Did somebody say Rum?

A work in progress shot of the current moly book I'm working on, LOL. It's a monster luau...the one laying in his drunken stupor had one too many Mai Tai's. Mmmmmm, Mai Tai...who's bringing the rum?

*sniff*

I received some bad news from the Boyfriend last night....all the hard work I put into creating a new design for my portfolio site was in vain. Yes, because I am a ding-bat and didn't pay attention to the specific size needed for a new header image. I just went along on my merry way and kept coloring in this cute little design I've been sitting on. Hmmm, seems I never follow the rules, doesn't it? Must be developing a pattern, LOL. So this is the image I had intended for my header but the specs are all wrong so now it's going to be used somewhere else...maybe the home page...not a total loss but now I'm back to square one to create a new image. Ay yay yay!

Boo!

My mummy wants to wish you all a Happy Hallo-weekend!

This is an ATC (Artist Trading Card) that I did for a group swap I'm involved in over at Tiny Art. We are VERY exclusive, LOL, you have to be invited in. Ah, well they are great people over there, totally low-key and don't mind when you send things in late. Which is great for me because it seems lately I simply cannot be on time anywhere! What the heck?!?

Just in time for Halloweenie...

I was raiding my mother's craft-stash this weekend and came across these wooden doll heads. After seeing so many people create such interesting Kokeshi dolls on flickr lately I thought I would improvise with some of her old stow-aways by adding bodies and came up with these guys. Meet Frankie and Drake, two very hip little ghoulies who still need some paint, LOL

I have been working hard on a Card project for a friend as well as my quilt that never-seems-to-end, so they unfortunately have no color to them yet, but VERY SOON!

Someone's having a giveaway!!

Take a look at these fabrics!! The folks over at Pumpkin Patch Primitives Quilt Shoppe are having a give-away. Just in time for Halloween! Woo hoo. What do you win? A fat quarter bundle by Red Rooster's Pumpkins & Spice Fabrics by Whimsicals. Hello, did you know that's 27 fat quarters?!? there are oodles of cute things, checks, stripes, I see some sunflowers and 'punkins' all kinds of fun stuff. Follow the link above for the rules on how to enter this fun giveaway and tell them you got there through me, I'll get an extra chance to win, just for the referral!

Who wants to play Paying it Forward?

Okay, so I've never played this before...but I read about it here and here and missed the opportunity so I thought it would be a fun idea to post it and see if I can get enough people to play! The instructions are below, read them carefully!

"Let's play Pay It Forward!! EEK!!

And sooooooo...I am entering into the following contract with the first 5 people who comment on this post and then commit to do the same on their blog. Just read below and if you feel up to the task copy the following into your blog and leave me a comment.

1. I make no guarantees that you will like what I make. Whatcha get is whatcha get.

2. What I create will be just for you, with love.

3. It'll be done this year (2009).

4. I will not give you any clue what it's going to be. It will be something made in the real world and not something cyber. It may be weird or beautiful. Or it may be monstrous and annoying. (unlikely!) Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!

5. I reserve the right to do something strange.

6. In return, all you need to do is post this text on your blog and make 5 things for the first 5 to respond to your blog post.

7. Send your mailing address - after I contact you. Come on, don't be shy. Even if you don't think you're the creative type, you might end up surprising yourself - and making 5 other people very happy too!

I read about it and I'm doin' it!

The first 5 comments on this post who give me confirmation they want to play and who post these same rules on their own blog will get something from we before 2009 is over! Oh my gosh, that's only 77 more days!!

Wave goodbye to another one...

This is the last of the molies I have in my possession at the moment. Not for long I'm sure...but a break in mailings it seems.

So much to do, so little time....and yet...

...and yet, I am constantly starting new projects. For example since I posted about my little embroidery project that is part of my larger quilt project, I have been getting hounded by phone calls and emails from both my mother and my aunt, and now their friends, LOL!! It's all good, it just lets me know that I am in demand and need to get my ass in gear. So now that I am done with all the moly madness, temporarily of course, until the next one comes in, I will be simultaneously working on two projects...one is super secret and I can't tell you about in case someone tries to steal it from me...the other will of course be designing some stiching patterns.

