New Kitchen!
Sep 1st
Hey all! I’m finally uploading some photos of the kitchen! I’ll do a write up on here later with more info on what we did where.
Order of the Fallen Dragon
Aug 9th
A tattoo concept I did for a friend. I basically traced it out in sharper lines to make it easy to tattoo. (See below for original image & finished product). Here’s a bit of info about the design:
It’s the Cradle of Filth version of the Order of the Fallen Dragon. The order of the fallen dragon was an order of people who did horrible things on behalf of the church. Famous member? You may remember Vlad Tepes, also known as Vlad the Impaler, Vlad Dracul, or Dracula.
Naked Mole Rat
Aug 5th
Jeff and I came up with an idea. Everyone has seen those cute girls PJ’s with little kittens, puppies, penguins, etc. on them. Well, we want to make a line of PJ’s with more creepy/gross/obscure animals on them.
First up! The Naked Mole Rat!
I’m starting off by drawing some cartoons, then I’m going to digitalize them, make a pattern and send it to www.spoonflower.com/ to get a swatch made. So excited!!
Book Review | The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom (A Toltec Wisdom Book)
Jun 1st
Click to view at Amazon.com
This book practically fell into my lap yesterday. (Thanks Jen!) Apparently Ellen recommended it on Oprah and its been growing in popularity since.
It’s not really a self-help book, or a religious book… although it is sort of. But the beliefs are based on common sense. How often does that happen in the world of religion and spirituality? It’s short and very very easy to follow, simply structured, doesn’t try to confuse you or lead you on so you feel like you have to buy more of the books.
The author is a spiritual teacher of the Toltec tradition. The Toltecs were an ancient group of scientists and artists that inhabited Mesoamerica (Mexico-ish area) before the Aztecs.
The biggest thing the book touched on for me, is how society grooms us to become so judgmental. We’re so set in our made-up beliefs of what is right and wrong and proper. Society itself has become a fabricated nightmare for so many people. We are so scared of being judged by everyone, including ourselves. We struggle to “fit in” or at least coexist without retribution for being different or not conforming to mainstream beliefs and lifestyles. In a land of stereotypes, discrimination, and unrealistic expectations, it’s refreshing to read such a hugely different perspective.
The “Four Agreements” are:
- Be Impeccable With Your Words
- Don’t Take Anything Personally
- Don’t Make Assumptions
- Always Do Your Best
Zombie Frankie: First Draft
Apr 28th
Behold! Zombie Frankie! A concept we came up with one night and drew the first sketch on a cigarette package. Drawn with pencil, did the outline in pen, scanned, and the coloring and shading in Photoshop. Going to use the new tablet to clean up the lines a bit, I find they’re a little harsh from the scan. Hoping to try a simple animation with it soon.
Tattoo Design: Strawberry Angel
Apr 28th
Tattoo design I just did for a friend. Done entirely using a tablet! My first digital art piece. I did the shapes in Illustrator, and the shading in Photoshop. (Still trying to figure out how to work Illustrator.)
Hazel Eye
Jan 17th
A watercolor I did tonight of Jeff’s eye. I wanted to try to capture his interesting colors, and practice facial features so I can get better at drawing and painting people.
The Weeping Willow
Jan 17th
My first watercolor. I drew the tree first in pencil, then I took acrylic paints and watered them down for the color.
Given to my best friend as a present, I had to wait a couple weeks to upload this one. :P I finished it a little while before I started my nachos.
Concepts: Vanessa, Sakura, Bird of Paradise
Jan 15th
Well I’ve been playing around in Photoshop again. I came up with a few somewhat different/quirky makeup concepts. I’d have to be pretty inspired to try these out on a work-day.. maybe just the colors without the elements drawn in.
In any case, here’s what I came up with!
Bird of Paradise
Inspired from Planet Earth, a tribute to the animal that made me giggle the most. I don’t have this color yet (the blueish-green) but hopefully I’ll be able to find something to be able to try it out. Might be difficult to apply it over the black, but we’ll see.
Sakura – The Cherry Blossom
I’ve always been a fan of Japanese culture and imagery, and the cherry blossom tree is pretty popular. Also an excuse for me to use more black and pink. :) I would say they’re my favorite colors to use for makeup.
Vanessa – The Butterfly
Sounds a little conceited to name one after myself so early on. But I really wanted to take something and make it mine. So, since my name is also used to classify certain species of butterflies, I decided to base my concept of them. I got to use orange, gold, and a purplish blue in this one, as well as black and white liner. I love these colors together, I may try this one without the spots tomorrow. The shading on the browbone may be a little difficult though.
Nay-choz!
Jan 11th
Well its been a long time.. but I finally got around to oil painting again. Our kitchen/dining room is a little bland, so I decided to paint a picture of our favorite food to hang in there… nachos! The photos are a little shiny because the paint was still wet, but once its up in a frame I’ll get the photographer of the house to take a good one.
It took me about an hour to open up all of my oil paints.. I got them back in.. 1997? When I first started taking oil painting classes in high school. So the caps were goopy and hardened on there pretty tight.
I decided realism would be a little too difficult for one as rusty as I, so I wanted to go with a fun, bold, colorful, almost impressionism-style look. Kind of reminds me of something you’d see hanging up at Quiznos. Here’s my concept art! I spent aaaaboooutttt… 30 seconds creating it. Amazing huh?
I started out with just an orangey-red background as a base. Then starting from the outside and working my way in, I did the chips. Then put the cheese on them. This part looks a little… I have to do it… cheesy! I’m serious. I think the cheese came out looking a little goofy. So I went with that look and made it even more crazy and squiggly looking. Then I added the sour cream, which covered up some awkward looking cheese spots, and then the rest of the toppings: tomaters, olives, and jalapeños.
Now to see if I can find a frame the right size!
Let me know what you think, facebook me, tweet me @nessagood, or comment above.