ShadowScript - The Art Blog of Angela R. Sasser

Escaping the Void: Loneliness and the Artist

2012-01-25T11:19:00.001-05:00

This particular topic has been nagging at me for the longest time. I've talked about Work at Home Blues when I first started the freelancing life. Now, a few years into this, I'm realizing some important things via introspection and talking to others in the same business. Prolonged time alone is not conducive to creativity.

For as much as I thought at the beginning 'hey it would be cool to be left alone to work on all these projects', that just has simply not been the case. I've had enough time to sit and think about what really drove my creativity when I was younger and that was being in the presence of like-minded people (artists and otherwise) during my college years. We did plein air painting in class, where we would sit outside and reproduce a drainage ditch in watercolor. Painting outdoors got us out of the monotonous classroom and forced us to think about the colors of the world and how they related to the colors on our palette. The art students and crazy anime club people had a lunch table where we'd all gather, chat, and draw en masse every single day. Talking to other artists got us excited about our ideas, and oh the jokes that pervaded those sacred lunchtime hours!

But college days are done and after those golden years of childhood come to a close, we are left to our own terrible devices. There is no teacher over our shoulder saying 'today you will continue to study and improve your work!'. There's no one to drag you outside and make you observe your own world and how it can improve your art. It's so tempting to stay inside and avoid going out because you're going to 'get more work done' or 'gas costs money'. I find myself making those excuses on a daily basis and it's led to a lack of motivation and inspiration more than once.

I feel the most inspired when I have experiences in my life driving me onward. This could be as basic as going to the park or Callaway Gardens to marvel at the simple beauty of nature (♥ the Butterfly House). Or it can be as complicated as animators taking a trip to the Great Wall of China to make sure their project has the authentic feel of ancient Asia in their work (a la the creators of Avatar: The Last Airbender, whose concept art book I've been reading lately). Creativity evolves from energy, experience, and making the unseen connections.

So how do we combat loneliness? Get our hermit butts out of the house! Go to sketch meets. Don't have one in town? Start one! Facebook and Meetup are great tools for that. If you're low on funds, try your local park where it's generally free to go look at some ducks. There's also the library where you can read books for free and study quietly (surprising how often we forget libraries exist!). Join your local art society, which serves the purpose of getting your pale self out of the house and networking with a more knowledgeable crowd (this can also lead to marketing opportunities, too!).

On the note of joining art societies, I have had my own strategies of avoidance, like thinking that nobody will like me because I'm very much in the fantasy arena while most societies around here specialize in fine art landscapes and folk art. I feel like I won't fit in, but in my experience so far, people are there because they simply love creating art! You are there to share the love. Most societies will just be happy to have new members to carry on their legacy, as well.

Monotony is a killer of the human spirit. Don't let yourself fall into the trap! Remember that solitary confinement is considered a form of punishment for a reason.

(Know of any places artists can find local meetups and sketch jams? Share in comments! I'd love to know if there are any in the Newnan, Fayetteville, and Peachtree City, GA area, myself!)

The Importance of Self-Critique

2012-01-17T17:14:00.000-05:00

This new year has me feeling very introspective of late. There are 11 more months ahead of us and I have been thinking how I really want to make this year count towards making an improvement in my life and my art. I've already mentioned a possible career shift, and this has moved me into vastly unfamiliar territory where I can no longer just 'get by' doing what I'm doing at my current skill level. A veil of soft, plushy dream blanket has been torn away to reveal the cold, hard facts I need to realize about myself and my work.

If I want to compete in a competitive business like concept art/licensing/whatever art job I might want in the future, I'm going to have to be able to compete with people who are already in the business. I'm going to have to sit and take a look at my own work and honestly ask myself the question "Are you as good as them?". I'm going to have to be the one to face up to the weaknesses in my work and make myself do what it takes to improve. I am no longer a child nor am I a student in a classroom. I am an adult, an independent, self-employed artist and nobody else in the world is going to make me sit and study and do the work it takes to improve except little 'ol me.

It's so easy to get trapped in what's comfortable. So easy to say "yeah I'm just not good at that". But that is not how an artist becomes better (and it's not how you get an art job either). There are too many people out there who have great skill and passion. If you have even less passion, what makes you think you'll be picked over that passionate person? Maybe you will, but I prefer to hedge my bets with a little more than a 'maybe'.

These thoughts have equaled a downturn in productivity for more than a few months now, but I feel like I'm finally finding my balance again. I've started doing a few studies a night now or taking time to just sit and collect inspirational references and think about what they can teach me about my work. While the studies I'm doing right now aren't masterpieces by any stretch of the imagination, they're helping to build the visual vocabulary I have been lacking for whatever reason. I'm also finding the lack of a particular strength is no longer my focus (and downfall), but rather filling that lack. It took a lot of brow beating to get to this point, but obsessing over what exactly was lacking for too long put me in a downturn that I almost couldn't dig out of. It's time to fess up. Time to put my kicking boots on!

And on that note, I did a MEME. I'm considering this my visual 'strategic plan' for what exact actions I want to take to become a better artist this year. I may not get it all done this year, but at least I'm finally starting the process, and that is sometimes the most difficult part of improving!

(Click to Enlarge)

If you'd like to take the Artist's Oath to Improve with me, you can download the blank template here!

I hope my triumphs and failures help somebody out there. I hope I have the energy to keep going!

But I know it's all going to pay off if I can keep this ball rolling.

To our success!

Angelic Visions Monthly Book Drawing!

2012-01-11T10:56:00.000-05:00

A quick announcement today! To ring in the new year on a positive note, I've decided I'll be hosting a monthly giveaway of my art book, Angelic Visions: Create Fantasy Art Angels With Watercolor, Ink and Colored Pencil!

Once a month for every month this year I'll be giving away a copy for absolutely FREE to folks within the US.

I'm running these giveaways via Goodreads Giveaways, so you can read more details on how to enter here:

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Angelic Visions

by Angela R Sasser

Giveaway ends January 31, 2012.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Also, I'll be announcing when each month's giveaway goes up on my Twitter and Facebook fan page, so go check them out if you haven't yet!

Haven't heard of my book? You can watch a book trailer here so see what it's all about!:

Please help me spread the word by telling your friends using the Sharing buttons at the top of this entry.

If you're a winner, you can help me out even more by leaving a review on Amazon, Goodreads, or any of the old familiar places!

Wishing you all good fortune and inspiration in 2012!

The Search for the Cintiq

2012-01-09T13:17:00.001-05:00

Made from unicorn dust &
the dreams of every artist.

It was during the middle of last year that I decided the next direction I wanted to push my work in would be digital. Mind, that I don't want to abandon traditional entirely, but rather I wanted to be able to present myself as a multi-skilled artist capable of doing both.

There was just one problem - I absolutely loathed working on my Intuos3!

Reasons I Wanted to Upgrade

It's true that the Intuos3 6x8 tablet I was using was a vast improvement upon the tiny graphire2 I used to own, but there was still a disconnect between what I felt was a natural sweep of my hand with a pencil and what I was seeing on screen. It wasn't comfortable and I thought that comfort would come with practice. It does for some, but it didn't for me. It came to the point I just found digital uncomfortable and continued to avoid using it for anything more than coloring my traditionally drawn line art.

For years, I had thought the Cintiq, a form of tablet that's basically a pressure sensitive monitor where you actually draw directly on the screen, were far out of my price range, but a random whim to check them on eBay last year revealed plenty of Cintiqs under $800 out there for the grabbing! (Most retail new at $1000+!)

Caution When Buying!

You have to be careful, however, because the first model I found was the Cintiq 15PL 550. It seemed like a good deal with a slightly larger work area than the 12WX and a pretty tempting price! For artists, I say avoid these like the plague! After some research, I found that they have half the sensitivity level of my Intuos3, no shortcut buttons on the sides, and really weren't meant for application as graphics tablets, but more for basic presentations.

After finding I have no room for my keyboard on my desk and Cintiq at the same time, let me tell you, you will WANT those macro buttons! There is no survival without them, and while it's easy enough to reach and hit the keyboard shortcuts in Photoshop, it's even easier to simply program them into one of the many buttons on the newer models of the Cintiq.

What to Buy?

Eventually I settled on the Cintiq 12WX, the new smaller size model, which is somewhat more portable than the larger ones, is at a relatively affordable price point, provides a decent drawing space on screen, and has plenty of programmable macro buttons (including a slide bar to zoom in and out). What really sold me on this tablet was this video review by Frank's Tech Help which helped me to get an idea of the scale of tablet to artist and computer.

Ironically enough, most people selling Cintiqs on eBay were people upgrading to a larger/newer model and auctioning off their old one, a testament to the quality of the product! This is something to remember if you ever upgrade from your old Wacom equipment. They keep their value extremely well!

Where to Buy?

I bought mine from eBay, which seems the best place to find used electronics. Be prepared to put a high bid of up to $800 on a 12WX! However, you can get lucky and get one for about $680 like I did, which was only possible because I tried six different times using a snipe tool (Justsnipe) to land a bid at the last minute! If you're not fond of used equipment, the best price on a new Cintiq 12WX I found at the time was at Walmart.com (Who knew?).

The Proof is in the Pudding

And what glorious pudding it is! The used 12WX I bought had all of its cds, components, and its original box. The last owner took pristine care! It even has the alternate nibs if I want to add a little friction to the stylus' tip. My first impressions after using the Cintiq to finish my zany digital commission is that it answers my need to be able to draw curved lines without having to make a stroke and then clicking Undo until the line is right.

I can turn the Cintiq in my lap till I get the right drawing angle in a far more comfortable and natural way, as if I were holding a sketch pad (another advantage to drawing on this smaller size). I don't find the screen cramped at all, though you will have to make some adjustments to your monitor setup so all of your program's dialog windows show up on the main display (which I usually set as my Cintiq). (For further reading on priming your Cintiq for use, see this handy blog post!)

The Drawbacks?

The only drawbacks I'm finding right now is that I'm getting neck aches from working on the Cintiq because I don't have an ideal desk (it's about 5 inches too low), so I'm having to prop on a box. A lap desk has also proven useful for propping the Cintiq directly in my lap. Eventually, I will get one of those fancy mounting arms for small TVs so I can swivel the Cintiq to whatever position I like. I've seen this done to great effect! If you don't trust velcro, there are also mounting arms with clips.

Sadly, the Cintiq is also not as portable as I'd like it to be. While yes I can put it in a carrying case with my laptop, you'll have to have two free outlets (one for laptop and the other for your Cintiq). I'll probably end up getting a small outlet splitter for this purpose.

I Got One! How do I Transport it?

When I tried to find a carrying case for the Cintiq online, I couldn't find a single generic knock off of the shiny official $200 professional carrying case from Cintiq. It's beautiful, but with moths flying out of my pocket after buying the Cintiq, I definitely couldn't afford this pricey bag!

Instead, I settled on a Wenger Legacy 17" Laptop Sleeve (WA-7444-14F00), which bought online is about $30 less than in the store! It fits the control box, cables, and power cords for both my laptop and Cintiq comfortably, though there is barely any wiggle room after you put all of that in! I also put my Cintiq in a neoprene sleeve for extra protection just to make sure.

In Closing...

Anyone want my old tablet? It's up for auction now! It's had a good run, but it's time to pass it on to another artist who can use it more. Give it a happy home, if you can! We weren't good friends, but I treated it right and was at least cordial during social occasions with it. Starting bid is $80, a steal for this kind of equipment!

Click this link to be taken to my auction!

Portfolio Review: Laurie Thomas

2011-12-27T14:31:00.001-05:00

The year draws to a close and I hope all of you had a wonderful holiday season! To celebrate the end of yet another year here at this journal, I thought it only fitting to end with a beginning!

I'm happy to introduce the first portfolio review in what I hope to be an ongoing series. This review is for Laurie Thomas, who sent in the following samples of her work:

See more at Laurie's DeviantART Gallery!

Overall Impression: Laurie mentioned that she was interested in getting into games, licensing graphics for apparel, and possibly designing for movies. From what I can tell, you're well on your way to having a stunning portfolio, Laurie! Your colors are bold and your designs rich and detailed. What it seems you need to do now is come up with a strategy for focusing your subject matter and presenting your portfolios in such a way as to appeal to the industries you're hoping to enter. I say 'portfolios' plural because each industry is going to expect something different!

When licensing to the apparel industry, you'll need a large body of consistent work that will also fit well on t-shirts, bags, etc. (at least 24 pieces for presentation, so I've read). Licensing companies like series of images with consistent high quality, so if you can tie together your characters into some appealing ideas (ie. birthstones, zodiac signs, gemstones, elements, etc.), you'll have some great basic pieces to start yourself out with! A great way to see if your art will fit on items is to upload them to Zazzle, which pre-renders your art on the item of your choice. It's a simple way to create licensed art mock ups, which are essential for creating presentations.

You also need to be aware of the trends that sell (ie. fairies, lolita, gothic, cute things, etc.) and that means doing some research! Keep up with other artists in the industry (Anne Stokes, Amy Brown, Jasmine Becket-Griffith, etc.). Start paying attention to the clothing brands that sell items with art similar to yours and make a note of who those companies are. I highly stress reading Licensing 101 before you go down the licensing path. Be aware of the dangers and the options for selling your work, as there are many! Above all, register your copyrights before licensing anything! The US copyright office allows registration of sets of images, so that may be a cost effective way for you to go.

As for the game industry, I can see your work fitting in very well with many of the social media/networking games tailored for younger audiences with anime inclinations (ie. GaiaOnline, Facebook games, MMOs, etc). There are also opportunities in interactive novels and manga! I highly recommend subscribing to magazines like ImagineFX to keep up with the game art industry and scout out jobs. It's also an excellent place to learn about presentation skills from pros, as well as techniques and shortcuts! This advice also counts double for movies, which requires a similar skillset to concept/game artists and are also addressed in IFX. In general, work on presenting characters, accessories, equipment, and environments. Conceptart.org and CGhub's weekly challenges are great places to start building a game design portfolio. They're also great places to learn from more experienced artists!

Strengths and Weaknesses: You already possess very highly developed technical skills, but I would watch out for making your images too detailed. Koi for example has a lovely color palette and character, but the intricate designs, patterns, flower bursts, and clothing folds really overwhelm the eye and lead the compositional flow every which way. A way to balance this might be to downplay the flowers, while simplifying her kimono and other details.

Speaking of those flowers, they seem a bit unfinished in comparison to the rest, which is something you'll need to consider for your final products. If a final product is meant to be printed larger, areas that aren't as tightly developed will appear sloppy. However, if your final product is going to be smaller (ie. Card art, small items), there's no need to put all that detail in, because the smaller resolution will allow it to appear smoother.

Another thing to be aware of is that limiting your style to anime may shove you into a niche box. If it's a box you're comfortable in, than be the best you can be in that niche and you're bound to get attention! However, you must also be aware that anime style in general (at least in the States), is stereotyped as being for juveniles. It may be more difficult to get editorial illustration work with an anime style portfolio, but that is where presenting varied multiple portfolios to varying clients might serve you well. Also, you may not even want to do any other work, and that is okay too! It's just that the more varied an artist you are, the higher chances you'll be able to round up that next job to feed yourself.

By the same token, you only want to put out work you want to be hired for, else you'll get stuck doing work you loathe. It becomes a balancing act between getting good at the niche or adapting to something different and that's a call every commercial artist has to make.

I hope this portfolio review has given you some food for thought, Laurie. Best of luck from me to you and I hope to see your name in the headlines soon! If any of my dear readers here have additional advice for Laurie, please share in comments! I am not the end all, be all and welcome anything useful others might have to add.

Interested in a Portfolio Review of your own?

Read here for more info on how to get one!

Sketch Diary: The Gift Giver Part 3

2011-12-20T11:33:00.002-05:00

This week has been a haze of coffee and late nights powered by holiday cookies! The last entry ended with the finished line art, which ended up being revised several times during the course of trying to color the piece.

Luckily, digital pieces are more forgiving than watercolor! I was able to lengthen the fingers of the right hand (on the left), which seemed stubby despite being correct on the model Sometimes when we convert photo references to line art, something is lost in translation and that is where our creative mind must work with what 'looks' right rather than what the photo shows, else you could end up with some very awkward anatomy. A camera distorts things at times due to perspective and spacing, as well.

One must also be aware of the fact that the photo reference is not the end all be all! We must be willing to depart from it to get the most visually pleasing look, otherwise the image could end up a bit stiff! Some artists will even hide the reference after the basics of the pose are finished, which I find is a good strategy for breaking reliance on reference.

The photo reference compared to the final line art.

The next phase of coloring began with a simple color test laying in flat colors. I wanted the spirit to be the brightest thing in the image, so everything else was dark and saturated by comparison. By the end, she ended up with more of a greenish blue shadow to help get the idea across that the green of the background was reflecting in her skin, despite her glow. The starker shadow also helps her to feel more solid and rounded, despite her ghostliness, and accentuates her glow.

From this...

...to this!

(To see the steps between these two images, check out the WIPnation thread! I also made more detailed notes of exactly what processes I used per step there.)

You can also view an animated time lapse of the video here:

All in all, I feel I've definitely hit a milestone with this fully digital piece! Learning the ins and outs of Adjustment Layers and Layer Masks has really helped to open new doors for me and make my life easier. With masks, I can save my original image without having to start over, should colors not look right. The Cintiq has also made coloring digitally feel 200% more natural than my old Intuos. I have a good feeling that things will only get better from here on out!

(Back to the first post)

Sketch Diary: The Gift Giver Part 2

2011-12-14T11:24:00.002-05:00

Sketch Diary: The Gift Giver Part 2 - Drafting
(Back to Part 1)

The last sketch diary for this image talked about conceptualizing the piece. Now that the thinking part is done, it's time for the doing! At the start, I had decided to do this piece digitally due to time constraints, but also to give me a chance to break in the used Cintiq 12WX that I got as an early Christmas present!

The rumors are true! Cintiqs really are made with unicorn horn dust and the solidified happy thoughts of artists! My first impressions are highly favorable and I'm really excited at the natural line weight I'm able to achieve with this tablet, thus far. I'll be writing up a more in-depth review of the Cintiq in a later entry.

Long story short, I've had a traditional Intous3 tablet for years, but could never get used to the unintuitive feel and disconnect between my hand and what I was seeing on the monitor. The Cintiq has eased the process by letting me see exactly what I'm drawing and responding more delicately to my hand motions. Curves are especially easier to draw because I can see precisely what I'm doing and rotate the Cintiq as needed to draw the curve more easily.

Having given the Cintiq a test run on this image, I can say with confidence that I can finally get a more natural comfortable workflow with my line art, if this draft is any indication!

We've gone from this...

...to this!

You can see more detailed steps of the images in-between the rough sketch and the line draft at the WIPnation thread.

Somewhere between sketch and draft, her hair was cut back to allow for a more controlled directional flow in the composition. She's also lost her wings, since they would have interfered too much with the detail in the hair. The grey spaces and Christmas trees are placeholders until I can work something more detailed in with color in the next phase.