Stay tuned...I might even give the first one away for free, who knows? Depends on my giving spirit.

another moly out the door...

Phew! finished, finally. And off it goes to another member of the moly squad! This was from the themed group monster molies in case you couldn't already tell.

Just a Little Sumthin Sumthin...

So this is just a preview of something I started working on earlier this week. Actually it's part of a larger project I've been working on for a few weeks now.

Long story short: The Boyfriend and I cannot agree upon a bedspread/cover that we both like. The ones I like are either too plain or in colors he feels are too girly, example: teal. While his choices tend to be a bit to boyish or with scratchy fabric, example: forest green and burgundy, yuck!

So a few weeks back I decided to make us a quilt. That way I could pick the colors I like and include some sort of a pattern that would please him as he doesn't like the ol' plain stuff that I do. LOL!!

Anyway, being the art-eest girl that I am I started sewing together a bunch of scrap fabric that my Quilting Mama had in her stash. She does share sometimes :) I gathered up the fabrics and separated them into piles by color: creams, reds, browns, greens, and blacks. I then started piecing everything together willy-nilly, because as I've been told by both my mother and crafty younger sister, I can never follow the rules. This is of course followed by the ever present eye roll because apparently in their books being an artist is the same thing as a rule breaker.

LOL!! Whatever!

So in addition to all the scrappy goodness going on, I decided I wanted to make a few special additions to our quilt. Personalize it a bit. So that's where this little guy comes in..he'll be sewn into the blanket surrounded by all those scrappy fabrics.

More pictures to come...followed by a finished quilt! Woot!

Holy Cannoli, Batman...I've neglected my Blog!

Oh yes, sad but true. So many things to do, so little time to do it in. The neglect can be traced specifically back to late May, early June, when I simultaneously started a new job and moved residences. Can I just throw this out there for all of you? Learn from my mistakes and don't ever EVER, move and start a new job within a months time of each other. EVER!! It sucks, it's hard to get caught up, and I am still trying to juggle catching up on bills, personal projects and sifting through the unwanted items I somehow manage to keep dragging with me every time I move. Part of my disappearance has been the old art supplies were stashed in boxes buried away in the garage, partly just not enough time to play catch up. But I have brainstorming and planning and should have lots of new and exciting stuff to blog about...soon :)

For the time being, I will just share my contribution from Moly x Portrait 3 for you all. Meet Sara, she wants to find BigFoot. See how Kelley is not very nice and has lead Sara down the wrong path? Hee hee. Oh well.

Oh, WOW!

I've been a very bad blogger, it's been such a crazy time for me lately that I just realized I hadn't posted anything since JUNE!!! Holy MOLY!! How did that happen?

I'll tell you how it happened, I quit a job, got a new job, and moved all in the same month!! I'm surprised I'm still alive to be honest, LOL!! What with packing and then unpacking, all my supplies are still pretty much in a box, somewhere...I'm looking for them :)

Anyway...I am just now finding my bearings again and should have more to post soon. Sheesh, I still can't believe I've let it go this long...bad, bad blogger!!

Here's a little something to keep you entertained...the latest in the on going moly saga...for Ben:

Our Moly 68 Group has a Pin Up theme going overall, but Ben requested that when we draw in his book we follow a sub-theme of Fairy Tales....it's been quite interesting seeing how that's come out so far...okay so I was only the third person to draw in his book..but so far it's coming along wonderfully!!

Another octopus, another moly...

My monster-moly group over on flickr has been amazing. It was the first group I joined and to date has been the most successful, we are actually just past the halfway mark and I should be getting a completed book back in about, oh, I dunno four or five months, LOL.

This latest entry is for Esek's book, and has come all the way from Greece! It's stopped in Italy, Spain, Mexico and is now on it's way to it's third stop in California. When you really stop to think about it, the journey these books go on is so fascinating.

Anyway, here is my entry...with a similar looking octopus from my last entry, LOL, but you know, different. For instance this one is a different color...and look! he's wearing a sailor hat, LOL!!

