Cover to Cover

Happy Tuesday to you! I am very excited about today’s posting because I get to tell you about a project that has been on the backburner for a little while now, but it is now something I can share…to a degree. I will be illustrating and formatting a children’s book!

The author is local and this is her first book. The book will be a self-published, 32-page, hardcover, children’s picture book.

Since this is the first book that the author has published, we have been learning about publishing together. Because this is a totally new endeavor for me, I thought I would share the research and process involved in illustrating, laying-out, and publishing a children’s picture book… Starting with my next posting = )

At this time, I would like to thank the individuals who have offered great advice on how to approach this project. Deb Festa, for introducing me to the author of the manuscript, Fay Sirkis, for teaching me how to paint digitally, and for sharing your layout, design and illustration experience; Susan Harrison-Tustain, for teaching me how to paint watercolor portraits and for the advice about how to approach the project and publishing; Karen Sperling, for your advice about self-publishing; Stephanie Roth Sisson, for your advice about illustrating books and publishers; David, Mom and Dad, for your unconditional love and support – THANK YOU!

And now, What’s on my easel…

I have completed the dog portrait. I mentioned before that it ended up being a digital portrait, but I printed it out onto Arches 100% cotton rag watercolor paper and added watercolor paint to it. It is the first time I have attempted this, and I must say, I like it! It added that special touch that makes this a one of a kind portrait!

The Tribute to Francis painting is coming right along. The yellow flower is there, but still needs refinement and finishing touches – these will be done AFTER the purple flower is completed. The purple Iris is started and here are a couple of photos showing the progression…



From the Jewelry Box…

In my last post I mentioned a necklace idea that was inhabiting my brain. Well I must confess, the picture in my brain is not at all how the necklace turned out. I don’t have a photo of it (in it’s current state), but suffice it to say that it WILL be remade!

So as not to leave you wondering if I accomplished anything in the jewelry-making area, I did throw together a pair of black and white earrings to go with another black and white outfit.



I’m not thrilled with the design, but as Thomas Edison once said…

Quote of the day…
"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." ~Thomas Edison

Another Blast from the Past...

I needed a Mom and Dad fix and spent a part of the weekend down in Southern California visiting my parents and sister. The visit was short, but sweet.

Once again my Mom sent me away with something from my past, but I’ll get to that after I share an update on…

What’s on My Easel…

First, the dog commission I have been working on is going rather slowly. There were some revisions made to the basic drawing, and I’m at the point where it will either be completed as a digital painting, or I will have to begin again to make it a traditional watercolor portrait…

I didn’t spend much time on the Tribute to Francis painting, so the progress is going very S-L-O-W-L-Y. I hid the purple flower, in order to work on the yellow one, and this is where I am.

I hope to have more to report on this painting soon!

From the Hope Chest…

I have no idea when I made these clay masterpieces = ) My Mom says there was a kiln at the elementary school I went to, so she is pretty sure I made them at some point during my K-6 years.

I have no idea why I made a dauschund…unless it was a beagle gone wrong. The turtle, I’m pretty sure was influenced by our ever present land turtle named General Patton. He hung out in our backyard and ate hibiscus flowers.

From the Jewelry Box...

It is hard to believe, but I have nothing to report today. I purchased the beads, but I just haven't made the next project yet. It is a bracelet for my great-niece, Drina. I learned that she makes bracelets, so I wanted to make one for her using her favorite light aqua color, and include one or more of the encouraging word beads that are so popular right now. I need to finish it by this weekend, so I'll be sure and post a photo next Tuesday.

Today’s Quote: “It took me four years to paint like raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child.” – Pablo Picasso

Why a Chicken?

Are you wondering why I have a chicken portrait on my blog header? Well, when my husband and I moved into our home 18 years ago, our neighbors gave us two baby chicks as a housewarming gift. Growing up in the city, I had no idea that chickens were for anything other than eating, but these chickens became pets and we loved them dearly.

The first two chickens were named Margaret and Alberta, after my husband’s two spinster aunts. They were wonderful, but eventually chicken heaven called Margaret and we were left with Alberta. We couldn’t have just one chicken, so we got another baby chick and named her Hope. When it was evident that Alberta wasn’t long for this world we got a baby chick and named her Faith. So, there we were with Faith, Hope and Alberta. It turned out that Faith was a sitter and would sit for days on end on her eggs in her nest. Problem was we didn’t have a rooster, so she sat in vain. We decided to “help” the situation out a bit and replace two of her eggs with fertilized eggs. Unfortunately we couldn’t find any so we did the next best thing. We purchased two baby bard rock chicks. That’s when the fun began…

That night, my husband and I went out to the chicken house, removed a couple of Faith’s eggs and replaced them with the baby chicks. Faith slept through the whole thing. The next morning I ran out to the chicken house and waited for Faith to realize that she had two babies. Before long, she felt movement and as only a chicken can do, bawked a welcome to her new babies.

Faith was a great Mom and she and her chicks hold a special place in our hearts.

…and that is the story of the chicken portrait.

Pet Portraits

Since we are talking pet portraits, I thought I would share a recent commission...

Bob totally surprised his wife by commissioning a memorial portriat of their beloved Shammy. Bob was so excited about giving this gift to his wife, and I was thrilled to be involved in this special project. Bob had the protrait framed and presented the gift to his wife for Christmas. She contacted me after Christmas and her comments follow:

Dear Deborah I just wanted to tell you how much I loved the beautiful painting you painted of my Shammy. You captured his essence, and I feel closer to him each time I look at it. Thank you for all the hard work you put into the painting - I absolutely love it, and it means the world to me! When I received
it from Bob, there were many, many tears, but they were good tears. Thanks again, Margaret

It doesn't get much better than that! I just love painting portraits!