Day One Hundred Twelve

Hmm. Waiting, waiting.

 I’d like to say happy birthday to my one and only older brother-so grateful you are with us. After a bit of celebratin’ around some Chinese takeout and a disturbing movie, it was time to retire, full and sleepy (thanks MSG) to my room and see if I could churn out anything about my art today that made sense.

I really enjoyed today’s word, especially since we have a running joke in the family about miniature and, for some reason, hysterical objects originating with the “Penny Pizza”. For those of you not “in” on the joke, it is incredibly hard to explain just why this is so funny. I think the whimsical notion of baking pizzas the size of pennies in a penny pizza oven just gets us going. Once you start thinking about it, so many bits of everyday life fit into the penny pizza story. After, I’m sure, confusing most of you poor folks, I will continue on with our word...

thim-ble n. A small cap-like protection for the finger, worn while sewing.

I remembered, as a young girl, receiving sewing kits for birthdays and at Christmas. Although they always included a thimble, I was never able to use them (except for spare Monopoly playing pieces) as they were always too large for my fingers. However, I’d always thought the texture and shininess of the thimble was interesting.

For today’s piece, I wanted to imagine a very different (and impossible) use for the thimble to go along with the whimsical memories it brought to mind. I decided to greatly alter the relative size of the thimble to other everyday objects, and use it as a dinner table.

I thought the sweetness of the flowers and the white tablecloth contrasted nicely with the bumpy and tough texture of the thimble “table”. I like presence of the high backed chairs and their distance from the table-as if a nice dinner had been interrupted before it began. The text below the illustration means “a little table” in French.

I sincerely hope you enjoyed this post; thanks for tuning in!

Xx

-r

Day One Hundred Eleven

Missing: Monday, March 28, 2011 from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.  

If found, please return to Ruby Love.  

Today’s word took a bit of research. I have been vaguely interested in perfume and the science behind it for a while. I thought today’s word provided the perfect chance to explore that interest and do a bit of research to get just the vintage look I was going for. I did a bit of research on the word itself, and decided to incorporate different aspects of perfumery in addition to illustrating part of the process of today’s word.

Right, today’s word...

en-fleu-rage n. The process to extract perfumes for flowers.

Looking up the classic methods of perfume making, I learned that flower petals were spread atop a sheet of glass coated with fat. (eew) As the fat pulled the essence of the flowers out of the petals, they would be replaced with fresh ones. As I was hurried, and only trying to get the basics of the structure of these frames, this is as far into the process as I got. But, what little I did learn was interesting. I decided to incorporate a perfume bottle, a curly-haired maiden, and several French words in addition to the frames.

I began in pencil,

Then inked and colored the illustration in pastel.

I like the way the flower petals are distributed throughout the picture, and I think the new addition of the color orange made a difference in the texture.

I hope you enjoyed today’s post; thank you for reading!

Xx

-r

Day One Hundred Nine

I spent a long day inside; curled up and hidden away from the sudden and unwelcome return to winter. Not much to report on as far as the day is concerned. Ah, well. I’ll just get down to work. After packing away some incredible, delectable, cream-and-cherry-filled Gâteau Basque courtesy of my pastry chef of a mother:

it was time to get to posting...

Today’s piece signaled the return of the drawing pen, and the temporary abandonment of my beloved pastels. Without really thinking, I grabbed a sheet of paper and began to doodle. Oh, wait...the word! I’m getting ahead of myself...

tack n. A small, short nail with a flat head; a sewing stitch used to hold something temporarily; the changing of a sailboat from one direction to another. v. To change the direction in which a sailboat is going.  

I had forgotten about the other use of “tack” as a verb (Maybe I’d blanked out the memories of dashing across our sailboat, nearly missing knocking myself out cold on the boom, lunging for the rope to pull hard against the winch while bracing my feet against the side of the boat and finally tying off after letting loose a stream of cursing aimed at the captain for letting the boat tip more than 5°.) and decided to focus more on its use as a noun. I thought it would be funny to illustrate a celebration of sorts centering on a tack. I, myself, have found that I have an ongoing love/hate relationship with tacks. As soon as I am hanging up a bit of art, they are the greatest invention mankind has yet to create. The story changes quickly, however, when a floor-residing stray decides to embed itself in my heel. Despite their occasional scream-inducing effects, I got a kick out of creating today’s piece.

I hope you enjoyed this post, and your night. Thanks for reading!

Xx

-r

Day One Hundred Four

There was a strange feeling in the air today. The wind had picked up, yet the air remained thick and heavy. I’m not sure exactly what it was about today that was so strange; it was simply unnerving. After a brisk walk down by the river:

Wooh...dark!