Anyway, enjoy! And here are a few blurry pics of the progress this book has made so far:

Molies, molies, everywhere molies. Monsters and Dames is this books theme...doesn't it seem like a mermaid would count as both in a way?? Oh well, I added a giant octopus for the hell of it. Enjoy :P

My latest entry...

My latest entry in the International Moleskine Exchange. This one is part of group 68, which has a Pin Up theme. This is Jose's book from Spain, he started his book with a vertical format rather than horizontal and asked that we try to create a sort of apartment or storied look. So his entry which you can see here is on top and then my entry is "downstairs" in the bathroom below, LOL.

So what you are seeing below is the energetic blue brush strokes from Jose, then my line work, which I'm using as a cut-away sort of floor/ceiling. I used some patterned paper for the walls, to give it a more "home" feeling versus just any old bathroom, LOL, and even put a crack in the wall. I love these exchanges, they are so much fun to do...Now if only I could get paid to participate, that would truly be a dream job.

Agh! It's a moly monster!!

Run, don't walk from....it's....wait, what is that?? Oh never mind, it's nothing but a harmless moly monster. Part of my Moly Exchange, this group is monster themed. This is in Bea's book and her monsters have seemed to be hanging out in space lately so I took a little inspiration from the Joker by the Steve Miller Band....ahhh yeah.

New Work Soon to Come...

Dear Blog,

I owe you an apology. I know I haven't spent much time with you lately, it's not your fault really. It's just I've been so busy with other projects that I've had no other choice but to leave you neglected. And for that, I am sorry.

I promise to get back to regular visits very soon. The Exhumed game is underway and I have been creating new pieces for the level designer. I won't be able to share those, but I know you understand.

I also have three molies in my possession that I need to work on for the International Moleskine Exchange and those I can share with you in just a matter of days!! Woohoo!! They are for the pinup exchange, the monster group, and an opened theme one. All of that, plus my website is finally getting it's much needed face lift. I will finally be able to show it off in a matter of a week or two, YAY!!

I promise to get back to you soon, please be patient with me. Thank you for your understanding.

The Bad Bo-Belley Blogger

I have an announcement....ahem...ahem...are you listening??

Okay, so the super secret Ugly Baby Studios game I've been working on for months...You know the one I hinted at here and here? The same game that has occupied all my free hours doing research, painting, doing more research, coming up with concept art for background work and all that jazz? Well I've finally completed the first finished piece of concept art and entered it into a contest!! Woot!! You heard me right...now I don't know if I'm in yet, so I won't get myself too excited...but I entered and am anxiously waiting until June when I'll hear if the judges have selected my piece or not.


This actually turned out to be a much longer process than I had anticipated...the character went through a few revisions and ultimately came out looking like an awesome zombie pin up girl. I'm rather happy with it :) And the work I'm doing for the Exhumed XBox Community game is REALLY pushing my artistic boundaries, which let's face it - that is ALWAYS a good thing. Please, take a look at the new site...there's not much to it yet, but keep coming back and checking in on updates...more concept art to come, that's for darn sure!!

Happy Birffday, Sister!

So April 7th is one of my sister's birthday....and sadly this is the first chance I've had to post the painting I made for her. I did a google search and looked up silly and famous quotes about sisters and found this funny one and thought it would work out perfectly. It did, the birthday girl loved it.

"Sister to sister we will always be, a couple of nuts off the family tree"

This Post is Rated M for Mature, LOL

So...it was inevitable, wasn't it? That I would join another moly exchange? What in the world is wrong with me? I have so much stuff to do...work on other projects is all around me and yet this addiction to the moly exchanges cannot be stopped!

That's okay, fortunately for me these books tend to move very slowly. I'm in six exchanges now and I'm only getting a book about every other month..so it's not like I'm really that bogged down with them. I keep getting this horrible suspicion that I'm going to get four or five all at once, LOL.

