Teacup sketches becoming vectors. I used pen and paper, then brought into Photoshop to clean up and then into Illustrator using Live Trace.
My Work: Blender Print for Neighborhood Walk Pattern Collection
Hi there! I am working on a pattern collection for fun thanks to Bonnie Christine's Skillshare Class and Workshop. I signed up for her "Create 3 Focal Patterns in 3 Weeks" workshop because I wanted to both learn from her more closely and to help myself stay on track to finish a few focal patterns.
The surface pattern design world is fairly new to me but I love it and am enjoying what I'm learning. Knowing how to design patterns will allow me to provide my clients with something unique for their brand. It will also give me the opportunity to create my own fabric or notebooks and it will mean I can provide you with new printables and downloads!
I used these simple motifs to create my repeating pattern.
And here is the final in a few colorways. This would be considered a blender print in a collection because it's fairly simple and will help tie the rest of the collection together.
Have a great weekend!
What I'm Learning: Drawing Chairs
Have you heard of Lisa Congdon? I first learned about her a year ago when she was interviewed on the Say Yes podcast. I listened and was intrigued by her idea of passion projects, but then forgot about her until recently when I discovered she teaches classes on Creativebug (which is my new favorite discovery...online art classes from accomplished artists).
Lisa is an artist, illustrator and author who also happens to be a great teacher. I'm currently taking her 31 Things to Draw class and really appreciate the way she encourages drawing because she shows her style and gives tips but also makes me feel like she’s giving me permission to try my own thing. Which is obviously the point of art, but sometimes it’s hard to think beyond what someone is showing me if I don’t feel like my skills are strong.
She has 31 prompts for 31 days and she gives a 3-minute lesson on how she draws the item. Her day 3 prompt is chairs, which are difficult. Lisa recommends drawing them for 20-minutes, even if it's the same style chair, to get comfortable with the 3-D aspect of chairs and I’m telling you, it worked. I chose to draw the same style chair (copying one of her styles), and it was so really frustrating until the twentieth time when I realized that what I drew actually looked like a chair. Success! I have a long way to go but was excited that the dedicated time and consistency paid off.
You’ll see my sketches are a mess...yikes. But I took the one that came out best, digitized it, and created a pattern. If you’re looking to spend 30-min a day on something creative, I recommend signing up for a free trial on Creativebug and finding a class that speaks to you. Have fun!
Free Printable: Navy Heart Print
Navy and hearts make me think of my mom. When I was growing up, she often decorated with both—and I thought it was so cool and so "her". Today I'm giving you a navy heart printable that I was planning to share around Valentine's Day, but time got away from me. I hope you print it and frame it, and I hope when you look at it you think about your mom and smile.
Note: I recommend printing on high quality card stock. Size is 8.5x11 but can be cut down to fit an 8x10 frame if preferred. Printable is for personal use only. Not for resale or distribution. Copyright Amanda Gomes | Delighted CreativeCo.