To achieve the abstract effect for the Christmas trees, I used a stock image, then in Photoshop I went to Image>Adjustments>Posterize. That broke the tree image down into simplified forms which blend better with the line art. I may end up actually photomanipulating a good deal of the background due to time constraints, but we'll see what I can dish out! I still have a few subtle hatching details to add to the line art, but for the most part, she is finished!

(On to Part 3)

DON'T FORGET my Holiday Raffle for a chance to win art prints and a custom commission from me!

Going on the rest of this month.

Sketch Diary: The Gift Giver Part 1

2011-12-11T22:30:00.001-05:00

The Gift Giver Part 1 - Conceptualization

It's that time of year again! Yes, that glorious time where I rush to finish my yearly Christmas card at the last minute! Folks seemed to enjoy last year's sketch diary for Lady Snowflake so I thought I'd document this year's card in much the same fashion.

It all began with trying to figure out what I wanted to do this year! Poinsettias? Candles? Holly leaves? There are so many visual motifs to play with for the season! I put up a poll on DeviantART asking what folks have enjoyed the best and art nouveau ladies won out! It's true, I admit my favorite Christmas card is still the 2nd one I ever did, entitled "Holiday Nouveau". I wanted to bring some of the warmth and style of this piece into the newest card. Plus, I had never used big shiny packages and bows in a card before! There's nothing like beautifully wrapped presents to bring cheer and excitement to the season.

With art nouveau ladies and shiny packages in mind, thumbnailing began!

Out of all of these thumbnails, the top two resonated with me the most. They have the most interesting visual flow and dynamic posing. The top right ended up being the winner for the fact it's completely different than all of my previous cards, as well as the fact there is more interaction between the figure and the presents, giving it more of an active story in the piece rather than 'dainty lady posing with packages'.

Mizzd-stock's beautiful holiday stock also lended a hand in inspiring me for this gal's attire:

Such beautiful hair and costume! I'm sure to bring in some of
these motifs into the finished piece.

Next, I brought the thumbnail into Photoshop and sketched directly on top of it digitally. It took a good deal of fiddling with window shapes before I arrived at this simple single rounded archway vignette.

The flow of the piece is doing what I want to it to right now, but the anatomy and awkward angle on the torso were completely baffling me! So I took a few reference shots of my own to try and get a more solid grip on the anatomy. I also set up a light on the floor to act as an unearthly glow in the faerie's skin.

Sadly, I am neither thin nor faerie-like, so I'll need to do some anatomy
tweaking while I'm referencing this in my piece later.

And that's it for the conceptualization phase! Stay tuned! I'll be blogging my progress throughout the week and hope to have this finished by next weekend. Wish me luck!

I'm gonna need it!

(On to Part 2!)

(Are you a member of WIPnation? Check out my progress thread here!)

DON'T FORGET my Holiday Raffle for a chance to win art prints and a custom commission fro me! Going on the rest of this month.

Angelic Shades Holiday Print Sale + Giveaway 2011

2011-12-10T22:43:00.001-05:00

EDIT: Well bummer, it seems that running raffles are against Paypal's terms of service! I had no idea that this was the case so my raffle is now a print sale and GIVEAWAY!

By sending me a $1, you get a mini print or art card print chosen at random from my collection! This purchase automatically enters you into my drawing. Read the the rest of this entry for the revamped details on how to take part in this event!

I was sitting here perplexed at what to do with all the leftover stock from my recent events and LO, I saw many folks on my Watch holding holiday raffles! I love the idea of being able to give people a chance at art for a low price during these hard economic times, particularly during the holidays. So I thought I'd give this a go myself!

If all goes well, I may make this a yearly tradition!

TO ENTER:

IMPORTANT! Your subject must be ‘Holiday Print’ and this must be a payment marked as 'Goods'! Send your Paypal payment to angela (at) angelicshades.com

By purchasing, you get one mini print or art card printchosen at random from my stock and are automaticallyentered into my drawing!

Any dollar spent past $1 automatically enters you for extrachances to win! Only 1 print will be given out per customer regardless of the amount paid past $1, however.Be sure to include your name and address in the message if it is different from the info on your Paypal account

WHAT YOU'RE GETTING:

You are getting one mini print or ACEO print for $1 chosen at random from my stock! This automatically enters you into my Christmas giveaway.

PRIZE EXAMPLES:

Character Sheet - This would be a digitally drawn sheet of concept art showing a full turn around of a single character plus accessory details! This can be a pre-existing character or one with written description only.

Example character sheet.

Custom Leather Item - I am skilled in making masks, earrings, hair barrettes, keychains, brooches, and necklace pendants!For examples of what I have to offer for leather items, see my artisan gallery.

Just a few examples of what leather
items I can offer!

NOTE! I have the right to deny a topic for the grand prize if I don't agree with it or don't have the proper materials/skills, though I am pretty flexible and will do everything in my power to meet your request. We will discuss further details after the winner is chosen.

Questions? Comments? Feel free to email me or comment on this entry!

On the Workbench: Craftstravaganzaa

2011-11-23T11:45:00.001-05:00

It's t-minus 9 days till Athens, Craftstravaganzaa and I'm working like a crazy lady to make lots of goodies for the event! It'll be my first indie craft fair so I'm curious to see how it goes and also what the holiday market crowd is like. Things have been slow this year, so I'm hoping for an uptick all around!

Here's a peek at the current batch of butterfly themed jewelry I'm working on:

Here we have earrings, necklace pendants, and a finished set!
The big butterfly at the bottom is to be a hair brooch held on
with a hair stick.

I've been able to shoot video of some of my painting process, which I hope to share soon as a time lapse! It's interesting to step back from yourself and see what actually goes into the work process. You never know how meticulous you are till you see it from the outside!

I've also been trying out a new painting process using Golden's Interference Acrylics. I ended up buying the fluid acrylic versions in the bottles, which are slightly cheaper, but seem to work all the same! I'm amazed at this fantastic new paint technology that works slightly different than the usual metallic paints you can buy. While metallic paints are shiny, interference paints have an opalescence to them that is affected by the colors underneath them. They become more brilliant over lighter colors and richer over darker colors. It's really hard to describe without seeing them in person! They are more translucent than regular metallic paints, but the interplay of light is much more brilliant.

If you're looking to add iridescent effects to your paintings or crafts, these paints are perfect! I would save up or use a coupon from one of your favorite art stores, as they're very expensive ($8 for just one tiny bottle!). The Michaels here has a couple of the basic interference colors in the Liquitex brands, which I suspect work just the same as the Golden (which I purchased at a discount from Utretch here in ATL.) I'd be curious to know how interference paints scan in 2D work, if anyone has any examples to share? Here are some of mine painted on leather! Photos just don't do the brilliance justice, however:

The opalescence works perfectly to get the dusted shine of butterfly wings.
On the left is the Interference Blue. On the right is the Interference Gold.
The interference colors were painted on top of normal craft quality acrylics.

In other news, I'm having a Black Friday Sale at my Etsy shop, so go check it out! Get 25% OFF everything, including custom items, until Cyber Monday (Nov 28th)! Just enter the code BLKFRI during checkout.

Expect my shop to explode after Crafstravaganzaa with tons of new offerings, including (but not limited to), butterfly hair brooches, new types of earrings, and this year's new Christmas series image.

And now back to work! So much to craft, so little time!

Wacom Tablet for Sale! Plus Life News

2011-11-16T00:32:00.001-05:00

EDIT: I'm sorry guys, but I ended the auction on my tablet early. A dear friend's apartment burned down yesterday. She lost everything, including her equipment and her dear cats. I am donating my tablet to her in this time of need.

There are still plenty of other things up, including graphic novels, movies, & video game stuff. I'll be adding more leathercrafting tools soon... See my current auctions here.

So it looks like there may be a move coming up some point within the next year for me! Things are in a state of transition here from full time freelancer to part-time freelancer, part-time day jobber, from fanciful artist to concept artist. Everything is a whirl of excitement and potential! I may also be moving to other accommodations that will be all my own, which I'm hoping will be just the bump in inspiration that I need.

Along those lines, I've recently bit the bullet and bought a Cintiq 12WX after much thought, much penny pinching, and a helping hand from the family as an early Christmas present. I managed to snag one in excellent condition on eBay for about half the retail price! Lucky me! I have high hopes that this will help my transition into digital and to make my workflow vastly more efficient.

Even after years of trying, I still find it like pulling teeth to get the Intuos3 to draw lines more naturally in Photoshop, though it certainly works better than trying to draw with a mouse! The 12WX is the smallest model of Cintiq, but so far I've found it to be the most affordable and it doesn't feel horribly cramped. I'll have a more in-depth review later as I break in this wonderful tool!

Soo without further ado, the moving sale! I've got my Wacom Intuos3 6x8 tablet up for auction starting at $80 on eBay! This is literally a STEAL, considering how well Wacom products keep their value. It has been well loved, is fully functional, and comes with the tablet and stylus only.

~~(Click the pic to be taken to the auction)~~

In addition, I've got a few other odds and ends up for auction, including graphic novels, video games, strategy guides, and movies from my extensive collection of random crap. Expect more later because my days as an avid book worm have done nothing to help my ability to be easily moved into another household! Help!

I promise next time a return to more serious and arty topics. Please excuse my string of spammy blogs of late!

Upcoming Events: Book Fair, Craft Fair, & Art Demo

2011-11-09T14:48:00.000-05:00

A quick update today as I'm short on time! I've been a busy little bee prepping for the holiday season with a slew of events!

First off, I'll be at the Dahlonega Book Festival this weekend where I'll be selling copies of my book, Angelic Visions, along with my handmade leather feather bookmarks! It's a chance to get all of these goodies in person and yack about art, life, and publication! Would love to see any locals so feel free to drop on by!

I'll also be participating in a panel with other new non-fiction authors at 1:30 PM in Room 103/105 of St. Luke's Parish Hall on Saturday while I'm there.

You can find the Facebook event link here.

Next up, I'll be participating in the Athens Craftstravaganzaa holiday market Saturday, December 3rd. It'll be my first dedicated indie craft event and I'm very excited!

I'll be debuting several new leather craft accessories as well as peddling my usual selection of butterfly keychains, earrings, and necklaces. I'll have other holiday cards, prints, etc. in tow as well. If you want any specific items, let me know and I'll be sure to bring them along!

You can find the Facebook event link here.

And finally, Monday, December 5th, I'll be visiting the Atlanta chapter of the Colored Pencil Society of America for a demonstration of my mixed media techniques and a Q&A about Angelic Visions!

Read on for more details at the Facebook event link here.

I may be a little sparse around here until things calm down. In the meanwhile, you guys should think about sending me Portfolio Review requests, as I would love to feature some up and coming artists here!

I hope to see some familiar faces at these events!

Till then, enjoy the pumpkin spice and turkey of the harvest season!

Leather Crafting Tools For SALE!

2011-11-02T09:59:00.002-04:00

A few months ago, I landed a nice big tool kit from Tandy thanks to some prize winnings for entering one of their contests. This left me with some duplicates I needed to get rid of. I've finally put these duplicate tools up on eBay for any who might need them!

I'm starting them off at 99 CENTS each! I want to pass my tools along to those who need them and hope you can use them for your projects.

The auctions are here at this link:

http://www.ebay.com/sch/angelicshades/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=

I'll be adding additional duplicate tools as I unearth them from the depths of my closet.

Follow the original journal entry on DA for notifications of when new tools are added:

http://ladydove7-artisan.deviantart.com/journal/Leather-Crafting-Tools-For-SALE-266699116

Games as Art: Fatal Frame III

2011-10-26T13:23:00.002-04:00

A long time ago in entries past, I rambled about the inspiring designs of games like Folklore and the beautiful grotesqueries of Fatal Frame. I wanted to come back to those discussions in what I hope to be an ongoing series on this journal (yes another one) featuring games I feel move beyond mere entertainment into the realm of being a work of art.

I love games, the art that goes into them, the music, and the increasing quality of storytelling we're seeing as the industry progresses. With my current career choices leading me down a possibly game-related path, it seemed only natural to start exploring this passion of mine and connecting the dots of inspiration, artistry, and industry.

So let me introduce you to Fatal Frame III: The Tormented, a little known horror game that came out in 2005 exclusively to the PS2. The story revolves around a young photographer named Rei Kurosawa. Barely a year before the start of the story, Rei lost her boyfriend, Yuu, in a car accident, which she blames herself for. Rei begins to unravel mentally when she experiences a hallucination of her boyfriend beckoning to her during a photo shoot at an abandoned house.

She begins to dream of a sprawling mansion,Yuu beckoning her deeper into its depths. Ghostly priests and priestesses bow at her presence and she soon finds herself staring up into their faces as four young priestesses line up silver stakes with her hands and feet, chanting a lullaby while they nail her into the ground.

A scene from Rei's initial dream. Surrounded by four singing
priestesses.

The Manor of Sleep.

The game untangles the mystery of this 'Manor of Sleep' and the urban legend that those who visit it will either be reunited with their departed loved ones, or disappear from the real world with nothing left of them but ashes after 7 days. One need not have played the past games to enjoy this one, though those who played the previous games will recognize familiar faces and recurring locales.

The game features three playable characters who all have varying abilities which allow them access to different parts of the Manor of Sleep with the main combat mechanic involving the use of an old fashioned camera to exorcise violent spirits who attack you.

This is where the game really starts to play tricks on the mind. Unlike many other horror games where you have to run or are able to combat your monstrous enemies with brute force, Fatal Frame (true of the entire series) forces you to stare at them as long as possible so you can get the best 'shot' of them with your camera, and therefore the most points. We must face our fears and look them dead in the eye.

Facing our fears up close and personal.

Rei and Miku's huge apartment must
cost them a fortune in rent in Japan!

If that weren't nerve-wracking enough, the game's story unfolds in day and night chapters, the day sections taking place in Rei and her assistant, Miku's, apartment, while the night chapters start with Rei falling asleep and dreaming of the same ghostly mansion each time. She starts in the same location almost every night, giving us a feel of deja vu each time she awakens to the same terrible situation. Each night she must venture deeper and deeper into the Manor's depths and uncover its terrible secrets, cementing the sense of impending doom in the Player every time she awakens.

Sure enough, as the game unfolds, the horror of the dream world begins to invade the safe realm of the apartment, pushing the tension of the story and the desperation of the characters to a breaking point by the end.

Eventually Miku becomes embroiled in the mansion as well and we see her view of the Manor of Sleep where she, too, is searching for a loved one, and a ghost that has plagued her own family. Those who played the first game will feel that tightening sense of dread when they see the hints of the Rope Ritual from the first game in the familiar dreamscapes that invade the Manor's geography and cast us deeper into the unfamiliar.

Those of us who played the first game will know to fear this hallway.

Ritual sacrifice plays a large roll in making Fatal Frame as immersive and terrifying as it is. Each game forces us to unravel the mystery at the heart of each central ritual and what has caused so many tormented spirits to remain on earth. These mysteries usually involve the troubled lives of the main characters, and therefore the Player, who empathizes with the trials of the characters as we descend deeper and deeper into madness with them. This tie to Japanese Shinto ritual also provides one of the strongest visual motifs for the series, which is permeated with eerily beautiful images of corrupted priestesses and picturesque temples destroyed by past cataclysms. We, the Player, peel back layers of mythos through documents, love letters, old photographs, decrepit film reels, and snippets of flashbacks presented via cg scenes overlaid with dated film texture, all utilizing a subtle design sensibility that submerges us in a world of old, forgotten things now coming to light.

Fatal Frame III takes the Player beyond a mere product digested for entertainment and into another realm of emotion, utilizing all the tricks of charged atmosphere, clever audio-visual queues, involved storytelling, and subdued design to create a wholly unique experience in gaming. A pity such a game will probably never see widespread acclaim, being as niche as it is, but it's my hope this entry will have at least shed some new light on an old gem some of you might appreciate!

For now, I leave you with more shots to haunt you into the Halloween weekend:

Rei stands amid lanterns sent out for the dead.
A great example of the creepy beauty in this horror game.

Forgotten Shinto rituals and shrines give this game an eerie atmosphere
saturated by folkore.

Just one of the many creepy ghosts with such fascinating
details that make you want to both run away and look harder.

While outright gore is rare, the game relies more on hints
of gruesome ceremonies to drive the tension.
Just a note - that's not a massage table.

Finally, we have a video of the intro section of the game I described above:

Community Feature: WiPnation

2011-10-19T11:12:00.001-04:00

For as much as I ramble about art marketing here, I realize I haven't even begun to scratch the surface of all the tools out there for artists to promote themselves, specifically art communities! Today I'm featuring a fledgling art community called WiPNation in the first of an ongoing series highlighting communities that provide unique services to artists.

There are only so many hours in the day to participate in art communities and I want to share why artists should be spending some of that time on this site.

It's difficult to grow if you exist in a void (well unless you're an amoeba) and that is where constructive criticism comes in. It is my firm belief that all artists need to put their work up for constructive critique or they risk making the same mistakes over and over again without ever improving. WiPnation steps in to fill this need and, unlike other art communities, focuses mainly on criticism as the crux of interaction on the site.

I used this site personally to complete two pieces for DragonCon under a major time crunch and can say with full confidence that my pieces came out far better than they would have if I hadn't received criticism from this site. The beauty of WiPn's setup is that you can upload multiple images within a single page, which allows you to follow the evolution of a piece of art as the artist uploads new steps (or Revisions as they're called). To see this process in action, you can click the thumbnails below of the aforementioned pieces of mine:

Other users on the site can come and critique any phase of the image as well as leave redlines (visual corrections drawn in red) on the images. It sounds simple, but it beats other sites where you would have to dig through links and embedded images in a forum or comment string to see the critique relevant to your image (or a particular phase of your image). Additional features of the site include the ability to post blog posts and the ability to 'Like' and follow specific pieces and users. They plan to roll out even more robust functionality in the future as they develop.

It's this easy to follow Revisions feature that really makes WiPn powerful, helpful, and unique. Couple that with the fact you have a strong core of people who are passionate about art and artists at the helm and you have a site worth keeping an eye on in the future!

WiPnation is still in its beta phase right now and could really use your input, so go sign up and give it a shot! They also need commentary from happy users to win a $50k hiring grant, which you can help out with here.

What has your personal experience with this community been like? Has it affected your art or art business? Will you be trying it out for yourself? Discuss in comments!

A Reminder - I'm still seeking artists in need of portfolio reviews. Read on here for more info!

Commissions, Portfolio Reviews, and Study Sources

2011-10-12T10:39:00.009-04:00

So a lot of big changes have been stewing in the pot for me. With the decision to switch focus to more concept oriented work, I've been gathering resources to study not just design and the game industry, but also sources to help me in this challenging transition from traditional to digital media. I've also realized I need to step up my fundamentals, especially anatomy, perspective, and my old enemy - the background environment!

I feel like I'm going back to school again, which is kind of exciting! I miss studying and learning new things and even considered picking up some classes here at SCAD-Atlanta again with my alumni discount, but I figure I would try the self-study route first and see what happens before getting myself into more student debt than I already have. No doubt this is going to be a willpower-driven endeavor, but I CAN do this!

