Illustration Friday: Swarm

The moment Harry takes a seat on the park bench, his favorite flock of pigeons swarm around him. They love the seed he always tucks away in his jacket pockets, but more than that they love his kindness.

Harry is very grateful for the pleasure of their company, especially since losing his wife of fifty-eight years. He's quite convinced the one that sits on his knee is his wife's way of letting him know she's nearby. Harry can often be heard cooing back to her.

For Illustration Friday: Swarm

I tried for a very loose and soft touch today...for Harry♥

Illustration Friday: Layer

After a seemingly endless dark day, the heavy layer of storm clouds were beginning to drift away.

Happily reunited, mother and baby basked in the glowing promise of a new day.

For Illustration Friday: layer

acrylic on canvas 6"x12"

Love Nesting

I got myself into a bit of a commercial mode this afternoon by taking off on a thought I had a couple of weeks ago. Somehow that thought went right out of my head until I recaptured it today. I thought I'd better sieze the moment!

I call these little paintings "love nests" because the 2 eggs look like a heart. No really, they do. Don't you see it?

It's like making images out of clouds. Well, sort of.

Or that magical moment when you're in the middle of nature and you spot a heart in a tree or a rock! Too bad no one is there to witness it. But that's when you take a picture of it and bring it home, perhaps post it on your blog ;)

Anyway, I've been a bit absent. A bit spotty. A tad preoccupied.

I think I needed these little love nests today.

I hope you like them.

xo

Lolo♥

Animal Wednesday: Groundhog Flies Home

For the first time I thought I'd try that random number picker generator thing. I love it! No writing out all the names and cutting up papers. Easy-peasy-breezy!

ooooh, I'm on the edge of my burrow!

Maybe I can live in Felix's room!

Thank you all for entering. I'll have a spring giveaway in April.

Happy Animal Wednesday!

xo♥

Koi Soup

As I was cleaning up after dinner tonight I couldn't resist one more sweet, broth-soaked baby carrot. As I was reaching in for my third, I stopped myself when the vision of a koi pond came into focus.

Hallucinations can occur when one over-indulges, even on healthy stuff!

Damn. This is one good soup.

(KJ, Marianne and Robin...no bean comments!)

xo

lolo♥

Illustration Friday: Reverse

At the Monterey Bay Aquarium they have this amazing overhead exhibit of sardines circling your head. It's like one continuous silver streak that shimmers and moves.

There's always a rebel fish trying to go the other way. That might have been me at one time, perhaps in the seventies ( or eighties or nineties!)

But sometimes we just have to put on the brakes.  Put that puppy in reverse and see what happens. Did the world stop?

Um, no. I really didn't think it would. Not for me anyway.

Here's my worldly advice for what it's worth.

Be true to yourself.

Dream your dreams.

Swim, swim, swim!

Even if it seems the other guys are going against you, stay true to you. 

How can you lose?

xo

Lolo♥ 

Look at the date on this sketch! Done in my very first Moleskine, 2007, for Illustration Friday's word: backwards.

Seems to work for reverse as well, no?

Animal Wednesday: Groundhog Day Giveaway

Well, what did you THINK I'd be giving away?

I just painted this little 4"x4" canvas specifically for this reason.

If you want to open your heart and home to this little "non-destructive" groundhog, leave a comment and I will draw the winner's name and announce it next Animal Wednesday, the 9th.

The canvas is really a soft green, not grey. 

Happy Groundhog Day and Animal Wednesday!! 

Illustration Friday: Surrender

Puppy Breath, belly rubs, unconditional love.

I surrender ;)

paper bag, fine point sharpie, colored pencils , ten minutes while sipping pinot grigio 

Animal Wednesday: The Queen and her jester

Bliss, the Queen on her Royal Throne accompanied by Ratty and Mousie.

At the moment she's not very amused by the Court Jester...

Emma, the Court Jester with a few of her many toys and Bliss's feather wand.

Now if only she would learn to pick up after herself ;)

The funny thing is, Bliss spends her evenings gathering all the toys (babies) into one pile while we're alseep!

Happy Animal Wednesday! May you be as entertained by your kids as I am. 

Year of the Rabbit Lolo stamps

I've begun to offer my Zazzle items publicly, including postage stamps. 

This is a design I sell on Etsy as notecards, but today I created stamps! They're pricier than stamps at the post office~I have no control over that.  ;)

I love using special stamps on my cards and letters for that extra personal touch.

Want some of these stamps for yourself?  Click here! 

I also made some adorable Valentine stickers that look like baby Sjimmie!

Click here for those!

Thanks for stopping by ♥

Thursday At My House

Fallen branches on summer chairs

snow covered garden hares

little cherub eating snow

as the hawk awaits his sparrow.

xo♥

Home to roost

Introducing "Violet Rain."

Yes, I'm a proud mama ;)

I thought perhaps I went a little too heavy-handed with the irridescence, so then I matted her sheen down a bit. I'm not sure she looks better here though.

