Please join us tomorrow for a coloring tutorial and a mini fall tutorial. The demo will show how to draw and color a realistic pumpkin. If you have Penelope's Garden coloring book--great! We will be using a page from the book. But never fear--if you don't, just grab a black marker or pen and your favorite colored pencils because the first five minutes will show you how to draw a realistic pumpkin. If you would like to download a page from the coloring book please click HERE and pop over to my Etsy shop.
If you would like to use the free color along page click HERE.
If you would like to buy the coloring book click HERE.
And if you would like to learn to draw the pumpkin at the start of the hour and use it to color just bring a black pen or marker, Sharpies are great, and get ready to draw! CLICK HERE to join! Looking forward to seeing you there. Color on! xo
Penelope's Garden will be on sale October 1, but until then I am offering a glow in the dark giveaway.
I will give three copies of the coloring book along with black light markers to make the images glow!
Check it out here.
Enter the giveaway here! If you click the little YouTube sign at the bottom of the video as your watching it will take you over to YouTube and you can subscribe there. Thank you and good luck!! xo a Rafflecopter giveaway
Aaahh the creatives--we all know a few. Maybe they work as graphic artists or interior decorators, or maybe you know a mom who puts together crafts that rival Picasso. Or maybe you are one of these easily distracted, constantly doodling idea machines. I know many in this interesting group, and here is my list of creative characteristics:
This list is in no way official, comprehensive, or complete. I would also add sensitive, self-confident, night owls, addicted to at least one thing: coffee, tea, cigarettes, chocolate, potato chips...you get it. Tell me if you fit into this category and if you can think of any other symptoms. :) xo
She is the winner of our Fancy March Giveaway. Now she will be able to light that delicious citrus pomegranate candle and draw to hear hearts content. Stay tuned for April's giveaway ~ a lovely coloring book, drawn by ME, and pencil set! Congrats again Heather! xo
Happy February! The groundhog says we are to expect an early spring!! XO
Although it is the shortest month of the year, there is still plenty going on. This month we are a set of Faber-Castell PITT artist pens in SIX Shades of GREY. These are terrific for cartoons, manga, architectural design and any kind of sketching you can think of!
Grey is interesting, and most think of grey as one color. But all my art friends will know that grey can be cool, warm, or even neutral. The PITT Faber-Castell pens are permanent and water resistant.
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I love black and white and grey--and I hope you do too. Good luck! Enter below. xo
My parents celebrated their 55th anniversary this week. When asked about their most fond memories, the first thing they talked about was their drive from New Jersey to Florida. They were going to stay at a friend's hotel for their honeymoon, and they decided to drive the whole way. First of all, the bridge going through Savannah was covered in ice, and they were one of the last vehicles allowed through. The policeman directing traffic saw their Jersey plates and assumed they could handle it. As it got darker, they entered the Okefenokee swamp. They told me they were surrounded by moss covered trees, swamp grass, and the roads were covered with over a foot of water in some places. By the time it was completely dark they were so into the swamp that there were no street lights. They kept going anyway.
After driving for what seemed to be forever, and listening to unusual night noises including what sounded like a very large frog, they saw a light in the distance. When they got close enough they could see it was one light bulb hanging from a wire, illuminating a toll booth.
They paid their dime, found out they were indeed going in the right direction, and found the next creepy little roadside inn. They spend the night, woke to see a giant swamp behind the motel, and continued on their journey. Happily, when they finally got to their honeymoon destination the lodging was lovely and they had a wonderful time. So in honor of their great adventure I decided this week to draw the Okefenokee frog. Hope you have fun drawing him. Don't forget to enter the JETPENS brush pen giveaway! It ends this Sunday. You can sign up HERE to win. Frogs were drawn with the TOMBOW brush pen from the set. xo This week learn to draw a Big Eyed Frog. Have fun!
The internet has made what Disney called a small world even smaller. We get information in the blink of an eye, and we are exposed to far more than any other time in history. We can get news from the other side of the globe faster than if your neighbor ran over from next door. What was once underground and very hard to see can now be considered mainstream.