I feel like I'm shooting myself in the foot here, but due to the amount of time I should be studying instead of toiling into the night on commissions, I am shutting down private commissions UNLESS they have no deadlines whatsoever. I'm still going to finish the ones in my queue, but from now on, you will only be able to purchase custom work from me based on what is available in the Custom Items section of my Etsy shop (masks, keychains, pendants, earrings, etc. Mainly my crafts). I am still available for commercial and corporate work, however! I do need money, but I need my sanity more!

Rather than feel like I'm taking something away from you guys, I figured I'd offer something new - Portfolio Reviews! If you would like me to look at your work and provide constructive criticism of your strengths and weaknesses, send me an email with a link to 8-10 pieces, your name, a bit about what industry you're aiming for, and your website link with the SUBJECT: Portfolio Review. If you don't know what industry you're aiming for, let me know and I can always suggest what comes to mind in my humble opinion based on the work you present to me. It's a great way to get your work featured here, which I'll be doing once a week once I have somebody to feature!

Finally, I figured I'd share my list of study sources just in case anyone else is curious or going through this same transition. I'm on the lookout for more sources also, if anyone has any suggestions!:

Anatomy Books:
ImagineFX Presents: Anatomy - A nice collection of common problem anatomy areas complete with many charts, photos, and contour drawings by top notch artists. I snagged this one digitally for a low cost.

Atlas of Human Anatomy for the Artist - This is a somewhat dated book, but the section on different body types, expressions, and the effect of aging are exceedingly useful! Also, you can't beat $6 for a used copy.

Figure Drawing: Design and Invention - Breaking down the body into simplified shapes and contours. I love the approach of the gesture method used to establish the energy of a pose first before trying to construct the heavier lines, muscles, and forms. Energy is important and I feel this book is going to help me with my stiff figure problems.

Digital Coloring Books:

Imagine FX Presents: Fantasy Workshop - I'm a big fan of ImagineFX magazine for its inspiring tutorials and wonderful art from the game industry. This collection gathers many of the artists from their first run of magazines for specific techniques and tricks with screenshots for how the effects were achieved digitally. Unlike the 2nd book, which just gathers pre-existing workshops.

Digital Painting in Photoshop - Just a basic book on Photoshop tools. I know most of it, but there are some holes in my knowledge as far as file processing and setting up workspace and workflow. Sometimes it's good to get back to essentials, especially when you're self-taught and might have some glaring knowledge holes that could come to light in a digital job.

Digital Masters Collection: Volume 1 - Digital Painting Techniques - A straight up digital fantasy and scifi art book with instructions on how each image was made from pros in the industry.

Concept Art Books:
Avatar: The Last Airbender (The Art of the Animated Series) - Admittedly motivated by wanting this for my personal collection, but what better way to learn than to study this series that has inspired me so greatly? I intend to learn much from the designs which are so similar to the subject matter I'd love to be hired for, with particular attention paid to how they had to simplify the designs to work for television animation.

Game Art: Creation, Direction, and Careers - Also somewhat dated (as they're still talking about looking forward to nextgen systems like ps3), but the info on what sort of staff makes up a video game development company and what one should expect in their job is golden!

Instructional Videos:
CGMWORKSHOPS - A wonderful channel on YouTube showcasing the videos of various master artists and designers.

FZDSCHOOL - A channel on YouTube featuring videos from an amazing school of design with easy to follow videos on basic design concepts and digital painting techniques.

TheArtDepartment.org - An offshoot of conceptart.org for their instructional workshops. Amazingly, I just noticed in checking the site this morning that their videos are STILL on sale for $7.99! Personally, I've grabbed their workshops on color, composition, and perspective with a few of Jason Chan's character videos.

And that's all for now! Let the learning begin. My sponge brain is ready! Or perhaps it's just spongy from all those marker fumes...hrmmm...

Confessions of an Artist: Switching Career Focus?

2011-10-05T16:48:00.004-04:00

So back to a serious topic I broached somewhat when I was talking about what is working for me and what's not.

I've been weighing my potential career through a clouded looking glass lately. I'm turning the big 3-0 this year and this fact has me particularly introspective about my path in life.

I could continue going down my current path of the feminine high fantasy and really try to tailor myself to everything that the licensing business wants (colorful, steampunk, unicorns, fairies, holidays, angels etc.) All lovely in its own right, but I just can't seem to get motivated for anything lately. I find myself asking too many questions:

"Is this what I want to be known for?"

"Is it too late to change what I'm doing now if I want to do something different?"

"Is my current path what I'm passionate about?"

More and more, the answers to all three questions respectively are No, Yes, and NO. This indecision has led to more than a bit of art block for me lately (probably why my crafting has gone WAY up and new 2D art has gone WAY down.)

If you would have asked me what kind of artist I wanted to be when I was in high school, I would have told you I want to be the person who illustrated RPG books, a video game artist, and also write and illustrate my own story books. One by one, I convinced myself I could never make a living doing any of these things, an attitude aided by the discouragement of family members and teachers who claimed 'illustration' was a dirty word.

More practically, I didn't want to move from my current location to follow the job opportunities that might've sprung up from these industries. On average, if you want the well paying jobs in the industry, you have to be willing to move to snag those jobs and I was just not ready yet to detach from my family out of high school. Sure there is freelance, but for team oriented jobs, you are generally expected to relocate.

Nowadays, I'm haunted by the constant probing of doubt in the back of my mind. I am overwhelmed by choice every time I sit down to draw to the point the pencil feels so heavy, I can't decide what to do. I've decided it's high time to empty my head. That old bugaboo, Money, will come through side jobs or temp work. If I'm bored at my current job, I may as well be bored at a better paying job and not force the art out. I don't expect to be inspired every minute I work at my job, but I would at least like a greater majority of inspiration as opposed to being absolutely bored, to at least feel satisfied with the proportion of inspiration and effort that goes into my work and the payoff that equals in satisfaction with money, life, and otherwise.

What's important to me now is to follow my passion. More and more I realize that my passion is leading me back to the original impossibilities - concept art, writing, and other such unfamiliar territory.

I can't help but feel this is a step backwards. I have a book out already focusing on high fantasy illustration of a feminine nature. Does this mean I can't change? I have an established body of work completely different from what I originally wanted to do, in subject matter and even in choices of media (I am a traditional media artist venturing into a digitally dominated field. HALP!). Does this mean I won't be able to sell those older products anymore? I am at level zero again realizing that if I want to switch focus to something like concept art, I will need to completely overhaul my body of work and my public identity.

I need to be at least as good as the people already working for the companies I'd like to work for. I need to step up my game, get back to basics, and for the love of Prismacolor, I need to learn how to draw digitally!

With all this change in the wind, I have no doubt I'll still be making art, even if it's a bit different from what I've been doing before. I hope you all will bare with me, all the same! I have some wonderful art buddies who have been mentoring me during this transition and even the wonderful Hayley on board for a collaborative design project. There's hope, if I can just carve out the hours of the night enough to pull together a portfolio by Spectrum Fantastic Art Live, where it is my intention to tout my wares at portfolio reviews as a Concept Artist for the first time!

Today, I'm feeling old, tired, scared, and more overwhelmed than ever before. So it's back to square one, remembering my passions and moving forward, unstoppable. I'll find where I fit in this big puzzle of life!

(Hopefully by the time I'm 40)

Anatomy of an Art Fair Display Part 2

2011-09-28T11:24:00.004-04:00

(Continuing Anatomy of an Art Fair Display Part 1, which featured the main items involved in an art display setup. Now for a closer look into the nooks and crannies of the display!)

9. Curtain Hooks - I used curtain hooks to support my framed pieces. Be sure to get the ones with the super sharp ends! I was not happy to find the first batch of hooks I bought were the blunted kind, which equaled much cursing and trying to stab a carpet with a blunt object and failing. ($2 a pack at Lowe's)

10. Rotating Counter Rack - Great for the display of small prints or greeting cards and you can put a little sign on top. This particular rack has been with me for years now and has survived! ($35 at Displays2go)

11. Portfolios - I used an Itoya portfolio to display my large prints. For the art cards, a simple trading card album worked well! ($5 - $11 at Hobby Lobby)

12. Print Bin - Actually a collapsible file box. Bottom comes out and it folds down, making it much easier to transport than my solid heavy print bin. I'm thinking of replacing this with a much more rustic looking woven rectangular basket from Lowe's (which is advertised as 'closet storage baskets'). ($10 at Walmart)

13. Necklace Forms - I prefer the white ones as they show lint and dust less and my jewelry stands out against them. ($12 at Joanns, Hobby Lobby, and Michaels.)

14. 3 Tier Rotating Rack - These racks come with three levels of hooks which are great to display small items like bookmarks, keychains, earrings, and bracelets. You can adjust the level of the tiers or remove them completely. ($26 at Store Fixtures, USA)

15. Mannequin Head - This head came with pierced ears, making it great for displaying jewelry in addition to masks! ($26 at Store Fixtures, USA).

16. Minion (aka. Mom) - Art fairs are sooo much easier if you can trick someone into working for you in exchange for food! That way you can actually use the bathroom without having to burden your neighbors with watching your stuff while you run as fast as you can across the street to the poddy and back. Minions also make load in and load out 200 x easier. (Priceless! I love my mum.)

17. Director's Chairs - My family was already using these to stake out sporting events. They fold up for easy transport and are much more comfy than plain folding chairs. The drink holder is handy as well if you don't want to put your cup on uneven ground or on your table with your art. I think we got these chairs at Sam's Club, but I am unsure.

18. 3 Tiered Plastic Magazine Rack - Great for books, prints, and anything roughly 8.5x11 in. shaped! ($30 from displays2go.com)

19. Visa/Mastercard Sign - A simple plastic sign used to notify customers that I take credit and debit cards. I printed it off on cardstock and slipped it into the stand. You'd be amazed at how comforted people are to know that you can accept plastic money! Many people don't carry cash anymore, either because they prefer not to or because they're trying to limit their budget. Accepting cards is a good way to be that evil influence prompting people towards impulse purchases. That sounds bad, but hey, it's true! ($5 at Walmart or Staples)

20. Business Cards - Always ALWAYS have plenty of these on hand for customers (or for trading with your neighbors!) Networking is one of the biggest assets of actually venturing outside of your art cave and attending events! I usually buy mine in 1k bulk packs from Vistaprint when they have special offers. They usually toss in a free pen or ink pad too, just watch that you don't click to confirm any subscriptions during their lengthy checkout! I hear redtagprintsale.com has some nice prices on biz cards, but haven't tried them yet. (Roughly 10 cents per foil stamped card at Vistaprint.com)

21. Crushed Velvet Table Cloth - This piece of material has been with me from the very beginning! It's actually just an oversized piece of crushed velvet I got at the store when it went on sale. I've used it as a backdrop when photographing crafts, as a backdrop for hung pieces, and also as a way to cover up my table when I leave and don't want people to be tempted by what's left underneath. (Approx. $3 a yard on sale at Joanns Fabrics)

And that's all for now! I'm curious to see how my display will evolve over the next few events.
I'll be sure to let everyone know once it has leveled up!

Back to Part 1

Anatomy of an Art Fair Display Part 1

2011-09-27T19:55:00.006-04:00

So now for something completely different! With the art fair season nearing and so many folks expressing their thanks for the usefulness of the Evolution of an Artist Alley Table posts, I thought it high time to post my art fair diagrams!

Mind, that this display is my very first setup and will probably change down the road as I learn, improve, and add things. Let this journal act as a record of where I began and hopefully as a tool for others looking into selling at fairs!

You might recognize some of these items and descriptions from the Artist Alley diagrams because I totally believe in re-using things where possible.

My first fair on Fayetteville's courthouse square!

1. EZ Up Tent - This tent is a great first tent for those who don't want to spend the $1k that most of the Craft Huts cost! It can be set up by one person, is white (as per most art fair requirements), and fairly easy to transport in its included roller bag. Here is a video on how to set it up with one person (because I didn't find the included instructions very helpful). Be warned, however, as this tent is light and is known for blowing away and wreaking havoc! I snagged some velcro weight bags which you can fill with sand or gravel and that strap to the poles so people won't trip over them. ($200 at Sam's Club)

2. Retractable Vertical Banner - A pricey item, to be sure, but the fact I don't have to carry around a big pvc pipe set nor have it taking up space in my car makes this item well worth it! This vinyl banner pulls out from and retracts back into a spring loaded base that is about as big as a tabletop easel and very lightweight. I've lashed it to the tent pole using velcro straps so it wouldn't blow away. Mine was printed by my brother's sign shop. ($300 at Graphic Signs Atlanta for stand with metal base. $100 for cheaper version at Staples)

3. Propanels - After much debate over whether to get carpet panels, roll up mesh panels (which are about half the price), or to jerry-rig my own from something, I decided to go all-out with Propanels. Mesh panels, while collapsible and therefore more transportable, were still about $1k after all was said and done. I also can't use mesh panels without the support of the tent's rafters, whereas Propanels can stand on their own, making them useful for any cons or shows I do without a tent. The 'knock down' variety of panels pictured here can be split in half and transported far more easily than the full panels, even if I'm still having trouble fitting them in my teeny hatchback. ($2k from Propanels.com for the Booth A setup with Knock Down Panels plus required hardware. I owe my family favors for the rest of my life for this one. Ouch.)

4. Tables with Table Cloths - The two small display tables on the left of the picture are actually tail gating tables bought from Big Lots for cheap which fold up and have an easy carrying handle. They were super light, however, so I had to weight them down with objects on top. The table cloths were just scrap bits of material thrown on last minute, I admit. The larger table on the right is a white plastic table bought from Sam's Club that folds up and can also be carried. It is a bit heavier than the tail gate tables and doesn't really need to be weighted down. ($20 - $30 at Big Lots and Sam's Club.)

5. Easel with Signage - The stand up easel was purchased at Joanns Fabrics and is just a simple cheap wooden one without any bells and whistles. The sign was printed on foam core by my publisher and was eventually replaced in this setup with a piece of framed art instead. I'm fairly sure you can get foam core signs like this at Kinkos or other printing places. ($10 at Joann's Fabrics)

6. Folding Canvas Print Bin - This is the medium sized print bin available from Dickblick. Prints ranging from 11x14 in. to 18x24 in. look best in it. I noticed most people would stop and flip through it rather than venture into the tent. Note to self - MOAR flip through bins for people! Folks looove to browse through them for some reason. Folds up for easy transport. ($25 at Dickblick.com)

Stuff I forgot to include - The Carpet - I like the idea of a carpet in a tent. It feels so much more cozy, as if you're walking into a little shop! It also made the ground a little more even for customers to walk on. We also used it to lay items on while we were setting up so they wouldn't get muddy. My family picked this up in a flea market in Saudi Arabia years ago so I have no idea how much it costs.

This entry is going a bit long, so I'll be breaking up this grand monologue on art fair display into parts.

Stay tuned for a closer look at the particular display items nestled within the tent next time!

On to Part 2

Confessions of an Artist: Touching Down to Earth

2011-09-22T12:25:00.005-04:00

I started this blog 3 years ago in 2009 to document what I hoped to be a successful journey into publication, an art career, and to aid my fellow artist at the same time. After so long, I've finally sat down to re-assess where I am, how far I've come, and where I'm going as it pertains to my current career goals.

It's important to stop sometimes and be honest with ourselves about what's working and what's not in business, because in the end a smart businessman needs to do this or you have no business at all if it's not making any money. It is true that passion is key, but if you've made your passion your business, you still have to acknowledge these sorts of things or risk wasting a lot of time, money, and willpower by ignoring problems you could solve if you could just touch down to earth every once and a great while. So here goes...touching down with one finger!

What's Not Working (Because I prefer to end this post with the good stuff)

The Amazon Webstore - A couple of years ago, I jumped headlong into the webstore solution because I really truly believed in Amazon as an effective marketplace for artists. I took a gamble and put up a good deal of my own money to buy UPC codes and pay the store's monthly fees. It started out great at first. The shop was paying for itself and provided a great way for me to professionally present my products.

But upgrades do not always equal improvements and the system really went downhill for me after the first year. When year two rolled around, I only sold perhaps a total of 10 or less prints in an entire year? I don't know what happened, but for something I was shelling out $60 a month for when all the fees piled on, I lost a lot of money. I canceled it last week even though the fact I'd put SO much initial cost and effort into the setup made me hesitant to do so. I'm only just now beginning to move my entire store offerings to Etsy and Artfire .

Sometimes we gamble in business and sometimes we roll Snake Eyes. (Expect the full story of how Webstore fails in a future blog entry).

Conventions (Both Attending and Mailing In) - I attended or mailed in to at least 20 conventions in the past couple of years, but honestly? My average profit margin after expenses was about $20 aka. a complete waste of time. The only convention I've ever done consistently well at has been DragonCon. I won't be doing cons anymore, minus the few I know have worked for me in the past. If I do attend, it will probably be as a con-goer/art agent and not a vendor.

I am moving on instead to targeting art fairs where I can sell my crafts or book fairs where I can sell my books. The only conventions I plan to attend from here on out are ones that line up with my career focus (ie. Illuxcon, Spectrum Fantastic Live Art, etc). I feel they will be more worth my time and help me focus on building my career rather than pandering prints at places that just aren't working out.

Prints - Speaking of prints, they just don't sell for me. You would think they'd be the staple of an artist's income, but they are not (at least not me). People's walls are full? Perhaps I just need better art? Or lower prices? Perhaps Webstore sucked my print sales into the void along with Jimmy Hoffa?

Whatever the cause, other things (craft items, post cards, etc) are selling far better in recent times. I'll probably still have prints for sale up at my Etsy and by request, but they're not on the top of my list of things to put in my shop anymore.

Illustration as a Career - I have tried and tried to find art reps, have sent out to all the major Fantasy/Scifi publishers who accept art submissions, have sent inquiries to licensing reps...but have met rejection or silence or automated emails each time. This is not whining, but merely a statement of results. I know full well what I would need to do to improve to meet the demand (ArtOrder is especially helpful for educating artists in this respect), but I find I just don't have the motivation anymore.

Frankly, I have found myself terribly bored with illustration after these couple of years. I just don't think I have what it takes to be successful in this route because I find the current trends that are selling terribly boring. The best among us can find a way to add their own unique flair to the trends, but I just can't seem to get myself motivated.

You have to be willing to combine the passion for the arting with the passion for what sells and I have found that even though I have a list three miles long of ideas I could try to license, I am not excited by them nor am I motivated to resubmit to the selfsame companies I submitted to before with the current work I have. I want to be challenged, I want narrative, I want engagement, and most of all I need to improve as an artist to get where I want to be.

And that is why I'm considering a change of career focus from illustration to concept art. Funny enough, close friends who have known me for years are confused as to why I haven't done this the first time round. Looking back on my most successful works, they are the ones that are character-driven or involve character design in some fashion. I've collected concept art books for years. I've always found the most fascinating part of movies and video games to be the art books and concept art development diaries. I have my reasons for having not ventured into concept art from the outset, but that's a whole other blog entry altogether!

