Sketchbook Sunday - Six Things Edition

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Sketchbook Sunday - 1995 Edition

I have been cleaning up here and there in our craft room this weekend. I came across a bunch of sketchbooks from the 1990's. Here is a gem of a book that I started in April of 1995. Woah, that makes it vintage by now!


Often I was asked to draw comics for other people's zines or record covers. Here are some sketches that were for a zine t-shirt that I did for a pen pal of mine.


These comics are from 1995, when I was in my first year of college. So they are really based in that part of my life. The comics I drew were mostly about classes, roommates, how I was treated by others, phobias, and so on.


I like to believe my comics are lots better now!


I also drew so big back then. These sketchbooks are big compared to my small ones I use nowadays.


I always like to draw from my collections. Here are some illustrations that I was working out for some comics I made later about toys I have.


I also drew some songs I liked. These were printed in a zine that I made in 1997 called Rollycoaster.




There are many comics about dreams I had.


And lastly, there are my phobia comics that were all made for the zine Panophobia!

Sketchbook Sunday - Fierce and Nerdy Edition

I have been trying to work ahead on some of my Dork Lifestyle comics for Fierce and Nerdy! Here are some of my new illustrations I have been working on.


I can't show you all of them cos they will eventually be published online, and then I hope to make a book. I am coming up on having 50 comics on Fierce and Nerdy! Hooray! Hooray for my friend Ernessa for letting me publish my comics on her website.


As always, I like doing a bunch of projects all at once. I started to draw another issue of Super Paws! So far I have one comic ready. I just need about a dozen more to complete my zine!

Sketchbook Sunday - Wedding Illustrations

Last autumn Evie emailed me asking for artwork for her wedding. She wanted it in my mori girl style, and I had so much fun making these illustrations to celebrate her wedding. These drawings are based on the photos that Evie sent to me.


I made these illustrations in ink and then cleaned it up and colorized it using Photoshop. I think the colors look so nice, and I really like how her dress looks, too.


Here is the artwork for her thank yous. I really like how her dress pattern came out, and his plaid shirt!


Here are some of the ink drawings that I made, some are not ones that got chosen in the end. I like how they look, though, and it is neat to see the drawings without the colors that the final illustrations have.




I really like drawing in my mori girl style. I am so happy with how these drawings turned out!

Sketchbook Sunday - Spoonflower Fabric Pattern Designs

For all the sewers out there, and crafty peeps in general, I present to you - my Spoonflower fabric shop! Did you know I was making my own fabric designs using Spoonflower? Now you can also purchase some of my designs through Spoonflower for making your own crafty projects! Isn't that great? I really love Spoonflower.










You can see my Spoonflower fabric shop right here! So far I have sewn some wallets, drawstring bags, and a top with my very own patterns!

Sketchbook Sunday - What Nilla Would Wear

Do you ever dream about dressing your pets? Sometimes I do, and I know you can dress your pets, but I really don't think mine would allow for that. If I could dress Nilla, I always imagined her in a great red track suit like I drew right here. I think she would really look cute in this!

Sketchbook Sunday - Fierce and Nerdy

Each month I draw a new comic called Dork Lifestyle for my friend Ernessa T. Cater's awesome and funny website, Fierce and Nerdy. This month I drew my Dork Lifestyle about some hot peppers. First I started with a pencil sketch that out lined what I wanted to draw and write in my panels to the cartoon.


Next I ink in my pencil drawings. Usually I draw in all the characters and then add the details with pens that are all different thicknesses. Sometimes I draw something to the side that I swap later - in this drawing it is the knife. I drew a new one on the side to replace in the final comic.






Then I scan in my inked artwork. I clean it up using Photoshop. I scan it in as a color image, then make it to grayscale to make sure my inked line work is crisp. I color it in and convert to RGB at this point. I keep a color palette saved that includes my favorite colors for my hair and skin tones for my comics, so they are always consistent.


I love naming my layers! Oh my, I am really a nerd. This is really important to me. You can search your files and find them by layers! I love this.


This is my almost completed Dork Lifestyle comic! You can see the final version right here!

Sketchbook Sunday - Let's Make a Button Design

I love making buttons! I make them all the time. Want to see my process from start to finish? Okay, so here goes... I start with my original sketch that I draw in pencil. I usually draw in my sketch book. It looks like this.


Then I ink in my pencil sketch. I like to use different pens for this - so sometimes I draw with a fine tip, sometimes I like to use a heavier tip. For this I think I used a 07 tip.


Next I did some hand lettering. I am making a button to use for my Etsy shop, so I wrote the URL for it Shoppe Sugar Cookie!


Then I scan in my artwork. I like to clean it up in Photoshop. I scan at 600 dpi, and in color. I change to grayscale and fine tune the contrast using Levels, Exposure, and Brightness and Contrast. I convert to RGB next and color in my illustration. I also move the type around to fit my button template, making sure not to place the text too close to the edge of my button design. Once I have this finalized, I put it on another template to print my button design out on nice paper.


This is how they look when I print them out all on one page. I can cut it out to make a button!


And here is the final button badge design to pop in my Shoppe Sugar Cookie Etsy orders!

Sketchbook Sunday: Two Family Portraits

I was commissioned by my friend Jeremy to draw a portrait of his super cute family as a gift for his wife for a Mother's Day gift. In this photo you will find Jeremy, his daughter Sophie, and his wife Juliet. Jeremy said make them listening to records in a living room, but I just ma de a textured color background cos I am not a fan of drawing backgrounds, really. I did incorporate his idea of listening to music by adding the cute close and play record player, miniature music notes, and a guitar. This is a very musical family, as Jeremy and Juliet play in the fabulous indie pop band called Gold-Bears.


The other portrait I drew recently is of my pal Courtney and her boyfriend, Bob. This was an anniversary gift to them. Courtney, long time zine queen and pen pal, asked that I added their two pet chinchillas, Bambi and Belle. She said usually the chinnies are very fast and do not sit still for holding, but I made them holding Bambi and Belle anyway. I added the hay at their feet, as any good small pet owner knows, hay is all the time all over the house.

I hope you both enjoy your portraits! I had a fun time making these for Jeremy and Courtney.

Sketchbook Sunday - Acorns and Cute Girls

I have been drawing some cute girls lately! Some are mori girl inspired and some are just doodles.




Here are some acorn heads. I enjoy making new characters and illustrating their clothes and friends.


This is another mori inspired sketch - a girl holding a baby acorn! I love her hair and her bow.


We had a good bit of rain last weekend, so this illustration was made during the rain and hail storms we had last week.


Here is my fawn baby, too. I love drawing animals, especially deer and fawns.

Sketchbook Sunday - Thrift Stores and Self Portraits

I started to draw some things I found at thrift stores and a few self portraits. I like to draw clothes, so I focused on that. I also love to draw bunnies, so I added that, too! Only I am not good at picking up our pet rabbits at all. They are much too wiggly!


Here is a mug, a ceramic planter, and a dress I found at thrift shops. I might put them into a zine some day.


These are some drawings of clothing I got in vintage shops. The first one is me in the 1990's wearing a shirt dress from a friend and some Doc Martens shoes that I bought a few sizes too big. Why did I do that? The other pencil sketch is a top I got downtown - it makes me look like a waitress!


I found this plush squirrel at a thrift sale - and this squirrel is wearing a pink floral pattern dress!