I'll play with her a bit more tomorrow, but for now we're both calling it a day.

Well, she's cawling it a day!

I hope to be able to make more and get better at it.

What fun this was!!

Marianne, I'm still on that roll! ♥ 

Ta-Da! Final Sketchbook Pages

Myopic

I thought I'd never finish, but here are the final nine sketches I did late last night and early this morning. I'm still having fun with the fast and loose style, but clearly a few of these were forced.

This dog is my favorite one I think out of this last bunch.

Sweet Dreams...

I love it when kitties cover their faces like this.

I'm too sexy for this page....

Fleeing the storm...

Dreaming of spring...

Both eyes on her master...

Guilty!

Rain bath...



Thanking my muse ;)

You may have to click each illustration to see the details of the fine lines.

My pens were drying out and my stamina was drying up!

Here it goes...off to the post office!

Thanks for stopping by.

xo♥ 

Naked Baby Raven

I'm trying to branch out and play with new mediums and materials.

This was my first time using paper clay. I sat in the studio last night and decided to try to make a baby raven. I didn't look at anything while shaping this guy. I just went from the images in my head from drawing and painting so many of them.

I wanted him to look inquisitive.

Hello there cutie!

Another tip of the head.

I know he doesn't look ravenesque yet...but wait until he dries and I sand him into shape, and paint him in all his glorious irridescent blues and purples.

His eyes are black Swarovski crystals.

Hopefully I can show you the finished results in a few days.

I want to list more things on Etsy that I can make more money from.

I really don't think I can part with my first born though;)

Stay tuned!

xo♥

Illustration Friday: Chicken

"The Imposter"

C'mon, did you really expect the raven Queen to paint a chicken?

The Sketchbook Project deadline has been extended a few days which gave me time to whip this up. Have a great weekend everyone!

Oh those trickster ravens ;)


acrylic paint and colored pencil on patterned paper for Illustration Friday

Sketchbook Project Progress

Three Generations

Well, today's sketches went mostly to the dogs! I flipped through the sketchbook to see how many blank pages I had left to fill (13) so I started with the ones I scumbled paint on.

Look at this sad, sad group of Corgis!

I love keeping things fast and loose for projects like this. I don't think anyone wants to see if you can do an exact life-like drawing of anything.

I actually think it's harder for most of us to make it nuts and crazy and goofy.

I had fun today. That's the whole point, right? 

I love how I laid the paint down for this page. Mind you, I had NO idea what I was going to do until I did it. What freedom!

And it was so simple to close this in with a few distant cat-o-nine tails and a pond.

What do you think this little terrier sees? 

Hey Mim...a fish???

Aaaah, the gorgeous, aristocratic sight hounds! My husband really, really wants 

 a Scottish Deerhound. But here's a scribbly-wiggly gesture drawing of a Greyhound and his beloved red ball instead.

I had done something like this before and gave it to a blogger friend, Erin.♥

I thought this "cat lover" should have a place in the sketchbook, yellow stream and all ;)

And finally, not to ever leave my feline friends out, here's a blue tabby who really needs some TLC. Marianne, this is for you.♥♥♥

One more day and 8 more pages to go. I doubt I'll fill them all, but hell, I'll try!

Thanks for always taking the time to visit ;)

xoxo

Lolo

Raven tag 2 and Sketchbook Project Progress

I've been a very busy girl today trying to buckle down and get the sketchbook done before Saturday's deadline. In between sketches I finished up Raven Maven #2.

Here's the front of her with a raven sticker and the #2 on her dress in the middle of the stamped heart. Her blue wings and shoelaces have glitter which doesn't show well.

The blue spiral sticker has glittler too. Once again her head was drawn and painted with acrylic paint and colored pencils.

Her head is tilted upwards because she's such a dreamer! She's going to trip over her laces if she's not careful.

Here's the back view with the #2 to signify she's the second one in a series, and my signature is below.

Here she is hanging out at the studio. I wish the glitter showed better.

She insisted on wearing Chucks too ;)

Yesterday I did this sideways peek-a-boo page of a kitty daydreaming about a yummy mouse.

Click to embiggen any or all pics!

And I painted this sweet old guy. I've been scumbling paint on various pages and then going back later to do something on them. It's easier for me seeing as Moleskine pages are so thin and transparent. That's rather limiting, in my opinion.

The dog was done with colored pencils on top of blue acrylic paint.

I had fun doing this very chubby version of Emma giving basic Chihuahua Cha-Cha lessons!

I "Googled" the steps so I could make a chart.

1-2-cha cha cha, 3-4 chiiii-waaaa-waa!

WORK IT GIRL!!!!!!



And finally, for today anyway, a pink tuxedo kitty. I actually love this page.

There's something about the pink and orange, a combo I've always been drawn to.

I was going to make the cat black and white but then decided to leave it alone.

So, this is why no one is getting visits or phone calls from me.

BUSY, BUSY, BUSY!!!

xo♥