Money - In the end, it all boils down to the fact I am not making near enough money to support even a small apartment. The job hunting has begun and so has a push to focus on freelance means of income in the meantime (commissions, crafting, and content editing, anyone?).

What IS Working (Just when you thought the 'not working' section would never end)

Being Published - Angelic Visions has been a great source of pride for me, even though I never would have thought an art book would be the first thing I was to write (I had planned to pen my own fantasy novel in the wee hours of the night first). My royalties from this book have been sobering, as it's only just made back my author advance, but more sobering is the statistic that an author needs an average of at least 20 books to survive off royalty checks alone. This book is not going to make me rich and famous, but it's an accomplishment that makes me feel I am capable of so much more if I set my mind to it!

Etsy - Thanks to Etsy's Shop Stats dashboard, I've been monitoring marked improvement in sales from a meager 5 orders in 2009 to 30 so far this year. And that has been without promoting Etsy that much. Now that it's my only shop front after Webstore's recent demise, I expect orders to go up exponentially. I'm focusing on revamping my shop now and plan to build a wholesale orders website to match it soon, as that could be a nice consistent chunk of income, if I play my cards right. Go figure that Etsy also gets 4 times as many pageviews as my website or Webstore ever did.

Networking - The one good residual of conventions has been that I have been able to meet and connect with so many wonderful and inspiring artists! Mack and Linsner probably think I'm a stalker by now, but it's been great to meet them and find them a familiar face in this or that event. Meeting other artists keeps me sober to the fact I'm not alone in this 'fool's errand' people call art and drives me to improve and succeed. I've learned so much from meeting others, both about technique, running an art business, and keeping motivated.

Crafting - I turned to leather and jewelry crafting as a means to de-stress from the burnout I was feeling. While my art and prints sat there gathering dust not selling, these craft items began to sell consistently. (A good thing, too, or I'd be buried in butterfly keychains and masks!). I've had multiple boutiques come to me asking to consign or for wholesale rates and, best of all, it is something I can do without being sickeningly bored! The slice of the swivel blade and the tedious painting of insect markings is a meditative exercise for me.

Funny how we stumble unexpectedly on passions. My dad was a leathercrafter in his younger days and I suspect I absorbed some of that passion somehow. I don't plan on making crafting my long term career, but as long as it's bringing in some income, it'll help me out while I'm seeking out that paycheck work to make ends meet.

In Summary - Skimming out what's not working, focusing on what is. Hoping my experiences help anyone else out there who might be considering a similar path. Good luck to us both in this roller coaster called being a 'creative professional'!

DragonCon 2011 Con Report

2011-09-13T20:35:00.003-04:00

Finally! I am sentient enough to write a blog post about DragonCon! This year was my most work-intensive year yet, despite the fact I didn't have to man a table. It was so wonderful to meet old friends, fellow artists, and attend many cool panels! It made returning home to a backlog of work after all the fun that much more difficult.

My panel on E-Marketing for Artists 101 that I gave during the con is now available online for your viewing pleasure. It was my first time giving it so I was pleased to be applauded at the end. Next time, I'll be sure to include even more info based on the crowd's great suggestions!

I decided to be over-ambitious and do a mixed media display of new digital paintings, jewelry, and masks to reflect my new skillset from the past year. I'm happy to report I sold half my masks and jewelry and even a couple of framed pieces! This year was the best I've done with a Gallery panel at DragonCon, though Print Shop sales remained lackluster.

Now for a tour of my panel! (See more pics of my gallery this year here).

Things I Learned

(Because you always learn something new with every con. Even if you've been attending for years.)

Mailing labels are your friend! Instead of wasting business cards by using them as title labels, a simple design printed on a mailing label looks even more snazzy AND saves me money!
Plastic Sawtooth Hangers look way better than using binder clips on your images (and doesn't risk creasing your art/bag). The downside: Once they're stuck on, they're on for good.
Gatorade. The cure for hangovers, nausea, and walking multiple blocks in 85 degree Georgia heat in a corset!
What sold this year - DRAGONS (Derp moment on my part as this never occurred to me. Especially for an event like DragonCon), masks, jewelry, and my darker angel pieces. Seems my craft items are staying my money makers.
When giving an hour long panel, drink plenty of water (or Gatorade). I was hoarse for a week after because I rambled the whole time at my panel without sipping any liquids.

Personal Stuff

Being able to wander the con and attend panels was great this year! I learned how to make items out of hardened felt, which opens up a whole new world of crafting for me. I also attended a panel on peasant fashion in the 1650s, which was great cultural fodder for my novel writing research.

A butterfly lady sketch
from Stephanie
Pui-Mun Law.

I also got to yack with Stephanie Pui-Mun Law and, in what's becoming my DragonCon tradition, purchased her latest Tarot book, The Tarot: Minor Arcana! Stephanie did a lovely sketch on the inside cover before my eyes, even with my rambling distracting her. Thanks so much for the gift of inspiration, Stephanie! Can't wait to really dig into this tome. A flip through has already revealed tons of crows, swords, sparkly bods, and awesomeness! It will be good inspiration and motivation for me to get going on my own Tarot project, once I finally sort my direction out.

After two years of saying 'I might go', I finally attended David Mack's charity body painting event hosted at one of my favorite joints in town, The Shakespeare Tavern! There was much talent packed into one place and also organic strawberry beer to be had. David also signed my present of a rare Scarab figure from a friend, which was the source of much happiness.

I was also free to wander around snapping pics of costumes this year. You can see my meager collection of costume photos here! If you want to see videos of my friends and I being stupid at the Night at the Aquarium event, check out Derpy Eels and Rockout Fish videos.

I'm not so sure if I'll be able to make it to DragonCon next year with other events like SDCC and Spectrum Live Art tempting me, but after the success of this year, I'm definitely going to try! Till next time, guys! I'm already plotting a costume.

DragonCon 2011 Workbench Part 2

2011-08-25T15:03:00.001-04:00

The saga of 'Angela why did you decide to have a book signing and a gallery show just before DragonCon and then start your gallery panel stuff too late?' continues! Spent the last 3 days painting like a madwoman! You saw the naked leather masks, now see them with COLOR!

Behold my PRETTEHS! That's a little pile of stuff to be turned into jewelry and
bookmarks at the end.

A Black Swan mask. Heavily inspired by the look of
the movie with Natalie Portman. Still need to add
crystals to the crown in this one!

Seraphim mask. If my brain wasn't broke before,
it was after this mask. Possibly adding gold chains
to this?

Tarot: The Moon mask. Or also "Moon Bonnet".
She's going to have a 'necklace' of fresh water
pearls attached.

And finally, the DRAGON Mask! Totally dig how this came
out.

They all still need varnishing, which will add an extra layer of candy-like awesome, but are otherwise done for the most part! Stuff I still need to do:

- Finish displays for the bookmarks

- Finishing touches on the masks/jewelry that need dangly parts

- Mat and frame things. Embellish mats that are not LE

- Label everything properly for the art show

- Finish presentation for E-marketing panel in the art track

- Maybe do costume bits for a Lusiphur cosplay?

- EAT YOUR BRAINZ!

I can haz yer brainz? ;_;

DragonCon Workbench & Reminders

2011-08-19T16:00:00.002-04:00

Pulse check since I have been too busy working to post here! I am alive, for the most part. Neck deep in DragonCon prep! Just wanted to remind folks of a few things:

I will NOT have a table this year. I will, however, have a large gallery bay where you can see and purchase paintings, matted embellished prints, masks, and other handmade specialty items.
In lieu of a table, I'll also have a space in the art show's Print Shop, where I'll be debuting lots of new pieces never before available in prints (such as Keeper of Secrets, Angel of January, and Dragon Whisperer).
I will be hosting a panel on the basics of E-marketing for artists in the Art Track (based on a blog post of mine). Check your D*CON schedules for exact listings!

And now for some image spam of my current workbench, which is full of masks and leather things!

A closer look at that dragon mask. Cuz I just love it!

Tentatively titled "Seraphim" and jokingly titled
"Flouncy Hawkgirl"

Now, just got to survive till the con! With the power of Greyskull, chocolate, Advil, and coffee!

Happy Happy Insanity Time!

2011-08-02T11:47:00.003-04:00

Also known as the "Pre-DragonCon Rush"

So the insanity is in full swing now with T-minus 30 days till DragonCon and still many paintings and leather crafts ahead of me! Not to mention I have recently received some life-changing news, but I'm loathe to reveal it now until we know for more of a certainty! (Don't worry, it is nothing bad!)

I've been meaning to post here about how my career is changing (which partially ties into the good news I can't talk about yet), but that's something for a later entry as well I think. For now, just announcing I'm busy as HFIL, my Etsy and Artfire shops are both in vacation mode till after September 5th, and that I'll be at DragonCon this year with bells on. I'll be debuting new prints of such glorious arts as these in my Print Shop and Gallery panel at the con!:

"Angel of January" 11x14 in., Pencil colored in Photoshop.

"Keeper of Secrets", 11x14 in., Ink colored in Photoshop

You really must go see my gallery panel this year. It will be like no display I have ever done before with paintings and leather crafts, galore! I don't have a table this year, but I'll most likely be wandering the floor of the Art Show or helping Windfalcon at her table. We'll be at the Masked Ball on Friday as well. (Oh but I still need to figure out what to wear!) We may very well see the return of Captain Evelyn (my pirate alter ego), if I can fit my art-fattened patooty back in that costume! ALSO, I'll be hosting a panel called E-Marketing for Artists 101, so check the Art Track for schedule times!

Hope to see you folks there! If the grumpkins don't get me first....

Setting a Cabochon in a Leather Mask

2011-07-21T01:06:00.006-04:00

With all of the crafts I've been working on for my display at DragonCon, I'm really pushing my limits as a mask-maker and trying techniques I haven't before, including setting gemstones. I took photos during this experiment and thought I'd turn it into a tutorial for you all!

(Many thanks to Brenda and Andrea for their useful tips on this.)

The finished mask with cabochon will look similar to this.

You Will Need:

A Cabochon - You can buy these at many places online or at hobby art stores. I bought the Labradorite cab I used in this project from AliveGems on Etsy.

Epoxy or All-Purpose Glue - For attaching stone and other non-leather things to leather. I use Goop.

Thin Leather Scraps - These should be at least a little bigger than your cabochon to be used as backing. I used thin pieces I had split off from thicker leather using a Skiver. You can purchase bags of thin scraps at Hobby Lobby as well. They will not be visible in the final design, so can be any color.

Tanner's Bond Leathercraft Cement - For glueing leather to leather. Goop will work just as well, but in my experience this has been the best thing for leather-to-leather attachment and is not as unwieldy and...well...goopy as Goop. The fumes are not as severe either. It has a consistency more like Elmer's Glue. It's easy to apply and easy to clean up.

Scissors - Good, sharp scissors for cutting heavy paper (or in this case felt).

Gum Tragacanth (optional) - Used to slick edges and smooth rough surfaces in leather. It is vegetable based.

Bone Folder or Modeling Spoon - Or even a pen cap with a rounded edge. Used for burnishing and smoothing edges of leather.

Sponge - For dampening leather before you tool or carve it.

Sticky-Back Felt - I bought mine at Hobby Lobby. They sell an eco-friendly sticky-back felt made from recycled bottles. You peel off the back to reveal the adhesive.

Metallic Paint Pen - This should be the color you want your 'bezel' to be. I used DecoColor Liquid Silver for this project.

Pencil - A plain graphite pencil for making marks on the leather. Don't worry, the marks won't be seen in the end.

Utility Knife or Heavy Duty Xacto Blade - For cutting out the opening. Needs to be able to cut through thick leather.

Step 1 - Place Your Cab

Figure out where you'd like to place your cab in the mask. Higher up on the forehead where the surface lays flatter is an easier area to do this. Once you place the cab, trace around the outside with a pencil.

PROTIP:
I placed mine a little too low on the forehead where the mask curves in towards the bridge of the nose, which led to my cabochon bezel looking a little askew in the finished product due to the leather warping around the cabochon opening.

Do yourself a favor and place your cabochon higher on the head than I did.

Step 2 - Sizing the Cabochon Opening

Next, trace about 1/16th of an inch in from the outside of your cab's outline. You can do this with a compass or a stencil, but I did it very carefully by hand. It doesn't need to be ultra precise, but it does need to stay true to the shape of your cabochon, which might not be perfectly round anyways.

The opening should be slightly smaller than your cabochon so that the edges of the cab will be hidden once it is put in place beneath the leather surface so that the upper portion protrudes through the opening.

Step 3 - Cut the Cabochon Opening

Very carefully and slowly, cut out the opening of your cabochon along the inner line you drew. Don't worry about the outer line being visible as that's going to be beveled off in a later step. Notice I miscut while I was cutting out my opening? I was able to save this mask by beveling out that mistake.

Step 4 - Bevel the Edges

Using an Edge Beveler (I used a Sz 2), bevel off the edges on the flesh side and the rough side of the opening. This creates a rounded, more professional edge. The area of this bevel edge on the flesh side will also act as the fake bezel for the stone in the finished product.

Step 5 - Slick the Edges (Optional)

Using Gum Tragacanth is entirely optional, as you can simply smooth an edge with a burnishing tool of some sort. I find that if you use Gum, however, that it more efficiently and permanently smooths frays and rough areas.

Take a damp sponge and dab Gum Tragacanth onto the freshly beveled edges then rub a Bone Folder or Modeling Spoon across the edge until the leather becomes slick, dark, and shiny. This helps to smooth all the frays in the leather.

PROTIP:
If you're using leather dye instead of acrylics for your color, be warned that applying gum might cause the leather to be lighter in the area where dye has been applied. Acrylics, however, seem to have no problem coating right over the top of leather slicked with gum.

Step 6 - Finish the Mask

Before you set the cab, you'll need to finish the rest of your mask. Get all of your dying, painting, and varnishing completed. Now the cab is ready to pop in the hole!

Step 7 - Attach the Cabochon

Using a dab of Goop, glue the cabochon to the scrap of thin leather and wait a few minutes for it to set.

Step 8 - Set the Cabochon

Attach the scrap leather with the cabochon to the mask with the leather cement. Apply the glue to both surfaces then firmly press them together and hold them in place for at least a minute. You also want to press firmly on the cabochon so that it protrudes through the opening and fits snugly in it. Be careful not to force it all the way though!

Step 9 - Draw the Bezel

Using the silver paint pen, carefully draw the bezel around the edge of your cabochon. Be sure not to get any paint on your stone! The bezel looks most convincing when it fills in the small beveled edge that surrounds your stone.

PROTIP:If you should get paint on your stone, quickly wipe it away or lightly scratch it out with the edge of your fingernail or credit card. Rubbing alcohol is a good last resort as well.

Step 10 - Making it Comfortable

Success! The cabochon is attached! You don't want the edges of the scrap leather chaffing the wearer's forehead so I cover the area up with sticky-back felt. Just cut the size you want, peel off the sheet from the back, and stick it on the mask.

My piece was old and had lost some of its stickiness, so I used Goop in key places to make sure it would stay.

The Final Product!

My mask is a bird! Your argument is invalid!

Dev Diary: Ezio Carnivale Mask Part 3

2011-07-14T10:36:00.003-04:00

In the last dev diary, I wet-formed and dyed the mask. Now for the finishing touches!

To get that nice aged metal look on a leather mask, I use my finger to dab paint onto the surface. Because my finger is soft and has some give, it makes soft transitions and also when dabbing lightly it only affects the raised surfaces of the masks, which is what you want if you're going for a patina feel.

(I did a full tutorial on this effect. "How to Create a Buffed Metal Look in Leather" )

After dabbing with your finger, accentuate the random
highlights with a small brush.

PROTIP: Don't use your nice brushes for craft acrylic painting. They sell multi packs of cheap brushes of every size plus foam square brushes at most craft stores. Acrylic dries to a permanient flexy goo in your brushes, so remember to wash up afterwards with soap or brush cleaner! I tend to use my retired watercolor brushes after their bristles fray.

Well now, looking spiffy there, Mr. Sexy Assassin Man!

But we're not through yet! Notice how dull the black areas are? It's time to varnish. I use Liquitex Satin Varnish because it dries flexible, but also brings a nice subtle sheen to the mask. I don't like using Glossy because it seems too shiny and overpowering for my tastes. The other great thing about Satin is that the difference between your metallic and dull areas still show through so they're not all an equal level of shiny. That subtle contrast between iridescent and dull areas is what makes a mask like this so stunning.

PROTIP: Do not use Matte sheen if you want to preserve the metallic look of your paint! It will make it instantly dull looking.

Now that the mask is all varnished up and ready to go. Time to punch holes for the ribbons. I use a rotary hole punch set to the 2nd largest hole setting.

You can tell where to punch the hole by lining it up with the
angle of the corner of the eyehole.

Next, I like to use silver dancer's ribbon to tie this mask to the wearer's face because it adds a nice decorative Venetian touch. For a tighter more reliable fit, black thin elastic bands work well too.

(Just don't tell any assassin wearing this mask that
he's wearing a pretty dancer's shoe lace!)

And that's it! You're ready to wear this mask to the ball...and shank a foo!

Go Back to the First Dev Diary

Sketch Diary: Angel of January Part 4

2011-07-12T12:12:00.004-04:00

Continuing from the last sketch diary entry detailing the battle of wills against horrible color schemes. I wasn't quite sure how to compose this next entry, as I couldn't quite figure out how to record my many hours of tweaking in Photoshop nor do I want to confuse you with the cluttered mess that is my digital coloring method.

I am relatively new to digital painting so I haven't quite figured out the most efficient way to paint yet. How about a list of things I learned during this painting that made me fear digital coloring less instead?

Learn the use of Layer Masks and Adjustment Layers!

Being able to tweak the contrast, color, etc. of an image without destroying the integrity of your original image will save you many headaches in the end. Layer Masks are especially helpful if you want to integrate textures into your image with a more natural feel while Adjustment layers let you tweak elements such as Levels, Contrast, etc. while still keeping your original image untouched. For example, I used a Gradient via a Fill Adjustment Layer to get the subtle green glow in the texture of the marble behind my angel in this painting.

(Peter Morhbacher has some great tuts on using masks and integrating texture, "How to Apply Texture Without Looking Like a Douche" and "Masking Tutorial" ).

Creating convincing light beams is totally easier in digital.

Wish I could say it was my brilliant idea that resulted in the light beams coming from the top left on my painting, but it was from this jewel of a tutorial. I used the thicker beams they mentioned in another tut by the same person. A gal could get used to not having to mask off with tape or masking fluid or painting around the light shafts like I would in watercolor. Hoorah for saving time!

Blending takes time...even in digital.

90% of my time on this image was spent blending and blending and BLENDING some more, especially in the area of her skin. I used default brushes set to Pen Pressure and an Intuos3 Wacom tablet to color this image. In my experience so far, if you want your image to maintain that painterly feel, it's better to blend with brush strokes than rely on gradients or fills. It's far too easy for things to look sleek and plastic in digital so watch yourself!

Another trick I used to maintain a subtle texture in this painting was to insert texture from free texture sites in layers set to Overlay and attached to the various elements of my image with Clipping Masks.

