Tricks & Treats

Happy Halloween Everyone!!!

I've dressed up a bunch so far, and am going to the theater departmeent's annual Halloween show tonight. (Elicia wrote a script for the show, so double excitement.) And of course, when I can I have been a History Channel/PBS junkie and have been devouring their Halloween-related specials like mad. Mmmm, yummy.

Anyway, here's some fun Halloween-related stuff for ya in honor of one of my fave holidays of the year:

:: Pumpkin Carvings ::

These make me smile; I love clever pumpkin carvings.

:: BabyLondonStar Shines Bright ::

You know my bishies? Well, the above DeviantArtist does bishies too for fun, except they makes actual plushies! And what with it beign Hallow'e Eve and all, how can I resist mentioning Halloweentown Sora from Kingdom Hearts? (I'm not going to do a joke about how anyone who doesn't find him cute is "Heartless," because that would be L-A-M-E; but I couldn't resist mentioning the temptation.) I wanted Elicia do make plushies like these for our AB's, but she refused to, because she is L-A-Z-Y, so I will have to settle for pillows. But I'm glad someone somewhere is making the world a happier, plushier place.

:: Nightmarishly Cover-liscious NBC CD ::

I would love to be playing the new Nightmare Before Christmas special edition CD, but can't afford it until the earliest tomorrow, because that's when I get paid. So I will have to listen to the snippets at itunes of Panic! at the Disco, Fiona Apple, and She Wants Revenge, to name a few, doing covers of my beloved Danny Elfman songs for now.

:: I'm too Sexy for My. . . Costume???? ::

How sexy is too sexy for a Halloween costume? These articles allow you to weigh some of the intriguing opinions out there. Lots of people are commenting in op/eds and the forums at USA Today's site, with wildly different takes on the subject.

Personally, I think having a costume that is creative is much more important that one that is sexy. Too many of the sexy costumes out there—nurse, witch, maid—have been done to death, and frankly I find that boring. And I think people of every age can go too far—when you are over the legal age but are slapping on some saran wrap or teeny squares of fake fur and calling that a costume (I'm looking at YOU, attendees of our local university's Halloween bash), you cross the line from sexy to tastless, and Halloween should be all about the fun, not the skin. Young girls and guys buy the same costumes as us older folks, so while people should be allowed to have fun with their costumes, we need to think about what examples our costumes set. Mean Girls parodied it well. If someone's feelings of sexiness and worth are dependant on wearing revealing clothing, then they have huge self-esteem probs that should be worked out AFTER the Holiday.

My Work :: Part 20: AngstyBishy Roxas and Connage

Yosh! Like I said in my DA comments, the AB this week is a wee bit late, but I hope I'm forgiven. He was a cutie but a toughie! And I'm stil sick too; I'm very proud.

Okay, on to the goods: this AB was an overdue request by a couple of people, espesh Trish, and I was fast running out of excuses. The biggest one still left is that I have yet to play Kingdom Hearts 2, as we are still not finished with KH1 and I refuse to buy/play it 'till we have, out of principle. (We aren't much for gaming, if you haven't guessed, but we do love the KH'ses, yes we do. That and DDR are the only PS2 games we have; is that lame?)

Anyway, what I am trying to get at is that I couldn't accurately judge for myself just how angsty the Roxas truly is, which I hate, and also what costume he angsts out the most in. But I trust my friends so I decided to do him anyway, after a little research.

Everyone loves/cosplays his black Neo coat, but let's face it, in the AB style that would be freakishly boring to draw, ne? Solid black costumes I am avoiding at all costs. So I decided to do his much more colorful and interesting costume when he goes to the world in Sora's mind or wherever, so I chose that instead. Forgive me if the costume is actually from his post-angst mode, I can totally redo him if necessary! I've already promised Leeshee I'd redo Howl sometime in towel, goo mode, as that is when his angst reaches its peak, and who doesn't want to draw Howl shirtless? Crap, now I'm totally off-topic; that's what heppens when you (read: I) type at freakin' 2 in the a.m. Back to the post at hand, shall we?

