Be Mused Art » illustration friday

Illustration Friday – Ripple Project

Melia — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 02:12:43 +0000

This week Illustration Friday is supporting the Ripple Project. This is my first submission. I might have to make more, just because being able to make a bit of art to help out with the crisis that is affecting out Gulf Coast, helps me not feel so helpless.
Being a Texan and realizing how this will prevent my daughter from experiencing some of the fun I had on the Texas and Mississippi coasts growing up saddens me. If this takes as long to clean up as the Alaska spill did, I am not likely to get to take my daughter crabbing or build giant sand castles with her in the places I did those things as a kid. Maybe if we all pitch in a small bit at a time we can help this clean up happen in time for us to enjoy our oceans again and to see the sea turtles, coastal birds, and fish prosper again.

Engineering Dragon – Illustration Friday – Equipment

Melia — Thu, 20 May 2010 04:43:48 +0000

This week’s illustration friday theme was “equipment”, which inspired this cute little steam punk dragon.

Metamorphosis

Melia — Tue, 04 May 2010 03:00:16 +0000

This week’s illustration friday theme was “Cocoon”. So Saturday I worked on this little watercolor painting of a little fairy dragon’s metamorphosis. Then Sunday my huge german shepherd decided he needed a metamorphosis of his own, and has become a mama kitty.
A little 4-5 week old kitten with some minor health problems was discovered in our back yard by Wolfie and his response was to mother it. So we have adopted the cutest little beastie you have ever seen. She is right now sitting in an old check book box on my desk that is lined with an old washcloth. We are of course having to hand feed her a mixture of moist kitten food and kitten milk, and give her a couple different meds twice a day and do all the things kitty mommies are supposed to do. Although Wolfie doesn’t think that we do a good enough job at the cleaning part and washes her as often as he can. I am terrified that he will accidentally eat her since he is smaller than his muzzle and he can’t see what he is doing while licking her silly.
And of course you all want to see the little ball of fluff that has turned out household upside down don’t you? Here is Willow, our new baby.

Detective Draco – Illustration Friday

Melia — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 03:41:59 +0000

This week’s Illustration Friday theme is “Detective”. I went with that old detective novel style fellow with a rumpled overcoat and well worn fedora. I still want to paint him, and he is on watercolor paper, but first I have this crazy fairy cat idea running around in my head, that I haven’t figured out how to get onto paper. So I will chase the cat idea around before I get back t this. I at least need to have a sketch for those wings, or I will loose the idea forever. This is why I keep a sketchbook with me at all times. Not because I am industrious, but because I have a horrible memory.

Dancing Dragons Sketch and the completed Dip

Melia — Tue, 13 Apr 2010 06:24:52 +0000

This week’s illustration Friday theme was “Linked”. I really struggled to come up with something for this one. J kept rolling his eyes at all the ideas I ran past him. I guess it wasn’t so much being able to come up with ideas, but coming up with a good idea.
This was of course inspired by my elementary school days where we had to learn to square dance. Did anyone else have to do that, or is that just a Texas thing? Or maybe I am just telling my age and they don’t torture kids with that anymore. I mean making kids hold hands with that kid they had crushes on. I don’t know about you, but that made my 10 year old hands sweat, and was oh so embarrassing.
Well anyway, this is just a rough sketch. I really need to enlarge it so I can work on the faces better before I ink and add watercolor paint. Come back and maybe I will have it complete by the end of the week. Although since I have to paint my daughter’s room and prep for a new mural in there, I might not get to it this week. Hence the showing off of the sketch. Of course I will take photos of the mural as it progresses, because I have been asked to do a faux bas relief of Athena.
And as promised I have completed the Dip painting for you all to enjoy. Yummy strawberries. I need to go get some heavy cream just as soon as the replacement whisk for my mixer arrives so I can treat myself to some strawberries and whipped cream. ‘Cause that just looks good.

Dip- Illustration Friday – Finally Back To Work

Melia — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 19:32:07 +0000

Sorry it has been so long since I posted last. I have been focusing on spring cleaning. And it seems that I have a bit of an obsessive personality. Today K was out of school for Good Friday, so I had to take some time off to go let her play and run amok, and I took supplies to do some drawing while she ran off all that extra energy.
This was of course inspired by this week’s illustration friday theme “dip”. Strawberries are ever so yummy dipped in whipped cream or chocolate. Maybe I will have time to paint this for you all and post it here in a couple of days.

Subterranean Adventure

Melia — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 03:47:10 +0000

This week’s Illustration Friday theme is “subterranean”. So here we have a cute little dragon on a subterranean adventure. You will note that I have the illustration completed on Friday. That is because I was at All-Con all day and working on this cute little guy kept me busy in between talking to some fabulous web comic guys and wonderful con goers.

I will of course be at the con all weekend. For you poor folks that didn’t get to visit, I will try and post some photos after the con, and maybe even link to some of the web comics that I am being introduced to.

Down the Rabbit Hole with Dragon

Melia — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 20:15:45 +0000

This week’s illustration friday theme was “perspective”. And of course with all the Alice in Wonderland things around these days, my first though was the image of that rabbit hole.
Also this is the first time I managed to use masking fluid and not mess something up. I found the Masquepen at my local art supply store (Asel for those in the DFW area). No gunking up a brush, better control, and no torn paper.

Dragon Seeds – Illustration Friday – Propagate

Melia — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 07:25:26 +0000

This week’s Illustration Friday Theme was “propagate”. With all the dragons I have been drawing lately, I have been propagating the species rather well. So we have a mommy dragon with her eggs or dragon seeds, propagating the species.
I had a lot of fun with this one and all the detail in the background and “floor”

Adrift – A New Dragon Bookmark- Illustration Friday

Melia — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 20:30:04 +0000

The illustration Friday them for last Friday was “Adrift”. With everything going on in my life with my mom’s hospitalization and trying to find her a nursing home, trying to get ready for the conventions, all the normal things with trying to raise kids the term adrift brought to mind one of my happier childhood memories and a new fantasy. I remember reclining in a giant inner tube with a can of Dr. Pepper floating in a lake drifting to and fro with the waves. Ever so often paddling back to the shore or boat after noticing that I had drifted too far.
Replacing the Dr. Pepper with a Tequila Sunrise and no responsibilities seems like heaven right about now.
That feeling of being adrift doesn’t bring a sense of panic like it did when I was younger. Now it seems like a zen calm, a fantasy.