For things like the skin and hair, I used roughly three default Brushes set to varying Opacity and Scatter settings. I'm sure there's a whole world of custom brushes to discover, but these are the ones I used, in addition to the default Chalk brush, which I used to simulate the color pencil lines when I needed to touch up my color pencil layer I had scanned in from my original drawing.

A little texture goes a long way!

Critique is priceless, no matter the medium!

As much as I'd like to say this image popped out of my head sparkling and awesome, it looked like crud during a midpoint when the angel's skin was purple, the window was floating and overwhelming, and I was frustrated with it. That's when turning to more experienced digital artists really saved the day!

Sam Hogg and Stephanie Reeves gave me wonderful advice, paint overs, and encouragement and that is just what we need when learning a new medium, so don't be afraid to check out places like CGsociety and Conceptart.org (or your own arty friends) for critique!

I did a time lapse video of all of my progress shots. Next time, I'll try a screen recording program (any reccomendations from you guys?)

And finally, the finished image!

"Angel of January", 11x17 in.
Digital painting over color pencil outline.
Download a wallpaper of this image.

Go Back to the First Diary Entry

Dev Diary: Ezio Carnivale Mask Part 2

2011-07-07T00:00:00.019-04:00

In the last dev diary, I talked about developing the design and gathering the tools to help mold your mask. Next up, wet-forming the mask! First, you soak it in room temperature water with the rough side facing upwards. Once the bubbles have stopped fizzing out of the back, the mask is ready to put in the oven!

I set my oven to its lowest heat setting (about 200F) on Bake mode. This is to keep the mask from scorching or getting too brittle, too fast, which is the danger of cooking with too high of a temperature. I keep the mask from touching the oven rack by lining the rack with baking parchment paper that you can buy in rolls. You can also bunch this parchment paper up and use it to prop up the mask once it has some shape to it. I let the mask bake, checking it every 5 minutes and shaping it on Pat the Styro Head.

PROTIP: Don't forget to pinch the bridge of the nose where it meets the forehead or you'll end up with a very uncomfy mask that mashes your nose when you wear it!

Eventually, you end up with this - a wet-formed mask!
Angry pancake iz appeased.

Once the mask has dried completely, you're ready to dye it! I usually let the mask dry overnight propped on Pat the Styro Head so it retains its shape before I dye it. Some people like to bake the mask until it's dry, but I find that doing so increases the risk you'll make your mask brittle and hard. Taking the mask out of the oven before it's completely dries allows it to keep some of its flexibility, which generally makes for more comfortable masks.

PROTIP: A mask needs to be supported while it dries or gravity will flatten it out.

If you're in a pinch, you can use a hair dryer set to low-med to quicken the process. Don't let it get too hot, though, or you'll singe the leather! If the mask is still cold to the touch or is darker in color, that's a hint that it's still damp.

I dyed this mask with Midnight Black Eco-Flo dye by dabbing
with a natural sea sponge.

On to Part 3

DragonCon, Important Announcements, & a LOLcat

2011-07-05T11:39:00.006-04:00

Well...it's T-minus 2 months till DragonCon and in that time I have 4 paintings and 18 leather pieces to finish in time to display! Luckily, this year I don't have to prep for stocking an entire table, just the gallery panel.

Have a sneak peek of my layout!
See all those text squares and scribblely thumbnails?
Yeah that's stuff I need to finish still...

I'm actually looking forward to having the freedom to wander about and schmooze with folks and maybe attend a panel or two this year! I'll be hosting a panel on E-Marketing for Artists 101 in the art track, so be sure to keep an eye out for an official schedule so you can come talk shameless plugging with me!

With current workload, I'm pausing commissions till September. So if you're currently waiting on work from me, I ask that you please be patient with my slow pace. If you're interested in work, never fear, for I will be keeping a waiting list in the meantime!

Now, off to work with me! You have been warned. When next we meet, I may look like....this:

PS.
You local peeps in the vicinity of Georgia, come on out to my art opening this Friday! There'll be books, bookmarks, and an entire meditation room dedicated to showing my original art. Plus the backdrop of a really cool bookstore with jewelry, gemstones, and KITTEHS! Also, free food!

C'moooon...you know you want to come!

Dev Diary: Ezio Carnivale Mask Part 1

2011-06-29T10:53:00.006-04:00

I've had many requests to learn more about my Ezio Carnivale Mask, so when I last made it I took some photos of my process. There's already a video you can watch on my Livestream, if you would rather hear me babble.

The first order of business was to find references of Ezio's mask, which was not an easy thing when I first made it a year or so ago. Hardly any screenshots existed that weren't small and grainy. Eventually, I came upon something like this:

Ezio is the main character of Assassin's Creed 2, from my
favorite game series! I just had to make the mask when I
first laid eyes on it.

This mask presents a problem, however, because most of the forehead is obscured, as are the fine details because of the pixelated nature of the game's graphics. That's when I whipped out some good ol' fashioned imagination and made up the rest. My version of this mask comes up to the hairline with swirly accents along the middle of the forehead and brows. I had to make sure that a hood or a hat would fit comfortably atop the mask, thus the reason it ends at the hairline.

My head's name is Pat.
He seems oddly pleased
about something...

Next, I take measurements from the ear to the outer corner of the eye, the inner corner of the left eye to the inner corner of the right eye, and from the hairline to the tip of the nose. With the way this mask comes in so close to the eyes and stops at the hairline and nose, measurements are needed to make sure it lays right on the face.

Normally, I use a generic male styrofoam fashion head I bought at Hobby Lobby as a base to form the mask on, as the breadth of the face is wider than my own, which would be too small for most males. If you don't have a Hobby Lobby closeby, most fashion stores (like Sally's) will have styrofoam wig heads.

Finally, I print out my design in blue ink so that when I'm tracing over lines with a ballpoint pen, it shows my progress by blacking out the lines as I go. Before transferring, dampen the leather with a wet sponge so that the lines will be impressed into the surface. They sell special transfer paper at Tandy, but using plain printer paper with the pattern printed in inkjet ink has always worked fine for me. If you mess up your lines while transferring, you can always rub or sand the mistakes out later.

Eventually, you end up with something like this:

The Angry Pancake!

You can see in the photo that I've already started pressing in the lines with my beveler stamp and modeling spoon on the right side of the mask (left side of the photo). The main lines have been cut into the surface using a swivel knife. The process of adding dimension to your leather by creating depressions with stamps and tools is called tooling. Tooling is a subtractive process, meaning you do not add things to the surface, but rather cut away or emboss the lines, so you have to think in the negative. If you want an affordable swivel knife plus some basic stamps, I recommend grabbing this starter kit from Hobby Lobby using their weekly coupons.

On to Part 2

New Product Blog & Twitter Name!

2011-06-27T14:57:00.002-04:00

As you may have guessed from my recent poll, I've been pondering on ways to better reach people interested in my items for sale. I used to have a forum where I posted store listings, but it ate itself! With my items being spread across my Amazon Shop, Etsy, Zazzle, and Artfire, there seemed no efficient way to get the word out on what's available where.

Now, I'm pleased to present the solution, the Angelic Shades Product Blog! This is the place to subscribe if you'd like to see instant listings as soon as products and special offers become available. Many of my items are Made to Order, but there are still others (like my jewelry and original art) that are one-of-a-kind, meaning once they're gone, they're gone! Watching the blog is the best way to get first dibs on specialty items before they're gone and to keep up with what specials are going on where across my online outlets.

I've also created a Twitter username dedicated solely to product updates, for you Tweeties out there. This will help keep my main Angelic Shades Twitter from being too spammy so it can stay focused on art and fun!

If you hate leaving the safe confines of DeviantART, never fear! I'll be posting a monthly collection of new items in one tidy Deviation once each month that you can favorite and revisit whenever you like. They'll look a little something like this:

May Collection - 2011 by =ladydove7 on deviant ART

This should keep people from being spammed (unless they want) and help get the word out for me in a much easier to manage way!

Aah organization! I feel better now.

Sketch Diary: Angel of January Part 3

2011-06-22T13:19:00.003-04:00

The ideas have broiled, the sketches have been kneaded to perfection, and now we reach the most difficult phase of this image for me - coloration. Normally, this is the phase that's the most fun, but this image fought with me tooth and nail to defy my whims!

Problem #1 - Being a monthly series, I have a limited palette of pre-defined colors to work with which are restricted by the main elements, the flowers and birthstones for each month. In this case, my choices for January are garnet, carnations, and snow drops.

Add on top of that I want to have a 'stepping into sunlight' theme with sunbeams streaming in and the challenge becomes even more tricky! Lucky for me at least that carnations come in many colors and snowdrops are a neutral white. I'm not sure how lucky I'll be with the rest of these angels that have flowers available in one color only!

The first idea I had was to have the realm of Spring beyond the 'doorway' in the image, so that bright area of contrast was fighting with me as well. I did quite a few color tests in digital and watercolor, the disasters of which I'm almost embarrassed to share:

After doing these, the idea of a glowing halo around her body
was dropped in favor of not going insane from dueling colors
and light sources.

The talented Sam Hogg took a stab at it with her digital awesome powers:

While I like the simplicity and contrast of Sam's color scheme,
the window felt too dark for my tastes.

Springboarding from Sam's theme, I lightened it up with
sunbeams and a sunrise themed 'spring' realm behind her.

Before the end of this color testing phase, I decided I wanted to try this image digitally instead of in watercolor to help me brush up on my cg skills (and also because the color richness demanded something more bold than watercolors). To keep that subtle texture of my line art, I scanned in the color pencil outline version to use as a base to color on:

Outlined in Prismacolor Color Pencils. The color of the lines gives a deeper
optical richness to the final piece than simply using black outlines.

Eventually, I arrived at this final complimentary color scheme with orange
accents. The idea shifted to sunbeams penetrating a subterranean underworld
which pushed everything green! (Thanks to Hayley's critique)

It's at this step that I've added textures from free texture sites and my own references to help add texture and interest to my digital shading. The color pencil outline layer sits above all of my other color layers and is set to Multiply so that all the color layers beneath it will be visible while maintaining their color value and the color tint of the outline layer.

The color layers each have texture layers above them set to Overlay so that the texture will be very subtle and show the colors beneath it. In the next entry, I'll go more into depth about my digital color process. It's all very experimental at the moment. Maybe a video will be more helpful here?

Sunbeams, glimmering dust motes, and jewels glittering in the dark await! I'm excited to get started shading this painting digitally. Got to keep my digitalart-fu strong!

On to Part 4

Upcoming Appearance: Author Meet & Greet

2011-06-20T12:08:00.001-04:00

If you'll be in the area of Peachtree City, GA this weekend, I'll be making an appearance at the Books-A-Million in The Avenue shopping center! They've invited me back for a mass book signing event with other local authors. Come say hello, chat about art, and get a free bookmark while supplies last!

I'm looking forward to seeing what other authors are in my area too. Should be interesting to see what different sorts of genres we all do.

I've created a public event on Facebook for easy access to maps, dates, and location details here. Or you can check the event calendar on my website to see what else I'll be up to in the coming months!

Characters on the Couch

2011-06-15T00:00:00.026-04:00

I'm taking a bit of a detour today to talk about another aspect of my art that I don't talk about as much as I'd like on this blog - characters. You might have seen a few of my muses here and there in my art, but never quite gotten to know them, as they're all on the sidelines while I sort out the Artist part of my career instead of the Writer. Eventually, I want to bring characters to the forefront of my art AND writing and that is where the savvy Jeannie Campbell comes in!

Aurora Adonai, one of my
first muses.

Any writer will tell you that research is key to writing convincing, engaging scenes and never is that research more important than when you're working with characters with psychological disorders. We can make as many guesses as we like about the textbook definition of a psychological disorder and its effects, but this can come off as stiff, as if we're recalling a grocery list of symptoms when we write. That is where Jeannie comes in. As a licensed marriage and family therapist, she has opened her couch to the analysis of our fictional brainchildren.

Last year, Jeannie did an analysis for Aurora, my unstable Elvish hitwoman. Her analysis opened my eyes to the possibilities with this character, not only for what she is capable of, but how best to balance the darkness of her past with that element of humanity that would keep her sane and also grounded as a character. For Aurora's full analysis, you can read on here.

With so many characters chilling in the backstage of my brain, I plan to use Jeannie again in the future. For that purpose, I'll be visiting her newly opened website - The Character Therapist!

Jeannie Campbell, The Character Therapist by Elizabeth Mueller

She offers brief assessments of characters for free or a detailed assessment at $14.99. If you sign up for her newsletter, you can get a copy of her ebook "Writer's Guide to Character Motivation", a handy 28 page guide to help you build your characters from the ground up.

For those of you pondering characters, I recommend giving Jeannie a shout! Meanwhile, I'll continue plotting ways to send more imaginary folks to fill up her proverbial waiting room.

Sketch Diary: Angel of January Part 2

2011-06-07T12:19:00.003-04:00

You all might remember my last sketch diary entry for this image? If not, go check it out for idea development and thumbnail sketches. Wow, has it really been nearly a YEAR since I've come back to this piece? Guess that burnout wave hit me harder than I thought! (More on that later, as it's been on my mind a lot lately)

My favorite thumbnail sketch.

Next up, developing the final draft! With my favorite thumbnail sketch out of the many in mind, I shot some stock reference for myself with the idea of a veiled or draped figure stepping into sunlight to echo the themes of the emergence of Persephone (which is associated with the gemstone for January with its pomegranate seed-like clusters of garnets).

January is also named for Janus, the god of doorways and transitions, signaling the coming of the new season and new year.

This particular stock pose caught my eye most with the inquisitive angle of the head, the assymetrical sweep of the arms, and the idea of 'stepping into the sunlight' echoed in the pose.:

More poses at my stock gallery.

The first base sketch. The wings cover too much of the
stained glass window.

With that stock pose in mind, I did several rough sketches in Photoshop and finally arrived at a base figure, with all of my background elements on separate layers so I could tweak them individually. This phase also involved doing a rough sketch of the stained glass window pane with its Snow Drop and Carnations motif with no attention paid to exact symmetry just yet, but rather scribbles filling out the main idea of the design and how it might integrate with the figure first.

However, I kept running into a problem with the wings. They seemed either covered up too much of the lovely window, were too flat, or too cramped into the space I had in mind.

Too cramped and thin...

Much better flow that leads the viewer's
eye through the figure!

With the main figure taken care of, I refined the window by copying, pasting, and flipping parts of the window as needed to create a more symmetrical shape. I then transferred the sketch to illustration board, refining the details as I went along until I arrived at this:

Very light pencil sketch...

...which morphed into color pencil outline!

On to Part 3

Memorial Day Sale + Studio Roast Continues!

2011-05-27T12:03:00.001-04:00

Just a quickie post to tell you all about my weekend sale! Get 25% off at my Angelic Shades gift shop on everything, regular AND sale price! Slowly getting into this sale groove, as I always forget to run promotions. So get in on this before I forget to run them again!

I'm also doing free shipping on all my items on my Etsy and Artfire shops! Just enter the code FREESHIP when you check out.

In other news, the Studio Roast is still going strong! The current auctions on eBay are over and everything that was on sale for round 1 is now only available via this list:

Feel free to make an offer on any of these images, if you fancy a haggle! The next round of images will be up soon! There're tons more where these came from to throw on the proverbial fire.

Hope you all have a good weekend! I have a few announcements to make next time that I'm super excited about. But next time! ;)

My First Art Fair!

2011-05-17T13:14:00.004-04:00

After a day of rest and a couple of Advil, I'm pleased to report I have survived my first art fair! All in all, I did fairly well for a first timer. Made back my booth fee, got suggestions from the crowd on what they wanted to see, and learned the secret of good transportation of random stuff -- plastic tuberware!

What did I learn from this experience? Read on!

Start Early!

2 weeks was not enough to make even half of the items by hand that I wanted to fill up my artisan display tables. I found myself painting into the wee hours and relying on a lot of older stock I had lying around just to make my booth look presentable. First lesson learned! Start early, DO NOT STRESS YOURSELF by procrastinating! Know your display capacities. Practice your setup in advance. Last thing you want is it to look empty and rushed. Also, check your current stock! I had to reorder many prints last minute because I didn't realize I was low till that moment. Doh!

Remember Your Traffic Flow

Probably the most important lesson I learned. Day 1, I had a setup like this:


Heeey! Buy my stuff. Please? YOU KNOW YOU WANNA!

While this isn't terrible, I think I did this because I'm so used to setting up at conventions where you put the table out front and people come up to you to talk. This layout drives people right up to you, but what I noticed at the fair is most people will talk to you, but then not browse your wares, or they're intimidated by your presence and just want to be left alone to shop. I also had a technical issue where I couldn't find the stiffeners for my walls, so I couldn't line the sides of the booth with them, leaving it looking pretty empty on the left.

After walking around the fair a bit and getting some ideas from other artists (and fanagling walls with velcro), I ended up with a setup like this for Day 2:

Psst! Hay man. Need a kidney? Operating table in the back!

Much more open space and plenty of room for multiple browsers to go down the line of pretties! Artist hidden away and only there if you need her to checkout or to ask questions. More people came in this time round and didn't have to peer over my head to come right up to the artwork.

Best Selling Items?

This was a huge surprise for me! I thought my crafts would do well, but I only sold a few things. Mainly I sold art cards and prints because people wanted small artwork to inspire them (but didn't want to buy the more expensive larger pieces on the wall). I also sold a few books to people who saw my work elsewhere and liked that I offered personalized goodies for free if they bought it directly from me. I didn't sell a single mask.

I had a good many requests for hair brooches with chopsticks and lapel pins of the butterflies. No doubt due to having a generally older crowd (with grandkids along) who were looking for things for their home or small gifts, of which matted/framed Fantasy art is generally not well suited for your average collector.

Next time I do an outdoor fair, I plan to carry more personal items (hair brooches and pins), more ornate masks framed in shadowboxes, and more accessible 2D art items (perhaps carved leather butterflies in framed 'specimen' arrangements?) If people can see the use of an item for their home or their personal decor, I imagine they'd be more inclined to buy at these sorts of events! I can save my fantasy art for more themed fests, like the Renaissance Faire or the cons I attend. That's at least one joy of being a multi-faceted artist!

Final Thoughts

I am sore and sleep-deprived far more than I ever was for a plain ol convention! Art fairs are physically grueling work and not for those who can't handle the hauling, unloading, and long hours. It's also a HUGE investment of time and money.

The fair season has only begun for me, however, so I'm not going to give up on it just yet! Being able to talk to fellow art lovers and curiosity seekers was quite enjoyable for me! Even moreso when they would tell me they saw my work online or at the gallery next door. Getting your face out there can be very gratifying and just as important as sales. For my shy artist friends, however, this definitely may not be the thing for you!

If you're a fan of my Facebook Fan Page, I'm having a sale on leftover hand-painted butterflies. Get 'em while they're cheap because they'll be going up on Etsy for a higher price after this week!

See one you like? Check out my sekrit sale!

