On January fifth we celebrated National Bird Day. I think it is wonderful to celebrate birds because they have always had a special place in my heart. When I was a young girl I watched a practically featherless young mockingbird running in the street on a hot summer's day. I heard a crow in the distance and then saw his intentions were not good. After a few failed swoops at the little chicklet I could not take it any more and decided I either needed to find his nest or take him home. Much to the chagrin of my mother, we ended up taking the little guy home, naming him Peanuts, and caring for the little featherhead for the rest of the summer until he flew away. Since then I have had many birds: Algebra the budgie, Buddy the conure, Sky, Tweety, Nibble, Speck, Bubble, and Winter. I loved them all.
That being said I thought it would be a good week to learn to draw a fat budgie. The one I drew is much chubbier and more cartoon like than realistic, but I think you will find it fun to draw. Plus chubby budgies are just too cute. Below is a video to follow--they are pretty simple but their shape takes a few practice runs to get. Don't give up! Have fun!
xo Music by loveyoujapan. I LOVE comments and will visit you right back! Thanks followers! Drawn with the Zebra fine point brush pen from Jet Pens.
Pablo Picasso said, "We are all born artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up." So true!
Children gain self-esteem and emotional fulfillment when they are allowed to create without judgement. They do not have preconceived notions or endless loops of internal negativity to get in the way of their thinking. If we foster the creativity in a child we are allowing them to develop critical thinking and problem-solving skills. The Whole Child of PBS states: "Theexperiences a child has during their first years of life can enhance their creativity."
For all those parents out there that want to do art with their kids but think I do not have a creative bone in my body--maybe you do, but need a little help finding it. Make it easy. Get some paper and some pencils, crayons, or paint and go for it. Don't worry about the result. Enjoy the moment and just go for it. For those that need a bit of a nudge, here are some prompts: * A lovely November morning * A yellow bird * A cup of tea * A monster in the closet * A rocket ship in space * A new planet * A flower no one has ever seen before * Constellations in the night sky * Your pet * A pet you wish you could have * A cool car * Snow flakes with faces Choose any of these items and draw one on a page, a few, or 50. Just have fun. And here is a quick how-to for Kiki the Cat :) Show me your version when you are done! xo
Kiki starts with two circles, kind of like a snowman, except the bigger one is for her head! (Only slightly bigger--mine almost look the same size and that is fine.) Draw lightly here because you will be erasing some of these lines later.
Now draw some VERY light guidelines on her face so you know where to put her eyes and nose. Her face is looking right at us, so her nose will be right in the center, on the lower guideline.
Make the nose with just a tiny triangle, and then draw another short time down from the bottom point of her nose. Then draw the top of her mouth--it looks like two very shallow Us. Her eyes fit between the top and bottom guidelines. My Kiki will be looking to the right. (Her head is facing forward, but her eyes are looking off to the side.)
Lightly draw two triangles on her head for ears. If you draw them wide apart she will look calm, if you draw them more on top of her head she will look alert, or surprised. Her front paws are just small ovals with the tops of the ovals erased. Her back paws are kind of like parenthesis with tiny cat toes. Her tail looks a bit like a large backwards C. She's starting to look like Kiki now!
Now we can darken the lines and make her look fluffy. I also left some white spots in her eyes for highlights, and lines under her for a shadow. I also added some very light whiskers and I shaded part of her ears. Voila! Kiki! I will be adding more Kiki how-tos in the weeks to come. I'd love to see what you draw!
Every year around this time I pull the decorations down from my attic and transform the inside of my house into a glowing black and orange Halloween explosion. Starting on October 1st I began drawing ghosts to post on my Instagram account because the spirit moved me. I decorated a box of matches with a fiery little apparition, then I made Mod Podge Ghosts a few weeks ago and hung them in the dining room.
I love Halloween and not only wanted to share my art, but wanted to see art from others too.
So I started the Weekly Challenge. The prompt will change weekly. Feel free to add paintings, sketches, or crafts--whatever medium grabs you. You can grab the Illustrator's Weekly Challenge button if you like from the right column. This week's prompt is PUMPKINS~!! Post below, I can't wait to see yours--I can't get enough.
To join the brand new Illustrator's Weekly Challenge Facebook group just CLICK HERE! A new prompt weekly--show us your work. You can find us on Instagram too at @IllustratorsWeekly. I am on Insta at @dealenihan xo
Coloring books are IN! Here is a free and fun image of an ever so slightly spooky garden for you and the kids. You can almost imagine these mushrooms could be waiting in a witches garden for use as in ingredient in her brew! To download, right click the image and save to your computer. Then have fun coloring! xo
Kids love Halloween, crafts, and movies. Here is a craft that combines all three! All you need for this craft is: One book of Post-It notes A pen A backdrop light source (I used my iPhone) First decide what your mini movie will be about. (Keep it simple.)
Then draw your first frame on the LAST page of the Post-It notes. Your next page will have to be very similar except for a slight change, you can start showing any action here in a very small way.
(Here the ghost starts to pop out.) The next frame he pops out a tiny bit more. (Notice the grave stays the same. I traced the grave using my iPhone to back light the image in each frame.)
Make your character move only a tiny bit in each frame. (You can check to make sure by using the iPhone here also. I went to the NOTES page and started on a new page because it is blank and bright.) Keep changing your picture a tiny bit at a time until you have an image for each Post-It.
When you are done drawing, start at the back and flip through the pages. Watch the action! It is a bit easier to do if you keep your images either in one corner or across the bottom of the pages. Have fun!!