I settled in on the couch to chow down on an ice cream sandwich and bring you today’s post. Today’s word made me laugh. Not because it’s a particularly funny word, but because it reminded me of a song my father used to play. (By “play”, I mean on his phone and by “used to”, I mean often.) This song always made me laugh; the lovely tune makes the lyrics almost unbelievable.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhuMLpdnOjY

pig-eon n. A bird with short legs, a sturdy body, and a small head.

Kind of mean to the pigeons, there, right? Ah, well. So, I decided to illustrate this old song. I incorporated the windiness of today into the illustration; it really stuck with me (and, unfortunately, my hair).

I like the tiny size of this piece, and the fact that a few pigeons got away. I would also just like to state that I would never really poison a pigeon.

I hope you had a lovely Monday (hah! Guess who’s on spring break??) and thank you for reading.

Xx

-r

Day One Hundred Three

First off, I’d like to explain the recent drastic changes to the look of this blog. I spent most of the day yesterday (as I said in yesterday’s post) working on an online portfolio for my work. Published within that portfolio will be my new, shiny, clean Ink Drop blog! As soon as I have my domain name secured, I will be posting a link to my website to enable all of you readers to have one art-filled location to explore.

Onward! Following a long, long day kayaking on the Kansas River, we collapsed at home.

Yay! Crazy face. 

Rolling off the couch full of enchiladas, I decided I’d better get to work on today’s piece. Having had younger brothers, (Well, I guess I still have them. But, ya know.) I really identified with today’s word.

tug v. To strain and pull vigorously; n. A hard pull; a strong force.

It made me remember having long hair and, also, having it yanked, pulled, and tugged by the younger kids. Gah! I remember how, after a while, I began to get used to it and stopped reacting. Around this time, I think, was when they stopped being amused by it. (There’s nothing fun about getting zero reaction when you’re trying to bother someone.) So, for today’s piece, I decided to illustrate this (somewhat fond?) memory.

I liked that the person doing the “tugging” was much, much smaller than the girl. I thought that her expression was adorable; she’s kind of in pain, but also confused by the rather strange little character tugging on her hair.

Thank you so much for reading; I’m looking forward to getting to show off my new portfolio soon! Have a great night.

Xx

-r

Day Ninety Nine

Sleepy, sleepy!! I am looking forward to the St. Patrick’s Day parade tomorrow and...100 days at The Ink Drop! Woah! I can’t believe it’s been this long. At the same time, though, it seems to have flown by. So, because it is late and I seem to be exhausted, I will get to the post...

I think I have started a trend (can it be called a trend after two days?) of creating art very loosely based on the words I am “given”. I actually kind of enjoy the freedom.

gen-er-ous adj. Sharing freely; abundant; overflowing.

This one sort of stumped me. Maybe at 10 at night I’m a little less capable of coming up with something interesting, but I just wasn’t sure what to do with today’s word. I couldn’t get the idea of generous in the sense of “a generous amount” out of my head, though. Unsure of where exactly that would lead me, I began to draw.

I added a HUGE amount of hair at the top of her head; I have become a serious fan of the “messy topknot” hairstyle lately:

Anyways, I added this hairstyle to my character to convey a sense of a “generous amount”. Then, I decided to add a flowing robe. After I’d finished the robe, I used pastels to add a little color and help add some shading to the hair and robe.

I hope you enjoyed today’s post! Thanks for reading.

Xx

-r

Day Ninety Six

That was one quick weekend! It’s strange, though; I find myself looking forward to the enormous amount of work this week is sure to present. I can see the end of the insanity (at least schedule-wise...much of the insanity is probably here to stay) and am ecstatic to be finishing this year of schooling around two months ahead of schedule (sorry, people, this much work requires a little bragging). Today was one of those days in this blog that I plan, before beginning, to “just get it over with” and make something quick and easy. This was also one of those days that I was swept up in it all and fell deeper in love with art. What was going to be a quick pencil sketch before bed turned quickly into a full-on project with research, careful shading, color, and *gasp* A HAND!

house-coat n.  A woman’s informal garment to be worn around the house.

Although I already knew what a house coat was, I did a little research to get ideas about styling in order to do a glamorous, vintage take on today’s word. Immediately after reading today’s word, I thought of a very sophisticated woman who, although she was simply lounging around, did not in any way lose her glamour or beauty. In fact, I tend to think that an effortless, raw look intensifies it.

I took photos throughout drawing today’s piece in order to show the steps taken to create it.