Stay tuned for a post on what makes up an art fair display. Till then, I'm going to attend to the mess that is my trashed studio after an event. *cry!

Here there be Dragons!

2011-05-04T11:31:00.000-04:00

One of the 1st dragons I
ever drew!

The Great Wyrm. The Beast. The Salamander. There are so many names for this creature in every culture that one begins to wonder just what credence there is to the possibility of large reptilian treasure-hoarding beasts hiding in the dark places of the world? Dragons have been on my mind with the recent news I've been accepted into the DragonCon art show once again this year. It's a special year for DragonCon with its 25th year and I've decided I'd like to make a tribute piece involving a dragon!

Well and so...but I think the last time I drew a dragon was years ago! People (and Elves) have always been my strong suit. This has left me with a quandary. Just what kind of dragon do I want to do? In visual memory, the first dragons I encountered were the mean, gruff, knight-devouring kind. They were gruesome, terrifying green beasts with red eyes. Then I met the bearded dragons of the east. Kind and wise with human-like eyes. They struck a chord with me with their link to intuition, power, and balance.

The first dragon I remember
seeing! From St. George & the Dragon
illu. by Trina Schart Hyman.

While I may not feel as connected to dragons as I do with other archetypal creatures (angels, elves, and fae folk), even I admit dragons are cool. So why the fascination? Is it their animal beauty and awesome power

For me, I like that ambiguity in the myth of the dragon, the thought there could be an all-powerful predator hiding in the farthest places just beyond the borders of the forests, the caves of mountains, and the deepest caverns of the oceans. Dragons exist for every element, hot or cold, dark or light, good or evil. The mystery of what exists in the unexplored spaces of our world compels and compels.

Or maybe I just have an unhealthy instinct to explore in places I shouldn't! (Yup, I'm the first person to die in a horror movie.)

So share and share alike! What do you like about dragons? What are your favorites? Why do you love them?

Let the STUDIO ROAST Begin!

2011-04-23T23:51:00.003-04:00

There comes a time in an artist's career when they can no longer keep all of the old artwork they hoard over the years. Now is that time for me! The space has ran out in my basement, closet, and under the bed. Rather than throw away or burn this art, I figured I'd give you guys a chance to snag original art and prints for super cheap!

ALL of this original art will have starting bids of 99 cents!
(See my Ebay for a complete list of originals for sale!)

But that's NOT ALL! I'm clearing out discontinued prints for only $1 over at my online gift shop. Get Mousepads for just $5! Everything must GO!

A sampling of the discontinued prints available for JUST A BUCK:

(See my shop for more offerings!)

BEST OF ALL! Buy any item from the Studio Roast section of my gift shop and you'll get a FREE gift of a mini print! The choice of print will be a surprise.

I'll be uploading more auctions on eBay as I unearth things from the depths of my room, so keep an eye out for further announcements and offerings!

In Defense of Pretty Pictures

2011-04-13T11:13:00.003-04:00

So lately I've been seeing a lot of this particular statement:

"You draw pretty pictures all day. How hard can it be? That's not a real job."

Let me tell you that this particular statement on its lonesome is a fast track to getting on an artist's bad side for many reasons. The first being it is a product of oversimplification.

Oversimplification - It is like saying that a football player just runs up and down a field. A basketball player runs up and down a court. Tennis players are just hitting a ball back and forth. A writer is just making up pretty words in random order. By making these statements, you are grossly simplifying the process of creation and action that goes with any of these respective professions.

Sure, the end product may be a pretty picture, but let me tell you, it takes a lot of effort to make a fully realized 'pretty picture' with a harmonious color scheme, an interesting composition, and an internal narrative! An artist's job is to solidify those random elements into something more than the combination of its parts. If this were so easy, why aren't you doing it? Artists are constantly learning, improving, practicing, contemplating. If they're not, they stagnate. Being a successful artist is an ongoing process, and it takes effort.

To say nothing of how long it takes to photograph, document, organize, categorize, and list our work in online shops. I do all of this with me, myself, and I. I am my own web designer, shop manager, photographer, publicist, and cheerleader. Nobody else.

Secondly, what defines a real job? Is it making a six figure salary? Is it sitting in a cubicle pretending to be busy when your boss walks by? Is it bossing around those beneath you so you can feel important? To me, a real job does indeed involve making money, but I personally do not want fame, self-importance, or a six figure salary. I want a salary that's well enough to afford hot water, the internet, a decent place to live, food, and maybe a fun game or two every once and awhile. It may not be the best job in the world, but doing it makes me happy and brings me a pittance of a paycheck. For me, that defines my 'real job'. I could go be a janitor and probably make more (with benefits) but I would probably be working as hard and less happy. Every job has its own complications and positive aspects, no matter how easy or hard you think it is. It's all in how we balance our own personal expectations.

For now, this balance works for me and that is my prerogative. We can't forget, also, that there's a chance that eventually I will be making six figures if I play my cards right and work hard, but that is not the most important thing in my set of life goals. Most artists don't go into art to make gobs of money, that's for sure!

Now let's get back to that 'pretty picture' statement again. So yes, I draw angels, elves, and 'pretty' things. Do they have any deep societal meaning? Well, maybe not on the surface. They generally aren't making statements on hot topics and political issues, but is the aim of bringing enjoyment to those who like to look at pretty shiny things (or read fantasy books, or watch fantasy movies, or read fiction in general) really so cheap of a goal? Have we become so caught up in the haste of our society that we can't stop to let our imaginations wander anymore? Anything that distracts us from the goal of making money is a 'waste of our time'?

The next time you feel like making this sort of statement either to an artist's face or behind their backs, consider this - If being an Artist isn't a real job, then where does every single bit of advertising, book cover, TV show, blockbuster movie, the music on the radio, and yes even the very Fonts we look at every day come from? How can the world be surrounded by Art all the time and not appreciate the work that goes behind it? It's baffling to me. Maybe we're spoiled by the fact we see it every day and know little behind the process and hard work that goes into it?

I shudder to think what the world would be like if that Zombie Apocalypse happens and we are left without the ability to fill our world with these amazing things we take for granted. It will be a dark world, indeed!

But who knows, maybe we'd have an appreciation for things then? That would be something...

Angelic Shades Studio - Now Livestreaming!

2011-04-06T14:25:00.000-04:00

After much hair pulling and teeth gnashing, I've finally got a channel up on Livestream! Catch live broadcasts while I paint, poke at leather, or maybe hold random live giveaways! I'll try to remember to make a post here when I'm going live, but more often than not, I'll be posting the announcement via my Twitter.

I did my very first broadcast today while I worked on a venetian mask! Recorded live here:

Watch live streaming video from angelicshades at livestream.com

I've also got all of my other tutorials, trailers, and things up at my channel so have a good poke around!

My Livestream Channel - http://www.livestream.com/angelicshades

Woo having a webcam has been fun so a far! Yay for learning new technology.:)

E-Marketing for Artists 101

2011-04-04T16:21:00.007-04:00

(UPDATE! I gave this blog entry as a panel at this year's DragonCon!

Check out the recording of my panel and Powerpoint presentation on YouTube.)

This week I wanted to share an article I wrote for the new fantasy magazine, Dark Muse: Issue 2! You should go check out the mag for more useful articles on everything from creating knotwork to podcast interviews with other working artists.

I hope to make this e-marketing topic a series of blogs on the matter, as it's one of my passions!

E-Marketing for Artists 101

Have you been ignoring the hullaballoo of that loud, annoying place called the internet? Tsk! Nowadays, artists of every possible subject matter, style, and media can find a niche in the massive audience that is the world wide web, making it an invaluable tool for artists. This is especially useful for those of us who work in very niche genres!

In particular, social media (or social networks) are a great way to quickly update your fans and to connect with other artists. Connecting with other artists can be especially motivating when we find ourselves alone in the art cave craving human interaction! Here are a few of my favorite sites which I've noticed the best results and that have also shown a significant presence of participating artists. These descriptions are based on my personal interaction on these sites, meaning that things may work differently for you based on your own preferences!

One must also remember that the key to social networking is to be social. Spamming your work and then leaving without interacting with anyone else is a recipe for fail on just about any social networking site (unless you're just already that popular!). Social networks are not to be confused with specific online communities dedicated to artists, as opposed to social networks whose general purpose is socialization between all types of people. A rundown of handy art communities will be covered in a future article!

Twitter - http://twitter.com

You have 140 characters a post to say something meaningful, this short length making posts quick and easy to digest. Twitter lets you Follow others so that you can instantly see their posts, allowing you to keep a finger on the pulse of other artists and communities without the total distraction of instant messaging.

I don't have the guilt of leaving Twitter conversations as much as I do if I have a popup message from a friend on an instant messaging system, which makes Twitter a nice compromise for those of us who may want to chat with others without getting completely buried by instant message windows. The only danger of this is how easy it can be to become addicted to checking Tweets! But that's something to do while we're waiting for paint layers to dry, isn't it? I'd like to think so!

There are also hash tags (words that are demarcated by a # symbol) you can include in your posts which allow others to search by that topic, which allows artists to find other artists by topic. For example, some of the more popular art-related tags are #fridaynightartdorks and #wip. Start your own hash tag trend, share interesting links, and keep in touch with others instantly!

I love this site for the way that it helps me interact person-to-person in conversation with others in my field. I feel like I know these people and have already met a few of them at cons based on the fact we've chatted on Twitter beforehand!

As an example of Twitter's amazing powers, besides helping to lead revolutions in other countries, I remember a past convention where I had aboslutely no artists to help me out with a panel where I needed folks to paint for charity. I posted on Twitter for help and word circulated through this digital grapevine, until I had more than enough volunteers to help my panel succeed!

To add butter to your toast, Twitter allows you a profile to add a link to your website and talk about your interests. What you list on your profile and who you Follow also fuels Twitter's intuitive Suggested Follows system, which will automatically suggest other artists for you to Follow based on who you are already Following and their interests.

All in all, it's my favorite way to discover new artists and interact online! You can also link your Twitter and Facebook accounts to mirror your posts, which leaves you more time for creating work instead of yacking on the computer.

Read on at Tweetable Art: 10 Twitter Tips for Artists for more great info!
http://mashable.com/2009/02/23/twitter-artists/

Facebook - http://facebook.com

I know people tend to hiss when they think of the inanity of Facebook, but I have to admit it's become a central driving force in my business! I have a fan page where my fans can keep in touch with me directly, upload fan photos, and keep up with my studio announcements of new products and the like. I can also upload videos and photo albums here, making it the next best thing for those of us who may not have the resources to host our own websites yet!

Facebook gets pretty high rankings in search engines and fan pages also do not require fans to login to see your info, as you would with a personal Facebook account. It's a great place to start your marketing efforts that is fairly easy to manage on your own. If you cannot manage it on your own, there's also the ability to add multiple admins to your fan page.

You can read more about the differences between a fan page, a group, and a personal account at my article on the matter:
http://blog.angelicshades.com/2010/10/facebook-profile-vs-fan-page-vs-group.html?spref=tw

Blogspot (aka. Blogger) - http://blogspot.com

This is a great free site which lets you start your own blog, or online journal, where people can easily follow you if they have a Google, Yahoo, or RSS Reader. I keep up with many artist friends this way as well as professional communities where I can stay informed of events going on in my industry. Most artists keep journals to share their works-in-progress, chat about their inspirations, and share advice.

Another great advantage of having your own blog is that if your website isn't updated regularly with new work (because you're a slower paced worker like me), the blog can be a way to have a consistent source of new material to keep people coming back to check on you. Don't want people to forget you exist, do you?

There are many online blog formats, but I've personally found Blogger to be the easiest to maintain with a vast network of connections throughout the web. If you don't like that blogspot name in your url, there's also a function to replace it with your professional domain name.

Check out these useful blogs on Blogger:

http://artorder.blogspot.com - Ran by Jon Schindehette, an art director with Wizards of the Coast (the makers of Magic the Gathering, Dungeons and Dragons, to name a few). As an art director, Jon shares his opinions on what he looks for when hiring artists, what artists need to learn when they're breaking into the business, amongst other nuggets of wisdom! This blog also features interviews with working artists with even more insight into the business. If that wasn't enough to make you tune in, ArtOrder runs Challenges where you are given a hypothetical assignment, entries to be judged by various art directors. It's a great way to get your foot in the door!

http://muddycolors.blogspot.com - Maintained by a few of the industry's leading artists (Donato Giancola and Dan Dos Santos, to name a few!) This is the blog to watch for advice from the pros, glimpses into processes, and other useful bits of info! The cast of artists is shuffled up from time to time to make sure there's always fresh blood and enthusiasm on this blog.

For more info on why blogging can help your career, check out this useful article on "Why Artists Should Blog" by artist, Kirsty Hall:
http://kirstyhall.co.uk/2007/08/22/why-artists-should-blog/

Angela's Shameless Plugging

If you're curious about how I've set myself up on these networks, check out my social media links!

Angela's Facebook Fan Page - http://www.facebook.com/AngelicShadesStudio

Angela's Twitter - http://www.twitter.com/angelicshades

Angela's Blog on Blogspot - http://blog.angelicshades.com

In the years I've been building my art business, these particular sites have been the most helpful for me. Have you found other social networks that have proved invaluable as an artist or creative professional? Share your experiences with us in the comments section!

Upcoming - Book Signing & The Future of Angelic Visions?

2011-03-22T13:37:00.002-04:00

Just a quick little post to remind you all I'll be signing books and demonstrating art techniques this Saturday, from 2-4 pm at Barnes and Noble's in Ashley Park! Come get a free bookmark, chat about art, and have your book signed!

In other news, I think it's safe to say that at least a few folks have been able to finish reading the book. I'd love to hear some feedback from you all! If, say, I hope to do a proverbial sequel to Angelic Visions, I'd like to know what I should include! What did you find useful? What did you feel was missing? What would you like to see more of? Here are some topics I've been kicking around:

More on skin and lighting
Composition and visual impact
Using maquettes and references
More on armor, weapons, tattoos, halos
Showing action and intent
More on costume design
More fancy hair doos
More mixed media techniques
Developing personal style

Anything to add? I value the input from each and every one of you! I could also use some ratings on my book's listings on Goodreads and Amazon so they don't look so sad and empty. I appreciate you all taking a few moments to do this and also letting me know just how much you've enjoyed this experience.

Hope to see you this weekend! I'll have to share the product of any painting that happen at the demo when I get back.

Upcoming Appearances: Book Signing & MomoCon

2011-03-09T13:28:00.006-05:00

A short entry today to remind folks I'll be having my first book signing in an actual bookstore this weekend, Sat. the 12th at Books A Million in Peachtree City, GA! I'll be passing out free bookmarks, chatting about art, and talking about art techniques, so drop on by! I'll be signing copies of Angelic Visions bought in the store as well.

On Sunday, I'll be dropping by MomoCon to see what all the hubbub is about and to meet friends from around the interwebs! I don't have a table there this year, but if it seems like my kind of crowd, who knows what will happen next year? MomoCon is a free anime convention that takes place on the Georgia Tech campus here in Atlanta, for those who don't know it.

In other news, I've resurrected my Etsy and Artfire shops with some pretty cool new items lately! Check 'em out:

And more at my shops on Etsy and Artfire!

Hope you all have a glorious weekend! In the meantime, I shall be working on new art, new masks, and prepping products for the first art fairs of the season!

Interview at Dark Muse

2011-03-05T20:07:00.006-05:00

Hey, all!

Pointing you all towards an interview with me over at the Dark Muse Ezine - a new fantasy art magazine!! Learn about what inspired me to be an illustrator, the struggles of commission work, the rigors of self-employment, and the dangers of 'big head syndrome' (amongst other not so secret tidbits)!

The Dark Muse Magazine Issue #1!

My Written Interview (download link)
My Podcast Interview (download link)

Let Jay (the Magazine's creator) know that you like it by leaving a comment on the magazine first issue page!

It's a true labor of love on his part so let's help him continue the tradition!

What is Artfire? An Artist's Point-of-View

2011-03-02T12:37:00.006-05:00

A few months ago, I'd never even heard of Artfire, but had already been a vested user of Etsy since 2008. Now after plenty of fiddling over at Artfire, I feel confident enough to talk about its usefulness for artists.

What is Artfire?

Like Etsy, Artfire is a community marketplace for handmade and vintage items who offers community forums, item collections, and groups to join. The main difference in philosophy being that Artfire allows you to plug external websites much more in your own listings and pages, unlike Etsy, which discourages such practices. The other difference is of course the fact Etsy is far more entrenched with greater press coverage.

Artfire is catching up, though! If their constant marketing campaigns, helpful articles, and numerous twitter accounts is any indication of how much they're putting into making their site known. They also offer their members discounts at CHA (Craft and Hobby Association) and VIP discount cards at Joanns Fabrics (10% off regular and sale price items)!

Selling on Artfire

Much like Etsy, artists can post listings of items, sort them into browsing categories, and find buyers for their handicrafts. Where Artfire differs in this respect is that listings have no expiration date. A user must 'check in' at Artfire to keep their listings higher up in the search results, which weeds out the people who post listings and leave them there without maintaining them.

- Prints and Fabricated Art Items
Another quirk of AF I've found is that if you're selling art prints, cards, or any other pre-printed open edition item utilizing your art, they have to be a run of 500 or less while Etsy hasn't set a number, to my knowledge. This isn't much of a problem for me, however, as I'd be happy to even reach that amount of sales per item! With the number of open edition prints listed on AF, however, I suspect this policy isn't heavily enforced.

- Seller Invoice System
AF boasts a pretty full featured invoicing system for sellers, including itemized invoices where you can check off each stage of payment, packing, and shipping as it happens with a field to enter an item's tracking number. This number is automatically emailed to your customer when you enter it, making these invoices pretty handy for taking care of your customer all in one place!

- Feedback and Non-Member Buyers
One big difference between Etsy and AF's way of handling transactions is the fact that AF also encourages you to do what you need to do to make a sell, meaning customers don't need to have an AF account to buy! They can simply use AF's shopping cart feature. This means you don't get feedback or karma from the transaction, but that doesn't seem terribly important on this site, despite the fact users can still leave detailed feedback on your shipping, quickness, item quality, etc. Because there's no final value fee taken out when a sale is made, it's easy enough to cancel the order and relist with no loss of money, should you have trouble with a non-paying buyer.

- Promotional Coupons

Another extremely useful feature of AF is the ability to create promotional codes. While you can do this on Etsy, Etsy restricts your coupon codes to only a certain percentage off or free shipping. AF's coupon code functionality is more robust with the ability to tailor your coupons to a percentage off and free shipping, but also allows you to apply coupons to seller-defined studio groups and price ranges, the order total, or even specific items. Coupon codes are also another premium member feature.

- Other Useful Features
If you're a user of Etsy, AF makes it easy to download your CSV file from Etsy and import all of your items with only a few tweaks required! This is a premium member feature, however. You can also batch edit your listings, move them en masse to new categories, and take advantage of a detailed vacation mode that allows you to leave your items up, but auto-responds with your 'away' message. Unlike Etsy, which simply hides your items completely from listings until you disable it. There's also a 'sales mode' that allows you to discount everything in your shop at once. Sales mode and vacation mode are both non-premium features!

