Category Archives: Copic Markers

Otherworldly Equines with Serious Ears

The Solstice Foal, 5″ x 7″
Copic markers, Staedtler and Prismacolor fine liners, gel pen

The Season of the Horse continues in fine form. Though, a very few attempts at  a whole horse body have been feeble at best. One of these days!

Guardian of the Glade, 5″ x 7″
Copics, fine liners, gel pen

Reference donkey. (I usually use a photo as a very general guide. The final product is not meant to look like the photo. I think most people know that!) I had trouble with the fuzzy ears, probably needs more shadow. Will need to do more of those.

Both of these have bits of wonky perspective, but overall they are rather happy magical equines. Happy Paint Party Friday to folks visiting from there! Loads of progress pics. Thanks for stopping by!

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Post 300, Themes and Schemes in Pen & Ink

The Smoking Fish, model #1
5″ x 7″ Copic markers, digital background

Themes I’ve been working on recently:

Here’s another witch, somewhat mummified.

The Ritual of Josephin, in progress
2.5″ x 3.5″ ink, markers, prismacolor pencil

Thanks for dropping in! Woooo, 300 posts!

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Silver Unicorn and a Pouty Witch, Copics

Moira, a Kladruber Unicorn
5″ x 7″ Copic Markers

In today’s installment of the Season of the Horse (a new project to improve my horse drawing skills), we have a unicorn based on a very old Czech breed, the Kladruber, found on Pinterest! The convex facial profile (rounded out instead of sloping inward), is an identifying characteristic of this breed. Here is an insanely adorable foal.

Hoping to get back in the swing of Paint Party Friday! Meanwhile, I’m still in early-Halloween mode with witch ATCs. This is Marciana, captured with a crabby scowl because her prized Fancy Chiggerwort spoiled. Bummer.

Marciana, in progress
2.5″ x 3.5″ Copics, fine liners, white gel pen

Thanks for dropping in! Still super busy at my day job. And I have to decide very soon about September’s 30 Paintings in 30 Days! Are you going to do it?

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If Witches were Horses

Mule Fae, 5″ x 7″, Copics, fine liners, white gel pen

When I started this post, I thought it was going to be witch and horse ATCs, hence the title. Then this fae mule happened! I’m leaving the post title because this is clearly a magical, and possibly witchy, mule.

The Mule Fae is horse-like creature number seven in the Season of the Horse project! The reference photo is a gorgeous red draft mule (whose nose is much longer. But I ran out of room.)

And here is a cat witch in glasses! I messed with the glass quite a bit and could probably stand to read up on reflective surfaces.

Uta the Cat Witch, in progress
2.5″ x 3.5″ Copic markers

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Giraffe in a Catalog! Also, a Horse.

I have landed on page 34 of the new Blick Art Materials catalog (aka Dick Blick)! So crazy!

Blick Art Materials summer 2014 art supply catalog, pg 34

Holy cow! This is an image from 2011, but it’s the one they wanted. I had almost forgotten because they asked me many months ago.

Maximillian Likes Opera
2.5″ x 3.5″ Copics, fine liners, white gel pen

And here, a very silly horse. Because my new project is The Season of the Horse! And many horses will be practiced.

[Also, I may have done something strange with my subscriber list, because occasionally I get people who say they do not get the emails, who want them! I’m not sure how to check whether I made things better or worse, though.]

One more thing! This board game looks super fun! And is so cute! It is one of those Kickstarter dealies. If you like games, you should totally watch the video. I only found it because the creator knows a comedian I like, and she mentioned it in her newsletter. :)

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Season of the Horse

Lilac in Progress
5″ x 7″ pen and ink, Copics

I finally decided that if I want to be good at drawing horses, I need to draw lots of horses. So please, if you have tips about horses, do not be shy about sharing them. Unfortunately I don’t have any or live near any, but I look at TONS of photos.

