Veggie Paintings Kickstarter: The Process

Earlier this year, I caught the decorating bug after some renovations on our apartment. I've since recovered, thank you, but one lasting effect has been the desire to paint some vegetables to hang on my kitchen wall. With the idea that others might enjoy these as well, I've taken the project to Kickstarter with the goal of funding some high-quality art prints. You can check it out at this link, and even get your very own prints or fridge magnets (live through October 6, 2016):

This post will take you through some of the process of getting to a finished painting - and it all starts with good reference. 

In this case, I was able to go to the grocery store to pick out some samples I could draw from life, as well as scour the Internet for good photos. Then, with reference for a guide/inspiration,  I'll start sketching, thinking about how to present the subject in the most interesting way and how to compose it on the page.

Once I have a variety of options I'm excited about, I'll try to narrow it down, and then do a rough color sketch to see how the series might look all together.

At this point, I'll focus on one vegetable at a time, take my favorite sketch, and refine it into a final drawing. Then, I'll scan it in the computer and explore some color options in Photoshop. This helps me to understand what I'm going for when it comes to the actual painting.

Now it's time to paint! I'll transfer the drawing to the painting surface (in this case hardboard panel) using that old graphite trick, get all my supplies out, and I'm ready to go! (Yes, I paint sitting on the floor. Weird old habits die hard, I guess.) I'll probably do another post detailing the brands and setup I prefer, or maybe demonstrate how to blend acrylics to create soft edges.

Here's what one painting looked like during various stages:

And here's one of the final products:

When I'm done, there will be a total of six veggie paintings. Again, you can check out the project on Kickstarter, and feel free to share with anyone you know who might be interested in some veggie art. Also, let me know if you have any questions about the process - I'd be happy to answer them!

Portrait in Plaid

Custom family portrait/Christmas card project for this adorable foursome.They wanted to be extra fancy and wear plaid, and that's how I knew this illustration was going to be ridiculously fun to work on.

Leanne & Josh

Yay for October weddings! This fun, laid back couple live in Colorado and wanted to incorporate their love of  mountains and snowboarding in their illustrated wedding invitations. Their proposal story involves a hot air balloon ride, so that got in there as well.

This was so fun to work on, and it's always an honor to be a tiny part of someone's love story. Congrats, you two, and best wishes!

Julia & Matt

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to create save-the-dates for this adorable couple. Together, they own three pet bunnies that they wanted to include in their portrait.

Their wedding will take place in a gorgeous old English church, but they're also holding a reception in Utah, so they wanted the back of their save-the-date card to highlight these separate events and their different dates and locations.

Later, they decided they'd also like a wedding logo incorporating the initials of their last names (as well as their love of bunnies) that they then made into a stamp for all their wedding stationery.

Julia and Matt also wanted to provide their guests with more detailed maps of how to get from the church to the reception hall in England and how to get from the freeway to the reception center in Utah, including landmarks they'll see along the routes.

Lastly, they used close-ups of the venue illustrations for their reception cards. Here's that gorgeous English church.

All of these were such a pleasure to work on! I love these kinds of projects - unique, personal, brimming with personality, joy, and, of course, bunnies.

For information about my illustrations, feel free to visit my Etsy shop. Thanks for visiting!

For Laura

For my lovely, intelligent, imaginative, plant-loving sister. Happy Birthday!

Sister Missionaries

I got to do an illustration for this month's Friend, a children's magazine published by the LDS Church. This illustration is

about the 7th Article of Faith, which states: "We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, and so forth." The gift of tongues is particularly applicable to missionaries who serve in countries all over the world and in many cases learn to teach the gospel in languages which are foreign to them. (As a former missionary in Hungary, I can testify that this is a thing!)

James

A recent portrait commission. My job is especially fun when I get to paint adorable kiddos!