I found a really good pic of Roxas facing front in full costume, so that and a couple of other printouts were my guide. Of course, his hair was by far the most frustrating; I redid it three times I was so frustrated. What clicked for me was remembering how I did Light's hair, taking the strands all the way to the scalp, and also by looking at pics of him from KH and wanting a more 3-D aspect to shine through. So I hope people like the hair, I really did work hard at it. It's still not perfect, but as long as people look at him and instantly recognize him as Roxas I can be satisfied, I guess. The hair was a pain to do in Illustrator as well; my tiredness plus excruciating details aren't a good mix. But I'm super glad I chose to do his fun costume; who doesn't want to get a chance to draw pseudo-chaps? All in all I think he was a fun challenge for me, but next time I'm sick I'll pick a much easier character to work on.

::

I talked a bit about the con we just went to at our Ello Studios blog, but I'll mention it here as well: over the next few weeks I will be posting all the notes I took at the con, especially the ones concerning drawing and making manga. (Wow, at a blog about making manga? Go fig! =) Sorry, sarcasm ending now.) So look for those posts coming here soon.

Yes, the "I Must Be Emo" song by the Hollywood Dead just came on my iTunes! Mmmm, now that's good satire. I think I'll let the song finish 'n then go to bed, FINALLY. Love Ya!

Ello Studios Banner

Hope this works. A banner and newsletter subscription banner for our CP site? Brilliant. We don't have a web site yet, so if you type your e-mail into one of the boxes, you can subscribe to a newsletter about what is new and happenin' over at our
CafePress sites. I promise your e-mails will not be used for sinister purposes, one because spammers are evil beings with a special place reserved in the deepest layers of Hell, and I plan to go to the other place, and two because I haven't the slightest inkling of how to spam in the first place. So there you go, totally safe. I think either of the two boxes will work.

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Drawing Manga :: Part 3: Deviant Artists Dish

As every DeviantArtist knows, there are some fab tutorials on DA and some gems in the journal sections; you just have to go hunt for them. Here are two about making manga that I really enjoyed.

:: Inking Tutorial by Messa ::

The video below shows how this artist inks her sketches with her trusty Wacom tablet. I do it pretty much the same way, but not as refined a technique. Again, there is no wrong way to Wacom, no defined process or technique or brush, but it does takes practice. I really want to practice making my technique for inking to stop looking Wacom-y and look like real pen, but that is tough, and to be honest there is beauty in digital inking, if done with a painterly touch. She has a whole series of these vids, including digital painting and so on. I have decided that I am an art voyeur; I LOVE watching people as they work, so I love these. There is something fascinating about the whole art process, no?




:: Kmye-Chan ::

An artist whose work I like a lot, giving solid advice in her journal about making art. Advice is also posted below, and good tutorials at her DA page.

::

First and foremost: I'm probably not the best person to give advice to beginners, since I'm mostly self-taught and I don't have a refined technique. So, yeah... this is not really a 'tutorial', but I receive more and more notes and mail to ask me what tips I would give to beginners... so I thought it would be more convenient to type all the useful advice I could give once for good and just have to point it out to people who ask, instead of re-typing it every time in a rather shallower way.

[And as, who knows, some of you might find this useful too, even though many of you are not beginners... I might as well post it here.
I'll keep a link to this journal in the 'Misc' section at the bottom of my journal for future reference.]

:Tips for beginners

Most of this is general advice. Everyone is different, and improves in different ways, so every of these tips might to apply to everyone. It's just... well, general advice.


+ Art supplies +

Good supplies are a key if you're trying to make nice artworks. It's very very hard to get acceptable results with bad quality supplies - actually, you have to be very skilled to get good results with cheap stuff. Good supplies can be a bit expensive, but it's a real investment that you won't regret.

On the other hand, art supplies will never, ever make the work for you. So basically, it's useless to buy some excruciatingly expensive, professional-quality supplies, if you don't know how to use them. Having a Wacom tablet, or Pantone markers, will not make your work become suddenly awesome if you don't master more basic medias and basic concepts of drawing. They're no magic wands. Don't fool yourself.

To make it short : use good-quality, easy-to-use, not too advanced art supplies first, and when you'll have mastered them, you'll proceed to something more advanced. That's how you'll improve best.


+ Be observant +

It's not as easy or obvious as it sounds. When you are looking at something, you generally consider it as a whole - but to draw it, you have to take it little bits at a time. You have to try and figure out how things really are, and that means trying to get a fresh look on things, which is far from being easy.

For example : colours and shadows. When you want to choose a shade for a shadow, anyone who's a beginner will just pick a darker shade of the base colour, making the whole thing look flat. Now look at something real. Is its shadow colour the same as the base one, but only darker? Usually not - it might have a twinge of green, blue, purple, grey... because it's 3D and reflects backlights from the walls, etc.

You need to observe and be as impartial as possible to be able to reproduce something.


+ Work on your basics +

I know, basics are no fun. But they're really something you will need to work on at one point or another, and the sooner the faster you'll improve. Without the basics, you'll soon be stuck anyway.

Work on your anatomy, your proportions, colour theory if you intend to work with colours, yada yada.
I can't stress this enough.
The old, worn-off tips might sound boring, but if they're still in use, it's because they're helpful. Always work from the most general shapes of your picture (general body forms and background elements) to details, never the other way (don't start a character with an eye and work around it, for example). It'll avoid you some painful proportion/placement mistakes. Use the old balls-and-sticks figures to draw proportionate and realistic poses for your characters. Reverse your picture to see its symetric and spot anatomy/proportion mistakes before you proceed to inking or painting.

And as someone said... "You have to know the rules before you break them". That's only too true. Stylizing requires skill, it cannot hide lack of skills.


+ Be patient and work hard +

The last and probably most important piece of advice.
It takes very long to improve, irksome as it is. We all start somewhere, though we might not all start fro the same point - and we don't all improve at the same speed. But with patience and hard work, you'll eventually improve.
So don't loose patience and don't get discouraged!


If you have any more questions, feel free to ask!

Manga Artists :: Part 6: Bill Watterson and Soup2Nuts Goodies & Advice

Yes, they are not Japanese OR manga artists; get over it. They are still inspirations both. Bill Watterson is still my fave comic artist of all time, and the info about starting your own cartoon courtesy of Whitney at the Candy is golden.

:: Calvin and Hobbes ::

Rare merch and drawings from Bill Watterson. Link found via UtterlyBoring.com.

:: Making Cartoons from Pop Candy's Friday Mailbag ::

I've got some cartoon concepts and would like to get them illustrated, etc. Just wondering how to start the process and where to go from here.—Cassi F.

For the answer, I approached the folks at Soup2Nuts, a production company behind some very cool cartoons, including Dr. Katz and Home Movies. Here's some advice from Andre Lyman, the director of production:

"I'd write up the concept—synopsis with character descriptions (what is the story and who the characters are). Then, I'd find an eager artist from a local art school to do some sketches to go along with the text of the pitch. After the sketches are complete, I'd submit it to an animation production house or a producer or writer for feedback, revise and resubmit and repeat if necessary. The process can take some time and needs patience and persistence on the part of the creator."

Good luck—I really hope you take action, because the world can always use some great cartoons! Let me know what happens.

My Work :: Part 19: ES IST Fertig

OMG IT IS DONE IT IS DONE EST IS FERTIG!

I finally got the magazine to the printer!!!!!

I do this magazine at work, and even though it is supposed to be the main priority of me, our editor, and our photographer, other departmental things have been causing us to push its publication date back to obscene levels. But we've got it done and it is getting blue-lined as we speak! Okay, okay, so it is possible there might be a few changes, big deal. It is out of my hot little hands and hopefully the next time I hold it, will be when it is a glossy, happy, shiny little mag all ready for distribution.

The coolest thing about it is that I get to do illustrations for the articles when appropriate. Fun, huh? I really think some of them could be t-shirt worthy, if given half the chance. Here are some of the ones in this edition that I did, all in Illustrator:

:: Animal Cloning Article ::







:: Grass Gene Research ::



::

Because of the Magazine taking over my life after the Celebration, prepping posters and fanart for a con we are going to next week, and my inability to add more stuff to my plate, I'm not doing an AB this week or next. I will get my fanart up next week though. =) Host Club all the way, baby! Look forward to it!

And Happy Friday the 13th everybody! Ironically enough it is my grandparents' anniversary, and they were married on another Friday the 13th way back when. My grandpa had a disastrous incident with the wedding cake, but other than that it was a good day for them. They have been married 50+ years, so it can't be all that unlucky, can it? =)

My Work :: Part 18: Temari Fangirl

Woot! Am so happy to get another request off my back, this time asked for by Leeshee. It's Temari with a fun (and I hope not annoying) play on words. After all she is a fan girl, and if you download this or buy the shirt, so are you! How clever of us. ;p

Temari was trickier, as I wanted to capture her evil smile and make her like an AB but use a different concept.

And yes, we will have a shirt up at CafePress. I've been wanting to make shirts of my AB guys and gals available for a while, and I figure here's my chance. We (or rather I) are moving all the AB merch to a new AngstyBishy shop on CP, to make room for more ideas. And because we are afraid of copyright infringement and sue-age but really want shirts up and available for fans, all fanart shirts (AB and Temari) will be sold at the base price, meaning we won't make a dime off of them, we just want them available. We're gonna do what Glarkware does, and have a "Now or Never" type of shirt thing, (Maybe call it a "Hayaku Buy"?) where a new AB will be up in the discount tee section for one month only at a time. The ones requested the most will pop up more often, but I hope to make each one available over time. So Temari will be up for sale this month, woo hoo!

AB Weekend Update & Celebrity Dead-Match

Sorry I didn't get up an AB on Friday; the work project enslaving the past three months of my life FINALLY took place on Friday. Made little time to get anything done, but I worked extra hard this weekend and got one made! So should be up by end of the day, And by the way, it's not an AB but very close. And will be for sale on CafePress too!

In the meantime, please enjoy finding out your dead celeb soul-mate, courtesy of Biography. It's very fun and toungue-in-cheek.

It was a touch call narrowing down my 3 bachelors, but I have to go with Edgar Allen Poe. Talented, sensitive, nice, morbid, and mysterious? Check. Now if I can only get him to forget Virginia and keep away from the booze...

Van Gogh is runner-up, because I weep at his paintings and he too is sensitive, but he has those nasty mood swings and appendage-slicing tendencies which are not so attractive.

And who knew that I could end up with Rudy Valli? (I suspect it's because under all my feministic modern woman-ness, I'm actually very romantic and housewife-y, which apparently was what he actually wanted in a woman. But playing housewife while my hubby charms other women does not appeal to me at all.)

When I tried it again I also got Da Vinci as a soul mate, but wasn't he gay? (Actually, since I often get crushes on effeminate though not swishy men, that doesn't sound too far off my normal romantic patters; meh to this quiz being horrifically accurate.)

The site's writing was so charming, I posted the info about each of my main bachelor picks below.

::

:Candidate #1: Raven:
Hair: short and stylish
Body type: Amazingly Average
Location: Big City
Interests: Sefl-reflection, Family, fine Arts, Writing

Up Close with Candidate #1
My most humbling moment...
When my cousin and wife, the love of my life, Virginia, succumbed to tuberculosis. Oh, Virginia! A day naught goes by but I hear your sweet cry!

My greatest accomplishment...
There was this bird bothering me for some time, but I finally decided to write about it and ended up making a decent amount of money.

My ideal date would include...
After dinner slow and stately, as have been my dinners lately, we would sit and over coffee share our thoughts a little more. 'Til I'd note with fearful gasping, how your voice was gently rasping, rasping in a dusty tone, like Virginia long before. I'd have to see you... nevermore!

The celebrity I resemble most...
Harry Dean Stanton

If I could be anywhere at the moment...
At Virginia's graveside.

The book on my bedside table...
A collection of works by Edward Gorey and the first couple of volumes of the Lemony Snicket series.

The things I can't live without...
A novelty skull with a candle sticking out of the top (I forget who gave it to me); my cameo of Virginia

Fill in the blanks.
Madness is sexy...
melancholia is sexier.

In my home you will find...
An unusually new-looking brick wall, which you must never go near. A soft, moist spot on the floorboards, which you must keep covered by the rug at all times. A black cat, which you must feed regularly lest he torment you with the madness-inducing mews of hell. I call him Fluffertop.

Make the First Move:
What will you propose for your first date?
IUnvite him to the cemetery to do tombstone rubbings
Make a friendship poster out of posterboard and photograpohs cu out of magazines

Edgar Allan Poe responds...
"Why, why, oh why must you haunt my waking nightmares with your presence? I shall go mad. Madness! It consumes me! I must give in and agree to see you, or else I shall never find peace."

What your date might be like...
You might end up at the local library, or you might end up at the local Goth club. Either way, expect Poe to be quiet, reserved, and a bit shy. He's an elegant speaker when given the opportunity, but will usually try to avoid standing out in a crowd. For a modest but more enjoyable evening, take him to a quiet, unpopulated spot-- for instance, a cellar or a graveyard.

:Candidate #2: Sunflowers:
Hair: short and stylish
Body type: amazingly Average
LKocation: Farm, Small town, Big City
Interests: Praying, Receiving Visions, Writing, Family, Fine Arts

Up Close with Candidate #2
My most humbling moment...
The whole time I was painting regularly, I was only able to sell one canvas.

