My "Jelly Beans" are selected!

I received a very good news today and can't wait to share it.

My "Jelly Beans" photography was selected to be on Society6 Shop :)

This is the selected photo:

and here it is on the shop, top left corner:

You can check it out here :)

Illustration - Vector Art

Been interested in digital painting for a long time, I always was fascinated by the great illustrations that some artists such as Marta Dahlig, Linda Bergvist, Frederic St-Arnaud or Raphael Lacoste make, but was hesitant to try it. I love the organic feeling of paper, paint and canvas so much that thinking of creating a piece without that feeling was hard for me to imagine. 

Well, I was wrong :) many of the digital paintings and illustrations can be and are made or initiated by the traditional painting or drawing and then transferred, modified or enhanced by digital tools such as Photoshop or Illustrator (of course this entirely depends on the artist).

Knowing this made me more willing to try and enter the digi-painting world! not that I am going to stay there for ever and never look back....not at all, but maybe just more visits than before :P 

My first attempt in digi painting took me along time, from initial thinking of a subject to learning the basics of Illustrator and then finishing the piece. Although I am quite good at Photoshop, but Illustrator is quiet different and is mainly used for this painting, So I had to come up with a subject achievable with my level of experience.

I started with a sketch and kept modifying it until I was happy, Then inked all the drawing, imported it to photoshop, cleaned it up a bit and finally transferred it to illustrator to vectorize and colour the whole thing. 

Initial Drawing

and I think I'm going to call it "The Mushroom Land" :)

Final image

..... Let me know what you think of this piece?  

Hugs,

Gift Bows - DIY

I was searching for a tutorial on how to make gift bows. I wanted a tutorial that doesn't include many measurements or cuttings and gluing and ends with a bow as perfect and symmetric as possible with least amount of tapes or staples to hide at the end. 

I am going to share with you the tutorial that I found plus a few tips that I figured along the way. 

Abstract Watercolour - Tulips

This abstract watercolour painting is now available as print and stretched canvas in my Society6 shop.

Abstract Watercolour - Tulips

There are prints of some of my photos also available through my shop. 

Cross-hatching - Fruits

This pencil drawing is done by cross-hatching technique. The pencil I used had a very soft tip that made the final result look smooth. 

If you want to know how to cross-hatch, see my previous most here and cross-hatching in ink can be viewed here.

How to use masking fluid in watercolour painting

This post is going to focus on "Masking Fluid" in watercolour painting, with picture demonstrations plus a few tips and tricks that I learned through personal experience.

What is masking fluid:

Masking fluid (or frisket) is a latex based liquid that is used to mask off areas of paper to make them resistant to water. It keeps the white of the paper or the previous colour that was painted on the paper intact. 

This fluid is transparent but usually is produced with added tint of colour to help the painters see where the mask is applied. This tint is non staining and does not affect the area underneath. 

When should masking fluid be used: