Art is Just Much More Fun...

"Art is Just Much More Fun", by Clare Walker, BoundingSquirrel.com

Hello there, and hope you're thriving.

Today's image is straight from the sketchbook (in watercolour, pen, a touch of wax resist and even some sparkly gold acrylic paint).

And it sums up how I'm feeling...Much better, thank you, with the sun shining, and art calling oh-sooo-much-more than the thousand things with which I'm supposed to keep up or catch up

If you can relate to this, there's a strong chance that it will be in my shop soon in some way.

But for today, it's just here for fun as it says...And to be a permission slip (if you need one) to have more art and or fun in life too.

Have fun with this, and more soon.
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An Autumn Leaf Art Journaling Idea

Let Go of Everything..., by Clare Walker
Available with blank leaves, on Redbubble

Hello there

Hope all is great with you. But if you're feeling like there's a lot (or a little) of which you'd just like to be rid, am sharing  you this art journaling idea that came to me this week. Feel free to try it if you'd like.


One "Letting Go" Art Journaling Method

The way I did it (which doesn't, of course, have to be the way you do it) was this:

1. Get quiet and peaceful (eg by deep breathing), with the art supplies/device you want in front of you.

2. Draw a scene or symbol that represents "letting go," to you. 

For me, it was falling autumn leaves, but it doesn't have to be that for you...It could be the tide, a feather, or a dustbin or trash can. Whatever works for you is all that matters. (Neither does it matter how "well" or other wise you think you can draw. You don't have to share this with anyone...I don't share a huge chunk of the things like this I create).

3. Include some space or way to incorporate the words or symbols representing things of which you wish to be rid. (In the picture above, you'll see that each leaf has a labels, such as "Anger" and "Fear". But your labels will of course be your own).

4. Identify the things you'd like to be rid of (for me, they felt heavier than everything else).

5. Add those things as labels on your drawing.

6. Optional, but if it feels good, complete this by crumpling, altering or destroying the journaling in whatever way feels good to you. (In my case, on the newest version of the journaling (as it was digital) I erased the labels, and was just left with the pretty colours of "blank," falling leaves again.

The next step

In end, I really liked the actual design once those "heavy" labels on the leaves were removed, so I popped the peaceful and blank version of this design onto Redbubble. 

I guess if you really would prefer and *really* don't want to draw anything, you could always get a stack of postcards with the blank design on, and add and destroy your own labels.

The peaceful, blank version of the
design, on a postcard...

But though I love people to buy things of mine to which they feel drawn (thank you again if you have and do), in this case, it's very likely that you'll get the most benefit from drawing this out yourself.

Go on, give it a go...I dare you.

More soon.

PS. If you are one of the people seeking designs featuring cats, bats and hats for Halloween, fear not, my newest Halloween designs *are* already on sale in my Redbubble shop, and at Craftsuprint, so please use those links if you'd rather buy now than wait for any upcoming posts. Many thanks!

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An Inspiring Question for January?

Hello there

Hope you're well, and having a happy New Year.

One of my responses to recent events outside my control has been to delve more deeply into art-journaling than before. And in the case of the graphic below, digital-art journaling, in Krita 5.

The bizarre thing is, when I sat down to do this, I was feeling much less than great. So much less than great, in fact, that a totally unrelated question, designed to take my mind off things, felt like a *wonderful* idea.

 And so it was that, in the midst of all the gloom, this, cheery, sunny message that came out. Can't explain that at all. But maybe this is part of the mysterious power of art-journaling that its devotees describe.

Where will this lead if anywhere? Am not sure yet. Or indeed, whether it even *needs* to lead anywhere. That may not be the point. 

But it *is* fun to explore things from a new perspective, and I *love* the joyous and summery colours that emerged. Plus, what better time to keep journaling than New Year/January?

Then...

Click or tap here to see more...

I was having so much fun, in fact, that I couldn't resist popping over to Redbubble and seeing how things looked there. 

Imagine my surprise when something started in order to cheer myself up ended up looking this good on a journal cover, magnets, and other lovely things? What lovely little reminders might they make, to give any of us a little nudge back into feeling more magical when we need it?

Click or tap here to see more...

It just goes to show that art time, in all its forms, is always a good idea, and its results, a constant surprise.

Thanks so much for being here, and for reading down this far. May your own January inspire you too, however you most need it to do so.

More soon.

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Art Every Day Month 2021 Begins...

November 1st is the start of Art Every Day Month. After a lot of pondering, the question I'll be asking myself each day is also my first day's offering...

If this image with resonates you, you have my absolute blessing to share it on social media in case it sparks some joy and/or ideas for someone else.

If you're one of the people who likes to know how things are created, this is a digi-art journaling piece, created stroke by stroke in the new beta version of Krita 5.

What next?