Anyway, the latest group is old fashioned pin up girls. I really enjoy the genre...a lot of the old style artist tended to show a scantily clad woman without showing off her "stuff" they left it to the imagination, versus revealing too much. Plus, the models of that time had great expressions and a little meat on their bones...they weren't all angry looking and boney...they actually appeared to have eaten a sandwich in their lifetimes, LOL. Anyway, here is my entry...I went with a sort of galaxy girl.

My Wonderland book - is up to date...

I've finally put the finishing touches on my Wonderland book and it's heading back to England...here's what the book looks like so far:

I know, I know...

I've been delinquent in my blog postings as of late, but I've been super busy working on the super secret Ugly Baby Studios game, and trying to keep up with all my molies and updating my portfolio pieces. Sheesh. Anywhoo...here's a look at my latest moly entry...my own book has come back and I'm just about done with this entry before sending back out again for round two! Sorry for the crappy picture taking but it was the easiest way to show you what i've been up to...I'll get these scanned properly soon before they go back to England :) I'd also like to make note that these are still works in progess and not totally finished. There is still a background to be painted and as of right now Alice has no pigment to her skin, AGGGHH!!

and the winner is....

(Drum roll please)....

Did you forget? I was holding a contest to get help for my banner.

Anyway....and the winner is...dun dun dun!

Miss Mashed!

I will get your prize out to you right away. Thank you to everyone for all your helpful comments and suggestions. I think the consensus is that it needs to be a bit more playful so I'm back to the drawing board...stay tuned.

Happy Birthday to Brenda and mi Mamacita!

January 28th is an interesting day in our family. Not only was it my Grandma Betty's birthday but it's also my Mom's. I know how weird is it that my Dad married a woman with the same birthday as his mother....crazy. And yet, in junior high I met and befriended this crazy little hispanic girl, Brenda, in gym class whose birthday was also on 1/28. Years later (sixteen to be exact - damn! are we old!), I'm still friends with Brenda and still find it amazing that I am surrounded by this goofy birth date, LOL. Anyway, it's always tough trying to figure out when we're getting together with mom or for me, with Brenda to say Happy Birthday and give them their gifts. This year was no different but it all worked out. Brenda is the big 3-0 this year, so it was kind of a big one....and her lovely sister in law, Chrystal, threw her a surprise party. Being the artsy girl that I am I had to do something special to mark the occasion and since Brenda doesn't have a lot of things on her apartment walls I figured a little bit of framed artsy-goodness would be appropriate. I looked on line for quotes about friendship and finally stumbled across one I thought was perfect. Here was her birthday surprise:

And for my Mom, I made three little cartoon portraits with painted frames. Her whole house is basically country quilts, sewing garb or my Dad's baseball and vintage car knick-knacks. So it's safe to say RED is everywhere. Not to mention it's only like her most favorite color in the whole wide world, LOL. So here they are...me and my two younger sisters...as kids (you know when we were still cute and adorable).

a work in progress...

May I Get Some Opinions...??

I must admit, I am at a bit of a stand still with my website redesign. While I like the banner design I've come up with I seem to be getting mixed messages from the people I've shown it to. While I have no problem taking criticism in regards to my art...the response I'm getting seems to be that it's not really my style. I'm thinking, "I drew it, how is it not me," LOL?? But then what do I know I'm just the artist? hee hee hee. The majority of responses has been something along the lines of, "I love it, but it's not really your style," so I'm curious what the blogging world thinks.

I've seen a bunch of blogs do give-aways and hold contests so I thought...hey maybe I can do that too. Get a little feedback and also give away a little thank you at the same time. So I propose this...for the next few weeks I will keep this open and ask for feedback. At the end of that time, I will put all the names of those who have left comments into a bag and draw a name. The winner will get a freebie from me. It may be a Valentine or an an ATC, it might even be an original piece of art...who knows? It will definitely be a surprise. Thank you for your help and here's my banner design:

I'd love comments, feedback, suggestions, whatever you can give me in the way of constructive criticism. Should I keep it, should I redesign it from scratch with something cutesy...hey if you have a completely new suggestion for me I am all ears :) Can't wait to hear your thoughts and thank you in advance.

DOH!! I almost forgot...