The web has leveled the art playing field somewhat--what was once relegated to a very select group can now be viewed by millions with the right amount of retweets or shares. We see hundreds if not thousands of images a day as visual artists. We are lucky enough to look at the work of our peers, and in a matter of seconds we can find millions of images to help as reference points for our work. Looking at other beautiful artwork can certainly elevate our practice, but I feel it can't help but influence our style, too. When we see a color combination we love we get excited and want to try and incorporate it into our work too. A new medium can have us running to the store so we can try it at home. It is hard enough to develop a style that is recognizable yet unique, and now we have to contend with the daily hyper-viewing of images. I am not complaining! I love the web and I love that I can see all the lovely art I could I ever dream of. But I am just a tad more aware of the fact that I need to stay true to me and my style, and not get seduced by something bright and shiny. Every Friday I will be sharing a video that is geared towards helping kids learn to draw. I will be demonstrating in a way I liked to learn as a child--with fun and fancy images that are easily repeated and not too complicated. This week it is the grumpy bunny from the image above.
Please feel free to share this post or video with any artistic little ones you may know.
This is an image from a book I illustrated a few years ago for author David Rowinski called The Open Pillow. Another style for PPF.
So get going! Draw draw draw with abandon--and help your kids do the same. Before you know it you will have your own amazing style.
Although I am over 50, I still have a penchant for certain styles. As an artist, muted colors, animals, and flowers still make my heart flutter when I see them incorporated into fashion. (And when I say animals I do NOT mean fur!) I can't get away with the same things the twenty somethings can. Plus when you are young, people assume you are experimenting, learning, and are willing to put yourself a bit more out there when it comes to fashion.
But today I found shoes that I may not be able to resist. These grey flats (already two checks in my BUY THEM box for color and heel height), with a very faint stitched and sleeping bunny, complete with ears on the instep, make me happy just looking at them. They are fairy tales for the feet! To make us smile even harder, the same company, ModCloth, (click HERE for their website to buy) sells Tiffany blue flats (two checks), with a wide eyed cat on the front that is reminiscent of the Totoro cartoon. Who is the genius that designed these! Love them.
Okay, okay, maybe the Totoro skips are a bit too youthful for me, but the Furry Up, We're Dreaming bunny shoes might be just subtle enough for me to get away with. And ya know what, if something makes you THAT happy, go for it--opinions be damned. xo
And for those of you that have not seen Totoro yet, please see the trailer above, then rent it for the kids. It is one of the most beautifully animated shows you will ever see. Enjoy!
Just a quick weekend post to show off this great craft from a cereal box by Craiftingeek!
You will need: A cereal box An Exacto knife Glue Decorative paper Glitter and other crafty decorations
I thought this was great, and of course you can update it in whatever fashion you choose. Flowers, under the sea, holiday--the sky's the limit! Have fun! xo
As I was looking though the Lamberts Lately blog I came across THIS on her Create It Thursday linky~the cutest cornucopia from Growing Up Gabel! A perfect November craft and lots of fun for Thanksgiving. It's easy and probably delicious. I can't wait to get all the ingredients, which include Laffy Taffy, Tootsie Rolls, and ice cream cones. Get ready to have fun, and grab the kids so they can help too. Thanks Lamberts Lately and Growing Up Gabel! Cute, cute cute.
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
This is the first linky party for all the creative mamas out there. Join in every weekend for the rest of October by placing your favorite craft, recipe, or how-to in the list below. ~ Simply click the linky CLICK HERE TO ENTER link below , follow the simple instructions, and add your information. ~ An image will appear and click through to your blog. ~ Grab the ghostly Weekend Creative Party button to add to your blog to show you participated.
~ The post that gets the most clicks will be featured on Instagram on Monday. ~ I will be tweeting (and I hope you will too!) daily to over 6000 followers on twitter. Join us and add your most creative post and have fun!! xo
Today as I perused Instagram I came across one of the cutest, easiest spooky crafts of the season. Posted by muminthemadhouse, these Clay Tealight Ghosts were done by one of her nine year olds. What you'll need: Air dry clay (Crayola makes one for under $5 HERE) Rolling pin or smooth bottle Butter knife Shot glasses or bunched up paper towel Just roll out the clay to about 1/8 of an inch. Cut appx. six inch diameter circles. Form ghost shapes over the shot glasses or paper towel, then make marks where the eyes and mouth will be. Lay flat again, then cut out eyes with butter knife.