Past Horses, ATCs and an 8″ x 10″
Pen and ink, Copics (click to enlarge)

These are some horses from the last couple years. The unicorn on the bottom left, Thistle, is from just a few days ago.

In any case, expect lots of horses around here! Including donkeys, unicorns and ponies, steampunked and fancy-dressed. Maybe some carousel types. At the end I hope to have a Horses poster. In the meantime, there’s always the cats or the dogs!

Another reason horses (and unicorns) are a good choice right now is that I may have a table at a small fantasy con near Chicago, in November. And I need to make stuff to fill up my table. I think unicorns might go over well if I can manage to scrape off some of that cloying cliched reputation they have accumulated. Through no fault of their own, I might add.

The Season of the Horse is the fourth in a Slumbering Herd tradition of Projects, including 200 Maidens (started as 100!), the Art Card Dogs Project , 100 Cityscapes (currently at 26), and 100 Tiny Houses (just hit 50). Hooray!

Tons of progress pics below. Nice to see ya!

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A Witch and a Creep, Halloween Harbingers

Lucia, A Modern Witch. In progress.
Each 2.5″ x 3.5″ Copics, fine liners, white gel pen.

Lucia, made for a “Witches” themed swap. Very early for Halloween. It all started when I made the following to answer a request for a “creepy thing in a jar”. As you may know, creepy things are not my typical choice of subject!

Creepy Thing in a Bottle, in progress
Each 2.5″ x 3.5″ Copics, fine liners, white gel pen

Creepy can be fun once in a while. Might do more. Lots of progress pics!

Thanks for visiting!

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Copic Marker Art Cards, Fanciful Fantasy

You guys! This post was going to be about a tiny castle and a young witch, which you will find below. However, I am most pleased with this unicorn I made today, so I have decided to make her the star of this post.

Thistle in Progress
Each 2.5″ x 3.5″ pen and ink

Thistle is a rare horned pony of the Lilac Herd. Her mother is Shadowfast, a Wisemare. Thistle has shown signs of of the following Talents: Empathetic DiscHorse, Minor Raincalling, and Soothsense.

Horses are a favorite art subject but I am so afraid of doing them terribly that I get no practice at them. However, a unicorn was requested as a trade and I decided to give it a go. I think I went through five sketch cards, but she turned out not bad!

Fenrick’s Castle and Young Agnes
Each 2.5″ x 3.5″ Copics, uni PIN pens, white gel pen

And here we have a tiny house castle (belonging to Fenwick), made for an art card trade. I am fond of the mailbox. This tiny house is number 48 of 100 Tiny Houses!

And a young, somewhat stylish witch – very early for a Witches swap due in October. (I wish I’d left her eyes red but as often happens, I screwed about with them too much. Alas!)

Thanks for stopping by!  All horse drawing tips and suggestions welcome!

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Fancy Maiden and Fancy Mushroom, Pen and Ink

Red Gwendolyn, and Home of the Astral Gnome
Each 2.5″ x 3.5″ Copic markers and uni PIN pens

Two from recent themes – Fancy Dress, and Tiny Houses.

Still smack in the middle of busy season at work so less energy for art. Arrrgh! Hello to Paint Party Friday! Thanks for dropping in!

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There Goes the Neighborhood!

Four Little Houses
Each 2.5″ x 3.5″ Copics, fine liners, white gel pen

So WordPress (or my theme or a widget or I don’t know what) has decided to stop informing me when my blog gets a comment! I hope not to miss any but I may miss some. I mean, I won’t miss them forever, but I might miss them longer than intended.

The pair of houses at the top are named Lucy and Ethel. The architect’s signature, when building two houses on adjoining lots, was to name them after sweet memories from his childhood.

A bit of perspective on those left houses. Terrible perspective! But perspective nonetheless. I don’t mind that it’s terrible. I mean, I would prefer to know how to do it better, but one must start somewhere.

Hello to Paint Party Friday! Thanks to everyone for dropping in! I have a new shop!

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