If you've followed my blog for uhm....let's say more than a day, you'll know that I start a ton of new projects on any given day. Do I always finish those projects? Uh, sometimes...but not always. Seems, there is always something new just around the corner. I can't even help it, I just get completely sidetracked and sucked it to new ideas and concepts and they just take over my brain, lol.

Anyway, this year I made the resolution to finish what I start. I had these adorable concept sketches for the new layout of my portfolio site. It was all circus/sideshow cuteness. Well, I got the concept sketches done...even some finished sketches. I went so far as to actually scan them into the computer, woo hoo. And that's where they have been sitting ever since.

So last night, after dinner, after my trip to the store for toilet paper and milk...I came home, sat down on my laptop and started plugging away on the new header for my site. And what do you suppose happened?? I dropped the circus designs I had for a completely new look. But, this one was simpler, more illustrative and I really like it. Pictures soon to come...I promise!

It's Molie Madness...

I rarely do this...say nothing...but so many pictures are so much more fun :)
All different shapes, all different sizes - each one so much fun!

The Bling Bling Mermaid

So here is my latest ATC. I made an online trade with Glenda Tkalac of Canada...she sent me a vintage pinup girl, which was great. And in return, she asked me for either a vampire or a mermaid. So I picked a mermaid. Here she is:

Made with ink, watercolor, and acrylic gold paint for the tail. There is also a stickie rhinestone for her necklace. You know...just a little bling bling for the mermaid :)

The latest addition in my moly addiction...

Well, I've done it again. I joined another exchange...and to top it all of I officially joined an ATC swap on Tiny Art that is unrelated to the molies and have to make three trading cards. Luckily most of these things are on the small scale and don't take me too long, hee hee hee. Otherwise I would be in a world of pain right now.

But back to the issue at hand...here is my latest entry in the moly Portrait Party. This is for Danny...I had fun with it. Put us in some bandit gear and knocked over a few banks, ha ha...I'm a dork, we all know it. Tell me something I don't know ;)

To My Valentine

Yesterday afternoon I headed over to my mom and dad's to work on some Valentine cards. Why go to their house? Well that's where my Gocco was. I've been wanting to start an Etsy shop for awhile now. However, I tend to start about a billion different things and then get sidetracked and/or busy and put them off until I remember and/or get frustrated with myself.

Case in point...the adventures of my Molies, LOL. I wanted to start the Etsy shop months and MONTHS ago... then discovered the Molies and quickly joined four exchanges. Well, now that I'm in the midst of waiting on Molies to arrive...I figured I'd better take this opportunity to start up that shop while all my side-projects are moving at a snails pace.

Okay so here's a detail of the Gocco Valentine print I've created:

And here is the mess I made in my mom's craft room. The whole point of going over to my Parent's house was that my mom has a craft room and a giant dining room table. Both of which I do not have at my apartment. Sooooo, off I went to use my Gocco and covet her space. Well us, being the brilliant chicks that we are needed a place to store the prints while they were still wet. I'm still new to this so I don't have things like drying racks or ways to hold up my cards...so we used this:Yes, those are the mini blinds...and they worked great! I don't suggest this if you're printing anything that has much weight to it...but for the fifty plus cards I had printed it was just dandy!!

So those are the printed pieces. At work today, I'm gonna cut out everything, on my lunch break of course, and try to assemble a mock up of the finished card...stay tuned! And who knows maybe if he's really nice to me the Boyfriend will get one for free, LOL! Awww, I'm so sweet, LOL.

My First Entry for the Portrait Exchange

So this is my first entry in someone else's moly for the Portrait Party. The Portrait Party is part of the International Moleskine Exchange. This is Glaucia's book, she's from Dublin, PA and has two adorable little boys. She also has one of those short, funky hair-do's that was way fun to draw :) Anyway...here is my entry in her book.

I looked though a bunch of Glaucia's photos to find something that would make for a cool composition. I finally found one of her painting a canvas up close and it reminded me of me...the way I get really close to the canvas or the paper I'm working on...so even though it was a profile view...I managed to get a reference shot of myself and have the left handed artist and the right handed artist meeting in the center, LOL.