Drape ghosts over glasses again and let dry. When dry (about 24 hours) place a battery operated tea light beneath ghost and place in a very dark corner to create a spooky atmosphere. I love these! Hope you do too. Thanks Mum in the Madhouse! 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!!
Tea is on of the most popular drinks in the world. Over three billion people drink tea every day. There are flavors to please almost everyone.
Earl Grey, a lovely black tea with bergamot, Chamomile, a delicate, green flavored tea which helps us relax, Hot Cinnamon Sunset, one of my favorites, is a hot, sweet, and spicy tea by Harney and Sons that tastes a bit like Dentyne gum and needs no sugar because it is made with sweet cloves, and hundreds and thousands of others. BUY HERE Another delight comes from Teavana, called Oprah Chai Tea. With ginger, cardamom, cloves, and black tea, it is just the best chai. What makes it even better is a portion of the proceeds go to the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy Foundation. BUY HERE
Tea is delightful with breakfast, tea time in the afternoon, or to calm you down before bed. With lemon and honey it makes our sore throats feel better. Choosing the perfect cup is almost as fun as drinking the tea!
Some believe that certain teas can help us see into the future, or help another fall in love.
For instance, if you add lemon balm, mugwort, eyebright and rosehips to black tea, you might get a glimpse of what is behind the veil.
If you add damiana, chamomile, mullein, and rose hips to black tea and sip very slowly during a full moon, a vision of your true love might appear in the dark. Please visit this site for even more magical tea spells: http://www.wicca-chat.com/magicktea.htm
Some use tarot to see into the future, some the Ouija board, and others read tea leaves.
Tea leaf reading, or tasseography, has been practiced since medieval times as a form of divination.
Cups have been designed to make it easier for the reader to decipher the signs left by the leaves.
There are two schools of thought when it comes to reading the leaves; using the traditional symbols passed down from generations, or use intuition. For example, if the reader sees an S shape at the bottom of the cup, this could be read as misfortune if using traditional symbols, but the reader might not feel a negative at all, and interpret the S as something completely different.
Set up a lovely area for yourself, and turn off anything electric, cell phones, TV, etc. Say a prayer of protection of doing a reading for someone else.
Reading the leaves is very simple. First, the tea is brewed, preferably in the traditional method with a pot and loose tea. If only tea in bags is available, the tea can be make by breaking the bag into a cup, or making a regular cup of tea and then breaking the bag and adding a pinch or two to the cup. Use a light colored, sloping cup. Use a tea that has a special meaning to you, or one whose scent has a spiritual meaning.
Before the tea is sipped, there are a few things to look for in the cup according to Serena, who has been reading tea leaves for generations.
Bubbles on the surface of your tea means that money is on its way.
If any tea leaves are floating on the surface, then visitors are imminent. The number of leaves shows how many days away they are.
If two teaspoons are accidentally placed on a saucer, then you can expect news of twins soon.
If a teaspoon is placed upside down onto a saucer then you will hear news of the ill-health of a close relative.
Then the tea is enjoyed. This is an important part of the ritual because you calm down and your thoughts are not erratic. While sipping, three questions can be thought of if there is no specific purpose for the reading. Leave a small amount of liquid at the bottom, and swirl the remains three times clockwise. Now pour the liquid into the saucer, and look at the leaves left on the bottom of the cup. Some say if there are only a few leaves that your life is orderly and planned.
Some say it means you are not living your life to the fullest. If there are many leaves you are busy, hurried, but fulfilled. Some say it could mean you are doing too many things, and should slow down.
Now turn the handle toward yourself. Here is a list of the "zones" according to Wiki:
Zones from top to bottom may represent either "distance" or "weight" of the omens. Images near the top (rim) are close while images near the bottom are distant. In terms of time, the distance from rim to base represents approximately 6 months. However, "distance" may also refer to relationship to a person or goal. The other way of looking at it is that images at the base of the cup can represent a "heavy" (ill) omen and, as they come nearer the rim, are "light" or joyful omens. The context will determine which is applicable. Context and symbolism are most important. Trust your instincts.
