sweet life

i've been having more fun with some graph paper and a 6B pencil!

i hope this weekend finds you spending lots of sweet time 

with your favorite supplies!  xox

{supplies:  graph paper, 6B graphite pencil}

inspiration monday

i went out on a "retail safari" the other day and found this new grid paper pad.   i know it seems a bit kooky to get excited about a pad of paper with lots of non-repro-blue boxes on it, but i'll openly admit i absolutely love me a grid!  and once i added a new pencil to the mix, inspiration wasn't far behind…..

because before i knew it,  i was doodling fun letters and little swirlies…..

along with some whimsical little scallop banners…..

and other things straight from the heart.

but what surprised me was this little girlie.  i don't normally draw people, or pencil-shaded trees, and i don't know anyone named phoebe…..but here she is with her hair blowing in the breeze and a basket on her arm!

which just goes to show…..when you go on retail safari,  you never know where inspiration is going to lead you with all your new supplies!  

p.s.  and speaking of retail safari,
i also picked up the mar/april issue of Somerset Studio magazine…...

thank you, christen,  for the absolutely beautiful feature!!  xox
(i. am. SO. excited!!!)


{supplies:  bienfang grid paper, 6B uni pencil}

inspiration monday

here's an easy way to create a "hand-drawn look" without actually drawing anything!  you'll need your favorite rubber stamp, a fine-mist spray bottle, a watersoluble graphite pencil (i'm using an 8B), a paint brush or waterbrush, and a piece of paper that's suitable for water media (i'm using my strathmore visual journal for mixed media).

first, spray a very light mist of water onto your stamp.

while your stamp is still damp, rub the side of your watersoluble graphite pencil over the entire stamp.  the water will activate the graphite and transfer it to the stamp.

now stamp your image onto your paper.  it's no problem at all if your image isn't perfect.....just take your pencil and go over any lines or areas that need more graphite (adding these extra lines also makes it look more hand-drawn!).

now using your waterbrush (or paintbrush and water), go over your lines to activate the graphite......

you can spread the graphite out to give your artwork shadows and dimension!

and if you want to take it a step further, you can add your own touches with some boo-tiful letters, a fun border, and a little watercolor!  now you have a whimsical little piece of art that was created with graphite,  and looks like it was completely hand-drawn! 

{this project was created using a derwent watersoluble 8B graphitone pencil,
mini mister bottle, waterbrush, haunted house rubber stamp by imaginisce (i found mine at michael's), derwent inktense pencils,  strathmore visual journal for mixed media}

inspiration monday

i can't think of anything more inspiring than getting together with my art buddies and spending the entire day playing with letters.....and this past saturday we did just that!  we talked, ate a bit of chocolate, laughed, and learned a lot about graphite.   our instructor was eliza holliday.....and if you're a letter geek like me, then you probably know her work, and you're probably already drooling over the thought of her gorgeous, gorgeous letterforms!  

eliza taught us a lot about shading and blending......

and then she encouraged us to really play for a while.
{this started out as a capital letter A......i'm not really sure what it is now, but i think he's kind of cute.....in a strange-creature-on-two-wheels kinda way.}

this was the best saturday i've spent in a long, long time!  many hugs to eliza and my sweet special art buddies for a fabulous day of graphite play!  and thank you mr. yellow papermate sharpwriter #2 automatic pencil for providing so much inspiration!!

you can see eliza's beautiful hand-lettered graphite book here!