I began, as usual, with a pencil sketch and then inked it to increase the definition.

After this, I took a bit of black pastel smudged on a q-tip and did some shading.

Finally, I took another q-tip, this time with red pastel on it, and colored her “house coat”. After several layers of pastel to get the color correct, I was finished.

I am very pleased with the way this turned out; I have never before drawn a character in this position.

I hope you enjoyed today’s post; thank you for reading.

Xx

-r

Day Ninety Five

Well, it has been a wonderful Saturday. Although I got little or no (more like NO) actual work done, today was a very satisfactory start to my weekend.

Today’s word tied in perfectly with a conversation I’d had the other day about spotting a vintage car downtown. We were admiring the timeless elegance, the long-forgotten class, and the way those cars just seem to...

purr n. The low, murmuring sound characteristic of a cat. purr v.

At first I dismissed the car idea; I have not drawn a car since elementary school (you know the ones that look like cardboard boxes with wheels?) and didn’t want to completely bomb today’s project. But then, I thought, how will I ever learn to draw anything new if I don’t start somewhere? So, I took out a pencil and started to sketch. After a lot of erasing and even more intense studying of a page on Google images, I can safely say I have not progressed much farther than those cardboard-box cars...

Although it isn’t the greatest (or even the most recognizable) image, I had a blast drawing it. I know that it’s important to work outside of your comfort zone and see what works (or really, really does not work) for you artistically; it’s something I need to continually remind myself of. I think, despite its wacked-out perspective and lack of...well...car-ness, this sketch is growing on me.

Enjoy your night and, as always, thanks for reading.

Xx

-r 

Day Ninety Four

It’s Friday, eh? The weather was wonderful, breezy, and light. I managed to finish another sketch today, and color an older one:

Now, knowing what to do with today’s word stumped me, it confused me, you could even say it served to...

con-found v. To amaze, confuse, or perplex; to confuse one thing for another.  

I thought long and hard (and even began a few other drawings) before I knew what to do. I finally decided on a rather comical take on today’s word. It occurred to me that what I (and many other ladies) thought of as amazing, beautiful, and wonderful really confused most guys. I decided to illustrate that for today’s piece:

I love the mix of interest and mild disgust on his face coupled with the bright and excited look on her face.

I truly enjoy this time each day to close off from the (increasingly) insane world and draw pretty characters in poofy dresses. It’s a great escape. I hope it offers a bit of what it offers me, to you.

As always, thanks for reading.

Xx

-r

Day Ninety Three

For the first time in at least a semester (I think) I rolled out of bed before 9:30. After the amount of work I got done today, this may just be the start of a trend. Although I did not get the chance to work on any art of my own today, I decided to make it up by spending a nice long time on today’s piece.

Today’s word was very strange. At first, I thought Wow! What a great word! I could illustrate this perfectly! I had tons of ideas about how to incorporate this excellent word into a drawing and began to form a sense of how I wanted this character to look. But then, I began to draw.

tai-lored adj.  To be made by a tailor.

The strange thing about this word is that started me off on a drawing that ended up having little or nothing to do with it. I really enjoyed this drawing and am happy with the way it came out.

I love the process of creating things. I love that you can begin with one idea and when you let go, you end up with something beautiful and completely different.

I hope you enjoyed today’s post; thank you for reading!!

Enjoy the rest of your night.

Xx

-r

Day Ninety Two

Like every other Wednesday, today was an art day. Although I had only faced two days of schooling, it felt long overdue. I managed to get most of the way through making an amazing book (thank you Auntie Liza!!), and get a little darkroom time in.

After a break for dinner and a (sort of) nap, it was time for the next day at The Ink Drop.

Today’s word made me think a little bit. Because today’s word is (sometimes) a noun, I wanted to avoid simply illustrating it literally. So, I went with kind of a different version of it.

fire n. The chemical reaction of burning, which releases heat and light. v. To have great enthusiasm; to ignite or cause to become ignited; to bake in a kiln; to discharge a firearm or explosive; to let a person go from a job; to dismiss.

Woah, that’s a lot of “fire”. Anyway, I wanted to incorporate the word fire into a character somehow. And then I thought, ooohh hair!! I decided to use pastels to create the look of her hair being on fire.

I used shades of red, orange and yellow to create the color of the “flames”, and added some black and gray pastel to the tips of the locks in order to give her hair more depth and a smoky, burnt look. I also added some pink pastel to her cheeks and mouth to give her some life. I like that she looks a little surprised by her hair, but isn’t too alarmed by it.

I hope you enjoyed today’s post; thanks for reading!!

Xx

-r