My greatest accomplishment...
One of my paintings, in today's dollars, is now worth over $116 million.

My ideal date would include...
First off, I promise I will not cut off anything while we're together. We could check out some galleries if you're interested. We could also watch a movie (anything but "Reservoir Dogs").

The celebrity I resemble most...
Jack Palance with red hair

If I could be anywhere at the moment...
In Arles, Bouches-du-Rhone, France. It's the perfect place for an art colony, if only I could convince other artists.

The book on my bedside table...
"The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat," by Oliver Sacks

The things I can't live without...
Brush, blade, canvas, my gauze-wrapped and dried up bit of ear

Fill in the blanks.
A young woman walking down the street is sexy...
the burning essence of living color all around us is sexier.

In my home you will find...
A lot of canvas, my paints, and some fresh sunflowers... sometimes they help cheer me up.

Vincent van Gogh responds...
"You are as brilliant and vivid as the sun! Let us make devastating beauty together!"

Make the First Move
Send Him Depresing e-mail complaining that no one at work understands your vision.
Send him a copy of the 7 habits of highly affective people and invite him to a self-help seminar

What your date might be like...
Dates with van Gogh are unpredictable-- you might end up having a perfectly nice afternoon picnic with him in the countryside, or you might end up in a shouting match with him in his bedroom, dodging any small objects he might throw at you. Van Gogh is a very passionate man, so it's possible that you will end up on the receiving end of a manic diatribe if you're not careful what you say. Most importantly: hide any sharp implements when you're around him.

:Candidate #3: DeliciousSheik:
Hair: Short and Stylish
Body type: Elfish
Location: Everywhere and Everywhere, Small Town, Traveling, Writing, Fine Arts

Up Close with Candidate #3
My most humbling moment...
Being called effeminate by a cowardly anonymous journalist in a Chicago newspaper. Porca miseria! I will show him manly! He should box with me and feel my manliness strike him across the face!

My greatest accomplishment...
From nothing-- no fame, no money, no family in America when I moved to New York City at 18, no job-- I became the most famous sex symbol the movies had ever seen. And I did it without saying a word!

My ideal date would include...
Only the best and most romantic activities. I love to dance, so for me a date would not be perfect unless we were first able to join together and move as one with the music of passion. I would then enjoy reading to you some of my poetry while we listen to my recordings of romantic songs in English and Spanish.

The celebrity I resemble most...
He doesn't look like me, not so much, but I was the Brad Pitt of my day. I should have made "Troy!" It would have been much more believable.

If I could be anywhere at the moment...
In my house, with a devoted wife, beautiful children, and my adoring dogs. To the public, I am perhaps a bit of a rascal, but all I really crave is domestic bliss.

The book on my bedside table...
I find most books to be dull and lacking insight, which is why I write my own poems. In fact, I have published a book of poetry, "Day Dreams," which was a best seller. I like to read from it from time to time and think about romance... romance with you!

The things I can't live without...
Your love! Your adoration! The beauty of one such as you bringing light to my life every day! Also, exclamation points and forceful hand gestures.

Fill in the blanks.
A woman at rest is sexy...
a woman in motion is sexier.

In my home you will find...
My beautiful dogs, an Irish Wolfhound named Centaur Pendragon, and a Doberman Pinscher named Kabar.

What will you proposrs for your first date?
Tell him you’ve begun taking tango lessons and want to find a dashing young man to try your new moves with
Ask him if that’s a dance belt he;s wearing or if he’s just ahppy to see you.

Rudolph Valentino responds...
"Ah, cara mia! Your very words make me al dente with desire! I would be honored and delighted to escort you to dinner, and perhaps afterwards, if you will permit me, I can teach you how to dance the sensual Argentine tango Valentino-style. (Do not worry, we will leave our clothes on for at least the first lesson.)"


What your date might be like...
If you've ever thought that European men were sexy then you'll love going on a date with Mr. Valentino. He's passionate, at ease with himself and all women, confident, and a superb dancer-- and he has an Italian accent! Mr. Valentino can be a little hot-headed at times and might deal with a perceived offense from a stranger by challenging the man to a boxing match or other physical test--but you can easily distract him from such displays of machismo by simply asking him for an impromptu dance lesson.

::

Link found via the Candy ( I do go to other blogs, I swear!)