The handle of the cup is known as the "domain" and images near the handle are images related to home life and family. The further from the handle an image is the more "outside" the omen. Symbols opposite the handle relate to work or strangers, somewhere in between might relate to non-immediate family or "a friend of a friend." Images to the RIGHT of the handle indicate something coming TO the querent while images to the LEFT of the handle represent things coming FROM the domain.
A big clump of tea leaves with no discernible image might augur trouble on its way. If it is opposite to the handle, the trouble will likely be not of your making but if it is under the handle, it is considered to be of your making.
If there remains a drop or two of liquid tea that didn't come off with the draining, these are considered to be tears. It might indicate past or future sadness, dependent on the context of the rest of the reading.
Now you can begin looking for symbols. Apples, spiders, candles, and more have traditional meanings, but going with your intuition is always a great idea when reading the leaves.
Reading can also be done with coffee grinds or the sediment left over from wine.
Here is my reading: There were some drops of tea left of the bottom after I drained the cup.
Great Gramma reading leaves and bones
These are known as "tears" and mean I will probably experience sorry. Or maybe it means I already did! I also noticed the leaves on the right near the handle looked like a cat, and on the top away from the handle is a little flag. On the bottom there is a dancing person and smiling kid or face. OK let's see...Oooo!! The flag is danger from wounds inflicted by an enemy. Great. And yikes. Since it's the left of the handle it is FROM me. The cat...difficulties caused by treachery. And it is close to the handle so it comes from home. Finally. The smiling face is pleasure and love and the little dancing figure means a pleasant omen of coming pleasure and gratification, good news, happiness in love and friendship; it also means that you will receive an unexpected invitation.
I hope you will read tea leaves today and tell me what happens, or tell me if you ever had your fortune told. I'd also love to know your favorite tea since I seem to be a bit addicted. xo
A wise person once told me just do it, you never know what will come of it. I heard those words as a young person, and they stuck. Yes, we should make the most out of every situation and try and look to the bright side, but I'm talking about looking at more than just one side of the thing you are doing. For instance, yesterday I went to a conference/meeting of illustrators in Pennsylvania. Needless to say, I did not want to go. I was tired, a bit under the weather, behind in every chore, and just a little crabby. But I paid for it, and I went. The conference was actually great, but there was another side to it that was also great.
The event was located in the middle of a farm that was surrounded by cornfields. Reminded me a bit of New Hampshire. It was overcast, and a storm was brewing in the distance. Some of the dilapidated buildings on the premises looked ominous. It was the perfect setting for a horror story, and the perfect setting for taking pictures.
Although bucolic and lovely in spots, the other areas could have been straight out of Night of the Living Dead, so I snapped away. I did not have a camera, so I used my iPhone. Look for the funny within the serious, the hidden within the obvious, the emotional withing the stoic, or the love within the hate.
To me there are many sides to every moment. Look for them--they are many times better than the obvious. xo
Just because the summer is almost over doesn't mean all the fun has to end.
Here is a quick post to tell you about two awesome drinks I made that are under 100 calories each--and you can share them with the kids! (If you want...)
*Coconut Fizzy* Ice Cubes (I fill the glass) Coconut La Croix Seltzer Pineapple Juice Lime 1 tsp. coconut milk or cream per glass (you can also use whipped cream) Fill glass 2/3 of the way with seltzer. (If you have never had La Croix Coconut Seltzer I HIGHLY recommend it. It is somehow creamy all on it's own with NO sugar, NO color, and NO calories. Delicious.) Add about 1/4 cup pineapple juice (or to taste). Add about 1 tsp. coconut milk or cream and stir well. Squeeze a bit of lime on top and add ice. This drink rivals any pina colada I've ever had. Yummmm. (You can also add a scoop of whipped cream on top but that puts it over 100 calories--might be worth it.)