Crunching Numbers

Another major difference between Artfire and Etsy is the fee structure. Artfire charges a flat monthly fee (I pay $5.95 thanks to a beta deal I got, but standard pro rate is $9.95 as of this entry) while Etsy charges 20 cents per listing for 3 months and takes 3.5% of your final sale's value. If you're hosting a large amount of items, AF can be really useful for keeping costs down each month.

As for sales numbers, I've noticed a greater number of handmade craft items and cards selling here rather than my prints and original art, but it's still great to get the exposure on my artwork along with everything else. I have a feeling that as I grow my shop and become more entrenched in this community, these sales proportions will change!

Customization

One thing I absolutely love about AF is the ability to customize the color theme and style of our shop pages! I've included a screenshot of mine below. Most of the customization is, again, a premium member feature.

See my Artfire shop in action!


See my Etsy shop in action!

Final Thoughts

Rather than choose one community over the other, it's easy enough for me to maintain both my Etsy AND Artfire shops with AF's import feature! The amount of sales I've made via both communities have made them well worth investing my time in and will only continue to increase their usefulness as another means of income the longer I use them.

Interested in joining up as a premium member at Artfire? Use my referral link! We'll both get a free month plus be entered into a drawing for a free DSLR camera for both of us!♥

Become an ArtFire Pro with this link and get your 3rd month free!

I'm also a member of the Artfire Fantasy Guild, so drop on in and say hello! I'd love to see some familiar faces there.:)

Angelic Visions Book Signing Tour!

2011-02-23T11:52:00.000-05:00

You TOO can come see the
cardigan in action!

Well, it can hardly be called a tour at the moment with just two stops, but I'm currently hunting down more book stores that don't mind hosting an an angel-crazed artist to add to this list!

I'll be passing out free bookmarks to all who venture my way (while supplies last), yacking about art, and signing any copies of my books that you buy at the store. I'll also have my watercolors with me at each event where I'll be demonstrating my painting techniques live!

The Current Stops on Ang's Tour to Take Over the World
(I mean sign books)

Saturday, March 12th - 2-4 pm - Books-A-Million at The Avenue

Saturday, March 26th - 2-4pm - Barnes and Noble Booksellers at Ashley Park

(More to come! Know a book store here in Georgia that does signings? Do share in the comments!)

You can also keep up with my events at your social site of choice!

My Author Page on Goodreads

My Facebook Fan page

My Amazon Author page

Or just keep track here because just about everything on those sites is a mirror of this blog.

See you at the book shop!

Angelic Visions Giveaway WINNERS!

2011-02-19T11:02:00.002-05:00

The comments are in and the winners have been chosen! Druumroooll pleaaase!

Dun dun DUN. And the Winners by completely random list generation aaaare...:

Marion, who wins an autographed copy of Angelic Visions and an angel feather bookmark! Marion's favorite mythological figure was the winged serpent, Quetzalcoatl. Read on at his comment to find out why!

The following winners chosen by completely random list generator will each receive a handmade leather angel feather bookmark! The feather winners aaare...:

Uniformgrey, who talked of a love for classic mermaids of all types! Read on at their comment to find out why.

Thetarotfool, who spoke of an affinity for angels, particularly Azrael and other personifications of death. Read on at their comment to find out more!

Winners, please email me with your snail mail address ASAP so I can get your prizes out to you!

I will be attempting to send out notice to you as well, just to make sure we don't miss each other.

I hope you all enjoyed this giveaway as much as I did! It was a pleasure to learn about what mythological figures inspire others, some I've heard of, and some I haven't! I particularly enjoyed reading comments like Foresomeone's which talked about the oral tradition behind sharing tales of leprechauns with their grandpa. There are so many other interesting comments, so I encourage you to look back at the giveaway entry and give them a peek yourself!

Thanks to all for participating! I trust this won't be the last Angelic Visions related prize event in these pages, so keep your eyes peeled! And thanks for sharing your stories with me.:)

Eventide Hijacked: The Artifice of Character

2011-02-17T09:01:00.001-05:00

Coming to you from the fingertips of fellow fantasy enthusiast, Hayley E. Lavik:

Artist and fantasy writer Angela Sasser hijacks the blog today! Angela has hijacked the blog in the past to explore the overlaps between fantasy writing and fantasy illustration, and she's back today to talk about dissecting fantasy characters with her cross-media point of view!

(Check out my guest post at Eventide Unmasked and join the discussion!)

Confessions of an Artist - Part 6

2011-02-14T00:01:00.130-05:00

It's been awhile since my last entry in the 'Confession' series. We've talked about everything from storing art improperly to getting out of our artistic comfort zones. Today...I'd like to admit that at one time in my life, I was intent on being the 'crazy cat lady'.

You know the one. That kooky lady next door with eight cats, who has named them all for pop singers, knows each cat's personality by heart, and will talk hours on end about them and their adventures. In my younger days, I thought that's what I was destined for, and, in fact, welcomed it. I didn't need the distraction of a huge epic social life. Chilling with a few close friends suited me just fine.

I had an education to finish and a career path in front of me. I didn't need the distraction of marriage, children, and the dedication of time and energy and the stress that comes with it all. I considered myself pretty darn selfish, as was my right as a person with free will to be. I gave a verbal warning of "Beware, INDEPENDENT ARTIST" to just about everyone I dated.

I didn't think there was a way to reconcile the alone-time it required to develop as an artist, writer, etc. while also being with anyone, ever. The cats would understand me..., guys however? I wasn't so sure about them! I felt that most guys I dated didn't deserve a gal like me, who was always putting her career ahead of the cutesy couple time that should have been filling up every second of my free time when I wasn't in class or at work. I did not need to call them to tell them I missed them because I had plenty to keep me occupied. I had stories to write and masterpieces to paint, after all! Most guys found this off-putting. They deserved a 'normal' girl who could give them the time and dedication that they deserved.

Boiling all that down, being an artist (or a creative individual in general) requires a heck of a lot of alone time just to think, practice, and develop one's craft. This leads to a lot of hangups on both sides of the dating coin. The Artist, who is tortured by guilt because they're a terrible person for making art instead of spending every moment with their Sweetie OR tortured by guilt for not wanting the American Dream (marriage, 2.5 children, and a house in the suburbs). The Sweetie, who thinks that because the Artist doesn't want to be with them every moment means that the Artist cares more about art than them.

Coming into my 9th anniversary with my Sweetie (celebrating this very day, in fact!), I'm happy to say that the years have a way of making us wiser. We've both struggled with our maturing senses of self and what we want from life, both fought with our hangups until I've come to realize that Important Thing:

Despite it all, he is still here with me. Even if we get frustrated, we are both still here trying our best to understand one another and make it work.

He does not judge me because I'm rambling about what exact shade of blue the sky is (Cerulean or Cobalt). Most of all, he is behind me every step of the way, as far as pursuing my business. He has learned not to assume that I will always put art over him, but rather that he is a vital part of my happiness and well-being, a living part of my inspiration. We're a team, just as I'll never judge him for comparing the dropped frame rates of consoles games versus PC.

Maybe one day we'll make a family? Maybe not. I'm glad to say I am no longer judged on the prudence of such a choice, at least not by him.

One should never start dating a dedicated Artist with the expectation they should try to take the Art from them or belittle an Artist's fascination with creation. It's an essential part of their being. To make them any different is to change what you probably loved about them in the first place.

Happy Anniversary, my Little Kaio! I do hope you like cats....;)

Inglourious Artests

2011-02-09T12:52:00.001-05:00

(For in-joke reference, see Inglourious Basterds)

Today, I am grumpy and thought I would share.

What makes me grumpy? I am not in the studio.

Why am I not in the studio? Because as a one-man business, I'm doing business upkeep instead.

What business upkeep might that be?

Taxes - I do them in Turbotax myself because I am hard-headed and don't want to pay someone else to do essentially the same thing as going through a step-by-step program that walks you through them. (Just my opinion..probably wouldn't recommend this course of action to folks not comfy with a computer and lots of tedious reading.)
Gallery Setup - I recently bought a space in a local gallery, meaning I've had to fill it with signs, frame & hang work, take inventory, and any number of endless list of things just to make it presentable.
Filing Receipts - This goes hand in hand with taxes. Got to keep good records of your expenses and income! I use Quicken to keep track of my cashflow and record receipts.
Making Phone Calls - As much as I'd like to think I am SO awesome that people will come to grovel at my feet and offer me opportunities, I've spent much of my time on the phone lately setting up book signings, repeating the same marketing spiel over and over.
Updating Website and Shops - Entering products one by one, picking categories, uploading product images, and all that fuss are required for marketing my work on Etsy, Artfire, etc. This tedious activity is the sole flagship of my online sales, meaning there is no escape from doing this duty!

There are times when I am willing to trade a kidney if I could have someone do this crap for me so I can spend more time in the studio. Alas, no one has taken me up on that kidney offer! Alas again, this was my choice to run a business and be a micro-manager of every facet, therefore there's no one to blame but my evil twin, Mangela!

If there was a time I was thinking on how awesome it would be to draw 'pretty pictures' all the time and bring the enjoyment of sexy otherworld creatures to be adored the world over, that time has passed! Running a business requires just a pinch of shameless self-promotion with a dash of evil.

Evil being the thought of preying on people's impulsive spending tendencies to make a sale (IE. the acquiring of a credit card terminal to persuade those with plastic money, for instance), of convincing them they need things that they really don't (IE. my pretty pictures of stuff). Evil being that undercurrent in my thoughts, no matter how small, that leads back to how I can help promote myself. Evil being the realization that, yes, the purpose of any business is to make money, in addition to anything sprang from morality and inspiration, that drives your urge to keep waking up every day and doing this thing called a business.

So, balancing a bit of wickedness with all this pretty talk of 'doing what we love' I've talked about on this blog! (And I do love this, for all that I purport my grumpiness). I will keep creating (when not upkeeping). I will keep drawing sexy otherworldly pretty things because I damned well want to.

But first, gotta update a few more websites...

....Kidney, anyone?

Angelic Visions Giveaway!

2011-02-05T13:01:00.006-05:00

(EDIT: The Winners have been chosen here!)

Finally, the blog giveaway has arrived! I'll make this short n sweet.

Leave a comment on this entry talking about your favorite mythological figure (and why you love them). In two weeks, on Saturday, February 19th, I'll be drawing three names using random.org. Here's what you'll get a chance at winning!

The prize pot!

One lucky winner will receive a signed book, an autographed special edition metallic print of the cover, and a handmade angel feather bookmark! Two other lucky winners will each receive their very own handmade angel feather bookmark.

Take a closer look at that bookmark!

Constructed from 3 oz leather, these feathers were hand-carved, hand-painted, signed, and dated on the backs by yours truly! Each one is special and unique due to the nature of the leather carving process. No two will ever be exactly the same. You can't see it very well in the photos, but they glimmer with a dusting of gold that's just entrancing to behold!

NOTE! If you don't tell me about your favorite mythological figure, you will not be included in the drawing! If you've already bought the book and would just like to be entered to win a bookmark, be sure to specify that in your comment.

Haven't heard of Angelic Visions? Than go check out my book trailer to learn more about this shiny new tome on portraying your very own fantasy angel figures!

Be a doll and spread the word using the social networking share links at the top of this entry! Every link back makes me feel all warm n fuzzy inside.

Evolution of an Artist Alley Table II

2011-02-03T12:11:00.008-05:00

Back in September of 2009, I posted a list of what goes into my display in an artist alley. Now two years later and a few events wiser, my display has evolved!

Show them what they've won, Vanna!

Anatomy of an Artist Alley Table - Part 2

Retractable Vertical Banner - $300 - A pricey item, to be sure, but the fact I don't have to carry around a big pvc pipe set nor have it taking up space in my car makes this item well worth it! This vinyl banner pulls out from and retracts back into a spring loaded base that is about as big as a tabletop easel and very lightweight. Adds to my vertical appeal and allows people to notice me over the heads of the crowd. Mine was printed by Graphic Signs Atlanta.

EDIT: I'm told Staples offers a cheaper $100 collapsible stand now too!
Standing Easel - $13 - These simple wooden easels are great for propping large prints for that eye-catching vertical appeal! I've been using these to prop the blow up of my book cover at book signings as well. When I'm not promoting the book, this cover image will be replaced by a piece of art instead. Bought at Joanns Fabrics and Crafts.
Gridwall Cubes - $30 - Also called wire cube storage. These have been with me since the beginning! I use them to clip prints, mousepads, and prints to, though I'm looking for an alternative display method for the masks currently. The wire distracts from their detail so I'm either going to cover them with fabric or buy some gridwall hook attachments that project from the wall so the masks can be placed on them some distance from the grid instead. Found mine at Target.
Mannequin Head - $40 - Affectionately named Shay, she helps bring more visibility to my masks and other artisan crafted items! Her ears are pierced so I can add earrings as well as display a necklace and a mask all on the same head. Found her at Store Fixtures, USA.
Visa/Mastercard Sign - $5? - A simple plastic sign used to notify customers that I take credit and debit cards. I printed it off on cardstock and slipped it into the stand. You'd be amazed at how comforted people are to know that you can accept plastic money! Many people don't carry cash anymore, either because they prefer not to or because they're trying to limit their budget. Accepting cards is a good way to be that evil influence prompting people towards impulse purchases. That sounds bad, but hey, it's true! Can't recall where I got this sign and how much it was, but it couldn't have been more than $5 and probably came from Walmart or Staples.
Basic Tabletop Easels - $5? - You can probably find these even cheaper if you buy plastic instead of metal. In my case, I was actually using a small metal easel used for displaying antique dinner plates. Great for propping up items like prints and books again for that vertical eye-catching appeal! It's harder for people to notice your work if it's all lying flat on the table, especially where there are big crowds. Can't recall where we got these at, but probably Staples or Walmart.
Horizontal Vinyl Banner - Price varies per footage - Another item that's been with me from the beginning. Even though I have the nice vertical signs, I still like to hang this out in front so the front of my table doesn't look too boring. It was a little too big to hang behind me anyways and was rather overpowering my display! It looks much better hanging out in front. Printed at Graphic Signs Atlanta.
Itoya 11x14 Display Portfolio - $11 - I had a small 5x7 portfolio on the table to show off my work and to make room for more items, but people kept passing it by! Eventually opted for this imposing portfolio which prompted more people to stop and flip through. I also had a sign up sheet and business cards tucked into the plastic pocket at the front so people could leave with ways to be reminded of my existence.
Trading Card Album - $5? - This small album housed ACEO and ATC organized into open edition, original, and limited edition settings. They represent my affordable offerings for the casual buyers who may not want to invest in large items, but don't mind dropping a few bucks on cute collectible cards. Bought from Michaels.
Print Bin - $10 - Actually a collapsible file box. Bottom comes out and it folds down, making it much easier to transport than my solid heavy print bin, which now serves as a permanent inventory housing item here at home. Found at Walmart.
Greeting Card Rotating Countertop Rack - $35 - Another item I've had from the beginning! It is sometimes replaced by a standalone rack that sits in front of my table, but I can't use that one on a regular basis because some shows are picky about you having items in front of your table that folks might trip on. Little children also like to spin it until it falls on their heads! This smaller rack houses my 5x7 and matted 4x6 prints. Purchased from Displays2go.
Binder Clips (40 pk) - $5 - Oh the many uses of binder clips! I used them to clip the prints to the grid, to hold my banner to the table, and for fiddling with when I'm bored. They make nice talking finger puppets! I prefer the gold variety as it looks a bit more decorative than the silver. Found at Staples.
Crushed Velvet Table Cloth - $8 a yard - A mysterious number 13 I forgot to number in my photo! This silver cloth serves a multitude of purposes. First, it covers up the hideously distracting plain tabletops, is large enough to cover the entire display when you have to leave (if you have two on hand), and can also serve as backdrops for photographing products! Velvet is great, as I've mentioned in previous photography tutorials.

Alternate Displays

While the aforementioned display works well for events where I'm mostly selling art, some events require a different setup to accommodate my more crafty items!

Flashback to Faerie Escape Atlanta, 2010!

The only thing that's different here is the inclusion of a metal jewelry tree and velvet necklace, which helped bring a level of professionalism to my items that laying them flat on the table didn't.

Metal Jewelry Tree - $20? - Mine was a Christmas present from the family so I have no clue where they bought it! I've seen some creative takes on the jewelry tree where people have taken branches from a real tree, cleaned them up, and shaped them to suit their needs. Then jewelry is hung off them with little leaf-shaped tags for an organic theme.

Velvet Necklace Forms - $2 - These velvet covered neck forms really make for a stylish addition to any craft table. I bought mine at Joanns, but have found bigger ones for longer necklaces at Dawson Jones for $12.

That's it for now! I'm currently transitioning my display to fit an art fair booth setup, so expect posts on this topic sometime in the future!

The Great Promo Brainstorm

2011-01-27T12:19:00.004-05:00

Bring in your pets and put away your lawn furniture, the great Brainstorm cometh! But first, a bit of sketch spam of custom ink drawings I've been doing on the inside of people's books ordered direct from me.

Keywords (Left to Right): "Angel Warrior", "North Star", "Angel Tribe", "Fairy Child"

After the success of the first book signing, I'm scheming on ways to keep pushing promotional efforts before I'm old news. At this step I'd actually prefer to hire a publicist, but for now that's just not in my budget. The company is handling getting the book into stores and now it's my turn to set up the rest of the grassroots efforts that will start here in my own little town and corner of the interwebs!

Here are just a few of the things I'm pondering on doing (I'm wide open to suggestions if you have any):

- A Blog Tour - I'm still trying to grasp the what, where, and how of this. Basically I would approach various blogs and see if they would mind featuring me or my book on their blog and post a schedule of each 'stop' that's planning a feature within a certain date range. Anyone know of any good fantasy or art blogs I could approach? (Or who host one themselves that would be relevant to my themes?)

- A Book Giveaway - Soon to be on this blog! As soon as I've got my paws on the next shipment of books, I'd like to giveaway a whole bundle (Sketch+Book+Prints+Other Cool Goodies) to a lucky commenter! I will have to think of a good comment prompt for this one. *plots*

- Book Signings -Where to start? After a little MOAR RESEARCH, I've written up a Press Release for any prospective bookstore owners just so I know what to say when I'm on the phone (or pitching in person) with them and also so I have something to email them for reference. (Don't quote my formatting on that write-up. It's probably all backwards!) So far, it seems like the best way to schedule one is to approach their community relations departments at a corporate level so they can recommend the store that's best set up for such an event.

- Book Sketches - I've been publicizing these in my online sketchbooks to help remind folks that YES I do offer custom ink sketches in the inside-cover of any book ordered directly from me for an extra cost! The rules of advertising state that repetition of your product or brand helps breed familiarity and credibility. Trying to keep true to this tenant, which means I'll soon be doing more video trailers very soon! Proliferate throughout the web, my pretties!

And the Brainstorm continues. Any promo strategies you'd like to share? Any of the particulars listed here get you excited for more? Share and share alike!