I'll be creating every day this month, but so as not to overload the blog (and you!) I'll be doing summary posts here. (If you're keen to see everything, I will be posting even more regularly on Instagram.)

And if you'd like to join the challenge itself, the ArtEveryDay group on Facebook is one of the friendliest communities I've ever been lucky enough to find and join.

Have a great week-and month!

More soon.

New Lighthouse Painting: "Shine..."

Hello there. Hope you've had a great week. 

This week's illustration has a touch of nostalgia for me...

See this design on stickers, prints and more at Redbubble...

 When I was a teenager, we lived by the sea. And on clear nights, you could see  the lighthouse at Portland (Dorset),  a good 30 miles away, but beaming steadily through the darkness. There was always something very solid and comforting about that, even on land, and in times that were so much more certain.

All these thoughts of lighthouses got me to thinking about how it still feels important that each of still remembers to *shine*  brightly whenever  and as much we feel able.

And so the design was born. It's a hand drawn "traditional", line and wash watercolour/watercolour, but finished off digitally. So a true hybrid, really.

 Hope it sparks something for you too (and there are more details about it here, if it "floats your boat," as it were. (No puns were intended when I began that sentence, but hey, who could resist by the end? :-) )

Have a lovely weekend, in any event.

More soon.

New Artwork: It's OK to be Happy, People Need Joy

Hello. 

If you're in a space to be thinking about joy today, I have something for you.

(To share this image, retaining the watermark, the link is here)

This was a piece of digi-art journaling (hand-lettering and painting, but in a digital art program...Krita, in this case) I got up to this week. 

If you've read these posts for a while, you'll know that this isn't the first discussion of "can art/happiness be justified when X is happening,". But this just wanted to come out, as a full technicolour reminder that joy helps the world rather than hindering it.

And yes, it's a little brighter and bolder than I might have necessarily done things for a good while. Some of the credit for that must go to the workshop I'm on this week. Am purely a participant, not an affiliate or anything, But if you've been having any kind of creative block, stuckness or general "loss of colour," in your life or work recently, it may speak to you too, and you'll find all the details at:

https://radiantearthstudios.com/unlock-your-artist-challenge

And finally

And finally, pretty much for fun, I did put this image onto Redbubble as well, and am enjoying the look of it on magnets, mugs, and the like, here.

So I'll leave you with some more visual goodies (clicking on the pictures should click you straight through if you're interested.

It's OK to be Happy People Need Joy Magnet

It's OK to be Happy, People Need Joy Mug

It's OK to be Happy People Need Joy Cushion/Throw Pillow

And more than anything, I wish you a happy and joyful weekend.

Free Inspiring Quote Image and Ecard: You Can Do This...

Let's face it, life continues to be various kinds of weird for a lot of people at the moment. Which (maybe) is why this illustration popped into my head. This woman *is* managing to balance her strange and heavy load at the moment. Maybe the message, "You Can Do This..." that goes with it *is* all she needs.

If you know someone who would appreciate this, it's fine to tap, click or right-click (according to your device) on the image on the left and send it to them. Please leave the web address and signature on it, though.

Also...

Also, if you'd rather send them something more physical (or have some encouragement yourself), I have greeting cards, magnets, badges and more that carry the same message, available on Redbubble.

(You can see what some of them look like in the images below).

Buy on a tote bag here

Buy as a sticker here

Buy on a greeting card here

And whatever you do or don't do, remember that you too can do whatever is in front of you. And that, better yet, you have the power to let other people know that they can, too.

Hope this helps anyone who needs it. More soon!

New Digital Rose Painting: Art Re-Starts the Heart

Hello there. How are you doing?

It's been one of those weeks here where all the yummy feelings were that bit harder to find. In the end, I just began to draw something anyway, mysteriously felt much better as a result (ha-no mystery there, really :-) )... And so then couldn't resist thinking these words and adding them.

It's so lovely that there's art in both "heart" and "start", isn't it?

Am sure that in due course this will be in things or on them. For now though, just wanted to share the idea, in case it's helpful to you too. Feel free to share it on in the same spirit, if it helps.

More soon.

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Wildflower Quote and Celandine Painting

Hello there.

Hope you're doing well. The idea in this new painting spoke of freedom to me, and seemed to go with the bright, wild beauty of celandine flowers.

At some time soon, I'll know whether or what to do further with this, but thought you might like to see it "hot off the press," as it were.

Be as  happy as you can-more soon.

P.S. Update, Jan 23rd 2021. In the end, this quote has ended up being ready to buy on cards, gifts, and even a cushion, at Redbubble.

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Find Joy: An Elephant Fridge Magnet Painting

 Hello there, and hope you're doing well and thriving despite all. Couldn't post this photo before now as it was a present. But this "watercolour elephant in a fridge magnet," has become, not just what was right to send then, but an idea that keeps floating around for me...

