What fun I have been having with all this doodling and sketching! Our assignment this week was to apply our cuckoo designs to an iPhone case cover. In addition to experimenting with pattern and placement, we were encouraged to think about a color palette that was current when finalizing our designs. I am very happy with my results above. For my illustrations that did not include the “weights” that all cuckoo clocks have (I have been calling them dongers or danglers, but that sounds a bit nasty), I decided it would be fun to put actual plastic beads hanging off the bottom of the case as a representation. Who knew that all along I was designing a complete line of phone cases that I would certainly buy if I saw them for sale!
One of the things I have noticed in our online group forum for the class is that a lot of artists seem torn between free hand illustrating and digital illustrating. Mainly, I think some people are “comparing and despairing” as Stuart Smalley would say. They think they should be doing one style over another because of the kinds of examples they are seeing in other member’s posted work. To that I say RUBBISH! We are all here to appreciate one another’s unique styles and love of illustration. We all have our own way, techniques, and special skills. In Lilla Roger’s book, “I Just like to make things,” she talks a lot about finding the passion and joy in one’s work. She goes so far as to say, “People will buy your joy.” I totally believe that.
When I started this project, I was feeling a little intimidated by the caliber of artists in the group. I felt that maybe I was out of my league because I did not have a fancy studio, or a lot of modern-day essentials such as a scanner, printer, etc. Once I got past that and started just plain old enjoying the heck out of myself, I was fine. I even figured out a poor man’s way to transfer my sketches into digital files by using my crappy phone camera and streamlining the files in Illustrator. Sitting at the breakfast nook, drinking coffee and listening to my dog snore, I made it work, and I am proud of myself.
One more thing. My husband suggested that I create a watermark for my designs. I guess that’s his way of telling me that he thinks they are so cool, people might want to steal them! So, I now have a watermark just like a professional artist lady. I created it from an online tutorial by Jen Swedhin on YouTube. Maybe you will find this helpful too!
Oomph! 