*Creamsicle* Ice Cubes Vanilla Polar Seltzer (another somehow creamy calorie free drink) Orange Juice Vanilla almond milk or soy milk OR 1 tsp. coconut milk Fill glass 1/2 with vanilla seltzer. Fill other half with orange juice. Add the vanilla almond milk, soy milk, or coconut milk and stir well. Light, refreshing, and delicious. Both of these drinks are so much better for you than soda. Coconut cream has EFAs and juices are filled with vitamin C. BTW--2 TBSP of whipped cream only has 16 calories. (You can also make divine whipped "cream" by taking some of the solids off of the top of the coconut cream, adding a bit of sugar and whipping the same way as cream. Yum again. And it's vegan.) Here are the seltzers:
My dad was an electrical engineer when I was growing up. I probably know a bit more about capacitors, diodes, vacuum tubes and cathodes than your average bear. His other interest, and by default mine, was photography. Never one to withhold information, my father brought us on endless hikes into the forests and parks that surrounded our neighborhood. I learned about F-stops, lenses, and developed what I consider a relatively good eye for composition.
Although my dad used a Nikon and I used a Canon, times have changed a bit and many of us use our iPhones or other digital tech toys for photography these days. Thankfully the technology has advanced to the point where the pictures come out pretty good. We used film when I was young, and one of the first things I became aware of was the number of pix on the roll. Twenty four or thirty six shots, then the film went to be developed--unless you were lucky enough to have another roll. We were very concerned about getting the perfect shot, or at least trying to. Not anymore. Plan a little field trip then tell kids: 1. TAKE A LOT OF PICTURES. The difference between a great shot and a so-so shot could be a millisecond, so let them take as many shots as they want. 2. PERSPECTIVE. Almost everyone, when given a camera, takes a direct shot, with the subject centered. Encourage kids to discover new angles--take the subject not only from the front, but from the side, or even above or below. They can even get in super close and only take a portion of the subject. 3. HOLD CAMERA STRAIGHT. When we take pictures of something with a horizon line it is especially important to hold the camera straight. Although we have an opportunity to EDIT with much of today's technology, it is a good thing to practice and get used to.
The first lesson is simple, but it should be. Go out and have some fun. When you are done review the pictures with them. They will like to show you what they did. Ask them what they think of the pix. Next Wednesday I will do another Photography for Kids post and go a bit more in depth. The Rule of Thirds and finding a Focal Point will be introduced.
Fall is a fun time to have kids and it's a fun time for kids. But it's also a fun time for moms. I love to read dark and shivery books during this time of year. I also like spooky crafts, and the occasional horror movie. The book I am just starting with my Poison Pen Book Club is called Shutter. Although it is a YA, it is about Micheline Helsing, one of last descendants of the great vampire hunter Van Helsing. She is a tetrachromat, a girl who sees auras of the undead in a prismatic spectrum, and came with a glowing review. So we can possibly kill two birds with one stone here--find something we like and then maybe pass it on the our teens.
Micheline exorcises ghosts by capturing their spiritual energy on film. The book club just started reading last night. After a brief set up in the first chapter, the not so subtle ghostly actions starts. These ghosts are NOT of the Casper variety. Missing teeth, and other body parts, kick right in as soon as we know who the main characters are. This is another book recommended by an agent, so I have high hopes.
Reading Shutter will also be fun because after we finish, the Poison Pen members will be meeting at the Hotel Somerset, a supposedly haunted hotel in Somerville, New Jersey. Although we are not experienced ghosts hunters, we will be bringing cameras in honor of the Shutter theme, and hopefully catch some orbs or other ghostly manifestations on film, like Micheline does. Several years ago there was a horror film called Shutter, not to be confused with
Shutter Island that starred Leonardo DiCaprio. The main character had her own personal issues with cameras and evil spirits, but the story is not the same. Although I have not finished the book yet, I just wanted to write this blog because the trilogy of the book Shutter, the movie Shutter, and the amateur camera ghost hunting might set off an idea for your own spooky autumn book/movie/ghost hunting fest. Have fun!! And tell me what you end up doing. xo P.S. I'll review Shutter when I'm done.