The elephant fridge magnet in question (please excuse my bad photography)

'Cos let's face it, if 2020 has proved anything, it's that deciding to find joy can help to keep us sane, healthy and happy. So that's what am planning to do, whatever happens in 2021. You're welcome to join me in this, if you'd like.

And although am not officially posting as a 100 day challenge anymore, will be posting regularly, because have missed it in the last week. Nothing has, or will disappear (I just need more time at weekends, and for projects that take longer to complete).

So there will be more very soon. And in the meantime, I wish you health, happiness, and all the joy you can find, whether you're reading this at New Year, or any other time.

(Day 60/100) "Where the Pieces Fall," Digi-Art Journaling in Krita

 And now, as they say, time for something completely different. 

Day 60/100 was a Sunday chillout  way for me to remember something I'm always learning and re-learning. But if it resonates with you too, feel free it. 

Ironically, for something that was meant to be, and felt, chilled the whole way through, it actually took longer than the average cartoon to produce. (Maybe because I do many fewer projects that evolve, rather than "starting with the end in view,". Perhaps it's time to practice those "evolving" projects more).

For those of you that like to know, I created this digitally in Krita, using a graphics pen stroke by stroke, with the exception of the lettering. That uses the free and royalty-free font Amatic, stretched changed and shadowed in various way.

And in any event, hope you're having  good weekend.

More tomorrow.

Day 38: Inspiring Stuff?

 

Today, I was simply playing around with getting wax to resist watercolour. Some days, you just need to moodle along, and this was one of them. Then this thought occurred to me..Maybe it resonates with you, or someone you know.

And in any case, there'll be more tomorrow.

Illustrated Thought/Quote/Idea: Dream a New Dream (Daily Art Number 4)

 

After all that, got asked to keep posting more "dailies" here too... (Day four is on Instagram and Facebook). This isn't so much a sketch as a thought that wouldn't go away until it was illustrated in Krita.

Hope it helps and have a good day!

Digital Art Journaling: "The Darkest Hour is Just before the Dawn"

Hello again. Hope you're doing OK, wherever you are, in the weirdness of the world at the moment.
The phrase, "the darkest hour is just before the dawn", keeps ringing through my head. So I've illustrated it in Krita as a piece of digi-art journalling.

It's fine to download share or do whatever you want with this if it help-now or at any time.

The original quote is apparently from a theologian called Thomas Fuller in the 18th Century, if you're the kind of person who asks these things.

Anyway, be well and happy.

More soon.

New Inspiring Quote Image to Share

This image felt like an instruction, so am passing it on...

Feel free to share it anywhere you feel people would benefit from it. (Having found out that some people have help back from sharing because of the signature, I've now changed it simply to reflect that you're sharing it from here).

And if you's like it in a high-res physical form, it's also available here.

Have a great week-more soon!

Inspiring Quote: When the Winds of Change Blow...

Seems like the winds of change are blowing for us all this year already...So this quote (which is apparently an ancient Chinese proverb), felt like a good one to illustrate.

And if you're on eof those people who likes to know how things were done, this is all hand-drawn, but also all digital. The textured background involved several layers in ArtRage 6, and I did the sketch and brush lettering in Krita).

If it speaks to you too, it's fine to share this image on social media (or you can get it as a gorgeous and durable metal print poster at Displate.Com...where a new tree is planted with every purchase made).

More soon.

New Inspiring Quote Painting: Be the Change...

This elephant (and the message underneath, which is part of the Gandhi quote, "Be the change you wish to see in the world.") took a while to come into being.

I could see a "rainbow elephant," in my mind and thought this quote, or part of it, might work underneath. But couldn't quite make it work, so left the (originally orange and muddy) elephant be for a couple of weeks.

Am liking this result this result though (even though it took work in three separate digital painting programs to make it happen) and hope you do, too.

If this elephant floats your boat, you can find him on many items, including cards, in my Redbubble shop.

Hope he's given you some colour and inspiration. More soon!

New: Illustrated Byron Quote

Apologies. Thought I'd already posted the illustrated version of an inspiring Byron quote.

Turns out that I'd forgotten to do so... (though it is already in the shop).

It's also one of my answers to the "Rainbow" prompt for "Creative Every Day 2016".

Anyway, apologies again and enjoy. 

Daily Illustration/Doodle/Sketch #80: Being Happy

The last thing I expected to doodle today was a person, let alone a cartoony sketch. Never mind, here it is!

Daily Illustration #39: Rumi Quote

Today's illustration was inspired by two things, each almost 800 years apart from the other.

The first is the quote itself from Rumi, the 13th century mystic:

"Let yourself be silently drawn by the strange pull of what you really love". 

Coming across that quotation really stopped me in my tracks: it's been the guiding principle behind this blog from the beginning.

The second inspiration is the theme for February over on Creative Every Day, which was "love".

More tomorrow.






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