint is pure joy. Tell me if I have inspired you and let me know what you are creating!