The First Book Signing

2011-01-18T16:23:00.005-05:00

Phew! The h'orderves have been devoured and the bottles of wine re-corked. The first book signing is done!

See more pics at my Facebook album!

Many thanks to Artworks on the Square for hosting this release party. We had a great turnout of about 40 or so people! I'm happy to report there were few crises involved, outside of baking a last minute tray of pigs in blanket an hour before setup and temporarily losing the key to the cash box.

There was also an incident with an escaped flying mattress, but it was not involved with this particular event.

All in all, pre-book signing jitters were unfounded and I had such a blast talking to so many like minds and old friends. I can only hope the next one (which will be minus the party favors) will still be as successful!

It's still so surreal to think my book is finally out there. I had to go to the book store and confirm it was there sitting on the shelf awaiting the hands of another artist.

I cannot wait to see just how far this inspiration can spread!

If you end up buying my book, feel free to let me know how you enjoyed it, what else you'd like to learn, and of course, to share your wonderful creations with me! You can add photos to my Fan photos on Facebook here.

Hope to catch you all at the next signing!

Things I Learned:

2 small platters of catered food do not feed 40 people. Lesson learned! Note also that pigs in blanket cost half as much and make twice as much as the precooked stuff if you make them yourself. Yummy! Recipe linkage. Also, petit flours are always the first desserts to go.
Offer combo deals. It's ridiculous to think my calendar costs more than my book because of it's low run, custom printed nature. So, those who bought the book got a $5 discount on the $25 calendar. (Thanks for the suggestion, Vicki!)
Cardigans make me feel smart! They seem to be proper authorial attire and are quite comfortable.
Found a great source for bookmarks! They were approved, printed, and shipped within 2 days of ordering with someone calling me on the phone to inform me of their progress at each step! Thanks so much to ladyprinting.com! I was able to get a small amount of 2x7 bookmarks without a setup fee, like most of the other places I looked at.
Found an equally awesome source for tassels (eBay seller: Purpledoug1959) and vinyl bookmark sleeves (www.clearbags.com)
People really loved the free bookmarks! Going to keep handing these at conventions and other signings (minus the vinyl sleeves and tassels). They're much less expensive than my grand plans to make custom leather bookmarks to give out. People love items they can use and having my website at the bottom means they'll have a constant reminder of where to find me at.
Last (but not least!), with any signing, I am there to sell something I believe in! I know my product is awesome, that I'm sharing something worthwhile, regardless of the amount of people who show up! Advice to live by from my darling bosom friend, Hayley E. Lavik.

Interview at EMG Magazine

2011-01-10T13:34:00.002-05:00

There's a pretty extensive interview with me over at EMG Magazine right now. You should go check it out!

Angela Sasser is a very talented artist. This innate talent is not all; she is a very hard worker and has studied the business of being an artist. These qualities make her unique, since it is not very easy to find a fantasy artist that has such an extensive academic background as Angela's. To top it all, she is incredibly friendly! Please, join me in this interview to know more about this wonderful person!

Angela, you have had a very intense and interesting education regarding art. Can you please tell our readers about it? How has it helped you so far as an artist?

Where to begin? I spent a long time trying to decide what I wanted to do with myself when I was younger. I always knew that I wanted to be involved in illustration and storytelling, but as a young dreamer, I was discouraged from pursuing it as a profession because it was seen as a fools errand and a profession that wouldnt allow me to put food on the table...

(Read on at EMG Magazine's Artist Spotlight)

Upcoming Appearance: Artworks on the Square

2011-01-05T10:42:00.001-05:00

Just a quick reminder that Artworks on the Square here in Fayetteville, GA, will be hosting several events for my book this month! There's the solo exhibition reception this Friday, a book signing party next weekend, and a color pencil demonstration the weekend after that. You can read more details on these events here.

In more book news, all of the pre-orders, minus a few that need sketches, have been mailed out! The book itself is now in stores (Barnes & Nobles, Amazon, Borders, etc.) so keep an eye out! (Though if you order from me, your book would come with a shiny print and autograph!).

My recorded video demo on painting watercolor skintones is also available on artistsnetwork.tv and is a nice complement to the book's demos. At only $16.99, it's pretty affordable and even cheaper if you're a subscriber over there!

Things are coming together quite nicely at the start of this new year! Now I better dash off and get things ready for this Friday! I'm so excited to meet some of my local artists.

Hope to see you then!

Back to Formula

2011-01-02T03:26:00.005-05:00

As we say goodbye to 2010, I have to be honest and say that this year ended with a fizzle.

Sales were down, conventions were slow, and I hit the biggest burnout of my professional career thus far around mid-year. I lost my urge to draw and escaped to the loving arms of leather crafting (which proved surprisingly lucrative and therapeutic). I started to think I'd never be able to keep up with competition. I had so much to learn and a to-do list that never seemed to shrink. The Muse seemed to have flown the coop permanently.

And that is when I realized something. I'm the boss here, not the Muse! I show up for work every day and the Muse generally mosies in after coffee and emails. The hardest part for me lately is showing up for work, sitting down at the art desk, and at least attempting to get those ideas down on paper, regardless of any intended success or failure. This, I realize, is the state of being an artist for a living. Uninspired or not, it is time to work! You must preserve a state of blind optimism that the inspiration will come and that you are a professional, whether the so-called Muse flies in that that day or not. Your art, whatever market you target, will equal returns of some sort and a feeling of satisfaction that makes the job worthwhile.

(I imagine the real problem would be if the inspiration or satisfaction in my work never comes. Then it might be time to consider other career paths.)

And so I have decided to take this year back to formula. I started this business of art with the firm belief that I had something I wanted to share with the world, that what I wanted to share was worth noting. What I have here is fantastic! Fabulous! Phenomenal! Awe-inspiring, and, yes, maybe even worth paying for!

In this new year, I endeavor to do the following:

Keep whittling down the art to-do list, even if it never shrinks.
Explore digital media without fear of 'sucking big time'!
Don't shy away from ambitious projects just because they won't make money NOW.
Start charging what I'm worth for the time put into my masks! Apparently I charge too little...
Return to nature! It always gets me inspired, even if it's just sitting on our dock meditating for awhile.
Go to the museum more. We have a membership and I barely use it.
Read more. My visual and mental vocabulary need expanding!
Join my local art society and stop being such an introvert! (Or worrying that my work won't fit in)

What do you plan to do in this new year? Who's the boss in your studio, you or the Muse?

How many of you thought of Spider-Man when you saw the post title?

Review - Imaginative Realism by James Gurney

2010-12-28T00:09:00.004-05:00

"There is no line between fine art and illustration; there is no high or low art; there is only art, and it comes in many forms."

I knew I would love this book the moment I read this line from the section "Art in the Twentieth Century" detailing the shift from demand for original art to printing and publication. There is a progressive attitude here that treats all forms of art as a means to an end, tools to aid in the expression of a vision. Leave all your doubts and fears at home because you are here to create, not quibble over what's better or pays more or what art form is more worthwhile!

I just adore that.

For those who don't know him, James Gurney authored the masterfully illustrated series of Dinotopia books, which show what life would be like if humans and dinosaurs lived together in a world much like our own. Having penned and illustrated adventures in his own fantasy world, Gurney shares his extensive experience in doing just that - depicting believable worlds that do not exist through a variety of illustrative methods.

Gurney explains a brief history of illustration, how industry focus has changed, and what drew him personally to become an artist. The following sections detail his workspace, developing styles, and identifying artistic influences - all useful for expressing our own unique takes on imagery using the tools and strategies of those who came before. There's a constant emphasis on developing the idea over the technique in this book, such an important philosophy I wholeheartedly agree with! For if the seed of a creative idea is there, then it's only a matter of having the patience to train yourself to realize it. The toughest part of creation has already been achieved!

There are so many moments while reading this book where I felt a sense of awe and enlightenment. Gurney put words to concepts I have never been introduced to, even being a college-trained artist! His sections on composition and tonal development are some of the most golden nuggets of wisdom I've read. This book is what my college education should have covered. Everyone knows Line, Shape, Form, Texture, Space, etc...but do you really understand how it applies to creating a successful artwork? I feel that Gurney helps to bridge the gap between these esoteric theories by giving us real examples of his working process from conception to realization.

Other techniques that really struck me are Gurney's utilization of maquettes to serve as references for his images, which allows him to bring a level of realism to his lighting and placement that would be difficult to glean from the mind's eye. For characters that appear in multiple paintings, he suggests using a head maquette for achieving consistency in depicting those characters again and again. What a novel idea! Sometimes it takes a good book like this to make us start thinking in simpler modes.

The final sections briefly cover Gurney's painting process and suggested career paths for artists with tidbits of advice from someone who has been there and done that. This forthcoming advice is the kind of gold that makes this book priceless and a must-have for any artist.

While the majority of this book is not presented in a step-by-step manner, I found his examples illustrated his points eloquently and Gurney's philosophy on art and work methods in general to be just as helpful. His philosophy and conceptual advice make this book relevant to digital artists as well, even if most of his specific techniques are traditional.

This one's a must-have for any artist's collection! I'm looking forward to adding the rest of Gurney's books to my library as well after the inspiration and motivation this one has given me.

More of Gurney's books:

Angelic Visions - Book Trailer Release!

2010-12-17T01:41:00.004-05:00

In today's competitive market, it seems one just can't sit on a corner going 'Hey YOU, buy my stuff!". No sir-ree. Nowadays, it's all about instant gratification, shortening attention spans, and pretty pictures!

Well I'm here to provide you all of that! May I present to you the book trailer for Angelic Visions! (After this, it'll just be boring 'this is how I made it' stuff, so go watch, WATCH IT NOW!) Marketing experts say I have to have one and I'm inclined to agree!

It feels good to arrive at this point, as if all my hard work in promoting the book has culminated in this shiny musical moving box. Gone are the days when we would have relied on the power of printed adverts and mailings to get the most word-of-mouth going for our products! Now it's all YouTube and FB and their wildly viral power over the populace! Or at least, this is what I'm expecting after this video (I shall be watching the trickle-down effect of this video like a hawk!)

I've gotta say that making my own trailer took less time than I thought (not counting the time I spent pondering on what elements make a good book trailer and watching over a dozen to get an idea of what I wanted to do).

And here is random list of things I learned while working on this project!:

Do not use famous celebrities because that just screams "I got this from Google images"
Do not go longer than 2 minutes or your audience will get bored (unless you have a very good reason to go on because it's just SO riveting!)
There are barely any book trailers out there for art instruction books (minus books on quilting. There are SO many book trailers that have to do with quilting, oddly.) This means WE NEED TO MAKE MORE! Fill that niche! Interactive illustration is definitely catching on these days.
A professionally shot book trailer (with actors, music, etc.) apparently goes for $20k! Maybe once I'm a hit, I'll consider this full package service...maybe.

As for my own trailer's creative development, I spent about a day pondering on how best to put words to images, what images to use, and what music would go best, which culminated in the creation of this super high tech storyboard scribbled in my art pad!

I SWEAR this wasn't written by a chicken.

Translation - the stick figures are hints of which art I thought might work best with the arrows representing which way I wanted the camera to pan across the art. In the making, the trailer didn't really deviate from what I had here. Short, sweet, and to the point!

Picking the music was the easy part. I knew I wanted something unobtrusive that didn't compete with the artwork, but still interesting enough to hold a viewer's attention. I also knew I wanted something in the vein of Gregorian Chant, which fits angelic themes so perfectly! Luckily, I had just the song in mind from my previous dabblings in video editing, where I stumbled upon the royalty free music site of Kevin MacLeod! He offers his music free of charge in exchange for publicity and an optional donation.

After that, it really was a matter of looking at online tutorials on my video editing software (a program called PowerDirector which came with my camcorder) and playing around with it till it looked right. I'd already fashioned a video earlier (Song of Exile Walkthrough) to help get my feet wet with learning the ropes.

And so, a trailer is born! I may do a few more small video promos, but for now, this one is the Humdinger, the Mothership, my newborn Frankenstein!

I do hope you enjoy it and let me know what you think!

The Snowflake Lady - Part 3 - Coloring and Final Touches

2010-12-14T10:03:00.001-05:00

The last process post for the Snowflake Lady talked about choosing stock reference, line art, and sketch transferring. Now, it's time to get to the fun part - coloring!

Color test for Lady Snowflake

Most of the time I like to start off with a color test which is made very quickly in several layers in Photoshop. I like to keep the background, important parts of the figure, and important wardrobe details on their own layers so I can tweak the colors individually till I'm satisfied.

A tip to arrive at color schemes you might never have thought of is to flatten your image and play with the Hue slider under the Adjustments>Hue/Saturation menu in Photoshop. This option lets you change the colors in your image without messing around with your shading or line integrity.

I don't do a color test for EVERY image I paint, however! Sometimes it's fun to let the colors develop organically. Other times, I've spent so long inking or sketching the image that I'm afraid to mess it up, so I do all the prep I can before touching it.

With nerves steeled, painting begins! She was a very tough customer because all the blues were fighting for dominance. The original idea to make the inner window pane an antique gold failed horribly and just didn't gel with the rest of the image. I ended up having to layer various blues to make the window colors harmonize with the rest of the image. I also used the wrong shade of yellow for the starbursts in the stained glass, which still stand out awkwardly to me.

Just goes to show you that sometimes pictures don't work out the way we want, no matter how much planning is involved! At the very least, watercolors are forgiving in that their translucency allows you to lift color and layer till you can get your colors talking nicely to one another, even if the first color put down is just butt ugly. I ended up pushing the pale yellows as a way to make the figure pop out more and to unify the overall colors more than originally planned in the color test. I used white gel pen and silver leafing to add the final touches of snowflakes and shine in the window tracing and throughout the image.

For a more detailed step-by-step of my painting process, I refer you to my upcoming book, Angelic Visions! Meanwhile, enjoy the finished Lady Snowflake:

| Greeting Cards | Post Cards | Prints |

Convention Report - Atlanta Comic Con

2010-12-07T18:46:00.000-05:00

Returning from Atlanta Comic Con this past weekend with an odd mix of disappointment and happiness.

Sporting new vertical signage thanks to Graphic Signs Atlanta!

First off, I just want to say what a joy it was to meet David Mack and Joseph Michael Linsner (again), and now Billy Tucci, who I had no idea would be in attendance! I picked up a bag he dropped and gave it back to him without even knowing who he was. For those who don't know him, Tucci is the author and artist of a comic from the 90's called Shi, a tale of a half-Japanese, half-American woman out for revenge against the Yakuza lord who killed her father and brother. (Funny how half of my inspirational artists/writers tell tales about women out for revenge)

It was great to yack with some of my favorite comic book creators about what drove them to create their stories and what point in their life they felt that they were ready to tell them. It was very insightful and inspiring to know that most of them really didn't know what they were going to write about till they were in their 20's. Maybe I'm not so far behind after all?

Meeting them was a double edged sword. I found myself surprisingly in tears Saturday night for a reason I couldn't identify till later. Realizing how far you still have to go can be traumatic when you've not had a lot of sleep, have been on a crazed underpaid work schedule, and meet so many great folks who are 'there' already that it makes you feel so incredibly behind in your life. Even the 'there'ness is an illusion, I realize. These guys worked hard to realize their creative vision and they are STILL working hard to keep doing what they love!

And so, like many of the cons up until this point this year, I took a financial hit, but learned so much from the folks in attendance. I can only hope future cons will be a better balance of profits AND advice! Right now, there's a definite imbalance between the two.

As for the convention itself, I won't be going back next year, not as a vendor (unless I have the extra money lounging around). It was meant to be a 3 day con, but was changed to a 2 day con without notice to the vendors, or at least I did not receive any. The contact for the artist alley changed several times and I did not receive word back on many of the questions I asked that were forwarded around to the new contacts. Setup was fairly easy, but I felt like the management could've done a better job of keeping us informed. I found most of the info I needed eventually, but had to dig through a busy complicated FAQ to find it.

The audience also did not seem very interested in what I had to sell (the Angelic Visions book, prints, masks, etc). I got the distinct feeling that many of them were young artists there to meet and greet with their favorite creators and movie stars and not necessarily to buy things from other not-so-famous artists, something I wish I'd thought of before deciding to drop $200 on a table fee.

A gift sketch from
Joseph M. Linsner

On the plus side, I received a wonderful sketch from Joe in appreciation for the mask I gifted him at DragonCon. It was a great feeling to know he's mounted it in his room and finds inspiration from it on a daily basis. Also wonderful was yacking to David about gender and author identity and to Billy about how he prefers writing to drawing (something I thought I'd never hear such a talented artist say! It shined new light on my own illustrator versus writer predicament).

All in all, this con didn't lack for amazing people to meet, which is why if I come next year, it will most likely be as a con-goer instead of as an artist.

For the usual photostream of interesting costumes and such, check out my Atlanta Comic Con album on Facebook!

The Snowflake Lady - Part 2 - Preliminary Sketches

2010-12-01T15:54:00.005-05:00

In the last process post, I covered the basic planning sketches for The Snowflake Lady. With thumbnails and the basic gist of the image figured out, it was time to start getting detailed!

I started out by browsing my collection of stock images and seeing if there were any poses that could work for what I had in mind. I like to use photo references when they're available to help add a level of realism that I still find difficult to draw directly out of my head. Eventually, I narrowed my choices down to the following three poses, which all conjure the image of a graceful lady reaching for a snowflake. I quickly dropped out the background on these images using Photoshop's Magic Eraser tool, then overlayed them on top of my window layout:

Pose 1 courtesy of Nanfe-stock. Poses 2 & 3 courtesy
of Almudena-Stock.

Pose 1 added a level of movement to the composition with her outstretched arm, tilted head, and swirling dress. The other two poses were both lovely, but somewhat static, in comparison. After consulting with a few friends for a second opinion, I finally went with pose 1.

Next came a preliminary sketch done in digital blue! Which I like to use since it's easier to transfer tell where you've drawn over when you are transferring the image using graphite transfer paper (or the 'poor man's transfer paper', which is rubbing charcoal on the back of the image and then bearing down hard as you trace the lines on the front side). I refined the details in this blue sketch phase, though you'll notice I left some things generic, like the poinsettia, because it's easier to refine specifics like that after you're done transferring.

The stained glass window was actually designed first without the figure in front so I could get a better sense of how I wanted the patterns to look and flow. Doing this digitally meant I could hide and unhide the figure to see how the stained glass lined up in the composition, making it easier to adjust as needed. I also could easily copy and paste sections of the window to make it perfectly geometric instead of drawing it all by hand. The stained glass utilizes a simple starry night theme.

Next, she was transferred to 11x14 in. illustration board where she received a good deal of refinement in pen (Copic Multiliner SP pen with a 0.1 mm and .003 mm tips). I had to tape two 8.5x11 in. print outs together in order to cover the whole 11x14 in. piece of board. I made a few mistakes in the stained glass while I was inking because I trusted my hands instead of using a circle template. Too much coffee & green tea do not steady hands make! Compass and circle templates are your friend. I have a circular drawing ruler that's especially useful for this purpose!

Next Up: The fun begins with color!