It’s been a long time coming but I’ve finally turned some of my drawings and paintings into note cards. They are all 6” x 4” because that’s a nice size for framing.
The really hard part has been limiting myself to a dozen designs for my first printing. The following are now available from my Etsy shop:
Friday will be the third anniversary of my little blog. My, how time flies!
Three years ago, I graduated from Design and Arts College NZ with a Diploma in Communication Arts and Design (graphic design). I started this blog as a way of putting my student projects online ― and then I wondered what to do next:
There were graphic design jobs (logos, business cards, posters), a couple of research projects (when I considered becoming a children’s book illustrator), and I even entered a few design competitions (which I didn’t win):
Nothing motivated me quite like my blog, though, to experiment and really explore my options. In particular, there were the ‘Shoot it, Sketch it’ posts…
…the ‘Thank You’ posts…
…and the ‘just for the heck of it’ posts:
Two years ago, I started getting more serious about painting. I taught myself about underpainting and painted on canvas for the first time:
I began my ‘In the Style of…’ posts and was inspired by some of my favourite artists and illustrators to experiment and see things differently:
I was thrilled when, out of the blue, I got my first commission…
…and over the moon when someone asked to buy one of my ‘Shoot it, Sketch it’ paintings:
About a year ago, I opened my Etsy shop… and sold my first painting online!
2014 was also, rather astonishingly, the year I passed the ‘1000 followers’ milestone on WordPress:
Since then, it’s been more of the same, really ― I’ve painted and sketched, posted ‘Wordless Wednesday’ photographs and inspirational quotes, I participated in my first craft market late last year…
…and I’m still happily working from home as a graphic designer:
Phew!
Now I’m getting ready for my first big (proper big) art show… but I’ll tell you more about that next week. Thanks for reading : )
The brief was to design a business card to advertise a self-contained studio flat for rent in Cashmere, one of Christchurch’s prettiest suburbs. The flat is separated from the main property by a fabulous wrought iron gate. I was asked to make this gate the main feature of the design.
For the curious, this is what the gate and geranium sketch looked like prior to adding the red and green watercolours (painted, scanned and edited) in Photoshop:
And for those wanting to visit Christchurch and stay in a beautiful location with friendly hosts, here is the link to the Cashmere Road Studio Flat.
Dianne asked for her logo and business card design to be feminine with a certain ‘shabby’ or ‘cottage chic’ elegance. It also had to communicate the style and quality of her handmade jewellery, and to have girly and vintage elements without being overcomplicated. And yes, it had to be pink.
The logo earrings (based on the pair in the photograph below) are hand-drawn except for the ‘beads’ which are the D, A and O of a particular font. The vintage doily that completes the design was my grandmother’s. Yes, I am a magpie… after all, you never know what’s going to come in handy for a project.
Divine Adornments is also taking part in the Art & Crafts pop-up mini market. We are having two more this year: Saturday 13th and Saturday 20th December. Please visit my Facebook page for more information about these events.
I’m taking part in a pop-up mini market next week in Christchurch (NZ). It will be my first ever market! I know, I know… it’s about time. This is the poster I designed for the event.
We’ll also be popping up on December 13th and 20th ― perfect timing for a spot of last-minute Christmas shopping : )
One of my old sketches has been given a new lease of life. It is now the logo for community organisation the Thank You Club in California. I created the original image a couple of years ago to thank people for following and liking my WordPress blog. The words have been repainted for the logo (to keep the colours consistent), there is a new family of stick figures (the Bamfords) and I rearranged some of the original figures to accommodate the new layout. I’m very thankful that my little stick figures are being put to such good use.
Anna Cull ~ Art & Music 