Inspired by Charles Vess

Rachel bought me the illustrated version of Stardust last weekend.  It was illustrated by Charles Vess, who has this amazing way of drawing old, twisted, gnarled trees.  I love it!  So I tried my hand at it.

Autumn Forest Scene - After Charles Vess

As I was drawing, I kept thinking about this woodcut I had done years before.  These pine trees live a very long time, and get twisted, with a sort of spiral to their branches.  To achieve the Vess look, I basically did the same thing, but made the trees much smoother.  

Twisted Tree - Woodcut

I'm going to list it on my Etsy page, so keep a lookout! 

Featured on Bernat's Ravelry Page!

I haven't logged in to my Ravelry page in a very long time, since I've just not been in a yarn craft mood.  I did it on a whim today, and found a request from the Bernat Studio to feature my ugly blanket photo!  That means people who are not logged in to Ravelry can see it.  I'm totally geeking out about this!  I kind of felt bad about calling it the ugly blanket, but since it's not that ugly, I guess it should be ok.  Check out this pattern here.

It just goes to show you how important the photos of your work are!

Thanks to Jesse for asking me to make it in the first place! :)

New Painting!

You don't actually get to see the new painting, but you DO get to see its beginning.  Namely, this guy:

African Weaver Bird

Weaver bird here is going to be the main character in my new painting.  But he's going to be doing much more than make little teardrop shaped apartments out of straw.

What is important to know about these guys is that they build without anyone ever teaching them how.  That is, they have an instinct for it, and the female birds choose their mates according to who builds the best house.  Better houses = shelter from the weather, and safety from predators = baby birdies live, the species continues, etc, etc.

We are not unlike these guys, but we think we are.  Humans choose mates based on all kinds of material stuff now.  Big, nice houses are not excluded.  The difference is you don't necessarily have to build the house to get the girl.